Good News Agency – Year III, n° 5
Weekly - Year III, number 5
– 8 March 2002
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi,
Ph. D.
Rome Law-court registration
no. 265 dated 20 June 2000.
Good News Agency carries positive and constructive news from all over the world relating to voluntary work, the work of the United Nations, non governmental organizations, and institutions engaged in improving the quality of life – news that doesn’t “burn out” in the space of a day.
Good News Agency is distributed
through Internet to the editorial offices of more than 2,400 media in 46
countries, as well as to 1,000 NGO.
International legislation - Human rights - Peace
and safety - Economy and development
Solidarity - Health
- Environment and wildlife - Culture and
education
Codex Task Force agrees
on final draft of principles for the evaluation of GM foods
8 March, Rome/Geneva
- A Task Force of the Codex Alimentarius Commission has reached agreement on a
final draft of "Principles for the risk analysis of foods derived from
biotechnology," the UN Food and Agriculture Organzation (FAO) and the World
Health Organization (WHO) announced today.
A round of applause by the 226 participants greeted the Wednesday
agreement reached by the Codex Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived
from Biotechnology on Wednesday in Yokohama, Japan.
The Principles will
provide a framework for evaluating the safety and nutritional aspects of
Genetically Modified (GM) foods. They define the need for a pre-market
safety assessment of all such foods on a case-by-case basis. According to
the UN agencies, the assessment should look into both intended and unintended
effects, identifying new or altered hazards and identifying changes, relevant
to human health, especially in regard to key nutrients and potential allergenic
components. (…)
For further
information contact John Riddle, FAO Media Relations Officer, tel: 0039 5705
3259 or Gregory Hartl, WHO Communications Adviser for Food Safety, tel: 0041
227914458
French Public
Prosecutor Files Civil Suit Against Government Over Chernobyl
France's Independent
Commission on Research and Information on Radioactivity (CRIIRAD) is filing a
civil suit against President Jacques Chirac's government on the grounds that
the government covered-up risks to public health after the 1986 Chernobyl
disaster. According to the CRIIRAD, the French government was aware that
the radioactive fallout from the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant
posed risks to public health, but deliberately failed to warn the public.
CRIIRAD said
allegations were based on documents seized by official investigators probing
the effects of a radioactive cloud that drifted across France between 27 April
and 5 May 1986. More than 150 French citizens have filed suit against
their government after falling sick of thyroid and other ailments, accusing the
French government of failing to warn them of the risks. West Germany,
Austria and Italy took precautions after the incident that included placing
restrictions on consumption of milk and other dairy products. However,
French officials say there was no need for special measures to protect against
health risks. (…)
Reuters; 14
February 2002
The Sunflower,
March 2002 - www.wagingpeace.org/sf/backissues.html
Proposals to ban GM fish from California
1 March - A coalition of lawmakers, environmentalists,
and fishers are angling to ban genetically modified (GM) fish from
California. One proposed ban would prevent live transgenic fish from
entering the state; another plan would require special labeling for GM fish
sold for consumption in California stores. One other state, Maryland, has
restricted genetically altered fish, and federal rules to protect the
endangered Atlantic salmon block such fish from Maine. Environmentalists worry
that GM fish could escape from pens and breed with their wild counterparts, to
the detriment of the gene pool of the species. Proponents of genetic
modification see a potential profit in transgenic species because fish farmers
could get bigger fish to market for less money. Under the proposed
California legislation, anyone convicted of owning transgenic fish or planting
them in state waters could be fined up to $50,000.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-000015089feb28.story?coll=la%2Dnews%2Dscience
International Confederation Of
Free Trade Unions: Campaign for Women
March 8: On International Women's Day, Global Unions launches the
international Campaign: 'Unions for Women, Women for Unions'. The Campaign aims
at increasing women's membership rates, with the ultimate goal of doubling the
number of women union members. In addition, the Campaign aims at breaking down
the barriers to women becoming union members, activists and leaders. The theme
for 2002 is: 'Women's right to decent work'. To kick off the
campaign, a press conference and a workshop, jointly organised by the ICFTU and
the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations
(AFL-CIO) will take place in New York on March 7. The events coincide with the
46th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women.
http://www.icftu.org/focus.asp?Issue=u4w&Language=EN
2002 International Essay Contest for Young People
Sponsored by The Goi Peace Foundation and The
World Peace Prayer Society (UNESCO's Partners for the International Decade of a
Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World) and supported
by the Ministry of Education of Japan.
