Our weekly round-up of must-read stories you might have missed: Amal Habbani: press freedom fighter; Haiti anti-government protest turns violent; Why rape seems worse in India than everywhere else (but actually isn’t); Sudanese Rebels tell world to ‘Wake Up’ to war.
Amal Habbani: press freedom fighter – Doha Centre
Amal Habbani became one of the most prominent faces in the media’s battle against the government in Sudan when she was arrested on September 29. Her detention sparked protests both within and outside Sudan, and her story gained international attention. Here she speaks to Doha Centre for Media Freedom’s Peter Townson about her experience and the situation for members of the media in her country. “I was arrested on September 29 at about noon after a peaceful demonstration for the funeral of the martyr Salah Aanhory,” explains Sudanese journalist Amal Habbani. “A force of about 12 civilians stopped me and ordered me to get in their car – they were carrying black sticks and I refused and shouted at them saying that they were abducting me,” she notes, adding “they tried forcing me into the car and one of them snatched my telephone from me as I was talking, although one of them spoke to me with respect and asked me to ride in the car without asking any questions.”
Haiti anti-government protest turns violent – Al Jazeera
Thousands of Haitian protesters have demanded the resignation of President Michel Martelly, clashing with supporters of the leader in the streets of Port-au-Prince. Protesters said two people suffered gunshot wounds after Martelly loyalists opened fire during Thursday’s skirmishes that lasted for several hours. The two sides hurled stones at each other during the fighting, which brought parts of the city to a standstill and triggered huge traffic jams. Anti-Martelly demonstrators accused the Haitian president of cronyism, charging that he is ruling the impoverished Caribbean nation for the benefit of his friends and family. “We are from the ghettos. We get nothing from the government which works only for the rich,” protester Johnny Joseph shouted. The march began peacefully as the crowd grew to a few thousand people and passed through poor neighbourhoods, many of them strongholds of government critics.
Why Rape Seems Worse in India Than Everywhere Else (but Actually Isn’t) – TIME World
Since the gang rape of a 23-year-old student on a moving bus in New Delhi last year, India has become the world’s rape capital. An American website recently satirized the problem by joking about an upcoming rape festival in the country. You can call it a reflection of the way the world thinks of India or you can call it bad taste (depending on which part of the world you are in) — but you know the image of India as rape hell has stuck when most readers of the article failed to realize that it was satire. Rape is a serious problem all over the world. So why does it seem so much worse in India?
Sudanese Rebels Tell World to ‘Wake Up’ to War – NYTimes
The main rebel alliance fighting Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir called on the world on Thursday to “wake up” to the war, saying atrocities in Sudan were as bad as those in Syria. Sudan has suffered decades of conflict. Fighting has intensified in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan states since South Sudan won independence in 2011, while international efforts have failed to bring peace to the westerly region of Darfur. Speaking in Paris on a rare lobbying visit to Europe, the president of the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) accused Bashir of exploiting the world’s preoccupation with wars such as those in Syria and Mali to try to crush the rebels and kill civilians through indiscriminate bombing and starvation.
