A clash between thousands of monarchist protestors and police took place in Kathmandu, Nepal on Thursday. The confrontation, marked by the use of rattan sticks, tear gas and water cannons, resulted in the forceful dispersal of the demonstration. This event underscores tensions between pro-monarchy and pro-republic factions in the Himalayan nation. Initially peaceful, the demonstration [...]
Search Results for: 2006-04-28
Sexual Assault in the US Coast Guard: A Coverup and a Call for Justice
Sexual assault in the US Armed Forces is a very real and prescient issue for all service members. In April 2023, the US Department of Defense (DoD) reported that in 2022 there had been “a roughly 1% increase in overall reports of sexual assaults” with all the service branches having seen an increase in reported [...]
For years, Sri Lanka has occupied the international spotlight for one of its contentious laws—the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). The PTA was introduced in 1979 during the Sri Lankan Civil War using the emergency law provisions in Part II of the Public Security Ordinance. While similar laws exist in other nations, showing widespread acceptance [...]
Turkey’s New Disinformation Bill: Disturbing Trend Toward Digital Authoritarianism
In 2002, when President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power in Turkey, defeating Kemalist hegemony, there was a glimmer of hope in the West for the overwhelmingly Muslim country. However, the experience of Turkey over the past 20 years is one descending into an authoritarian regime with clampdowns [...]
Rise Against the Machine: Sri Lanka's Resistance Against the Third World Elite
These days, the Sri Lankan rupee has fallen by almost 45 percent compared to the US dollar. Its foreign exchange reserves are nearly dry, having dropped below $1 billion. Meanwhile, the island nation has to repay debts of about $4 billion in the rest of this year, including a $1 billion international sovereign bond that [...]
EPA Takes a Toxic Turn by Backing Away from Mercury Regulation
Mercury is one of the most toxic substances on earth. When inhaled or ingested by humans, mercury can cause severe neurological damage, cardiovascular harm, endocrine disruption, kidney damage and muscle coordination issues. When pregnant women are exposed, their babies can suffer IQ and motor skills impairments that will last their lifetime. Through rain, snow or [...]
National Guard and Active Duty Lend a Hand to Civil Authorities on the Border
In April and October, President Trump proclaimed his intention to send National Guard troops to the US-Mexico border as an anti-illegal immigration measure. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Customs and Border Protection reported apprehensions of people entering the U.S. illegally at the Southern border jumped by 37 percent from February to March 2018, by 203 percent [...]
The retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy this week represents the end of an era and the beginning of the entrenchment of a more conservative Supreme Court, probably for years to come. That much seems clear. But there are actually many more sides to Justice Kennedy’s retirement than that simple statement implies. Justice Kennedy was nominated [...]
US House approves bill to address Puerto Rico financial crisis
Members of the US House of Representatives approved bi-partisan legislation to relieve financial pressure on Puerto Rico on Thursday. The statute, entitled the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act of 2016 (PROMESA) , creates a financial...
The Government Development Bank for Puerto Rico (GDB) announced its agreement with various state chartered credit unions in Puerto Rico whereby the maturity date of approximately $33 million of notes issued in a limited private...