Hasta La Gadget!

Every week, The WorldPost asks an expert to shed light on a topic driving headlines around the world. Today, we look at the case of 43 missing students in Mexico and other disappearances in the country.

Tens of thousands of Mexicans hit the streets of the capital on Thursday evening, angered by the government’s response to the case of 43 students who went missing in Guerrero state in September.

The group of students in a rural teachers’ college disappeared on Sept. 26 on a trip to the town of Iguala. Prosecutors allege the students were killed by a local gang after police had handed them over to the criminals. Gang members told investigators they had killed the students and buried their bodies.

The case of the missing students has put the high number of unsolved disappearances in Mexico once again in the spotlight. “It is not just them,” housewife Nora Jaime told the Associated Press during Thursday’s demonstration, referring to the missing students. “There are thousands of disappeared, thousands of clandestine graves, thousands of mothers who don’t know where their children are.”

The WorldPost spoke with Daniel Wilkinson, managing director of the Americas division at Human Rights Watch, about the disappearances in the country and the many Mexican families who live in insecurity about their fates of their sons and daughters.

The disappearance of 43 students in Mexico’s Guerrerro state has made headlines around the world, but hundreds of others are missing across the country. What is the extent of the problem?

This is one of the worst atrocities we’ve seen in Mexico in many years, but it is not in any way an isolated incident. There have been many other cases of disappearances and forced disappearances — when state agents are involved in disappearing people.

At Human Rights Watch, we issued a report in early 2013 in which we documented 250 cases of disappearances, and 149 of them were forced disappearances — involving state agents — in various parts of the country.

The full extent of the problem is hard to know. The government has acknowledged that there are more than 20,000 people who have disappeared or gone missing since 2007. How many of those cases are forced disappearances? How many of those people went missing the way people go missing in any country? It’s impossible to know. We do know from our own investigations and investigations by other organizations that a large number of those are forced disappearances.

What we do know, too, is that there has been a consistent failure on the part of the authorities to investigate and prosecute these cases.

How are these disappearances related to the drug violence ravaging parts of the country?

This is definitely all happening in the context of the violence that has broken out since the previous government of President Felipe Calderón launched his war on drugs, and undoubtedly, a lot of the violence and the abuses have been committed by members of criminal organizations that are extremely violent. But again, it’s difficult to know because the crimes are so rarely investigated in a serious fashion.

When we issued our report with 149 cases of forced disappearances, the attorney general’s office promised to investigate. Now almost two years later, they have yet to obtain a conviction in a single one of these cases. It’s hardly surprising then that people would think they could get away with such a crime because the norm is impunity in cases of abuse by police and security forces.

Why has the case of the missing students sparked so much outrage across Mexico?

First, this case stands out because of the large number of people disappeared at one time. Second, it was carried out in such a flagrant manner — with the students being attacked by police in the streets of the town of Iguala and then taken off. Third, these are students at a teachers’ college. The government often dismisses victims by saying they were probably involved in drug trafficking or crime, but this case cannot be dismissed that way. Finally, the frustration, the discontent and in many cases the desperation of people throughout Mexico who over the last few years have been seeing this incredible level of violence and abuse and impunity has perhaps reached a breaking point, and this was the case that crossed the line and tapped into this broader sense that something is fundamentally wrong and has to change.

Mexico’s President Peña Nieto vowed at the start of his presidency to change the government’s approach to the war on drugs. Has this had any effect on the number of disappearances and the government’s approach to investigations?

Peña Nieto promised change, but the change ended up being little more than changing the topic of conversation. He approached the issue of public security as a PR problem, and the strategy was little more than to stop talking about it. Clearly, that hasn’t worked. It has blown up in their faces and now they’re forced to respond in a way they haven’t been.

In the case of the missing students, the president initially claimed it was not his problem, but rather a problem that had to be addressed by local officials in Guerrero state. He eventually had to backtrack, but it’s revealing that that was the initial attitude.

If there’s one aspect about disappearance you think our readers should know to understand the crisis, what would it be?

