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Category: Police

  • Las Vegas police deny local outlet access to email press release list

    The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department refused on July 10, 2024, to include a freelance journalist and a local video news outlet that relies on stringers on its email list for notifications of press conferences.

    Doug Roberts, a freelance video journalist for Las Vegas Live, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he has been trying for two years to get on the email list and has been barred from attending three press conferences.

    The email list is primarily used to alert journalists about news briefings on developing crime stories, often held near the crime scenes, Roberts explained to the Tracker. He has missed some events, he said, but has been getting by with help from other journalists who share the information with him. Some have even taken his camera into the news conferences when he has been barred from entering.

    “We’ve basically been getting by without being added to that list just because of the relationships that we’ve built with other people in the industry,” Roberts said. “Luckily they’re seeing us little guys being discriminated against so they’re helping us.”

    In one instance, which Roberts recorded on a body cam and shared with the Tracker, a police public information officer denied him access to a June 26, 2024, press conference on the sidewalk. When he said it was a public space, she moved the press conference inside the police tape, excluding him.

    Roberts wrote police a letter on June 27 seeking inclusion on the email distribution list, explaining that he is affiliated with both Las Vegas Live and OnScene.tv, a video distribution company. He wrote his request on letterhead from Live Core Productions, the company that he created for his freelance work. He sought inclusion on the list for Las Vegas Live, OnScene.tv and Live Core Productions.

    In a response written by a lawyer for the department on July 10, Las Vegas police denied Roberts’ request, citing a Nevada statute that says criminal history information must be provided to “any reporter or editorial employee who is employed or affiliated with a newspaper, press association or commercially operated, federally licensed radio or television station.”

    The letter stated that Roberts’ Live Core was not “a ‘press association’ or any other type of news media.” It didn’t address Las Vegas Live or OnScene.tv, but police didn’t add them to the list.

    In the letter, the police argued that a press association had a limited definition, such as The Associated Press, which is a worldwide news cooperative.

    “As such, LVMPD may not disseminate criminal history information to Live Core therefore and must exclude Live Core from media briefings,” the letter said.

    The police department’s public information office didn’t respond to the Tracker’s repeated phone calls and emails requesting comment.

    The Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press wrote a letter to the police department on behalf of freelance reporters on July 22.

    “The protections of the First Amendment apply equally to traditional and non-traditional journalists and news organizations, including freelance reporters and stringers,” the letter said.

    It pointed out that the Nevada Supreme Court, in interpreting the state’s reporter shield law, “clarified that courts ‘are not required to make a fortress out of the dictionary,’ and explained that these protections extend to journalists, including bloggers.”

    Roberts filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the police department and received the email distribution list in redacted form. It includes more than 100 email addresses, some for online-only publications, such as tabloid entertainment news TMZ.

    Roberts said that his exclusion from the email list and briefings has a chilling effect, because other journalists see that police could restrict access to them, too.

    “I think that the media in Las Vegas is not being critical of the police, or they’re not doing their job in terms of holding the police accountable because they become reliant upon the police for information and for leads and for stories,” Roberts told the Tracker. “And if they become critical of police, they might end up in the same boat that we are.”


    This content originally appeared on U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database and was authored by U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • From bows and arrows to assault rifles: How the rules of PNG tribal wars have changed

    Warning: This report discusses graphic details of tribal violence in Papua New Guinea.

    SPECIAL REPORT: By Scott Waide, RNZ Pacific PNG correspondent

    The nauseating stench of dried blood hung in the air as we arrived in Karida village, a few kilometers outside of Tari in Papua New Guinea’s Hela province.

    Through the landcruiser window, I could see two men carrying a corpse wrapped in blue cloth and a tarpaulin. They were walking towards the hastily dug graveyard.

    This was July 2019.

    A longstanding tribal fight by various factions in the Tagali area of the Hela province had triggered this attack. Several armed men came at dawn. The residents, mostly women and children, bore the brunt of the brutality.

    The then Provincial Administrator, William Bando, advised us against travelling alone when we arrived in Tari. He requested a section of the PNG Defence Force to take us to Karida where the killings had happened less than 24 hours before.

    Two men carrying the corpse, hesitated as we arrived with the soldiers. One of the soldiers ordered the men to disarm. The others who carried weapons fled into the nearby bush.

    On the side of the road, the bodies of 15 women and one man lay tightly wrapped in cloth. The older men and women came out to meet the soldiers.

    The village chief, Hokoko Minape, distraught by the unimaginable loss, wept beside the vehicle as he tried to explain what had happened.

    “This, I have never seen in my life. This is new,” he said in Tok Pisin.

    Complexity of tribal conflicts and media attention
    For an outsider, the roots of tribal conflicts in Papua New Guinea are difficult to understand. There are myriad factors at play, including the province, district, tribe, clan and customs.

    But what’s visible is the violence.

    The conflicts are usually reported on when large numbers of people are killed. The intense media focus lasts for days . . . maybe a month . . . and then, news priorities shift in the daily grind of local and international coverage.

    Some conflicts rage for years and sporadic payback killings continue. It is subtle as it doesn’t attract national attention. It is insidious and cancerous — slowly destroying families and communities. In many instances, police record the one off murders as the result of alcohol related brawls or some other cause.

    The tensions simmer just below boiling point. But it affects the education of children and dictates where people congregate and who they associate with.

    Although, the villagers at Karida were not directly involved in the fighting, they were accused of providing refuge to people who fled from neighboring villagers. The attackers came looking for the refugees and found women and children instead.

    The source explained military guns are a fairly recent addition to tribal fighting.
    According to a source, military guns are a fairly recent addition to tribal fighting in Papua New Guinea. Image: RNZ

    The ‘hire man’ and small arms
    Over the next few weeks, local community leaders drew attention to the use of “hire men” in the conflicts. They are mercenaries who are paid by warring tribes to fight on their behalf. Their most valued possessions are either assault rifles or shotguns paid for by political and non-political sponsors.

    The Deputy Commissioner for Police responsible for specialist operations, Donald Yamasombi, who has personally investigated instances of arms smuggling, said the traditional trade of drugs for guns along the eastern and southern borders of Papua New Guinea is largely a thing of the past.

    “People are paying cash for guns. They are bringing in the weapons and then legitimising them through licensing,” Yamasombi said. “The businessmen who fund them actually run legitimate businesses.”

    The involvement of political players is a subject many will state only behind closed doors.

    In the highlands, the hire men are a recent addition to the complex socio-political ecosystem of tribal and national politics. Political power and money have come to determine how hire men are used during elections. They are tools of intimidation and coercion. The occupation is a lucrative means of money making during what is supposed to be a “free and fair” electoral process.

    “Money drives people to fight,” Yamasombi said. “Without the source of money, there would be no incentive. There is incentive to fight.”

    Rules of war
    At the end of elections, the hire men usually end up back in the communities and continue the cycle of violence.

    In February, Papua New Guineans on social media watched in horror as the death toll from a tribal clash in Enga province rose from a few dozen to 70 in a space of a few hours as police retrieved bodies from nearby bushes.

    The majority of the men killed were members of a tribe who had been ambushed as they staged an attack.

    Traditional Engan society is highly structured. The Enga cultural center in the center of Wabag town, the Take Anda, documents the rules of war that dictated the conduct of warriors.

    Traditionally, mass killings or killings in general were avoided. The economic cost of reparations were too high, the ongoing conflicts were always hard to manage and were, obviously, detrimental to both parties in the long run.

    Engans, who I spoke to on the condition of anonymity, said high powered guns had changed the traditional dynamics.

    Chiefs and elders who once commanded power and status were now replaced by younger men with money and the means to buy and own weapons. This has had a direct influence on provincial and national politics as well as traditional governance structures.

    Due to political by-election of Lagaip open, wabag the provincial capital of Enga is put into a caiotic and a standstill. All the business houses and the only BANK OF SOUTH PACIFIC are closed including the Wabag Primary school and main market.police and defence are out numbered and the situation is tense. By means of hear and say; there are and were people being injured and killed but yet to be confirmed. Also governor Ipatas' son's house was burned to ashes is also yet to confirmed. 14 November 2023.
    A roadblock is set-up in Wabag, the provincial capital of Enga. Image: Paul Kanda/FB/RNZ

    Tribal conflicts, not restricted to the Highlands
    In 2022, a land dispute between two clans on Kiriwina Island, Milne Bay province, escalated into a full on battle in which 30 people were killed.

