Latest news with #andLabor
Kuwait Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Kuwait Times
US official applauds Kuwait's inclusion of women in military
US official applauds Kuwait's inclusion of women in military Allowing Kuwaiti women to join military a milestone in gender equality: McGee NEW YORK: US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Jacob McGee, praised Kuwait's recent steps to empower women through military service, calling the decision to allow women to join the armed forces a significant and commendable achievement. Speaking during a meeting with Ambassador Sheikha Jawaher Ibrahim Al-Duaij Al-Sabah, Kuwait's Assistant Foreign Minister for Human Rights Affairs, on the sidelines of the 18th session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, McGee highlighted the policy shift as a strong reflection of Kuwait's commitment to advancing women's rights and gender equality. His comments come as the Kuwaiti Army opens new pathways for female participation in military service. The General Staff recently announced two major initiatives. University-educated women can now apply to Ali Al-Sabah Military College, which offers them the chance to complete a one-year program at the Women's Police Institute before graduating with the rank of Second Lieutenant. Applications open from June 15 to July 3. Separately, starting May 4, female applicants with 11th-grade education or below were invited to join the military as volunteers, with rank assignments based on academic level, and a three-month non-residential training course. These steps follow a broader national effort to revive and expand women's military roles, which have faced political and religious scrutiny in recent years. While women were first permitted to apply for combat roles in December 2021, the program was suspended pending religious guidance. A fatwa issued in January 2022 limited women's participation to medical, technical, and support roles, under strict conditions. Despite early setbacks, senior officials have since renewed calls for inclusion. In January, First Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Al-Sabah underscored women's proven capabilities in various military sectors, urging greater integration. During the meeting in New York—also attended by Kuwait's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Tareq Al-Bannai—Ambassador Sheikha Jawaher reaffirmed Kuwait's broader commitment to human rights and combatting human trafficking, emphasizing the government's dedication to aligning with international human rights standards. — Agencies
News.com.au
03-05-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
White House calls out Australian eSafety Commissioner for ‘censorship'
The US State Department has taken the unusual step of calling out the Australian government for 'censorship', after an anti-trans activist's posts on X were geo-blocked for being 'offensive'. Canadian internet personality and anti-trans protester Chris Elston, better known on the internet at 'Billboard Chris', has received support from the White House while he waits for a tribunal judgment after taking the Australian government to court over its demand to have an 'offensive' post removed. Mr Elston 49, was last year ordered by the Australian eSafety Commissioner to take down a post on X attacking a transgender activist who was hired by the World Health Organisation to draft care guidelines for trans and non-binary people. X initially refused to take the content down but later geo-blocked it in Australia following a formal removal order from the eSafety Commissioner. The US Department of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor published a statement on social media on Thursday saying it was 'deeply concerned' by the decision to remove the post. 'The Department of State is deeply concerned about efforts by governments to coerce American tech companies into targeting individuals for censorship,' the statement said. 'Freedom of expression must be protected – online and offline. 'Examples of this conduct are troublingly numerous. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton threatened X for hosting political speech; Türkiye fined Meta for refusing to restrict content about protests; and Australia required X to remove a post criticizing an individual for promoting gender ideology. 'Even when content may be objectionable, censorship undermines democracy, suppresses political opponents, and degrades public safety. 'The United States opposes efforts to undermine freedom of expression. As [US Secretary of State Marco Rubio] said, our diplomacy will continue to place an emphasis on promoting fundamental freedoms.' The Australian eSafety Commissioner defended the decision to remove the post, arguing that it was 'likely … intended to have an effect of causing serious harm' and constituted 'cyber abuse', and should therefore be removed in accordance with Australia's Online Safety Act. The eSafety Commissioner issued a 'removal notice' to Mr Elston in April last year, after he re-posted a Daily Mail article headlined 'Kinky secrets of UN trans expert REVEALED: Australian activist plugs bondage, bestiality, nudism, drugs, and tax-funded sex-change ops – so why is he writing health advice for the world body?'. In the X post, Mr Elston added the comment: 'This woman (yes, she's female) is part of a panel of 20 'experts' hired by the @WHO to draft their policy on caring for 'trans people.' 'People who belong in psychiatric wards are writing the guidelines for people who belong in psychiatric wards.' The decision from the tribunal is expected to be handed down in the second half of this year. Mr Elston's bio on X says he is a 'human male who protects his kids from gender ideology. Traveling (sic) the world to stop child transition one conversation at a time'. Since 2020, Mr Elston has gained a following of more than 500,000 users on X, where he shares videos of him standing with his signs with slogans such as 'children cannot consent to puberty blockers' in cities around the world. The incident comes as foreign policy experts have described the relationship between the Trump administration and the Australian government as terse, following reports the President will not answer calls from the Prime Minister to negotiate 'Liberation Day' tariffs.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Bill removing Arkansas' fluoride mandate passes Senate; in House committee
