http://www.mail.com/subjects/3290-political-imprisonment.html Mail.com - the best personalized free web-based Email en en http://sec-s.uicdn.com/mail.com/2.29/img/mailcom_logo_rss.png http://www.mail.com/subjects/3290-political-imprisonment.html http://www.mail.com/news/world/2146350-iran-president-campaign-friday-vote.html TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Candidates for president of Iran wrapped up their final full day of campaigning on Wednesday, reacting to a last-minute surge for a moderate cleric at the expense of conservatives. The candidate, Hasan Rowhani, ,moved to the forefront after another pro-reform candidate, Mohammad Reza Aref, pulled out on Tuesday. Conservatives were stil... Wed, 12 Jun 2013 14:39:22 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2146350-iran-president-campaign-friday-vote.html 2013-06-12T14:39:22Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2146394-thousands-anti-putin-protesters-march-moscow.html MOSCOW (AP) — Thousands of Russian opposition activists marched through Moscow on Wednesday, decrying President Vladimir Putin's authoritarian rule and calling for the release of people they consider political prisoners. The march on Russia Day, a national holiday, was to show support for 27 people arrested after a protest turned violent on the eve of Put... Wed, 12 Jun 2013 13:29:15 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2146394-thousands-anti-putin-protesters-march-moscow.html 2013-06-12T13:29:15Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2145958-crackdown-filling-nkorean-prisons-with-defectors.html SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea's prison population has swelled with those caught fleeing the country under a crackdown on defections by young leader Kim Jong Un, according to defectors living in South Korea and researchers who study Pyongyang's notorious network of labor camps and detention centers. Soon after he succeeded his father as North Korea... Wed, 12 Jun 2013 11:08:48 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2145958-crackdown-filling-nkorean-prisons-with-defectors.html 2013-06-12T11:08:48Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2124634-ethiopia-thousands-protest-political-repression.html ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Thousands of Ethiopian demonstrators took to the streets of the capital Sunday demanding the immediate release of jailed journalists and activists in a rare show of public opposition to the ruling party which maintains strict control over the East African nation. Protesters marched along major streets in the capital, Addis Aba... Sun, 02 Jun 2013 18:05:47 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2124634-ethiopia-thousands-protest-political-repression.html 2013-06-02T18:05:47Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2093012-correction-argentina-obit-videla-story.html BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — In a May 17 story about the death of jailed former Argentine dictator Jorge Rafael Videla, The Associated Press, relying on an initial prison service statement and comments from a spokeswoman for the prisoners, reported erroneously that he died in his sleep while in bed. The official death report, later made public, revealed that he died while ... Mon, 27 May 2013 17:18:08 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2093012-correction-argentina-obit-videla-story.html 2013-05-27T17:18:08Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2100320-key-senator-to-myanmar-sanctions-bill-lapse.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell, easing up on his long-held tough stance on Myanmar, said Tuesday he planned to allow key sanctions legislation against the Southeast Asian nation to lapse because of the country's progress toward democracy. McConnell, R-Ky., made the announcement after meeting with Myanmar President Thein Sein, who is m... Tue, 21 May 2013 22:10:55 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2100320-key-senator-to-myanmar-sanctions-bill-lapse.html 2013-05-21T22:10:55Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/2097430-obama-vows-us-support-myanmar-leader-visits.html WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Monday told Myanmar's president during a long-awaited White House meeting that he appreciates the Asian leader's efforts to lead the country on its sometimes difficult path to democracy and assured him of U.S. support. Obama spoke as he sat in the Oval Office with former general Thein Sein, who became the first ... Mon, 20 May 2013 23:49:07 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/2097430-obama-vows-us-support-myanmar-leader-visits.html 2013-05-20T23:49:07Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2039202-myanmar-pardons-93-including-political-prisoners.html YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar's president pardoned 93 prisoners, including at least 59 political detainees, a day after the European Union lifted sanctions against the Southeast Asian nation. The pardon was announced on state television Tuesday amid renewed calls for President Thein Sein's government to release hundreds more political prisoners still bel... Wed, 24 Apr 2013 00:50:10 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2039202-myanmar-pardons-93-including-political-prisoners.html 2013-04-24T00:50:10Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2039378-cuban-dissidents-pick-up-eu-prize-8-years.html BRUSSELS (AP) — Eight years after winning Europe's top human rights prize, members of a Cuban opposition group on Tuesday finally picked it up after securing permission to travel abroad. Cuba's Ladies in White won the European Union's Sakharov Prize in 2005 for their fight for democracy and human rights, but they weren't granted permission to leave the co... Tue, 23 Apr 2013 18:09:57 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2039378-cuban-dissidents-pick-up-eu-prize-8-years.html 2013-04-23T18:09:57Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1997256-myanmar-communal-unrest-threatens-reforms.