    The unusual level of violence and the use of guns left many Papua New Guineans confused. Milne Bay province, widely known as a peaceful tourism hub, suffered a massive PR hit with embassies issuing travel warnings to their citizens.

    In Pindiu, Morobe province, the widespread use of homemade weapons resulted in the deaths of a local peace officer and women and children in a long running conflict in 2015.

    The Morobe Provincial Government sent mediators to Pindiu to facilitate peace negotiations. Provincial and national government are usually hesitant to intervene directly in tribal conflicts by arresting the perpetrators of violence.

    This is largely due to the government’s inability to maintain security presence in tribal fighting areas for long periods.

    Angoram killings
    Two weeks ago, 26 women and children were killed in yet another attack in Angoram, East Sepik.

    Five people have been arrested over the killings. But locals who did not wish to be named said the ring leaders of the gang of 30 are still at large.

    Angoram is a classic example of a district that is difficult to police.

    The villages are spread out over the vast wetlands of the Sepik River. While additional police from Wewak have been deployed, there is no real guarantee that the men and women who witnessed the violence will be protected if they choose to testify in court.

    Will new legislations and policy help?
    The Enga massacre dominated the February sitting of Parliament. Recent changes were made to gun laws and stricter penalties prescribed. But while legislators have responded, enforcement remains weak.

    The killers of the 16 people at Karida remain at large. Many of those responsible for the massacre in Enga have not been arrested even with widely circulated video footage available on social media.

    In April, the EU, UN and the PNG government hosted a seminar aimed at formulating a national gun control policy.

    The seminar revisited recommendations made by former PNG Defence Force Commander, retired Major-General Jerry Singirok.

    One of the recommendations was for the licensing powers of the Police Commissioner as Registrar of Firearms to be taken away and for a mechanism to buy back firearms in the community.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • French police ARREST JOURNALISTS covering anti-Olympics activism | Edge of Sports


    This content originally appeared on The Real News Network and was authored by The Real News Network.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Greasing Palms: The Thales Blueprint for Corruption

    It is a point verging on the trite: an arms corporation suspected of engaging in corrupt practices, spoiling dignitaries and officials and undermining the body politic.  But one such corporation is France’s Thales defence group, which saw raids on their offices in France, the Netherlands and Spain on June 26 and June 28.  The prosecutors are keen to pursue charges ranging from standard corruption and attempts to influence foreign officials to instances of criminal association and money laundering.

    It is clear in this that even the French republic, despite having a narcotics grade addiction to the international arms industry, thought that Thales might have gone just that bit far.  Some 65 investigators from the Nanterre-based office responsible for battling corruption, financial and fiscal offences have been thrown into the operation.  A further twelve magistrates from the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office (PNF), with the assistance of the European agency Eurojust, aided by Dutch and Spanish officials, have all been involved in this sprawling enterprise.

    The police raids arise from two separate investigations.  The first, starting at the end of 2016, involved suspicions of corruption pertaining to a foreign official, criminal association and money laundering.  The topics of interest: the sale of submarines to Brazil, along with the construction of a naval base.

    The second commenced in June 2023, with claims of suspected corruption and influence peddling, criminal conspiracy and money laundering connected with the supply of military and civilian equipment to overseas clients.

    Giving little by way of details, a spokesperson for Thales insisted that the corporation “strictly complies with national and international regulations.” It had “developed and implemented a global compliance program that meets with the highest industry standards.”  That, it may well turn out, is precisely the problem.

    The company propaganda on such compliance with national and international regulations is plentiful and fabulously cynical.  After a time perusing such material, one forgets that this is a defence outfit much dedicated to sowing the seeds of death, a far from benign purpose.  Group Secretary and General Counsel Isabelle Simon, for instance, is quoted as saying that the company, over the course of two decades “has developed a robust policy on ethics, integrity and compliance, which are the foundations of our social responsibility and the key to building a world we can all trust.”

    The anti-corruption policy, so it is claimed, is also “regularly reviewed and updated to reflect increasingly strict international rules and requirements on corruption and influence peddling,” a point “further strengthened by Thales’s progress towards ISO 37001 certification.”

    Typical of the guff surrounding modern organisational behaviour, the company wonks assume that workshops and training sessions are the way to go when inspiring a spirit of compliance.  There more sessions you run, and the more do you do, the more enlightened you become.  In boasting about its “zero tolerance on corruption,” we are told that 11,270 “training sessions on corruption and influence peddling were delivered in 2019-2020.”

    Other features are also mentioned to ward off any suspicions, among them a code of conduct intended to stomp on any corrupt practices, a “corruption and influence peddling risk map,” a disciplinary system, an anti-bribery management system and an internal whistleblowing program.

    The presence of such measures tends to be cosmetic.  Even defence contractors need to show an iota of principle and “social responsibility”.  But an iota is what it remains.  As Bernard Keane of the Australian publication Crikey observes, “bribery might be a tool in Thales’ arsenal for dealing with defence officials around the world, along with stringing out negotiations for its own ends and refusing to comply with request [sic] for tender requirements”.

    The last point Keane makes is of particular interest to Australian lawmakers, given the referral by the country’s defence department of a lucrative 10-year contract inked with Thales in 2020 to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).  The contract covers the management of two Commonwealth-owned munitions facilities at Mulwala in New South Wales and Benalla in Victoria.

    The referral was prompted by a report by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO), which found the extent Thales had wooed Australian officials in a skewed tender process.  A bottle of champagne, for instance, had been solicited by a defence official in the course of discussions, one that also involved providing Thales with confidential information. This all worked swimmingly for the official in question, given that he later joined the company.

    Thales also got what it wanted, effectively bypassing, with the blessing of the defence department, a competitive tender process.  This took place despite a 2017 offer from the global munitions company, NIOA, and the ANAO’s own recommendation to pursue an appropriate tender option.  All in all, the audit found that “Defence’s management of probity was not effective and there was evidence of unethical conduct.”

    This is putting it mildly, given that Thales had not only been involved in drafting the criteria for the request for tender (RTF) documents (some 28 workshops were held for that purpose between October 2018 and August 2019), but did so deficiently.  In October 2019, this very point was made by the Defence Department, which noted no fewer than 199 “non-compliances” by the company against the RTF.

    Apart from giving officialdom their time in the sun of oversight and regulation, chastening investigations into corruption do little to alter the spoliation that arises from the defence industry.  Defence contractors are regularly feted by government authorities, often with the connivance of the revolving door.  Yesterday’s officials are today’s arms sales consultants.  The defence sector, notably for such countries as France, is simply too lucrative and important to be cleansed of its unscrupulousness.  Even as these investigations are taking place to ruffle Thales, the Brazilian military establishment, by way of example, has happily continued doing business with the French weapons giant.

    In February last year, the defence group trumpeted securing a contract with the Brazilian Airspace Control Department (DECEA) for the supply and installation of ADS-B ground surveillance stations to improve the safety of commercial civil aviation.  The effort is not negligible: 66 stations to be installed in over 20 Brazilian states.

    On June 17, the company announced the acquisition by the Brazilian Air Force of the Ground Master 200 Multi-mission All-in-one (GM 200 MM/A) tactical air surveillance radars.  With much bluster, the announcement goes on to describe such radars as giving the user “superior situational awareness for air surveillance, as well as ground-based air defence (GBAD) operations up to Mid-Range Air-Defence (MRAD).”  Some gloating follows: “The contract signed with the FAB consolidates Thales’ position as a leader in the radar market in Brazil.”  One can only wonder how many palms were greased, and local regulations breached, for that to happen.

    The post Greasing Palms: The Thales Blueprint for Corruption first appeared on Dissident Voice.

    This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.

  • Taliban morality police detain Kandahar radio presenter Mohammad Ibrahim Mohtaj

    New York, July 29, 2024—Taliban authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Mohammad Ibrahim Mohtaj, who was detained leaving his office on July 27 by agents of the Taliban’s provincial Directorate of Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday.

    Mohtaj, a broadcast manager and presenter with the independent Millat Zhag radio station in the southern city of Kandahar, was transferred to an unknown location, according to a local journalist who spoke to CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisals, the exiled Afghanistan Journalists Center watchdog group, and the London-based news broadcaster Afghanistan International.

