French courts keep letting child molesters go free

France has no age of consent, and courts have found multiple child predators "innocent."

France: Stop Child Sexual Assault Now! Sign Now Arfin, France has no legal age of consent. What does this mean? There are no legal protections for children who are raped or groped, except in cases where they can prove violent threats or coercion. As a result, courts in France have found multiple pedophilic predators "innocent". Most western countries recognize that children do not understand and cannot consent to sexual activity. It's time for France to wake up and join their ranks. Age of consent laws are statutes that protect children from adults who abuse their position of power in order to manipulate children into sexual acts and even relationships. This should be a no-brainer: every country should have these laws on the books, and France is no exception. In the wake of the #MeToo movement, in which many people have shared their stories of abuse and survival, we must not forget that millions of children have been subjected to sexual trauma, too. Studies suggest that approximately eight percent of boys and twenty percent of girls globally experience sexual abuse prior to the age of 18. Their stories deserve to be heard, too, and they need the laws of justice to be on their side. Tell the French government: pass an age of consent law, now! Thank you for all that you do,   Miranda B. The Care2 Petitions Team

Sign to save reindeer on Christmas day

Take action for Santa's favourite animal...

Save this reindeer herd in the UK! Sign Now Arfin, We hope you have a wonderful Christmas. If you have a spare minute, we'd like to ask you to take action for Santa's favourite animal. Will you take a moment this Christmas day to save reindeer? 200 healthy reindeer face an untimely death if British high speed rail (HS2) plans go ahead. The reindeer would have nowhere else to live, and would have to be put down if their current home at a farm in Staffordshire, UK is forced to close. Please sign Care2 member Mark's petition to demand HS2 change their plans, and save the reindeer! The Blithbury Reindeer Lodge owner says on his website, "The working draft Environmental Impact Assessment for [HS2] Phase 2a, [makes] clear that the proposed route will cause a large amount disruption and adversely affect our environment, livestock and business. We are a working reindeer farm, visitor attraction and educational facility. The proposed works will take much needed land from Blithbury Reindeer Lodge. On a personal note, I am 66 years old and would like to live the rest of my life in the unique, beautiful, peaceful surroundings I have created, with my partner and my beloved reindeer herd..." The owner of the farm has identified an alternative route for HS2 that would not affect the reindeers, so we are supporting him in asking the government to consider changing their plans. Sign Mark's petition to tell the British government to change their HS2 plans, and save the 200 reindeer of Blithbury Reindeer Lodge! Thank you,   Beth G. The Care2 Petitions Team

Cineworld, it's time to use biodegradable straws

Sign the petition now!

Ask Cineworld to stop polluting our oceans Sign Now Arfin, "If you've been captivated by BBC's Blue Planet then you will agree that plastic is really bad news for our oceans and for the planet. Millions of straws are used every day around the world. Many of these are used for just a few minutes, then are simply thrown away. In fact, plastic straws are one of the top 10 items found in beach clean ups, polluting the water and killing marine life. If we don’t act now, by the year 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish. Walk into a cinema and you'll be hard pushed to find someone that isn't holding a bottled drink or drink with a straw in. If we put pressure on a large corporation like Cineworld to scrap non biodegradable straws then hopefully others will follow." - Nicole B. Many of us have seen the horrific images of sea life hurt by plastic straws. It's time to take action to protect our wildlife. Care2 member Nicole has started a petition to ask Cineworld to start using biodegradable straws. Sign her petition now! The more of us that sign, the more pressure we can put on the cinema chain to do the right thing. Thank you,   Beth G. The Care2 Petitions Team

The Death of a Circus Tiger in Paris

A tiger was shot dead in the streets of Paris.

Tell France Allowing Animals in Circuses is So Passé Sign Now Arfin, A tiger was shot dead in the streets of Paris. That's a headline that we should never have to read. But when governments allow animals to be used as entertainment, tragedies like this can — and do — often happen. While city, state and national governments have been banning the use in animals in entertainment all across the world, France hasn't gotten the memo. This year, at least two tigers used in circuses have been killed, both because they "escaped" or ,rather, followed their instinct and tried to be free. And the year before six — that's right — six circus tigers were killed in South Africa after they ,too, ran for freedom. Tigers, like other animals, shouldn't be used in circuses in the first place. Using them as tools for our entertainment is cruel. The animals are often mistreated, abused or even worse as the Paris incident sadly demonstrated. It's time for France to join Italy, Belgium, Austria, El Salvador, Sweden and a whole host of other national and local governments in ending the animal entertainment industry. Please sign the petition and ask French President Emmanuel Macron and ecology minister Nicolas Hulot to end the use of animals in circuses in France. Thank you for making a difference, Andrew M. The Care2 Petitions Team

Jailed for reporting on a chemical dump disaster

Free Nguyen Van Hao, Jailed for Blogging About Environmental Disaster.

Free Nguyen Van Hao, Jailed for Blogging About Environmental Disaster Sign Now Arfin, It's bad enough to know that massive corporations regularly get away with dumping toxins into our environment. But now a young blogger has been jailed, not for committing any horrible act, but for simply reporting on environmental disasters like these. 22-year-old blogger Nguyen Van Hao was recently sentenced to prison for seven years for reporting that a steel factory dumped huge quantities of toxic chemicals into the ocean. Seeking environmental justice, Hao posted his own reports that exposed the damage the chemical spill caused, and highlighted the communities protesting the government for allowing this to happen. But the Vietnamese government resented being portrayed in this light, and arrested Hao for "anti-state propaganda." We cannot let Hao's unjust imprisonment go ignored — not if we want to protect our environment and the fundamental human rights of journalists and whistleblowers. The world is now watching Vietnam and calling on the nation to show a commitment to human rights, the environment, and unfettered journalism. Add your name today to join the fight and demand Hao's immediate release. Thank you for taking action,   Ellen B. The Care2 Petitions Team

"I'd be happy to slaughter them." - President Duterte

Philippine President Duterte's murderous regime is horrifying and unacceptable.

World Leaders: Speak Out Against Murderous Duterte Presidency! Sign Now Arfin, "Hitler massacred three million Jews ... there's three million drug addicts [in the Philippines]..... I'd be happy to slaughter them." Those are the words of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Tell world leaders they must speak out against Duterte and his criminal regime now! Duterte rose to power by professing to take a hard line against drugs and crime in his country. But to him, that means murder. In the 16 months since he has taken office, he has presided over the extrajudicial killings of nearly 4,000 people. And that's a low estimate: some human rights organizations think he's killed as many as 12,000 people. These slaughtered human beings were never given a chance to prove their innocence. Instead, they were murdered by death squads operating under the orders of Duterte himself. Family members and neighbors describe the squads arriving in the dead of night, crashing into homes and dragging individuals away, never to be seen again. But instead of shunning Duterte and his campaign of death, world leaders actually opted to reward him by attending the 2017 ASEAN Summit held in Manila, the capital city of the Philippines. Leaders from Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to U.S. President Donald Trump shook Duterte's hand, posing for smiling photos. These greetings and photo ops give him the legitimacy he craves. But his massacre of his own people is anything but legitimate. Our leaders represent us — or at least, they're supposed to. We must demand that they speak out against these crimes against humanity. Add your name to the list and urge world leaders to stop turning a blind eye to the slaughter. Sign to implore our leaders to demand that the killings stop now. Thank you for all that you do,   Miranda B. The Care2 Petitions Team