Human Rights

The making of the Hyogo2 disaster prevention treaty

JOHANNESBURG, 17 May 2013 (IRIN Global) - A month after the Indian Ocean tsunami struck in December 2004, affecting millions, 168 countries signed on to a 10-year plan to make the world safer from natural hazards. Yet the plan, the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) 2005-2015, focused primarily on “what to do to prevent disasters, but not enough on how to implement it,” says Neil McFarlane, chief coordinator and head of all regional programmes at the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR). full report

Libyans in North Africa scared to return home

 CAIRO, 16 May 2013 (IRIN Middle East) - Until government and revolutionary forces attacked the Libyan town of Bani Walid, about 170km southeast of the capital Tripoli in October last year, Abdullah Warfella had been determined never to leave. full report

Boko Haram attacks hit school attendance in Borno State

 KANO, NIGERIA, 14 May 2013 (IRIN Africa) - Around 15,000 children in Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, have stopped attending classes since February 2013, according to a Borno State Ministry of Education official who preferred anonymity, as Boko Haram extremists continue a wave of attacks on state schools. full report

Briefing: Towards internal solutions to the DRC crisis

 KAMPALA, 14 May 2013 (IRIN Africa) - A UN intervention brigade will soon be deployed to the troubled eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in a bid to neutralize militia groups operating there. full report

"Sometimes you cannot apply the rules" - Syrian rebels and IHL

 DUBAI, 13 May 2013 (IRIN Middle East) - In recent months, Syrian rebels have faced increasing criticism for violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) and human rights law. For guidance on the laws of war, they turn to a combination of Islamic law, IHL and their own sense of righteousness or, as one expert put it, “revolutionary justice” - with mixed results. full report

Syrian rebels on IHL: In their own words

 DUBAI, 13 May 2013 (IRIN Middle East) - Like Syrian regime forces, Syria’s multitude of rebel fighters have faced growing criticism in recent months over violations of international humanitarian law (IHL), including war crimes, with groups from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch to the UN Commission of Inquiry accusing them of killing opponents execution-style, torturing detainees, taking hostages, including UN peacekeepers, and possibly using chemical weapons. So how do the rebels view IHL principles? What guides their action? Who do they consider a civilian? And what do they think of aid workers? full report

Displaced still homeless after clashes in Baga, Nigeria

 BAGA,NIGERIA, 7 May 2013 (IRIN Africa) - Thousands of residents of Baga in Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, remain displaced for fear of further clashes breaking out between radical Islamist group Boko Haram and troops from the Nigeria-Niger-Chad Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF). A reported 187 people died in the clashes on 16 and 17 April. full report

Analysis: The plight of LGBTI asylum seekers, refugees

 KATHMANDU, 7 May 2013 (IRIN Global) - Refugees and asylum seekers face a host of challenges when crossing borders, but the obstacles are particularly pronounced for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or intersex (LGBTI) persons, say experts. full report

Analysis: Southeast Asia’s human trafficking conundrum

 JAKARTA, 6 May 2013 (IRIN Asia) - Tens of thousands of people are vulnerable to being trafficked in Southeast Asia, with governments struggling to understand and respond collectively to the problem, say experts and government officials. full report

Countering the radicalization of Kenya's youth

 NAIROBI, 6 May 2013 (IRIN Africa) - Unemployment, poverty and political marginalization are contributing to the Islamic radicalization of Kenya's youth, a situation experts say must be addressed through economic empowerment and inclusive policies. full report

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