Grant Podelco

World: Prague Film Festival Focuses On World's 'Uncovered Hotspots'

One World festival organizer Igor Blazevic The One World Film Festival on Human Rights gets under way in Prague on 27 April. The weeklong festival -- in its seventh year -- screens documentaries focusing on human rights abuses and struggles around the world. One festival award is personally chosen by former Czech President Vaclav Havel. This year's slate features films about Afghanistan, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, Romania, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, to name just a few. [RFE/RL is an official partner of the One World Film Festival on Human Rights.]

World: Czech Lab On Cutting Edge Of Human Stem-Cell Research

Dr. Petr Dvorak (RFE/RL) A humble laboratory in the southeastern Czech city of Brno is on the cutting edge of research into the controversial area of human embryonic stem cells. Stem cells are colonies of cells taken from human embryos before they have acquired the characteristics of specific tissue or organs. These early cells are believed to hold the potential for curing such diseases as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and diabetes, and may someday help rehabilitate people suffering from spinal-cord injuries. But the embryos must be destroyed to harvest the cells, raising ethical questions.

World: 50 Years After Einstein's Death, His Discoveries Still Matter

Everybody loves Einstein It's been 50 years since the death in 1955 of physics genius Albert Einstein at the age of 76. But Einstein remains as iconic as any modern-day rock star or movie idol. His memorable face -- with its bushy moustache and twinkling eyes, all topped by an unruly mass of long white hair -- is still seen on everything from posters and coffee mugs to computer commercials. And his famous theory of relativity -- E=MC2 -- while not necessarily understood, is committed to almost every student's memory. RFE/RL looks at Einstein's remarkable genius, his continuing relevance, and the special place he occupies in scientific history.

UN: Leading Human Rights Groups Support Reform Proposals

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan (file photo) Fifteen leading human rights organizations are urging UN member states to quickly establish a Human Rights Council, as recommended by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Annan wants the new body to replace the current UN Commission on Human Rights, whose conduct he says is undermining the credibility of the entire organization. But some developing nations are calling Annan's proposal simplistic.

China: Rights Groups Accuse Beijing Of Suppressing Uyghurs, Smothering Islam

Two U.S.-based human rights groups are accusing China of misusing the country's laws to crack down on the Muslim Uyghur community, the largest non-Chinese ethnic minority in the region. In a joint report, Human Rights Watch and Human Rights in China say the systematic repression of religion continues in the western Xinjiang Autonomous Province as a matter of "considered state policy." In its first public reaction to the report, China says ethnic groups in Xinjiang enjoy all religious freedoms according to the constitution.

UN: World Health Day Report Focuses On 'Invisible Crisis' In Maternal, Infant Mortality

The UN's World Health Day is being observed today The UN's World Health Organization (WHO) calls it the "invisible health crisis" -- the preventable deaths of millions of mothers during childbirth, and of newborns and small children due to disease and other factors. The theme of this year's World Health Day -- observed today -- is the well-being of mothers and children around the world.

Sudan: Khartoum Accused Of Making Empty Promises In Darfur

(file photo) The United Nations is accusing Sudan of carrying out fresh attacks against rebels in Darfur, even as a UN-brokered agreement requiring Khartoum to create safe havens for the displaced comes into effect. Both the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and its refugee agency, the UNHCR, say Sudanese authorities are pressuring refugees to return to unsafe villages, where they face violence by pro-government militias. The UN also says the Sudanese government is hampering humanitarian access to the region. Those are also the views of two prominent international human-rights groups, who just issued separate reports harshly critical of Sudan over its handling of the crisis.

Western Press Review: Iran's 'Failed Political System,' A 'Third Way' For Iraq, And Talking Turkey

Prague, 20 February 2004 (RFE/RL) -- Today's controversial parliamentary elections in Iran are the subject of much commentary and analysis in the Western press today. Other editorials and columns look at how the ouster of Saddam Hussein has triggered talk of political reform in the Arab world, a "third way" for Iraq, the UN's oil-for-food "scam" in Iraq, and why Turkey should be given a start date for accession talks to the European Union.

Western Press Review: Iran's Disputed Parliamentary Elections and Iraq's Rough Road Toward Sovereignty

Prague, 18 February 2004 (RFE/RL) -- Opinion and analysis in the English-language press today focus on the 20 February parliamentary elections in Iran and what voter turnout will say about the vulnerability of the country's theocrats, possible changes in the plans for the transfer of sovereignty in Iraq, and a congressional probe into whether the Bush administration exaggerated intelligence to justify its invasion of that country.

Western Press Review: How Much Diplomacy Is Too Much Diplomacy In Iraq?

Western Press Review: What Comes Next In Iraq, Al-Qaeda's Acts Of Desperation, And NATO Flag Over Kabul

Afghanistan: Herat's Treasures Can't Compensate For Atmosphere Of Fear

Monuments Of Herat, Afghanistan's Ancient Cultural Capital, In Danger Of Destruction

In 1933, travel writer Robert Byron called the towering minarets of the western Afghan city of Herat "the most beautiful example of color in architecture ever devised by man to the glory of his god and himself." Today, the minarets and monuments of this ancient center of culture and learning cast but a faint shadow of their former selves. Earthquakes, wars, wind, and water have taken a disastrous toll. But as RFE/RL correspondent Grant Podelco discovered on a recent visit to Herat, efforts are under way by the Afghan government and the United Nations to save these celebrated treasures.

'Kept In A Cage' -- Citizens Of Herat Describe Life Under Ismail Khan

For centuries, the western Afghan city of Herat has been known as a center for art, literature, and learning. Today, however, the city is more closely associated with the iron-fisted rule of its governor, the self-styled "Emir of Herat," Ismail Khan. RFE/RL correspondent Grant Podelco just returned from a visit to Herat. He discovered a city more outwardly civil than the capital, Kabul, but one that on closer inspection is governed by a palpable climate of fear, an atmosphere only exacerbated by the publication this month of a damning report on the province's human rights record.

Afghanistan: Despite Aid Efforts, Many People Choosing To Emigrate Again Before Winter

Afghanistan: Highway Project Paving The Way For Regional Trade, Stability

Afghanistan: One Week After Student Protests, Signs Of Improvement Seen At Kabul University

Artistry In The Air -- Kite Flying Is Taken To New Heights In Afghanistan

The streets of the capital, Kabul, are filled with shops selling kite-flying equipment, and the skies above the city are decorated each day with hundreds of colorful kites fluttering in the wind. Banned by the Taliban as un-Islamic, kite flying has now hit new heights of popularity in the country.

Afghanistan: Human Rights Watch Accuses Police Of Trying To Cover Up Kabul Shootings

Tensions Ease At Kabul University, But Grievances Remain

Tensions at Kabul University have eased after three days of student protests over poor living conditions that resulted in the deaths of at least two students. Students are returning to classes, although security on campus is still tight, and many roads leading to the university remain blocked by police. Afghanistan's minister of higher education blames extremist groups on campus for the protests but says the grievances of students will be addressed. RFE/RL correspondent Grant Podelco visited the university's dormitory and spoke with a group of 16 students all living in one room in squalid conditions.