South Asia Watch

29/07/2020

28/06/2020

Violence is rising in Afghanistan, despite a US-brokered peace process. Two members of the country's human rights commission were killed on Saturday.

One of them was 24-year-old Fatima Khalil - her boss tells us "she was brave, courageous and outspoken."

Two members of Afghanistan's independent human rights commission killed by car bomb

16/06/2020

03/06/2020

Press freedom in the world's most populous democracy is deteriorating drastically.

30/05/2020

30/05/2020

Tushar Mehta’s argument—that journalists are vultures feeding on the migrant crisis—is misdirection. It only keeps people from asking: why has the government failed to do its job? Why are so many migrant families forced to be at the mercy of strangers during the coronavirus lockdown?

30/05/2020

These government-backed or state-sponsored hackers are mostly looking to collect intelligence or steal intellectual property. Some also target activists and people attempting to indulge in coordinated influence operations and disinformation campaigns.

Google has sent 1,755 warnings to users whose accounts were targets of government-backed attackers.

30/05/2020

As most Indians continue working from home, Department of Telecom cites national security, public interest for ban.

30/05/2020

Users of the homepages of the MSN website and Edge browser will now see news stories generated by AI

30/05/2020

And despite the decline of the film industry, many artists are reluctant to leave their work behind. Ajmal is nostalgic about the posters he illustrated in the early years of his career, but the names of the films and stars he painted have already begun slipping from his memory. “All of it is gone now,” he explained.

Once designed to accompany the silver screen in a nation passionate about film, their work has moved to the domain of private art collections and upscale restaurants.

30/05/2020

In case of OpIndia, two advertisers – Kiddylicious and LiveWorx – have said that they are pulling down their ads.

29/05/2020

A detailed analysis and decompiling of the app’s source code by The Quint, has revealed that Mitron, which has ridden high on an anti-China and anti-TikTok sentiment, has, in fact, been rebranded from an app called TicTic, developed by a Pakistan-based company QBoxus.

It has now emerged that Shivank Agarwal has not developed the Mitron himself but has purchased TicTic’s source code.

29/05/2020

‘Who thought the fourth world war would be fought on television,’ a Twitter user said.

28/05/2020

In the months and years ahead, deepfakes threaten to grow from an Internet oddity to a widely destructive political and social force.

28/05/2020

On May 22, Tiwari posted on his page in Hindi, “Gappu, Tadipar, Balatkari, aprakirtik sasanghat walo ko pare kar de to BJP suchmuch dheynisht party hai.” (Loose translation: If it gets rid of braggarts, the externed, rapists, and those who keep unnatural company, then the BJP is truly a party which focuses on its goals.)

Sixty-six-year-old Tansen Tiwari has been booked under IPC sections covering obscene acts and defamation after a BJP leader filed a complaint.

28/05/2020

Sexual liberty and choices are a threat to the caste system.

28/05/2020

On Wednesday, news filtered in that Hindustan Times had let go of around 130 plus employees in a sudden spurt. Insiders suggest that firings have been across the board including sales, marketing and editorial. The insiders also mentioned that the Patna and Pune editions were closing down.

23/05/2020

“Taliban announced cease-fire in Afghanistan during the Eid days.”

#تازه طالبانو د اختر په درې ورځو کې د اوربند اعلان وکړ.

د طالبانو یوه ویاند ذبیح الله مجاهد په یوې اعلامیه کې ویلي دي چې د دغې ډلې مشرتابه خپلو جنګیالیو ته لارښونه کړې ده چې د کوچني اختر په درېیو ورځو کې د هېوادوالو د امنیت د ټينګښت لپاره ځانګړي تدابیر ونیسي او له یرغلي بریدونو ډډه وکړي.

22/05/2020

“Taliban have killed 120 Afghan civilians during Ramadan.”

هم‌اکنون نیز در شانزده ولایت کشور نبردها ادامه دارند.

22/05/2020

The Network of Women in Media, India (NWMI) is deeply shocked and concerned at the manner in which Guwahati-based journalist Ranjita Rabha was forced...

22/05/2020

At least 20 journalists have been charged or arrested under a controversial law in the past one month.

গত এক মাসে বিতর্কিত আইনে কমপক্ষে ২০ জন সাংবাদিককে অভিযুক্ত বা গ্রেপ্তার করা হয়েছে।

At least 20 journalists have been charged or arrested under a controversial law in the past one month.

22/05/2020

The video is being shared with a false claim that it shows huge crowds at Madina Market in Hyderabad.

वीडियो को झूठे दावे के साथ साझा किया जा रहा है कि यह हैदराबाद के मदीना मार्केट में भारी भीड़ को दर्शाता है।

ویڈیو کو ایک جھوٹے دعوے کے ساتھ شیئر کیا جارہا ہے کہ اس میں حیدرآباد کے مدینہ مارکیٹ میں زبردست ہجوم دکھایا گیا ہے۔

BOOM found that the video is from a market in Faisalabad, Pakistan

22/05/2020

For large numbers of students, learning online isn’t possible.

For large numbers of India’s students, learning online isn’t possible.

22/05/2020

In Pakistan, the show's popularity reveals reverence for the Ottoman Empire and a hankering for a glorious Muslim past.

19/05/2020

A court in Jashore (Bangladesh) on Monday rejected the bail plea of journalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol.

