Asia

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Sri Lanka: Civilians Massacred in War Against Tamil People

Chris Slee February 16, 2009 Chris Slee

Protesting Attacks on Tamils
Sri Lankan Air Force bombers destroyed the Ponnampalam Memorial Hospital in the town of Puthukkudiyiruppu in northern Sri Lanka on February 6. According to press reports, 61 patients were killed in the attack. The hospital had previously been attacked twice before. Other hospitals have also been subject to aerial and artillery bombardment. These attacks are part of the Sri Lankan government's war against the Tamil people.

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Corruption in India Undermining Human Rights and Development

Priyanka Bhardwaj January 8, 2009 Priyanka Bhardwaj

As the world observed the International Anti-Corruption day on December 9, 2008, India slipped further in the global corruption perception index released annually by corruption watchdog Transparency International (TI). In India corruption is widely seen as contributing to poverty, stifling economic growth, debasing democracy, a midwife to terrorism, trafficking of women and threat to human security.

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Economic Woes? Look to Kerala, India

Shirin Shirin December 16, 2008 Shirin Shirin

Political Rally in Kerala
In his 2005 book The World Is Flat, Thomas Friedman joined a chorus of economists who touted India as the latest development success story, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. While India has developed a middle class with disposable income for the first time in recent history, such growth has not been accompanied by meaningful poverty reduction.

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Sacrificing the Mekong River Basin in the Name of Electricity

John Schertow December 11, 2008 John Schertow

Facing a Mekong River Dam
The Mekong river is considered the lifeblood of southeast Asia. The river has ensured the health and security of countless people, providing them with food, water for crops, and a means of trade and transportation. Today the Mekong supports as many as 100 million people. However, the onset of Hydro development, which began in the early 1990s, threatens to drastically change that.

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Obama Should Stand Up to the Indonesian Military

John M. Miller December 8, 2008 John M. Miller

Former General Suharto
The Obama administration and incoming 111th Congress should change course on Indonesia. It should put human rights at the forefront of U.S. policy. This would contribute more to encouraging democratic reform and human rights accountability in the world's largest Muslim-majority country than any amount of military training or weapons. Indonesians who view the military as a chief roadblock to greater reform will be grateful.