http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/01/25/cambodia-close-compulsory-drug-detention-centers
People who use drugs in Cambodia are at risk of arbitrary detention in centers where they suffer torture, physical and sexual violence, and other forms of cruel punishment, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Detention centers, mandated to treat and ‘rehabilitate' drug users, instead subject them to electric shocks, beatings with electrical wire, forced labor, and harsh military drills.
In the 93-page report, "Skin on the Cable," Human Rights Watch documents detainees being beaten, raped, forced to donate blood, and subjected to painful physical punishments such as "rolling like a barrel" and being chained while standing in the sun. Human Rights Watch also reported that a large number of detainees told of receiving rotten or insect-ridden food and symptoms of diseases consistent with nutritional deficiencies.
"Individuals in these centers are not being treated or rehabilitated, they are being illegally detained and often tortured," said Joseph Amon, director of the Health and Human Rights division at Human Rights Watch. "These centers do not need to be revamped or modified; they need to be shut down."
Derechos: Human Rights Listings
http://www.humanrightsblog.org/listings/2010/01/global_study_of_state_practice.html
Amnesty International has published six papers so far in its No safe haven series on universal jurisdiction in each of the 192 UN Member states (as well as links). The International Justice Project of Amnesty International is now engaged in a multi-year project to update, expand and revise its 722-page global study of state practice in 125 countries, Universal jurisdiction: The duty of states to enact and implement jurisdiction, AI Index: IOR 53/002 - 018/2001, September 2001, available at http://web.amnesty.org/pages/legal_memorandum.
Each paper includes information about:
- territorial and extraterritorial jurisdiction;
- whether the state has incorporated into national law crimes under international law (genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, torture, extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and aggression) and other crimes of international concern (such as hostage-taking, transnational organized crime);
- whether national courts can exercise universal criminal jurisdiction over crimes under international law, crimes under national law of international concern and ordinary crimes;
- whether victims can obtain civil reparations in civil suits or in civil claims made in criminal cases, such as the action civile in civil law countries;
- what obstacles exist to exercising universal criminal and civil jurisdiction, including statutes of limitation, ne bis in idem, bars on retrospective criminal law and immunities;
- what obstacles (such as dual criminality and political offence exceptions) and human rights safeguards (risk of unfair trial, death penalty, torture or other ill-treatment) exist with respect to extradition and mutual legal assistance;
- whether there is a specialized immigration unit to screen those seeking to enter the country with a view to identifying persons who should be investigated on suspicion of responsibility for crimes under international law and specialized police and prosecution units to investigate and prosecute such crimes; and
- whether there is any relevant jurisprudence.
Each paper then concludes with several pages of detailed recommendations for reform of law and practice.
The papers are all researched and drafted by volunteers from around the world, primarily in law firms, institutes of international criminal law and international law clinics in law schools, under the direct supervision of the International Justice Project, then checked by independent experts on the law of the state concerned and finally sent to police, prosecutors and ministries of justice, foreign affairs and defence for comment before publication.
Anyone interested in assisting Amnesty International in this exciting project should contact the International Justice Project at: ijp@amnesty.org.
Links to papers issued so far in the No safe haven series
Bulgaria (http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR15/001/2009/en)
Germany (http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR23/003/2008/en)
Solomon Islands (http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA43/002/2009/en)
Spain (http://www.amnesty.org/es/library/info/EUR41/017/2008/es) (Spanish only)
Sweden (http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR42/001/2009/en)
Venezuela (http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/AMR53/006/2009/en)
Canadian federal government defunds anti-Israel organizations
Ottawa told the United Nations it would no longer fund the world body’s Palestinian refugee agency. From now on, Canadian aid to Palestinians will be directed to specific projects. We will no longer give lump-sum aid to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNWRA), since most of that money simply goes straight into the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) general treasury, where it might be used for humanitarian projects or might be used to arm and train terrorists.
