Latest news with #dissent
Zawya
3 days ago
- General
- Zawya
Niger: Six Month-Long Arbitrary Detention of Human Rights Defender Moussa Tiangari Must End
Niger's authorities should immediately release civil society activist and human rights defender Moussa Tiangari and stop using terrorism-related charges to silence dissent, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), in the framework of the Observatory for the protection of human rights defenders, said today. On December 3, 2024, men claiming to be policemen arrested Tiangari at his home in Niamey, Niger's capital. On January 3, 2025, the Niamey High Court charged him with several serious offences, including 'criminal conspiracy in connection with a terrorist enterprise,' 'undermining national defence,' and 'plotting against the authority of the state through intelligence with enemy powers.' If convicted of plotting with enemy powers, he could face the death penalty. On the same day, Tiangari was remanded to Filingué prison, 170 kilometers from Niamey, where he remains arbitrarily held in pretrial detention. Since then, he has not been interviewed on the merits of the charges against him before a judge. 'Moussa Tiangari is being detained solely for the exercise of his human rights. We urge the authorities to immediately release him and drop all charges. We are deeply concerned about the use of charges like these to silence critics of the government,' said Marceau Sivieude, interim regional director for West and Central Africa at Amnesty International. Three weeks before his arrest, on November 12, 2024, Tiangari criticized on social media the decision of Niger's interior minister to revoke the licenses of two humanitarian nongovernmental organizations. He also criticized the establishment of a terrorism database, a move that further undermines the human rights of the people of Niger. Tiangari risks being stripped of his Nigerien nationality on terrorism charges, based on an August 2024 ordinance establishing a database for individuals and groups associated with terrorism and national defence offences. Under Niger's penal code, terrorism-related charges can result in up to four years' non-renewable preventive detention. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, FIDH, and OMCT have examined the charges and can confirm that none of them relate to internationally recognizable offences, as each relates to the legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression. 'Tiangari's arrest is part of a wider trend of repression by the Nigerien authorities, who target and subject to constant judicial harassment all those who publicly criticize them, with the aim of silencing them,' said Drissa Traoré, secretary general of FIDH. 'Moussa Tiangari's arrest and subsequent detention sends a chilling message to anyone who may dare to criticize Niger's slide toward autocracy,' said Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Sahel researcher at Human Rights Watch. 'Tiangari's arrest is a grave mistake and counterproductive. For decades, he has embodied the Nigerien people's call for democracy, security, resource sovereignty, and independence. Any government that respects the people's will must release him,' said Isidore Ngueuleu, head of the Africa Regional Desk at OMCT. Background Tiangari, 55, is the secretary general of the civil society organization Citizens Alternative Spaces (Alternative Espaces Citoyens, AEC). At about 7:30 p.m. on December 3, 2024, at least three gunmen in plain clothes arrested Tiangari at his home in Niamey and seized his phone, laptop, and suitcase. His fate and whereabouts were unknown for two days. On December 5, 2024, he was located at the Central Service for Combating Terrorism and Organized Transnational Crime in Niamey. In March and May 2025 respectively, the Nigerien courts rejected Tiangari's lawyers' applications to have the case declared null and void and for the judicial division specialising in combating terrorism and cross-border organized crime to relinquish jurisdiction. Tiangari's lawyers have appealed against these rulings. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, FIDH, and OMCT have called for Tiangari's immediate and unconditional release. Amnesty International supporters have been taking action on his behalf. In a joint press statement issued in July 2024, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and FIDH expressed their deep concern and denounced the repression carried out by Niger's military authorities against the opposition, the media, and peaceful dissent since they took power by a coup in July 2023. In a report issued in March 2025, Amnesty International documented the clampdown on former government officials and critical voices since the coup. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Human Rights Watch (HRW).
Washington Post
4 days ago
- General
- Washington Post
Supreme Court leaves in place Maryland's ban on assault-style rifles
The Supreme Court declined to take up a pair of gun-rights cases Monday, leaving in place Maryland's ban on semiautomatic military-style rifles and Rhode Island's restrictions on large-capacity magazines holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition. The court's action drew dissents from three conservatives, showing the Supreme Court still divided on how to handle Second Amendment cases after the justices expanded gun rights in a 2022 landmark decision.