The United Nations has designated 2001-2010 as the "International
Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the
World." Not only should every child benefit from this global movement, but
they should be encouraged to play a leading role in the creation of a culture
of peace. The theme of this year's International Essay Contest is
"Harmony." Young people from around the world are invited to submit
their creative ideas on this theme.
Theme: What is harmony? How can we achieve a world in which every
individual and every nation can freely express their individual qualities,
while living in harmony with one another and with all life on earth? What are
some things you can do to promote harmony?
Guidelines: 1. Essays may be submitted by anyone up to 25 years old in
one of the following two age categories: Children (ages up to 15), and Youth
(ages 16 - 25); essays must be 800 words or less, typed or printed in English,
Spanish, German or French(…) Entries
must be received by July 25, 2002. For receiving complete guidelines, as well
as forwarding entries:
International
Essay Contest c/o The Goi Peace Foundation, 1-4-5 Hirakawacho, Chiyoda-ku,
Tokyo 102-0093 Japan. Fax: 81 (3) 3239-0919
E-mail: essay@goipeace.or.jp
“Afghan Womwn Today: Realities and
Opportunities”
4 March - An event in observance of the International
Women’s Day, entitled “Afghan Women Today: Realities and Opportunities” will be
held at the United Nations Headquarters, New York, on Friday, 8 March 2002, from
10:00 to 11:30 a.m.
The observance is being organized by the
United Nations Department of Public Information and DESA's Division for the
Advancement of Women, UNIFEM and the Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender
Equality. It will focus on the recent developments in Afghanistan, which have
created new opportunities for women to claim their rightful roles as full
participants in Afghan society. The event will also underscore the
international community’s support for and solidarity with the women and girls
of Afghanistan in the face of the long-term challenges that remain. (…)
The event will be broadcast
live by UN TV. A live and archived webcast of the event can be accessed on the
UN website. The exact URL will be
provided next week. For further information:
Mr. Oleg Dzioubinski, DPI/NGO Section, tel:
(212) 963-1859, e-mail: dzioubinski@un.org, or
Ms. Cecilia Attefors, DPI/NGO Section, tel:
(212) 963-2662, e-mail: section5@un.org.
Mongolia moves to bolster
human rights after survey finds many violations
1 March - A new survey finds
extensive human rights violations in Mongolia, but credits the country with
remarkable progress -- thanks to the formation of a democratic government in
the early 1990s and more than 70 human rights provisions embodied in the 1992
constitution.
The survey's aim "is not
to point fingers, but to reveal the problems and challenges we face and to seek
solutions," said S. Tserendorj, Chief Commissioner of the National Human
Rights Commission and a team leader for the project. A country's level of
democracy "can be gauged by the degree to which it respects human
rights," he added.
The comprehensive survey,
Mongolia's first, examines five major areas of human rights: political,
economic, social and cultural rights, individual freedom, and the rights of
vulnerable groups. United
Nations Volunteers helped survey more than 60,000 people for the project,
which also reviewed government documents in all 21 provinces and Ulaanbaatar,
the capital. (…)
http://www.undp.org/dpa/index.html
Geoffrey Nyarota of Zimbabwe
awarded World Press Freedom Prize 2002
Paris, February 25 -
Zimbabwean journalist Geoffrey Nyarota, editor-in-chief of Zimbabwe’s only
independent daily newspaper, the Daily News, was today awarded the
UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize for 2002 by UNESCO
Director-General Koichiro Matsuura.
