Category Archives: United Nations

Dante’s Divine Comedy ‘offensive and should be banned’

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Well that didn’t take long. Only a few days ago I read speculation that sooner or later, Muslims would demand that The Divine Comedy, Dante Allegheris seminal work, a work thought to be the equivalent to Shakespeare by many scholars of literature would be banned by or for Muslims and other groups such as Gays and jews, although the actual agency here appears to be some sort of U.N. ‘Human Rights’ group.

Another critical component in the obliteration of European culture and history.

“I don’t know when fascists will come to america, but I do know when they do come, they will call themselves ‘Anti-fascists'”  -Anon

The Telegraph:

 It is a world-renowned work of literature and one of the foundation stones of the Italian language, but Dante’s Divine Comedy has been condemned as racist, homophobic, anti-Islamist and anti-Semitic.

It is a world-renowned work of literature and one of the foundation stones of the Italian language, but Dante's Divine Comedy has been condemned as racist, homophobic, anti-Islamist and anti-Semitic.

Dante and ten scenes from the Divine Comedy, painted by Carl Vogel von Volgestein Photo: REX
Nick Squires

By Nick Squires in Rome

3:30PM GMT 13 Mar 2012

Comments47 Comments

The classic work should be removed from school curricula, according to Gherush 92, a human rights organisation which acts as a consultant to UN bodies on racism and discrimination.

Dante’s epic is “offensive and discriminatory” and has no place in a modern classroom, said Valentina Sereni, the group’s president.

Divided into three parts – Hell, Purgatory and Heaven – the poem consists of 100 cantos, of which half a dozen were marked out for particular criticism by the group.

It represents Islam as a heresy and Mohammed as a schismatic and refers to Jews as greedy, scheming moneylenders and traitors, Miss Sereni told the Adnkronos news agency.

“The Prophet Mohammed was subjected to a horrific punishment – his body was split from end to end so that his entrails dangled out, an image that offends Islamic culture,” she said.

“We do not advocate censorship or the burning of books, but we would like it acknowledged, clearly and unambiguously, that in the Divine Comedy there is racist, Islamophobic and anti-Semitic content. Art cannot be above criticism,” Miss Sereni said.

Schoolchildren and university students who studied the work lacked “the filters” to appreciate its historical context and were being fed a poisonous diet of anti-Semitism and racism, the group said.

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Organization of Islamic Cooperation walk out of UN because of debate on gay rights

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Oh those whacky, lovable zany Muslims. What will they do next! The left, the self appointed human rights groups and of course, all gay-groups world wide will still continue to support them in every way of course so stay tuned!

56 Islamic States Reject UN Debate on Anti-Gay Violence

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U.N. Watch:

Rights group urges Hillary Clinton to speak out

GENEVA, Feb. 17 – A Pakistani spokesman for the UN’s Islamic bloc sparked outrage today after announcing to the UN’s top rights body that its 56 member states would ignore a scheduled UN rights panel on anti-gay violence, saying they were “disturbed” at the “attempted focus on certain persons” on the grounds of their “abnormal sexual behaviour,” which “have nothing to do with fundamental human rights.”

The Islamic statement, obtained by the Geneva-based human rights group UN Watch and posted on its website, is provoking sharp reactions from human rights activists.

UN Watch director Hillel Neuer today called on US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, whom it lauded for her leadership on this issue at the UN, to condemn the “scandalous assault on the right of gays not to be put to death in countries like Iran, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen. Human rights are universal and there is no religious exemption for barbaric violence against innocent human beings anywhere.”

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OIC to hold conference in Brussels to protect ‘beliefs’ “beyond mere rhetoric”

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This is interesting. And endorsed by Hillary Clinton who I thought was a lot smarter than this.

Here are a few gems from this article:

“The workshop will represent a quantum leap in media action, as it discusses, beyond rhetoric, the practical steps to address the phenomenon of Islamophobia,” the OIC said.

and…

 

Resolution 16/18 aims to combat intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatisation of discrimination, incitement to violence, and violence against persons based on religion or belief.

Well of course this is preposterous. The idea that one cannot discriminate based on belief. In essence this means that Islam and only Islam will have the right to preach genocide, war, discrimination and apartheid as it is central dogma to the belief system, while any attempt to point this out will result in a criminal charge at best. A visit from the local sharia-brownshirts at worst.

