Protesters are preparing to spend their second night camped out in the grounds of St Paul's Cathedral as part of an anti-capitalist demonstration in London. The Reverend Dr Giles Fraser, Canon Chancellor of St Paul's Cathedral, said: "People have a right to protest and it's been very good natured. Church went down well this morning. There were no problems. We had no problems getting people in. People were very helpful."
“Violence against women is a human rights and public health emergency,” Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director of UN Women, said of the 15th batch of annual grants from the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women (UN Trust Fund) which awarded $17.1 million for 22 initiatives.
The number of people convicted of sex offences on children aged under 16 in England and Wales has increased by nearly 60% in six years. A Freedom of Information request to the Ministry of Justice found that in 2005, 1,363 people were convicted while in 2010, it was 2,135.The rise has been attributed to better detection and raised awareness
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said today it will start airlifts within days to get vital supplies into Somalia, which is bearing the brunt of the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa, and is preparing to open up a number of new land and air routes to bring urgent relief to millions in need.
July 15, 2011 (CISA) –Militant Islamist Group bombed a protestant church where members were meeting after service on July 10 in Suleja, in Nigeria’s Niger Estate. According to Vatican Radio, there has been an upsurge of violence this week in Nigeria against Christian churches believed to be perpetrated by a fundamentalist Islamic Group known as Boko Haram.
JAPANESE bishops met in Sendai, the diocese most affected by last Friday's earthquake and tsunami, on Wednesday this week, as thousands fled the area in fear of nuclear explosions from the nearby Fukushima Daiichi plant.
Pakistan’s leading Catholic politician has been murdered in the capital Islamabad. Minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti had received numerous death threats after calling for changes to the country’s controversial blasphemy law. The blasphemy law carries a death sentence for anyone who insults Islam, and critics say it has been used to persecute minority faiths.
More than 100 people were killed and scores of others injured in clashes between the Southern Sudan government and forces loyal to a militia leader last week, a Southern Sudan official said.The clashes took place Wednesday and Thursday.
“The Sudanese government must immediately release all those detained during this blatant attempt to stifle free speech,” said Erwin van der Borght, Amnesty International’s Africa Program director, in a statement to newsrooms.
Archbishop Fitzgerald, Vatican Nuncio to Egypt, said the demonstrations have been remarkably free from religious overtones and that there are many signs of Christians and Muslims working together.“There isn't a religious distinction,” he said. “They are not dividing themselves into Christians and Muslims, they're just the Egyptian citizens.”
Fr. Joseph, a Claretian missionary from Sri Lanka, credited the Catholic bishops of Sudan and other Church ministries with helping to ward off hostility during the proceedings. The bishops collaborated with several Church ministries to encourage constant prayer while educating voters on the importance of patience and restraint.
The release of Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was "long overdue" and that her detention a "travesty", Prime Minister David Cameron has said. He also called her "an inspiration for all of us who believe in freedom of speech, democracy and human rights".
