Often considered a “taboo” or “uncomfortable” subject, sexual assault and enslavement is rarely covered as much as it should be in the media. Sexual enslavement and abuse of women is one of the continuing tragedies in the world today. Especially in LDC’s and other areas where gender empowerment is lacking, women face these problems every day without any notice from… Read more »
The UK’s service sector helped the economy to grow faster than expected in the three months after the Brexit vote, official figures have indicated. The economy expanded by 0.5% in the July-to-September period, according to the Office for National Statistics. That was slower than the 0.7% rate in the previous quarter, but stronger than analysts’ estimates of about 0.3%. “There… Read more »
Two Yazidi women who escaped sexual enslavement by so-called Islamic State (IS) in Iraq have won Europe’s top human rights award, the Sakharov prize. Nadia Murad Basee and Lamiya Aji Bashar were among thousands of Yazidi girls and women abducted by IS militants and forced into sexual slavery in 2014. But both survived and now campaign for the Yazidi community…. Read more »
President Vladimir Putin’s assurance that Russia does not plan to attack any other country will not change many minds here at the Nato headquarters in Brussels. They will simply point to the seizure of the Crimea and the Russian military’s continuing support for the rebels in eastern Ukraine as a sure sign of Moscow’s growing assertiveness. Mr Putin also says… Read more »
Historic buildings in central Italy have been badly damaged by two strong earthquakes that forced hundreds of residents out of their homes. It was “miraculous” no deaths had been reported, Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said. Dozens of people were treated for shock or light injuries. Rescue teams have been struggling to reach some areas but officials say the situation is… Read more »
Hungary’s media for the past four months has been plagued with negative advertisements concerning migrants and those seeking asylum. This anti-migrant sentiment, often including xenophobic statements, was encouraged by the Hungarian Government including Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The country was asked to host a small amount of 1,294 migrants fleeing war in their own countries. Rather than accept this request… Read more »
This weekend the Hungarian government held its anti-migrant referendum, asking people if the European Union should be able to require it to house asylum seekers from overwhelmed Greece and Italy. The country had been asked to find a home for 1,294 people who’ve fled war—a miniscule number considering its population of 10 million. But rather than accept it, the Hungarian… Read more »
When German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived in Dresden on October 3 to celebrate the twenty-sixth anniversary of the reunification of Germany, she was greeted with both cheers and insults. Some demonstrators shouted at her to resign, others applauded her. Security was extremely tight. Merkel and German President Joachim Gauck, both of whom grew up in East Germany, endured the insults…. Read more »
Russia said yesterday (3 October) that it would like to see a woman as the next UN secretary general and would back a candidate from Eastern Europe. Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, whose country holds the Security Council presidency this month, also said a formal vote to pick a successor to Ban Ki-moon could happen soon.
ROME — Turkey is exiting the European Union’s Creative Europe program which supports the arts, including film and TV — a surprise move that comes as relations between the Turkish government and the E.U. become increasingly strained. In 2015, Turkey joined the ranks of non-E.U. member countries allowed to tap into Creative Europe’s 1.46-billion-euro fund ($1.56 billion) to support culture and the… Read more »