tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43224895194024453562024-03-05T12:05:26.233-05:00The VoicesThe voices from Darfur need to be heardmitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11945799620767450307noreply@blogger.comBlogger94125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-41566409539102174302013-10-02T13:12:00.002-04:002013-10-02T13:12:47.219-04:00Dr. Denis Mukwege-Story of a Hero<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In my last post, I wondered where
the heroes for this generation are. Where are the unsung heroes who saved lives
with unselfish acts of courage and wisdom? Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, even
men like Schindler, and Valkyrie who risked their own lives to save
others? I look at women like Aung Suu
Chi, who could not see her beloved husband because she knew she could not fight
for her people in Myanmar from afar. I know they are there, countless people
who risked their own safety and lives to save the lives of others. I wanted to
find those and share their stories here with you; if you know of any heroes and
would like to share, please let me know in the comments. I would love to read
about them. Perhaps I can write that others may take hope that even amidst the
chaos in the world, there are those who care about their fellow man. <o:p></o:p></div>
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This is the<a href="http://www.panzihospital.org/about/dr-denis_mukwege" target="_blank">
story of a man</a> who brings hope to thousands of women who have been
tortured, maimed, raped, with many left for dead; Dr. Denis Mukwege who works
in the Democratic Republic of Congo to restore the lives and dignity of women
who have been tortured and raped as a tool of war. Read on about this wondrous
man and the lives he touches.<o:p></o:p></div>
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"The Africa which the world
needs is a continent able to stand up, to walk on its own feet...It is an
Africa conscious of its own past and able to keep on reinvesting this past into
its present and future."<o:p></o:p></div>
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Joseph Ki-Zerbo<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Dr. Denis Mukwege<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Together with his colleagues, this
wonderful gynecologist has treated close to 30,000 victims of rape and has
acquired great proficiency in the handling of severe sexual damages. He tells
his story including distressing stories of rape as a weapon of war.<o:p></o:p></div>
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When the war broke out in Eastern
DR Congo, 35 of my patients in Lemara were killed in their hospital beds. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Fleeing to Bukavu, 60 miles to the
north, I again started a hospital erected from tents. I also built a maternity
ward with an operating room. In 1988, war again destroyed everything, so in
1999, I started again.<o:p></o:p></div>
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That first year the first rape
victim was brought to the hospital. She had been shot in her genitals and
thighs...after being raped. I thought this was a brutal act of war, until three
months later, to my shock women came telling the same stories; "People
came into my village and raped me, tortured me”<o:p></o:p></div>
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Other women came with genital
burns, and said that after they had been raped, they had had chemicals poured
on their genitals.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I asked myself what was happening
here. These were not only violent acts of war, but also a strategy. There were
circumstances where people were raped publicly, all at the same time; sometimes
an entire village was raped overnight. By doing this, I could see the victims
were not the only ones hurt; the entire community was in anguish as they were
forced to watch. The strategy resulted in people forced to flee their villages,
desert their fields, their possessions, everything. This is very effective as a
strategy in war.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>System of Care<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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We have a system of stages of
victim care and before I commence a large operation, we begin with a
psychological evaluation. It is important to know if the victim has the
strength to go through surgery.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The next stage may be an operation
or it may just be medical care. The next stage is socio-economic care. The
majority of these patients come to us with nothing, not even clothes. Feeding
them, caring for them, and helping them develop new skills; even putting them
back into school is the help they need to recover after these tragedies.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The fourth stage is to help them on
a legal level. Many times the victims know who their rapists are and with an
attorney’s help, their cases are brought to court.<o:p></o:p></div>
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By 2011 we were seeing a decline in
the number of cases and our thought was maybe we were coming to an end of the
horrible circumstances for women in the Congo. However, since last year, the
war has resumed and the cases have increased once again. It is an experience,
which can be linked exclusively to the war.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The conflict in the Democratic
Republic of Congo is not a religious war, nor even a skirmish between states,
but a conflict caused by economic interests, with Congolese women bearing the
brunt of this war.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>The Second Congo War<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Thought to be Africa’s most deadly
war, it began in 1998 and unambiguously involved eight nations, and 25 armed
groups and the battle was the rich natural resources of the Congo. Both the
Congolese army and the militia have been accused of the violent rape against
the men and women of Africa. Officially ending in 2003, the fighting has still
continues in the of DR Congo, and the numbers of have risen dramatically.<o:p></o:p></div>
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(Excerpt) Speech to the UN (Sept
2012)<o:p></o:p></div>
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Denis Mukwege<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>"I
would have liked to also say; 'I have the honor of being part of the
international community that you represent here,' but I cannot say that. How
can I say this to you - representatives of the international community - when
the international community has shown fear and a lack of courage during these 16
years in the Democratic Republic of the Congo?"<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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I was returning home from a trip
outside the country when I found five people waiting for me. Four of them had
AK-47’s while the fifth held a pistol.<o:p></o:p></div>
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They opened the gate and got into
my car and pointed their weapons at me. They forced me out of my car, and one
of my guards tried to rescue me but they shot him and killed him. I fell down
as my attackers continued to fire their weapons. I have no idea how I survived.
They then left my car without taking anything.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It was only later that I found out
that my two daughters and their cousin were at home. They were forced into the
living room with their attackers were waiting for me. All this time the
attackers had their weapons pointed at my daughters. It was terrible.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I only saw my attackers for a few
seconds and I could not tell who they were. I also do not know why they
attacked me, only they know.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Dr. Mukwege took his family and
fled to Sweden and then Brussels, but was persuaded to return to the Congo.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The determination of the Congolese
women inspired me to return to fight these atrocities.<o:p></o:p></div>
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These women had the courage to
protest about the attack on me to the authorities and they even put their money
together to pay for my ticket home. These are women who have nothing; they live
on less than a dollar a day.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I myself am determined to fight
these atrocities and after this gesture by these Congolese women I could not
say no.<o:p></o:p></div>
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“My life has had to change, since
returning. I now live at the hospital and I take a number of security
precautions, so I have lost some of my freedom”.<o:p></o:p></div>
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When the women welcomed me back,
they told me they would make sure I was kept safe by taking turns to guard me.
Groups of 20 women volunteer to work in shifts, day and night. They have no weapons
they do not have anything. Feeling so close to the people you are working with
is a form of security. Their enthusiasm gives me the confidence to continue
with my work.<o:p></o:p></div>
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With 350 beds in Denis Mukwege’s
hospital, they are often filled with rape victims. Funded by Unicef and other
donors, it also runs a mobile clinic and a microfinance initiative.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Dr. Mukwege has received many
international awards, including the 2008 UN Human Rights Prize. In 2009 he was
named African of the Year.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-40093203709455369532013-07-16T09:34:00.000-04:002013-07-16T09:34:19.370-04:00Justice Served, but is it Enough for Rwanda?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ten Year Sentence,
but Will Deportation be the Answer?</b></div>
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Through 2 trials and three years since her indictment in
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by false claims regarding her role as a commander of one of the infamous
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On Monday, a federal judge sentenced her to the maximum ten
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He also acknowledged the fact that since entering the U.S.
