Some human rights and other news links [Note: Content Warning - reader discretion is advised!] and thoughts - Saturday, 11th February 2023

Black Lives Matter! Be Anti-Racist, Anti-Sexist, and Actively Inclusive in ALL Areas.
The Climate Crisis is real, urgent and existential!
The Pandemic is Real, and Vaccinations save lives. Stay safe - wash your hands, wear a face mask in public if prudent to do so, and follow informed medical advice.

Some mostly human rights (including significant, relevant links in other fields - such as geopolitics, democracy, or authoritarianism) links (note: the source of news items [but not reference links] is in brackets after each item - normal rules around abbreviations will apply, and abbreviations are listed at the end of this post; links behind hard paywalls have a [$]; also, comments by me are in purple). 

Note: CONTENT WARNING - some of this content is about upsetting, disturbing or triggering events & attitudes. Seek competent help - including professional - if you need it. Content shown in green (which may be only part of a news story) is about what is generally considered “good news”, but personal history may still make such events triggering. Reader caution is recommended. For anyone distressed by anything in this post, or for any other reason considering seeking support, resources are available in Australia here, here, and here. In other nations, you will have to do an Internet search using terms such as “mental health support - <your nation>” (which, for instance, may lead to this, this, and this, in the USA, or this, this, and this, in France [biased towards English-language - my apologies]).

• a staggering act of segregation in a US State (Mississippi Today) as another US state “votes against banning children from carrying guns in public” (TG);   an artist from Türkiye blends photos to show the contrast between different parts of the world;   “our civilisation is depressed” (M);   the “Age of Polycrisis” (M);   the ongoing horror of FGM (F24) - see also this (UN);   “AI suggested 40,000 new possible chemical weapons in just six hours” (The Verge);   “military and police abuses are a key cause of Africa’s surge of violent extremism, UN study finds” (The Globe and Mail);   “password of three random words better than complex variation, experts say” (TG);   “Penny Wong urges Britain [and Australia] to face the legacy of its empire” (NIT);   “more on the Ozempic crisis caused by IPOC “influencers” (TND);   my thoughts on “the curse of the rate race”;   after a five year investigation, the OPCW has reported there are “‘reasonable grounds’ to believe Syrian Government was behind deadly chlorine gas attack on Douma” (justice cannot be delayed for reasons of fairness to the accused, and it has to be seen to be reasonable: I have no doubt that the investigators have been professional built as solid a case as was possible, but it still isn’t definitive [meaning it could be asked whether this was worth the money, time, and resources], and the first reaction of many people will be “What? What was that about? When was it? Oh - is that still a thing?” Despots will laugh - and I am aware a despot and the ongoing war caused this delay, but the reality of life is that it is too long [this is a criticism of many ICC cases, too]: what is the solution?) (UN);   “ChatGPT is a data privacy nightmare. If you’ve ever posted online, you ought to be concerned” (TC) - see also this (TND);   an AI chatbot has been caught out giving a wrong answer in a live demonstration (TG) - see also this (CT) and this (TBS);   the problem of deepfakes (SBS);   “why the world isn't as bad as you think” (although I agree with the point of this article, it is a bad week for it to come out) (SubStack);   “US experts warn AI likely to kill off jobs – and widen wealth inequality” (TG);   eco-ableism (TC);   “when climate change hits Senegal, far-right political parties in Europe prosper” (NPR);  
  
• on the CLIMATE CRISIS (noting the UNFCCC) and ENVIRONMENT (noting multiple  international agreements): 
• lessons from the 2019-20 bushfires in Australia (TC);   a call to halve the fossil fuel subsidy for heavy vehicles (TG);   a rehash of old, failed policies in Australia (TG);   Brazil has sunk a ship with asbestos and other toxins in the Atlantic (F24);   a reminder of the urgency (UN);   “accounting tricks won’t save the planet. Net-zero pledges make solving climate change look easy. It isn’t” (M);   a proposed coal mine in Qld has been formally blocked (ABC);  
  
• climate / environmental issues have also occurred in:   India (Nature);
  