The $25,000 prize is awarded
each year on the recommendation of an independent jury of journalists from all
over the world. It will be presented in Manila (Philippines) on May 3 at a
ceremony organized by UNESCO to celebrate World Press Freedom Day.
The jury was chaired by
Jamaica’s Oliver Clarke, Chairman of Gleaner Company Limited, who declared: “I
am particularly pleased that somebody from Africa has been chosen by the jury.”
(…)
Mr Nyarota, 50, has been
tireless in denouncing corruption and criminal activities among top government
officials in his country despite two bomb attacks against his paper. He has
been arrested and detained, repeatedly received death threats, and has four
libel suits pending against him.
http://www.unesco.org/opi/eng/unescopress/2002/02-09e.shtml
Sixteen women elected to Burundi National Assembly
27 February - Sixteen women were elected to Burundi’s
Transitional Assembly last month. The elected women were candidates from
14 political parties and members of civil society. The elections come after
intense years of lobbying by the women of Burundi, supported by UNIFEM and
other partners, for the inclusion of women in decision-making and their
participation in the Burundi peace process. In July 2000, UNIFEM’s briefing to
Burundi’s 19 negotiating parties made possible the first All Party Burundi
Women’s Peace Conference. As a result of the Peace Conference, twenty-three of
the women’s recommendations to protect and promote women’s rights were included
in the final peace accord.
For more information, contact Marie Goretti Nduwayo,
UNIFEM Programme Officer in Burundi, at marie.nduwayo@undp.org
Lifestyle changes needed to overcome poverty
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that lifestyles
in the developed world will have to change if the planet is to remain
habitable. Speaking at the London School of Economics, Annan said the World
Summit on Sustainable Development "must mark a break with business as
usual".
Information technology forum in Bosnia and Herzegovina
has ambitious agenda
4 March - A new National Information Technology Forum
in Bosnia and Herzegovina is bringing together partners from government, the
private sector, academia and the international community to harness information
and communications technology (ICT) in support of development. During 2002, the
Forum will encourage use of ICT to promote interaction and reconciliation among
communities and access to the wealth of information resources available through
the Internet and other ICT tools.
Exploring the potential of ICT to promote job creation
for the young, educated workforce is another key mission. The aim is to help
the country bridge the digital divide with its neighbours as it looks towards
entering the European Union.
The recent launch of the Forum by the government and
UNDP brought together more than 220 ICT experts from the private and public
sectors, as well as international partners from Denmark, Germany, Italy,
Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia. (…)
http://www.undp.org/dpa/index.html
Ghana: Debt-reduction package
1 March - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and
the World Bank have agreed to support a US $3.7 billion debt reduction package
for Ghana, under the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC)
Initiative, the World Bank announced on Tuesday. Both institutions, the bank
said, agreed to begin providing debt relief immediately along with most
official bilateral creditors. The bulk of additional assistance under the
enhanced HIPC Initiative will be delivered when Ghana completes a number of
agreed measures.
In a separate announcement on 22 February the IMF said
that it had approved a US $65 million disbursement for poverty reduction
programmes in Ghana.
Cote d'Ivoire: ADB funds for governance, potable water
1 March - The African Development Bank (ADB) and Cote
d'Ivoire's government signed on Tuesday two agreements totalling FCFA 4.3
billion (US $5.8 million) to foster good governance and to improve the water
system in two of the country's biggest cities.
Some FCFA 3.5 billion (US $4.7 million) will aid the
government's Good Governance and Capacity Building Programme, whose aims
include decentralisation and improving the management of public resources. The
remaining FCFA 785 million ($1.1 million) will finance a study on upgrading
water supply systems catering for the three million people living in the
economic capital, Abidjan, as well as the needs of some 500,000 people living
in the central city of Bouake.
The funds come from the African Development Fund, the
small-loans branch of the ADB.
