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Ending the Waiting Game: Strategies for Responding to Internally Displaced People in Burma

Burma is experiencing one of the most neglected humanitarian and human rights crises in the world. No less than half a million people are internally displaced in the eastern part of the country and at least one million more have fled to neighboring nations. This report provides an in-depth look at the causes of displacement in Burma, the acute needs of the internally displaced population and the current response to those needs. (Refugees International, 2006)

http://www.refugeesinternational.org/content/publication/detail/8705/

(Added: Wed Sep 13 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 191)

No Safe Place: Burma's Army and the Rape of Ethnic Women [pdf]

"I have waited many years to tell you this story," one Karenni woman lamented as she told of witnessing her thirteen-yearold sister's rape and then described how the Burmese soldiers beat and attempted to rape her. She is just one of countless women from Burma's ethnic minority groups, sometimes known as ethnic nationalities, with a chilling tale of abuse at the hands of her country's army. (Refugeees International, 2003)

http://www.refugeesinternational.org/files/3023_file_no_safe_place.pdf

(Added: Wed Sep 13 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 220)

Philippines: Political Killings, Human Rights and the Peace Process

Over recent years reports of an increased number of killings of political activists, predominately those associated with leftist or left-orientated groups, have caused increasing concern. Amnesty International believes that the killings constitute a pattern and that a continuing failure to deliver justice to the victims represents a failure by the Government of the Philippines to fulfil its obligation to protect the right to life of every individual in its jurisdiction. Amnesty beleieves thatthe killings constitute a pattern of politically targeted extrajudicial executions taking place within the broader context of a continuing counter-insurgency campaign. They have played a major role in the break-down of a protracted peace process and an accompanying human rights agreement. (Amnesty International, 15 August 2006)

http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engasa350062006

(Added: Wed Aug 16 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 175)

The brief describes three innovative initiatives to get girls out of work and into school in China, India and the Philippines. These initiatives incor

The 30 page report describes three innovative initiatives to get girls out of work and into school in China, India and the Philippines. These initiatives incorporate methods such as training girls to be peer educators; direct assistance to cover education costs; incorporating life skills and sex education; creating participatory "girl-friendly" environments and outreach education for communities; community mobilisation against bonded labour; training local girl-child activists to educate communities. The brief sets out key actions required to increase girls' participation in education. (UNESCO Bankok, 2006)

http://www.unescobkk.org/fileadmin/user_upload/appeal/gender/pdf/girls.pdf

(Added: Tue Aug 15 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 70)

Offside!: labour rights and sportswear production in Asia

This report considers 12 international sports brands - Adidas, ASICS, FILA, Kappa, Lotto, Mizuno, New Balance, Nike, Puma, Reebok, Speedo and Umbro - and examines the steps they take to ensure their suppliers in Asia allow workers to organise trade unions and bargain collectively for better wages and conditions. It gives a detailed description of each of the companies corporate social responsibility approaches and behaviour. (T Connor, K Dent, Oxfam, 2006)

http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_we_do/issues/trade/downloads/offside_sportswear.pdf

(Added: Thu Jun 22 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 289)

Rejection of Visa for Dalai Lama: When does a Nobel Prize-winning peace activist become an ``undesirable?''

Last week the Dalai Lama, winner of the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize, was unable to attend the 2006 Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in South Korea because its government, sensitive to the wishes of China, refused him a visa. This article urges the acknowledgement of human rights above political kowtowing. (Mickey Spiegel, Korea Times, June 2006)

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/06/19/china13585.htm

(Added: Wed Jun 21 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 138)

Watershed Anti-sweatshop Legislation Introduced in the U.S. Congress

For the first time, anti-sweatshop legislation has been introduced in the U.S. Congress which will prohibit the import, export or sale of sweatshop goods in the U.S. Up to this point, it has been the companies that have demanded and won all sorts of enforceable laws -intellectual property and copyright laws backed up by sanctions - to defend their corporate trademarks, labels and products. On Thursday, June 8, in what some believe will be looked back upon as a watershed moment Senator Byron Dorgan introduced Senate Bill 3485, "The Decent Working Conditions and Fair Competition Act" which will, for the first time, hold corporations legally accountable to respect the core International Labor Organization worker rights standards - no child labor, no forced labor, freedom of association, right to organize and bargain collectively and to decent working conditions. (NLC, 2006)

http://www.nlcnet.org/live/article.php?id=35

(Added: Tue Jun 13 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 241)

The Tsunami exacerbates Dalit women's sufferings from caste discrimination

Dalits are the lowest caste people in India , the so-called untouchables. Most Dalit villages in the northern districts of Tamil Nadu, from Tiruvallur to Nagapattinam, have been affected by the tsunami. Families who lost their houses are not eligible for housing assistance as for generations they lived on their land without land titles. Over a million Dalit survivors of the tsunami have been living as refugees in 'warehouse' type temporary shelters set up near graveyards or garbage dumps without sanitation and/or electricity. The relief supplies are handed to men who spend the money on alcohol leading to increased domestic violence. Even the tsunami failed to wash away caste discrimination in the Indian society. (Fatima Burnad, Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development)

http://www.apwld.org/tsunami_dalitwomen.htm

(Added: Thu Jun 08 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 210)