Reuniting and Replenishing the Two Afghanistans
http://war.change.org/blog/view/reuniting_and_replenishing_the_two_afghanistans
We have been coming to terms for some time with the many dualities of society. It evokes neither query nor sigh that vital aspects of Afghanistan's future may be decided by a group made up largely of Western upper and middle class men, with a select set of educated, relatively liberal elite as well as nominal tribalists from the country, in far away London this week. Meanwhile, the country itself is largely very conservative, very Islamic, and very poor.
There is simply no way to successfully address the bitter fights torturing Afghanistan without seriously bridging this enormous gap. If participants at the London Conference are to build the most important bridge, they must focus not only on NATO's shared goals with the Karzai Administration, but more specifically on the Karzai's Administration's shared goals with its enemies.
In London, talks will begin with a woman speaker, a big thanks, and a joke. In Zaranj, rural Afghanistan, talks will include only men, begin with an intense prayer, and be followed by news shared of each other's families. In London, small talk will bubble about entertainment and media over catered bagels with cream cheese and coffee. In Zaranj, small talk will simmer about health over homemade flat bread and tea. Both spheres will discuss war, partnerships, and irreconcilable differences in philosophy. But there is one specific common goal remaining still under-discussed and under-treated in Afghanistan which is irrefutably pulling on all sectors like a tempest -- migration.
Ten million people are shifting their careers, many abandoning once-productive farms, rural factories, and cooperatives, and moving to the cities.
“Where Does the Crime “Subversion of State Power” Come From?” by Woeser
http://blog.studentsforafreetibet.org/?p=14794
Recently there was once again some bad news that Dhondup Wangchen was sentenced to 6 years in prison. Four days before the end of 2009, a sentence was handed out to him in secret in Xining. Neither he nor his relatives, no-one received the relevant procedures which must be carried out by the legal departments in China. The 35-year-old Amdo farmer, son to elderly parents, husband to a thin and vexed wife and father to four young children, had been detained since the end of March 2008 for making a 25 minute documentary and suffered such a heavy punishment, on average 3 months imprisonment for every minute. Moreover, if counting the sentence from the date he was tried, then the calculation would be as follows: 4 months for every minute!
UN Report on Afghanistan: What it Means for Afghan Women
http://womensrights.change.org/blog/view/un_report_on_afghanistan_what_it_means_for_afghan_women
an unsucky law eliminating violence against women, endorsed by Karzai, is currently under Parliamentary review. A number of writers and commentators have argued the importance of Afghanistan's tribal society and the impracticality of strong central-government-style democracy. Why is this good news for women? it's often easier for women to participate in local government than on the national level, and there is evidence that women's involvement in local government leads to more equitable distribution of resources, which makes life better for everyone in the community. Now we need the power to shift away from the corrupt central government and to the provincial governments where women have a better chance of exerting influence and power.
New Orleans: Training: Aiding Survivors of Torture
http://www.humanrightsblog.org/listings/2010/01/new_orleans_training_aiding_su.html
Training: Aiding Survivors of Torture - Physical and Psychological Documentation of Asylum Seekers
Date: Saturday, February 6, 2010, 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Location: Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Physicians for Human Rights is pleased to invite you to a training for health professionals on how to diagnose, evaluate and document the physical and psychological after-effects of torture and other severe human rights violations.
There is no cost to attend this course. Registration is required to attend the course. Register at: http://actnow-phr.org/phr/events/nola_asylum_training/details.tcl
Registration is available online only. Registration deadline is Friday, January 29, 2010.
This educational activity is designated as a maximum of 6.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits. (Physicians should only claim credits commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.)
Scott Brown, the New "I Love Torture" Senator
http://war.change.org/blog/view/scott_brown_the_new_i_love_torture_senator
Anti-Choicers Demonstrate to Control Your Body
http://womensrights.change.org/blog/view/anti-choicers_demonstrate_to_control_your_body
A Washington Post article reports that young people have been seduced into opposing reproductive rights, with Catholic schools busing in a number of students. Hey, I never got to skip school to join protests! No wonder anti-choice groups have an edge: they get to have their own special religious schools that indoctrinate youth early, and then get to set-up up a "field trip" to sing anti-choice songs to a Miley Cyrus tune. I think those eighth-graders just ruined "Party in the U.S.A." for me.
