Three students charged with hate crimes at California college

 

San Jose State University students are accused of taunting their black roommate with racial epithets, Confederate flag.
Three university students in California accused of taunting their black roommate with racial slurs and references to slavery, once trying to clamp a bicycle lock on his neck, have been charged with hate crimes in an incident that has roiled the campus.

Malala Yousafzai wins EU human rights prize

Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai, shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for education for girls, won the European Union’s annual human rights award on Thursday, beating fugitive U.S. intelligence analyst Edward Snowden.
The 16-year-old was attacked last year while on a school bus in northwestern Pakistan, but recovered after medical treatment in Britain. She is also a favorite among experts and betting agencies to be named the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday.
“She is an icon of courage for all teenagers who dare to pursue their aspirations and, like a candle, she lights a path out of darkness,” said Joseph Daul, chairman of the centre-right European People’s Party in the European Parliament.
Yousafzai started her campaigning by writing blogs in 2009 in which she described how the militant Islamist Taliban prevented girls like her from going to school.
She quickly rose to international fame when more and more foreign media outlets conducted interviews with her. Her growing profile attracted the Taliban’s attention and led to frequent death threats.

Video of Saudi man beating Asian man prompts govt. to step in

A video apparently showing a Saudi man beating an Asian man has triggered public anger and pushed Saudi Arabia’s Human Rights Commission to follow up on the case, a spokesperson told Al Arabiya.
The Saudi man in the video, who has not been named, accuses the victim of talking to his wife and then proceeds to attack him.
The beating has led the country’s human rights authority to receive multiple complaints by viewers calling for the perpetrator to be punished, said spokesperson Ibrahim al-Shadi.
Shadi added that the beating was a flagrant violation of the victim’s rights to safety and dignity. The act also flouted rules set by Islamic Sharia, he said.
The spokesperson added that, regardless of why the man was allegedly assaulted, the perpetrator’s actions did not abide by state-enforced rules on the protection of human rights.

Iranian Nobel Peace laureate Ebadi criticizes Rowhani's rights record

 Iranian Nobel Peace laureate Shirin Ebadi strongly criticized the human rights record of President Hassan Rowhani, citing a dramatic increase in executions since he took office this year and accusing the government of lying about the release of political prisoners.

She also pointed to spreading support for a hunger strike by human rights lawyer Abdolfattah Soltani and three others in a Tehran prison to protest inadequate medical care, which was joined Monday by about 80 prisoners at another prison west of the capital.

Ebadi, a U.S.-based human rights lawyer who since 2009 has lived outside Iran in self-exile, said in an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press that Rowhani may have the reputation of a moderate reformer, but so far "we get bad signals" from the new government when it comes to human rights. Ebadi won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 for her efforts to promote democracy, becoming the first Iranian and first Muslim woman to win the prize.

U.N. urges Qatar to improve migrant labor conditions

A top UN official on Sunday urged Qatar to improve conditions for foreign laborers, as the Gulf emirate builds a massive infrastructure for the 2022 football World Cup.
“Many migrants face human rights violations in the workplace,” said the UN special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, Francois Crepeau, concluding an eight-day visit to Qatar, which has come under fire over the alleged exploitation of workers.
“Some are not paid their wages, or are paid less than agreed,” he said.
“I am also concerned about the level of accidents in construction sites, and hazardous working conditions resulting in injury or death,” he told a press conference.
Qatar has the highest ratio of migrants to citizens in the world. Approximately 88 per cent of the total population are foreign workers, he noted.
Crepeau urged the energy-rich state to introduce measures that would protect workers, including establishing a minimum wage for all employees, including domestic staff.
Gulf countries do not enforce a minimum wage for foreign workers, leaving it up to employers.
The UN envoy advised an “effective labor inspection system,” with more inspectors “well trained on human rights standards, and interpreters in the most commonly used languages.”
He also called for the “right of association and to self-organization for all workers,” in addition to allowing workers to change jobs “without sponsor/employer consent and (to) abolish the exit fee requirement.”

‘Accidental Vagina:’ Qatar’s new football stadium sparks controversy

The design is supposed to resemble the sails of a dhow boat which was traditionally used for pearl fishing by Qataris. (Photo courtesy: Aecom)

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Cringe-inducing it may be, but the design of Qatar’s recently unveiled World Cup 2022 stadium has proven to be worth talking about.

The artificial rendering of the al-Wakrah stadium was meant to look like a boat, but instead it’s been dubbed the “accidental vagina” in the press this week.

“The Qatari stadium’s resemblance to a woman’s private parts may be unintentional, but I for one applaud it,” wrote Holly Baxter in the Guardian.

The feminist website Jezebel commented: “Any discerning human will be quick to recognize that the building looks exactly like an enormous vagina.”

