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Category Archives: Freedom

Putin’s Invasion of Crimea: Obama says values of freedom and dignity will triumph in Ukraine – Video

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Putin #39;s Invasion of Crimea: Obama says values of freedom and dignity will triumph in Ukraine
US President Barack Obama has appealed to Europeans to retrench behind the war-won ideals of freedom and human dignity, declaring that people voicing those v...

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Putin's Invasion of Crimea: Obama says values of freedom and dignity will triumph in Ukraine - Video

Threats to freedom of religion or belief in Malaysia

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Although the Malaysian constitution guarantees freedom of religion, many Malaysians continue to face serious and systemic religious intolerance, observe Aliran and Suaram.

Jais raided the Bible Society of Malaysia Photograph: themalaymailonline.com

Malaysia has a population of 30m people, with 60 per cent of the population practising Islam, 19 per cent Buddhism, 9 per cent Christianity, 6 per cent Hinduism and 5 per cent other faiths and beliefs. Although Malaysia remains a secular state and its constitution guarantees freedom of religion, many Malaysians continue to face serious and systemic religious intolerance and persecution.

Although Muslims may proselytise to non-Muslims, under Article 11(4) of the Malaysian Constitution, proselytisation by those of non-Muslim faiths to Muslims is prohibited. Freedom of religion was one of the key issues discussed during Malaysias second cycle of the Universal Periodic Review, with several states including Austria, Canada, Italy and Poland making critical comments and recommendations. In January 2014, Amnesty International stated It is concerning to see the Malaysian authorities increasingly taking their cue from hard-line religious groups and others seeking to silence those who espouse views that differ from their own agenda.

A court ruling in October 2013 prohibits non-Muslims from using the word Allah to refer to God. The appeals court stated that the term Allah must be exclusive to Islam or it could cause public disorder. According to the Christian Federation of Malaysia, about 60 per cent of the 2.6m Christians in the country use the word Allah to refer to God. In a statement made at the second cycle of Malaysias Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in October, the Malaysian Government stated that the Court ruling was a preventive measure to ensure public safety and to protect public order in Malaysia.

In November 2013, the UN Special Rapporteur, Mr Heiner Bielefeldt, urged the Government of Malaysia to reverse its decision to ban a Catholic publication from using the word Allah to refer to God, warning that the case may have far-reaching implications for religious minorities in the country.

UN Independent Expert on minority issues Ms Rita Izsk stated that, Discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief constitutes a violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and in this instance is a breach of the rights of a religious minority to freely practise and express their faith as they have done for generations. Such actions may present an obstacle to friendly and peaceful relations between faith communities.

The UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression, Mr Frank La Rue, has also echoed these statements: The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Government of Malaysia should take necessary steps to secure immediately the right to freedom of opinion and expression of Herald The Catholic Weekly and withdraw unconditionally from further litigation on this issue.

On 2 January 2014, officers from the Selangor Islamic Department (Jais) raided the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) and seized 321 copies of the Bible in the Malay language and a further 10 bibles in the Iban language because they used the world Allah to refer to God. Jais unlawfully conducted the raid without a warrant and threatened to force their way into the office of BSM if they would not open the door for them. During the raid, the Jais officers also arrested the Bible Societys president, Lee Min Choon, and office manager, Sinclair Wong, for allegedly violating that decree. Both were later released on bail.

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Threats to freedom of religion or belief in Malaysia

PureVPN Spreading Freedom from 35 Countries

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Hong Kong (PRWEB UK) 27 March 2014

Dedicated to complete and utmost online freedom, PureVPN has expanded its global VPN network in 9 new countries. PureVPN users can now connect to 40,000+ IPs, 300+ servers in 35 countries and get total internet freedom, as they need.

Internet censorship and geo-restriction has reached a new extreme of blocking and restricting access to the internet. As more internet users seek online security and freedom, PureVPN, the worlds leading VPN service provider, is growing its geographically vast network exponentially. And, to fulfill the demand of a huge clientele, PureVPN has expanded its VPN network from 26 countries to 35 countries within 3 months. All recently added servers to support PPTP, L2TP, SSTP and OpenVPN protocols.