The Sun
30-05-2025
- General
- The Sun
Pics Putin DOESN'T want you to see: Russia bans depictions of Kremlin tyrant as Adolf Hitler amid crackdown on dissent
RUSSIA has banned its people from depicting Vladimir Putin as a modern-day Hitler in the latest crackdown on dissent. A court has ruled it illegal to compare visuals of the Kremlin tyrant and warmonger to the Nazi leader, saying they 'incite terrorism' and 'harm state interests". 6 6 6 In the latest crackdown, Russian authorities banned 12 websites and a long list of online pictures and videos linking Putin to Hitler. Russian critics of Putin have been barred from photoshopping a Hitler moustache and hairstyle onto the Kremlin dictator. A common description of the Russian leader as "Putler"- combining the two names - is also banned. So is an image of Putin holding a revolver to his head and the caption "How to save Russia from shame". The Kirov District Court of Omsk ruled that such images of Putin 'have a negative impact on the interests of society and the state, encourage an indefinite number of people to commit terrorist activities and crimes, and contribute to their commission'. Since his bloody invasion of Ukraine in 2022, a slew of Putin's critics - both inside and outside Russia - have likened the Kremlin leader to Hitler for the brutality of his repression and killings. Putin arrogantly assumed he could sweep in and seize Kyiv in a matter of days after ordering his troops over the border into Ukraine. But more than three years on, the red-faced despot has suffered staggering losses on the battlefield. One brave Russian critic recently linked Putin to Hitler in a protest close to the Kremlin. But Putin this month hosted a major military parade in Moscow marking the 80th anniversary of the defeat the Nazis by the Soviets - and Allies. Meanwhile, close Putin henchman Dmitry Medvedev called for the hanging of Volodymyr Zelensky after the warm just like Nazis lieutenants were after WW2 defeart. He criticised the Ukrainian leader for seeking a three-way meeting between Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and himself to agree to a peace deal. How scheming Putin has undermined Trump's 100 day peace plan for finally end bloody war in Ukraine He said: 'With regard to the last conclusion, [Zelensky] is wrong. 'Although Jodl and Keitel participated in signing the surrender on behalf of Hitler's Germany, they were nevertheless hanged by the Nuremberg Tribunal. History is a ruthless exterminator.' Alfred Jodl and Wilhelm Keitel were both Hitler lieutenants whose defence that they were 'following orders' was rejected. The ban comes as more than 10,000 tanks, 22,000 armoured vehicles, 26,000 artillery systems, and over 700 aircraft have been destroyed, officials estimate. Putin will end up dead like Hitler, ex-US intelligence officer EXCLUSIVE by Katie Davis and Denis Grigorescu VLADIMIR Putin has four glaring vulnerabilities that could ultimately lead to his downfall, an ex-military intelligence officer has revealed. Security expert David H. Carstens also told how the tyrant's "Achilles' heel" is putting Russia on track to have the highest number of casualties this year since the war started. He even claimed his weaknesses could see him face the same grisly fate as Adolf Hitler. Carstens, who served in the US Army for more than 30 years, said Putin is ploughing on with the conflict despite this as he "feels no real pressure" to strike a peace deal. Western officials have revealed that the Russians have sustained more than 900,000 casualties, with 250,000 dead, since Putin unleashed his illegal war. And any Russian who dares to speak up against Putin and his invasion of Ukraine is silenced by the Kremlin using Russia's classic playbook. The Kremlin has cracked down on protesters and debauchery, closed down independent media and put critics on trial - in a bid to starve citizens of alternate viewpoints. Dissidents capable of challenging Putin have been locked in gulag, exiled or killed amid the harshest crackdown on opposition in Russia since Soviet times. A long list of influential Russians have died in murky circumstances throughout Putin's 24-year rule after opposing, criticising, or crossing the resentful despot. The curious deaths - resulting from poisonings to shootings and falls from windows to plane crashes - may have helped pave the way for the Russian dictator to remain in power until 2036. 6 6 6
Washington Post
29-05-2025
- General
- Washington Post
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, Kenyan author and dissident who became a giant of modern literature, dies at 87
NEW YORK — Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, the revered Kenyan man of letters and voice of dissent who in dozens of fiction and nonfiction books traced his country's history from British imperialism to home-ruled tyranny and challenged not only the stories told but the language used to tell them, died Wednesday at 87.
Al Jazeera
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Why is El Salvador's President Bukele targeting foreign-funded nonprofits?
Human rights groups, politicians and experts have sharply criticised a law approved by El Salvador's Congress as a censorship tool, designed to silence and criminalise dissent by nongovernmental organisations critical of President Nayib Bukele. The law proposed by Bukele bypassed normal legislative procedures and was passed on Tuesday night by a Congress under the firm control of his New Ideas party. Bukele first tried to introduce a similar law in 2021, but after strong international backlash, it was never brought for a vote by the full Congress. Bukele said the law is intended to limit foreign influence and corruption. It comes after the government took a number of steps that have prompted concerns the country may be entering a new wave of crackdowns. Critics warn that it falls in line with measures passed by governments in Nicaragua, Venezuela, Russia, Belarus and China. Here are more details about the root of the criticism: Anyone — individual or organisation, local or foreign — who acts in the interest of a foreign entity or receives foreign funding to operate in El Salvador is required to register under the law. Every payment, whether in cash, goods or services, made to such groups will be subject to a 30-percent tax. The final law passed does not specify how the money from the tax will be used. While the United States also has a law that requires individuals working on behalf of foreign entities and governments to register, Bukele's is far broader in scope and grants him greater powers. It is fairly common in poorer countries in Latin America to depend on international aid dollars, as it is often difficult to raise money in their own countries. Analysts say a broad definition of a 'foreign agent' in the law could cover: The law creates a new government body called RAEX, or Registry of Foreign Agents, which will have wide powers, including setting requirements for registration, approving or denying applications, revoking or refusing to renew registrations and demanding documents or information at any time. Some NGOs can apply for exceptions, but RAEX will decide who can operate in the country. About 8,000 NGOs operate in El Salvador and often depend on foreign donations due to a lack of funds available in the Central American nation. Some of those groups have long been at odds with Bukele and have criticised some of his actions, including his decision to waive key constitutional rights to crack down on the country's gangs and seeking re-election despite clear constitutional prohibitions. The rules NGOs will have to adhere to the following: Violations of the rules can lead to fines between $100,000 to $250,000 and possible closure. Critics say Bukele revived the law because he has now consolidated power across all branches of government. His political alliance with US President Donald Trump has also emboldened him. Bukele announced the law shortly after a protest near his home ended in a violent crackdown by police that saw two people arrested. In addition, it comes after a number of moves by Bukele that have raised concerns that the self-described 'world's coolest dictator' is cracking down on dissent.
