Avian Flu Diary: UK: Aircraft Disinsection Ordered For Zika

On Monday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the issue of microcephaly – which may be linked to Zika – a public health emergency of international concern. As a precautionary measure, the government is asking airlines to ensure that disinsection (spraying with insecticide) takes place on all flights to the UK from countries with confirmed transmission of Zika. Disinsection involves spraying a simple insecticide inside the aircraft to reduce the risk of passengers being bitten by any mosquitoes that could have entered the aircraft. It already occurs on the majority of flights from the region as a precaution against malaria. The move is consistent with advice from WHO Europe. The type of mosquito that transmits the virus is extremely unlikely to survive and breed here given the lower temperatures in the UK.

Source: Avian Flu Diary: UK: Aircraft Disinsection Ordered For Zika

The EU no longer serves the people – democracy demands a new beginning | Yanis Varoufakis | Opinion | The Guardian

But what is the alternative? If neither the retreat into the cocoon of the nation state nor surrender to the disintegrating democracy-free zone known as the EU are good options, is there a third way?Yes, there is. It is the one that official “Europe”, and some local elites, resist with every sinew of their authoritarian mindset: a surge of democracy, orchestrated by Europeans seeking to regain control over their lives from unaccountable technocrats, complicit politicians and opaque institutions.On 9 February some of us, convinced of the above, are gathering in Berlin to found a new movement – DiEM25 (Democracy in Europe Movement 2025). We come from every part of the continent, including Britain, and are united by different cultures, languages, accents, political party affiliations, ideologies, skin colours, gender identities, faiths and conceptions of the good society.One simple, radical idea is our motivating force: to democratise the EU in the knowledge that it will otherwise disintegrate at a terrible cost to all. Our immediate priority is full transparency in decision-making (live-streaming of European councils, Ecofin and Eurogroup meetings; full disclosure of trade negotiations; ECB minutes, etc) and the urgent redeployment of existing EU institutions in the pursuit of policies that genuinely address the crises of debt, banking, inadequate investment, rising poverty and migration.

Source: The EU no longer serves the people – democracy demands a new beginning | Yanis Varoufakis | Opinion | The Guardian

A.J. Muste Memorial Institute How do you hold on to hope? What motivates you to keep resisting?

Source: A.J. Muste Memorial Institute Muste Notes Winter 2016

We do not always hold on to hope. But, even if sometimes without hope, we can and will express that we don’t agree. As Palestinians cannot stop being occupied, we owe them at least this solidarity.
Gush Shalom team

 

We hold onto hope when Palestinians approach us and let us know that our presence in the military courts, or in the checkpoints, makes a difference. We also feel hope when we take Israelis of all ages to see the checkpoints and to meet Palestinians in the Occupied Territories, and they tell us afterwards how we have challenged their views and perspectives. We say that we will not finish our work until the Occupation is over, and the military administration is dismantled.
—Ela Greenberg, MachsomWatch

 

My hope springs from the many people I meet who desire the same changes I do, people from both sides of the conflict. Despair is both the easiest and most impossible choice for us. I can speak for the people who work with me when I say that we feel personal responsibility to find a way forward. I wake up every morning with an understanding that there is no other choice than a shared society between Israeli Jews and Arabs.
Jamal Alkirnawi, A New Dawn in the Negev

 

When we think of those who are living the struggle every moment—the family whose home Rachel stood before in Gaza, our many friends there and throughout a very turbulent Middle East, our Palestinian friends in the U.S. and throughout the world steadfastly challenging displacement, and our colleagues inside Israel who work endlessly for change despite great threat and many obstacles—we know we must resist with them. It is energizing, because it is right.
Cindy and Craig Corrie, Rachel Corrie Foundation

 

A Hate Letter to the Taliban

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Oh, horrid people, I hope your Taliban houses lose their roofs
May the bloody nights of your city be always without magic.
Your ignorant generation has taken our lives
Our dearest ones with a light in their eyes have become orphaned.
Oh, thoughtless people who make our mothers taste the death of their loved ones.
Must the youth always have crying eyes to the death?
Can you think of nothing to do besides egging on atrocities?
Your generation is as unproductive as a fruitless tree.
You, who bomb our schools, our cities, our bazaars,
All you do is destroy our country.

