More than 400 members of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) staged a rally in Kathmandu March 29 to demand an end to press censorship imposed by King Gyanendra when he seized power last month. Unlike other anti-monarchy demonstrations in… Read moreNepal: journalists protest censorship
Reversing a policy instated by his own father, President Bush has authorized the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan—a move India has warned could destabilize the region. The US banned the sale of such potential nuclear delivery systems to… Read moreBush approves F-16 sales to Pakistan
New Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visited New Delhi March 16, where she offered India US assistance in building nuclear plants, while admonishing Indian leaders to drop plans to build a pipeline to import natural gas from Iran. Ironically, the… Read moreRice offers Delhi nuclear aid
While a big anti-Syria rally in Lebanon made the front page of the NY Times Feb. 15, a nationwide coordinated campaign of protests for restoration of democratic rule in Nepal—harshly put down with hundreds of arrests—rated only a small blurb… Read moreNepal: repression escalates
Pakistani authorities say they will appeal the acquittal by the country’s Supreme Court of five men charged in an "honor rape" case that drew international condemnation. In 2002, the Meerwala village council allegedly ordered Mukhtar Mai to be raped by… Read morePakistan “honor rape” case to supreme court
The crisis in Nepal has disappeared from the headlines since King Gyanendra suspended civil government in an "auto-coup" Feb. 1, but he continues to tighten dictatorial rule in the Himalayan kingdom. For the first weeks after the coup, newspapers ran… Read moreNepal: screw tightens
The crushing of a rally for the restoration of democracy in Nepal Feb. 10 rated a tiny blurb of wire copy on page 10 of the next day’s NY Times. Meanwhile, the crisis in the Himalayan kingdom rapidly deepens. Security… Read moreNepal crisis deepens; AI sends high-level team
The first public protest for restoration of democracy in Nepal since King Gyanendra suspended civil government Feb. 1 was predictably shut down by police Feb. 10, as 12 members of the Human Rights and Peace Society were arrested upon arriving… Read morePro-democracy rally crushed in Nepal
With most of the international community condemnding King Gyanendra’s suspension of civil government and democratic rights in Nepal, Pakistan’s embassy in Kathmandu released a statement of support for the king, saying "Pakistan and Nepal share the objectives of combatting terrorism… Read morePakistan supports Nepal emergency powers
A week after Nepal’s king dismissed his government and imposed emergency rule by personal decree, the isolated Himalayan nation has largely disappeared from the headlines. The NY Times reported Feb. 9 in short page 13 story that King Gyanendra has… Read moreNepal: crackdown on rights activists
A traditional Punjabi festival of the approaching spring, Basant, is the source of controversy in Pakistan, where Islamic clerics went to court in an unsuccessful bid to have the celebrations banned and revelry in Lahore left at least 17 dead…. Read moreIslamists protest Pakistan spring festival
Nepal’s King Gyanendra dismissed the country’s government Feb. 1, and declared a state of emergency, closing off his Himalayan kingdom from the outside world as telephone and Internet lines were cut, flights grounded and civil liberties suspended. This is the… Read moreNepal: King declares state of emergency