US: A Big Step Toward Online Freedom
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/01/22/opinion-big-step-toward-online-freedom
In a groundbreaking speech at the Newseum on Thursday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reset U.S. policy on Internet freedom, emphasizing the vital need for governments, companies and technology providers to ensure that the World Wide Web is a force for human rights. Of course, the real test will come in how the Obama administration puts the new policy into practice.
Clinton named and shamed not only the usual Internet suspects such as China and Vietnam, but U.S. allies Egypt and Saudi Arabia - the first for arresting bloggers, the second for censoring religious speech.
Google's stunning announcement last week that it is prepared to leave China because of government censorship and surveillance is the most recent reminder of the threat to human rights online. While the company deserves praise for sounding the alarm, its threat to withdraw from the Chinese market underscores the need for governments and companies to implement effective human rights protections online or risk ceding the Internet to states that want to censor and spy on users.
In 2006, U.S. congressional hearings and human rights groups revealed how Yahoo had turned over to Chinese authorities information that led to the imprisonment of online activists. Microsoft and Google also acknowledged that they censored their search engines and some users' blogs. Since then, other problems have emerged:
* Burma's military government cut the telecommunications lines to the Internet during its brutal 2007 crackdown.
* Moscow is trying to implement controls that would allow it to spy on users or cut off the Internet from the rest of the world.
* Bloggers and online activists have faced pressure and harassment in Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Morocco and elsewhere.
* Last month a Moroccan court sentenced Bachir Hazzam, a 26-year-old Moroccan blogger, to four months imprisonment for "spreading false information harmful to the kingdom's image." His crime? He posted a statement on his blog authored by university students who denounced police violence and arrests against protesters demanding better public services.
Despite the pattern of repressive authorities trying to control the Internet, other governments have been slow to act. The Bush administration launched a Global Internet Freedom Task Force but never adopted a coherent strategy to protect human rights online.
Haiti and the perennial challenge of information lock-in
http://ict4peace.wordpress.com/2010/01/25/haiti-and-the-perennial-challenge-or-information-lock-in
Chinese citizens share their thoughts about Google
http://blog.studentsforafreetibet.org/?p=14769
The Nuts and Bolts Behind 4636 in Haiti
http://blog.ushahidi.com/index.php/2010/01/22/the-nuts-and-bolts-behind-4636-in-haiti
The 4636 emergency shortcode has been setup to run on the Digicel and the Comcel networks in Haiti. It has been running for six days now, with a great deal of usage taking a large amount of communication by the volunteers around the project. Rob Munro is one of the key figures in this process. This is his report on how things have come together.
Haiti 48 hours later - Photos
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/01/haiti_48_hours_later.html
Baha'i Faith in Egypt
http://www.bahai-egypt.org/2010/01/haiti-beyond-surface-of-catastrophe.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BahaiFaithInEgypt+%28Baha%27i+Faith+in+Egypt+%26+Iran%29
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Haiti: Beyond the Surface of Catastrophe
This is an outstanding interview that, not only examines the Haiti disaster, but goes way beyond the apparent surface of the country's catastrophic state.Katie Couric of CBS News "speaks with Mark Schneider from the International Crisis Group, and Ophelia Dahl, Executive Director of Partners in Health about the disastrous earthquake in Haiti and the relief efforts to help Haitians in need." A must watch!
Coordinating Software Developer Volunteers
http://blog.ushahidi.comOne of the things we know about software developers contributing to open source projects is that they don’t have a lot of time. Everyone has their day jobs, their personal projects, their families…in other words life. We like to support a relaxed, but structured atmosphere where there’s things that need to get done but no pressure on any one volunteer dev.
We’re using the modular approach. Various components of our systems are built in various languages. The Swift River system itself is being built in PHP on Kohana, the same framework that Ushahidi uses. But SULSa (Swift User Location Services App) is written in Ruby using the Rails framework. Our taxonomy and natural language parsing program, SiLCC (Swift Language Computation Core), is being developed in Python. Ushahidi itself also has an API that anyone can use to pull or push data, using any programming language they want.