African entrepreneurs join
forces with UNIFEM to shrink digital divide for women
United Nations, March 1 -
UNIFEM announced today the formation of a unique Global Advisory Committee
comprised of African IT entrepreneurs living in the Diaspora and in Africa, as
well as representatives from the private sector and the UN system. The
Committee of 12 experts will work with UNIFEM on a programme to help bridge the
digital divide in Africa by providing women with access to information
communication technologies (ICTs) to improve their livelihoods. (…)
Committee members will work
with UNIFEM to give women access to training, financing, jobs and mentoring.
They will also work to enhance networks between entrepreneurs in the Diaspora
and in Africa and encourage private sector and foundations partnerships.
http://www.unifem.undp.org/pr_afr_digital.html
Food safety conference favours European-wide cooperation and rapid alert
system for consumer protection
Budapest, 28 February - The first Pan-European Food Safety
Conference has called upon Central and Eastern European countries today to join
a Rapid Alert System for Food Products, already operational in the European
Union. According to the report of the meeting, the system "has proved to
be useful to support public health, consumer protection and transparency in
international food trade" and countries are "encouraged to
participate".
The system currently covers
the 15 EU member states, as well as Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland. In the
case where a product poses a serious and immediate risk to the health of
consumers, the countries have a duty to provide information to the EU
Commission to find and withdraw the product from the market. This information
is shared among the countries participating in the system so that they can take
immediate action.
The Pan-European Conference on
Food Safety and Quality, organised by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) and hosted by the government of
Hungary, ended today after four days of discussions. (…)
http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/OIS/PRESS_NE/english/2002/3000-en.html
ILO tackles social
consequences of globalization
Geneva, 27 February - The
International Labour Organization (ILO) today launched a top-level commission
comprising Presidents, politicians, academics, social experts and a Nobel
Economics laureate which, for the first time, will address the social dimension
of globalization. (…) Its ultimate goal is to use the process of globalization
as a resource to reduce poverty and unemployment, to foster growth and
sustainable development, said ILO Director-General Juan Somavia at a news
conference.
"The Commission is an
unprecedented effort to promote international dialogue on ideas to make
globalization more inclusive, at a time when the debate is dominated more by
polemics and preconceptions than by facts. " Juan Somavia, who was
recently invited to address both the Porto Alegre Social Forum and Davos in New
York, added that "the time for consensus-building and new thinking around
these difficult issues has arrived."
"For some, globalization
has been an instrument for progress. It has created wealth, expanded
opportunities and provided a nurturing environment for entrepreneurship and
enterprise. But for others, it has exacerbated inequalities and insecurity.
They fear that the risks are too great, the benefits too small", Mr.
Somavia said. (…) The Commission will "examine ways in which all
international organizations can contribute to a more inclusive globalization
process that is acceptable and fair to all”. (…)
The Commission has scheduled
its first meeting for 25 March 2002 in Geneva. It is expected to complete its
deliberations and present an authoritative report to the ILO's Director-General
in the course of 2003.
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/inf/pr/2002/6.htm
New Drylands Development Centre to help countries
overcome poverty
25 February - The new UNDP Drylands Development
Centre in Nairobi, Kenya, aims to bring the problems faced by millions of
people living in arid areas into the heart of national poverty reduction
strategies in countries worldwide. The centre will be the UNDP flagship
drylands programme, giving the world a major instrument for implementing the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. It continues the work of the Office to Combat Desertification and Drought (UNSO), which was based in New York, but with different
approaches that will add to high-quality UNDP advisory services by providing
technical support through UNDP country offices. (…)
The new programme focuses on three themes, the first
being to ensure that dryland communities are adequately provided for in
national development plans and budgets, especially poverty reduction
strategies. The second will help countries to deal with the effects of current
climate variability, especially droughts, and prepare for future effects of
climate change. The third theme will address vital local issues affecting the
use of resources, such as access to water and land tenure, that have great
impact on people's livelihoods.
http://www.undp.org/dpa/index.html
International Conference on
Financing for Development (FfD)
Monterrey, Mexico, 18-22
March - International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD), organized jointly
by The United Nations General Assembly and the governing bodies of the World
Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the World Trade Organization
(WTO), is a process seeking innovative ways to strengthen the financing of
development and the stability of the global financial system. UNIDO has
presented three sets of initiatives in the context of the FfD process:
strengthening of productive capacities; increasing export trade; promotion of
foreign investment.