    “Taliban officials must immediately release Mohammad Ibrahim Mohtaj and stop arbitrary detentions of journalists and media workers,” said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Beh Lih Yi. “Afghanistan’s notorious morality police must not exacerbate a media crackdown that has been a hallmark of Taliban rule or heighten fears among Afghan journalists.”

    Millat Zhag broadcasts news and cultural programming for Kandahar city and surrounding districts.

    A report by the U.N. Mission in Afghanistan said this month that the ministry, which the Taliban set up after taking power in 2021, used threats, excessive force, and arbitrary arrests to enforce its rules around media monitoring, drugs, and female dress codes.

    Separately, culture journalist Sayed Rahim Saeedi was detained by Taliban intelligence agents in the capital Kabul on July 14.   

    Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment via messaging app, but The Associated Press reported that the ministry had called the findings of the U.N. report false and contradictory.


    This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Committee to Protect Journalists.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Labour shows it doesn’t give a sh*t about racialised communities as it announces MORE cops

    Given the massive fall in living standards that the UK has suffered, no one could be surprised that crimes like shoplifting have risen. The Labour Party government, however, seem to believe that many Britons are inherently criminal in nature, and they were all just waiting for the police to thin out so they could line their pockets with stolen cheese and cans of Lynx Africa:

    While promoting coppers as the solution to austerity is always going to go down poorly with those who understand the problems this country faces, Labour has somehow picked a worse time than usual to make the argument. After all, this was the week we all saw violent and anti-social behaviour being perpetrated by none other than the police themselves:

    Labour: the state of this police state

    Writing in the Express – an outlet which is even more anti-social than the Manchester airport police – Yvette Cooper said:

    Street crime is surging across the country, with a 40% increase in theft against the person in the last year alone. That’s being driven by crimes like mobile phone theft, which are often now committed in broad daylight because offenders have stopped believing there will be any consequences for their crimes. And antisocial behaviour is rampant in many town centres and communities.

    Yet shockingly the number of neighbourhood police on our streets has plummeted. Shamefully more than half of the public now say they never see a bobby on the beat.

    Is it that shocking? Even if you’re unfailingly pro-police, you’ve got to acknowledge that everyone has a mobile phone, and the police have automobiles.

    One of our writers broke up a domestic assault the other week and the police where there in minutes; would it have been quicker if they were waiting on some out-of-shape plod to sprint over from several streets away?

    Cooper continued:

    Action against antisocial behaviour has crumbled too. For example, the on-the-spot fines that the last Labour government introduced to help tackle antisocial behaviour have collapsed into disuse – just 7,000 issued in 2023 compared to 207,000 in Tony Blair’s last year in power, with 26 police forces issuing no notices at all.

    Yes, because obviously making people poorer will make them less likely to steal.

    Not to worry, though, because serious crimes like planning to draw attention to the looming climate catastrophe will still see a person proceeding straight to jail:

    Labour’s focus on the symptoms of disparity rather than the disparity itself has not gone unnoticed:

    Who filths the filth?

    People are pointing out that some of these cops aren’t the best people to put our trust in:

    Bear in mind this was just the past week. Here are some other police scandals and statistics from recent years:

    More police, more problems?

    Now, we’re not saying every police officer in the UK is a corrupt, head-kicking rapist.

    We are saying that bloating the ranks of this scandalous institution will not fix the structural inequality which is causing Britain to collapse in on itself.

    The police are no substitute for a prosperous society of equals, and Labour knows that.

    Their plan isn’t to reverse the collapse, you see; their plan is to reassure those benefitting from managed decline that the Great British rip-off will continue to enjoy state protection.

    Featured image via Sky News (YouTube)

    By The Canary

  • El Paso police TERRORIZE local family that sued for illegal arrest | PAR


    This content originally appeared on The Real News Network and was authored by The Real News Network.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • PM Luxon’s security cut short visit ahead of Palestine protest

    RNZ News

    New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s security detail has cut a media briefing short over protesters in Auckland.

    He was holding a press conference yesterday after a walkabout with police to discuss concerns with businesses in the CBD.

    Luxon was talking with media when one of his security officers could be seen coming into the business, actively looking around, before placing a hand on the Prime Minister’s shoulder and informing him they had to leave now.

    An RNZ journalist at the briefing said he understood protesters were en route to the location, but the prime minister left before they had arrived.

    According to The New Zealand Herald, they were pro-Palestine protesters.

    Police beat teams
    He was also joined by Police Minister Mark Mitchell, and Associate Police Minister Casey Costello and Retail Crime Ministerial Advisory Group head Sunny Kaushal after police added another 21 officers to their CBD beat teams this month, bringing the team to 51.

    It is part of a drive to expand the number of police visible on city streets, with the Auckland team expected to increase to 63, another 17 officers joining the Wellington team, and 18 more in Christchurch.

    Luxon said the expanded teams was a “great start, and more than a great start … it’s a collaborative effort and what you’re seeing here is that there’s really good join-up.”

    He said with cruise ships coming back to New Zealand, it was important to do better and it was important for people to feel safe.

    Patrolling Auckland was a collaborative effort, which was seen yesterday with numerous council and Heart of the City security staff also on the beat.

    “Police are obviously at the heart of the whole issue, but they are working really constructively with the security officers from the different retail complexes, with the city council . . . ”


    Prime Minister Luxon’s press conference cut short.   Video: RNZ News

    Beat policing makes difference
    Some business people Luxon had spoken to told him they had seen a difference when it came to on the beat policing.

    Mitchell said it was also about having all the govenrment and community agencies working together. He said the briefing he had seen from police showed crime was starting to trend down.

    “It’s only early signs, it’s green shoots . . .  I don’t have the numbers that I can give to you today but it’s numbers that police have been working on.”

    Coster said it was a long-term thing that needed to be seen having a continued effect.

    He said the deployment in the CBD was significant.

    “Not just our beat staff, but also our public safety units, our community policing staff, and we have a tactical crime unit focused on the central city as well.”

    “That’s a very big deployment, on a regular basis.”

    Luxon walked through town, stopping to chat with security officers.

    “It’s been really good, an announcement and then quick implementation, and you guys joined up together and you’ve been acting more as a tighter eco-system, is even better,” he said to one Britomart security officer.

    He also greeted pedestrians as he made his way up Queen Street, some shouting expletive expressions of shock at seeing him.

    Murray from Queen’s Arcade on Queen Street said the situation had improved.

    “It’s nice to see the police around the lower city CBD,” he said.

    “We’re all working together, it’s going to be difficult. We kind of expect the council to do their part in this too with some of the projects, perhaps, homeless people that cause us a little bit of grief, and are a nuisance to themselves and the public,” he said.

    He said rough sleepers were still an issue, and that pedestrians felt intimidated by them.

    ‘We expect churches to face up’
    Earlier, speaking to reporters, the prime minister said churches behind the faith-based care institutions needed to be “fully responsible and accountable”, and destruction of records “doesn’t sound right”.

    Yesterday’s standup followed the release of the Royal Commission’s report into abuse in care this week, a massive 16-volume report still being digested by the survivors and the public.

    “We expect the churches to face up to their responsibility,” Luxon said.

    The report noted the president of the Law Society had advised the head of Presbyterian Support Otago to destroy records of children in its care to protect the organisation’s reputation.

    Frazer Barton told RNZ Morning Report yesterday he had advised Gillian Bremner to “destroy them at an appropriate time — that’s not ‘go ahead and destroy them now’”. The files were destroyed in 2017 and 2018.

    Luxon said he had not been briefed on that but the government wanted to ensure records were available – including being available to survivors.

    “I haven’t seen what he’s particularly briefed or asked,” Luxon said. “All I’m focused on is actually responding to the recommendations, working with the survivors, making sure that churches are held responsible for the abuse that they’ve caused as well.”

    Asked to comment on his reaction to hearing that records had been destroyed, he said “it doesn’t sound good, it doesn’t sound right, it doesn’t sound what we’re asking churches to do.”

    He said the churches should front up and be held accountable.

    “We’re asking for them to be fully responsible and accountable.”

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Somali police arrest journalist AliNur Salaad on ‘false reporting’ allegations

    Kampala, July 26, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Somali authorities to immediately release journalist AliNur Salaad who was remanded in custody for 45 days on allegations of “immorality, false reporting, and insulting the armed forces.”

