Sunday, December 28, 2008

Blood and Diamond

Diamonds are forever" it is often said. But lives are not.We must spare people the ordeal of war, mutilations and death for the sake of conflict diamonds." (Martin Chungong Ayafor, Chairman of the Sierra Leone Panel of Experts)

Dear my beloved readers, have you ever seen watching a Blood Diamonds movie? the great movie that is played by Leonardo Dicaprio as a main actor.
Blood Diamond movie particullary tells about the bad condition and situation in Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone become one of the most of emergency area in Africa. The existence of internal conflict in Sierra Leone has fuelled by the combination of their richness of its natural resources, mismanagement and the greedy who is control it.
Diamond: Blessing and Curse in Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone becomes one of country which diamond is abundant, and these diamonds has create a great conflict and human rights violation where over 50.000 people havebeen killed, and over one million people having beem displaced. It has made United Nations General Assembly taking up this problem into their agenda and and adopted a resolution on the role of diamonds in fuelling conflict, breaking the link between the illicit transaction of rough diamonds and armed conflict, as a contribution to prevention and settlement of conflict (A/RES/55/56)

According to definition of Conflict Diamonds from United Nations, conflict diamonds are diamonds that originate from from areas controlled by forces or factions opposed to legitimate and internationally recognized governments, and are used to fund military action in opposition to those governments, or in contravention of the decisions of Security Council.
While the conflict diamonds in the Sierra Leone, at the first time is happen when the rebel group ( Revolutionary United Front/RUF) have called the various government corrups and accused them do the mismanagement of diamond and mineral reseources. The Rebel themselves, then have commited abuses at civilians. People have been raped, amputated, torture, and more. At the first time, RUF may have started from respectable aims, but time after time, they themselves have been corrupted and attracted others who see the RUF as a way to get at the diamonds an profit from it.

In the other hand, this conflict has been escalated by the involvement of multinational corporation that had concession to mine diamonds offshore. In its attempt to mop up supplies everywhere in the world, it is virtually inconceivable that the company is not, in the way or another, purchasing diamonds that have been smuggled out of Sierra Leone.

Africa, the area that actually can be welfare because of its nature become failed to build natural resources for their society. The problem of Sierra Leone Conflict is not the only one. The problem of mismanagement oil in Nigeria and the other African country, Timber in Liberia has created a mass human right violation. That is there is a perception that oil and natural resources is tichker that blood.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas for all of people around the world.
Peace in our heart, peace in our earth

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Seems Like a Family

One of something that I have grateful is my blog and blogging friends. I really grateful with my blog which give me much inspiration, forced and encourage me to learn much before I make a new posting, increasing my English ability, and the most important is recognize culture and custom around the world, and can meet my blogging friends.

Perhaps my blogging friends is far away with me and difficult to meet, but by my blogging friends seems so close with me and each other. When I visit the blog of another and leave a comment, I feel we have done a good interaction. We also always give a much support each other, admiring one another, and recognize some of our life each other.

When my blogging friend write something I always imagine how is their life today. I can imagine how their feeling when their pour a words in to a posting.

I know blogging is not like a chat, not like a facebook or friendster which can help to meet and interact with every people directly. But, blogging make me feel more of do those. By posting something and leave a comment we have shared everything, even share our problem and happiness, and it's really makes me think that it seems like a family or close friends.

I really thank you with my blogging friends who appreciate and give their time to visit my blog, I really glad can meet Grace who is my first blogging friends, can meet Tikno who always ask me to discussion, meet Jim who make me encourage to write, meet Ben who want to be my good friends, meet Azmath who also want me to be his good friend too (I thank you for your message, I'll be reply it soon), Lorflor who give me much inspiration by his wonderful posting and picture, Aldhis who also leave a good comment (oh, perhaps I can meet Aldhis in Jakarta someday), Thank you too for whiteshadow who always teach a kindness, Elendil who always posting everyday and leave me a comment, Ettarose who has same perception with me, my Indonesian frends(Rfun, Ita and yudi), Maria "the Iron Woman", Sandra, Ramana, Pearl, Nazanin, Mike, Jazzie, Mari, and Ayamlin, Anton and Cuspedepita and all of Blogging friends who cant be mentioned one by one...I really grateful to meet you all.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Women and the Struggle for the Environment (the Story of Indian Women)

