The International Humanist and Ethical Union has joined with its member organization One Law for All to hold a Rally for Free Expression in London on 11 February. The rally was organized to respond to the recent spate of attacks on free speech in the UK, including threats and censorship directed at Humanist student groups at the University of London (see IHEU stories at  http://www.iheu.org/humanists-condemn-another-attack-atheist-expression-london-university and at http://www.iheu.org/threats-violence-force-cancellation-university-talk-sharia-law).

Yet another Humanist student group in London is being threatened with censorship for talking about Islam. The London School of Economics (LSE) Student Union has instructed the LSE Student Union Atheist, Secularist and Humanist Society (LSESU ASH) to remove cartoons featuring Jesus and Mohammed from their Facebook page. It is the third instance this month of free speech being threatened at a London college.

In March, Nigeria's notorious witch hunter, Helen Ukpabio, is organising a “Deliverance Session” in the United States, according to infomation posted on the web site of the Liberty Gospel Church. The event is slated for March 14-25 at Liberty Gospel Church in Houston, Texas. The program is said to be “12 days of battling with the spirit for freedom.”

The Humanist Movement in Sweden and the International Humanist community call upon the Swedish authorities to reopen the case of Khalid Saeed from Pakistan, whose application for a residence permit in Sweden has been rejected by the Migration Board. He could now be sent back to Pakistan with his entire family.

The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) is calling for Sweden to provide asylum to Khalid Saeed, a Pakistani atheist and apostate from Islam who fled his homeland to live in Sweden.  Khalid’s initial request for asylum was rejected by Swedish authorities because they did not accept that his outspoken atheism had made it unsafe for him and his family in Pakistan.

The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) is calling on Humanists and all people of good conscience to show their support for the International Day Against Stoning, today, July 11, 2011. IHEU marked the day by calling on Iran to release Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani. Iran is one of several countries that impose a form of Islamic law that includes death by stoning as a punishment for crimes including adultery.

The Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association (GALHA) has condemned plans by members of the Ugandan Parliament to fast track legislation that would mandate execution for a wide range of consensual gay relationships. GALHA, an IHEU member organization based in the UK, has joined demands by the international community that Uganda's President Museveni veto the "Kill The Gays" bill, should it be passed in Parliament.

Leo Igwe, IHEU Representative for Southern and Western Africa, has led a rescue of two children accused of witchcraft. The children, who were living with a member of a family known for trafficking children, were rescued on February 11 and handed over to the local authority who will now care for them. Every year in the Nigerian state of Akwa Ibom, thousands of children are accused of witchcraft, and then abused, abandoned or ejected from their homes. These children are forced to live on the streets, or abandoned buildings, and are often trafficked for sex or slave labour.

The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) is protesting the imprisonment of a Palestinian blogger for alleged atheism. Waleed Khalid Hasayin has reportedly been detained by Palestinian Authority security forces in the West Bank since October 31. The 26-year-old computer science graduate is accused of posting anti-religious writings on the Internet. He faces a possible sentence of life in prison as well as the threat of vigilante killing.