It’s important to understand the nature of the crime. Disappearing someone is one of the cruelest acts that can be committed against people — not only against the immediate victim but also against the family. Families are put in a situation where they have no idea what happened to their sons or daughters. It makes it very difficult to begin the process of mourning and puts them in a state of perpetual anguish, doubt and despair.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

More from The WorldPost on Mexico’s missing students:

– Mexico has been looking for 43 missing students. What has been found is truly terrifying.
– 11 numbers to help you understand the violence rocking Mexico
– ‘As a Mexican. I am ashamed’
– ‘Three causes behind Mexico’s crisis of corruption and impunity’
– ‘I am fed up with fear’

It took a while before the new democracies of East-Central Europe acquired the trappings of a modern political system. One of the new features borrowed from the West was lobbying. To engage in lobbying, however, the new NGOs first had to overcome the perception of politics as “dirty,” since engaging with official political structures still carried a taint of “collaboration” from the Communist era.

Hungary was ahead of the pack, since it already had proto-parties like the Hungarian Democratic Forum in 1987 and a genuine independent political party like the Alliance of Free Democrats in 1988. One of the first major debates to feature modern lobbying, meanwhile, involved reproductive rights. In 1992, the new Hungarian parliament had to adopt a new bill on abortion. It was considering two versions, one that would essentially criminalize abortion (except under certain circumstances) and the other that would preserve access (but again with certain conditions such as a waiting period and mandatory counseling).

Activist Judit Hatfaludi took a position with Hungary’s Feminist Network to coordinate a campaign to lobby for the pro-choice bill. She had the advantage of having spent considerable time in the United States where she was familiar with U.S.-style NGO activities. The Network was able to deploy tactics that caught the Hungarian parliamentarians by surprise.

“We went to the European network on reproductive rights,” Hatfaludi told me in an interview in Visegrad in May 2013. “And I just jumped to the podium and made this whole forum on women sign a letter telling the parliamentary members that they can’t take away women’s rights. One of the women in the Feminist Network worked for the parliamentary office building. So we made copies of this letter, and we put them into every one of the parliamentary members’ mailboxes. This was 1992. I’m sure they weren’t getting many letters at the time.”

Hatfaludi also organized a public outreach campaign to put pressure on the parliamentarians. “We also did mass mailing campaigns,” she recalled. “We’d drop it into people’s mailboxes so they could take part of it and send it back to the members of parliament. One day a woman calls on the office phone and says she works at one of the offices of these members. She had one of these mass mailings in her hand, which had the Feminist Network phone number on it, and she said, ‘I want to sign one of these. Where can I get one?’ I asked, ‘So, are you getting a lot?’ ‘Tons!’ she said. ‘Every member is getting them. So, I was so curious who is doing this, and I want to get one too.'”

The campaign was successful. “They passed the liberal law on reproductive rights,” Hatfaludi said. “Since it was 1992, we really didn’t know where the cards were stacked. I think that our campaign must have made an impact because we were really pretty fierce. The letter-writing campaign was a totally new technique, and the parliamentary members got the idea that people were not going to support a restrictive law.”

Hatfaludi went on to work for the American Friends Service Committee on Roma issues and the war in Yugoslavia. She also continued to work as an activist on LGBT issues. We talked about the current state of women’s issues in Hungary, why the annual Pride marches are no longer like jubilees, and what she does now in her current work as a shaman.

The Interview

Tell me about your involvement in the Feminist Network.

The Feminist Network was one of the first-forming women’s organizations after the transition. Later, when I worked for MONA, the Hungarian women’s foundation, I was responsible for gathering representatives of different women’s organizations and there were quite a number. But the Feminist Network was the one specifically of feminists. There were about 25 or 30 women in it. When I joined there were American activists who came and helped the group with “group dynamics” and structure. There were a lot of formalized meetings, and I really enjoyed that. And I met really great women. I don’t know how long it took before I was actually employed by the Feminist Network, and they already started a pro-choice campaign when the government threatened to take away abortion rights. Zsusza Beres was leaving for London, and she was one of the people I felt one of the closest connections with. She wanted to leave things in the hands of someone she trusted. I felt so honored being just 23 and this older experienced woman was handing me the responsibilities.