India: soft drinks, hard cases

The Indian government forced Coca- Cola out of the country in 1977. The company's return, in October 1993, coincided with the arrival of its arch-rival Pepsi. The United States multinationals now own 90 factories in India: Coca-Cola 52 and Pepsi 38. They describe these as bottling plants; actually they are pumping stations, each of which extracts up to 1.5m litres of water a day from the ground. It takes nine litres of clean water to manufacture a litre of Coke. The extraction of groundwater deprives poor people of their fundamental right of access to clean water. The factories spew out toxic waste that threatens health and the environment. (Vandana Shiva, The Environment Times, Sep. 2005)

http://www.environmenttimes.net/article.cfm?pageID=205

(Added: Tue Jun 06 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 180)

Asian Human Rights Commission - Urgent Appeals

AHRC has an Urgent Appeals desk that operates around the clock. AHRC issues Urgent Appeals on behalf of persons or groups whose human rights have been violated, and for whom some immediate intervention by people around the world may lead to a remedy or official reaction. This appeals network is connected to other networks, and it has tens of thousands of contacts throughout Asia and other countries.

http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/

(Added: Fri Jun 02 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 286)

Philippines: A Nation in the Grip of a Grave Crisis, Implications on the Lives of Grassroots Women

Since the last quarter of 2004, a surge of killings, abductions and disappearances have swept the Philippines. This article tells of Esmeralda Ecat, a peasant woman leader from Leyte in the Visayas, that were subjected to torture for almost 24 hours in front of her two young children, and other women having their human rights violated by the military. (National Federation of Peasant Women - Philippines, 2005)

http://www.dontglobalisehunger.org/article_tfriw.php

(Added: Thu Jun 01 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 94)

Justice for Victims of Agent Orange

Even though the Vietnam War ended 30 years ago, the US's saturation chemical bombing is still wreaking havoc on millions, including the newly born, making them third-generation victims. Nobody knows when the congenital deformities, one of many horrific health consequences of the toxic chemicals, will end. Sign this international online petition in solidarity with all the Agent Orange victims in Vietnam. Launched in 2004, more than 600,000 signatures have already been collected. (Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin)

http://www.greenleft.org.au/agent_orange.htm

(Added: Wed May 31 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 326)

The Burmese people can't wait much longer

In this article, a Burmese former policial prisoner writes about his country, an 'aborted democracy' that the military regime call Myanmar. Tuberculosis, malaria and AIDS have reached their highest levels ever. The education system is a shambles. Inflation is rampant. To unblock the stalemate over humanitarian aid caused by the regime's pariah status, the only opposition has made overtures to the regime, only to be dismissed as 'terrorists.' The article outlines ways the international community can help. (Ludu Sein Win, International Herald Tribune, 23 May 2006)

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/05/23/opinion/edludu.php

(Added: Thu May 25 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 213)

Human Rights in China: Take Action

The recent crackdown on activists in China may be seen as the government's attempt to control public discontent over official scandals such as environmental degradation, corruption and land grabs. By writing a letter or signing the "Fill the Square" petition today, you can take action to support human rights in China.

http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/article?revision%5fid=27775&item%5fid=1613

(Added: Thu May 11 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 229)

China's silence boosts tyrants

As President Hu Jintao of China visits the White House, this author recommends that huma rights comes up in the conversation - not just as regards to China's repression at home, but China's troubling indifference to human rights abroad. As Hu puts it, China operates "without any political strings." Inspired by how it would like to be treated by others, Beijing adheres to a policy of "noninterference in internal affairs," trading, investing and providing aid without regard to whether its partner is a democratic visionary or a tyrant. Yet, as this article shows, the effect - in Darfur, Angola, Zimbabwe, Uzbekistan, Cambodia, and Myanmar - is anything but neutral. (Kenneth Roth, International Herald Tribune, 19 April 2006)

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/04/19/opinion/edroth.php

(Added: Tue May 02 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 176)

Freedom From Debt Bondage in Sight

For 17 years Pakistan's brick kiln owners have defied Supreme Court orders and legislation banning the practice of 'peshgi' (debt bondage) that mean workers are slaves with no rights. However, an eight day strike of two million brick workers has brought about compromises from brick kiln owners and promises from the government that observers hope will lead to better working standards. (Zofeen T. Ebrahim, IPS News, 28 April 2006)

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=33062

(Added: Mon May 01 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 162)

After the Tsunami: Human Rights of Vulnerable Populations

After the Tsunami: Human Rights of Vulnerable Populations is based on interviews conducted by research teams in March and April 2005 with hundreds of tsunami survivors, government officials, human rights activists, and aid workers in five tsunami-affected countries-India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and Thailand.

