Scavengers’ march sends message of hope
IDSN press release: After travelling thousands of kilometres through 18 Indian states, the Maila Mukti Yatra – a march to eradicate manual scavenging – concluded today with an event in New Delhi. The attendance by high level officials from the Government of India as well as the United Nations is a measure of the Yatra’s success.
Pillay applauds movement to end manual scavenging
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, has issued a strong statement in support of the movement to end manual scavenging in India. The OHCHR news release is copied below.
Dalit women in Pakistan – denied a life in dignity and respect
A new report documents the situation of Pakistan's Dalit women; one of the most socially excluded and impoverished sections of the population. The shadow report for a UN CEDAW review of Pakistan in February calls on the Government to focus on education, access to basic services, and laws and special programmes to protect the rights of Dalit women.
Dalits the focus of Week of Prayer
When Christians all over the world engage in prayer this coming week (18-25 January), their thoughts will be with India’s Dalits – millions of whom share their faith, but are, nevertheless, still subjected to caste discrimination.
EP urges India to fight violence against women
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution on violence against women in India. The document contains several references to caste discrimination and the situation of Dalit women.
Dalit award winner is refused passport
The winner of the Dutch Human Rights Tulip 2012 is barred from traveling to the Netherlands to receive his award. Marimuthu Bharathan, a Dalit human rights defender from Tamil Nadu, has been refused a passport by the Indian authorities.
Dutch minister wants stronger EU policy on Dalits
The new Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs has committed himself to working for Dalit rights. In a recent debate in his country’s parliament, he called the position of Dalits “a very important and complex issue.”
European Parliament adopts historic resolution on Dalits
PRESS RELEASE: A strongly worded resolution on caste discrimination in India was debated and adopted today by the European Parliament in Strasbourg. The Parliament condemned the high number of atrocities committed against Dalits in India and the Indian government’s insufficient action on the issue of caste discrimination.
Caste included in EP resolution on human rights
The European Parliament (EP) includes text on caste discrimination in the resolution adopted on the Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World 2011 and the European Union’s policy on the matter.
Consultation discusses law against caste discrimination
At a regional consultation in Dhaka, human rights campaigners discussed steps towards enactment of special legislation to ensure equal rights for Dalits and other excluded communities in Bangladesh.