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Midway through the hearing, Munyenyezi started crying. There
was no visible reaction from her adult daughters during the preceding.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"It's very, very traumatic," defense attorney
David Ruoff said afterward. "She's been anxious about this. Regardless of
what happened in Rwanda in 1994, it's traumatic for any person to face their
kids under these circumstances."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
McAuliffe said she essentially stole a citizenship opening
away from a deserving refugee, perhaps one who also had daughters and was a
victim of cruelty and persecution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ironically, Munyenyezi took the oath of citizenship a decade ago in the
exact courthouse where she was sentenced. McAuliffe stripped her of that
citizenship when she was found guilty. Her lawyers will appeal her conviction
with the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals. This appeal will be expected to delay
deportation proceedings.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Federal prosecutors had looked for the maximum prison
sentence, saying she's as guilty as if she brandished the machete herself.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In April of 1994, Hutus began slaughtering the Tutsis in the
African country of Rwanda. Lasting 100 days, the Rwanda genocide left
approximately 800,000 Tutsis and Hutu partisans dead.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At the end of her ten-year prison sentence, she could face
deportation, which her lawyers say will be a death sentence.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aloke Chakravarty said prosecutors
knew the case would be a challenge, and that no case similar to this link to
the Rwanda genocide had ever been prosecuted in the United States. "But
tolerating genocide was not an option," he said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Munyenyezi's husband, Arsene Shalom Ntahobali and his mother
were both convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes of
violence and are serving life sentences. They were regarded to be high-ranking
members of the Hutu militia party that coordinated the brutal attacks on the
Tutsis.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Munyenyezi's sister, Prudence Kantengwa, was found guilty
and convicted last summer in Boston, on charges of fraudulently obtaining a
visa to enter the United States by lying about her own Hutu political party
associations. She was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I wonder how many are still in hiding, living a good life
with no worries about being slaughtered for who they are. I have no sympathy
for these people: Do I understand it? Possibly, but killing innocent people is
wrong for any reason.</div>
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-65631166418930025192013-07-01T16:17:00.000-04:002013-07-01T16:17:25.010-04:00Nelson Mandela; An Island Unto Himself?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Nelson Mandela is an icon, a leader who fought for his
country, against racial ignorance and apartheid in Africa. He is beloved by millions
and when he passes, the word will know sadness in the real sense. I am sure
that many are not ready to let him go, but perhaps it is his time to go be with
the God he loves. When we mourn the passing of those we love, it is done for
us, our grief that we will not see or touch one that has touched so many lives
in profound ways. I question Africa and her people, who will replace him? Who
will pick up and carry his torch? Where are the heroes that speak for the
people in the great country of Africa?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There have been leaders fighting for Africa, but the numbers
are not there. How is that with a world of billions our heroes number a small
fraction. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dr. Soon-Shiong was a gifted surgeon and philanthropist,
famous for re-opening the Martin Luther King Hospital in<i> Los Angeles</i>. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Helen Zille, a reporter who blew the lid off the death of
political activist Biko. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
These are only two I will mention. There are 1,032,532,974
people living in Africa, and I ask where are the heroes?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some will comment on this and tell me all the people who
fought and still fight for racial equality. Go right ahead, I do not care. This
same question can be asked about other countries; Myanmar being one where the
hero is a 64-year-old woman. So tell me, is it you?<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-58441538892954555832013-03-16T09:55:00.000-04:002013-03-16T09:55:07.129-04:00Keep Darfur in Your Prayers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggpBmOcGPSIcYLk_leFhP1QmusnIkcMS_EFp9XCi3fKWfbwzOUjDqvvdIBwDmqu9Ews6RamvxvFEJINXJOiiTJXd7swxa182oshNPZmfetUpptJlvAwCCNn4KtvLKvQAHHvHMBuNwl5g/s1600/normal_World-Concern-Sudanese-Refugee-Girl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggpBmOcGPSIcYLk_leFhP1QmusnIkcMS_EFp9XCi3fKWfbwzOUjDqvvdIBwDmqu9Ews6RamvxvFEJINXJOiiTJXd7swxa182oshNPZmfetUpptJlvAwCCNn4KtvLKvQAHHvHMBuNwl5g/s320/normal_World-Concern-Sudanese-Refugee-Girl.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<span id="goog_1079658898"></span><span id="goog_1079658899"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have not written here in quite a while. Life sometimes
takes you gently in her teeth and proceeds to shake the living hell out of you,
but eventually lets you go. I have issues like so many others, but one thing
that helps me get through the pity party is to look at what I do have. I have a
roof over my head, I have food in my belly, and my children go to school every day,
preparing, hopefully, to further their education. There are no rifle shots outside my door and
if I need help, there are those that will lend a hand if needed.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The people of Chad do not have many of these things. The
roof over their heads is straw; there is no way to cool off in the heat of the
desert, nor any way to keep warm when the weather turns cold. Food is a luxury
and school is something that is rare beyond rudimentary early teaching.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In 2992 and 2003 violence in Sudan’s Darfur region drove
271,000 plus citizens to escape their homes and set up in refugee camps in
eastern Chad across the border. Now, ten years later, after years of struggle
just to survive, the refugees are subject to support for their basic needs,
such as food and water, and just as important, education. Unfortunately, budget
cuts and funding decreases is still a most important concern for the refugees
as fighting in the region continue.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Olabukunola Williams of the <a href="http://www.takepart.com/article/2013/03/08/op-ed-why-support-darfur-refugees-needed-now-more-ever">Darfur
Dream Team</a> visited Darfur and spoke with the refugees on the subject of
education for the war torn regions inhabitants. Several months ago, she had the opportunity to
visit two of the refugee camps Djabal and Goz Amer, in eastern Chad. There she
met with teachers, students, and communal members to talk about the challenges and
needs of primary education in the camps, where an estimated 60 percent of the
population consists of women and children.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After one meeting with the camp leaders, a woman pulled Olabukunola
aside to ask why the camp’s education funding was being cut. This beautiful
lady was just learning the alphabet and was so excited about learning how to
read. The passion on her face as she spoke of the impact on her and the other women
in her group was something that will stay with Olabukunola constantly. She spoke
of the need for education for her as well as for the children in the camp, then
expressed fear as decreased funding jeopardizes the primary education budget,
among other important programs. Unfortunately, this story of reduced funding is
one we are all accustomed.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Do you realize that the average time a refugee spends in a
displacement camp is 17 years? Every
child has the right to an education. Even the basic literacy skills will give
them the chance to escape their world and show them how to navigate, engage,
and understand the world we live in. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Education is a important, in fact the U.N. Refugee Agency
(UNHCR) deems primary education a priority. Without support from us and the
international community, the execution of this priority is a significant task.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Darfur refugees want nothing more than to return to
their homes and hope that the communities of the world do not forget their
desperate predicament.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Support for institutions like UNHCR and Darfur Dream Team
Sister Schools program provides hope and skills for marginalized communities
even when the world has turned its attention to the next crisis. The Darfur
conflict is still going on. As the push for peace continues, the need for
sustained support for refugee education is just as critical as it was ten years
ago.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-80804672360989702032012-06-05T10:21:00.001-04:002012-06-05T10:21:34.280-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Eric Wainaina is a singer who is well known in Kenya and Africa as a whole. Enjoy this beautiful patriotic song filmed with the beautiful children of Shangilia who share their voices with Eric.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://draft.blogger.com/%20%3Ciframe%20width=%22420%22%20height=%22315%22%20src=%22http://www.youtube.com/embed/Dh3oKHJ7KZQ%22%20frameborder=%220%22%20allowfullscreen%3E%3C/iframe%3E" target="_blank"> <iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Dh3oKHJ7KZQ" width="420"></iframe></a><br />
<br />
Peace,<br />
Sue</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-21902081268110781162012-04-01T00:25:00.002-04:002012-04-01T00:27:44.398-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Myanmar’s
Historic Vote, First in Half a Century</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sunday is an historic day for the people of Myanmar as they
begin voting tomorrow. This could propel opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi into
parliament, convincing the West to end their sanctions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Economic sanctions were imposed years ago due to human
rights abuses, and the United States along with the European Union may lift
them - if the election is free and fair. This ease of sanctions will unleash a
wave of investment in the underprivileged but reserve - opulent country adjoining
India and China.</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, held for 15 years
under house arrest until 2010, complained last week of
"irregularities", though nothing substantial enough to sway her
party's bid for 44 of 45 by-election seats.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"We're happy to see that everything is going peacefully
and we hope that the whole day can be run in a peaceful way," said Ivo
Belet, a member of the European parliament who is in Myanmar to observe the
election.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"We'll make an evaluation later of course on the basis
of all the polling sessions that we will be seeing. We will be working all day
from this morning until tonight and also try to follow the counting of the
votes."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The vote needs the blessing of Suu Kyi to be regarded as
credible. Suu Kyi was freed from house arrest in November 2010, just days after
a widely condemned general election that paved the way for the end of 49 years
of direct army rule and the creation of a civilian parliament stacked with
former generals.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The parliament has surprised the world by pursuing the most
dramatic political reforms since the military took power in a 1962 coup in what
formally Burma.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They have freed hundreds of political prisoners, begun peace
talks with ethnic rebels, relaxed its strict media censorship, allowed trade
unions, and has shown signs of pulling back from the formidable economic and
political influence of its behemoth neighbor China. The reward came last
November when Hillary Clinton made the first visit to the country by a U.S.
secretary of state since 1955.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Business executives, mostly from Asia, have swarmed into the
commercial capital, Yangon, in recent weeks to hunt for investment
opportunities in the country of 60 million people, one of the last frontier
markets in Asia.</div>
</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-59279169928235951662011-12-25T18:21:00.000-05:002012-03-30T20:07:25.524-04:00Death of a Dictator, Welcome Relief?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I know he is dead, Kim Jong-il. I have purposely not written
about him because most intelligent people know what a cruel, sadistic,
schizophrenic person he was, and quite simply I do not want to give much
fanfare in his death. Like most dictators, he died of natural cause, and by
that, I mean no one put a gun to his head and ended 24 million people's
suffering. Now his spawn is set to take over. I wonder if he will be a
figurehead like Bashar al-Assad of Syria. <br />
<a name='more'></a>So much secrecy shrouds every aspect
of North Korea we can only guess if the son is going to act as the leader of
North Korea. North Korea is the only Communist country to pass leadership on
from father to son. What started as Confucianism, giving the basis believing
the Emperor has a mandate from heaven and his followers are to be loyal and
obey unconditionally, eventually led to becoming communist as well; this in deference
to Russia and China who established his regime. However, is North Korea a true
Communist country? On the other hand, is it more a feudal kingdom using
communist terminology?<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Go back please to 1259 when the Mongolians defeated Koryo
(Korea) after thirty years of fighting. Being incorporated into the Mogul
empire was not pleasant for North Koreans. In 1254, 206,000 men were captured,
the Koryo princes lived as hostages in Bejing and Koroyo was forced to donate
large numbers of virgins to the Mongols. The Mongols used Korea as their base
for attacking Japan.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Then the Ming dynasty
began in China in 1368, and twenty years later, the pro-Ming general Yi
Song-gye commandeered control of the Korean government and in 1392 rose to the
throne. The Yi dynasty, also known as
the Chosun dynasty, lasted until 1910. Even
though it was the longest-lasting dynasty in Asian history, the governments of
Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il refused to accept it as a worthy precursor because,
for much of that period, the Chosun were only vassals of the Chinese. Then in
the 16th and 17th centuries, the Japanese and 160,000 soldiers moved in to
Korea on the way to invade China. After losing their fleet to Korea's armor
plated warships in 1592, the Japanese withdrew in 1598. With the epidemics,
famine and peasant revolts they were unprepared and overrun by the Manchus and
reduced the Chosun dynasty to a vassal state of the Chinese Ch'ing dynasty.