Internally, this modular approach allows us to scale, by distributing server load across many different nodes that each handle vertical tasks on their own. But when it comes to coordinating volunteer developers, it means that there’s always something someone can contribute to, which hopefully makes working with our community that much more inviting.
Interested in volunteering with us as a software developer? Check out the following links…
Swiftriver Discussion Group
Swiftriver Public Skype
Swiftriver Github
Ushahidi Forums
Ushahidi Github
Ushahidi Public Skype
Ushahidi IRC
Ballots for Bullies: The Crimes Against Humanity Elections of 2010
http://genocide.change.org/blog/view/ballots_for_bullies_the_crimes_against_humanity_elections_of_2010
Taking a cue from my Change.org colleague Una, who put 2010 elections in Afghanistan, Sudan, Iraq, and the Palestinian Authority on her watchlist of polls that "could easily trigger, escalate or help resolve conflicts," I'd like to add two countries worth keeping an eye on, for the impact that elections might have on unresolved or ongoing cases of crimes against humanity: Sri Lanka and Burma.
Coming less than a year after the end of the country's long and brutal civil war, the January 26 presidential elections in Sri Lanka have made international headlines in recent weeks, as the incumbent president (who oversaw the war from on high) faces unexpected competition from a former army general (who oversaw the war from on the ground). The amount of mudslinging and dirty tricks would make Karl Rove blush.
The suffering of ethnic Tamil civilians, who were victims of abuse on the scale of crimes against humanity from both the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil rebel group, has received an ironic amount of attention as the opponents in the tight race vie for every possible vote. But given the involvement of both men in the long, bloody war, many observers caution that this political jockeying is unlikely to translate into real change for Tamils or accountability for the abuses committed against them. Many Tamils are skeptical themselves; still, Sri Lanka's main Tamil political party is backing the former general.
For Burma, what happens when a country with a ranking of "worst of the worst" on global ranking of world freedom holds elections? We should, at the very least, take promises of free and fair elections from the country's leadership with a grain salt, especially when said leadership issues thinly-veiled threats to its citizens about making "correct choices" at the ballot box. Such is the case of Burma -- or Myanmar, as it's also known - whose ultra-repressive military junta is so paranoid that it banned speculation over the cosmic meaning of last week's solar eclipse.
Business and Human Rights
- So. Africa: Union threatens legal action over Rand Uranium's policy that restricts workers' access to food & water
- Czech Republic: Environmental NGOs oppose new CEZ power plant over greenhouse gases, health concerns
- Canada: Ontario sees high rate of construction worker fatality – activists call for tougher legislation
- Vietnam: Report on foreign company owners leaving country without paying workers
- India: New protests following govt. approval of POSCO mining project in Orissa that allegedly could cause displacement, environmental destruction
- Colombia: En su último informe, Relator Especial de la ONU señala la necesidad de armonizar políticas de desarrollo de “mega proyectos” con los derechos de los pueblos indígenas sobre tierras y recursos naturales
- USA: Court fines Whirlpool for failing to protect former employee from racial & sexual harassment
ReliefWeb
See all Countries, Emergencies &
Natural Disasters:
Egypt: Floods - Jan 2010 |
| OPT: Floods - Jan 2010 |
| Haiti: Earthquakes - Jan 2010 |
| Mongolia: Cold Wave - Jan 2010 |
| Current recommendations for treatment of tetanus during humanitarian emergencies |
| Human Rights Watch World Report 2010 |
| Guía de Campo: Equipo Regional de Respuesta a Desastres de la OPS/OMS |
EGYPT: Displaced flood victims still waiting for aid
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/AMMF-822SDV?OpenDocument&RSS20=18-P
CAIRO, 25 January 2010 (IRIN) - Days after flash floods killed several people and forced hundreds of families out of their damaged homes in the Sinai Peninsula, government assistance is yet to arrive, survivors say.
"Our conditions are so desperate," Nuweiga Gemeiaa, a local resident whose home was destroyed in the 18 January floods, told IRIN. "We sleep in the open, but the government hasn't done anything effectual so far to give us either shelter or money to compensate [us] for what we've lost."