The second quote is by necessity self contradicting. Clearly the Muslim belief that only Muslims may enter Mecca or Yathrib (Medina) will be sacrosanct while say, someone else’s belief that no Muslims should work, visit or live somewhere will be illegal.

So no, it will not be a protection for persons based on religion or belief. It will be a shield for Muslims to commit any discriminatory act they wish, say whatever they wish, force complicity for whatever policy they wish while anyone else will be criminalized for having their own views. This will be the practical outcome. One only needs look at any nation where Islam has over 10% of the population and is anywhere close to “the whip hand” (as  Enoch Powell is noted for reading from a constituent’s letter.)

In other words, it is highly unlikely that my firm belief in freedom of speech. In the right, no; the responsibility to mock, chastise, and criticize both anonymously (as is my right by law as a central tenet of democracy) and openly totalitarian and authoritarian and indeed, ultra conservative systems like Islam and other theocracies which remove my individual rights will not be protected under this new bill. If it did, it would be redundant by U.N standards itself according to Eleanor Roosevelt’s charter.

In fact, the Muslim nations are so very far out of bounds of this charter that it utterly boggles the mind that any UN or official from any civilized nation would entertain any sort of ‘rights’ law suggested by a Muslim nation and perhaps least of all Saudi Arabia. (although that would be highly debatable) It is critical to remember that people have rights. Beliefs do not. This should be said as a mantra by all and daily. One cannot give rights to a political system, a belief system or an alternative physics. People can have rights so long as we are prepared to fight for them. Belief systems are to be promoted or opposed as people see fit and in their own enlightened interests.

I hope all people carefully asses the risk-benifit equation of freedom and liberty vs. what they think they might lose by opposing the rapid encroachment of Islam and it’s barbarous and horrific laws on all of us.

And so for those who will defend freedom of speech, and also for those who believe in a totalitarian theocracy, I dedicate this video:

 

 

 

Gaza Activist Stabbed After Exposing Hamas Use of Human Shields

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U.N. Watch:

 U.N. Must Condemn Latest Hamas Brutality

GENEVA, Jan. 17 – The stabbing in Gaza of a Palestinian rights activist after he exposed Hamas’ contempt for its own people by using them as human shields, and after he criticized the radical Islamic group for torture, abuse and trampling free speech, should be strongly condemned by the United Nations—both as an attack on the victim’s human rights, and on the idea of freedom of expression.

Masked attackers on Friday stabbed Mahmud Abu Rahma multiple times in the back, leg and shoulders, it was revealed today.

This latest attack on a rights activist underscores Gaza’s brutally enforced intolerance for any discourse other the anti-Israel mantras of Hamas, which rules the area with an iron fist.

The attack only proves the simple truth of the victim’s words.

Abu Rahma’s crime was publishing an article in the Palestinian press that dared to criticize Hamas’ “outrageous attack upon free expression and peaceful assembly” over the past year, and the “hundreds of cases of torture and abuse.”

Abu Rahma also dared to publish basic facts about Gaza that completely contradict the Hamas narrative, and that of the UN’s Goldstone Report, which repeatedly found “no evidence” that Hamas used civilians as human shields.

What is remarkable is that with all of the massive UN resources ostensibly dedicated to protecting Palestinians—the 16-member Division for Palestinian Rights, the 20-odd resolutions on Palestinians last year by the General Assembly, the Human Rights Council’s special agenda item on Palestinians at every session, resolutions on Palestinians by UNESCO, the WHO and numerous other agencies, the full-time post of “Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Palestine” held by Richard Falk—still, with all that and more, the world body somehow managed to turn a blind eye to the massive violations of Palestinian rights described by Abu Rahma (click here for source):

• Although Abu Rahma considers Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other terrorist organizations to be “resistance groups,” he said they “show little or no care for people’s life and well being.”

• “Military training sites function and are located in places very close to neighborhoods and/or schools, from where acts of resistance, including firing rockets, also occur.” As a result, “The population of these locations are inevitably vulnerable to Israeli attacks.”

