Mois : mai 2006

Linked with our presentation of Douangdeuane Bounyavong – Laos.

Douangdeuane Bounyavong is the head of Dokked Publishing and bookstore in Vientiane. Established in May 2002 (address: 68 Thanon Luang Prabang, Ban Sithane Neua, Muang Sikhottabong, (PO Box 230), Vientiane, Laos).

Dokked Publishing Co Ltd offers graphic design, web design, advertising, publishing, editing and translation services, as well as being Vientiane’s leading literary bookseller. Works published by Dokked include Legends in the Weaving, a full-colour book about the art of making silk textiles and the different techniques and patterns of various ethnic groups written by Dara Kanlaya, Douangdeuane Bounyavong and Kiyoko Yasui; the Association for Sending Picture Books to Lao Children (ASPB)’s Lao Animal Stories in Pictures; Fa Pin, a collection of short stories (in Lao) by Dara Kanlaya; Lao History from Ancient Times to 1946 (in Lao); Who is the Teacher? (in Lao); Missing Outhine Bounyavong 1942-2000 (in Lao); My Life: Autobiography of Maha Sila Viravongs (in Lao and English); and When Mother was in Prison (in Lao and English) by Douangdeuane Bounyavong and Inkiane Dejvongsa. Run by the family of renowned Lao scholar Maha Sila Viravongs, Dokked is also the point of contact to arrange a visit to the Maha Sila Viravongs Library outside Vientiane.

Her most recent work is in the dissemination of Lao literature (in English and Lao) for use in public education in Laos : Bounyavong Douangdeuane, A comparative study on the political ideology expressed in the Thao Hung Thao Cheaung epic, with reference to local chronicle of Lao-Thai groups , Tokyo: Institute of Asian Cultures , Sophia University, 1995.

Note: Douangdeuane Bounyavong is also Director of the Mahasila Viravong Memorial Library, which had opened to the public in December, 2004.

Continuer la lecture de « Lao literature (in English and Lao) »

A call for help: The (Indonesian) union chairperson, Robin Kimbi, and the regional secretary, Masry Sebayang, got two years in prison. Fourteen months terms were given to union leaders Suyahman, Safrudin, Akhen Pane and Sruhas Towo. Their « crime » was to exercise their mandate as union leaders. They are prisoners of conscience.

Last week, Amnesty International called on its members around the world to raise their voices in protest against the jailing of the Musim Mas trade unionists.

And unions around the world are taking up the cause. The Nestle European Works Council, representing 80,000 company employees, has written to the company to express concern over the possible presence of Musim Mas palm oil and oleochemicals in Nestle products.

The German Food and Allied Workers NGG and the Dutch FNV Bondgenoten have echoed the public call by the Unilever European Works Council for Unilever to distance itself from Musim Mas and publicly reveal its sources for the palm oil in company products.

And the global union federation representing food workers, the IUF (at whose request we launched our campaign) has now begun to raise money for the struggle through its International Musim Mas Defense Fund. Momentum is growing again. A three-month old campaign, no longer « fresh », is attracting attention. The Indonesian government is going to have to start paying attention. Please do these 3 simple things today:

1. Send off your message of protest: http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=76

2. Donate generously to the International Musim Mas Defense Fund:
http://www.iuf.org/cgi-bin/dbman/db.cgi?db=default&uid=default&ID=3231&view_rec
ords=1&ww=1&en=1

3. Spread the word in your workplace and union. Forward on this email message! In the international trade union movement we do not forget those who languish in prisons for our cause.

Indonesian Labour Start link:

Bahasa Indonesia.

Linked with our presentation of Dora Nkem Akunyili – Nigeria.

NEWS: Thursday, May 11, 2006, NAFDAC makes bonfire of dangerous products, by Juliana Francis: It was yet, another victory for the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) as its surveillance team confiscated fake, substandard and unwholesome products, worth over N152 million. (Read this article on Daily Sun, Nigeria).

See more NAFDAC-news on this link.

NAFDAC is in Nigeria the National Administration for Food, Drug Admnistration and Control. Dr. Dora Nkem Akunyili (OFR) is their Director General, called also the Teflon Lady. According to her at the time she came into the establishment, NAFDAC was having some problems, « We went to work prayerfully and with God’s guidance we can say that today our humble efforts are being blessed. NAFDAC now has offices in the states and there is surveillance activity group on. I had to create state, zonal and specialised zonal offices for effective work ».

So far, several enlightenment campaigns have been mounted reagrding pure water, fake and adulterated drugs. Pure water production is one of the most important aspects of poverty alleviation in the country. It engages and employs many people. Stressing the importance of pure water, she said the Agency would educate the public on ways of preparing the water, expose them to the equipment required and explain the implication of water not properly produced and the processes involved in NAFDAC registration.

Continuer la lecture de « NAFDAC Nigeria »

Linked with our presentation of Irina Yanovskaya – Georgia.

Linked with our presentation of Situation in Abkhazia.

Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) is a growing charitable organization that harnesses the power of the media to combat human rights abuses. By building the capacity of the media to report effectively on human rights issues, JHR’s work pressures abusers to stop and empowers victims to fight back. Since July 1, 2003, 20 Canadian journalists have gone to Ghana. Their work has increased human rights reporting there by over 65 per cent. Now, Bonnie Allen, Colleen Ross, Drake McHugh and Jaime Jacques – all experienced Canadian journalists – have joined the list of volunteer journalists in Ghana. Their main task is to work with JHR’s media partners — typically the most popular radio stations, television stations and newspapers. JHR is member of OneWorldNet since December 5, 2002.

Since its founding in May 2002, JHR has run projects in nine African countries and throughout North America. Within Africa, JHR works with local media organizations to reach 20 million people with human rights related stories on a weekly basis. In Canada, JHR has established nineteen Chapters (or clubs) at post-secondary institutions across the country, actively engaging over 20% of Canada’s journalism students in human rights reporting. JHR is currently working to expand this program throughout the United States. JHR has offices in Accra, Ghana and Toronto, Canada. (Read more on its homepage).

And the community page, where JHR-members may write articles and comments.

By Clare Byrne – There’s no law stating that NGOs have to be run by middle-aged philanthropists with countless postgraduate degrees and years of experience. But they usually are. Which is why it’s so refreshing to interview a NGO boss who’s still living at home with his parents. Twenty-six-year old Ben Peterson is co-founder and executive director of Journalists for Human Rights (JHR), a new organization that uses the media to educate Africans about their rights. The idea is simple: get the local media to step up its coverage of human rights issues thereby generating greater public awareness and wider respect for individual rights.

Continuer la lecture de « Journalists for Human Rights JHR »