Gemeiaa was one of hundreds of people who clashed with Egyptian police on 20 January after accusing the government of neglecting them in the aftermath of the floods.
The government has promised to give 25,000 Egyptian pounds (US$4,545) to each household badly affected by the floods in al-Arish in northern Sinai and in Ras Sidr in the south.
South Sinai Governor Mohamed Abdel Fadil Shousha said on 23 January that he had formed five committees to assess the flood damage. Speaking on Egyptian TV, Shousha said his staff would go from home to home to assess damage and give proper compensation for victims.
Officials from several NGOs met politicians in Cairo on 23 January to discuss how they could offer help to the Sinai floods victims. They promised to send aid convoys with food and money. They also agreed to open telephone hotlines to receive donations from the public.
So far, only minimal rescue work has been carried out by the Egyptian army and small amounts of aid from the vicinity have been delivered.
KENYA: Thousands of flood-affected still need aid
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/FBUO-822JAN?OpenDocument&RSS20=18-P
NAIROBI, 25 January 2010 (IRIN) - Thousands of flood-affected households still require assistance as ongoing rains in parts of Kenya continue to cause population displacement and destroy property and crops, according to humanitarian sources.
"Countrywide, 8,270hh [households or 40,165 persons], have been displaced and 40 people killed by floods. Livelihoods have been greatly interrupted and thousands are in dire need of relief aid," according to a recent update by the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS).
The National Disaster Operations Centre (NDOC) estimates that up to 58,000 people had been affected by the flooding in the October-December 2009 short rains, stated a 22 December 2009 to 22 January Kenya Humanitarian Update by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
The latest to be displaced by the flooding, due to ongoing El Niño-related rains, include 53 families in the village of Dagamra in the coastal district of Magharini where 404ha of green maize were also destroyed.
According to the KRCS public relations manager, Titus Mung'ou, the flooding occurred just as "the farmers were ready to receive their harvest. Some [of the farmers] are [wading] through the water to pick [what] maize they can," said Mung'ou.
The flooding was caused by the River Sabaki breaking its banks on 13 January and going about 500m off its normal course, he said, adding that non-food items such as tarpaulins and mosquito nets had been provided to the affected families.
Heavy rainfall on 11 January in Tanzania caused flash floods in nine of Kenya's Taveta District's sub-locations, affecting 556 households whose houses were submerged and property damaged, according to OCHA.
Taveta lies along the border with Tanzania, where recent flooding has also affected thousands.
Mung'ou warned that thousands of people could be displaced along the Tana River delta, from the Northeastern Provincial capital of Garissa down to the coast, if rains continue. KRCS has prepositioned personnel and supplies in preparedness, he added.
aw/mw[END] A selection of IRIN reports are posted on ReliefWeb. Find more IRIN news and analysis at http://www.irinnews.org
Yemen: a serious humanitarian crisis in the making
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/EDIS-822R3X?OpenDocument&RSS20=18-P
The ICRC is stepping up efforts to respond to a worsening humanitarian situation in northern Yemen. Just back from a trip to Yemen where he met with tribal leaders and government authorities, Dominik Stillhart, the ICRC's deputy director of operations, explained at a press conference in Geneva how these efforts are severely hampered by security concerns.
Mr Stillhart spent two days in Sana'a meeting with government authorities, the heads of UN agencies and the leadership of the Yemeni Red Crescent and a further two days in the northern governorate of Amran, where he met a good number of the tribal leaders of the region. He had planned to take a trip further north, closer to the front lines and those civilians who are in greatest need of assistance, however this trip had to be cancelled at the last minute for security reasons.
Amran, situated south of Sa'ada, which is the governorate most heavily affected by the conflict in the north, is facing a serious influx of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from Sa'ada, where most of the fighting is taking place.
150,000 civilians directly affected by the fighting
"What I've seen is a serious humanitarian crisis in the making," declared Mr Stillhart. Since August 2009, when the conflict resumed, which, Mr Stillhart pointed out, was actually the sixth round of conflict between the government and the rebels, at least 150,000 civilians have been directly affected, or about one person in five living in the area.