  
• on the COVID-19 PANDEMIC (noting WHO advice, Article 12 of the ICESCR, and public emergency provisions of the ICCPR and the ICESCR) and other health matters: 
• a draft binding international treaty for vaccine equity for the next pandemic (Nature);   “talk of ‘vaccine hesitancy’ lets governments off the hook” (Nature);   growing risk to humans of the global bird flu outbreak (DW);   criticism of a flawed study on masks (TC);   calls for a global pandemic warning system (UN);  
  
  
• on NATURAL and OTHER DISASTERS (noting Article 1(3) of the UN Charter): 
  
• bushfires in Chile (DW);    international aid has failed the food crisis in South Sudan (TG);   people are still in need of aid six months after floods covered one third of Pakistan (TG);   a fatal earthquake in Papua (TND);   “continued urgent action needed to prevent food and nutrition crisis from worsening” (UN);   storms (ABC) in NSW (ABC);   cholera in Africa (UN);  
  
• a major (BB) earthquake (TND) in Türkiye (TG) - see also (some of these are links to overview pages of articles, and will be updated over time):   this (hypothermia and other factors are worsening this) (TND) - see also this description of those conditions as a “secondary disaster” (TND);   this (MEE);   a baby born under the rubble has survived (TND);   this (DW);   this (TND);   the article at Wikipedia is here;  
  and
     on aid: this (international aid) (TG), this (TG), this (satellites can help) (TC), this (UN);   politics is restricting aid for Syria (DW);   social media has been shut down, hindering aid efforts and requests (TND);   some aid is starting to get into Syria (TG);  
     on cause/injuries:   this (TG), this (Nature), this (YT), this (TC), this (TC), this (DW), this (aftershocks) (DW);  
     consequences of:   divisions in Syria may deepen (CSIS);  
  
  
• on Rashist  Putin and his cronies’ ILLEGAL (it is contrary to Chapters VI and VII of the UN Charter  and international law [and the 1928 Pact of Paris which was successfully used in post-WW2 trials], and possibly includes conduct contrary to the "laws" of war and international humanitarian law (IHL)) INVASION of UKRAINE: 
• on military matters:   a new Russian offensive (TND) has started (TG);   
• on the nuclear (weapons and power) situations:   an assessment of reasons Putin would not use nuclear weapons (TS);  
• on human rights in the region and globally:   the continuing humanitarian need (UN);  
• inside Russia:   “fear as [mercenary] convict soldiers return from Ukraine” (TG);  
• internationally:   foreign students who fled Ukraine are able to continue their studies elsewhere (DW);   Taiwan is developing its military use of drones (ABC);   Ukraine is rethinking its relationship with China (DW);   
   
• on INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS (noting the UN Charter [particularly Chapters VI and VII] and numerous  international  treaties): 
• as China throws a tantrum and threatens to “respond” for its spy balloon being shot down in another nations territory (F24) - see this discussion on the legality (YT), another spy balloon from China has been found, but over South America (F24) - apparently there have been quite a few more, but they haven’t been detected) (WP [$]);   “Spanish and Moroccan leaders meet to repair ties” (DW);   “the president of the UN Economic and Social Council on Monday said it was imperative to put people first, if the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are to be realized by the 2030 deadline” (UN);   Penny Wong overruled her department and insisted on sending an observer to the first meeting of countries that support a landmark United Nations treaty banning nuclear weapons, new documents reveal (TG);   another US company has self censored in China (AJ);   “UN ‘blueprint’ to protect least developed nations amid global slowdown” (UN);   South Sudan and Kenya have a border dispute (TEA);  
  
• noting particularly Chapters VI and VII of the UN Charter, the 1928 Pact of Paris used in post-WW2 trials, the "laws" of war and IHL and Article 20 of the ICCPR on WAR / CONFLICT:   as the leaders of Ethiopia and Tigray have their first face to face meeting (Monitor Uganda), Ethiopia sends funds to Tigray (Media Africa Times);   protests against ineffectiveness of international force in eastern DRC (The Star);   war in the Sahel is spilling into the Gulf of Guinea (AN);  
  
• incidents / action of concern in/regarding:   Cameroon (ICG);
   
