Salem-News.com Civil Rights articles Page 14

Oregon Cannabis Tax Act (Initiative 9) Makes the Oregon Ballot

Common-Sense Marijuana and Hemp Regulation Makes Oregon Ballot.

(PORTLAND, OR) - Moments ago, the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office certified Initiative 9, the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act, which will appear as Measure 80 on the Oregon ballot in November.

“Today is an historic day for Oregon and for the national movement for common-sense marijuana policy," said Paul Stanford, chief petitioner.

People of Navaali Remember Massacre Amidst SLA Harassment

Every year, people of Navaali conduct memorial events remembering their kith and kin killed in the massacre.

(JAFFNA, Sri Lanka TamilNet) - Hundreds of Eezham Tamils on Monday gathered at Navaali St. Peters's Church in Jaffna in memory of 147 civilians who were brutally killed 17 years ago.

They were slain in a genocidal massacre by the Sri Lankan military.

Friends of Minidoka Deeply Disappointed by Court`s Decision

Idaho History Groups Disheartened by Idaho Supreme Court Decision Sanctioning Factory Farm at WWII Japanese American Incarceration Site

(TWIN FALLS, ID) - Advocates are deeply disappointed by the Idaho Supreme Court’s decision to uphold a permit for a factory farm operation that poses major hazards to Minidoka National Historic Site and surrounding families.

As an incarceration facility for Japanese American citizens during World War II, Minidoka is an important part of history.

Sri Lanka: Democratic Solutions, Undemocratic System

Sri Lanka: Seeking Democratic Solutions Within An Undemocratic Political System.

(HONG KONG AHRC) - For many decades since 1978 there has been talk about many reforms. The basic justification for 17th Amendment to the Constitution was that it promised basic reforms with the view to enable working of the democratic process.

There had also been suggestions for reforms to ensure the rights of minorities, particularly the Tamils.

Pro-Divestment Presbyterians Win By Losing

What happened, as one Presbyterian participant explained, was “complicated”.

(CHICAGO) - Do you really want to know what happened at the just-concluded 220th General Assembly of the Presbyterian U.S.A. denomination?

As a veteran watcher of Protestant church political struggles, I urge you to remember that neither the cross nor the crown are free of an eagerness to grasp deliberate obfuscation in a political battle.

Over 15,000 Still Reported Missing

Thousands of people had lost touch with relatives during the former conflict and in its immediate aftermath.

(COLOMBO, Sri Lanka ) - Over 15,000 are still reported missing in the ethnic conflict, according to statistics by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in its annual report for 2011 which was released last week.

The report said that as of December 31 last year the ICRC is still handling the cases of 15,780 people reported missing.

The Volunteer Spirit

Even though he has lived in Mandalay, Rangoon and now the U.S., Win Min says that he hasn’t changed, describing himself as always the villager.

(EUGENE, OR.) - With the recent election of Aung San Suu Kyi to the Burmese parliament and the loosening of international sanctions, Win Min has watched the events in his home country with both hope and longing.

“Right now a small little door is open,” he said. “We need to look at it to see how we can make the small little change a bigger change.”

Seeing the Same Things Differently

People can foresee the future only when it coincides with their own wishes, and the most grossly obvious facts can be ignored when they are unwelcome.
-- George Orwell

(MANAMA, Bahrain) - Seeing the same things differently is something we all do. Interpretation reflects an event, object or personality in a merger with one's biases.

Understanding those differences, allowing for them, and even reconciling them is where understanding interpretation comes in.

APN to Netanyahu: Repudiate Levy Commission Report

"For the sake of Israel’s future as a state that Israelis and their supporters worldwide can be proud of, we are calling on the government of Israel to reject the Levy report...”

(WASHINGTON DC) - Americans for Peace Now (APN) joins its Israeli sister organization, in calling on Israel to repudiate the findings of the commission it appointed to address the problem of illegal outposts in the West Bank.

APN calls on other US Jewish groups that support the two-state solution to raise their voices in opposition to this report.

Significant Honor With Tamils from Around the Globe for Sri Lanka War Crime Reports (VIDEO)

Our Oregon based media group is recognized in historic Baltimore, for our reports on Sri Lanka's war crimes against the minority Tamil population.

(BALTIMORE / SALEM) - Our role with Salem-News.com has brought many honors; however this weekend in Baltimore may be the most significant event of our professional lives.

I was the key note speaker at the FeTNA Conference in Baltimore; the largest gathering of North American Tamils held each year and this was a special 25th Anniversary Jubilee Event.