"We are seriously concerned about the many communities that are believed to be trapped in areas that are not accessible to aid agencies," he continued. This is the case in areas located north-east of Wadi Khaiwan, the place Mr Stillhart was unable to visit due to security concerns.
Displacement putting huge strain on host families
He emphasized that the majority of displaced people had found shelter with host families, primarily relatives, and that this is putting a growing strain on host communities that were already living on the edge before fighting broke out.
"Socio-economic indicators in Yemen are among the worst in the world," he said. "A recent World Food Programme survey found that nearly half of the children under five are suffering from some sort of malnutrition."
Needs exceed humanitarian response
From his assessment after his short visit, Mr Stillhart said that the needs of the people clearly exceed the capacity of the humanitarian response.
"This capacity is seriously hampered by ongoing security problems," he continued. Due to the needs exceeding the humanitarian response, Mr Stillhart said that people are growing increasingly frustrated.
"One tribal leader that I met in Amran, for example, told me that 'it is bad enough to be displaced by the conflict and to have to flee your home, but what is even worse is the fact that today I am no longer in a position to protect my people and to provide for their needs.'"
Mr Stillhart said that this particular leader feels that he is failing his own people and that this makes him very ashamed.
Mr Stillhart went on to summarize the ICRC's assistance to the conflict-affected populations, which includes supplying clean water, food, shelter and essential household items. (see box - Response to humanitarian needs)
"From what I could tell from my discussions with community leaders and some displaced people, food is what appears to be most urgently needed," said Mr Stillhart.
Security concerns severely hindering food distributions
He described witnessing first-hand how challenging it is to organize food distributions to the affected communities. "In addition to the authorizations that you need from the authorities, the ICRC team needs to negotiate access with each and every single tribe along the way to the final destination of the distribution."
Mr Stillhart explained that, as most communities are suffering, at least indirectly from the conflict, they naturally all feel entitled to some sort of assistance and this makes the whole aid effort extremely complicated to organize. It involves multiple negotiations that can last from early morning until late at night, just to gain authorization for one distribution of food.
He explained that if just one community or community leader goes away from the table unhappy, it can result in a security incident.
"Each and every security incident slows down aid operations considerably, because one then has to negotiate access on a daily basis," Mr Stillhart added.
AFGHANISTAN: "Humanitarian aid" not something the military can do - experts
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/ASAZ-823C2S?OpenDocument
- Belligerent parties in Afghanistan should not call the aid they distribute "humanitarian", because this is to confuse neutral, impartial and needs-based assistance with "hearts and minds" projects designed to achieve specific ends.
( IRIN article cited by many is not available : an inconvenient truth ? )
Foreign bosses flee after bad year, leaving workers unpaid
http://www.thanhniennews.com/society/?catid=3&newsid=54852
Hason Ltd didn’t miss a paycheck through the economic crisis in 2008,in August last year, Trinh heard that general director Oh Young Hwan and his deputy Park Joung An had gone home to South Korea before paying June and July’s salaries.
The Hason bosses were just two of ten company heads that left foreign-owned companies in Binh Duong last year. The group owed a total of 2,800 workers’ salaries, social insurance contributions and other allowances worth VND12.6 billion (US$682,000) in total.
The Ghanaian Earthquake Hoax
http://www.ethanzuckerman.com/blog/2010/01/19/the-ghanaian-earthquake-hoax
a demonstration of the power of well-meaning people, social media and the infinite human capacity for misunderstanding
Community-led sanitation brings great promise for Eritrea
http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/eritrea_52289.html
CLTS is a revolutionary low-cost approach to rural sanitation where communities are facilitated to assess their own sanitation situation, analyze and take action to stop open defecation and build their own latrines without any subsidy and using locally available materials. In 2010, the Ministry of Health, with the support of UNICEF, plans to enable the 60,000 households countrywide to stop open defecation.
According to the latest estimates, only five per cent of Eritrea’s population has access to improved sanitation facilities. The CLTS project bears great promise and could position the country towards achieving the MDG target on sanitation.
