Bob Rae, Canada’s Ambassador to the United Nations, does not shy away from tough questions. Though many in a position such as his might shy away from argument, Rae seems to relish the opportunity to engage in some intellectual sparring. It was in this context that I requested an interview as Canada grapples with multiple [...]
Search Results for: 2013-03-28
HRW raises concerns over Egypt law increasing military power
Human Rights Watch (HRW) raised concerns Tuesday over new Egyptian laws which they say will “entrench military power over civilian life.” The new law allows some police and civilian judiciary functions to be taken over by the military. It also further expands the use of military courts to prosecute civilians. Law No.3 requires the armed [...]
Sudan's Rapid Support Forces Militia Must Be Stopped: A Brief History of Atrocities
The conflict that erupted in April between the Sudanese National Army and the Rapid Support Forces wreaked havoc on Sudan, and has ultimately taken an appalling toll. Thousands were killed and millions displaced. Buildings were burned and infrastructure lay in ruins, instilling fear of a spiraling descent into a full-scale civil war. Even before the warfare [...]
How a National Human Rights Act Could Change Rights Protection in Australia
Australia is the only Western democracy not to have a Human Rights Act in its legal system or constitution. Instead, Australia has a patchwork of rights, leaning on individual legislation, such as the Anti-Discrimination Act of 1977, implied rights, common law, and state-by-state legislation. As noted by the Australian Human Rights Commission, “There are five [...]
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 [...]
The Call is Coming from Inside the House: Sex Discrimination in Australia’s Parliament
Within the past 12 months, Jacinda Ardern has resigned as New Zealand’s prime minister, former Australian PM Julia Gillard’s famous “misogyny speech” celebrated its tenth anniversary, and the high-profile retrial against Australian Liberal Party staffer Bruce Lehrmann for the alleged rape of colleague Brittany Higgins was dropped for posing a “significant and unacceptable risk” to [...]
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 [...]
The mass exodus of women and children from Ukraine has sparked the largest refugee crisis in Europe since World War II. More than three million refugees have poured out of Ukraine since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country on February 24. Upwards of 1.8 million of those refugees have crossed into Poland. And [...]
In his epochal, controversial and highly polarizing essay, “The Social Responsibility of Business Is To Increase Its Profits,” published in the New York Times Magazine some 70 years ago, Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman argued against the social responsibility of businesses, and explicitly declared that “the business of business is business.” The shareholder value theory of the [...]
Explainer: The SEC, Climate Disclosures, and a New Global Standard
When it comes to the performances of companies and financial markets around the world, the influences of climate change and social issues cannot be understated. Toward this end, investors are increasingly prioritizing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors, with climate change broadly understood to be among the most imminent threats. The U.S. Securities and Exchange [...]