Sen. Clint Penzo, R-Springdale, addresses the Arkansas Senate on Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate) Two bills affecting fluoride in drinking water are scheduled for Arkansas House committee discussion Thursday after passing the Senate on Tuesday. Senate Bill 2, which would repeal a statewide mandate for public water system fluoridation, passed the Senate on an 18-12 vote with five senators not voting. Senate Bill 613, which outlines a petition process to put the question of water fluoridation on a local ballot for consideration by voters served by a public water system passed by a wider margin, 27-7, with one senator voting present. Both bills are on the agenda of Thursday's House Committee on Public Health, Welfare, and Labor. Committee rejects proposal to repeal Arkansas' water fluoridation mandate Both bills were sponsored by Sen. Clint Penzo, R-Springdale, who has said that fluoride is a 'poison.' Fluoride — which helps prevent tooth decay — has been used in drinking water since 1945 to improve dental health. Penzo described SB2 as 'a good local control bill that allows the local water districts to determine' whether to fluoridate in his remarks on the Senate floor Tuesday evening. SB2 was voted down in the Senate Public Health committee in February, but Penzo successfully extracted the bill from committee last week over objections from committee chair Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View, who said her committee had done its due diligence when urging her colleagues to reject the extraction motion. Green Forest Republican Sen. Bryan King, an opponent of water fluoridation, argued that it was a matter the entire Senate should take up and that four members of an eight-member committee shouldn't be able to hold up a bill that the whole body wanted to consider. The extraction motion passed 19-12, with two voting present. Arkansas is one of a minority of states that mandates fluoride in its drinking water, and has done so since 2011. Penzo's effort to remove Arkansas' mandate comes at a time when fluoridation has been put in the spotlight by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has been outspoken in his opposition to community water fluoridation. The Associated Press reported Monday that Kennedy planned to tell the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to stop recommending water systems fluoridate their water, and that the EPA announced the same day that it is reviewing potential health risks from fluoride. Utah became the first state to ban adding fluoride in drinking water in late March. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Bloomberg
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Britain's Free-Speech Retreat Can't Be Denied
Britain can brace itself for another scolding from US Vice President JD Vance. On Friday, a second anti-abortion activist was convicted of breaching a protest buffer zone outside a clinic, the same offense that prompted Vance to accuse the UK of backsliding on free speech in his February address to the Munich Security Conference. The Veep is right that Britain's climate for free expression is deteriorating — he just picked the wrong case to illustrate the point. Livia Tossici-Bolt, a 64-year-old retired medical scientist, was found guilty of breaching a legal perimeter when she stood near a clinic in southern England holding a sign that said 'Here to talk, if you want.' She was given a two-year conditional discharge and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £20,000 ($26,000). The US State Department's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor said it was disappointed by the outcome and freedom of expression 'must be protected for all.'
Sky News
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Sky News
US government department 'disappointed' by conviction of woman who breached abortion clinic 'buffer zone'
A US government department has said it is "disappointed" following the conviction of a woman for breaching a "buffer zone" outside a Bournemouth abortion clinic. Livia Tossici-Bolt, 64, was sentenced on Friday to a conditional discharge for two years at Poole Magistrates' Court after breaching the Public Spaces Protection Order on two days in March 2023. She had held a sign saying: "Here to talk, if you want". The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) posted a statement on X, saying: "We are disappointed with the UK court's conviction of Livia Tossici-Bolt for violating a designated 'buffer zone' at an abortion clinic." It added: "Freedom of expression must be protected for all." DRL is part of the US State Department, which is responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. The bureau says its aim is to champion "American values, including the rule of law and individual rights" including "protecting freedom of expression". Speaking after the case, Tossici-Bolt, a retired medical scientist from Bournemouth, said: "This is a dark day for Great Britain. I was not protesting and did not harass or obstruct anyone. "All I did was offer consensual conversation in a public place, as is my basic right, and yet the court found me guilty. "Freedom of expression is in a state of crisis in the UK. What has happened to this country? The US State Department was right to be concerned by this case as it has serious implications for the entire Western world." But District Judge Orla Austin formed a different opinion, telling the court that the defendant "lacks insight that her presence could have a detrimental effect on the women attending the clinic". She added: "I accept her beliefs were truly held beliefs. Although it's accepted this defendant held pro-life views, it's important to note this case is not about the rights and wrongs about abortion but about whether the defendant was in breach of the PSPO [Public Spaces Protection Order]." Tossici-Bolt was also ordered to pay £20,000 towards court costs and a £26 victim surcharge. The case has become the focus of a free speech controversy involving the US government. Vice President JD Vance confronted Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House on the issue. He said in February he feared free speech in Britain was "in retreat". Downing Street said it was vital that women using abortion services can do so "without being subject to harassment or distress" and the right to protest does not "give people the right to harass others". Asked whether there is a problem with free speech in the UK, the prime minister's spokesperson said Britain has "a very proud tradition of free speech over many centuries, and we remain proud of it today". Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council welcomed the conviction, stating that the buffer zone enacted in 2022 was there so patients and staff "could safely access" the clinic "without fear of intimidation". The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) said it welcomed the verdict which "will protect women and the staff who provide abortion care". During the trial Rosalind Comyn, defending, said: "The council hasn't produced any evidence that Ms Tossici-Bolt was in fact either observed by any service user or any other forms of harm were caused by her behaviour.