Better toilets, better hygiene
The household of villager Amna Abdela Mussa, age 45, was the first to be visited. She paused from her laundry to welcome the team and show them her toilet. “I heard the message from Ministry of Health on the importance of sanitation and I took it upon myself to construct my own toilet,” she said.
The toilet also serves as a bathroom and has two off-site pits. On one side is the toilet and on the other side is the seat for bathing and a pit for dirty water. To ensure good hygiene, a small jerry can is positioned at the door. It is tied to a wooden post, with a rope extending from its mouth to a small peg on the ground. The idea behind this is that one does not have to touch the jerry can, but on stepping on the rope, it automatically tilts the jerry can downwards to enable hand washing. A bar of soap is positioned next to it.
Ms. Mussa is just one of the many Eritreans who have enthusiastically embraced the CLTS. In 2008, one village was declared and certified to be open defecation free (ODF). In 2009, a momentous community mobilization initiative geared towards collective behaviour change to give up open defecation and take up safe hygiene practices took off, with a total of 11,000 households having stopped open defecation and 11 villages now ODF.
CLIMATE CHANGE: ‘Copenhagen Accord Not Legal, Kyoto Protocol Is’
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=50104
While the BASIC bloc countries - Brazil, South Africa, India and China - will submit their plans for voluntary mitigation actions by the Jan. 31 deadline stipulated by the Copenhagen Accord, they have taken care to emphasise that the agreement, reached at the end of the December climate change summit in the Danish capital, has no legal basis.
ENVIRONMENT: Indian Glaciologist Fires Back at Climate Sceptics
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=50103
( I'm going to retitle this to say : "Objects to journalistic misrepresentation/sensationalization of his conclusions." )
His report sums up scientific research done in the last decade, proving that the Himalayan glaciers are receding.
For Lower Blood Pressure, Low-Carb Diet May Be Best
http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20100126/hl_hsn/forlowerbloodpressurelowcarbdietmaybebest;_ylt=AqDE26h3_r3_VO9uon7VoXfVJRIF;_ylu=X3oDMTNmYTNubWt2BGFzc2V0A2hzbi8yMDEwMDEyNi9mb3Jsb3dlcmJsb29kcHJlc3N1cmVsb3djYXJiZGlldG1heWJlYmVzdARwb3MDNwRzZWMDeW5fYXJ0aWNsZ
(HealthDay News) -- A low-carbohydrate diet helps people shed as many pounds as a low-fat diet plus the weight-loss drug orlistat does, and the low-carb plan may be better at helping lower blood pressure, researchers report.
Their study, published in the Jan. 25 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, found that both diets helped participants lose almost 10 percent of their body weight.
"Weight loss was similar but substantial in both groups we studied, but blood pressure improved more in the low-carb dieters," said study author Dr. William Yancy Jr., an associate professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Center and a staff physician at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Durham, N.C.
"There are options out there. Pick a diet you think you could stick to better, and work with your physician to help you target the right intervention for you," he advised. Two other studies in the same issue of the journal look at the effectiveness of the anti-hypertension DASH diet and a physician-supervised plan.
Obesity is a significant contributor to many illnesses, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and many cancers, according to an editorial in the same journal by Dr. Robert Kushner of Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. More than one-third of American adults are obese, and the incidence of obesity has gone up 140 percent over the past decade.
US not ready to lift ban on Scottish haggis
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8480795.stm
To open the path for Transatlantic trade in true haggis, two rules will have to be changed, and as far as the BBC has been able to determine, only one is currently even being reviewed.
Even supposing the US were to lift all haggis trade barriers, it's not clear how big a hit the dish would be with US consumers. The New York Times once wrote that it had "an august reputation for repulsiveness".
 Haggis was once stuffed in a sheep's stomach, but this is now uncommon |
"In Europe there is respect for the whole animal and nothing should be wasted, in America it's more prime cuts, fillet and sirloin."
When Americans try it, she says, they invariably love it and cannot understand their government's import ban.
( Robert Burns Day traditional Scottish dish. )
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