What is Obama doing? » human rights

Obama says “indefinite detention” a possibility

Niklas — Fri, 29 May 2009 14:10:37 +0000

Rachel Maddows reports the following, which should really make everyone wonder – what IS Obama doing? This is not the type of thing most of us expected from him, the ability for the state to keep prisoners in detention indefinitely, without trial or limits, for crimes they might commit! Check out the video here:

Day 56: Newt Gingrich throws a hissy fit

Niklas — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 13:27:02 +0000

With little notice by the mainstream media, President Barack Obama has removed vital protections on doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals who refuse to perform abortions and other procedures they consider immoral. It is nothing less than an assault on civil liberties and medical conscience, says Newt Gingrich.

It seems Obamas decision to consider medical care something to not be intervened by individual practitioners religious beliefs aren’t all that popular in the conservative camp.

In a long article on Newsmax, there is a long tirade regarding the awful decisions made against pro-life supporters and faith-based organizations. Quite worth a read.

Story, well rant, on Newsmax

Day 32: Obama claims detainees in Afganistan have no rights

Paul -V- — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 15:14:13 +0000

I don’t understand this latest move by the President. Human rights are supposed to be fundamental – so it shouldn’t matter if he thinks the US Constitution applies to them. Everyone deserves an open trail if charged with a crime.

The Obama administration, siding with the Bush White House, contended Friday that detainees in Afghanistan have no constitutional rights.

In a two-sentence court filing, the Justice Department said it agreed that detainees at Bagram Airfield cannot use U.S. courts to challenge their detention. The filing shocked human rights attorneys.

Story by Associated Press

Less than a month after signing an executive order to close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp, President Barack Obama has quietly agreed to keep denying the right to trial to hundreds more terror suspects held at a makeshift camp in Afghanistan that human rights lawyers have dubbed “Obama’s Guantanamo”.

In a single-sentence answer filed with a Washington court, the administration dashed hopes that it would immediately rip up Bush-era policies that have kept more than 600 prisoners in legal limbo and in rudimentary conditions at the Bagram air base, north of Kabul.

Now, human rights groups say they are becoming increasingly concerned that the use of extra-judicial methods in Afghanistan could be extended rather than curtailed under the new US administration. The air base is about to undergo a $60m (£42m) expansion that will double its size, meaning it can house five times as many prisoners as remain at Guantanamo.

Story by The Independent

Day 30: Obama removes US objections to universal decriminalization of homosexuality

Paul -V- — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 22:46:57 +0000

In what’s sure to be seen by fundamentalists as a massive blow to morality, Obama decided that the US will support the right of all individuals to love whomever they want.

In late December the United Nations General Assembly held a symbolic vote on a statement calling for the universal decriminalization of homosexuality. France spearheaded the resolution, which was a 13 point declaration “to ensure that sexual orientation or gender identity may under no circumstances be the basis for criminal penalties, in particular executions, arrests or detention.” The statement received 60 votes in support, mostly from Europe and South America. Opposing the resolution, were the United States, the Holy See, and members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. At the time, the Bush administration couched its objection to the measure in legal technicalities.

Story by UNdispatch.com