Peace & Justice

Photo: Indian Flag at the Red Fort, Delhi. CC BY-SA 2.0

Secularism Is the Principle That Binds India Together

Viewpoint by Dr Ram Puniyani

This article is the 12th in a series of joint productions of South Asian Outlook and IDN-InDepthNews, the flagship of the International Press Syndicate. The writer is a former professor of biomedical engineering and former senior medical officer affiliated with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (now Mumbai).

NEW DELHI (IDN) — India got independence from British colonial rule on August 15, 1947 after a long struggle which was inclusive and had plural dimensions. The Foundation of Indian Constitution is Liberty, Equality, Fraternity and Justice. The values of secularism are deeply ingrained all through and particularly in Articles 14, 19, 22, and 25. It gives us freedom of religion, to practice, preach and propagate the same.

: Suresh Jaura; OPINION; 19 March 2021

Photo: The International Criminal Court (ICC) in session. Credit: Peter Dejong | ICC

The ICC Is Now an Important Weapon to End War and Crimes Against Humanity

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*

LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Uphill work, outlawing war crimes.

The arrest in London of the former Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet, accused of inflicting widespread torture, was a bolt from the blue. Not even the most well-informed human rights supporters considered it a possibility. It can be said with near certainty that it never crossed the mind of senior members of the British judiciary, who were soon to be landed with untangling its legal intricacies.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 16 March 2021

Photo: Counterintelligence in Mozambique and DRC. Source: Strategic Intelligence

U.S. Steps Up Counterterrorism in Mozambique and the DRC

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — U.S. counterterrorism officials are stepping up their activities in Africa, addressing the expansion of violent extremism on the continent.

Two previously unlisted insurgent groups identified as foreign terrorist organizations operating in Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been slapped with sanctions along with their leaders.

: Global Information Network; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 15 March 2021

Image credit: United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).

Afghan Women's Voices on Peace Heard with UN Mission's Backing

By Devinder Kumar

NEW DELHI | KUNDUZ (IDN) — While the UN Security Council on March 14 "condemned in the strongest terms" the alarming number of attacks deliberately targeting civilians in Afghanistan, women activists were over several days knocking on doors in Kunduz, posing two questions to their relatives, neighbours and fellow residents of the city: “What does the peace process mean to you? How do you see your role in it?”

The members of the Security Council expressed their deep concern regarding the increase of these targeted attacks in the months following the start of the Afghanistan peace negotiations on September 12, 2020.

: Devinder Kumar; SUSTAINABILITY; Gender Equality; 14 March 2021

Photo: United Nations Headquarters in New York City, view from Roosevelt Island. CC BY-SA 3.0

A Campaign Plans ‘Global Primaries’ for the UN Chief's Post

The goal of the campaign is to democratize the selection process and give António Guterres a viable candidate to run against.

By Stéphanie Fillion*, Passblue

NEW YORK (IDN) — A new grass-roots campaign, called #Forward, is launching open, digital global primaries to find a “people-backed” candidate to run for United Nations secretary-general this year, for a five-year term starting in 2022. The campaign aims to make the selection process more transparent and democratic while also attracting more attention to the election itself.

: UN Bureau; UN INSIDER; 13 March 2021

Photo: Dorji Wangchuck, Bhutanese communication scholar and filmmaker, pleaded for 'Middle Path Journalism' instead of adversial journalism. Credit: Dr Kalinga Seneviratne.

Buddhists Map A New Paradigm for Dev. Communication

By Krishan Dutta

BANGKOK (IDN) — A group of Buddhist economists and communication scholars from Asia are embarking on a mission to redefine the development communication paradigm using concepts from the Buddhist philosophy.

A webinar held earlier this month organized by Lotus Communication Network (LCN) in association with the Institute of Asian Studies (IAS) at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok and Delhi-based International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) discussed how ‘sufficiency economics’ (sometimes referred to as ‘Buddhist Economics’) and ‘middle path journalism’ could be incorporated into a new development communication paradigm.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 12 March 2021

Photo credit: The Daily Outlook Afghanistan

Detoxracy: The Current Challenge to Democracy in America

Viewpoint by Bill Dahl*

QUERETARO, Mexico (IDN) — Detoxification is essential to human life. Every cell of the human body must routinely detoxify. From the cellular level, these toxins are transported to our organs of elimination—the kidney and liver, to be processed and expelled. Organizations, institutions and governments also become toxic and must purge these life-threatening poisons.

Culminating in the siege of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, the world has witnessed the fact that democracy in America is under siege. It has become toxic. This article examines the challenge to detoxify democracy in America; a process I refer to as detoxracy.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 11 March 2021

Photo: Tigray forces. Source: Tufts University.

Keeping an Eye on The Situation in Tigray War

By Reinhard Jacobsen

BRUSSELS (IDN) — The midnight of November 3-4, 2020 witnessed the unleashing of the armed conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia in the Horn of Africa. For nearly a fortnight there was a communication blackout until on November 17 the Europe External Programme with Africa (EEPA) launched a daily situation report.

March 10 marked the 100th edition of its publication, which has been following the chain of events of the war in Tigray. A close look at the situation reports reveals that the continuing war is regional, has been so from the start and that it had been planned as such.

: Reinhard Jacobsen; THE WORLD; Horn of Africa; 11 March 2021

Photo: The UN Human Rights Council meeting room in Geneva. Credit: ohchr.org

Indian Dilemma Over UNHRC Resolution on Sri Lanka

Viewpoint by Sugeeswara Senadhira

COLOMBO (IDN) — New Delhi is in an unenviable situation over the UNHRC (United Nations Human Rights Council) resolution on Sri Lanka as it would not be in India’s long-term interest to pave way for the international body to be provided with an opportunity to directly interfere in an internal affair of a member of the world community, especially a country in South Asia, where India is the superpower.

: Opinion Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 10 March 2021

Collage: Photos of Senegal President Mackey Sall, the Republic of Congo Denis Sassou Nguesso, and President Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea.

Attempts for Political Change in Senegal and in the Republic of Congo — Army Barracks Blast in Oil-Rich Equatorial Guinea

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — Calm has abandoned Senegal, a country in West Africa. The young people are rising up against the "wealth hoarding" political class. In Central Africa, the Republic of Congo, the opposition is seething as the 77-year-old President seeks another term. In another Central African country, Equatorial Guinea, a series of four explosions in the commercial hub, Bata, left a huge plume of smoke hanging over the city. Some 20 have reportedly died.