    “Somali authorities must immediately free journalist AliNur Salaad, drop all legal proceedings against him, and allow journalists to report and comment freely on public affairs,” said Angela Quintal, head of CPJ’s Africa program, in New York. “Somalia must end its practice of harassing and arbitrarily detaining journalists.”

    On July 22, police officers arrested Salaad, founder and CEO of the privately owned Dawan Media, and detained him at Waberi District police station in the capital Mogadishu, according to media reports and the Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) rights group.

    Those sources linked Salaad’s detention to a social media video, which has since been deleted, in which the journalist allegedly suggested that Somali security forces were vulnerable to attacks by the militant group Al-Shabaab because of their consumption of the narcotic khat.

    The Banadir Regional Police said Hassan had been arrested on allegations of “immorality, false reporting, and insulting the armed forces,” according to a statement published by the state-run Somali National Television.

    On July 23, Salaad was charged without a lawyer present before the Banadir Regional Court, which has jurisdiction over Mogadishu, and remanded for 45 days in custody pending investigations, SJS said on X, formerly Twitter.

    Attorney General Sulayman Mohamed Mohamoud and Deputy Information Minister Abdirahman Yusuf Omar Al Adala did not respond to CPJ’s requests for comment via messaging app.


    This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Committee to Protect Journalists.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • He sued police for an illegal arrest—then they came after him | PAR


    This content originally appeared on The Real News Network and was authored by The Real News Network.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Olympics turn Paris into POLICE STATE


    This content originally appeared on The Real News Network and was authored by The Real News Network.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Uganda’s generations divided after military police battle Gen-Z protests

    Military forces surrounded a group of young protesters hosting a government opposition rally in Uganda. Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni ordered the military police to take action against the protesters and prepare for a “chaotic” situation.

    Organisers planned the national demonstration for 23 July and spread the word across social media sites like TikTok and X. On the eve of the Uganda protests, security forces had also surrounded the headquarters of the National Unity Platform (NUP) – a rival political party run by musician-turned-MP Bobi Wine.

    Uganda protests: government repression

    Uganda’s military police have a poor track record when it comes to handling civil situations. Militant law enforcers have killed over 100 people since 2008. Moreover, the Museveni government has a history of violence towards another party, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC). Given this, it’s likely that Museveni’s order to militarise could once again quickly lead to harmful and possibly fatal incidents for those fighting for their voices to be heard.

    Studies have shown that nearly 50% of the national population don’t trust the Ugandan police. On top of this, a further 75% of people called Museveni’s National Resistance Movement corrupt.

    With a government that has a chequered history of corruption and misconduct, it’s understandable that many Ugandans feel this way towards the current leaders of the nation.

    Threats to safety

    Along with this, an X user recently leaked an alleged police book regarding authority preparations for the demonstration, that states “HAVE ROM FORCES & EQUIPMENT READY”.  The document insinuates that the police believed that the Uganda protests could have become a vehicle for bomb threats or terrorism.  The purported police report described tensions within the Ugandan police force, showing the severity of the possible dangers the opposition rally may face:

    President Museveni has dismissed many of the claims made by Ugandan protestors. Essentially, he told people to be grateful that the public is not ‘starving’ compared to nearby countries in similar positions. In an announcement on the situation, Museveni declared to the protesters:

    You are playing with fire, we cannot allow you to disturb us.

    Predictably, this has led to extreme backlash on social media sites such as X and YouTube. Posters have used the hashtag #StopCorruption to spread information about the upcoming protest and provide examples of Museveni’s misconduct.

    Generations butting heads

    Younger people are connecting more with the #StopCorruption movement. Teens feel that their voices are not heard in the current political system of Uganda. Young people have spread much of the positive media surrounding the Uganda protests through social media platforms.

    By contrast, older residents are more likely to first hear news of the protests through main media outlets like state-owned New Vision. Since it’s influenced by Museveni’s government, it often portrays these protests in a negative light.

    Therefore, the divide in how people are receiving news and updates has caused a split between the generations. Gen Z locals have been raising their voices during this event. They’ve rallied on social media to make a change.

    Meanwhile, Millennials and older generations have commented on these posts with the opposite agenda, looking to discourage and stop the protests. Mostly, this is either because they agree with President Museveni, or because they want to try to stop people from going to the protests, given how volatile the situation surrounding them is.

    Bobi Wine, the leader of the NUP and political activist, has been extremely vocal in his support of the march. His party has tried to break down corruption in the current government, and create access for young people to speak their mind on politics. As a direct opposition to President Museveni, he’s also doing this to hopefully improve the voting outcome in future elections.

    Wine has made multiple posts trying to promote the demonstration from his main account. He has also advised many other party members of the NUP to do the same. Formally known as Robert Kyagulanyi, the ex-musician has endorsed the anti-government action. Wine also documented the events that took place throughout the march:

    Uganda protesters: not alone

    Similar anti-government protests in Kenya inspired these marches in Uganda. There, riot police directly shot into crowds, using tear gas and rubber bullets to draw out protestors. This led to Kenyan police shooting protester Rex Masai in the thigh, from which the 30-year-old later died of blood loss.

    Civil protests like Uganda’s Gen Z march have become common throughout South and Central Africa due to the lack of financial support provided by governments. This has led to poor living conditions, soaring inflation, and dangerous infrastructure.

    Museveni’s NRM governmental corruption has led to it squandering almost a fifth of it’s national budget. As a result, the Ugandan government has made budget cuts to social services. Crucially, government corruption has also meant a large amount of international aid funding often doesn’t reach the people of Uganda. Instead, the government has utilised it for bribery and other political purposes.

    Executive director of the Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda (ACCU) Cissy Kagaba previously explained to news outlet NilePost how:

    When inaction happens, it breeds impunity and the moment we have impunity people can easily get away with it. When you look at illicit financial flows that are coming out of Uganda alone, I think it is over $ 1 billion  a year.

    Kagaba continued:

    What we lack as a country are leaders that are selfless. Most of our leaders are self-centred.

    Wider Influence

    Around the world, we are seeing a massive increase in the amount of mass protests taking place. Between 2009 and 2019 an annual increase of approximately 11.5% across all regions. From the dangerous riots in France taking off in June of 2023, to new protests in Leeds in the UK as recently as July 2024. Both led to building fires and property destruction.

    Uganda, along with many other countries around the world, are feeling the effects of inflation and the global cost of living. In 2022, nearly 122 countries had cost-of-living protests, with over 3 million person-days dedicated to these over the course of the year alone.

    Young citizens of Uganda are taking Museveni’s government to task over these issues. This is because those protesting don’t have the economic security to weather the rampant cost of living increases they are seeing.

    Feature image via Youtube – Reuters

    By Peter Slight

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Police in Vietnam fine YouTuber for filming pagodas

    Police in Vietnam fined a YouTuber 7.5 million dong (US$300) for filming activities at a local pagoda.

    According to a police announcement, residents in the southern province of Dong Thap reported suspicious filming activities at a pagoda in Cao Lanh city’s Ward 4 on July 5. 

    The police then summoned Nguyen Binh Dan, born in 1984, to the police station and issued him the fine for “abusing social media to share and post numerous false information, insulting the prestige of organizations/damaging the reputation of organization.” 

    During the meeting with police, Dan said that he regularly recorded videos of local pagodas and uploaded them to his personal YouTube channel, which has more than 11,000 subscribers.

    The police said Dan’s videos contained false and religion-dividing content which generated offensive and negative comments. The announcement did not specify any details about the videos or the name of Dan’s YouTube channel.

    Translated by Anna Vu. Edited by Eugene Whong.


    This content originally appeared on Radio Free Asia and was authored by By RFA Vietnamese.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • “Tragic Beyond Proportions”: Attorney Ben Crump on Sonya Massey’s Killing and Police Cover-Up


    This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • American police shoot Sonya Massey dead in her own home

    New body camera footage released by the Illinois State Police shows officers shooting dead unarmed Black woman Sonya Massey in her home. One of the police officers involved in the case has been charged with murder. Sonya had called 911 to report a possible intruder, and police arrived at her home after midnight.

    In video footage released Monday, Massey is seen talking to two officers in her home, while they ask for ID and she searches through paperwork.

    The sheriff’s deputies then ask her to check on a pot of boiling water on her stove, saying “we don’t need a fire while we’re here.”

    When one of the deputies’ steps back, Massey asks why, and he responds with a laugh: “away from your hot steaming water.”

