Beyond the caricature, the poor people’s president
Conventional wisdom tells us Chávez was a despot who destroyed a once vibrant democracy, but others see another side.
Global
Philippines president counts election successes
President Benigno Aquino's coalition scores significant ballot box winners; voter watchdogs have questions about procedures.
Ireland at tipping point with abortion laws
After 30 years, five constitutional referendums and multiple headline-grabbing cases, Ireland’s blanket ban on abortion remains one of the most restrictive in the world, admired and abhorred by activists on alternate sides of the issue.
But after Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny introduced in April legislation to activate a latent 1992 Supreme Court ruling that authorized termination in cases where a woman’s life is at risk, 2013 could prove a tipping point in the decades-long standoff.
Bishop, doctor say Sudan food crisis provoked by aerial bombing
The people of the Nuba Mountains, a disputed region in Sudan that shares a border and ethnic ties with South Sudan, are starving. They have no food and the armed conflict that has prevented them from growing their own is stymieing relief efforts.
A Catholic bishop and Catholic medical missioner visited the United States earlier this year to speak for the Nuba people and seek an international intervention to halt the aerial bombings, to open roads to allow food relief to be brought in, and to require the parties in conflict to sit down and negotiate a lasting peace.
Police evacuate Notre Dame Cathedral after reported suicide
Visitors were evacuated from Notre Dame Cathedral after a man committed suicide in the 850-year-old church, police said.
News agencies reported that the man in his 70s walked up to the main altar and shot himself the afternoon of May 21 as tourists and worshippers were in the church.
France's BFMTV reported the man was writer and essayist Dominique Venner, who was identified as a conservative who was a staunch opponent of same-sex marriage. The news outlet said a suicide note was found next to his body.
Guatemalan court annuls conviction of former dictator
Guatemala's highest court has annulled the conviction of former dictator Efrain Rios Montt for genocide and crimes against humanity, which had been seen as historic.
Guatemala ex-dictator's genocide conviction overturned
Guatemalan high court orders retrial for former dictator Efrain Rios Montt.
Ríos Montt found guilty of Guatemalan genocide
The U.S.-supported dictator who presided over state terror and mass murder in the 1980s immediately began an 80-year sentence in a high-security prison.
Editorial: U.S. should follow Guatemala's courageous example
We say: It's time for the United States to discover its own courage in confronting the ugly truth of relations with Ríos Montt.
Fighting poverty would limit trafficking, Vatican's U.N. observer says
The political commitment to combat human trafficking must be backed by concrete actions to ensure victims gain their freedom from modern-day slavery, said the Vatican's representative to the UN.
Pages
NCR Email Alerts
Sign up to get NCR updates by email. Existing users: change your preferences here. Enter your email address in the box below and click “Go.”
In This Issue
May 24-June 6, 2013
- The paradox of Pope Francis
- Editorial: Questions linger after dynamic sisters' meeting
- [Coming Soon] Name your treasure and pass it on
- [Print Edition Only] Special Section: Family Life
Not all of our content is online. Subscribe to receive all the news and features you won't find anywhere else.