সোমবার যশোরে (বাংলাদেশ) একটি আদালত সাংবাদিক শফিকুল ইসলাম কাজলের জামিন আবেদন নাকচ করে দেয়।

A court in Jashore on Monday rejected the bail plea of journalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol under section 54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Shafiqul’s lawyer Debashis Das said that they would file...

19/05/2020

Once used by Taliban, Swat FM 98 now fights coronavirus
ایک بار طالبان کے زیر استعمال ، سوات ایف ایم 98 اب کورونا وائرس کا مقابلہ کرتا ہے

Pakhtunkhwa Radio FM 98 in northern Pakistan is holding on-air clinics to help provide healthcare information to residents in remote areas. Once used by Tali...

19/05/2020

Anjum Altaf’s renderings are elegant, and often melancholic, exploring Faiz as a poet of solace for those licking their wounds in the aftermath of inevitable injustices.

انجم الطاف کی پیش کشیں خوبصورت ہیں ، اور وہ اکثر ناگوار ہیں ، جو ناگزیر ناانصافیوں کے نتیجے میں اپنے زخم چاٹنے والوں کے لئے فیض کو راحت بخش شاعر کہتے ہیں۔

अंजुम अल्ताफ के प्रस्तुतिकरण सुरुचिपूर्ण हैं, और अक्सर उदासीन होते हैं, अपरिहार्य अन्याय के बाद अपने घावों को चाटने वालों के लिए फैज़ को एक कवि के रूप में तलाशते हैं।

Anjum Altaf’s renderings are elegant, and often melancholic, exploring Faiz as a poet of solace for those licking their wounds in the aftermath of inevitable injustices.

19/05/2020

In applications filed in two different courts, news portal editor Dhaval Patel argued that it was his ‘perspective’ that Vijay Rupani may be replaced as Chief Minister and the article he wrote expressed it as a ‘mere possibility’. This cannot be considered sedition, he said.

19/05/2020

According to a database maintained by MIT Technology Review, Aarogya Setu, India’s contact-tracing app to combat COVID-19, poses significant risks to the privacy of the user compared to similar apps in other countries.

A comparison of government-backed contact tracing apps based on five technology principles

19/05/2020

Police in Bengal filed 270 cases related to fake news between 18 March and 18 May. At least two dozen of these name BJP members.

বাংলায় পুলিশ ১৮ মার্চ থেকে ১৮ মে এর মধ্যে জাল সংবাদের সাথে সম্পর্কিত ২ 27০ টি মামলা দায়ের করেছে। এর মধ্যে কমপক্ষে দু'জন ডজন বিজেপি সদস্য।

Police in Bengal filed 270 cases related to fake news between 18 March and 18 May. At least two dozen of these name BJP members.

19/05/2020

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18/05/2020

He allegedly encouraged and facilitated the violence in his capacity as both president of a Rwandan radio station that has been blamed for helping incite the rampant slaughter of ethnic Tutsis and other minority groups, and as the head of a fund that financed and supported the Hutu militias that carried it out.

Kabuga had eluded capture for about a quarter-century, despite an international effort seeking to bring him to justice for his role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide. He was arrested in France on Saturday.

18/05/2020

A case has been registered against two rightwing sites for fake claims of communal angle in minor’s murder.

नाबालिग की हत्या में सांप्रदायिक कोण के नकली दावों के लिए दो Rightwing साइटों के खिलाफ मामला दर्ज किया गया है।

A case has been registered against two rightwing sites for fake claims of communal angle in minor’s murder.

18/05/2020

Ravindra Saxena spoke to people at a quarantine centre in Maholi tehsil of Sitapur district, who alleged that they were served rotten rice.

रवींद्र सक्सेना ने सीतापुर जिले की महोली तहसील में एक संगरोध केंद्र में लोगों से बात की, जिन्होंने आरोप लगाया कि उन्हें सड़े हुए चावल परोसे गए थे।

Ravindra Saxena spoke to people at a quarantine centre in Maholi tehsil of Sitapur district, who alleged that they were served rotten rice.

16/05/2020

Her reports from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh shone light on acts of injustice.

उत्तर प्रदेश के वाराणसी से उसकी रिपोर्ट ने अन्याय के कार्य पर प्रकाश डाला।

Her reports from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh shone light on acts of injustice.

16/05/2020

Those provisionally detained include cartoonist Ahmed Kabir Kishore, writer and blogger Mushtaq Ahmed and whistleblower Didarul Bhuiyan.

অস্থায়ীভাবে আটককৃতদের মধ্যে হলেন কার্টুনিস্ট আহমেদ কবির কিশোর, লেখক ও ব্লগার মোশতাক আহমেদ এবং হুইসেল ব্লোয়ার দিদারুল ভূঁইয়া।

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Bangladeshi authorities to immediately release well-known figures held in connection with their coverage of the coronavirus crisis and to drop all charges against them. At least 12 journalists and bloggers have been charged under the draconian 2018 Digita...

14/05/2020

India has a 70-year history of democracy, tolerance and rule of law, and a successful record of managing its patchwork of cultures and religions. In recent months, however, following the second consecutive victory of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party in the May 2019 general elect...

14/05/2020

Journalists have been slapped with police cases and barred from ground reporting.
पत्रकारों को पुलिस मामलों के साथ थप्पड़ मारा गया और जमीनी रिपोर्टिंग से रोक दिया गया।

Journalists in Solan, Chamba, Kullu and Mandi have been slapped with police cases and barred from ground reporting.