    Holding the pot, Massey calmly responds “Oh, I rebuke you in the name of Jesus” — prompting a deputy to respond “You better fucking not. I swear to God I’ll fucking shoot you at your fucking face,” drawing his weapon.

    Apologising, Massey crouches behind a counter as officers scream “drop the fucking pot.” They then round the corner of the counter and open fire.

    Afterward, one of the officers said they were afraid of “taking fucking boiling water to the fucking head.”

    Officer Sean Grayson, who is white, has been charged with murder.

    Sonya Massey: a ‘tragedy’?

    Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, representing the family of Massey, called it “one of the worst videos of a police shooting ever.” He continued:

    Just like George Floyd was a catalyst for the 2020 election, we believe this will be similarly impactful on the 2024 presidential election, especially for our Black community. There’s a narration to the tragedy. It’s just troubling on every level. Black women don’t get the respect and consideration they deserve in America.

    Sonya’s family have told press that she is a descendant of William Donnegan. As the Guardian reported:

    Massey’s family said she is a descendant of William Donnegan, a Black man who was lynched by a white mob but survived during the city’s infamous 1908 race riots that took 17 Black lives over a two-day period in mid-August of that year. As a result of the violence and carnage, a group of white and Black Americans banded together to create the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Massey’s family said that the irony of having to reach out to the NAACP for help after her killing is not lost on them.

    One of Sonya’s family members said:

    The more things change, the more they stay the same.

    Massey’s family have since confirmed that she had schizophrenia. However, as Sonya’s father James, explained:

    I was under the impression that a prowler had broken in and killed my baby. Never did they say that it was a deputy-involved shooting until my brother read it on the internet.

    We were led to believe that the intruder – or someone from the neighborhood – may have killed her. We were absolutely shocked to find out that it was a deputy who shot her.

    ‘Don’t hurt me’

    As more details emerge of Sonya’s murder, the failings of the police are laid bare. NBC reported that when Sonya answered the door she immediately told the police “don’t hurt me.” After shooting Massey, who was standing in her own home wearing a robe, Grayson told arriving police officers that Sonya was a:

    crazy fucking bitch.

    It also appears that Grayson’s body camera was turned off for the majority of the murder. The footage that has revealed the above details is from his partner’s body camera.

    First Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Rodgers said of Grayson:

    At no point did this defendant show anything but callousness to human life.

    Grief

    Activist Nina Turner shared an image of Sonya:

    Grassroots organisation Critical Resistance called for the dismantling of police:

    Artist Solange Knowles expressed how unsafe Black women are in America:

    Journalist Melissa Sigodo shared another image of Sonya, this time smiling whilst holding a baby:

    The Palestinian Youth Movement called for justice for Sonya Massey:

    Disability justice – and justice for Sonya Massey

    One social media user pointed out that Sonya having schizophrenia makes her part of the many Black people with mental health issues who have been killed by police:

    An academic paper from Sonya Shadravan, Matthew Edwards, and Sarah Vinson explains:

     the compounding risk of having mental illness and being Black, which increases the likelihood of interactions with mental health and legal systems that are replete with an interplay of structural racism and mental health stigma.

    Disability activist Vilissa Thompson writes:

    Freddie Gray, Laquan MacDonald, Kevin Matthews, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Charleena Lyles, Sandra Bland, Quintonio LeGrier, Stephon Watts, Korryn Gaines, Natasha McKenna, Eric Smith, and Daniel Prude are all Black, disabled victims of state violence. In the United States, 50 percent of people killed by law enforcement are disabled, and more than half of disabled African Americans have been arrested by the time they turn 28—double the risk in comparison to their white disabled counterparts.

    Thompson outlines how:

    racism and ableism have been intimately woven into the fabric of this country since enslaved people first arrived on the shores of this stolen land.

    Thompson states that 61 million people are disabled in the US – or, one in three households. Police are already trained to see Blackness as a threat. Disability is also misread as hostile, difficult, or unpredictable. For Sonya Massey, and many other Black folks, this is not a question of training. Grayson behaved despicably, not as a rotten apple but as a product of a rotting system.

    Police will keep murdering Black people with wanton disregard for basic humanity. Reform isn’t going to cut it – what could you possibly reform about a system that keeps shooting down Black people? Abolition must be the way forward.

    By The Canary

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • “Tragic Beyond Proportions”: Attorney Ben Crump on Sonya Massey’s Killing and Police Cover-Up

    Seg crump sonya body cam

    The family of Sonya Massey is demanding justice after they say authorities tried to cover up her fatal shooting by a sheriff’s deputy in Springfield, Illinois, by initially claiming it was “self-inflicted.” Police body-camera footage showed this was a lie. The 36-year-old mother of two was shot dead in her own home on July 6 after she called 911 for help. “This is the worst police shooting video that I’ve seen. It is so senseless,” says Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney representing the family. “[Massey] needed a helping hand. She did not need a bullet to the face.”


    This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • New Zealand urged to take bolder stand over New Caledonia’s third referendum

    RNZ Pacific

    New Zealand should join others in calling New Caledonia’s third independence referendum invalid, one of the founders of the Kanaky Aotearoa Solidarity Network says.

    It follows the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM10) in Tokyo last week, where New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters called for the Pacific Islands Forum to facilitate mediation in the French territory.

    In December 2021, the Kanak population boycotted the referendum to mourn their dead during the covid-19 pandemic, after their calls for the referendum to be delayed was ignored.

    As a result, Peters said the referendum saw voter turnout collapse and almost 97 percent of voters who cast a ballot voted “No” to independence.

    “Delegitimising the result, in the eyes of pro-independence forces and some neutral observers at least, was the low turnout of only 44 percent.”

    Kanaky Aotearoa Solidarity group’s David Small said Peters should have aligned with the Melanesian Spearhead Group which has called for a UN mission to New Caledonia.

    ‘Referendum delegitimised’
    “He said that the third referendum was delegitimised in the eyes of some, and did not include New Zealand in that,” Small said.

    “It would have been better if he had because that third referendum was indefensible.”

    The group said Peters had mentioned the need for dialogue but failed to provide a clear pathway or goal.

    “The Kanaky Aotearoa Solidarity Group is deeply disappointed by Peters’ insufficient support for the Kanak people’s struggle.

    “His statement at PALM10 represents a missed opportunity for New Zealand to assert its commitment to justice and self-determination for all Pacific peoples.”

    Foreign Minister Winston Peters gives a speech to the New Zealand China Council amid debate over AUKUS.
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters . . . “missed opportunity for New Zealand to assert its commitment to justice and self-determination for all Pacific peoples,” says Kanaky Aotearoa Solidarity. Image: RNZ/Nick Monro

    ‘Fed by disinformation’, claims envoy
    However, the top French diplomat in the Pacific, Véronique Roger-Lacan, said she had reassured Pacific Islands Forum Leaders (PIF) that attended PALM10 that France’s actions during the third and final independence referendum were fair.

    Roger-Lacan spoke to RNZ Pacific from Tokyo following talks with the leaders of Papua New Guinea and Tonga.

    She said there was “so much disinformation” surrounding issues in New Caledonia and that Pacific leaders had only heard one side of the story.

    “For example, Mark Brown sent a letter to President [Louis] Mapou but he did not try and contact France, kind of ignoring that New Caledonia until further notice is France,” she said.

    “We tried to call them, but Mark Brown would not be there to pick up the phone.

    “But luckily, the Prime Minister of Tonga, the incoming chair of the PIF and everyone else was there, so that everyone was very happy to hear the information that we were providing.

    “We are going to provide full information in writing because it seems that everybody ignores . . . the substance of the matter, and everybody is totally fed by disinformation and propaganda” surrounding issues in New Caledonia.

    Delegation to New Caledonia ‘decision has been made’
    According to PIF’s outgoing chair and Cook Islands Prime Minister, Mark Brown, work is already in progress to send a high-level Pacific delegation to investigate the ongoing political crisis, which has resulted in 10 deaths and the economic costs totalling 2.2 billion euros (NZ$4 billion).

    “We will now go through the process of how we will put this into practice. Of course, it will require the support of the government of France for the mission to proceed,” Brown said at a news conference at the PALM10 meeting in Tokyo.

    A spokesperson for the New Caledonia President’s office, Charles Wea, has told RNZ Pacific that the high-level group was expected to be made up of the leaders of Fiji, Cook Islands, Tonga and Solomon Islands.

