 RFE/RL Watchdog 7/1/2010 5:19:14 PM A blog of human rights, media freedom, and democracy developments from RFE/RL's broadcast region. For more, please visit and bookmark Watchdog . |
 Execution Nears For Kurdish Iranian A prominent Iranian lawyer says he fears a female Kurdish activist imprisoned in Tehran is in danger of imminent execution. More  A Batcave Of Censorship-Breaking Technology With 120 bloggers and citizen journalists locked up around the world, the media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has decided to fight back by opening an "anticensorship shelter." More  Armenia Ruling Parties Dispute Freedom House's 'Authoritarian' Tag Armenia's governing Republican and Prosperous Armenia parties have criticized the New York-based group Freedom House for branding Armenia a "semi-consolidated authoritarian" country. More  Jailed Uzbek Sports Journalist Won't Appeal Conviction The mother of jailed Uzbek sports journalist Khairulla Khamidov says he will not appeal his conviction to a higher court. More  Russian Rights Group Creates 'Gulag' The Russian human rights center Memorial has launched an online "museum" on the history of the Soviet labor and prison camps known as the gulag. More  Jailed Blogger To Attend Father's Funeral The Justice Ministry's penitentiary service told RFE/RL that Emin Milli would be released from prison for three days to attend the funeral of his father, Pasha Abdullayev, who died on June 28. More Some 50 houses owned by members of Iran's Baha'i religious minority have been demolished in a village northeast of Tehran, according to an eyewitness report to Radio Farda. More  Torture In Uzbekistan Described On Capitol Hill "Yusuf is going to die." That’s how Gulnora Juma, the wife of jailed Uzbek poet and political activist Yusuf Juma, summarized Juma’s plight at a recent discussion on Capitol Hill jointly sponsored by Freedom House and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. More  Gay Rights Activists Defy Russian Ban Russian gay rights activists have gathered at St. Petersburg's world-famous Hermitage Museum for a brief unsanctioned rally that ended with a police raid. More  Watchdog Blasts Iranian 'Blogfather' Trial The trial of Hossein Derakhshan, known as the "Blogfather" for helping to popularize blogging in Iran, began on June 23. More Five Azerbaijani youths who were demonstrating in support of disabled people on the capital's sea-front promenade were detained this week by police. More  Jailed Belarus Activist Ends Hunger Strike Jailed businessman and opposition activist Mikalay Autukhovich has abandoned his hunger strike after Belarusian authorities discussed Autukhovich's health problems with him. More  Wiesel Seeks Khodorkovsky Release Nobel Peace laureate Elie Wiesel has launched a global campaign to free imprisoned Russian oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whom he calls a "political prisoner." More  U.S. 'Troubled' By Reports Of Media Pressure In Ukraine The United States has expressed concern over reports of pressure on journalists in Ukraine. More  Rights Groups Urge Council Of Europe To Keep Up Pressure On Azerbaijan International and local rights groups have issued an appeal to the Council of Europe urging it to take concrete measures to improve the human rights situation in Azerbaijan. More  Kazakh Opposition Leader Sentenced To Four Years In Jail Yermek Narymbaev was one of the organizers of the campaign "Nazarbaev Ket!" (Nazarbaev, Go Away!) and a hunger strike against President Nursultan Nazarbaev on May 1. He was sentenced to 15 days in jail on May 2 for holding an unsanctioned demonstration. More An Iranian doctoral student at Oxford who campaigned in Iran last year for opposition leader Mir Hussein Musavi is being held in solitary confinement by Iranian authorities, according to his wife. More |