They banned Christianity in 1786 and in 1866, 13,000 Catholics were executed.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
TOTAL CONTROL—<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The people of North Korea have never known freedom. After centuries of feudalism, they
experienced Japanese colonialism and the Stalinism of Kim Il-sung and Kim
Jong-il. Social control in North Korea may seem silly unless it happens to you.
Cellphones were banned because it was believed they could be used to detonate
bombs. Radio tuners were rigged so that channels that were not authorized could
not be accessed. Impromptu visits were made to insure people were following the
rules. In 1970, Kim Il-sung directly sanctioned a program begun in 1958 in
which the entire North Korean population was divided into three classes of
Loyalty groups. Roughly a quarter of the people called the core class whose
families were in the pre-liberation era pre -1945, were soldiers, poor farmers,
workers, and office clerks, as well as the ones whose family members were
killed in the war. These members of the core class were given priority over all
others in housing, food, and medical care. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The wavering classes, half the population, are
pre-liberation merchants, farmers, and service workers, as well as immigrants
from South Korea, China, Japan, and families whose members left for South
Korea, but stayed behind themselves. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The third group is
the hostile class, from families that were pre-liberation wealthy landlords, or
merchants, as well as religious teachers and any who uttered discontent, even
in private, with the Kim’s and their command.
Members of the hostile class are not permitted to live in
Pyongyang. They accept the worst jobs,
the poorest housing, and the least of food rations. All citizens of North Korea are scrutinized by
the Ministry of People’s Security, which positions informers in workplaces and
neighborhoods to betray anyone who disparages the regime, even at home. Among the crimes for which one may be castigated
are perfidy to The Great Leader and to The Dear Leader, a crime that comprises permitting
pictures of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il to gather dust and allowing pictures of
the Kim’s that appear in magazines or newspapers to be torn or folded.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Below the loyalty groups, like untouchables in the Hindu
caste system, are the 250,000 people who are held in prison camps. It is not only people accused of crimes who
are sent to these camps, but their families as well. Following the theory of yongoje, family
purge, North Korean officials will gather up and imprison, or at least deport,
three generations of the family of an offender, including uncles, aunts, and
cousins. Sometimes punished as well were
friends and work colleagues. One case
reported by Human Rights Watch was that of Kim Young. Kim was an official of the State Security
Bureau when they found that as a CIA spy thirty-six years earlier his father was
executed. They instantly sent Kim Young to prison, where he met his mother, who
since her husband’s execution had been imprisoned.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Brought out by former prisoners, and even escaped guards,
accounts of the prison camps, are harrowing. A 2003 report identified
thirty-six forced labor camps, one of which is three times larger than
Washington, D.C. is. There are reports
of forced abortions, babies being killed, people sent to the “Discipline
Department” for laughing or for looking at their reflection in a window, and
informers staying awake through the night to report on what prisoners say when
they talk in their sleep. A 1987 at
Onsung Prison, there was a riot that led to the killing of 5,000
prisoners. Up to nineteen hours, a day
prisoner’s work and the products made by their forced labor, including
clothing, and thought to be “laundered” through China were discovered on
shelves in the United States. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
According to one
prisoner, working with livestock is a good job because it is possible to steal
the animals’ food and to pick through animal dung for undigested grain. On the prison cell walls are slogans such as
“adore the authorities of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il with all your heart”. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
EXCESSES AND BIZARRE BEHAVIOR:<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 74.9pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>In honor of Kim Il-sung’s 70th birthday, North
Korea built a triumphal arch in Pyongyang that is a copy of the Arc de Triomphe
in Paris, but larger, and a Torch of Juche Idea monument made from 25,550 white
granite blocks, one for each day of Kim Il-sung’s life, that is one meter
higher than the Washington Monument.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 74.9pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Peeved by South Korea’s coup in hosting the 1988
Olympics, Kim Jong-il spent $4.3 billion to prepare for the Thirteenth World
Festival of Youth and Students held in Pyongyang in 1989. Large apartment buildings were built to house
visitors, but without the use of construction elevators, which led to the death
of more than 1,000 workers in three years.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 74.9pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>In 1974, Kim Jong-il decided that North Korean
radio was not playing enough music. He
personally listened to thousands of songs and then chose 330 to be played on
air. Three years later, he added another
1,177 songs.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 74.9pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Kim Jong-il never gave a major speech or spoke
to a large crowd. Although the
government often stages mass rallies, at which up to one million North Koreans
will march in columns fifty abreast, Kim’s only known utterance at such an
event was at a 1992 military parade, when he called out, “Glory to the heroic
Korean People’s Army.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 74.9pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Every room in every building must display
photographs of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, and they distribute special kits to
clean the pictures.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 74.9pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Every North Korean must wear a lapel pin with a
photo of either Kim Il-sung or Kim Jong-il.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I cannot imagine a people whose rights have been trampled as
long the Korean have. I am sure one of my readers will tell me but for the sake
of this article, I am speaking of North Korea. What will happen to these people
now that the ring in their noses has loosened some?<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
With high ranking officials refusing to return from abroad
and Pyongyang refusing to let anyone leave, who will fight to give some relief
and bring change to this beleaguered country? Will it be the puppet on stage,
or the one who holds the strings behind the curtain? Only time will tell.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-26753969579626271192011-12-12T19:26:00.001-05:002012-03-30T20:09:52.601-04:00Secrecy Bill is Outrageous<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The Protection of State Information Bill passed last month
by the National Assembly and now awaiting approval by Parliament would make
possessing or publishing anything the government feels as
"classified" an offense punishable by up to 25 years in prison. <a href="http://thevoicesofthem.blogspot.com/2010/05/world-press-freedom-day.html" target="_blank">Journalists</a> die every day to bring the truth to the world and this is how they are repaid.</div>
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African National Congress representative, Jackson Mthembu
told the Committee to Protect Journalists that the bill was needed to replace
apartheid- era law and safeguard state secrets. He is denying that this is a
gag on the media. Mthembu wants the press to strengthen self-regulation to
balance better, an individual’s right to dignity, against the media's right to
publish. However, this tribunal, answering to parliament is two-thirds ANC and
would be tantamount to state control.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Nobel laureate Desmond Tutu and the Nelson Mandela
Foundation are opposed to the bill. Agus Sudibyo a member of the Press Council
and deputy director of the SET Foundation wants the bill withdrawn because the
bill specifics are already included in the 2008 Freedom of Information Law, and
criticized the punishment included in the bill.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Under the bill, the leak of highly classified material is
punishable by four years in prison and 100 million Rupiah in fines ($11,000),
while for classified material it is three years and 50 million Rupiah ($6500).