    “The decision that has been made by the leaders during the meeting in Japan to send a mission to New Caledonia before the annual meeting over the of PIF around the second or third week of August,” he said.

    “The objectives of the mission will be to come and listen and discuss with all parties in New Caledonia in order to [prepare] a report [for] the leaders meeting in Tonga.”

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Former FANG president Vijay Naidu talks Pacific anti-nuclear activism

    Pacific Media Watch

    An interview with former University of the South Pacific (USP) development studies professor Dr Vijay Naidu, a founding president of the Fiji Anti-Nuclear Group (FANG), has produced fresh insights into the legacy of Pacific nuclear-free and anti-colonialism activism.

    The community storytelling group Talanoa TV, an affiliate of the Whānau Community Centre and Hub and linked to the Asia Pacific Media Network (APMN), has embarked on producing a series of short educational videos as oral histories of people involved in the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific (NFIP) Movement to document and preserve this activist mahi and history.

    The series, dubbed “Legends of NFIP”, are being timed for screening in 2025 to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Rainbow Warrior bombing in Auckland harbour on 10 July 1985 and also with the 40th anniversary of the Rarotonga Treaty for a Nuclear-Free Pacific.


    Legends of NFIP – Professor Vijay Naidu.   Video: Talanoa TV

    These videos are planned to “bring alive” the experiences and commitment of people involved in a Pacific-wide movement and will be suitable for schools as video podcasts and could be stored on open access platforms.

    “This project is also expected to become an extremely useful resource for students and researchers,” says project convenor Nikhil Naidu, himself a former FANG and Coalition for Democracy (CDF) activist.

    In this 14-minute interview, Professor Naidu talks about the origins of the NFIP Movement.

    “At this time [1970s], there were the French nuclear tests that were actually atmospheric nuclear tests and people like Suliana Siwatibau and Graeme Bain started the ATOM movement (Against Nuclear Tests on Moruroa) in Tahiti in the 1970s at USP,” he says.

    “And we began to understand the issues around nuclear testing and how it affected people — you know, the radiation. And drop-outs and pollution from it.”

    Published in partnership with Talanoa TV.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Uneasy calm in Dhaka under curfew, police arrest hundreds for ‘violence’

    An uneasy calm prevailed in Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka on the third day of a nationwide curfew Monday, as authorities said they had arrested hundreds of people for their alleged involvement in violence during protests that turned deadly last week.

    While there were no protests or street clashes, two people badly hurt in the earlier violence succumbed to their injuries on Monday. 

    This took the death toll to at least 138 in a week of street clashes that began as protests against a discriminatory quota system for government jobs and became a wider agitation against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s 15 years in power.

    Hasina and other government officials blamed opposition groups for last week’s deadly violence, according to footage from Channel 24 distributed by Reuters news agency.

    But university students, who began the protests after the quotas were reinstated by a court last month, have alleged that it was members of the student wing of Hasina’s Awami League, aided by the police, who incited the clashes. 

    A man rides his motorbike on a mostly empty street past vehicles that were set on fire during clashes among university students, police and government supporters, after violence erupted during what were initially protests against government job quotas,Dhaka, July 22, 2024. (Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters)
    A man rides his motorbike on a mostly empty street past vehicles that were set on fire during clashes among university students, police and government supporters, after violence erupted during what were initially protests against government job quotas,Dhaka, July 22, 2024. (Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters)

    U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller on Monday said the U.S. condemns “reported shoot-on-sight orders” that are part of a crackdown on the protests.

    “The United States is concerned by reports of ongoing telecommunications disruptions in Bangladesh,” Miller told reporters, referring to a state-imposed internet and mobile connectivity shutdown that continued Monday, reported Reuters.

    Habibur Rahman, Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s commissioner, told reporters on Monday that police have arrested more than 600 people, mostly in Dhaka, for violent acts during the protests.

    A senior official from the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Zahir Uddin Swapon,  and a minor party’s leader, Md. Tarek Rahman, were arrested Monday.

    Tarek’s wife, Tamanna Ferdosi Sikha, told BenarNews that a joint force of police, border guard and soldiers entered their house at about 2:30 am and picked up Tarek and his brother.

    “They seized a computer and other digital devices from our house,” she said.

    Students give a 48-hour ultimatum

    After the curfew that was imposed Friday was indefinitely extended on Sunday, Bangladesh Army chief Waker-uz-Zaman told reporters that more time was needed to “normalize” the situation. 

    “Many state properties were vandalized … there are many ways of staging protests,” he said Monday. “But carrying out attacks on state properties is not wise.”

    Several government buildings and properties were set on fire last week during the clashes, including the state broadcaster and a train station.

    The protesting students were not mollified by the Supreme Court on Sunday ending most of the quotas in civil service jobs. 

    The court lowered the number of reserved jobs to 7% from 56%. A key plank of the quota system was the reservation of civil service jobs for relatives of those who fought in Bangladesh’s 1971 independence war.

    The students also demanded that the internet be restored and security forces be withdrawn from university campuses.

    “We are issuing an ultimatum … 48 hours to stop the digital crackdown and restore internet connectivity,” Hasnat Abdullah, coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, told the Associated Press.

    “Within 48 hours, all law enforcement members deployed at different campuses should be withdrawn, dormitories should reopen and steps should be taken so that students can return to the [residence] halls.” 

    Asif Nazrul, a professor in Dhaka University’s law faculty, said protesting students might only be satisfied if authorities apologize for unlawful actions, arrest armed cadres of the ruling Awami League’s student and youth wings and arrest police and elite Rapid Action Battalion members who fired on unarmed civilians.

    “Over 150 people died and thousands of protesters were injured in the uprising. I think the protest will not end with the judgment of the Supreme Court. Bangladesh’s people are not so foolish,” he told BenarNews. 

    The Rapid Action Battalion has previously been accused of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings and the use of torture and the U.S. has imposed financial sanctions on it for “serious human rights abuses.” 

    Two auto rickshaws are seen on an otherwise empty road during a nationwide curfew in the Jatrabari area in Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka, July 22, 2024. [Jibon Ahmed/BenarNews]
    Two auto rickshaws are seen on an otherwise empty road during a nationwide curfew in the Jatrabari area in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, July 22, 2024. [Jibon Ahmed/BenarNews]

    Some students are also demanding Hasina apologize or retract her comments from a week ago, when she said anti-quota protesters were akin to collaborators with Pakistan in the 1971 war Bangladesh fought to separate from that nation. 

    The protests spread after Hasina’s comments. 

    Reuters video showed her telling business leaders at a meeting in her Dhaka office that opposition forces were responsible for vandalism, arson and murders during the protests. 

    Hasina’s advisor, Salman F. Rahman, said the student movement had been hijacked by people who wanted to overthrow the government.

    “There was a big conspiracy, they tried to ensure the fall of the government,” Rahman said.

    Another Hasina administration member, Nasrul Hamid, state minister for power and energy, claimed that the clashes caused U.S. $85 million in damages to power equipment.

    “We are trying to identify the people involved in such sabotage and they must be prosecuted,” he said.

    Bangladesh army personnel stand guard near the parliament house during a curfew imposed after clashes during anti-quota protests turned deadly, Dhaka, July 22, 2024. (Munir uz Zaman/AFP)
    Bangladesh army personnel stand guard near the parliament house during a curfew imposed after clashes during anti-quota protests turned deadly, Dhaka, July 22, 2024. (Munir uz Zaman/AFP)

    Meanwhile, average Bangladeshis are bearing the brunt of the curfew, according to their accounts and those of vegetable, fruit and meat sellers.

    Abdul Baten, who operates a garment factory in an area called Mirpur-11, told BenarNews that prices of staple foods have risen.

    “We mainly depend on potato, egg, broiler chicken skin and leg, and lentils. A dozen eggs now costs 160 taka, up from 135,” he said.

    The problem, said vegetable trader Nur Mohammad, is that no produce is coming into Dhaka.

    “There is an abundant supply of vegetables outside Dhaka. But due to the curfew it cannot be transported here,” he told BenarNews.

    “Unless the supply chain is restored, the prices will not come down,” said the trader from the Mirpur-6 area.

    The president of the Bangladesh Bus Truck Owners’ Association, Ramesh Ghosh, said thousands of trucks transporting goods to Dhaka are unable to enter the capital.

