All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

Bubonic plague festers in Madagascar′s slums | Africa | DW.DE | 25.11.2014

Ankasina is a poor and overcrowded slum on the northern edge of Madagascar’s capital city Antananarivo. Waste water flows through open gutters; dirt and garbage collects in heaps on the streets. The area is infested with rats, local residents say. Many blame the state for neglecting the neighborhood.

And now, the rats have brought in an even bigger problem: the plague. For the first time in ten years, the disease has started to spread in Madagascar’s capital. A young woman from Ankasina died from the bubonic plague; she most likely contracted it after being bitten by a flea, which had contracted the bacteria from the rodents. She is one of 47 people who have died in the current outbreak on the island.

Warm climate, poor hygiene

Madagascar’s Prime Minister Kolo Roger admits that the plague has now also entered the capital city. He speaks of an epidemic on the island. “For each case, all the necessary measures have been taken to stop the spreading,” he announced. “All cases, whether far away or in the capital of Antananarivo are being dealt with seriously.”

via Bubonic plague festers in Madagascar′s slums | Africa | DW.DE | 25.11.2014.

BBC News – Underwear protest: Mexican farmers take to the streets

Mexican farmers have held a demonstration in their underwear to protest against alleged abuse of power by three former state governors.

The group would like to see former Veracruz governors, Dante Delgado, Patricio Chirinos and Miguel Aleman brought to trial for what they claim to be violations of civil rights.

via BBC News – Underwear protest: Mexican farmers take to the streets.

Dusk’s Dance #poetry #haiku #sea #photography

penned in moon dust

this road–

no one goes down it

autumn’s end

~Basho

And here I meet him – Dusk

eyes linger

on the last flames

burning off cities in the distance

he offers his hand

“will you dance?”

“yes, but I must rise soon.”

for a few stolen moments

we dance as the day fades to away

sun-drop 1

last of day’s splendor

blue sky merges with sea

moon yawns

Kristjaan at Chevrefeuille’s Carpe Diem prompts us to write about Dusk. I used my poetic license to create a haibun for such an occasion.

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Acid Attacks: The New Gender Terrorism.

The Ignited Mind !

image

Mumbai: “With her head bend down , staring at the floor, saliva running down her skin, a woman is unable to lift her head or close her mouth.
Acid has melted her skin, her life ahead. Acid attack or acid throwing is a fast spreading social issue in under – developed as well as developing countries. An estimated of 1,500 people are victim’s of such barbaric attacks. People throwing acids are like wild animal’s who need to be tamed before they go viral, as it happens in most cases. 80% of such attacks happen on women and about 40% of them being below 18 year’s of age. Though  most of these attacks are becoming increasingly banal in countries such India,  Cambodia, Nepal, Vietnam,  Laos, Kenya, Pakistan amoung the many others, Bangladesh  has till date reported the highest number of attacks in the world!
Seldom resulting in death, the horror of…

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The Yallahs River, one of the main water sources for Jamaica’s Mona Reservoir, has been dry for months. Credit: Desmond Brown/IPS | Flickr – Photo Sharing!

The Yallahs River, one of the main water sources for Jamaica’s Mona Reservoir, has been dry for months. Credit: Desmond Brown/IPS

via The Yallahs River, one of the main water sources for Jamaica’s Mona Reservoir, has been dry for months. Credit: Desmond Brown/IPS | Flickr – Photo Sharing!.

The Voice of Nada: Rivers of Belief

Rivers of Belief

Take me back to the rivers of belief

Take me back to the rivers of belief

my friend

I look inside my heart

I loke inside my soul

I promise you

I will return

I look inside my soul

I promise you

I will return

And when the Lamb

opened the seventh seal

silence covered the sky

Take me back to the rivers of belief

Take me back to the rivers of belief

my friend

I look inside my heart

I look inside my soul

I’m reaching out for you

Lets hope one day

We’ll rest in peace on my rivers of belief

~ by Enigma

via The Voice of Nada: Rivers of Belief.

Egyptian Aak 2014 – Week 47 ( Nov 17 – 23)

Nervana

Al-Jazeera Staff

(Peter Greste’s parents appeal to Egypt’s Sisi, via BBC)

Main Headlines

 Monday

Tuesday

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مذكرات ثائرة: Embracing Mesntruating Vaginas

“My mother talked to me about my body on several occasions, she told me about periods to stop me from asking what are pads used for in front of people. She told me that it would be a scandal if someone saw a blood stain on my clothes … That I should hide my periods as I should hide my naked body. After I got my period, I was shocked by the way I was sexualized and was expected to act. I was expected to be less playful but I missed jumping around without feeling every atom in my body as a frame around me. I had to lock myself in the bathroom for long periods of time to avoid my father seeing me with a pad in hands. Some sellers hid pads in paper and black plastic bags as if they were illegal.”

via مذكرات ثائرة: Embracing Mesntruating Vaginas.