• on CORRUPTION (noting international  agreements and monitoring), MISGOVERNANCE, MAL-/MIS-/NON-FEASANCE, MISCONDUCT and THREATS TO DEMOCRACY/FREEDOM: 
• “Robodebt inquiry is laying bare the horrific human cost of cheap and heartless politics” (TND);   
• a US school has silenced (M) both LGTBIQA+ students and their supporters and the famed  philosopher  Elie Wiesel;   
• some bright spark has finally (TG) realised (TND) having (SBS) CCP-linked (AJ) surveillance equipment is not good - and the same applies to phones (Gizmodo) ... and “social media campaign linked to Chinese government spreading disinformation about Australian politics, thinktank says” (TG), but a vicious crackdown in STEM in the USA has pushed non-whites out (ABC);   “the Optus data breach has driven a spike in complaints against the telco industry, with more than 17,900 Australians writing to the ombudsman to express displeasure with their services” (TND) - but “Australian telcos block 90 million spam texts in just seven months” (and companies block more that get through) (ABC);   “the former head of the Department of Human Services pressured the commonwealth ombudsman to delete language questioning the legality of the robodebt scheme from a key report, according to emails published by a royal commission” (TG);  
  
• concerns around past/current/potential corruption/misgovernance also in   Australia (TND),   Australia (TG),   UK (TG),   Australia (the former national neolib government) (TG),   APVMA (ABC),   Australia (ABC);
  
  
• on DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNANCE (noting Article 25 of the ICCPR and monitoring  projects): 
• globally:   “lack of jobs the main driver of violent extremism in sub-Saharan Africa” (UN);   an opinion (RR) that the USA has returned to democratic capitalism";   lessons from the past on the growth of hate groups (M);   a review finds that democracy promotion can still have a beneficial effect, but tweaks are necessary (PVG);   “Nigerian special rights panel begins probe of powerful military” (TEA);   an ultra-right wing, ultra conservative (backward) media outlet is losing sales (TND);  
  
• in Australia:   “social repair, especially fixing Medicare, must trump budget repair” (TND);   support (TG) for proposed cashless (TND) pokies in NSW;   “ Australia needs targeted mental healthcare to prevent further international student deaths by suicide, research finds” (TG);   “Federal government announces review of public sector board appointments to stamp out ’jobs for mates culture’” (ABC);   “Australian-born population more likely to suffer from chronic illness than most migrants, report finds” (this has been pointed out previously as one of the benefits of immigration) (ABC);  
  
• on violence in the NT: “alcohol bans to return in Northern Territory” (TND) - see also this (TG), and “Federal, NT governments accused of disregarding call for needs-based funding in Alice Springs report” (ABC) as “Social Justice Commissioner calls for governments to back Indigenous-led solutions in Alice Springs” (NIT);   a view that colonialism is continuing (Green Left);  
  
• on the proposed Voice to the Parliament in Australia: a call to see through the neolib’s attempted culture war (TND), and a warning (TND) as support reduces (TC) - but the majority are still supportive (TG), and all state, territory and national leaders unite in support (NIT);   an Indigenous Senator has (TND) left (ABC) the Greens (TND) as she considers Treaty/sovereignty is more urgent (TG) and will commit to truth telling (ABC) - and maybe a new political party (TG), which will leave that party likely to support the Voice (TG), but their First Nations convenors have sided with the Senator (TG) - see also this (NIT), but other Indigenous people say that view ignores a consensus (C [$]);   the neolibs are showing themselves to still be utterly out of touch (TND) losers (TG);   a pamphlet will be mailed out (TG), but there are fears of racism and lies on the pamphlets (TG);   South Australia has introduced legislation for a state-level Voice (ABC);  
  
• suppression of dissent / media in   Solomon Islands (ABC);
  democracy is also at risk in   Hong Kong (TG),   South Africa (Defence Web),   West Africa (AJ),   Nigeria (ICG) - see also this (DW) and this (DW),   India (DW); 
  
  
• on HUMAN RIGHTS (noting the various rights and treaties summarised here, IHL, Article 5 of the Rome Statute founding the ICC):  
  