http://www.eastwestcenter.org/res-rp-publicationdetails.asp?pub_ID=1961

(Added: Mon Nov 28 2005   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 365)

Contract farming in India : impact on women and children

International Institute for Environment and Development Natural Resources Group and Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Livelihoods Programme (2003). Written by Sukhpal Singh. This paper draws on case studies of hybrid cottonseed production in Andhra Pradesh and vegetable farming in Punjab to examine the labour conditions in contract farming in India. It discusses how workers employed by contract producers tend to experience poor terms and conditions, especially women workers, and there is an increasing incidence of child labour. The author argues for the need to take a gender perspective to address the whole question of a changing agrarian production structure under contract farming, especially issues associated with transfer of skills, choice of technology, organisation of labour, working conditions and terms of work.

http://www.iied.org/NR/agbioliv/gatekeepers/documents/GK111.pdf#search=%22Contract%20farming%20in%20India%20%3A%20impact%20on%20women%20and%20children%22

(Added: Mon Jul 25 2005   Modified: Fri Mar 28 2008   Hits: 197)

A joint statement by 14 local and international NGOs on the present situation in Nepal

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), 7 March 2005. Statement adopted by 14 local, regional and international human rights bodies and academic institutions, who gathered in Bangkok, Thailand at the 4th International Criminal Court (ICC) Campaign Network Regional Meeting regarding the present situation in relation to human rights in Nepal.

http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2005/973

(Added: Tue Mar 08 2005   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 421)

Nepal: A long ignored human rights crisis now on the brink of catastrophe

Amnesty International Press release, 17/02/2005. (Delhi) A human rights catastrophe is looming in Nepal following the declaration of the state of emergency by King Gyanendra on 1 February, declared Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International. "The longstanding conflict between the Maoists and the armed forces has destroyed human rights in the countryside. Now, the state of emergency is destroying human rights in the urban areas, taking the country to the brink of disaster," said Ms Khan, presenting the findings of the Amnesty International mission to Nepal between 10-16 February.

http://news.amnesty.org/index/ENGASA310232005

(Added: Mon Feb 21 2005   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 114)

Imparsial: Indonesian Human Rights Monitor

IMPASIAL was established in June 2002 by 17 of Indonesia s most prominent human rights advocates who shared the same concern: the power of the state showed an increasing tendency to assert itself to the detriment of civil society. Imparcial is committed to upholding the fundamental equality of therights possessed by all human beings, with special concern given to promoting the rights of the less fortunate. The organization's impartiality also denotes its commitment to helping victims of human rights abuse regardless of their social origins, gender, ethnicity, political or religious beliefs.

http://www.imparsial.org

(Added: Fri Feb 04 2005   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 223)

Get the 2-CD set that's banned in Burma

27 major musicians, including Paul McCartney, RE.M., Avril Lavigne, Ani DiFranco, Damien Rice, Eric Clapton, Peter Gabriel, Sting, U2, and others have united on this groundbreaking two-CD set to support freedom for 1991 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi and the courageous people of Burma. All proceeds from the CD will benefit the efforts of the US Campaign for Burma. Pugurchase online.

http://www.uscampaignforburma.org/freedomstore/1111.html

(Added: Fri Nov 05 2004   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 332)

US Campaign for Burma

The United States Campaign for Burma is a U.S.-based membership organization dedicated to empowering grassroots activists around the world to bring about an end to the military dictatorship in Burma. Through public education, leadership development initiatives, conferences, and advocacy campaigns at local, national and international levels, USCB works to empower Americans and Burmese dissidents-in-exile to promote freedom, democracy, and human rights in Burma and raise awareness about the egregious human rights violations committed by Burma's military regime.

http://www.uscampaignforburma.org/

(Added: Fri Nov 05 2004   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 94)

Asia Monitor Resource Centre

Asia Monitor Resource Centre (AMRC) is an independent non-government organization (NGO) which focuses on Asian labour concerns. Founded in 1976, AMRC has been leading the way in promoting workers' rights and democratic labour movements in Asia and the Pacific for over 25 years now. The Centre supports a democratic and independent labour movement promoting the principles of labour rights, gender consciousness, and active workers' participation. AMRC provides information, consultation, publications, documentation, and internships, and conducts research, training, advocacy, campaigns, labour networking, and related services to trade unions, pro-labour groups, related NGOs, academics, researchers, and professionals on labour issues.

http://www.amrc.org.hk/

(Added: Wed Oct 13 2004   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 271)

Asian Human Rights Commission

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) was founded in 1986 by a prominent group of jurists and human rights activists in Asia. The AHRC is an independent, non-governmental body, which seeks to promote greater awareness and realisation of human rights in the Asian region, and to mobilise Asian and international public opinion to obtain relief and redress for the victims of human rights violations. AHRC promotes civil and political rights, as well as economic, social and cultural rights.

http://www.ahrchk.net

(Added: Wed Sep 29 2004   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 426)

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