• “Numerous people were injured from live fire coming from resistance groups training sites; including children and at least one man who lost his eye.”

• “There is a training site in the town of Beit Lahiya that threatens people every day, including a girl who was injured inside her school when an explosion occurred in this site on Sep. 20 2011.”

• “Explosions also occur frequently in densely-populated areas around Gaza, and have their victims, many of whom are children.”

• A man in the al-Nasser neighborhood in Gaza city, whose house is near a military training site, “complained to the resistance members many times. He explained the family’s fear for their life and house. But he was told the family could move out of the area, even if they had no resources to move. He died the way he feared most: tragically.”

• “The state of carelessness from the part of resistance is also causing continued victims of the misfiring of home-made rockets that fall on houses inside Gaza. Many of the victims are children and all of them are civilians who happen to be in their homes.”

• “There are more victims of shootings from, or explosions in, training sites. Many children are killed or maimed when explosive devices left in the streets or farms explode in their hands. And there is the young man who was shot in the legs for daring to publicly criticize a local resistance leader.”

If the UN’s colossal pro-Palestinian infrastructure would have truly done its job and reported the above simple facts about Hamas perfidy to the world’s attention, it is fair to ask whether Abu Rahma would have been assaulted for writing his article.

The incident raises serious questions about the ability of the Palestinians to create a democratic state where people feel free to question their government without fear of being seriously injured or killed for doing so.

The attack should be immediately denounced by Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, by Irina Bokova, the director general of UNESCO, the world agency mandated to uphold press freedom, and by Frank La Rue, the UN Human Rights Council’s Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression.

The attack is also serious enough for its implications that even the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, should personally condemn it.

Our call for UNESCO to act comes as UN Watch heads a campaign comprising 55 parliamentarians, religious groups and prominent human rights activists that is urging the organization’s executive board to reverse its November decision to place Syria on a pair of committees, one of them dealing with human rights.

Britain recently informed UN Watch that it has agreed to challenge Syria’s membership, and news reports say the U.S. is playing a leading role in the effort, to be decided at UNESCO’s upcoming March session.
To support the vital work of UN Watch, please contribute here.

U.N. wants Canada to delay Rwandan accused of inciting genocide

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Remember this story from yesterday? 

From The CBC:

UN wants accused Rwandan war criminal deportation delayed

Léon Mugesera hospitalized after losing appeal of deportation order

CBC News

Posted: Jan 11, 2012 11:13 AM ET

Last Updated: Jan 11, 2012 4:43 PM ET

Read 123 comments123

Léon Mugesera, accused of helping incite the Rwandan genocide, arrives with his wife Jemma at Federal Court in Montreal this week. Léon Mugesera, accused of helping incite the Rwandan genocide, arrives with his wife Jemma at Federal Court in Montreal this week. (The Canadian Press/Paul Chiasson)

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Hamas Says Gaza Not “Occupied”; U.N. Disagrees

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From the NGO U.N. Watch.

This is a great organization by the way. They have had genuine impact on events that matter and have exposed UN hypocrisy and corruption (in many senses of the word) many times.

Below, part of a press release from today. Click here to read it at source.

World Body Out of Step with Palestinians

GENEVA, Jan. 3 – The UN’s continued labeling of the Gaza Strip as “occupied” was directly contradicted today by a top leader of Hamas, the vehemently anti-Israel Palestinian terror group that controls the territory.

Noting the Hamas statement reflects the reality since Israel’s full withdrawal in 2005, the Geneva-based monitoring group UN Watch called on the UN to encourage Palestinians to take responsibility for areas they control, and to cease referring to Gaza, in reports and through officials and spokespeople, as “occupied territory.”

“The UN’s traditional practice of absolving Palestinians of responsibility hasn’t helped them one iota,” said Hillel Neuer, UN Watch executive director. “On the contrary, Palestinian citizens are the main losers when those that directly govern and police them are never seriously held accountable for their actions.”

“Now that the Palestinians running Gaza publicly regognize that it’s not occupied — which has been the reality since Israel’s disengagement removed every solider, civilian and setttlement in 2005 — the UN’s refusal to do the same will only hinder Palestinians from developing a healthy culture of self-rule,” said Neuer.

Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahhar confirmed there was no Israeli occupation of the territory in comments reported today by the Bethlehem-based Ma’an News Agency.

 

UN lowers flag for Kim Jong-il; rights group urges equal sympathy for victims

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From U.N. Watch:

Contact: me****@*****ch.org

UN offices worldwide lowered their flag to half-mast as North Korea began a 2-day funeral for dictator Kim Jong-il. Above: UN European headquarters in Geneva, seat of the UN Human Rights Council, Dec. 28, 2011. (Photo: UN Watch)

GENEVA, Dec. 28 – With UN flags at half-mast today at its Human Rights Council (see photo right) and other buildings to mark the funeral of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, a Geneva-based human rights group called on the UN to show equal sympathy for the victims of Kim’s ruthless regime.

“We understand that the UN follows diplomatic protocol, but the world body must not forget that its founding purpose is to defend basic human rights, and sadly that message is at serious risk of being blurred today,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, a leading advocacy group at the UN for human rights in North Korea. Click here for recent UNW statements on North Korea.

“Today should be a time for the UN to show solidarity with the victims — the millions of North Koreans brutalized by Kim’s merciless policies of starvation, torture and oppression — and not with the perpetrator,” Neuer said. Continue Reading →

U.N. Adopts ‘Religious Intolerance’ Resolution Championed by Obama Administration

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h/t Tundra T

CNS NEWS

December 20, 2011

Subscribe to Patrick Goodenough’s posts

 

UN flagsFlags of member nations flying at United Nations headquarters in New York City. (U.N. Photo by Araujo Pinto)

(CNSNews.com) – The U.N. General Assembly on Monday adopted a resolution condemning the stereotyping, negative profiling and stigmatization of people based on their religion, and urging countries to take effective steps “to address and combat such incidents.”

No member state called for a recorded vote on the text, which was as a result adopted “by consensus.”

The resolution, an initiative of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), is based on one passed by the U.N.’s Human Rights Council in Geneva last spring. The State Department last week hosted a meeting to discuss ways of “implementing” it.

Every year since 1999 the OIC has steered through the U.N.’s human rights apparatus a resolution condemning the “defamation of religion,” which for the bloc of 56 Muslim states covered incidents ranging from satirizing Mohammed in a newspaper cartoon to criticism of shari’a and post-9/11 security check profiling.

Critics regard the measure as an attempt to outlaw valid and critical scrutiny of Islamic teachings, as some OIC states do through controversial blasphemy laws at home.

Strongly opposed by mostly Western democracies, the divisive “defamation” resolution received a dwindling number of votes each year, with the margin of success falling from 57 votes in 2007 to 19 in 2009 and just 12 last year.

This year’s text was a departure, in that it dropped the “defamation” language and included a paragraph that reaffirms “the positive role that the exercise of the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the full respect for the freedom to seek, receive and impart information can play in strengthening democracy and combating religious intolerance.”

The nod to freedom of expression won the resolution the support of the U.S. and other democracies, with the Obama administration and others hailing it as a breakthrough after years of acrimonious debate.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took the opportunity of the State Department-hosted talks with foreign governments, the OIC and other international bodies last week to stress the importance of freedom of speech in the U.S. She argued that “the best way to treat offensive speech is by people either ignoring it or combating it with good arguments and good speech that overwhelms it.”

Saudi initiative singled out for praise

Nonetheless, the resolution adopted in New York on Monday does contain elements that concern some free speech and religious freedom advocates.

It calls on states “to take effective measures to ensure that public functionaries in the conduct of their public duties do not discriminate against an individual on the basis of religion or belief.”

Governments also are expected to make “a strong effort to counter religious profiling, which is understood to be the invidious use of religion as a criterion in conducting questionings, searches and other law enforcement investigative procedures.”

“Effective measures” to counter cases of religious stereotyping and stigmatization include education, interfaith dialogue and “training of government officials.”

And in the worst cases, those of “incitement to imminent violence” based on religion, the resolution calls on countries to implement “measures to criminalize” such behavior.

Also of note is the fact that the resolution singles out for praise only one interfaith initiative – and that initiative was established by Saudi Arabia, a leading OIC member-state with a long history of enforcing blasphemy laws. Continue Reading →