Ecuador to increase police manpower in Guayaquil after killings
Quito, EcuadorReuters Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso said on Sunday he will send an additional 1,100 police officers to coastal Guayaquil and increase military presence there amid a spate of violent deaths the government says are connected to the fight against the drug trade. Violence and crime, including within the prison system, soared in Ecuador late […]
Canada murder rate in 2020 hits 15-year high, pushed up by mass shooting
Reuters The murder rate in Canada last year rose to its highest level since 2005, pushed up in part by the country’s worst-ever mass shooting, in which 22 people died, Statistics Canada said on Thursday. Statscan also noted societal stresses it said had been caused by lockdowns linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. Royal Canadian Mounted […]
Murders of activists in Colombia fell in first half, but violence persists -ombudsman
Bogota, ColombiaReuters Murders of human rights and community activists in Colombia were down to 78 in the first half of the year, the country’s human rights ombudsman said on Wednesday, but the attacks persist. The killing of activists is a top problem for the Andean country, with President Ivan Duque vowing he will not rest […]
Armed men kill 15 at baptism in northern Burkina Faso
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso Reuters Unidentified assailants killed 15 people who were gathered for a baptism at a village in northern Burkina Faso on Tuesday night, the government said on Wednesday. The attack took place in Adjarara, about seven kilometres from the town of Tin-Akoff in Oudalan province, very close to the border with Mali, according […]
Murders of South African women as lockdown eases sparks online campaigns
Johannesburg, South AfricaThomson Reuters Foundation A spate of murders of South African women in recent weeks, including a heavily pregnant woman stabbed and hanged from a tree, highlighted the need for tougher police action on violence against women, women’s rights groups said on Tuesday. Two weeks after South Africa ended a nine-week ban on alcohol […]
US launches anti-violence effort for Indigenous women, girls
New York City, USThomson Reuters Foundation US President Donald Trump launched a task force on Tuesday to help protect Native American women and children, calling the rate of violence among Indigenous people “heartbreaking.” The task force aims to improve coordination and communication among federal, state and tribal authorities in response to cases of missing and […]
Philippines is world’s deadliest nation for land rights: campaign group
Bangkok, ThailandThomson Reuters Foundation More than three people were murdered each week last year while protecting their land from encroaching industries, a human rights group said on Tuesday, with a four-fold increase in killings related to conflicts over water. At least 164 farmers and land rights activists were killed worldwide last year, with the Philippines […]
Murders of indigenous people fighting for forests hit record high
Thomson Reuters Foundation Rampant corruption and weak laws are fuelling attacks on indigenous people trying to protect their land, with murders more than doubling in five years to a record high, researchers said on Thursday. Traditional communities play a key role in managing forests and reducing climate change but, under growing pressure from incursions, murders […]
Quick facts – Murders of transgender people rising worldwide, say activists
Thomson Reuters Foundation Transgender people are suffering a spiral of “horrifying” violence worldwide, activists said ahead of an annual day of remembrance for victims on Tuesday aimed at raising awareness of transphobic hate crimes. Activists have identified at least 369 reports of trans people killed within the last 12 months, but said the true number […]
Brazil sets new record for homicides with almost 64,000 in 2017
A record 63,880 people were killed in Brazil in 2017, a three per cent increase on the 2016 figures for homicides and an ignominious new record. The Guardian reports that figures from the independent thinktank, the Brazilian Public Security Forum, show an average of 14 people were killed by police every day – a 20 […]