• the appalling removal of ribbons of remembrance by neochristians (PnI) as hopes grow a former archbishop turned Governor-General who resigned and was criticised by an inquiry and a Royal Commission may finally be defrocked (QN);   “Iran admits 'tens of thousands' detained in protests, says will pardon some” (F24);   “systemic problems will not be solved by representational victories” (The Atlantic);   Russia will extend its collection of DNA samples from millions of people (HRW);   data on domestic violence in Australia (TC);   “RISE, Australia’s first eX-detainee, refugee and asylum seeker grassroots organisation, has called on Midsumma to cut ties with security company Serco, Victoria Police, Labor Party and other politicians ... ‘we should not be forced to face our torturers’” (Star);   “Denmark, Sweden offer protection to all women, girls from Afghanistan” (the key here is automatic recognition as refugees, something generous nations in Africa and a few elsewhere use as an expression of common sense - my nation [Australia] keeps tripping over the xenophobia and racism hurdles on the way to that approach) (HRW);  
  
• human rights are at risk or abuses have also occurred in:   Canada (data sale) (CBC),   Uganda (VoA);
  
• violence in:   Somaliland (AJ),   Africa (ACSS),   Nigeria (AJ),   Haiti (UN),   Burkina Faso (rfi);
  
  
• noting the GENOCIDE  Convention:   an atrocity alert for Nigeria, Philippines and Russia’s notorious Wagner Group (GCR2P);  
  
  
• noting Article 19 of the ICCPR on FREEDOM of POLITICAL EXPRESSION:   a global car racing organisations has banned drivers from making “political, religious or personal” comments (TG);   
  
  
• noting the conventions and the Global Compact on REFUGEES:   “Bill to evacuate refugees held offshore urgently needed and welcomed” (Asylum Seeker Resource Centre);   “Labor condemned for ‘abhorrently cruel’ decision to put 100 people back in immigration detention” (TG) see also this (TG), but on the other hand, “after a decade, Australian government restores family reunion pathway for refugee boat arrivals” (TG);  
  more refugee issues:   Italy (UN);
  
  
• noting the Yogyakarta Principles on LGBTIQ+ PEOPLE:   historical LGBTQphobia (TG) of NSW police led to staggering incompetence (ABC);   “study shows education does nothing to stop homophobic language in men’s rugby” (so improve the education, including setting goals and implementing ongoing meaasurement) (TG);  
  more LGBTIQA+ issues:   Tasmania (QN);
  
  
• noting ICERD and DRIP on RACISM:   “reparations at last: Land justice for Kenya’s Ogiek” (MRG);   in the USA a “11-year-old black boy [has been] arrested for refusing to stand for [the USA’s] pledge of allegiance” (M) - see also this (M);   a commentary that mob mentality also had a role to play in the recent murder of a black man in the USA (M);   “things that anti-racism allies need to stop doing” (M);   “NT coroner highlights alarming suicide statistics at inquest into death of Aboriginal man ... at Darwin prison” (ABC);   “progress on the National Agreement on Closing the Gap revealed in the latest Productivity Commission review is not what was hoped for, or what was promised by governments, the Coalitions of Peaks says” (NIT);  
  more racism issues:   Canada (CBC),   Germany (DW),   NSW (NIT),   WA (TG),   UK (TG);
  
  
• noting CEDAW on SEXISM:   “NSW minister passed over female frontrunners in search for new Children's Guardian” (ABC);  
  more sexism issues:   Iraq (DW),   Zambia (good news) (UN),   a mining company (ABC),   science (TC),   Pakistan (DW);
  
  
• noting the laws listed here, the conventions listed here, and principles discussed here, here, here, here, and here, on the RIGHTS OF ANIMALS:   Sweden has ignored scientific advice to appease farmers by killing scores of wolves (TG);   
  
  
• noting Articles 2 (1) (also noting this, this, this, and this), 3, 7, 14 (see here and here), 15, 16, and 26 of the ICCPR,   Articles 3, 5 (a), and 6 (see here and here) of the ICERD,   Articles 2, 12 (2), 37, 39, and 40 of the CRC,   Articles 5, 12, 13, and 14 of the CRPD,   and   Articles 1 - 2, 7 (2), 8 (2) (c), 9 - 10, 12 (2), 20 (2), 27, and 40 of the DRIP on the JUDICIARY / JUSTICE SYSTEM:   “Kenya's death penalty disproportionately affects people from low-income households, many of whom lack proper legal representation. Those surveyed in a recent study also accused the judiciary of corruption” (DW);   after criticism by a judge, “Victoria police withdraw charges against Black Lives Matter protesters” (TG);   “Townsville magistrate orders children be released from watch house amid heated youth justice debate” (TG);   
  
