Belfast and Beyond

New revelations have emerged from Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) that the Bush White House may have helped to cover up a reported massacre in Afghanistan in 2001 by a CIA-payrolled warlord. Using forensic analysis and satellite...

As another 12th of July passes marking the busiest part of the marching season, the people of Northern Ireland have watched as parts of the country have once again descended into widespread sectarian rioting and attacks against the...

As NASA's PR machine gears up to mark the fortieth anniversary of the moon landings, it's time to take an alternative look ( also see previous blog: 'Moonwalk this: rockets or rickets? ' ) at this stunning human achievement. It's my...

When yesterdays report by Israeli NGO " Breaking the Silence " was released it was another report confirming the findings of the Amnesty report "Operation Cast Lead 22 Days of Death and Destruction." Both reports found a...

This blog has previously noted the suspicious shadow cast over intelligence about the Omagh bombing. There is little doubt who caused the death of 29 people and two unborn children – the 'dissident' republican paramilitary group known...

The Immigration Minister’s failure to engage with genuine criticisms of new immigration controls betrays his appeasement of the far right minority and constitutes a failure for freedom of expression, cultural association and freedom of...

Amnesty International is using the latest in advertising technology to challenge the scourge of domestic violence. This Amnesty bus stop advertisement, recently erected in Hamburg, changes whether or not someone's looking at it. Using...

Will the outgoing Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde leave a multi-million pound, Taser-sized headache behind for his successor and the NI Policing Board? That could be the prospect facing the new PSNI chief following the settlement of a...

There was a fascinating footnote to last night's BBC4 programme, Man on the Moon , which told the story of the US space programme and the billions spent to put a man on the moon before the Soviets. On the eve of the Apollo 11 mission...

A whopping 83% of people in Northern Ireland now think that a Bill of Rights is important for the region. That's the finding of a survey published today by the Human Rights Consortium , a campaign coalition which Amnesty International...

My old friend, former colleague and Nobel Peace Prize winner Mairead Maguire was among the peace and justice activists aboard a Greek cargo ship intercepted, rammed and boarded by the Israeli navy yesterday. The Amnesty office in...

Conall (who's been providing plenty of food for thought recently on Belfast and Beyond ) notes that the Belfast, unlike Dublin, does not yet fly rainbow flags to mark the city's Gay Pride. But the numbers participating in the Belfast...

I see that over on oconallstreet public affairs specialist Conall McDevitt is suggesting it’s time for Northern Ireland to mature its relationship with the United States. I’m all for that. For too long, Northern Ireland has played the...

I read with amusement today that Sir Hugh Orde , who is to take over as the new ACPO chief ,wants to out human rights at the heart of policing in the UK. So far so good and if you read the piece he certainly makes all the right noises...

The recent racist attacks against migrant workers have turned my stomach. But two things have shocked me more than the attacks themselves. The first shock was the police tactics in dealing with this crisis. The Romanians have...

I wrote this opinion piece a couple of days ago and it was published today in the Belfast Telegraph under the headline, ' Refugees face more hardship than most of us could endure' . It's not in the online edition, so am reproducing...

NEW IMMIGRATION DETENTION EMERGENCY HELPLINE The Refugee Action Group (RAG) is pleased to announce the launch of its out-of-hours Immigration Detention Emergency Helpline which goes live on 15 June 2009. RAG aims to be an independent...

A politician and a journalist in Northern Ireland are today both facing the prospect of jail for refusing to disclose sources to the authorities. The politician, Ian Paisley Jr, was yesterday served with papers to appear in Belfast’s...

UPDATE (1:20pm): The decision of the Court has just been announced and four of the five people at the centre of the case have been found 'liable' for the bombing. This will go down as a landmark case. This blog has repeatedly visited...

I have previously suggested that the most effective way for a post-conflict society to move towards long-term peace, stability and reconciliation is to confront and interrogate the past and maximise the scope for justice. Yet what if...