The Founder of PureVPN, Mr. Uzair Gadit said:

Expanding to newer countries was essential because an increasing number of Internet users are searching for ways to use the internet without restrictions.

In the online world, the future of internet freedom has never been as significant as it is today. As Mr. Uzair Gadit said:

New censorships and restrictions are reported almost daily. Freedom of speech has been caged in many countries. Internet users are left with no freedom of thoughts and actions on the internet. Most importantly expats and travelers around the world are severely affected due to online censorship and surveillance.

Relating the worst condition of censorship with the success story of launching VPN servers in 9 new countries, Mr. Gadit said:

Expanding to newer countries aims to increase the availability of freedom to PureVPN users. With these new regions, PureVPN is bringing home a large volume of constantly changing IPs that guarantee maximum freedom on the Internet.

Apparently, this is not all from PureVPNs success stories. Theres a lot more to come, as Mr. Uzair Gadit said:

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PureVPN Spreading Freedom from 35 Countries

Austrian MEP candidate compares EU to Nazis: Jewish leader calls on Freedom Party to take action – Video

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Austrian MEP candidate compares EU to Nazis: Jewish leader calls on Freedom Party to take action
The leader of Austria #39;s Jewish community has appealed to an EU Parliament member to drop his re-election campaign after comparing the European Union to Nazi ...

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Austrian MEP candidate compares EU to Nazis: Jewish leader calls on Freedom Party to take action - Video

What does freedom in business mean?

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A successful organisation is one that offers individual freedom without losing its sense of direction

No matter where you are on the political spectrum, for capitalists, free enterprise is sacred and an inherent good. But what if we looked at free enterprise another way and asked: What is the role of freedom in the corporate setting? And how do levels of freedom affect the bottom line?

Freedom is widely accepted as a basic human right in our societies. Yet while strategists and organisational experts have explored many forces that drive success, they have paid too little attention to the impacts and implications of freedom.

Research into how freedom affects business performance reveals that the right kind of freedom can indeed underpin competitive advantage, across different measures of financial performance, innovation and long-term success. This is not an abstract notion. There is a clearly defined structure freedom from and freedom to through which companies need to approach the quest for freedom.

Freedom from is a necessary condition for success in life, society and business. It speaks to the liberation of individuals from hierarchy, oppression and stultifying rules, whether from a tyrannical government or from a top-down corporate management style. Relationships created by freedom from have the potential to be open and two-way because power is appropriately distributed, information is shared and decision-making is inclusive. Freedom from can shape the space for multiple actors to make broad contributions.

But freedom from, in and of itself, is not sufficient; while empowering to individuals, it doesnt establish moral and ethical frameworks in which to operate. Freedom from needs to be followed by a meaningful journey towards freedom to the shared condition where we are inspired to act in the common interest. Freedom to is alignment towards shared objectives and mutually positive outcomes.

The breakdown of traditional power structures is leading to a rise of freedom from, leaving behind a power vacuum as old controls wither. We see it in West Asia where the Arab Spring was a manifestation of the powerful drive for freedom but also in the startup culture, among millennials who want freedom from conventional corporate trappings. But how do we contend with and benefit from this abundance of newfound freedom?

Companies need to fill that vacuum with freedom to if they are to create a competitive advantage. For example, organisations can increase employees choices about what projects to work on and reward high performers with additional responsibilities in their areas of interest. In so doing, leaders can relocate freedom from something conferred externally to a force that arises organically.

Organisations need to start viewing relations with all stakeholders employees, customers, supply chain partners and even communities through this lens of freedom from/freedom to. Business, after all, is about relationships relationships with employees, customers, supply chain partners and other stakeholders

Today, freedom particularly freedom from is on the march. The interdependencies of todays business, culture and communications expose us to the freedom of others, increasing our demand for the newfound freedoms we see others exercising. Technology is a great liberator, powering interactivity and commerce that support the rise of freedom from in our business and personal lives as never before.

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What does freedom in business mean?