E-mail:
A.DeGroot@unido.org
Africa: Hunger to Harvest campaign 2002
Bread for the World's “Africa: Hunger to Harvest”
campaign aims to win US leadership for an international effort to reduce hunger
and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa, including an increase of US $1 billion in
annual US funding for effective, poverty-focused development assistance.
Throughout 2002, Bread for the World activists across the US will be lobbying
Congress, especially the appropriations committees, for a further increase of
poverty-focused development assistance to Africa in the 2003 financial year.
http://www.bread.org/issues/africa/progress_and_strategy.html
UNICEF to set up Child
Friendly Spaces for displaced children in war-torn Liberia
Monrovia, Abidjan, Geneva, 26
February - UNICEF, together with its partners, is seeking to ensure that
children's rights are protected in the present wave of insecurity in Liberia.
It is particularly concerned that children not be drawn once again into an
adult conflict - as they have been in the past.
Concerned about the well-being
and safety of displaced children, UNICEF will set up Child Friendly Spaces
(CFS) in each of the newly-established camps for internal displaced people
(IDP). These will provide safe facilities for children to gather together to
play, learn and acquire life skills. They will also provide mothers with an
area to care for their infants. Most importantly, the CFS will provide a space,
where children can experience a degree of normalcy amid the chaos unfolding
around them. (…)
http://www.unicef.org/media/newsnotes/02nn05liberia.htm
Non-profit distribution of surplus food and essentials to those who are
in need
Recovery Relief, a non-stock non-profit
organization (Washington, D.C.), is picking up nonperishable bakery, produce
and other grocery items seven days per week from one supermarket, and is
relying solely on volunteer assistance. Over 300 families per week are being served
from just this one store! The Indian Nation of the Appalachian Cherokee Tribes
is picking up bread from another store for Recovery Relief, so that all
children living in the Appalachian Mountains can have bread every day. (…)
South Africa: Activists welcome AIDS budget
1 March - AIDS activists welcomed the increased
expenditure on HIV/AIDS in the South African 2002-2003 budget released last
week, but expressed concern that the funds could be misused at provincial
level. "We are pleased that progress is being made by the treasury in
combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic. There is now a basis to move forward on this
issue," the Treatment Action Campaign said in a statement on Monday
In his budget speech, Finance Minister Trevor Manuel
said that in addition to an estimated R4 billion (US $348 million) spent by
provincial health departments on AIDS-related illnesses, funding for
"prevention programmes in schools and communities, hospital treatment and
community-care programmes will amount to R1 billion (US $87 million) next year,
rising to R1.8 billion (US $156 million) in 2004/5."
More details:
Benin: UNICEF launches early-childhood development
project
1 March - The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), in
partnership with Benin's Health Ministry, has launched a programme aimed at
improving early childhood development by reducing the incidence of preventable
diseases and ailments linked to poor nutrition. The programme targets infants
up to five years old. It aims to protect them against tetanus, measles and
other vaccine-preventable diseases, reduce the incidence of malaria, pneumonia
and diarrhoea, and fight diseases linked to vitamin A deficiency. In the long
term, the project aims to reduce the food deficiency/disease tandem by 25
percent in selected regions in Benin.
