Spero News

Why should 'heritage' be preserved?

Lay Catholic coalition scores bishops on CCHD

Long Live Christ the King! Viva Cristo Rey!

India?s all-female UN police unit serves as inspiration for Liberian women

Liberian girls and women should draw inspiration from the all-female Indian police unit serving with the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) to join law enforcement agencies in the service of their own nation, the top UN official in the West African country said today.

Ensuring child rights still a challenge, 20 years after landmark treaty - UN officials

The Convention on the Rights of the Child has become the most widely accepted human rights treaty in history, but 20 years after its adoption, much more remains to be done to turn its promises into reality for millions worldwide, top United Nations officials said today.

Ban welcomes appointment of new European leaders

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today voiced the hope for increased cooperation between the European Union and the United Nations following the appointment of Herman van Rompuy as the first EU President and Catherine Ashton as EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

Kyrgyzstan Braces For Swine-Flu Outbreak

The official number of swine-flu cases in Kyrgyzstan has been put at 61, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.

Iranian Nobel Laureate Threatened, Harassed

Iranian human rights advocate and lawyer Shirin Ebadi said she has been receiving death threats, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports.

Moscow Police Detain Opposition Activist

Vladimir Tutayev, an activist from Russia's United Civic Front (OGF), was detained in Moscow today, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.

Imprisoned Azerbaijani Journalist Honored By CPJ

Jailed Azerbaijani journalist Eynulla Fatullayev is among the winners of the 2009 International Press Freedom Awards, an annual recognition by the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) of journalists working in dangerous or repressive circumstances, RFE/RL's Azerbaijan Service ...

Palestinian children mark 20th year of UN rights treaty with video testimony

Tens of thousands of Palestinian refugee children in United Nations schools in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria have been clicking away with flip cams to create the region?s first ever online video yearbook to mark the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the UN Convention on the ...

Libya and UN agency enter pact to boost food security, sustainable development

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Libya have agreed on a $71 million programme to boost cooperation over the next five years to strengthen food security and sustainable development in the country.

Kenyan youth shoot for peace in UN-backed football ?reconciliation contest?

More than 2,000 Kenyan youths from across Nairobi, the capital, will kick off a multi-ethnic football tournament this weekend to score goals in a United Nations-backed bid to use the power of sport to promote reconciliation after last year?s deadly inter-communal violence as well as environmental ...

Xenophobic attacks in South Africa draw condemnation from UN agency

The United Nations refugee agency today condemned the latest xenophobic attacks that have driven some 3,000 foreigners, including refugees and asylum-seekers from Zimbabwe, from a community in South Africa.

Global: Children’s rights not yet a reality

CHINA – UNITED STATES US Congress threatens sanctions over China’s yuan

After Obama’s requests and the silence of China’s leaders, there is no sign that war over the value of the yuan is over. For some economists, Beijing’s monetary policy is helping the US contain inflation whilst making it easier for the world to pull itself out of the current crisis. For others, it ...

Philippines: Filipino Catholics back new anti child pornography law

The bill was signed into law on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Under the new act, anyone who produces, distributes or publishes child pornography can be fined or sent to jail. Catholic movements are helping abandoned youth

The Sound of 28 Broadcast Languages

In the early 1950s, Radio Free Europe used balloons to float millions of leaflets over the Iron Curtain. The leaflets contained news, criticism and satire of the Communist regimes as well as inspirational messages of solidarity from the Western world. Today, RFE/RL's mission continues in 20 ...

Herman Van Rompuy: How's That Again?

Judging from the descriptions in news reports, the EU's first full-time president, Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy, doesn't exactly quicken the blood of the Brussels press pack. But there is one thing at least about van Rompuy that people find worthy of debate: how to pronounce his name.

Antifa Takes On Nationalists In Russian Youth's Civil War

Russia's antiracism youth movement, known as Antifa, has long endured violent attacks by nationalists, police harassment, and public indifference. Most recently, they suffered the murder of one of their most prominent activists. Now they are fighting back, staging their own violent assaults on ...