The Perfect Storm: Impunity and Violence against Women in Guatemala
The high levels of violence in Central America are often experssed as gender-based violence against women. This article discusses the use of violence against women as a weapon of war, as well as its presistence long into times of “peace”. By adressing the problems of femicide, domestic violence, and other forms of brutality directed at women and girls, we can also address the culture of violence more generally, in Guatemala, and beyond.
The Occupy Protestors: When They Refused to Repeat “We Are Free”, the State Cracked the Whip!
Why would a nation that prides itself as the leader of the free world be so sensitive when a few among her population take to the streets? What about when the crackdown of the press triggers concerns, and the rest of the mainstream media coverage reveals a certain degree of misconception? To what extent have ‘Occupy Protestors’ across America revealed American society’s ‘open secrets’, and what will happen when they become ‘public truth’ to the wider American society? Thanks to the well-orchestrated institutional onslaught against it, the Occupy Wall Street movement has lost, to a certain degree, the ‘battle’ but not the ‘argument’. In this article, Patrick Mugo Mugo investigates why a section of American society has refused to repeat, as they have done in the past, “We Are Free”, and why the various attempts to get the American economy back on its feet to the benefit of the majority seems to be backfiring.
Against a two state solution in Isreal
Stephen Kruger argues that International Law and the International Community have unfairly discriminated against Israel for annexing territory through warfare and using economic blockades, which are standard practise among states such as the US, China, and Russia.
The nature of justice: Irony and the obligation to multiculturalism
Responding to recent tensions in Kenya between government security forces and the Mombasa Republican Council, as well as the activities of unrelated vigilante groups, Humphrey Sipalla discusses the paradox of seeking justice in a largely unjust and essentially multicultural world.
The life and death of Mollah Nadhom
“SAF with SW attack on former AQI leader” — UN security briefing note
The Intersection of Law and Politics: The Case of the United States and the International Criminal Court
Researcher Mathew Ituma takes us through the story of the United States’ tentative support for the International Criminal Court under Clinton and its eventual “unsigning” under Bush, emphasizing the fundamental tension between national (in this case congressional) politics and international justice.
Key words: Rome Statutes, International criminal court, justice, law, politics.
The Human Propensity for War
This historic panorama of nearly a century of war explains how and why war has become more murderous over time despite efforts toward peace, concluding that the reasons for going to war do not appear to have changed.
The Fight in Arizona for Progressive Education in the Classroom
There is a huge debate in Tucson, Arizona regarding the elimination from the school curriculum of specific lessons in Mexican-American studies. The argument is that these lessons cause rifts between the school children, further dividing different ethnicities and causing an anti-USA campaign. However, in attempts to protest the new legislation, others argue for the value of the teachings and are pushing to continue the lessons that have been taught for decades. Shakena Goode offers an educated opinion on the situation, with hope for the future of educational liberty in Tucson and beyond.
The Year 2003: A Beacon of Hope in Eastern Africa
With the year 2003 drawing to an end in less than two months, Ferdinand Katendeko, despite the history of conflict and simmering violence in many parts of the region, looks at the countries that compose the Inter Government Authority on Development (IGAD), and finds much to be hopeful about.
Three tales of Rwandan Genocide
Ferdinand Katendeko writes:
“Whenever the month of April approaches, I recall what happened in my neighbouring country, Rwanda. What policies should governments put in place to avoid this genocide? How should the international community prepare itself to avoid such an occurrence? What role should the local community in such circumstances of brother killing a brother? What about the regional community? These are some of the questions that I would pose for every one to ponder as they read the testimonies given below.”