For leaking material categorized as restricted, the given punishment is four
years in prison and a 1 billion Rupiah fine. Agus pointed out that the
punishments were the same for ordinary citizens and for state officials.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What does this bill really do? It certainly cannot protect
secrets that are not even defined, for what can be disclosed that are not
classified as secret? This is just another way to hide what is done behind
closed doors, another way to hold people down and have no regard for human
rights.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-1941683958596415152011-03-12T23:47:00.000-05:002011-03-12T23:47:03.042-05:00To JapanTo Japan, I send my most heartfelt prayers to you and your people. The country is going through a very horrible time right now and I ask those of my readers to send prayers to those people in need. I pray the lost are found, the hungry are fed and the hurt to be healed. You are a very proud country who has endured so much over time and I know you will come back from this too. From me I pray;<br />
Our Father who art in heaven, I ask that you watch over the people of Japan, give them strength and the courage they will need to come through this hardship. Guide them as you will our Father, touch them that they may know the peace in your heart. In Jesus' name I ask,<br />
Amen<br />
<br />
MitchAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-425356159627408752011-02-22T16:48:00.000-05:002011-02-22T16:48:22.538-05:00Vote For Freedom From Hunger<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have told you about this wonderful organization and the ways they help impoverished families by giving loans to women to set up their own businesses and the training they do with communities on health issues, such as mosquito netting, immunizations and checkups for their children. Now is your chance to help them help others and if you cannot give money then all you have to do is vote. That is it, vote once a day for Freedom from Hunger to give them a chance at receiving $23,000 in donations from <span style="color: #333333;"><a href="http://blog.firstpreston.com/our23rd/">First Preston Management</a>. The more votes they receive the more their share of the $23,000 they will receive. All it takes is a minute of your time once a day until Feb. 28<sup>th</sup> to vote for this charity which I highly endorse. Please learn more about <a href="http://www.freedomfromhunger.org/about/">Freedom from Hunger</a> by going to their site and see for yourself the ways they help every day.</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCGB3kCNzzoyWm1Br_FPgqBESPiVV_g3vT5GCqbjeia030ksSYsxzW-wBjDwRJ50Etl3OXMjb77L2RMDS7MUSu9kEFcDl7YsPYmg1WMARHHgAGUCiyeH5bc0tj0Myg5HynPnlf_Le2Qs/s1600/2011_02_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" j6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCGB3kCNzzoyWm1Br_FPgqBESPiVV_g3vT5GCqbjeia030ksSYsxzW-wBjDwRJ50Etl3OXMjb77L2RMDS7MUSu9kEFcDl7YsPYmg1WMARHHgAGUCiyeH5bc0tj0Myg5HynPnlf_Le2Qs/s320/2011_02_18.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #333333;">Philippines: MAHP, Freedom from Hunger's Microfinance and Health Protection program, has proven that microfinance institutions can add health protection options -- such as dental care -- for an additional cost of only 29 cents per client and still maintain a profit margin. Our little patient looks like she needs a bit more convincing!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #333333;">God Bless,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #333333;">Mitch</span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-51821687350149829672011-02-02T22:01:00.000-05:002011-02-02T22:01:12.343-05:00Happy Valentines Day 1984February 14th is a much celebrated holiday in most countries around the world. It is a day of love and candy and flowers. We shower our loved ones with gifts to show how precious they are to us. Well most people do but in 1984 the insensitivity and brutality of a government against its citizens, shattered the dreams of many and left them widows and orphans.<br />
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It was a sunny Friday when government police as well as the Kenya army hurriedly took men mainly from the Degodia clan of the Somali tribe into military trucks apparently to identify bandits who had been committing crimes in the district and to turn over illegal weapons. <br />
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In the silence of early morning, military men destroying and ransacking villages, ordered the residents to leave their homes immediately. The armed forces then forcibly expelled men from their homes and led them to the ineffective Wagalla airstrip, 14km west of Wajir Town. Military vehicles constantly brought in people from all parts of the district into the airstrip where many others were already being tortured. By the end of the first day, thousands of men had been held in captivity behind the razor-like wire fence. The men were then stripped naked and their movements restricted to the narrow gravel steps either forwards or backwards.<br />
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After days without food or water, under the sizzling sun, they were told to lie on their chests on the scorching runway. They spent the nights in the cold, those who defied orders were shot in the head, while others perished of exhaustion. Still others survived drinking urine as water, some were doused with gas and set ablaze all as their families watched helplessly. <br />
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Back in the village the women were ruthlessly raped, houses were torched and property looted. <br />
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“It was the most horrendous Government operation I have ever seen,” said Bishar Ismail who was then the Wagalla location chief. <br />
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“I saw men ferried in military vehicles and directed towards Wagalla airstrip,” he continued.<br />
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The exact number of death is still unclear. Government records state that only 386 people were killed but the locals estimate the number at five thousand. <br />
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Kenya’s history is riddled with impunity, injustice and torture especially in North Eastern province. Victims of heinous killings in this region are still searching for justice close to two and half decades later. Other massacres perpetrated by government security agencies in Northern Kenya and which still remains a mystery to date include the Bagalla, Garissa Gubay and Malkamaari massacres.<br />
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The 27th anniversary of Wagalla massacre will be marked February 14th in two weeks time.<br />
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Happy Valentines DayAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-23137405417748288112010-11-13T13:13:00.000-05:002010-11-13T13:13:49.478-05:00Rejoice! Rejoice! She is Free!!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlusm7rRfH3U9Ks1Heft30nd1q4GSekX2qrAiotUJALbi4wU2TN3V-_nmOPwNYG5IghQURWZOKNmReNSoGgThVtUrORAZEA00Im83aowf4WNM0ZS8AnLAzb6kJReIRMoBI7N9beHJ7q5I/s1600/capt_69b6929e2a574644886dae948941ae41-69b6929e2a574644886dae948941ae41-0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlusm7rRfH3U9Ks1Heft30nd1q4GSekX2qrAiotUJALbi4wU2TN3V-_nmOPwNYG5IghQURWZOKNmReNSoGgThVtUrORAZEA00Im83aowf4WNM0ZS8AnLAzb6kJReIRMoBI7N9beHJ7q5I/s1600/capt_69b6929e2a574644886dae948941ae41-69b6929e2a574644886dae948941ae41-0.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Today the most awaited freedom has finally happened. I am so happy and ran around screaming in joy because she is free! Daw Aung Suu Kyi is finally free from house arrest. People around the world are rejoicing in her freedom but at the same time denouncing her detention in the first place. In 1989, she was detained on trumped-up national security charges and put under house arrest. She was not released until 1995 and has spent various periods in detention since then. The western nations and groups such as Amnesty international who critisize the ruling military regime have demanded her freedom for some time. The regime who was possibly trying to ease the international image of itself has said previously they would sit down to talks, but never did. <br />
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Suu Kyi plans to help probe allegations of voting fraud, according to Nyan Win, who is a spokesman for her party, which was officially disbanded for refusing to reregister for this year's polls. This could prove to be embarrasing to the ruling Junta who some have said manipulated the votes to win this past Novembers' election.<br />
To have such tenacity, faith, and patience for a cause is to be a woman like Suu Kyi. A woman who willingly stayed under house arrest, biding her time knowing she would one day be free to continue her cause to make Myanmar free from the military fist that is squeezing the freedom out of her people. Bless you Suu Kyi, and keep fighting the fight!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-30515350811880348772010-11-13T00:04:00.000-05:002010-11-13T00:04:22.808-05:00I have a wish for Saturday!Saturday may be a very important day for thousands of supporters of Aung San Suu Kyi. She is supposed to be free from house arrest and right now there are scores of her supporters waiting outside her home hoping for a glimpse of the Nobel Prize laureate. Meanwhile security has been stepped up with truckloads of riot police, something the people of Myanmar have seen during times of political tension.<br />
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Jailed or under house arrest for more than 15 of the last 21 years, Suu Kyi has become a symbol for a struggle to rid the Southeast Asian country of decades of military rule. The last election on Nov 7 showed the Junta ruling party a sweeping victory even as rumors abound that the election was manipulated.<br />
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Jailed or under house arrest for more than 15 of the last 21 years, Suu Kyi has become a symbol for a struggle to rid the Southeast Asian country of decades of military rule.<br />
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I can only wait with the world and hope that her freedom will not come with a price.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-29854647017777195902010-11-10T22:25:00.000-05:002010-11-10T22:25:44.100-05:00Precious Bloody AfricaThe news is new, yet old. Once again Africa is being robbed of her wealth, by the very people who were sent to protect her. General Amisi Kumba is being accused of installing a mining firm in return for a 25% cut of the profits, even after a ban in September. The esteemed General denies this of course and surprisingly, the firm involved also denies there was a deal.<br />
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DR Congo has turned into a battlefield once again over the lure of profits from gold. Should this be a surprise to anyone? Blood Diamonds and blood gold and bloody death, torture and rape have turned this once proud country into one that has NO SHAME in stealing from the African people. Worst of all, is the fact that the world stands by and lets it happen!<br />
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We Americans go to war with Iraq for a lie and a terrorist leader. We tear up their country and then turn around and give money to fix it, and yet rape, murder, genocide, stealing, poverty and malnutrition is tolerated by the world. Britain and America are going to give aid to Mugabe all the while the diamonds and gold are paying to arm rebels. Now they have the military come in to suppress the rebels and instead they steal from the people they are supposed to protect. <br />