    “Every day at least 3,000 trucks carrying vegetables, chicken, eggs and fish enter Dhaka from across Bangladesh. But now troubles at the entry points … have stopped the movements of cargo trucks,” he told BenarNews.

    “It must affect the consumers in the end, creating a crisis in the supply of essentials.”

    BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news organization.


    This content originally appeared on Radio Free Asia and was authored by By Ahammad Foyez and Kamran Reza Chowdhury for BenarNews.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Milwaukee Outraged: During RNC Out of State Police shoot homeless resident Samuel Sharpe #rnc


    This content originally appeared on The Real News Network and was authored by The Real News Network.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Breaking the silence – 83% of Fijian children suffer violence, reports UNICEF

    By Sainimili Magimagi in Suva

    Family members keep silent on the issue of violence in Fiji and individuals continue to be the victims, according to Jonathan Veitch, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) representative to the South Pacific.

    While raising his concern on the issue at Nasinu Gospel Primary School on Friday, he said 83 percent of children in Fiji had reported some level of violence, either in their family or in school over the past six months.

    “This 83 percent rate is far too high, and it’s not acceptable,” he said.

    “The problem is that when the violence is happening, there’s kind of a curtain of silence.”

    Visiting UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell said although legal processes should be ensured, it was also important to acknowledge the rehabilitation process for the victim to deal with the trauma.

    Speaking during a student-led press conference at Nasinu Gospel Primary School, Veitch expressed his concern about the alarming rate of violence against women and children in Fiji, whether physical or sexual.

    “You (Fiji) do have high rates of violence against children,” Veitch said.

    “This (83 percent rate) is far too high, and it’s not acceptable.

    ‘Curtain of silence’
    “The problem is that when the violence is happening, there’s kind of a curtain of silence.”

    He said it was common in Fiji for family members to keep silent on the issue of violence while individuals continued to be victimised.

    “If that particular person has to be stopped, we have to deal with it in our village.

    “So, it’s not just UNICEF and the Government; it’s also the village itself.”

    Veitch said significant pillars of communities must be involved in key conversations.

    “We really need to talk about it in our churches on Sundays; we have to have an honest conversation about it.

    “These kids shouldn’t be hurt; they shouldn’t be punished physically.”

    Multifaceted approach
    He said the issue should be dealt with through a multifaceted approach.

    Visiting UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell expressed similar concerns and called for a change in norms.

    “It requires government leadership and good laws,” she said.

    “It requires the government to come together and say that this is a priority where violence against children is unacceptable.”

    She said conversations regarding the matter needed to focus on changing the norms of what was acceptable and unacceptable in a community.

    “A lot of times this issue is kept in the dark and not talked about, and I think it’s very important to have those conversations.”

    She said although legal processes should be ensured, it was also important to acknowledge the rehabilitation process for the victims to deal with the trauma.

    She added that society played a role in condemning violence against women and ensuring they were safe in their homes and in their communities.

    Russell said while most cases were directed at men, there was a need to train the mindset of young boys to change their perspective of using violence as a solving mechanism.

    Sainimili Magimagi is a Fiji Times reporter. Republished with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Latest Puncak Jaya massacre reveals West Papua ‘is a time bomb’, claims Benny Wenda

    Asia Pacific Report

    A brutal killing of three Papuan civilians in Puncak Jaya reveals that occupied West Papua is a ticking time bomb under Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto, claims the leader of an advocacy group.

    And United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) Benny Wenda says the Melanesian region risks becoming “another East Timor”.

    The victims have been named as Tonda Wanimbo, 33; Dominus Enumbi, and Murib Government.

    Their killings were followed by riots in Puncak Jaya as angry indigenous residents protested in front of the local police station and set fire to police cars, said Wenda in a statement.

    “This incident is merely the most recent example of Indonesia’s military and business strategy in West Papua,” he said.

    “Indonesia deliberately creates escalations to justify deploying more troops, particularly in mineral-rich areas, causing our people to scatter and allowing international corporations to exploit the empty land – starting the cycle of bloodshed all over again.”

    According to the ULMWP, 4500 Indonesian troops have recently been deployed to Paniai, one of the centres of West Papuan resistance.

    An estimated 100,000 West Papuans have been displaced since 2018, while recent figures show more than 76,000 Papuans remain internally displaced — “living as refugees in the bush”.

    Indonesia ‘wants our land’
    “Indonesia wants our land and our resources, not our people,” Wenda said.

    The Indonesian military claimed that the three men were members of the resistance movement TPNPB (West Papua National Liberation Army), but this has been denied.

    Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Candra Kurniawan claimed one of the men had been sought by security forces for six years for alleged shootings of civilians and security personnel.

    “This is the same lie they told about Enius Tabuni and the five Papuan teenagers murdered in Yahukimo in September 2023,” Wenda said.

    “The military line was quickly refuted by a community leader in Puncak Jaya, who clarified that the three men were all civilians.”

    Concern over Warinussy
    Wenda said he was also “profoundly concerned” over the shooting of lawyer and human rights defender Christian Warinussy.

    Warinussy has spent his career defending indigenous Papuans who have expelled from their ancestral land to make way for oil palm plantations and industrial mines.

    “Although we don’t know who shot him, his shooting acts as a clear warning to any Papuans who stand up for their customary land rights or investigates Indonesia’s crimes,” Wenda said.

    Indonesia’s latest violence is taking place “in the shadow of Prabowo Subianto”, who is due to take office as President on October 20.

    Prabowo has been widely accused over human rights abuses during his period in Timor-Leste.

    “Will he form militias to crush the West Papua liberation movement, as he previously did in East Timor?” asked Wenda.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • “Justice for My Brother”: Sister of Samuel Sharpe Speaks Out After Police Killing During RNC


    This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • “Justice for My Brother”: Sister of Samuel Sharpe Speaks Out After Police Killing During RNC

    Seg5 guest angelique sam split

    As anger grows in Milwaukee over the police killing of 43-year-old Samuel Sharpe during the Republican National Convention, we speak with his sister, Angelique Sharpe, who says the family is fighting for transparency from the authorities and the full video of the fatal incident. “We really want justice for my brother,” says Angelique, who also explains that her brother’s life had been threatened by a “bully” and that he had actually called the police for help before he was killed. Samuel Sharpe was an unhoused Black man shot 27 times by police on Tuesday — but the officers were from Ohio, part of a deployment of thousands of outside law enforcement members in Wisconsin for the RNC. We are also joined by Wisconsin state Representative Darrin Madison, a Democratic Socialist, who says both Sharpe’s death and the killing of D’Vontaye Mitchell by hotel security guards weeks earlier point to a larger problem of anti-Black violence in Milwaukee.


    This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • PANG talks to journalist David Robie on Pacific decolonisation issues

    PANG Media

    The PANG media team at this month’s Pacific International Media Conference in Fiji caught up with independent journalist, author and educator Dr David Robie and questioned him on his views about decolonisation in the Pacific.

    Dr Robie, editor of Asia Pacific Report and deputy chair of Asia Pacific Media Network (APMN), a co-organiser of the conference, shared his experience on reporting on Kanaky New Caledonia and West Papua’s fight for freedom.

    He speaks from his 40 years of journalism in the Pacific saying the United Nations and the Pacific Islands Forum need to step up pressure on France and Indonesia to decolonise.

    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024
    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024

    This interview was conducted at the end of the conference, on July 6, and a week before the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) leaders called for France to allow a joint United Nations-MSG mission to New Caledonia to assess the political situation and propose solutions for the ongoing crisis.

    The leaders of the subregional bloc — from Fiji, FLNKS (Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front of New Caledonia), Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu — met in Tokyo on the sidelines of the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM10), to specifically talk about New Caledonia.

    They included Fiji’s Sitiveni Rabuka, PNG’s James Marape, Solomon Islands’ Jeremiah Manele, and Vanuatu’s Charlot Salwai.

    In his interview with PANG (Pacific Network on Globalisation), Dr Robie also draws parallels with the liberation struggle in Palestine, which he says has become a global symbol for justice and freedom everywhere.

    Asia Pacific Media Report's Dr David Robie
    Asia Pacific Media Report’s Dr David Robie . . . The people see the flags of Kanaky, West Papua and Palestine as symbolic of the struggles against repression and injustice all over the world.

    “I should mention Palestine as well because essentially it’s settler colonisation.

