minority

Pakistan, a nation?

Right from the time of Independence, Pakistan has been troubled. The country’s psyche has been scarred since it emerged from the turmoil and bloodletting of Partition. Further trauma was in store when, in 1971, the eastern wing broke away, calling into question the very basis – ostensibly, religion – on which Pakistan was established. Today, the evolution of a composite Pakistani nationalism is being stringently challenged by a spectrum of sub-nationalisms. Read Himal’s cover (...) read

Building Stone Scarecrows

Nonviolent rights activits in Gujarat are being branded maoists and jailed, reports Parvaiz Bukhari. Dangs is the smallest and perhaps the most scenic Adivasi district of Gujarat. As you soak in the beauty and breathe the fresh air, Ashish Pawar, a young Adivasi activist acting as a guide, struggles to explain why his “god”, activist Avinash Kulkarni, who has been branded a Maoist by police, was arrested. Fearing a similar fate for himself, he adds, “I don’t even understand what Naxalism or (...) read

Bargaining in a labour regime

Up-country Tamil plantation workers in Sri Lanka remain a subjugated community, treated as little more than bonded labour. The current political foment includes opportunities for change. Read more read

China: Detainees ‘Disappeared’ After Xinjiang Protests

The Chinese government should immediately account for all detainees in its custody and allow independent investigations into the July 2009 protests in Urumqi and their aftermath, Human Rights Watch said in a new report on enforced "disappearances" released today. The 44-page report, "‘We Are Afraid to Even Look for Them’: Enforced Disappearances in the Wake of Xinjiang’s Protests," documents the enforced disappearances of 43 Uighur men and teenage boys who were detained by Chinese security (...) read

Neither War Nor Peace

> The Future Of The Cease-Fire Agreements In Burma

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the first cease-fire agreements in Burma, which put a stop to decades of fighting between the military government and a wide range of ethnic armed opposition groups. These groups had taken up arms against the government in search of more autonomy and ethnic rights. The military government has so far failed to address the main grievances and aspirations of the cease-fire groups. The regime now wants them to disarm or become Border Guard Forces. (...) read

India’s Historic Gay Ruling

> By Ranjita Biswas

A day after the Delhi High Court’s landmark judgment to overturn a colonial law that criminalised homosexuality, Indians expressed mixed reactions to the verdict. After almost 150 years of introduction of Section 377, a law of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) which describes same-sex relationships as an "unnatural offense", the Delhi High Court overturned the law on July 2, ruling that gay sex between consenting adults would no longer be unlawful. "Homosexuals in the country now have the right (...) read

Indigenous people and minorities: a global and historic assault

> IRIN

http://www.irinnews.org/webspecials/ (...)

“In every world region, minorities and indigenous peoples have been excluded, repressed and, in many cases, killed by their governments," said Mark Lattimer, executive director of the nongovernmental organisation Minority Rights Group International (MRG) at a press conference in January 2006. The event was the launch of the first edition of The State of the World’s Minorities Report, compiled by MRG with the assistance of various United Nations agencies.
What faces indigenous people and minorities today is not at all new. Throughout human history, the cultures and livelihoods - even the existence - of indigenous peoples have been endangered whenever dominant neighbouring peoples have expanded their territories or settlers from far away have acquired new lands by force. Despite claims that the world has entered a new era of human rights and democratic representation, this process of attrition and discrimination continues today.  read