Burkina Faso-Cote d’Ivoire: Japanese funds for health
Abidjan, 1 March - The Japanese government has
allocated at least 282 million francs (US $381,000) under its non-reimbursable
fund for small local projects, to support health initiatives in Cote d'Ivoire
and Burkina Faso. Cote d'Ivoire was allocated over 240 million francs (about
$326,000), the bulk of which will be channelled to the health ministry and the
newly created HIV/AIDS ministry to combat yellow fever, HIV/AIDS and
epidemiological diseases, a communiqué from the Japanese embassy in Abidjan
said. (…)
Japan initiated its non-reimbursable fund in Cote
d'Ivoire in 1989, eight years before it began the similar scheme in Burkina
Faso. The Japanese funds seek to improve living conditions of rural
communities.
Fifth International Conference on Healthcare Resource
Allocation for HIV/AIDS (ICHRA) - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 15-17 April
The ICHRA is an annual gathering of physicians,
ethicists, government and private sector representatives, and those living with
and/or affected by HIV/AIDS to explore solutions to the global crisis in access
to HIV/AIDS care. This year's conference is coordinated in association with the
European Commission, Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and World Health
Organization (WHO). For more information on the conference:
http://www.iapac.org/conference/01news.html
Campaign launched to eliminate
tsetse fly, which has turned much of Africa into a green desert
A new campaign to control the
deadly tsetse fly in Africa, parasitic carrier of sleeping sickness, has been
launched by the Organization of African Unity (OAU).
African sleeping sickness
affects as many as 500,000 people, 80 percent of whom eventually die, and the
bite of the fly causes more than $4 billion in economic losses annually.
The tsetse fly has turned much
of the fertile African landscape into an uninhabited "green desert,"
spreading sleeping sickness -- and killing 3 million livestock animals every
year. The fly is the carrier of the single cell parasite, trypanosome, which
attacks the blood and nervous system of its victims, causing sleeping sickness
in humans and nagana in livestock. The biting tsetse fly transmits it when its
seeks a blood meal. (…)
http://www.iaea.org/worldatom/Press/P_release/2002/prn0202.shtml
21 Cities in Vermont, USA, vote on the Earth Charter
6 March -
Every March, voters in Vermont, USA gather in their town halls for the Annual
Town Meetings, which serve as an opportunity to make democratic decisions on
the town’s budget for roads, schools, fire engines, trash removal, water, and
social services. In many communities, they also consider issues of national and
global importance. To be placed on the
agenda for the Town Meeting, 5% of the registered voters in town need to sign a
petition.
For the Town Meeting
2002, 30 towns in Vermont had an article on their agendas that read: “Shall the voters of [town] endorse the
Earth Charter, and recommend that the Town, the State of Vermont, the United
States of America, and the United Nations use the Earth Charter to guide
decision-making on issues of local, state, national, and international
importance.”
Most of
the Town Meetings in the state have taken place over the past several days, and
21 towns have now endorsed the Earth Charter, despite some fairly strong
opposition. Many towns that participated in the campaign are now asking for
assistance in implementing the principles of the Charter in their community.
European Space Agency launches satellite to monitor
closely earth’s changes
1 March - The largest and most expensive satellite
ever built by Europe blasted off today, beginning its mission to monitor the
environmental health of Planet Earth. The environmental satellite, or
Envisat, was launched from French Guiana into orbit about 500 miles above the
surface of the Earth, where it will circle the planet every 100 minutes.
