Archive for the ‘World’ Category
A Town Bands Together to Save a Friend from Deportation
10:47 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Immigration|Spain|World · 1 Comment
26 Mar 2009
For a change from the posts about raids and militarized borders, an immigration story with a very happy ending.
It happened in Spain, a country with an “immigration problem” like the U.S., but where people as a whole tend to be a lot more likely to look at immigrants as people rather than “problems”. Hassane Moctar, at 21 years old, arrived by night on a makeshift raft to Spain from Mauritania, taking his life into his own hands to try to find a better life in Europe. He ended up in Galicia, where a family from Cangas do Morrazo, a town near Pontevedra “adopted” him. Hassane has been living with the Veiga family for 6 months, and the family who were once strangers now consider him part of their family.
But things weren’t so rosy with Hassane’s legal situation. Two weeks ago, Hassane, now 24, went to court to answer to a deportation order which would send him back immediately if something wasn’t done. His attorney demonstrated that the people of Cangas supported him, that he spoke Spanish, and that he even had job offers. The Veiga family began a signature campaign and managed to collect 5,000 names from townspeople in support of Hassane staying in Spain. His Galician “sister” testified on the stand to the fact that he was now part of the Veiga family:
“Ever since he started living with us, he’s been just like any member of the family. He’s never had any problems and we all love him. My 95 year old grandmother asks where Hassane is as soon as she gets up, and he spends a lot of time with her. If he gets deported, my grandmother will die.”
But initially much of this was considered irrelevant to his case by the judge. Now he had to wait for the verdict.
Read more…
Obama Administration Will Reportedly Sign UN Gay Rights Agreement
11:07 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Activism|GLBT|Politics|society|World · Comments Off
18 Mar 2009
Not to be all Obama administration “rah, rah, sis, boom ba!” but after quietly celebrating the latest reversal to the Bush farm worker rule, I’m celebrating this piece of unofficial news as well:
The Obama administration will support a United Nations declaration affirming that sexual orientation and gender identity are included in international human rights protections, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday evening.
According to officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because Congress was still being notified, the Obama administration had reviewed the reasons why the Bush administration opposed the declaration, and decided to notify the French sponsors that the United States would support it.
As you might already know, the U.S. was, thanks to the prior administration, part of a shameful list of oppressive, anti-gay countries such as Saudi Arabia, Uganda, Egypt and the Vatican City. It’s impossible for people in Europe and other places that signed the agreement to understand this kind of hatred. Luckily, with this move, we are a millimeter closer to a more dignified world image.
There’s still a lot left for the Obama administration to do when it comes to gay rights. Namely: approve gay marriage.
Via / Advocate
Fires in Australia
10 Feb 2009This is just horrible:
My heart goes out to all of Australia, but especially those people like the man in the video who have lost family, homes, towns.
Italian President to Force Doctors to Report Undocumented
9:30 am By Maegan La Mala · Controversia|Immigration|italy|Justice|society|World · Comments Off
9 Feb 2009
Ah, Silvio Berlusconi. We’ve reported on the Italian Prime Minister a couple of times here on VL and none of it has been good news. In sharp contrast to the majority of the leaders of the countries within the European Union, Berlusconi has it out for immigrants and apparently will stop at nothing to advance his fascist ways in Italy, the country with the largest number of immigrants in Europe — some 7 million. In what may be his most disgusting move yet, Berlusconi’s government has crossed the line of common decency to make it obligatory for medical doctors to report undocumented patients. Reports The Telegraph:
The Italian parliament passed a bill on Thursday which will compel medical staff to contact the police if they believe that the patient they are treating does not have a valid visa or work permit.Opposition MPs condemned the measure as “racist” while doctors groups said it would turn them into informers of the kind last seen in Italy during Mussolini’s fascist regime.
Thousands of Stargazers Gather in Mexico City
7:11 am By Maegan La Mala · Latin America|mexico|science|World · 1 Comment
9 Feb 2009To kick off International Astronomy Day — which marks the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s invention of the telescope – thousands of Mexico City residents gathered this weekend in the city’s main plaza, El Zócalo, to turn their telescopes to the sky and do a little stargazing:
But it wasn’t just Mexico City residents who got in the stargazing spirit. Events took place all over the republic, in city squares in all major Mexican cities. In addition, astronomy buffs also gathered at archeological sites all over the country in an event called “Night of Stars 2009: Our Ancestors’ Skies”, which took place a Boca de Potrerillos, in Nuevo León; Xochicalco in Morelos; Calixtlahuaca in Mexico State; Cholula in Puebla; Dzibichaltún in Yucatán; and Edzná in Campeche.
