"Nkurunziza’s slippery slope"

Pierre Nkurunziza wants to remain president of Burundi. His opponents don’t want him to. Nkurinziza says the constitution allows him another term in office. His opponents say the Arusha Accords, which formed the basis of the constitution, do not. The Constitutional Court of Burundi ruled in favour of Nkurunziza. His opponents reacted by organising mass demonstrations on the streets of the capital, Bujumbura, and beyond. This seemed to take the country to the precipice. Seeing vulnerability, some army officers staged a coup, which Nkurunziza’s spokesperson called a “joke.” He was right! The coup makers lacked sufficient support in the military and police. That sealed their fate.

Hoje é o "Holocaust Memorial Day"

Hoje é o Dia Internacional da Memória do Holocausto. Foi escolhido este dia por ser o da libertação do campo de concentração de Auschwitz pelas tropas soviéticas.

Foi há 70 anos:



Tal como todos os anos, curvo-me perante todas as vítimas deste crime hediondo: judeus, ciganos, homossexuais, anti fascistas e muitos outros. Para que a memória perdure. Para que não se repita. Infelizmente, outros crimes de genocídio já decorreram depois deste: Ruanda, Camboja, Darfur e Bósnia são exemplos disso.

Este ano, a BBC mostra-nos o que é hoje o campo:



Este ano deixo um pequeno vídeo das obras de alguns artistas que viveram este pesadelo:

Rwanda - 20 anos

6 de abril de 1994 é a data instituída do começo do genocídio no Ruanda: um péssimo exemplo do papel da ONU e da Comunidade Internacional sobre os Direitos Humanos.

In 100 days in 1994 approximately one million Tutsis and moderate Hutus were murdered in the genocide in Rwanda. The genocide took place following decades of tensions between Hutus and Tutsis, and a recent history of persecution and discrimination against Tutsis. On 6 April 1994 the plane carrying Rwanda’s President was shot down. Extremist Hutu leaders accused Tutsis of killing the President, and Hutu civilians were told by radio and word of mouth that it was their duty to wipe out the Tutsis.Despite its colossal scale, this genocide was carried out almost entirely by hand, usually using machetes and clubs. The men who had been trained to massacre were members of civilian death squads, the Interahamwe. The State provided support and organisation – politicians, officials, intellectuals and professional soldiers incited the killers to do their work. Local officials assisted in rounding up victims and making suitable places available for slaughter.Tutsi men, women, children and babies were killed in their thousands in schools and churches. Frequently the killers were people they knew – neighbours, workmates, former friends, sometimes even relatives through marriage.

6.000 crianças salvas este ano no Ruanda

Artigo de Josh Ruxin no blogue de Nicholas Kristof