Envisat's mission is to collect vital data on how Earth's land, oceans, ice
caps, and atmosphere are changing. The information will be analyzed by
scientists and used to help establish European environmental policy. The program's
sponsors called it a powerful symbol of the strength of a united Europe, and
Jose Achache, director of the Earth Observation program for the European Space
Agency, said the mission would enable scientists and environmentalists "to
trace the smallest changes to the Earth's surface anywhere on the globe."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1847000/1847987.stm
BP will halt its political contributions worldwide
1 March - BP, the world's third-largest oil company,
announced last night that it will halt all of its political contributions
worldwide. The decision appears to reflect a desire to avoid accusations
of influence peddling in the era of Enron, and could set a precedent for other
companies. It could also be seen as a triumph for anti-globalization
activists and other organizations, which BP CEO Sir John Browne said had "intensified
scrutiny" on corporate activities. Browne said the company would
continue to engage in policy debate, but would not fund any political activity
or party. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, BP, which makes
about half of its money in the United States, spent $1.1 million on the 2000
U.S. elections, with two-thirds of the total going to Republican
candidates. BP was the first major oil company to acknowledge the threat
of global warming.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/28/business/28DONA.html
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/bayarea/news/politics/2763547.htm
GEF - Danube Basin TEST -
Phase II
Vienna, Austria 20-21 February
- The US$1 million UNIDO Danube Basin TEST (Transfer of Environmentally Sound
Technology) Programme, financed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) has entered
phase two of its implementation. The national coordinators from the five
Danubian cleaner production institutions (Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia
and Romania) participating in the pilot study met at UNIDO headquarters (20 -
21 February 2002) to present the results of Phase I and finalise plans for
Phase II, which runs until September 2003.
The Danube Basin Programme
started in May 2001. (…)
Computer training in Tanzania benefits students and
their country
Tuesday, 5 March 2002: Tanzanians striving to get a
good quality education in information and communications technology (ICT) can
now earn an internationally-recognized certificate locally.
A group of 38 students have just graduated from the Cisco Networking Academy Programme at the University
of Dar-es-Salaam computing centre. They earned Cisco Certified Network Associate
certificates, the same one awarded to students at many US universities and high
schools.
The programme includes employment counselling, and
many graduates will find jobs managing small and medium-sized computer networks
for Tanzanian businesses and public institutions.
The Tanzanian programme benefits from the Least Developed Countries Initiative set up by Cisco
Systems and UNDP to
promote ICT training in countries facing the widest digital divide. Tanzania is
a leader among 24 African countries participating in the initiative.
Through the initiative, Cisco provides training
materials and UNDP helps make the programme affordable. The four-month course
normally costs approximately US$3,000 per student outside the US, but the
initiative cuts that in half. (…)
http://www.undp.org/dpa/index.html
Traveling seminar for university students in India
27 February - In India, UNIFEM and the NGO AAKAR
organized a ‘traveling seminar’ on gender, masculinity and violence against
women. The seminar targets young men and women in six universities throughout
the country and seeks to explore issues of sexuality and masculinity in
relation to the increase in violence against women, as well as HIV/AIDS and
population control policies. The traveling seminar has already visited
universities in Baroda and Trivandrum and is currently at universities in
Delhi.
For more information, contact Gitanjali Singh at the
South Asia Office, at:
gitanjali.singh@undp.org
March 20: Earth Day, by John McConnell
This is the day that Spring begins and provides a
powerful time for people worldwide to join in dedication to be responsible
Trustees of Earth. On this day, there is a moment that is special to the
whole human family -- the March Equinox. (…)
The March Equinox was chosen for Earth Day in1970 --
the first Earth Day. The idea was not local convenience or comfortable
weather -- which varies from place to place, but a day suitable for
international celebration. On this day, night and day are equal. This
day is a million year symbol of the balance of nature and the equilibrium we
seek on Earth. (…) Each year since then the Peace Bell at the United Nations
has been rung on Earth Day at the moment Spring begins. This is followed by
silent prayer -- a time for heartfelt commitment to think and act as
Earth Trustees. (…) On Earth Day join with your friends and family at
home, church, school or work to mark this day with attention for the wonder of
life and what we can do for people and planet. Let's have bells ring all over
the world when the Peace Bells are rung on Earth Day. (…)
www.earthsite.org
March 20: world day of planetary consciousness
March 20th, the
first spring day of 2002, marks the second annual “World Day of Planetary
Consciousness” as events take place planet-wide from New Zealand to Samoa.
Planetary consciousness is the recognition of the vital interdependence and
essential interconnection of all humankind and the earth. It is a new
consciousness that can help create a shared vision of "a united humanity
living in harmony with nature", at this crucial time in our history.