Via / Reforma on YouTube
Israel vs. Venezuela: An Eye for an Ojo
7:52 am By Maegan La Mala · Controversia|Latin America|Politics|Venezuela|World · Comments Off
29 Jan 2009
A few weeks back, after initially having exercised some restraint with regard to Israel, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez gave diplomats from that country the boot, effectively closing up shop on Israel-Venezuela diplomatic relations. Now it’s Israel’s turn; not to be outdone, they’ve given Venezuelan diplomats walking papers as well:
Venezuelan head of mission Roland Betancourt and two other diplomats were given until Friday to leave.“Due to the decision of Venezuela to cut relations with us a few weeks ago, we told the Venezuelan charge d’affaires that he and his staff should leave Israel,” Foreign Ministry official Lior Hayat said. “We told them they are declared persona non grata in Israel.”
From Inside Guantánamo: What Life is Really Like in the Soon-to-be-Gone Prison
2:04 pm By Maegan La Mala · Justice|military|Politics|society|Spain|World · Comments Off
28 Jan 2009
If there is anybody out there who still has any doubts as to whether the U.S.’s shameful hellhole Guantánamo should be closed, ex-prisoner Lahcen Ikassrien has some things to tell you. Ikassrien, a Spanish resident and Morrocan national, was a prisoner at Gitmo for nearly 4 years after being captured in Afghanistan and accused of being a supporter of the Taliban.
If you understand Spanish, have a look at the video above, in which Ikassrien describes in detail what his life (if you can call it that) was like during his detention (among the torture, being laced with gasoline and set fire). I’ve also translated parts of his interview with Spain’s Telecinco here because I think it’s of interest to our readers. This kind of testimony doesn’t reach us through U.S. mainstream media:
What is the before and after for Lahcen Ikassrien, after living 3 and a half years in hell?
I am a Muslim and I will continue to be a Muslim. I don’t force anyone to enter my territory nor to accept my beliefs. I don’t have problems with Jews or with Christians nor with anyone of any other belief. But I ask for respect for Muslims because people try to make others believe that we are terrorists or that women are forced to wear ‘hiyab’ and that’s not true. I ask for respect.
The world is abuzz with President Obama’s recent shenanigans. Apparently (OMG) Obama has given an interview to the Arab press–and demands the U.S. take a historical non-linear approach to understanding the various issues in the Middle East! ::screams frantically while running around in circles::
Although all the radical right thinks that this means the AyRabs will most definitely be out to kill us at some point–I prefer to think (in all my radical left superiority) that what this means is that a complicated and nuanced road is about to be taken. That entire nations of people can no longer be completely dismissed under the decidedly uncomplicated mantra “they hate our freedom.”
And god forbid–maybe a little justice might be thrown into the mix as well. I’m willing to give Obama a chance, although I am quite suspicious of him. I hope that the radical right is willing to give him a chance too.
Catholics Converge on Mexico City to Discuss “Model Families”
9:50 am By Maegan La Mala · children|Family|GLBT|mexico|Religion|society|World · Comments Off
15 Jan 2009
If you’re sick and tired of the Christian Right and the Catholic Church forcing their idea of “family” — a unit made up of a man, a woman and some kids — on you, then you’d be better off not reading on. This week the infamous “Encuentro Mundial de las Familias” took place in Mexico City, and it was all traditional family model, all the time, with a whole lot of judgment and marginalization, as was to be expected. I mean, it is an event organized by the Vatican.
Here’s what church officials Ennio Antonelli and Marc Quellet had to say about gay families and those made up of unmarried couples:
The inaugural reception was over when, in the first talk given by the president of the Pope’s Family Council of the Vatican, Italian cardenal Ennio Antonelli said: “We think, and not only us, that the experience of living together between homosexuals should remain something private and within friendship relationships. Of course one can consider [these relationships] good or bad, that’s another story, but it should be considered a private relationship.”In addition, for the Archbishop of Québec, Marc Quellet, the “free unions” among homosexuals, but also among heterosexuals, should combatted by the Church and society itself, because they constitute a threat to “human ecology.”
Salma’s Baby Daddy Might Have Another Baby
11:52 am By Maegan La Mala · Celebrities|Chismes|france|Politics|World · Comments Off
14 Jan 2009
And a very high-profile one at that. French Minister of Justice, Rachida Dati, has been keeping the identity of her baby daddy secret ever since she started showing, and since then rumors have been flying left and right as to who the papi is. The tabloid press swore that it was none other than French president Sarkozy, while others claimed it was Spanish president José María Aznar, as Dati remained tight-lipped. But now the press seems to believe they’ve solved the puzzle: the dad is Salma Hayek’s ex, Francois-Henri Pinault. Wowza!
Even though there had been little linking the pair, she confided: “I’m fed up with the rumours – during the whole summer they said that I was with Francois-Henri Pinault.”A fortnight later, during a lunch between female government ministers organised by Interior Minister Michele Alliot-Marie, she added: “The father travels a lot.”
At the time, Mr Pinault was flying regularly from Paris to the States to see baby daughter Valentina, who lives with Hollywood star mum Salma.
OK, that sounds like a lame piece of proof. But this is a bit more juicy:
Hola!
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