So I became employed as the coordinator of this campaign, which was very successful. I think it was also partially because the parliamentary members weren’t used to non-profit lobbying techniques, and we were rather fierce.

Can you give me an example?

We went to the European network on reproductive rights. And I just jumped to the podium and made this whole forum on women sign a letter telling the parliamentary members that they can’t take away women’s rights. One of the women in the Feminist Network worked for the parliamentary office building. So we made copies of this letter, and we put them into every one of the parliamentary members’ mailboxes. This was 1992. I’m sure they weren’t getting many letters at the time. By now they wouldn’t give a fuck about it!

We also did mass mailing campaigns. We’d drop it into people’s mailboxes so they could take part of it and send it back to the members of parliament. One day a woman calls on the office phone and says she works at one of the offices of these members. She had one of these mass mailings in her hand, which had the Feminist Network phone number on it, and she said, “I want to sign one of these. Where can I get one?”

I asked, “So, are you getting a lot?”

“Tons!” she said. “Every member is getting them. So, I was so curious who is doing this, and I want to get one too.”

We were also in the parliament when the voting took place.

Tell me about that.

It was shocking for me to see our great members of parliament reading cartoons. We would sit up in the gallery or parliament and look down. The members were reading cartoons and doing crossword puzzles. I was just so disappointed. Later, when I was working for the SzDSz [Alliance of Free Democrats] Women’s Foundation – though at that time they called it the Hungarian Women’s Foundation to make it seem independent when it wasn’t – we were working with the SzDSz women members of Parliament, and one of them didn’t do anything in parliament except play on the computer. She was this great opposition member from the old opposition times, but every time I went to her office she was playing solitaire on the computer.

Anyway, they passed the liberal law on reproductive rights. Since it was 1992, we really didn’t know where the cards were stacked. I think that our campaign must have made an impact because we were really pretty fierce. The letter-writing campaign was a totally new technique, and the parliamentary members got the idea that people were not going to support a restrictive law. It was a very early and good sign in 1991 for the parliamentary members to see that you don’t fuck with women’s rights because women get enraged. Something similar is happening now on violence against women, which is great to see. The only people that the government seems to be afraid of now are women.

Did the media cover the network at that time as one of the responsible actors?

I was on TV several times and in the newspapers. So, there was coverage but not a great amount of coverage.

How would you characterize the way average Hungarians felt about feminism in those days?

To read the rest of the interview, click here.

As her 2014 winds to a close, Ann Hampton Callaway has much to celebrate. Earlier this month, the actress and singer-songwriter surprised fans by tying the knot with longtime partner, Kari Strand, whom she proudly describes as “the love of her life.”

Callaway’s wedding is just one of many personal milestones which take center stage in her new cabaret act, “Turning Points.” The Tony-nominated performer says the show, which opens Nov. 23 at New York’s 54 Below, is her “most challenging” piece yet and “an exploration of songs about the major moments of my life” which include her Broadway debut, her move to New York from Chicago and the death of her father.

It’s also fitting that Callaway’s performances coincide with Thanksgiving week, as she calls the show a “musical feast” which “celebrates the gifts that life gives us.” She says her planned set, which features the Ted Rosenthal Trio, includes standards, Broadway showtunes, jazz as well as original material.

“My show is a celebration of joy and of sorrow, and how competing truths can live together,” Callaway, 56, told The Huffington Post in an interview. “It’s also about the how can we can still have a great life, despite all the anxiety and uncertainty. I’ve had such a rich life, so it’s hard to know how many of the high moments I can do in a single show.”

Early in rehearsals, Callaway said she and director Dan Foster also “wrestling” between two original songs she’d been about the events of 9/11, which were defining for her work: “Ever since then I’ve felt much more focused about my mission as an artist, so I approach every moment with the awareness of the possibilities that are always around us…the possibility for connection and for loss.”