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Few imagined Myanmar would embrace democracy when the U.S. began its historic engagement with the military regime. The country's rapid changes were lauded by visiting Western leaders, and the nation's president was hailed as a hero. But spasms of spreading, communal violence show the reform path is bumpier than expected and have taken the sheen off a foreig... Thu, 04 Apr 2013 12:02:46 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1997256-myanmar-communal-unrest-threatens-reforms.html 2013-04-04T12:02:46Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1992656-syrian-forces-pound-rebel-held-areas-damascus.html BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian warplanes and artillery pounded opposition strongholds in Damascus and its suburbs Tuesday, as rebels in the northern city of Aleppo launched an operation to try to free hundreds of political detainees from the city's central prison, activists said. The fighting has escalated across Syria in recent weeks, particularly in Aleppo and Da... Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:59:14 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1992656-syrian-forces-pound-rebel-held-areas-damascus.html 2013-04-02T19:59:14Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1992766-sudan-releases-7-prisoners-amnesty.html KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) — Sudanese officials say the government has released seven political prisoners, including a female politician, under an amnesty declared by President Omar al-Bashir. The official news agency says the prisoners were released Monday at midnight from Kober prison in Sudan's capital Khartoum, after they were held there for over two months... Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:41:04 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1992766-sudan-releases-7-prisoners-amnesty.html 2013-04-02T12:41:04Z http://www.mail.com/business/finance/1961904-myanmar-holds-press-law-criticism.html YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar journalists just getting used to their new era of freedom howled when the government announced plans for a media law that could lock many old restrictions back into place. Then, in the latest of many moves that never would have happened under the country's old military rulers, the government backed off. A bill restricting pu... Mon, 18 Mar 2013 12:29:49 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/finance/1961904-myanmar-holds-press-law-criticism.html 2013-03-18T12:29:49Z http://www.mail.com/business/economy/1956430-venezuelas-opposition-ground-chavistas.html CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The people tapped by Hugo Chavez to carry on his socialist revolution seem to be improvising the rules of governing as they march toward what most Venezuelans consider certain victory in a mid-April vote to replace the late president. Chavez's designated successor, Nicolas Maduro, and his ruling clique have repeatedly circumvente... Fri, 15 Mar 2013 16:53:45 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/economy/1956430-venezuelas-opposition-ground-chavistas.html 2013-03-15T16:53:45Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1924266-bahrain-overturns-acquittal-opposition-figure.html MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — A senior Bahrain prosecutor says an appeals court has overturned the acquittal and sentenced the daughter of a jailed opposition leader to three months in prison. Zainab al-Khawaja was convicted of insulting a public employee. The decision is the latest in a series of charges against her related to protests calling for the release o... Fri, 01 Mar 2013 10:45:31 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1924266-bahrain-overturns-acquittal-opposition-figure.html 2013-03-01T10:45:31Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1874438-islamic-summit-backs-syria-dialogue.html CAIRO (AP) — Leaders at an Islamic summit on Thursday urged a dialogue between the Syrian opposition and regime just as a new initiative for talks proposed by an anti-government leader appeared to be unraveling. Like previous diplomatic initiatives on Syria, opposition chief Mouaz al-Khatib's call for talks made less than a week ago appeared doomed to fai... Fri, 08 Feb 2013 00:33:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1874438-islamic-summit-backs-syria-dialogue.html 2013-02-08T00:33:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1869986-russian-wardens-throw-party-stalins-gulag.html MOSCOW (AP) — Millions of people died in Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's gulag, but the 75th anniversary of the founding of one of the notorious forced-labor camps was cause for a celebration in Russia. Russian news portals reported Tuesday that local officials and prison wardens threw a party last week honoring the Usolsky camp in the Urals, with music an... Tue, 05 Feb 2013 15:44:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1869986-russian-wardens-throw-party-stalins-gulag.html 2013-02-05T15:44:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1869164-freedom-brings-challenges-myanmar-writers.html YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Poet Saw Wai parked himself on the lawn, unfurled a map of Myanmar with a blob of blood-red paint dripping down from a spot up north and invited people to make poetry with him. "He's calling for more trouble," said a passerby. What the message lacked in subtlety it made up for in brazenness. Government forces have been pounding ethn... Tue, 05 Feb 2013 07:21:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1869164-freedom-brings-challenges-myanmar-writers.html 2013-02-05T07:21:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1857698-cuba-dissidents-approved-denied-passports.html HAVANA (AP) — Two Cuban dissidents who applied for passports to go overseas under recently enacted travel reform reported mixed results Wednesday, as one former prisoner was turned down while a prominent blogger excitedly tweeted a photo of her brand new, bright blue travel document. "The called me at home to say my passport was ready! They just delivered... Wed, 30 Jan 2013 23:42:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1857698-cuba-dissidents-approved-denied-passports.html 2013-01-30T23:42:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1850400-philippine-dictatorship-victims-to-compensated.html MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Almost four decades after he was arrested and tortured and his sister disappeared into a maze of Philippine police cells and military houses, playwright Bonifacio Ilagan is finally seeing his suffering officially recognized. A writer for an underground communist newspaper, Ilagan and thousands like him were rounded up by dictato... Tue, 29 Jan 2013 00:57:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1850400-philippine-dictatorship-victims-to-compensated.html 2013-01-29T00:57:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1819274-un-urges-focus-north-korea-human-rights-record.html GENEVA (AP) — The U.N.'s top human rights official said Monday that as many as 200,000 people are being held in North Korean political prison camps rife with torture, rape and slave labor, and that some of the abuses may amount to crimes against humanity. For that reason, said Navi Pillay, the world body's high commissioner for human rights, nations must ... Tue, 15 Jan 2013 03:42:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1819274-un-urges-focus-north-korea-human-rights-record.html 2013-01-15T03:42:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1817174-190-georgian-political-prisoners-walk-free.html TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Nearly 200 people considered political prisoners by Georgia's new parliament walked free Sunday under an amnesty strongly opposed by President Mikhail Saakashvili. Many of the 190 prisoners had been arrested during anti-Saakashvili protests in May 2011, while others had been convicted of trying to overthrow the government or of spy... Sun, 13 Jan 2013 14:16:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1817174-190-georgian-political-prisoners-walk-free.html 2013-01-13T14:16:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1793496-nc-governor-signs-pardons-wilmington-10.html RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Outgoing North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue issued pardons Monday to the Wilmington 10, a group wrongly convicted 40 years ago in a notorious Civil Rights-era prosecution that led to accusations that the state was holding political prisoners. Perdue issued pardons of innocence Monday for the nine black men and one white woman who rece... Mon, 31 Dec 2012 20:47:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1793496-nc-governor-signs-pardons-wilmington-10.html 2012-12-31T20:47:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1789336-sweaters-knit-myanmars-suu-kyi-sell-123k.html YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar's cash-strapped opposition party is tapping into the prestige of its leader: Two sweaters hand-knit by Aung San Suu Kyi have been auctioned for $123,000. A green-and-white sweater with a floral design sold at a Friday night auction to an anonymous bidder for 63 million kyat, or $74,120. On Thursday, a Myanmar-based radio sta... Sat, 29 Dec 2012 03:20:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1789336-sweaters-knit-myanmars-suu-kyi-sell-123k.html 2012-12-29T03:20:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1786848-chinese-scholars-push-mild-political-reform.html BEIJING (AP) — More than 70 prominent Chinese scholars and lawyers have urged the country's new Communist Party leaders to undertake moderate political reforms including separating the party from government, though they avoid any mention of ending one-party rule. The petition drafted by Peking University law professor Zhang Qianfan calls on the party to r... Wed, 26 Dec 2012 11:08:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1786848-chinese-scholars-push-mild-political-reform.html 2012-12-26T11:08:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1780108-european-envoy-urges-bahrain-to-free-prisoners.html MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — The head of a European Parliament human rights delegation is urging Bahrain to release political prisoners as a step toward easing an anti-government uprising in the strategic Gulf nation. The visit comes less than a week after Bahrain's crown prince called for new efforts for talks between the Sunni leadership and the kingdom's maj... Thu, 20 Dec 2012 19:38:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1780108-european-envoy-urges-bahrain-to-free-prisoners.html 2012-12-20T19:38:00Z