Ed Asner helps lead Freedom Seder at Temple Emanu-El

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Actor Ed Asner will help lead a Freedom Seder, which celebrates the Jews freedom from Egyptian slavery and all those who have fought for freedom.

The event is co-sponsored by Temple Emanu-El and Humane Borders.

The Freedom Seder will take place April 21 at 6:15 p.m. at Temple Emanu-El, 225 N. Country Club Road.

The first Freedom Seder took place in Washington, D.C., on the one-year anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.s death, on April 4, 1969.

Participants of many faith traditions met in an African-American church in Washington, D.C., combining for the first time the biblical story of freedom and the African-American struggle for full civil rights, according to a news release from Temple Emanu-El. Since that time, Freedom Seders have embraced stories of people of color, refugees and others who have fought for basic human dignity.

The event is open to people of all faiths.

The Freedom Seder includes a Passover meal.

Reservations are $28 and can be made by calling 327-4501 or at http://www.templeemanueltucson.org

The deadline to RSVP is April 14.

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Ed Asner helps lead Freedom Seder at Temple Emanu-El

Freedom of Conscience and Religious Liberty

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(Photo: Reuters/Larry Downing)

Protester Julia Mitchell holds a sign at the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court as arguments began to challenge the Affordable Care Act's requirement that employers pay for contraception and abortion-inducing drugs as part of an employee's healthcare, in Washington, March 25, 2014.

March 26, 2014|10:45 am

What if the federal government ordered you to act against your conscience - to take part in something you believed to be objectively wrong - or else be punished with huge fines?

This is no idle question. It describes exactly what is happening in America today: The Obama administration is ordering businesses and other organizations with 50 or more employees to have their insurance plans cover drugs and devices which can cause early abortions. To many business owners, that means either cooperating in grave evil, dropping insurance they have always provided their workers, or being forced out of business.

Just ask David and Barbara Green, owners of the giant chain of Hobby Lobby stores. Just ask the Hahn family, Mennonites who own Conestoga Wood Specialties. These courageous Americans are defending not only their own rights but also those of all Americans who wish to live their lives and run their businesses in accord with their free consciences and their deepest beliefs.

That is why the public policy groups and the women's coalition that we represent signed an amici curiae ("friends of the court") that was filed with the Supreme Court of the United States in two lawsuits against Obama Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. While we do not take a position on contraception, we do assert fiercely our freedom of conscience and religious liberty.

The cases center on ObamaCare's Health and Human Services mandate, which uses the threat of ruinous fines to coerce private individuals and organizations into becoming complicit in abortions - to, as our brief says, "violate religious beliefs by covering in health insurance plans devices and drugs that can prevent an embryo from implanting in the womb." In doing so, the Mandate directly attacks the First Amendment's guarantee of religious freedom. It also contradicts several federal laws that protect the people's conscience rights concerning abortion, such as the Church Amendment of 1973.

The mandate's departure from respect for conscience rights is deepening our nation's social and political divisions. It plainly creates a national conflict over religious freedom by trampling upon the conscience rights of the many Americans who oppose abortion. Those Americans, it should not even be necessary to point out, include millions of women such as ourselves who cherish and champion the right to life and who prize and defend Americans' rights of conscience and religious liberty.

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Freedom of Conscience and Religious Liberty

Animal Rights vs. Religious Freedom: Muslim & Jewish leaders slam Danish anti-ritual slaughter law – Video

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Animal Rights vs. Religious Freedom: Muslim Jewish leaders slam Danish anti-ritual slaughter law
An influential delegation of Muslim and Jewish leaders has accused a Danish minister of placing animal rights before religion. It follows a decision adopted ...

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Animal Rights vs. Religious Freedom: Muslim & Jewish leaders slam Danish anti-ritual slaughter law - Video

Freedom From Obesity I – Weight Loss Specialists of North Texas Educational DVD – Video

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Freedom From Obesity I - Weight Loss Specialists of North Texas Educational DVD
Weight Loss Specialists of North Texas: Freedom From Obesity - Educational DVD. The goal of this video is to help you understand what weight loss surgery is ...

By: WLSurgeon

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Freedom From Obesity I - Weight Loss Specialists of North Texas Educational DVD - Video


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