This is not what the architects intended. The design is supposed to resemble the sails of a dhow boat which was traditionally used for pearl fishing by Qataris.

   

Alicia Keys sets Dubai ‘on fire’

Dubai was set “on fire” Friday night as 14-time Grammy award winning star Alicia Keys and RnB singer Jason Derulo took to the stage to wow a cheering crowd.
Performing as part of Keys’ “Set the world on fire tour,” opening act Jason Derulo sang crowd pleasers such as “In my head” and “Watcha say.” He also showed off his dance and disc jockeying skills.
Keys, who is popularly known for playing the piano, made her grand entrance standing on top of an all-white grand piano. She kicked off her segment of the concert with a rendition of her song “Karma.”
Keys paraded the stage in a semi see-through glittery purple top, matched with black leggings and high heels. She wore the outfit for the entire performance and finished it off with a mohawk hair do.

Cameroon beats Tunisia to qualify for World Cup

Cameroon qualified for the World Cup with a resounding 4-1 win over Tunisia in the second leg of their playoff on Sunday, ensuring West Africa continued its dominance of the continent’s qualifying competition.

Cameroon won by the same score on aggregate after the teams drew 0-0 in Tunisia. The team follows Nigeria and Ivory Coast, who won their playoffs Saturday, in sealing a place at next year’s tournament in Brazil.

Pierre Webo scored after four minutes for Cameroon and Benjamin Moundandjo made it 2-0 in the 30th at Omnisports Ahmadou-Ahidjo stadium. Ahmed Akaichi pulled one back for the visiting Tunisians just after halftime, but Jean Makoun added a third in the 65th and scored again in the 86th to seal Cameroon’s progress.

Messi receives Golden Boot as Europe’s top scorer

Barcelona forward Lionel Messi was presented with a record third Golden Boot on Wednesday for scoring the most goals in Europe's domestic leagues last season.

The 26-year-old Messi helped Barcelona win the 2012-13 Spanish league by scoring 46 goals despite missing several games with a right hamstring pull near the end of the season.

Messi also won the award for 34 goals in 2009-10, and a Spanish record 50 in 2011-12.

The first player to receive the award three times, Messi dedicated his latest trophy to his family and his teammates, calling it a team award.

“This is a beautiful award that goes to the entire squad for what it has done,” Messi said. “It is a group award more than an individual one because those are a lot of goals. I wouldn't have won it without them, this one or the previous ones.”

Messi is recovering from a left hamstring tear that will probably keep him sidelined for the rest of 2013. It was his third leg injury of the season. Before his latest injury, he had eight goals in 11 league appearances.

After receiving the trophy from former Barcelona star Hristo Stoichkov, Messi said his leg was feeling better while remaining cautious about rushing back.

Several teammates, including Cesc Fabregas, Xavi Hernandez and Carles Puyol, along with club president Sandro Rosell were in attendance.

Messi has won the world player of the year award an unprecedented four years in a row. He is again nominated this year, but he has tough competition from Real Madrid rival Cristiano Ronaldo and Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery.

Messi has played a major part in Barcelona's impressive run of titles over the past decade. He has won three Champions Leagues, six Spanish leagues, two Copas del Rey, two Club World Cups, six Spanish Super Cups and two European Super Cups.

        

Should the NCAA pay its players?

Should college athletes be paid? There’s a class action lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association, claiming athletes should be compensated for use of their likeness. But the NCAA says its amateur athletes receive scholarships as compensation. So is an education enough when the risk of injury is so high? Join us to discuss the costs of playing college sports.

Memorials mark 50 years since JFK assassination

A half-century after the death of the 35th president, the nation pauses to remember one of its darkest hours
The nation solemnly marked the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination Friday with subdued remembrances at Kennedy's grave and the infamous site in Dallas where the young, glamorous president was gunned down in an open-top limousine.

 

America plans to withdraw 20,000 troops from Afghanistan by February

In Afghanistan tribal leaders are considering a new security deal with the U.S. The agreement would spell out how many U.S. troops would stay there after 2014. One of the most controversial issues in the agreement is giving U.S. troops immunity from prosecution under Afghan law. The deal would also give troops the right to self-defense and to carry out house raids but only after a request to Afghan forces. If the draft is approved, as many as 15,000 American soldiers could stay in the country for another decade.

WHY SHOULD WE EAT BUGS?

As the world’s population grows to an estimated 9 billion by the year 2050, demand for alternate protein sources will only continue to increase. Beef production is expected to grow dramatically in that time to fill the demand, but as pastures and fodder already take up 70 percent of all agricultural land, alternate sources of protein will need to be increased. Insects are not only a good source of protein, but they are also nutritious in other ways.

llinois Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation Wednesday allowing same-sex weddings starting this summer, making President Barack Obama's home state the 16th overall — and largest in the nation's heartland — to legalize gay marriage.