The Human Rights Blog

Human Rights Hypocrisy: Hidden In Plain Sight

There was a time, not so long ago, when U.S. governmental hypocrisy on human rights and corporate interests was at least acknowledged. But now it seems that the Bush administration has so degraded society's standards, and Big Business so routinely claims that it is bound by no ethical standard except to make money and follow the law — even as it aims to define that very law, and then frequently flouts the remaining legal restraints — that the hypocrisy is no longer even acknowledged. At his news conference yesterday, George Bush angrily said they he could not and would not meet with the new President of Cuba, Raul Castro, because of Cuba's human rights record. Then, eight minutes later, he explained how excited he was to visit China for the Summer Olympics — a visit during which he will meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao.

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'My Favorite Dog': Dueling Rhymers

I didn't see any parent standing there saying, 'It's not a healthy thing to lock yourself in a room and create your own reality.'" Whatever happened to personal responsibility? Looks like the judge needs a reality check, too. For story, click here. APhoto: Former Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel, right, huddles with his attorney, Bob Sulkin during a break in Neuheisel's trial today at the Regional Justice Center, in Kent, Wash. Neuheisel, dismissed as Washington's football coach in June 2003, is suing the university and NCAA. He alleges breach of contract and claims the NCAA improperly influenced school officials to fire him here. 1. You can find a wonderful Iraqi election 'toon by Eric Devericks/Seattle Times here. 2. In its series on the guv's proposed fix of U.S.

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China defends human rights record

BEIJING, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi Thursday dismissed criticism of his country's human rights record, a published report said. Yang, rejecting criticism by some human rights groups, said the Chinese government is not cracking down on political dissent ahead of the 2008 Summer Olympics, The Financial Times reported. "The Chinese people enjoy extensive freedom of speech," Yang said at a joint press conference with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband. "You could ask 10 people on the street to stand in front of public security officers and freely say 'human rights are far more important than the Olympics' 10 times or even 100 times and I'll see which officer arrests them," Yang said. "If they get tired, the public security officer would probably offer them a cup of tea." Yang last week announced at a meeting with U.S.

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Human rights will improve in China thanks to Games: IOC official

Human rights will improve in China thanks to the Olympic Games being hosted there this year claimed a senior International Olympic Committee (IOC) official on Tuesday. Former IOC director general Francois Carrard told the BBC that had the Games not been awarded to China - they beat off among other candidates the Canadian city of Toronto in 2001 - then there would be no chance of human rights evolving there as the spotlight would not have been focussed on them. "If the Games were not awarded to China the (human rights) situation would not have progressed," the Swiss lawyer, who is now legal advisor to the IOC told the BBC. "This is a contribution to progress, an accelerating factor." Beijing insists it is playing a positive role in Sudan, and that activists are simply politicising the Olympics and seeking to ruin the event.

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A Call for Human Rights in China

LOS ANGELES�"The Chinese communist regime has not fulfilled its promise of improving human rights at all. On the contrary, it has launched another intensive wave of persecution in the name of preparing for the Olympics," said Ying Nian Wu, a professor of Statistics at the University of California, Los Angeles and a member of the Western U.S. Falun Dafa Association, during a speech. As the 2008 Beijing Olympics grow ever nearer, the world's call for human rights is coming to center stage. Gathered with a shared purpose to shine light into the dark corners of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) various human rights atrocities, human rights advocates held a press conference and rally in the South Lawn of the Los Angeles City Hall on Saturday, Feb. 23. Further describing some of the CCP's well-hidden crimes, Professor Wu said, "On July 10, 1999, the Chinese communist regime specifically created an agency called the '610 office' to persecute Falun Gong.

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A Call for Human Rights in China

LOS ANGELES�"The Chinese communist regime has not fulfilled its promise of improving human rights at all. On the contrary, it has launched another intensive wave of persecution in the name of preparing for the Olympics," said Ying Nian Wu, a professor of Statistics at the University of California, Los Angeles and a member of the Western U.S. Falun Dafa Association, during a speech. As the 2008 Beijing Olympics grow ever nearer, the world's call for human rights is coming to center stage. Gathered with a shared purpose to shine light into the dark corners of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) various human rights atrocities, human rights advocates held a press conference and rally in the South Lawn of the Los Angeles City Hall on Saturday, Feb. 23. Further describing some of the CCP's well-hidden crimes, Professor Wu said, "On July 10, 1999, the Chinese communist regime specifically created an agency called the '610 office' to persecute Falun Gong.

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Republican rivals open final assault in Florida

We're talking about imperfect human beings who are in the midst of the most intense job application of all time. Imagine for a moment how difficult the process must be? Yet, the collective americana spends its time focusing on the most arcane crap. Very little wonder that we wind up with candidates who read polls and suck up as much as they can. Here's a couple of great examples, one from each side of the political spectrum of how Americans have to be treated like children to get a vote. Example #1 comes from Michigan, where John McCain last week told the truth when he said that many of the formerly great Michigan industrial jobs will never come back. Romney, on the other hand, sucked up and told everyone they will. I call B.S. on that. Joe blow American can't handle the truth that the halycon days of the 50s are over for good in this global economy and Romney wins big time.

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Over on Kausfiles

Is Hillary better off losing Wisconsin? My friend S called with a so-crazy-it-might-be-true theory about the Democratic primary contest, which is this: Hillary does best when Democratic voters sense she's about to get brutally knocked out of the race, as in New Hampshire. That prospect taps a well of residual sympathy for a woman who has devoted her life to politics, etc. But when Hillary is triumphant she seems arrogant and unbearable, and voters feel free to express those perceptions at the polls. It follows that Hillary will do better in the crucial states of Ohio and Texas if she loses in Wisconsin and has her back to the wall. If she wins Wisconsin, and holds a big happy victory rally trumpeting her newfound momentum, the result will be a another surge of support for Obama. ... In other words, it's not that there is no momentum from a primary victory this year ("nomentum").

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Human Rights, and Wrongs in Beijing

International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge spoke yesterday, and, as usual, he didn't say anything. Which is just how the Chinese government likes it. The idea of awarding the Olympics to Beijing was that it would help change the behavior of the Chinese government. Instead, the Chinese government is changing the behavior of everyone else. .

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Russia: Human Rights Watch officials provided false info in visa ...

Russia says the director of a respected U.S. human rights organization and two other officials were denied entry visas because they provided false information about the purpose of their visit. Human Rights Watch chief Kenneth Roth was among those who were to travel to Moscow on Wednesday. The organization released a report accusing the Kremlin of using onerous regulations to block the work of independent activist groups. An official with the group's Moscow office on Wednesday admitted that the three had been using a travel agency for help in its visa applications. The Foreign Ministry says that agency misrepresented that purpose of Roth's visit. .

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