By Fariba H.

Photo by RichardBH

Reza Gul, an Innocent Bird in a Violent Marriage

reza-gul-blurred-photo

Editor’s note: Reza Gul was expected to be taken to Turkey for reconstructive surgery after her husband attacked her with a knife on January 19, 2016 in the remote northern province of Faryab, which borders Turkmenistan. 

Once again, in our land of horror, a young Afghan woman was beaten many times by her husband until she finally lost her nose when he attacked her with a knife.

Reza Gul is like an innocent bird, married for six years and now, at twenty, she is a mother in the Shar Shar village in the Ghormach district of Faryab province. Her husband attacked her and sliced off her nose. She was taken to hospital, while he fled to a nearby Taliban-dominated village.

Reza Gul endured violence so many times. At an age when another girl would still be studying at school, she suffered terrible abuse while raising a child without the help of a husband.

There are many female victims of violence in a similar situation in my country. The Human Rights Commission reported that violence against women in Afghanistan increased seven percent in a six-month period from late March to September 2015 compared with the same months a year earlier. Human Rights Commissioner Qadria Haq Parast said that in that period 2,579 cases of violence against women were documented. This included 190 murdered women.

Why are so many women facing violence in their homes? Why does the violence increase day by day despite all of the organizations and a women’s ministry who work against violence? Does the government pay attention? Is it a lack of security? Are the organizations not doing the work they should? These are questions for the authorities to answer.

I ask all men who commit these acts against women: Would you be able to tolerate the same pain you inflict on your wife or daughter? Can you live without your nose, ear, lips, or fingers? How dare you commit this violence against women? Do you think they are not humans? Even animals do not hurt their co-gender.

If you love your wife and daughter, you will feel the real happiness of life. If you respect them, they will worship you. Being a human being is not so difficult. You lose nothing by acting humane.

My innocent sister Reza Gul, you are not alone. I feel your pain with my body and soul. I wish I could have saved you from your husband but I promise to support your power if you raise your voice. Do not be quiet. Fight for your rights. We are with you. You deserve all the beautiful things in the world. I love you, my innocent bird!

By Afsana

Photo by Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission

Birzeit University ranked top Palestinian and 31st across the Arab World

Based on the volume of scientific material posted on the internet; the excellence of its content and the number of external links referencing the material, Birzeit University has climbed up the Webometrics Ranking and is now ranked 1st in Palestine and 31st in the Arab world, as of January 2016.

Globally, Birzeit ranked 2,140 amongst 24,000 universities worldwide. Based on this data, Birzeit now ranks in the top 3 percent in the Arab world and top 10 percent globally.

The survey used a composite ranking formula to evaluate universities, combining numerous criteria that include the number of links to the university’s website; the number of web pages published by the university; the number of academic publications on the internet; and the citation record of the University’s academic publications.

“This evaluation is live evidence of the University’s hard work in investing in research, innovation and scientific advancement. These are our core activities, enabling us to develop differentiated and effective academic systems, and making it possible for our country – Palestine – to join the global knowledge society and compete in sophisticated knowledge economies,” said Professor Abu Hijleh, University President.

According to Dr. Talal Shahwan, Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies, Webometrics can reveal useful information about a university’s scientific exposure to local and international communities through the web, and its accomplishments and research excellence. He added that an effective presence on the web is vital for the dissemination of academic knowledge and scientific material.

Similarly, Birzeit University has also been classified as the top Palestinian university by the QS Ranking, which also placed Birzeit in the 61-70 cohort amongst Arab universities.

The Webometric Ranking was initiated by a research group affiliated to the Spanish National Research Council, the largest public research body in Spain. This ranking is based on the quantitative analysis of internet and web contents specifically related to the process of generating and communicating scientific knowledge. The purpose of Webometric Ranking is to promote global access to academic knowledge produced by universities and institutions worldwide.  

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