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An unidentified source who was a gold digger at the mines very recently says the mine is totally run by the military and that the diggers are often beaten. DR Congo is one of the poorest countries despite the riches of minerals like gold, Cassiterite and Coltran. Through the years of war by Congolese, Uganda and Rwandan forces an estimated 5 MILLION HAVE DIED!!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-61177545711835991802010-11-09T15:37:00.000-05:002010-11-09T15:37:39.758-05:00Blood Diamonds Are Still Bloody<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEHSHwK3wzFKxYoTqLpZP4zeS5WmEwkpWAePqgv9_F_HE-GhX10ScoNOhvCabs2tvWQE_-7qAp531C1IRRWmnemTscK1Cko3kcY1O8FGNBER4B-11TGtNYSxiGwLWHfIA9KU-eIXN93I/s1600/blood+diamonds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEHSHwK3wzFKxYoTqLpZP4zeS5WmEwkpWAePqgv9_F_HE-GhX10ScoNOhvCabs2tvWQE_-7qAp531C1IRRWmnemTscK1Cko3kcY1O8FGNBER4B-11TGtNYSxiGwLWHfIA9KU-eIXN93I/s320/blood+diamonds.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Abstract<br />
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The story of blood diamonds is pretty straight forward but has been exacerbated by those who are misguided, as they try to rectify the situation by giving information that is incorrect and out of date. (Bob Boland 2007-2010, Diamond buying made easy). The term “Blood Diamonds” refers to the bloody civil war fought in Sierra Leone throughout the 90’s and finally ended in 2002. In the civil war in 1990, the Revolutionary United Front, or RUF, took over the diamond mines in Sierra Leone [such as the field of Marange.] The Executive Outcomes were hired to drive the RUF out. Then in 1996 after the election they were asked to leave by the new president Ahmed Tejan Kabbah. In short order the RUF was again back in power at the diamond fields. It was during the next six year period that the RUF teamed up with Charles Taylor and so began a gory rampage against anyone who stood in their way of gaining power. It was in this atrocious civil war that the RUF started amputating the hands of the people of Sierra Leone because they voted in the election. This article summarizes this by stating;<br />
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1. The tragedy of Sierra Leone’s civil war is over and the chapter is closed. There are no current conflicts going on where Blood Diamonds are fueling any type of unbelievable inhumanity as was witnessed in Sierra Leone. (Bob Boland 2007-2010, Diamond buying made easy).<br />
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2. You will be able to buy diamonds with confidence knowing you will not be buying “Blood Diamonds” you will likely be funding these developing countries build hospitals, schools and new roads. (Bob Boland 2007-2010, Diamond buying made easy).<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;">This review on the literature “Diamond Buying Made Easy,” attempts to show the accuracy of the Sierra Leone civil war and the “Blood Diamonds” of Africa. Read on.....</span><br />
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Blood Diamonds Are Still Bloody<br />
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Civil war started in the early 1990’s and was declared over in 2002 after British and U.N. troops disarmed 45,000 rebels. During this war thousands of men, women and children were attacked and many had their limbs cut off with machetes. Their only crime was that they “might” vote. Their feet were amputated to prevent them walking to the voting places and the hands were cut off to prevent them from voting if they did make it. Another reason they were attacked was to put fear in the hearts of the people, an act of war, a brutal attack that the people of Sierra Leone still live with today. <br />
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By the time the war ended at least 120,000 people were murdered, and tens of thousands were mutilated, having noses, legs, arms or ears cut off. It was not until 2009 that the war crimes tribunal was set to hand down a verdict against three rebel RUF leaders accused of committing atrocities during the civil war. Foday Sankoh died of natural causes before he could be brought to trial for war crimes. (AFP) – Feb 24, 2009 all three men were convicted and given lengthy prison terms while as of the date of this writing, Charles Taylor has still not been tried as he awaits his trial to be rescheduled. BBC News Africa (January 28, 2010)<br />
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Most of the diamonds from the Marangue fields are directly linked to smuggling by the Zanu -PF party. (Open PR, 2010) There is not any evidence that monies from the diamond mines are being used to reform and rebuild Sierra Leone, instead countries like The United States and Great Britain have promised money for aid as has Berlin, who is the only one of the three to insist the money be disbursed through NGO’s and the World Bank. The diamonds are still being smuggled out and FBI reports that Al Quida funded its attack on September 11, 2001 by the diamonds from Sierra Leone. The same time (1998) they blew up the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Sudan Al Queda operatives were buying up diamonds, and as recently as 3 months before the attack on the trade center Al Queda had laundered millions of dollars buying diamonds from the RUF. (Amnesty International, Diamonds 2010)<br />
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There is a bloodbath still going on today in Zimbabwe’s diamond mines. Human Rights Watch has come out strongly against the Zimbabwe government. Zimbabwe agreed to a withdrawal of its armed forces from diamond fields, yet soldiers still control most of the diamond fields. There are numerous media reports that the Marangue diamonds are funding the ruling Zanu PF party and Robert Mugabe, president is being kept by the profits. Mugabe is also accused of numerous human rights violations. (Open PR Human Rights Watch believes Zimbabwe continues selling April4, 2010)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-37926958856913049632010-06-19T00:14:00.000-04:002010-06-19T00:14:38.626-04:00Happy Birthday Aung San Suu Kyi 06/18/1945It is a rare thing to be feared by a regime of military leaders. A steely gaze, the hard look of determination upon a face, the desire to change the way a country has been run for years. To be 5’ 4” tall and be a female in a world of hardened Junta and strike fear in the same is a feat not many have done. Aung San Suu Kyi is just such a person. Her beautiful face carries a look that belies her strength. She will be 65 on this day and I want to wish her a blessed and beautiful birthday. For her gift, I wish her freedom, freedom to continue with her life’s mission to bring a voice to the people of Myanmar, (formally Burma) the right to a democratic choice in their lives. <br />
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To me she is a person I wish to be like. To carry on my convictions to the best of my ability, to look neither back nor waver in my beliefs. To be strong in the face of adversity, to meet my enemies with my back held straight and my heart strong. To fight for the voices which have been silenced by those who would rule with an iron fist. I cannot free her, but I can give my voice for her and demand her freedom. I can give of myself to the cause that many share with me. I wear a bracelet in her honor; I wear my shirt with her face on it with pride and tell everyone her story in the hopes of raising awareness of her plight. <br />
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Happy Birthday Aung San Suu Kyi!!!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNnv4iw0k7WnjxK12Qxl6eRyiAeTeic0n4YVr0oXpnPWEEmbtTLJlFWCNoGfdDoeWNfWPbYsYM7jdEQlxOxWq-rqQ1aHftpbjgWUSqEMb_8kmpmpSHQ3ly4HtgtzurO3uThrTrJnfUz44/s1600/suukyi_0514.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNnv4iw0k7WnjxK12Qxl6eRyiAeTeic0n4YVr0oXpnPWEEmbtTLJlFWCNoGfdDoeWNfWPbYsYM7jdEQlxOxWq-rqQ1aHftpbjgWUSqEMb_8kmpmpSHQ3ly4HtgtzurO3uThrTrJnfUz44/s1600/suukyi_0514.jpg" /></a></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-42140294899720852752010-05-03T16:34:00.001-04:002010-05-03T16:34:48.845-04:00World Press Freedom DayI am proud to live where I live. I am proud to be able to say what I feel like saying, when I feel like saying it. I can blog openly about my government and have the opportunity to disagree with the President of the United States if I want to. I have the right to tell my state representatives what I want in my community, tell them what laws I feel are important to me. I can complain when things seem to be going wrong, in my opinion.<br />
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If you live in Egypt you cannot blog about many of these things. You cannot tell your readers the things that are happening for fear of being jailed.<br />
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If you live in Zimbabwe, you cannot know the truth, because the state runs the television stations, the newspapers the radio and only for the brave people who tell the truth and live in fear of being caught, can you hear the truth.<br />
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In Iran, journalists who reported prisoner abuse were jailed. They stood up for human rights, and were jailed. They are being accused of "heresy" which carries the death penalty, "disrupting public order", and "propagation against the regime" which have penalties ranging from public lashing to long prison terms. As of March,2010 I ran has jailed 52 journalists. In China there are 24 in prison, in Cuba there are 22. <br />
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Today I must have my say, I want to stand tall and let the world know that every one has the right to participate in their own governance, have a say in what the needs of the people are. Everyone should know what their regime, dictator, government is up to. It is a basic human right to know what someone else plans to do with your future!<br />
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Here are some of the journalists who have been killed since 1992 for speaking the truth!<br />
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<h4 style="display: inline;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2007/ivan-safronov.php">Ivan Safronov</a></h4><br />
<i>Kommersant</i><br />
Russia<br />
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<h4 style="display: inline;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2006/atwar-bahjat.php">Atwar Bahjat</a></h4><br />
Al-Arabiya<br />
Iraq<br />
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<h4 style="display: inline;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2005/marlene-garcia-esperat.php">Marlene Garcia-Esperat</a></h4><br />
<i>Midland News</i> and DXKR<i></i><br />
Philippines<br />
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<h4 style="display: inline;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/germain-cyrille-ngota-ngota.php">Germain Cyrille Ngota Ngota</a></h4><br />
<i>Cameroon Express</i><br />
Cameroon<br />
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<h4 style="display: inline;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/hiro-muramoto.php">Hiro Muramoto</a></h4><br />
Reuters<br />
Thailand<br />
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<h4 style="display: inline;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/stanilas-ocloo.php">Stanilas Ocloo</a></h4><br />
Télévision Togolaise<br />
Angola<br />
