Following the lead of Islamists, Egyptian Christians are trying to ban an award-winning novel because it ‘insults’ Christianity Khaled Diab guardian.co.uk I am no fan of fanaticism and I wish fundamentalists would just have some fun, or at the very least learn to live and let live. But, in Egypt, they have gone from being a nuisance to becoming a real threat, not only to freedom of speech and expression but also to the country’s very cultural heritage. This was demonstrated in recent weeks when a group calling itself (without a hint of irony) Lawyers Without Shackles tried to shackle … Continue reading So what if Egypt’s Copts find a book insulting?

HIV infections are on the rise, yet activist Maxim Popov has been given a seven-year jail sentence for his prevention work Paul Canning guardian.co.uk In Uzbekistan it seems that promoting condoms and sterile needles to stop the spread of HIV is “immoral” and deserving of imprisonment in its notorious jails. The country, ruled by dictator Islam Karimov – and recently lambasted by the UN Human Rights Committee – has given one of its leading Aids workers a seven-year sentence. Maxim Popov is the founder of the now-closed non-governmental Aids organisation, Izis. The group had support from international donors including USAid … Continue reading Uzbekistan’s Aids shame

Leaving 70,000 prisoners disenfranchised is morally inexcusable – and breaches the European convention on human rights Juliet Lyon guardian.co.uk Prison inmates are not allowed to vote. Photograph: Ian Waldie/Getty Images The chaotic scenes of hundreds of people turned away from polling stations unable to vote on 6 May were not the only democratic scandal of the general election. A further invisible 70,000 people were denied even the possibility of exercising their democratic right, after the government failed to overturn the unlawful blanket ban on sentenced prisoners voting. In March 2004, the European court of human rights ruled that it is … Continue reading End this ban on prisoners voting

Liberty, the tie that binds The coalition’s proposals come as a huge relief: this could end 13 years’ erosion of civil rights by Labour Henry Porter guardian.co.uk “The parties agree to implement a full programme of measures to reverse the substantial erosion of civil liberties under the Labour government and roll back state intrusion.” This sentence, published in the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition agreement, is one that civil libertarians have been waiting a long time for, and to hear David Cameron and Nick Clegg talk about their government handing back privacy and curbing the powers of the state was certainly a … Continue reading Liberty, the tie that binds

Theresa May will be nobody’s stooge The press will portray Theresa May as totty set up to fail, but her achievements make her far from the token woman in the cabinet Anne Perkins guardian.co.uk Theresa May, the new home secretary, visits Braeside nursing home, Edinburgh, during the general election campaign. Photograph: Murdo Macleod Theresa May is going to get a bucket load of condescension in tomorrow’s papers: the lone (so far) woman in cabinet sent off to the Home Office, traditional graveyard of political ambition – in short, totty set up to fail. And it’s true the new Home Office, … Continue reading Theresa May is not a totty set up to fail, her achievements make her far from the token woman in the cabinet

Mother’s phone call as comforting as a hug, says oxytocin study US scientists believe hearing your mother’s voice on the telephone has same stress-busting effect as a cuddle James Meikle guardian.co.uk Hearing your mother’s voice on the telephone has the same stress-busting effect as a cuddle, say US scientists. Photograph: Dougal Waters/Getty Images Children know that mum’s got the words when life seems to be getting too much. Now it seems her voice on the phone can work the same soothing magic as when she is there to give her offspring a comforting cuddle. US scientists believe hearing mother down … Continue reading Mother’s phone call as comforting as a hug!

by Eefa Khalid dawn Among the various encroachments on Pakistan’s footpaths are the bright-kurta clad local fortune-tellers sitting with their parrots picking up ‘fate’ cards for their customers. This old practice has been flourishing in various ways; some of them grab a small space on the footpath and use parrots to pick an answer while others read palms. Some reach the elite by sitting at different restaurants and hotels, offering their skills through tarot reading, palmistry and numerology. But the questions are typically the same; revolving around health and marriage mostly. The pursuit of knowing things is an undefined part … Continue reading The pursuit of happiness

By Masud Alam dawn.com Pakistani villagers watch breaking news on the Indian court verdict against the sole surviving gunman of the Mumbai massacre, Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, at a house in the remote town of Faridkot on May 3, 2010. — AFP FARIDKOT: The comment itself was quite innocuous. The voice tone was balanced and the expression clear and un-halting. And yet there was something conspiratorial about it. “Indians have demonstrated double standards in the case of Ajmal Kasab. The Pakistani suspect gets four death sentences and the Indian suspects go free. It’s a shame for all Pakistanis and specially … Continue reading Tell-tale silence in Faridkot

Dawn Editorial Sadly, our security establishment only acts when Pakistani or Pakistan-based militants attack or threaten to attack others. –Photo by APP The recovery of jihadi paraphernalia from a Karachi mosque is a sobering reminder that militant outfits are quietly carrying on their business in Pakistan. Copies of computerised national ID cards and alien registration cards belonging to Afghan nationals and local supporters of the Jaish-i-Muhammad were also confiscated by law-enforcement officials from the mosque. The material seized in the raid, carried out in the wake of the failed Times Square bomb plot, included speeches of Jaish leader Masood Azhar, … Continue reading Jihadi infrastructure

By Sanaullah Baloch dawn.com While remote-controlling the province via civil armed forces may breed more resentment and violence, support for apolitical tribal chiefs as an alternative against the popular Baloch leadership will solely promote corruption, bad governance and will lead to a harmful future. — Photo by Reuters The situation in Balochistan has reached its lowest ebb since the military operation that began in January 2005. The entire province is besieged: the provincial government has been abandoned while the centre is directing policies according to its will with the gun and the stick, terming this ‘development’ for the people’s betterment. … Continue reading Balochistan: a flawed policy