People from many cultures and
nations will again unite on this World Day under the banner of the Planetary
Vision Festival to celebrate the spirit of humanity’s new consciousness,
including in: Nelson, Brisbane, Fukuoka, St. Petersburg, Budapest, Sao Paolo,
Washington D.C., Buffalo, Toronto, Mississauga, Trinidad & Tobago,
Vancouver, San Francisco and Apia.
The Festival was launched in
2001, the official first year of the 21st Century and the Third
Millennium. Thousands of people in over 50 countries joined together to
participate in many new World Days and Festival events. The Planetary Vision
Festival has been initiated by The Club of Budapest (www.club-of-budapest.org)
in partnership with the PVF Founding Alliance.
Season for Non-Violence: January 30 - April 4
The Season for
Non-Violence is being observed during the period between the assassinations of
Mahatma Gandhi (January 30) and Martin Luther King (April 4). UN celebrations
for the Season include presentation of the Gandhi-King Season for Non-Violence
Award.
The closing event at the UN
will be on April 9 from 1-3 PM. It will include entertainment, and special
guests such as Amb. Iftekhar Ahmed of Bangladesh; Mahatma Gandhi's
grandchildren, Parliamentarian from the Republic of South Africa, Ela Gandhi
and her brother Arun, the founder of the MK Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence;
and Yolanda, Bernice and Martin King III, the children of Martin Luther King,
Jr. For those who wish to attend, please register no later than April 3
by calling the Interfaith Center of NY, 212-685-4242 # 32.
http://www.igc.org/habitat/snv-2002/
March 15:
Meditation for Peace in Sri Lanka & the World
The Sarvodaya
Peace Operation 2002 (SPPO-2) is engaged in a massive peace campaign in Sri
Lanka to bring a final end to the nation's bloody civil war - now in its
nineteenth year. March 15th will see the largest peace meditation ever held in
the country - and potentially the largest event of it's kind ever held
anywhere. 500,000 people will spend the day in meditation for peace in the
ancient sacred city of Anuradapura. The meditators are expected to come from
30,000 villages throughout the country. They will represent all ethnic and
religious groups.
The first
Sarvodaya Peace Meditation, held in Colombo in 1999, drew 170,000 meditators.
Since then a series of smaller regional gatherings, attended by tens of
thousands, have been held.
http://www.sarvodaya.org/PeaceInitiative/PeaceOperation2002/PressRelease.htm
http://www.commonway.org/CWIJOURNAL9-15.html#PeaceFront
On 15 March
Sarvodaya will also initiate a programme linking 1000 villages in the war-torn
North and East with 1000 villages in the South. Villagers in the South will
continuously go to the villages in the North and East with skilled and
unskilled labour and material to begin rehabilitation of houses, wells, tanks,
schools, toilets and places of religious worship. The slogan of this programme,
linking villages of different ethnic,
religious and language groups is: village to village : heart to heart. (…) sarpeace@sltnet.lk
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Good News Agency is distributed through
Internet to over 2,400 editorial offices of the daily newspapers and
periodical magazines and of the radio and television stations with an e-mail
address in 46 countries: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh,
Belgium, Bosnia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Croatia,
Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Finland, Holland, Hungary,
India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Luxembourg,
Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway,
Philippines, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, Venezuela, USA, and it is also available in its web
site: http://www.goodnewsagency.org
It is a free of charge service of Associazione
Culturale dei Triangoli e della Buona Volontà Mondiale, a registered
non-profit educational organization chartered in Italy in 1979. The Association
operates for the development of consciousness and supports the activities of
the Lucis Trust, the Club of Budapest, the Earth Charter, Radio For Peace
International and other organizations promoting a culture of peace in the
‘global village’ perspective based on unity within diversity and on
sharing. Via Antagora 10, 00124 Rome, Italy. E-mail: s.tripi@tiscalinet.it
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