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<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/sunday-gyang-bwede.php" name="14612">Sunday Gyang Bwede,</a> <span class="gray"><i>The Light Bearer</i></span></h3> April 24, 2010, in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/nathan-s-dabak.php" name="14611">Nathan S. Dabak,</a> <span class="gray"><i>The Light Bearer</i></span></h3> April 24, 2010, in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/germain-cyrille-ngota-ngota.php" name="14617">Germain Cyrille Ngota Ngota,</a> <span class="gray"><i>Cameroon Express</i></span></h3> April 22, 2010, in Yaoundé, Cameroon <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/azamat-ali-bangash.php" name="14578">Azamat Ali Bangash,</a> <span class="gray">Samaa TV</span></h3> April 17, 2010, in Orakzai, Pakistan <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/malik-arif.php" name="14568">Malik Arif,</a> <span class="gray">Samaa TV</span></h3> April 16, 2010, in Quetta, Pakistan <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/hiro-muramoto.php" name="14551">Hiro Muramoto,</a> <span class="gray">Reuters</span></h3> April 10, 2010, in Bangkok, Thailand <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/muhammad-al-raboue.php" name="14374">Muhammad al-Rabou'e,</a> <span class="gray">Al-Qahira</span></h3> February 13, 2010, in Beni Qais, Yemen <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/rupert-hamer.php" name="14079">Rupert Hamer,</a> <span class="gray"><i>Sunday Mirror</i></span></h3> January 10, 2010, in an area near Nawa, Afghanistan <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/stanilas-ocloo.php" name="14089">Stanilas Ocloo,</a> <span class="gray">Télévision Togolaise</span></h3> January 9, 2010, in Cabinda province, Angola <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/valentin-valdes-espinosa.php" name="14121">Valentín Valdés Espinosa,</a> <span class="gray"><i>Zócalo de Saltillo</i></span></h3> January 8, 2010, in Saltillo, Mexico <br />
<br />
<br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/sunday-gyang-bwede.php">Sunday Gyang Bwede,</a> <span class="gray"><i>The Light Bearer</i></span></h3> April 24, 2010, in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/nathan-s-dabak.php">Nathan S. Dabak,</a> <span class="gray"><i>The Light Bearer</i></span></h3> April 24, 2010, in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/germain-cyrille-ngota-ngota.php">Germain Cyrille Ngota Ngota,</a> <span class="gray"><i>Cameroon Express</i></span></h3> April 22, 2010, in Yaoundé, Cameroon <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/azamat-ali-bangash.php">Azamat Ali Bangash,</a> <span class="gray">Samaa TV</span></h3> April 17, 2010, in Orakzai, Pakistan <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/malik-arif.php">Malik Arif,</a> <span class="gray">Samaa TV</span></h3> April 16, 2010, in Quetta, Pakistan <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/hiro-muramoto.php">Hiro Muramoto,</a> <span class="gray">Reuters</span></h3> April 10, 2010, in Bangkok, Thailand <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/muhammad-al-raboue.php">Muhammad al-Rabou'e,</a> <span class="gray">Al-Qahira</span></h3> February 13, 2010, in Beni Qais, Yemen <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/rupert-hamer.php">Rupert Hamer,</a> <span class="gray"><i>Sunday Mirror</i></span></h3> January 10, 2010, in an area near Nawa, Afghanistan <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/stanilas-ocloo.php">Stanilas Ocloo,</a> <span class="gray">Télévision Togolaise</span></h3> January 9, 2010, in Cabinda province, Angola <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/valentin-valdes-espinosa.php">Valentín Valdés Espinosa,</a> <span class="gray"><i>Zócalo de Saltillo</i></span></h3> January 8, 2010, in Saltillo, Mexico<br />
<br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/edo-sule-ugbagwu.php" name="14613">Edo Sule Ugbagwu,</a> <span class="gray"><i>The Nation</i></span></h3> April 26, 2010, in an area outside Lagos , Nigeria <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/patient-chebeya.php" name="14581">Patient Chebeya,</a> <span class="gray">freelance</span></h3> April 5, 2010, in Beni, Democratic Republic of the Congo <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/manuel-juarez.php" name="14506">Manuel Juárez,</a> <span class="gray">Radio Super 10 </span></h3> March 26, 2010, in Catacamas, Honduras <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/jose-bayardo-mairena.php" name="14505">José Bayardo Mairena,</a> <span class="gray">Excélsior</span></h3> March 26, 2010, in Catacamas, Honduras <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/clodomiro-castilla-ospina.php" name="14507">Clodomiro Castilla Ospina,</a> <span class="gray">El Pulso del Tiempo</span></h3> March 19, 2010, in Montería, Colombia <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/nahum-palacios-arteaga.php" name="14442">Nahúm Palacios Arteaga,</a> <span class="gray">TV Channel 5, Radio Tocoa</span></h3> March 14, 2010, in Tocoa, Honduras <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/evaristo-pacheco-solis.php" name="14441">Evaristo Pacheco Solís,</a> <span class="gray"><i>Visión Informativa</i></span></h3> March 12, 2010, in Chilpancingo, Mexico <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/david-meza-montesinos.php" name="14443">David Meza Montesinos,</a> <span class="gray">Radio El Patio, Radio América</span></h3> March 11, 2010, in La Ceiba, Honduras <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/arun-singhaniya.php" name="14410">Arun Singhaniya,</a> <span class="gray">Today Group</span></h3> March 1, 2010, in Janakpur, Nepal <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/joseph-hernandez-ochoa.php" name="14444">Joseph Hernández Ochoa,</a> <span class="gray">TV Channel 51</span></h3> March 1, 2010, in Tegucigalpa, Honduras <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/jamim-shah.php" name="14277">Jamim Shah,</a> <span class="gray">Channel Nepal and Space Time Network</span></h3> February 8, 2010, in Kathmandu, Nepal <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/jorge-ochoa-martinez.php" name="14290">Jorge Ochoa Martínez,</a> <span class="gray"><i>El Sol de la Costa</i> and <i>El Oportuno</i> </span></h3> January 29, 2010, in Ayutla de los Libres, Mexico <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/jose-luis-romero.php" name="14129">José Luis Romero,</a> <span class="gray">Línea Directa</span></h3> January 2010, in Los Mochis, Mexico <br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><a href="http://cpj.org/killed/2010/bobi-tsankov.php" name="14106">Bobi Tsankov,</a> <span class="gray">freelance</span></h3> January 5, 2010, in Sofia, Bulgaria<br />
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<br />
<h3 style="margin: 1em 0pt 0pt;"><br />
</h3>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-59727017321297569532010-03-09T15:19:00.001-05:002010-03-09T15:54:18.907-05:00Their World The broken glass on which my thoughts<br />
Go slowly and bleeds, memories of a life<br />
That may have been<br />
I feels the shards in my bones<br />
<br />
Black wounds that seethe and twist<br />
My soul. Let me go let me go<br />
Back from whence I came<br />
Into the desert of the worlds<br />
Never ceasing to inflame<br />
The minds as they whirl through <br />
Canyons of despair clutching<br />
At your spirit, struggling to break free<br />
Of the mindless terror of the fear<br />
Of some who will remain aloof<br />
To the world and those who need peace.<br />
<br />
Children of the night<br />
Go forth like rats<br />
Leaving a ship in danger of sinking<br />
Into the desert, running from the terror<br />
Of the demons with four legs<br />
Who slice and cut their way<br />
Into the midst of chaos<br />
That is already a thing of life.<br />
<br />
I look into the eyes of old who are just born<br />
Seeing the ache of a hunger not appeased<br />
Nothing on which to feed nothing on which to sup<br />
Misery the constant companion<br />
Rape a daily thing and death <br />
of a night too oft is ours to which <br />
We will never accept as norm.<br />
<br />
<br />
Written by Sue Bookman 03/09/10Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-62225274765897196502010-03-07T23:18:00.000-05:002010-03-07T23:18:24.486-05:00International Women's Day; Thank One Today!You go about your day, making coffee, taking your shower, getting your children off to school, and then you leave for errands, or a beauty shop appointment or a day of tennis. This is just an ordinary day, like so many others. Did you call your mother lately and thank her for bringing you into this world? Probably not, any more than you thought the family on the news whose house burned down and the Red Cross took care of them.<br />
<br />
Have you thought about your child who is in a gang because they feel they cannot get out of the bad part of town? Have you watched them dress slovenly, calling it style, have you seen the money they flash while you work your fingers to the bone to keep a roof over their heads? Have you heard the gun shots’ ringing out at night, knowing another victim was taken from their families?<br />
<br />
Have you ever stopped and really thought about the freedom you have to worship as you choose to speak your mind, to stand in protest united for a cause?<br />
<br />
Today is the day for thanks. Today is the day you know who gave you the freedoms, the rights you enjoy, today is the day you look around you at the women who are in your lives now and who made your life possible even back before your mother was born. Today is the day you stop taking for granted everything you have, today is the day you say I do not need a gang to make me whole, today is the day you stand up and take yourself away from the projects, the poverty, the misery. Do not say you cannot; do not say no one understands because you are wrong. Today is International Women’s Day and if these wonderful loving brave women could do the things they did, then yes, you can!<br />
<br />
Does the name Clara Barton mean anything to you? I hope you learn her name for she is the founder of the Red Cross. You know Annie Sullivan, I am sure, just as you know who Helen Keller was. Look what she gave this young girl. She gave her a life of quality and Helen went on to greatness herself. <br />
<br />
Ida B. Wells was born in 1862 in Mississippi and when her parents died of Fellow Fever, she took a job as a teacher to support her younger siblings. In spite of the hardships in her life, she was able to complete her studies at Rust College and in 1888 became a teacher in Memphis, Tennessee. She became editor and co-owner of a local black newspaper called “The Free Speech and Headlight” and wrote editorials under her pen name ”Iola” When a respected black store owner and friend was lynched in 1892, she used her paper to attack the evils of lynching. While attending an editor’s convention in New York, she received word if she returned to Memphis her life would be in danger. She took her cause to England to gain support and earned a reputation as a fiery orator and courageous leader of her people. Returning to the U.S., she formed the Women’s Era Club, the 1st civic organization for African American women. She never forgot her crusade against lynching and published “A Red Record” which recorded lynching in America. In 1909 she was asked to be a member of the “Committee of 40”, establishing the organization known as the NAACP!<br />
<br />
Alice Paul made sure women were given the vote, Mrs. George <span class="goog-spellcheck-word" style="-moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous; -moz-background-origin: padding; background: yellow none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">Peake</span> was the first African- American settler of Cleveland, and the list goes on and on. <br />
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Please do not think that the women who were lauded for their work are the only women of stature. There are mothers all over the world who sacrifice for their children and families, who face rape, torture and death just for water, which goes without that their children will have, your mother did the same for you. Make these brave beautiful souls proud. Prove that what they did and are doing was and is worth it.<br />