  
• noting Article 6 (1) of the ICCPR,   Article 11 of the ICESCR,   Article 5 (e) (iii) (see here and here) of the ICERD,   Article 14 (2) (h) of the CEDAW,   Article 27 (3) of the CRC,   Article 28 of the CRPD,   and   Article 20 of the DRIP on FOOD, CLOTHING, and HOUSING:    another story about a person - with disabilities - forced into a tent by the high cost of rental (ABC);  
  

(Should you elect to write to your elected representatives or others on these matters, it may be useful to familiarise yourself with the links shown in blue - or to at least refer to them. Don't forget to CHECK whether your nation has RATIFIED the treaty concerned.)

Abbreviations:   Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project - ACLED;   Aeon Magazine - Aeon;   Africa Centre for Strategic Studies - ACSS;   Africa News - AN;   Al Jazeera - AJ;   All Africa - AA;   Amnesty International - AI;   Associated Press - AP;   Australian Associated Press - AAP;   Australian Broadcasting Corporation - ABC;   Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility - ACCR;   Australian Independent Media Network - AIMN;   Australian Unions - AU;   Barrons;   Bellingcat (B);   Bloomberg - BB;   Brisbane Times - BT;   British Broadcasting Commission - BBC;   Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists - BAS;   Cable News Network - CNN;   Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - CBC;   Centre for Strategic and International Studies - CSIS;   Climate Change News - CCN;   Committee to Protect Journalists - CPJ;   Context - CT;   the (US) Council on Foreign Relations (CFR);   Crikey - C [$];   Dabanga Sudan - DS;   Deutsche Welle - DW;   European Union - EU;   Forbes - F;   Foreign Policy - FP;   France 24 - F24 (I am wary of this outlet now that they have posted a staggeringly badly researched and transphobic article);   Freedom House - FH;   Genocide Watch - GW;   Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect - GCR2P;   Globe Echo - GE;   HumAngle - HmA;   Human Rights Law Centre - HRLC;   Human Rights Watch - HRW;   Independent Australia - IA;   International Crisis Group - ICG;   Jessica Wildfire (Substack) - JW;   Just Equal - JE;   Lawfare Blog - LFB;   Lowy Institute - The Interpreter - Lowy;   Mail & Guardian - MG;   mainstream media - MSM;   Medium - M;   Michael West (news media platform) - MW;   Middle East Eye - MEE;   Minority Rights Group - MRG;   Mirage News - MN;   Nation Africa - NA;   National Indigenous Television - NITV;   National Indigenous Times - NIT;   Nature Magazine - Nature;   New York Times - NYT [$];   News24;   North Africa Post - NAP;   Openly - Op;   Out in Perth - OiP;   Pearls and Irritations - PnI;   Political Violence at a Glance - PVG;   Politico - P;   Premium Times Nigeria - PT;   Q News - QN;   Quartz - Q;   Radio France International - rfi;   Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE);   Religion News Service - RNS;   Responsible Statecraft - RS;   Reuters - R;   Robert Reich - RR;   (Bruce) Schneier - Sch;   Special Broadcasting Service - SBS;   Star Observer - Star;   Sudan Tribune - ST;   Sydney Morning Herald - SMH;   The Age - TA;   The Big Smoke (TBS);   The East African - TEA;   The Guardian - TG;   The (Nigerian) Guardian - TG-N;   The Monthly - TM;   The National Tribune - tNT;   The New Daily - TND;   The Saturday Paper - TSP;   The Sentry - TS;   The Shot - TS;   Timothy Snyder - TS;   Union Aid Abroad - APHEDA;   United Nations - UN;   Voice of America - VoA;   Wall Street Journal - WSJ [$];   War on the Rocks - WotR;   Washington Post - WP [$];   Wikipedia - WP;   Yahoo News - Yahoo; YouTube - YT.

Note: news sources are never perfectly accurate or good - for instance, some have been transphobic (which is why I may, for instance, cancel email subscriptions), but may be good in other areas (e.g., racism) - and attributes may vary depending on region and over time. I do NOT provide an unqualified endorsement of ANY of the media sources I use.

Finally, remember: in general, we need to be more human being rather than human doing.