AIDemocracy.org | genocide

Women as Perpetrators

March 10, 2011 by Katherine Williams

Assigning gender identities to perpetrators of wartime sexual violence is a problematic affair. The evolution of modern warfare has ensured that the attributes that have traditionally distinguished men and women are becoming increasingly blurred. Gender can be described as a social construct that is influenced by a variety of different factors; political and economic in/stability, societal pressures, culture and tradition, to name but a few. Men and women adapt to insecurity by constructing and deconstructing gender personas which will ultimately ensure … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Hunger, Sex and Justice Tagged With: Bosnia, Cambodia, conflict, Gender, genocide, Rwanda, Serbia, war, women

Obama's Foreign Policy – The Making of a Diplomatic Doormat

March 12, 2010 by Michael Collins

When candidate Obama spoke on the presidential campaign trail, he was highly critical of the direction that U.S. foreign policy had taken, rejecting the “false choice” between American ideals and security. Here was a man who wanted to reclaim America’s “moral high ground”. Yet, for all his eloquent rhetoric, President Obama has been unable to break with the past in the ways he promised. His duplicitous stance on key issues, where he chooses political expediency over moral responsibility, was demonstrated again this week, signaling a trend that … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Security Tagged With: Barack Obama, genocide, Israel, Joe Biden, Palestine, President Bush, Turkey

YELL FIRE! Dozens of Indigenous Protestors Killed Over US Free Trade Agreement

June 10, 2009 by Sarah Frazer

As many as 100 of indigenous protestors were killed early Friday morning in the northern Peruvian province of Bagua, as 600 Peruvian riot police were ordered to disrupt a peaceful road blockade launched in April as a part of a national protest against a new series of laws that would allow an unprecedented wave of logging, oil drilling, mining and mono-crop agriculture in the Amazonian jungle. Police fired live ammunition and teargas into the crowd armed with indigenous spears. Peruvian authorities report 22 police were killed and 2 missing, while the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Barack Obama, genocide, Michael Franti, mining, OAS, offshore drilling

Time for US to Step Up on Crisis in Congo

November 18, 2008 by Sahar Durali

Hey all! My name is Sahar Durali and I'm a new blogger for Americans for Informed Democracy’s Global Development Program. I'm finishing my last year at Penn State University, where I study History and Political Science and am looking forward to writing about and discussing global development issues with you! Anyhow, I wanted to call all of your attention to the worsening situation in Congo. A few weeks ago, I read a BBC opinion poll asking readers what can be done to stabilize the crisis-ridden Democratic Republic of Congo and if current UN … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Hunger Tagged With: aid, Barack Obama, BBC, Congo, foreign policy, genocide, President Bush, Rwanda

If you want to get away with heinous crimes, the best thing to do is become a head of state, or work for one

July 15, 2008 by AIDemocracy

Yesterday, as anticipated, ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo asked the pre-trial chamber of the ICC to issue an arrest warrant for Sudanese president Omar Al-Bashir for genocide and crimes against humanity. Also as anticipated, this is causing serious debates within the international legal community, which is divided over the wisdom of Mr. Ocampo's strategy. UN Dispatch has a pretty good wrap-up of the various arguments, which (and correct me if I've left one out) go something like this: 1) Indicting Bashir will only make his regime carry out more … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Security Tagged With: Darfur, genocide, ICC, Sudan

Mobilizing Transnational Activism to Stop Atrocities in Sudan

October 20, 2007 by AIDemocracy

As this post is being read, violence continues in the Darfur region of Sudan. Without engaging in the debate concerning whether or not the atrocities in Darfur may indeed be deemed genocide according to international law, mass atrocities continue to be committed. The mass violence in Darfur is an issue that affects the ‘international community’ as well as smaller communities in the US and the people who are victims of genocide in Sudan, and while it is a challenging issue to discuss, there are solutions. There are obvious and less obvious community … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Security Tagged With: activism, Darfur, genocide, human rights, humanitarian aid, Sudan

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

January 27, 2006 by AIDemocracy

This post is from Allynn Lodge. Today, January 27th, is International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Yesterday, Americans for Informed Democracy was invited as guests of the Daniel Pearl Foundation to attend a panel discussion at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City in commemoration of this day. The panel featured Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations, Ambassador Dan Gillerman, and Dr. Judea Pearl, Professor at the University of California Los Angeles and father of slain reporter for the Wall Street Journal, Daniel … [Read more...]