Indian Women: struggle for the sustainability environment.
Dear my beloved readers, perhaps lately we often heard about the effort to save and defend our environment. The issue of environment become one of the crucial issue today, as we know that there are a lot of negative impact from the destruction of environment and mismanagement of natural resources, like climate change and global warming, water crises, and flood in many area. The decreased of environment sustainability, create many effort to do a tight protection through both locally or internationally. In India, the effort to struggle the environment is much done by the women. Through mobilization, women fight to prevent further more ecological destruction.

The green Revolution has created a positive impact by its success in increasing global food supply, but in the other hand, the failure of this revolution has created a negative impact by the ecological destruction. The problem of debt, the deforestation for the expansion of agricultural land, the negative effect of fertilizer and chemical pesticide, scarcity of water, and the building of dam which expropriate the area of society and agricultural land, and expropriate the role of women in the agricultural and as a the main food provider for their family and society is the become one of problem that is experienced by Indian society especially the women.

The green revolution has moved the control of natural resources (plantation) from women and farmer to the food corporation and multinational agribusiness by new superior varieties technology, and ignore the social and ecological effect of that revolution. In the other hand, Indian women against the natural concept as the pillage and try to protect environment as a Prakriti (the vitality to sustain the life). The Indian society, especially the women struggle to defend and preserve the life. The repression for the environment which is the kind of development model at a present also become a repression for the women, which depend on the nature in their effort to get a food for their family and society.

Try to protect the trees by embrace them.
That’s why the Indian women begin to make a mobilization to protect their environment. One of the movement is called Chipko Movement. Chipko means embrace, which describe the the effort of women to protect the plant by embracing the trees in order to prevent the saw machine and ax cutting the trees. Chipko movement has saved a thousand of square kilometers forests in Himalaya area, because the forest has a relation with their livelihood to fulfill their food supply and become of their income. The other movement is a Narmada Bachao Andolan which is still struggle until now to stop the building of dam in Narmada Valley.

By these movements, the Indian women try to struggle to prevent the ecological destruction. From years after years they commit a demonstration, protest and long march from one village to another village and get a positive result.

The effort of Indian women really wonderful, they have to sacrificed their live to protect the environment, and I hope it’s also become a inspiration for us to care our environment.

(thanks for my best friend, Eka Apritriasa)

Sunday, December 14, 2008

For the Future

Lately I have though hardly about my preparation to go to Jakarta. Yeah, it is something you should know that I will leave my town and move to the Jakarta. I will live in Jakarta to looking for job and begin a new life. Jakarta is a capital of Indonesia and the biggest city. I choose to go to Jakarta because I think it is a better town to looking for a job and build my career. Perhaps we all know that every success way and fortune has decided by God, but I am sure as human being we have to attempt to get our best.
I have a plan to go to Jakarta at December 26. It less than ten days from now, and I begin to restless about everything. Jakarta is a city which is very crowded and disorderly. Living there need to struggle very hard. I also will starting separated life with my family, and It's my first time to be far away from my parents.
As long as I have not found a job yet, I will living in my cousin's family. While I will try to find an exact job to me and looking for a place for the next life.
Sometimes I feel so hard to begin it. But nothing that I can do except looking for my livelihood for my own self. I am an adult person now, I am not a little girl anymore who depend everything on somebody else. I will try to do my best and hold on in every situation. I also just do hope that I will get a comfortable in my new place and protection for me and my family in my home.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Human Rights for All

Today is a human rights day celebration, and the anniversary of 60th Universal Declaration on Human Rights. On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

United Nations declared Universal Declaration of Human Rights with many essential purpose, which we can see in the preamble of it. Whereas those purpose is based on the basic human need. Universal Declaration of Human Rights has considered that recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace the world. In the other hand, this declaration want to protect individuals from atrocities and abusing their rights. They considered that disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous act which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human being shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people. United Nations also see that men and women have equal rights and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom, considered the importance of the development of friendly relations between nations, and want to promote understanding of these rights and freedom is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge.

