'06 News

06/30/2006 The U.S. House of Representatives has voted down a proposal that would have effectively disenfranchised millions of American citizens who do not speak English very well, reports CivilRights.org.

06/30/2006 Violence in Afghanistan is now at its worst level since the Taliban's ouster in 2001, and civilians have increasingly become caught in the the cross-fire between Taliban insurgents and coalition forces, reports a UN news service.

06/29/2006 Actor and filmmaker Nicolas Cage has donated $2 million to establish a fund--to be administered by Amnesty International--to help rehabilitate and reintegrate former child soldiers.

06/29/2006 Lauding the non-violent and democratic process that gained Montenegro its independence from Serbia only five weeks ago, Secretary-General Kofi Annan welcomed the United Nations’ 192nd member Wednesday.

06/28/2006 The U.S. Supreme Court announced on Monday that it is prepared to enter the global warming debate and consider a lawsuit that aims to require the federal government to regulate green house gas emissions from motor vehicles.

06/28/2006 The Center for Development and Population Activities was awarded nearly one million dollars to provide Egyptian youths with opportunities for positive civic engagement. The project will last two years and will reach 1200 young people, aged 20-24, through week-long leadership camps.

06/27/2006 The Sudanese government has lifted the restrictions it imposed on June 26th on United Nations relief operations across the western region of Darfur.

06/27/2006 At the 58th annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission last week, member countries voted 33 to 32 to overturn the international ban on whaling, but the resolution did not win the two-thirds majority needed to overturn the ban.

06/27/2006 United Nations officials were yesterday trying to break a diplomatic impasse after the Sudanese government suspended their operations in the western region of Darfur.

06/27/2006 A new report has found that the AK-47 will remain the most widely-used weapon in conflict zones for the next 20 years because there is little international control on its production, sale and use.

06/27/2006 Desertification may force over 60 million people to migrate from sub-Saharan Africa to northern Africa and Europe by 2020. The "merciless" transformation of habitable land to desert has considerable economic, environmental and social implications for nearby populations.

06/26/2006 Despite a report confirming the continued use of coercive sterilization on Roma women, women's advocates charge that the Czech government has failed to take action to stop these atrocities.

06/23/2006 Somalia's interim government and the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), the group that controls Mogadishu, have agreed to mutually recognize each other and engage in further dialogue in a bid to bring stability to the war-torn country.

06/23/2006 The Economic Community of West African States announced on June 14 that it had approved a new Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons, a legal instrument designed to stop the illegal trafficking of weapons in the region.

06/23/2006 According to a new report released by Amnesty International, weak national legislation and deeply entrenched social and cultural attitudes in Jamaica encourage gender discrimination and violence against women.

06/22/2006 Former Liberian head of state Charles Taylor's has been transferred to The Hague for his war crimes trial. The transfer has brought a mixed response, with many feeling safer while others want him publicly tried in Sierra Leone, where he allegedly committed most of his atrocities.

06/22/2006 By next year, for the first time in history, more than half of the human population will live in urban areas. To discuss the implications of this, such as the rapid growth of slums, delegates from over 150 countries will meet at the World Urban Forum this week to examine how to best approach these problems.

06/21/2006 Zimbabwean officials are furious at the UN's recommendation that Zimbabwe be ranked as a least-developed country. Zimbabwe's rejection of the status has become highly politicized, with many calling for authorities to face, not ignore, the reality of the "unfolding crisis" there.

06/21/2006 The eastern rebels, which have been active near the Eritrean border, signed a ceasefire and agreed on a framework for peace talks to end the conflict. Regional observers believe a peace deal is urgently needed to avoid renewed hostilities as the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army pulls out.

06/20/2006 A group of graduating eighth graders and their parents are putting together a shipment of desperately needed medical supplies to aid the people of Darfur. The money raised by the families was leveraged into over a half a million USD worth of medications and drugs by a DC-based non-profit.