    “What we’ve seen in the massive protests over the last nine months and so on there has been a huge realisation in many countries around the world that colonisation is still here after thinking, or assuming, that had gone some years ago.

    “So you’ll see in a lot of protests — we have protests across Aotearoa New Zealand every week —  that the flags of Kanaky, West Papua and Palestine fly together.

    “The people see these as symbolic of the repression and injustice all over the world.”


    PANG Media talk to Dr David Robie on decolonisation.  Video: PANG Media


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by Pacific Media Watch.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Argentinian photographer shoved by Miami police at soccer match

    Diego Spairani, a photojournalist for the Argentinian TV news channel Todo Noticias, was pushed by police attempting to force him and a colleague from a stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, while reporting live before a soccer match on July 14, 2024.

    The New York Times reported that mayhem broke out at the Copa América final between Argentina and Colombia, when throngs of unticketed fans attempted to enter Hard Rock Stadium in the Miami suburb, delaying kickoff for more than an hour.

    In Todo Noticias’ live footage, reporter Leo Paradizo can be seen walking toward one of the closed entrances when suddenly the gate opens and individuals start rushing in. Law enforcement and event security quickly respond, and a Miami-Dade Police Department officer can be seen pushing Spairani back from the entrance while he says in Spanish that they’re cooperating.

    The officer appears to direct the journalists to stand in a particular location, but a stadium employee approaches and erroneously asserts that the journalists had opened the gate for the crowd, saying that they should be forced to leave.

    Officers can be heard telling the journalists, “Let’s go, vamos.” Paradizo responds in Spanish, asking why they are being removed and telling the officers that they are working. Moments later, an officer can be seen pushing Paradizo toward the opened gate where staff and police are holding back the crowd. Someone then blocks the camera and Paradizo walks out of frame with the officer.

    Todos Noticias reported that the journalists were ultimately not forced out of the venue and were able to continue their coverage.

    In a post on the social platform X, Paradizo wrote that both he and Spairani are fine and that they had only wanted to show the chaos taking place at the stadium entrance, calling it a disaster. Neither Paradizo nor Spairani responded to requests for additional comment.

    Another journalist, Hernán González of the South American broadcaster Torneos — which was an official broadcaster of the match — was surrounded by officers, who then lifted and forced him to the ground before handcuffing him.

    A spokesperson for the Miami-Dade Police Department told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he was unaware of the incident and that no report would have been filed if the journalists had been permitted to remain in the stadium.

    “Given the circumstances regarding that day, many people were detained, ejected, arrested and even unarrested in some cases,” the public information officer said. “We’re attempting to be as transparent as possible with this incident, but there were a lot of individuals who just lacked judgment that day.”


    This content originally appeared on U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database and was authored by U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Argentinian reporter shoved by Miami police while covering soccer match

    Leo Paradizo, a reporter for the Argentinian TV news channel Todo Noticias, was pushed by police attempting to force him and his photographer from a stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, while reporting live before a soccer match on July 14, 2024.

    The New York Times reported that mayhem broke out at the Copa América final between Argentina and Colombia, when throngs of unticketed fans attempted to enter Hard Rock Stadium in the Miami suburb, delaying kickoff for more than an hour.

    In Todo Noticias’ live footage, Paradizo can be seen walking toward one of the closed entrances when suddenly the gate opens and individuals start rushing in. Law enforcement and event security quickly respond, and a Miami-Dade Police Department officer can be seen pushing photographer Diego Spairani back from the entrance while he says in Spanish that they’re cooperating.

    The officer appears to direct the journalists to stand in a particular location, but a stadium employee approaches and erroneously asserts that the journalists had opened the gate for the crowd, saying that they should be forced to leave.

    Officers can be heard telling the journalists, “Let’s go, vamos.” Paradizo responds in Spanish, asking why they are being removed and telling the officers that they are working. Moments later, an officer can be seen pushing Paradizo toward the opened gate where staff and police are holding back the crowd. Someone then blocks the camera and Paradizo walks out of frame with the officer.

    Todos Noticias reported that the journalists were ultimately not forced out of the venue and were able to continue their coverage.

    In a post on the social platform X, Paradizo wrote that both he and Spairani are fine and that they had only wanted to show the chaos taking place at the stadium entrance, calling it a disaster. Paradizo did not respond to a request for additional comment.

    Another journalist, Hernán González of the South American broadcaster Torneos — which was an official broadcaster of the match — was surrounded by officers, who then lifted and forced him to the ground before handcuffing him.

    A spokesperson for the Miami-Dade Police Department told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he was unaware of the incident and that no report would have been filed if the journalists had been permitted to remain in the stadium.

    “Given the circumstances regarding that day, many people were detained, ejected, arrested and even unarrested in some cases,” the public information officer said. “We’re attempting to be as transparent as possible with this incident, but there were a lot of individuals who just lacked judgment that day.”


    This content originally appeared on U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database and was authored by U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • UK ‘turning a blind eye’ to threats to kill Saudi activists living in exile

    Saudis living in the UK claim Riyadh is targeting them for speaking out on human rights and jailing of female activists

    Saudi exiles living in the UK have spoken of threats to their lives and harassment over their support for improvements in human rights in their home country.

    Saudi Arabia has been attempting to present itself as a reformed state since the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi by a Saudi hit squad at its consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

    It has spent billions on sporting deals and promoting tourism in the country and was recently named host of a UN commission on women’s rights, despite what Amnesty International called its “abysmal” record on women’s rights.

    Continue reading…

    This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.

  • Iranian Police Question Women Who Marched In Religious Festival Without Head Scarves


    This content originally appeared on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and was authored by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Foreigners murdered in Bangkok hotel due to debt dispute, Thai police say

    The foreigners whose bodies were found by staff at Bangkok’s luxury Grand Hyatt Erawan hotel on Tuesday evening had been murdered, Thai police said at a news briefing Wednesday.

    Traces of poison were found in cups in the room where the three men and three women, two of whom were Vietnamese Americans and four Vietnamese nationals, were found.

    “We found cyanide in the teacups. One of them was definitely the culprit,” Police Maj. Gen. Noppasin Punsawat, Bangkok deputy police chief said, adding that CCTV cameras showed no one else had entered the room.

    Noppasin said he believed the murders were sparked by a business dispute between U.S. citizens Sherine Chong, 56, and Dang Hung Van, 55, and the other four. He said Chong was given an equivalent of 10 million baht (US$278,000) to invest in the construction of a hospital in Japan but was suspected of cheating her partners after the project made no progress.

    “This case is about personal conflict, no trans-border criminals were involved,” he said.

    Police identified the four Vietnamese citizens as a couple: Pham Hong Thanh, 49, and Nguyen Thi Phuong, 46, who they believe had been cheated by Chong, along with Nguyen Thi Phuong Lan, 47, and Tran Dinh Phu, 37.

    A seventh person, thought to have been part of the group, returned to Vietnam on July 10, police said.

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    Hotel security staff entered Suite 502 from the back door after the group failed to check out on Tuesday. The front door to the room had been locked from the inside. Police said the bodies had probably been there for around 24 hours, although they are still waiting for the results of an official autopsy.

    The FBI and Vietnamese officials are working alongside Thai police to track the group’s movements and interview any witnesses, Noppasin said.

    2024-07-16T142741Z_615680598_RC2EW8AZ1OS3_RTRMADP_3_THAILAND-HOTEL-CASUALTIES.JPG
    Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin visits the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in Bangkok, where six people were found dead on July 16, 2024. (Chalinee Thirasupa/Reuters)

     

    Vietnam’s ambassador to Thailand Pham Viet Hung met with Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin on Tuesday to discuss the case, Vietnamese media reported.

    The U.S. State Department said it was aware of the deaths of two of its citizens.

    “We offer our sincere condolences to the families on their loss. We are closely monitoring the situation and stand ready to provide consular assistance to those families,” spokesman Matthew Miller said at a briefing in Washington.

    After visiting the scene Tuesday night, Thai prime minister Srettha ordered a swift investigation to avoid any negative impact on tourism.

    The 380-room Grand Hyatt Erawan is in the upscale Ratchaprasong district, an area popular with tourists. It is just down the street from the high-end Siam Paragon shopping mall where, last October, a 14-year old Thai boy shot dead two women from China and Myanmar and injured five other people.

    Edited by Mike Firn and Taejun Kang.


    This content originally appeared on Radio Free Asia and was authored by By Pimukk Rakkanam for RFA.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.