<br />
I speak from the heart, today is International Women’s Day. Look around you, there are women of importance in your life. Do not make these women’s fight for nothing. Pick up the torch they each carried and show the women in your life that you will carry the torch for you part of the run.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-67538371802431721122009-12-10T00:47:00.000-05:002009-12-10T00:47:13.381-05:00Blogging For Human Rights Day 61 years ago today, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In all there are thirty rights that are in the declaration. I am only going to show the first ten. Out of the first ten there are only two I did not add an atrocity to. Even my own leader of the United States is avoiding the issue of human rights in countries such as China.* If a world leader will not speak up then it falls to the people to stand against the offenders of these rights. I add my voice to those who cry for justice.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Article 1.</b><br />
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. <br />
<span style="color: red;">Baad - Giving away a girl as “compensation” to settle a dispute between tribes or families</span><br />
<b>Article 2.</b><br />
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty. <br />
<span style="color: red;">Tell that to Sitara Achakzai, a Kandahar Provincial</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">Council member, who was shot dead on 12 April 2009, or Malalai</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">Kakar, the highest-ranking female police officer in Kandahar killed in September 2008,</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">Sitara Achakzai had consciously decided to keep fighting to end the abuse of Afghan women.</span><br />
<b>Article 3.</b><br />
Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person. <br />
<span style="color: red;">Afghan women are subjected to an increasingly insecure</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">environment. Women participating in public life face threats, harassment and attacks. In extreme cases, women have been killed for holding jobs that are seen to disrespect traditional practices or are considered “un-Islamic.”</span><br />
<b>Article 4.</b><br />
No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms. <br />
<span style="color: red;">Although most people may not be aware that in the 21st century slavery still exists, reports declare that the number of slaves at present is the highest it has ever been (Free the Slaves). Presently, about 700,000 children and women are trafficked around the world annually. The UN says that profits for this trafficking amount to approximately $7 billion a year (Anti-Slavery International).</span><br />
<br />
<b>Article 5.</b><br />
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. <br />
<span style="color: red;">“And then he turned to us, Croats, and he started speaking to us. ‘Listen you guys, we are going to kill all of you. We are going to burn you all. We are going to throw your ashes into the Danube, to destroy your Croat seed.’ I remember that sentence and I shall never forget it.”</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">A Croat from Vukovar, relating what he heard a soldier say to him and other prisoners, in the case against Slobodon Milosevic.</span><br />
<b>Article 6.</b><br />
Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law. <br />
<br />
<b>Article 7.</b><br />
All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination. <br />
<br />
<b>Article 8.</b><br />
Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law. <br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;">Carrie Shelver, an activist with People Opposing Women Abuse, said: "Generally there's a deficit of understanding and commitment to women's rights by the leadership of this country. It's simply not on people's agenda."</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">A report published by the trade union Solidarity earlier this month said that one child is raped in South Africa every three minutes, with 88% of rapes going unreported. It found that levels of child abuse in South Africa are increasing rapidly.</span><br />
<br />
<b>Article 9.</b><br />
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile. <br />
<span style="color: red;">What does Aung San Suu Kyi think of this right? She has been under house arrest for most of the last 19 years.</span><br />
<b>Article 10.</b><br />
Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him. <br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;">Reporting from Bogota, Colombia, and Sao Paulo, Brazil -- The police killing earlier this year of 22-year-old clerk and expectant father Jose Carlos Barbosa in a Rio de Janeiro slum was anything but an isolated incident. He is one of more than 11,000 people slain at the hands of authorities in that city and Sao Paulo since 2003.</span><br />
<br />
* <a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/KL05Ad01.html">Story here</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-17404269250119951212009-11-06T00:02:00.001-05:002009-11-06T00:02:00.133-05:00Zimbabwe's Diamond MinesZimbabwe faces the threat of being suspended from the international diamond trade after allegations of brutality from it's soldiers. Rights groups are lobbying members of the *Kimberly Process, the body that regulates trade in rough diamonds to halt exports from Zimbabwe. Activists say Mugabe's soldiers massacred about 200 people when the troops moved in last year. Witnesses told of how tear gas was thrown from helicopters, policemen opened fire on the diamond mine and raped the women who were caught at the field. Activists say local people are being forced to search for diamonds, with all the profit being taken by Zanu-PF. Human Rights Watch insists the Kimberley Process should ensure diamonds are not mined in areas where human rights are being violated.<br />
<br />
Mugabe sympathizers argue that the Kimberley Process is meant only to ensure the profits are not used to fund conflict, so Zimbabwe should not be banned. Namibian MP Bernhard Esau, the current chairman of the Kimberley<br />
Process, told the BBC's Network Africa programme that Zimbabwe had"really serious problems" and needed help to remain "part of the family".<br />
<br />
*<br />
The Kimberley Process (KP) is a joint governments, industry and civil society initiative to stem the flow of conflict diamonds – rough diamonds used by rebel movements to finance wars against legitimate governments. The trade in these illicit stones has fueled decades o fdevastating conflicts in countries such as Angola, Cote d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone.The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) imposes extensive requirements on its members to enable them to certify shipments of<br />
rough diamonds as ‘conflict-free’. As of November 2008, the KP has 49 members, representing 75 countries, with the European Community and its Member States counting as an individual participant. For more information on the Kimberley Process here is the <a href="http://www.kimberleyprocess.com/background/index_en.html" target="_blank">link</a>.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-53720118530894520352009-11-04T18:25:00.000-05:002009-11-04T18:25:06.290-05:00Dona Nobis Pacem. Peace For All, Lift Your Voice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Jh-mC9k0zfzOS6Wcyb4s_uXGm9wEJHxRKeMf9igE1XOQHcCOWTjUqL-E263SwCUnIvxKeWKGcnaF8xfVJxzETa6zkZI_77Pg_m51pnt1M_Ay628sX55f6t1P1hI_O9B0idrECvuG3rQ/s1600-h/peace+globe3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Jh-mC9k0zfzOS6Wcyb4s_uXGm9wEJHxRKeMf9igE1XOQHcCOWTjUqL-E263SwCUnIvxKeWKGcnaF8xfVJxzETa6zkZI_77Pg_m51pnt1M_Ay628sX55f6t1P1hI_O9B0idrECvuG3rQ/s320/peace+globe3.jpg" /></a><br />
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Peace- (n) 1: Freedom from public disturbance or war. 2: Agreement and harmony among persons. <br />
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A very simple prospect don’t you agree? People who are in agreement or harmony. People who are free from war. How do you personally solve issues you may have with your friends, co-workers or family? Do you start hitting the one who disagrees with you? Do you start stabbing each other over who your leader should be? Or do you hear the others side and weigh all your options?<br />
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If you have seen any news in the past few years then you have heard about gangs who are killing each other because the other side is in their neighborhood. Men who kill their wives because she wants to be free to make her own choice. Mothers who kill their children because they want to be unencumbered and party with friends. Don’t you wish they could see what people in other countries live with daily? <br />
There are people dying every day because one group has decided for all how their life should be lived. Here are people in this country who do not see what is in front of their own nose, freedom. The freedom to choose what they want to be in life. The freedom to practice their faith no matter what that faith is. The freedom to work where they want, to live where they want. The freedom to vote for the person they feel will do the best by them in running their country.<br />
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Then there are those who are not so lucky, because of being born where they were born. In countries where a leader kills them because they would dare to disagree or just because they belong to a different sect. Where the simple act of getting water for a thirsty child results in death. Where leaders care more about the shopping trips in far away ports then the starving people they govern.<br />
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I as a blogger pray for peace and understanding, but if someone who is free does not care then how can I expect the rest of the world to care? To have the gift of choice, the gift of freedom is a precious thing that must be treasured, for there are millions who do not even have the option of choice.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-38575571895589974692009-10-15T23:01:00.000-04:002009-10-15T23:01:37.442-04:00World Food DayEvery 6 seconds a child dies of malnutrition. In some of Africa's poorest countries, families are cutting school, clothes and basic medical care just to give their children one meal a day. A record one billion people throughout the entire world are hungry and this will only increase if more is not spent on agriculture. The U.N. food agency reports 30 countries now require emergency aid, including 20 in Africa alone. <br />
<br />
Somalia, ravaged by violence and anarchy for almost two decades has seen the monthly expenditure for food and other basic needs rise 85% in the past two years. A family of 6 spent $92 in March 2007 while the same amount of food in September 2009 cost $171.<br />
<br />
In <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1255553188_9" style="-moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous; -moz-background-origin: padding; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer;">Kenya</span>,<br />
herders have seen scores of their animals die and crops have withered<br />
because of drought. Today, 3.8 million people in Kenya need food aid,<br />
up from 2.5 million earlier in the year. The world's most populous region, Asia and the Pacific, has the largest number of hungry people — 642 million — followed by <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1255553188_13" style="-moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous; -moz-background-origin: padding; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;">Sub-Saharan Africa</span> with 265 million.<br />
<br />
