THAILAND: In Convoys of Red, Rural Masses Stage Historic Protest
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - An unprecedented show of force by men and women from Thailand’s rural hinterland was on display over the weekend as they poured into Bangkok in the tens of thousands to stake a claim on having a voice in shaping this South-east Asian kingdom’s national agenda.
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RIGHTS-MALAWI: Country Not Safe for Homosexuals
By Claire Ngozo
LILONGWE - Malawi is quickly becoming unsafe for homosexuals as the country’s police service recently launched a campaign to hunt down and arrest prominent people who are suspected of being gay.
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ENVIRONMENT-INDIA: Law on Forest Rights Fails to Deliver
By Manipadma Jena
BHUBANESWAR, India - A four-year-old landmark law that was supposed to bring profound changes in the lives of India’s tribal and forest-dwelling peoples has failed to deliver on that promise.
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MEXICO: Consumers on the Offensive
By Emilio Godoy
MEXICO CITY - Mexican consumers are currently facing a combination of price rises, economic recession and lack of legal protection in the face of abuses committed by providers of goods and services.
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RIGHTS: Gender Confab Marked by Political Uncertainties
By Thalif Deen and Anna Shen*
UNITED NATIONS - When a two-week meeting on gender empowerment concluded at U.N. headquarters Friday, there were several lingering questions crying out for answers.
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POLITICS-NIGERIA : In the Shadows of Men: Women’s Political Marginalisation
By Mustapha Muhammad
KANO - Ten years after Nigeria returned to civil rule women still play second fiddle in the male-dominated politics of Africa’s most populous nation, women politicians and activists say.
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HAITI: Caribbean Unites Behind Recovery Plans
By Peter Richards
ROSEAU, Dominica - As he travels back to his headquarters in Washington, World Bank president Robert Zoellick must be painfully aware that Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries have very strong feelings on the redevelopment of Haiti following the Jan. 12 earthquake.
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DEVELOPMENT-CAMEROON: Are Women the Magic Bullet for "Electoral Apathy"?
By Mohamadou Houmfa
YAOUNDE - A support network for women's political participation, is challenging head-on what it calls "electoral apathy", after noting a growing trend in electoral abstention.
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PHILIPPINES: Reproductive Health Tests Candidates’ Political Guts
By Kara Santos
MANILA - Filipino voters who have yet to make up their minds about their choice for their next president are being advised: look at each aspirant’s stance on reproductive health to help them gauge the candidate’s leadership mettle and political guts.
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CHINA: Binge-drinking Culture Turning from Fun to Lethal
By Mitch Moxley
BEIJING - After Chen Lusheng, a police sergeant from the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, died in December after an off-duty night of heavy drinking with local officials, his superiors tried to have him designated a "martyr" who "died in the line of duty," so that his family would receive greater compensation.
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