Therefore The General Assembly proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

Every human has rights. That is the essence of our humanity. It places on each of us the duty to stand up, not just for our own rights but also for those of others - and to help turn the vision of the UDHR into a reality. That is the spirit of international solidarity. That is the true meaning of universal, indivisible human rights.

On this special anniversary, many people will gathering together in hundred of places around the world, to light a candle, fire, and flame in a mass demonstration.

On Human Rights Day, we ought to stand up for human rights and let show our solidarity with all people around this globe who are committed to making human rights a reality for everyone.

Happy human rights day for all...

Monday, December 8, 2008

Today

Today there are a family reunion. This is the family reunion from my father family. and the place for reunion is in the my father's uncle who owns a Botanical Park. This botanical park, becomes one of picnic destination in my town.
So, I and my family come there at 8.30 am. The condition rather crowded today because this is a day off.
We come together in one place, while my family who belongs to that park admit me and the others to try every arena on that park freely. So, I choose to play the sort of outbound, because of do not brought any preparation for swimming or fishing or the others. Playing flying fox and fly freely. Really astonishing ^-^....This pict was captured by my father


Preparation to fly, really nervous, but still able to smile..
Actually I rather afraid of elevated place
That's me.....not George of the Jungle....

Saturday, December 6, 2008

HIV: Social Stigma and Discrimination

First of all, I like to say thank you for Tikno and Peterahon who have given their voice to promote the rights of people which infecting this diseases by their posting. Surely I also thank you because its inspiration to write about it.

Well, my posting today perhaps almost same with Tikno, but maybe more emphasize in Stigma and Discriminationof HIV AIDS.

Like we all know that the problem of AIDS at a present become famous and became one of issues in security agendas. It is because the victim of AIDS is become higher and higher time after time and rather difficult to prevent. According to the data, more than 25 million people around the world have died of AIDS-related diseases. In 2007, around 2.1 million men, women and children lost their lives. 33 million people around the world are now living with HIV, and most of these are likely to die over the next decade or so. The most recent UNAIDS/WHO estimates show that, in 2007 alone, 2.5 million people were newly infected with HIV. The second is AIDS is a one of diseases that easy to infected without knowing the age, situation, and level of society. The next, the issue of AIDS is related with social stigma and discrimination in the society, so it makes more difficult in preventing and increase the problem instead.

Regarding to the last point, HIV / AIDS is often related with stigma or discrimination. (Erving Goffman (1963) describes stigma as “an attribute that is deeply discrediting,” transforming
the affected individual into a “discredited” person)
That’s why, although there are many of successes in prevention or giving treatment of HIV, stigma and discrimination have been intractable problems associated with HIV / AIDs around the world. Finally It result in the successful prevention of this diseases. It causes people delay HIV testing, restrict utilization of preventative programs, and hinder the adoption of preventive behaviour like condom use and HIV status disclosure.

From the early days of the identification of AIDS, the disease has been powerfully linked to behaviors that are illegal (such as illicit drug use) or are considered immoral by many people (such as promiscuity). Consequently, a diagnosis of AIDS was a mark of disgrace, although medical researches reveal that the disease follows well defined modes of transmission that can affect any person. As the extent of endemic unfolded, misinformation about AIDs and how transmitted triggered fear of contracting diseases.

In some developing countries like African countries, have met the AIDs head on, attempting to educate citizen and change high risk behavior in the population. However, other nations have been slow to even acknowledge the disease. It is different with developed countries some of the stigma attached to a diagnosis of AIDS has lessened in recent years, it is because of the admissions by public figures and celebrities, especially in the United States, that they were HIV infected.

The social, ethical, and economic effects of the AIDS epidemic are still play a role, and no one is entirely certain what the consequences will be get. Despite the many bad facts of the AIDS epidemic, however, humanity is armed with proven, effective weapons against the disease: knowledge, education, prevention, and the ever-growing store of information about the virus’s actions (review from: Microsoft Office Encarta 2007, UNDP report)