<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1255553188_5" style="-moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous; -moz-background-origin: padding; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;">Jacques Diouf</span>, director general of the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1255553188_6" style="-moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous; -moz-background-origin: padding; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;">U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization</span>, said <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1255553188_14" style="-moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous; -moz-background-origin: padding; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer;">world leaders</span><br />
are starting to understand that investment in agriculture must be<br />
increased. He cited the goal set by the Group of Eight summit in<br />
L'Aquila, Italy, in July to raise $20 billion to help farmers in poor<br />
countries produce more — a shift from previous emphasis on delivering<br />
food aid.<br />
<br />
However, more investments will be needed to fulfill pledges like the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1255553188_15" style="-moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous; -moz-background-origin: padding; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;">U.N. Millennium Development Goals</span>, which aim to halve the number of those living in hunger and poverty by 2015.<br />
<br />
<br />
The FAO says global food output will have to increase by 70 percent to feed a projected population of 9.1 billion in 2050.<br />
<br />
To achieve that, poor countries will need $44 billion in annual<br />
agricultural aid, compared with the current $7.9 billion, to increase<br />
access to irrigation systems and modern machinery as well as build<br />
roads and train farmers.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>I think today is the end of all things conventional,<br />
<br />
Whatever had been predictable yesterday, is no more.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Forks and spoons are too rusted to use, <br />
<br />
Jutting out of us like some perished nightmare.<br />
<br />
Dining room tables are being used for makeshift mausoleums,<br />
<br />
(Leave the dead, don’t waste precious energy.)<br />
<br />
Electricity went out this morning, water this afternoon.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
It reaches everywhere; the world reeks of a decomposing.<br />
<br />
There’s a deafening silence ticking down like a giant clock;<br />
<br />
Nothing can be heard, save the monstrous, shrieking echo of silence<br />
<br />
That swims over our heads like crop-dusters spitting flesh.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
We are so goddamn frightened! Is this the end of the world?<br />
<br />
Has our greed and apathy finally made its way back to us?<br />
<br />
Have our closed hands and open mouths at last climbed inside our minds?<br />
<br />
Where are all the loud children skipping home from school?<br />
<br />
What day is this? What time is it? What has happened?<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
At night there will be fireflies and the moon to feebly reassure us.<br />
<br />
Everything we’ve ever been told about death and hunger and this moment<br />
<br />
Sounds stupid.<br />
<br />
All the times we’ve been told of it or witnessed such present horror <br />
<br />
Is now speechless.<br />
<br />
Everything is so horrifyingly quiet! The mask of life itself is waning<br />
<br />
Like leaves falling upon autumn’s sword. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
To our hands, the children. To our feast, the world<br />
<br />
Now shaking off its parasites with winter’s cold harmony. <br />
<br />
Of our hands, the stillness. Of our hunger, the stench<br />
<br />
Masking any good that has ever been grown in the field<br />
<br />
Or expressed with the sustenance of any true and decent love.</b><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 85%;"><i>© 2009 mrp/thepoetryman</i></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-55114503798957626372009-08-16T08:14:00.000-04:002009-08-16T08:14:02.724-04:00Ghosts of War, Rwanda's Living DeadIn Rwanda and the neighboring Kivu provinces of the DR Congo, ghosts wander above the Great Lakes. These ghosts are survivors of a horror they will never manage to forget-those that the Rwandans call "bapfuye buhagazi" or "the walking dead." These are the young girls who had abortions after being raped by the interahamwe or Hutu militia. These are the widows, the mothers who saw their children slaughtered before their eyes, children who grew up after seeing their parents die, the killers haunted by remorse and the killers who feel no remorse at all.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6n8gOxLt9NobwhwNbqjMHDfeHWJpSsPxVQgG3py_5d6iknIUCmx98t0LovUTQNN0ZU8QtZ7rJT0FUgNgSQ2W3ZSEQsojUvBgW1l2OZhcre0Fm9EIbBvkCrsjw6UDqbU9UdkPDnCbci3E/s1600-h/genocide-in-rwanda_skulls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6n8gOxLt9NobwhwNbqjMHDfeHWJpSsPxVQgG3py_5d6iknIUCmx98t0LovUTQNN0ZU8QtZ7rJT0FUgNgSQ2W3ZSEQsojUvBgW1l2OZhcre0Fm9EIbBvkCrsjw6UDqbU9UdkPDnCbci3E/s320/genocide-in-rwanda_skulls.jpg" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNgJQCrrOxTUHfEWFnHUrnVQxN6jNy4SRwsIxQRB3Ron5_XeOMN0H3dAzYt-Tev9IvKsBB5Hngr7urzvyfCAm1WAnNODk90_rbBhKYwY0A_EyOnbfQGT3ZIw_a9BUA6tjm6FodeHQXxWU/s1600-h/rwandan+ghosts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNgJQCrrOxTUHfEWFnHUrnVQxN6jNy4SRwsIxQRB3Ron5_XeOMN0H3dAzYt-Tev9IvKsBB5Hngr7urzvyfCAm1WAnNODk90_rbBhKYwY0A_EyOnbfQGT3ZIw_a9BUA6tjm6FodeHQXxWU/s320/rwandan+ghosts.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
They are also the bystanders who pretended there was nothing they could do, the innocents later unjustly accused of murder, the guilty harbingers of death who are afraid of being discovered. These are the ones who are known and who are being blackmailed, the Hutu refugees who never came home, the Tutsi refugees from the Congo who ran from the massacres and still linger in Rwandan camps, the madmen and the broken women.<br />
<br />
In many ways the genocide has succeeded, managing to encase the whole country in a huge airless bubble, pretending life goes on but in too many ways it actually stopped on April 7th, 1994.<br />
<br />
The sad thing is no one has ever apologized, no truth and reconcilitation commission has been offered them, where the real perptrators are actually present and can be cross-examined. Instead there isa stricture of the gacaca curts-set up by the Rwandan governments based on a system of community justice, where the deninciators themselves are often guilty and those attending seem more interested in staying on the good side of the present regime, rather than digging into the black past.<br />
<br />
The new regime has made using the words Tutsi or Hutu strictly forbidden by law. How can a clear examination of the relationship between Tutsi and Hutu be made? How can you talk about disease without mentioning germs or contagion?<br />
<big><b><br />
What about the ghosts that walk in the Western world?</b></big><br />
<br />
Has guilt kept the West fixated on the genocide? Guilt of the Belgian colonizers who were vaguely suspected of having contributed to this mess through their old colonial policies. The guilt of the French government which had supported some of the worst excesses of the Hutu regime beyond the normal limits of political alliance. Guilt of the Americans who refused to use their military intervention when it was called for and finally guilt of the international community when the United Nations compounded it's initial blindness by displaying a massive case of multilateral cowardice.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4322489519402445356.post-32857866015242423892009-08-12T14:16:00.000-04:002009-08-12T14:16:39.831-04:00Suu Kyi, A True Hero<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-HjimRQnW_8RhpCUAeWE44J33pK0EzGL51zY6hOhRoI4elkSJW4BRrHODUIQS28UIrhxrkKN-q1AWoHzqoHV5YYxM2hB7elMcPW82ZRMAdYNE-6pvdJIzZXgisqSmpWB-jVLnoKqII2o/s1600-h/suu+kyi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-HjimRQnW_8RhpCUAeWE44J33pK0EzGL51zY6hOhRoI4elkSJW4BRrHODUIQS28UIrhxrkKN-q1AWoHzqoHV5YYxM2hB7elMcPW82ZRMAdYNE-6pvdJIzZXgisqSmpWB-jVLnoKqII2o/s320/suu+kyi.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The world stood by and watched the sham trial of Aung San Suu Kyi, hoping for the right thing to happen but knowing in their collective hearts what the outcome would be. It could have been worse. She could have been given many years of hard labor in prison. Many think the outcome is just a way to appease the world and make it look as though they are giving her a lighter sentence, while in reality it is one way to keep her silent during the elections next year.<br />
<br />
The Burmese regime had a miracle fall into their laps in the name of John Yettaw. It solved the problem of how they were going to keep Suu Kyi quiet while the regime was elected in 2010. In 1990 they ignored the fact that her party, the National League for Democracy won the election and Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest for violating the laws that were hastily put in place to silence the dissenters. She has been under house arrest for 14 of the last 20 years. It is funny how a tiny 64 year old woman has the Junta shaking in their boots.<br />
<br />
While the world has cried foul and demanded her release, there is one major player who will not take her side and that is China. They say we should respect Burma's laws. How do you respect laws that were made to keep someone in power, with no hope for the people of Burma to voice their opinion. How do you respect laws that only are in place for the military regime while they are being propped up by China and India? I say shame on the leaders of those countries. China is trying to prove they have improved human rights, yet continue to back the rulers of Myanmar.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0WCXiStmLi_R-3f8ixS3EKDq2DEXBoRngtT6iiMDkdh_PrkbUDkF10oIAZXzNYizA6S4QYrS91ij9eIc6o-CefYMLj_Vv43yNdnVHYG8zagPqgvAJ4vvuYiBO4p8lTB_CaAmEgjLmOWI/s1600-h/than+shwe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0WCXiStmLi_R-3f8ixS3EKDq2DEXBoRngtT6iiMDkdh_PrkbUDkF10oIAZXzNYizA6S4QYrS91ij9eIc6o-CefYMLj_Vv43yNdnVHYG8zagPqgvAJ4vvuYiBO4p8lTB_CaAmEgjLmOWI/s320/than+shwe.jpg" /></a></div>Than Shwe is the head of the ruling junta and controls the army. A very hard-line leader, he is strongly opposed to allowing any political role for opposition leader Suu Kyi. He at first was thought to be more lenient than his predecessor, General Saw Maung, releasing some political prisoners and allowing human rights groups to visit Burma. but he continues to suppress all dissent.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh3QCy6uKSjGd_fRQFhcyEfMl8VjaHfqYVjTda7LC867jCAT5MFW-GpHItpyWt7x3Pw3Z3jW2M-6LCHd-GIh3FlQZVr8GxHmLIZh4-s6qapPksNmQR4BbTg_OIlN32x5x0I8gx7RWzN0E/s1600-h/maung.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh3QCy6uKSjGd_fRQFhcyEfMl8VjaHfqYVjTda7LC867jCAT5MFW-GpHItpyWt7x3Pw3Z3jW2M-6LCHd-GIh3FlQZVr8GxHmLIZh4-s6qapPksNmQR4BbTg_OIlN32x5x0I8gx7RWzN0E/s320/maung.jpg" /></a></div>Maung Aye is the second most powerful man in the country and is believed to have made many strong ties with Burma's drug lords in the Golden Triangle before he joined the military leadership in 1993. He is ruthless and xenophobic and is also staunchly opposed to any future political role for Suu Kyi.<br />
<br />
<br />
To me Suu Kyi is a hero of the largest proportion. She was inspired by US civil rights leader Martin Luther King and India's Mahatma Gandhi for their non-violent campaigns. There are more heroes than her, but their voices are being silenced all over the world. I want the world to hear them!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13178737973585191754noreply@blogger.com0