Cults are known as spiritual or religious movements which develop outside of mainstream religions. Over the decades, the term has taken on a negative connotation, since many of these religious groups are often characterized by an extremist and a radicalizing doctrine and have been alleged of crimes against their own adepts, including coercion, sex abuse, … Continue reading Cults’ Criminal Accountability in the EU Legal Framework
Liberticidal Media Law Shakes Poland
Poland’s political scenario has recently been shaken by the ruling party's, Law and Justice (PiS), controversial new law on media funding and ownership. In mid-July, Law and Justice MPs submitted to the parliament (Sejm) a bill aimed at amending the existing Broadcasting Act in order to forbid entities from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) … Continue reading Liberticidal Media Law Shakes Poland
Sport’s Global Call for Solidarity: The Refugee Olympic Team
In the framework of UN-led refugee protection, inclusion, and equal opportunities initiatives, sports has been playing an increasingly more important role. It has been recognised as instrumental in conveying strong universal values of respect, solidarity and equality, and enabling personal engagement, professional enhancement and, eventually, social and economic upward mobility. In the last few decades, … Continue reading Sport’s Global Call for Solidarity: The Refugee Olympic Team
Denmark VS. Refugee Rights: Andersen’s Fairytale Country is Turning Into Asylum Seekers’ Nightmare
Denmark was one of the first countries to sign the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and ratify its Protocol in 1968. As established by the Copenhagen criteria (symbolically "hosted", indeed, by the Danish capital), respect for human rights and migrants' dignity is considered a founding, irreplaceable pillar of Danish society and its established liberal democratic … Continue reading Denmark VS. Refugee Rights: Andersen’s Fairytale Country is Turning Into Asylum Seekers’ Nightmare
Italy is Polluting (its Relations With) Tunisia in a Garbage Scandal
Waste and garbage disposal have long been an extremely problematic issue in Italy. For example, the generalised failure in adequately managing the disposal procedure within the country by both state authorities and private enterprises have created the basis for appropriation of the garbage business by criminal organisations. Sadly well-known is the extreme case of the … Continue reading Italy is Polluting (its Relations With) Tunisia in a Garbage Scandal
The Balkan Route to Human Rights Violations at the EU External Borders
The Western Balkans have been dealing with internal displacement and refugee issues since the 1991-95 conflict. While still coping with the aftermaths of the refugee flows within the region, those countries have more recently also become one of the most important transit areas. The “Balkan Route” involves migrants smuggling routes starting in Turkey or Greece and proceeding all the way … Continue reading The Balkan Route to Human Rights Violations at the EU External Borders
Free Press Under Attack in Janša’s Slovenia: is This Hindering the Country’s Upcoming Presidency in the Council of the EU?
Right before Slovenia inaugurated its first Council of the European Union presidency back in 2008, 571 journalists addressed a letter to the EU institutions and citizens to denounce right-winged populist Janez Janša’s government’s policies of restriction of freedom of press and state control over the main national newspapers (1). Despite the petition, initiated by Večer … Continue reading Free Press Under Attack in Janša’s Slovenia: is This Hindering the Country’s Upcoming Presidency in the Council of the EU?