Callaway is once again on a professional roll. Her latest album, “From Sassy to Divine: The Sarah Vaughan Project,” was released in September. In March, the star — who came out publicly in a 2009 interview with The Advocate — joined fellow composers Lance Horne, Stephen Schwartz and John Bucchino for “Tyler’s Suite,” a choral song cycle dedicated to Tyler Clementi, the 18-year-old Rutgers University student who took his life in 2010 after reportedly being subjected to anti-gay bullying.

Callaway said she felt inspired to participate in the piece because she felt “deeply concerned by the very serious level of Internet bullying” to which lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) teens are often subjected.

“The freedoms that the Internet has given people are beautiful in some ways, but can also be extremely destructive, as it was in this case,” Callaway, who has befriended members of Clementi’s family, said. “Anytime anyone is chastised and exposed for being who they are and not being accepted is something that, to me, is a violation of human rights. We, as people, need to come together and insist that change be made.”

If Callaway has her way, “Turning Points” will be yet another “defining moment” in a celebrated musical career.

Ann Hampton Callaway’s “Turning Points” plays New York’s 54 Below from Nov. 23 — 29. Head here for more information.

From a fake Statue of Liberty to takes on Venice and the Eiffel Tower, it seems pretty clear that when you build a beautiful landmark, there’s sure to be copycats. Unsurprisingly, the same goes for the Taj Mahal.

The real Taj Mahal was built between 1631 and 1648 at the order of Shah Jahan. Today, the white marble mausoleum is one of the most recognizable places in the world and still a fixture for tourists to flock to.

But just in case you can’t make it to Uttar Pradesh, India to visit the stunning structure, here are seven other versions you can check out instead.

1. Taj of the Deccan, Aurangabad, India

Apparently, this beautiful mausoleum was supposed to rival the original Taj Mahal — but we think this one, also known as Bibi Ka Maqbara, is just a beautiful copycat.

2. Taj Mahal houseboat, Sausalito, California

This little houseboat was reportedly worth more than $2 million when it was built in the mid-1970s, after entrepreneur Bill Harlan was inspired by his trip to India.

3. Taj Arabia, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

A million-dollar Taj Mahal replica is something, but a billion-dollar one is quite another. The yet-to-be-built Taj Arabia, the self-proclaimed “Crown of Arabia,” doesn’t want to be an exact replica of the original, but rather a premier wedding destination, as one developer told a local news outlet. We’ll decide for ourselves when it opens, probably sometime in 2016.

4. Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey

As a big, gaudy building on the skyline, you can easily spot Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

5. Taj Mahal of Ipoh, Malaysia

Locals reportedly call the Ipoh Railway Station the Taj Mahal of Ipoh for its white, Moorish architecture. However it looks more like this nearby train station than the real Taj Mahal.

6. Taj Mahal, Bulandshahr district, India

Talk about a labor of love! After the passing of his beloved wife, this man used his savings to build his very own Taj Mahal replica, and BBC reports it gets “a steady stream of visitors.”

7. Taj Mahal Bangladesh

According to The Guardian, a Bangladeshi filmmaker built the replica as part of a movie set with hopes that “the landmark construction can attract more tourists from home and abroad.”

And, last but not least, this important honorary contribution:

The musician, Taj Mahal

He’s a lot more mobile than the Indian attraction, and this Taj Mahal is also thought of as an “international treasure.”

‘Twas the week before Thanksgiving, and Twitter was already antsy for turkey time. It must’ve been because of all those Kim Kardashian food parodies that we posted last week.

Eating pizza all month long to bring awareness to pizza and pizza-related issues.

— Jason Gelles (@1CarParade) November 18, 2014

If you don’t eat the rind, you don’t deserve the brie.

— Kim Bhasin (@KimBhasin) November 14, 2014

Dear airport food distributors, round bread is not a bagel.

— Alex Leo (@AlexMLeo) November 18, 2014

***Tries to steal awesome recipe magazine from psychiatrists waiting room without also being diagnosed with kleptomania.***

— AZEALIA ⚓️ BANKS (@AZEALIABANKS) November 18, 2014

Raisins masquerading as chocolate is the main reason I have trust issues

— Michelle Persad (@michelleapersad) November 17, 2014