Violence against Guinean women

On September 28th, there was a demonstration in Guinea to protest the political events that have been unfolding in Guinea since December 2008, after the death of the president Lasana Conte (who had been president for 24 years). A group of military officers, calling themselves the National Council for Democracy and Development, had seized power after the president's death; and during their nine months in government, Human Rights Watch states that their government has been "characterized by arbitrary arrests and detentions, restrictions on peaceful political activity, unpunished criminal acts by the military, and calls for vigilante justice." For the rest of this article, click here.

A group of activists had decided that they were going to go ahead with demonstrations despite being warned, and people (about 50,000) had gathered at a stadium to join in protest and hear the activists speak. But before they even got a chance to speak, the police fired into the crowd and committed violent acts against the civilians, especially women. A New York Times article details the brutality of acts towards women that are absolutely horrific. Women are being raped and beaten by the soldiers, targeted for violent attacks. These acts are truly heinous, a crime against Guinean women and the citizenry as a whole. Where is the humanity in all of this? Do these soldiers not have mothers, sisters, girlfriends, daughters? Perhaps this is the savagery that comes to light when someone is so desperate to hold on to power, but for what purpose? At the cost of brutality against their own citizens, so much so that it is decried as inhumane? It is just terrible. Human rights organizations say that 157 people have been killed, but I'm sure there are many wounded and even more who have been raped and abused. What will the international community do? France has already acted, being the former colonial power in Guinea. What else needs to be done to bring justice to these women and the rest of the civilians in Guinea?

Here's another New York Times article about the recent events in Guinea.

I Am Because We Are

We are all connected to each other, in our communities, in our cities, our states, our countries, our regions, and ultimately our world. In this economic crisis, people around the globe are feeling the effects. No person is an island to her/himself. It's not just economic crisis, however, that should raise our awareness of how we are connected. If we just step back from our individual lives and try to look at the world as a whole, the suffering of one community should be on the radar of our own, the plight of one country should be something we are aware of in our own country. The world is a large place, and yes, our lives can get busy and crazy, but still, I find that the least we can do is try to learn about one more place each day, month, or year.

I meant to post this when it first became available on YouTube, but I am a guilty party to being busy with the goings-on of my life and forgetting that I meant to share this with you. What is it? It is a documentary by Madonna. I know that a bit of the media and probably several people are just tired of news about her and her adoption issues. Granted she's not perfect, at least she's attempting to use her fame and her fortune to be a part of someone else's suffering. The documentary called "I Am Because We Are" is one that I recommend because of a couple of reasons: 1) It is about my childhood home--Malawi, and 2) it sheds some light on the reality that Malawians face on a daily basis. Although every country in Sub-Saharan Africa afflicted by HIV/AIDS has its own personal story, the general theme of difficulty and suffering are the same. So I urge you to watch it. Click here to watch it online.

Bullying should not be ignored

There has been so much in the news recently about 2 boys who killed themselves, driven to suicide by bullying. Such a tragedy. These are not rare incidents, unfortunately. Bullying occurs all the time. But what are educators doing about it? It is not enough about intervening when bullying happens, but it is about preventing bullying from happening in the first place.

Creating a culture of tolerance and acceptability, creating compassion for others without judging, and maintaining that environment is just as important as acting on the situation when it happens.

Here's a fact sheet put out by the National Association of School Psychologists on bullying. And there's also a book that talks about the effects of bullying that I think should be read by adults everywhere. It's called "The Wounded Spirit" by Frank Peretti.

Let's raise our awareness about bullying and be a voice for those children who are victims of bullying, regardless of whether it is your child involved directly or not.

World Water Day 2009

March 22nd 2009 was declared World Water Day 2009, designated by the UN. According to some sources (like World Vision and the UK Government) 900 million people do not have access to clean water. To see their video, click here. It reminds me of what I take for granted. I turn on the faucet and know I'm going to get clean, drinkable water - both cold and hot. I know that I don't have to worry about any waterborne diseases. But there are so many people who are not able to do this.

Here's another World Water Day video made by a charity organization.

For more information on water and sanitation programs, visit the UN site at www.unwater.org. This year, the primary focus has been transboundary waters.

Peace for Civilians in the New Year?

Civilians - children included - are caught up in this constant back-and-forth attack between Israel and the Hamas, particularly in the Gaza strip. We face the new year and while we look forward to many things, the civilians in this part of the world are constantly suffering - both in Gaza and Israel.

See what Human Rights has published on these recent bombings and attacks that have targeted civilians here. Amnesty International has an online petition that you can sign urging Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to take action on these occurrences. This is not just a conflict between two military/political entities, and it does not leave civilian lives untouched; it affects the lives and the futures of those who have little choice as bystanders, inevitably drawn in because of proximity and default by birth.