Back from my break and I come bearing news.
In the bad news corner, not only has Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo failed to properly investigate the extra-judicial killings her army is accused of, but they’ve started up again in recent months. Another leader of the poor has been killed, according to Bulatlat.
While the summit on Extra Judicial Killings and Enforced Disappearances sponsored by the Supreme Court is going on, death squads claimed the life of another activist, demonstrating the culture of impunity in the commission of human rights violations. Charlie Solayao, vice-chairman of the urban poor group KADAMAY-Tacloban chapter, was shot by assassins on board a motorcycle at 1:26 this morning. He was rushed to St. Pauls Hospital where he was treated. Unfortunately, he succumbed to his wounds a little past 11:00 this morning (July 17). [Full story]
The PR government said that the killings would be investigated back in February and they stopped temporarily. Once international pressure shifted elsewhere, the killings began again, with two in May, three in June, and one so far in July. [Source]
Keep the pressure on. More on how to help here.
And the Irish government is planning to deport a Roma family of 32 adults and 22 children.
Plans have been drawn up to allow the gardai to evict, forcibly if necessary, the 32 adults and 22 children from one extended family who have set up camps on the M50 between Dublin airport and Ballymun. The Rostas family will be put on a plane back to their native Romania within the next fortnight, said Irish government sources.
…
‘We cannot tolerate this situation,’ one highly placed government official said yesterday. ‘If the government was to give in to this group many, many more would come seeking social welfare. The message has to be sent out, and that is why there is a real determination to end this,’ he said.
Conditions at the two sites, one on a roundabout on the M50 within sight of Dublin airport’s runway, the other just before a slip road, have deteriorated over the past few days. The scene resembles the slums of an Asian city rather than 21st-century Ireland. [Full story]
An Asian slum? “Dirty Roma” stereotypes? Nice to see racism alive and well in Ireland. /sarcasm
You know, someday, when people are complaining about how “dirty” a group of undesirables are, they’re going to have an epiphany that maybe poverty and lack of access to clean water, laundry, and other hygeine necessities have some sort of part to play. I think that these signs of logical abilities and human compassion may even be one of the signs of the apocalypse, according to the Revelation.
Okay, I’m really gonna stop with the sarcasm now and get back to the useful information. Sorry.
Pavee Point, an organization working for Travellers and Roma rights, has more information on this case.
There is good news, though. Hazleton, Pa.’s anti-immigrant law, which critics (myself included) say encourages discrimination against the town’s Latino community, was struck down in federal court as unconstitutional.
“We cannot say clearly enough that persons who enter this country without legal authorization are not stripped immediately of all their rights because of this single illegal act,” (U.S. District Judge James M.)Munley wrote.
He noted that the Constitution says no person may be deprived of “due process of law.” The Supreme Court has said this protection extends to those who have entered the country illegally, he added.
Civil liberties lawyers who sued to void the Hazleton ordinance called the ruling a sweeping victory and said it dealt a “body blow” to other local efforts to regulate illegal immigrants. Hazleton has inspired similar measures nationally.
“Today’s decision sends an unmistakable message to local officials across the nation that these types of ordinances are a waste of taxpayers’ money, anathema to American values and a violation of the Constitution,” said Omar Jadwat of the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project.
The ruling was also welcomed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “State and local governments have no business setting national immigrant policy,” said the agency’s National Chamber Litigation Center. [Full story]
Let’s hope that this gets backed by the Supreme Court, because you know the town is going to push it to that point. Still, this is wonderful news and a good reminder that not having documents doesn’t mean a person has no human or Constitutional rights in the U.S.
Also, I’ve spent most of my time away avoiding the news and reworking the purpose of this blog. Updates will be sporadic over the next week or two while I prep some things; I’ll mainly just be posting good news and opportunities for action.
I just purged my spam folder. If you commented and it’s not showing up, please let me know.
