The Karen Hilltribes Trust

Helping the Karen in Thailand

After volunteering with World Relief and helping a Karenni refugee family for about six months, I've learned a lot about the situations going on in Burma and Thailand. In Thailand there are around 400,000 Karen people and in Burma there are more than 8 million! When I was looking for information on Thailand a few weeks ago I found the organization The Karen Hilltribes Trust. KHT is a UK based organization who help the Karen people in Thailand though the dedicated work of volunteers. In the ten years they've been volunteering in Thailand, they've made a huge difference, such as: giving clean water to about 27,000 people year round, distributed 30,000 mosquito nets and 20,000 blankets, and helping 8,000 children go to school. Every year, around 50 volunteers go with them to Thailand to teach and put in irrigations systems. You can also help them by volunteering or donating. Often times it's hard to fathom that there are still pockets of people around the world where life hasn't changed in centuries, the Karen are one example. Make sure to check out the KHT and see how you can help them in their projects in Thailand.

The Karen Hilltribes Trust

Media Monday

Blood Diamonds

Sorry for the brief hiatus, I've had finals and new classes these past two weeks on top of my job and meetings for my medical mission trip to Sierra Leone that's coming up in a little more than a month! So, needless to say, I've been very busy (and sleep deprived!).

So, since I'm returning to Sierra Leone this spring, I read the book Blood Diamonds by Greg Campbell recently to learn more about the blood diamond industry in Sierra Leone. Last spring, I didn't know much about the diamond industry before going to Sierra Leone and I knew little about the civil war that occurred there also. This time, I'm determined to know more about diamonds and the war before I go so I can observed the effects of everything. This book does a fantastic job as summarizing the war and the ways that diamonds are traded and sold throughout the world. The most shocking thing that I found in this book where that diamonds were (are) used to fund terrorism...I never knew that! If you'd like to learn more about this topic, I highly suggest this book. Hope you read this book, like it, learn a lot, and will take action against blood diamonds.

Media Monday

Haiti

I would hope that everyone has heard of what happened/is happening in Haiti. This whole situation breaks my heart because it always seems as if the poorest countries are always the ones that have the worst luck in natural disasters. Being a volunteer for World Relief has caused me think of all of the refugees that could result from this disaster. If you would like to help refugees in similar situations, I'd highly recommend volunteering with them. For all those feeling called to help the situation in Haiti, I've listed some organizations below that you can donate to. If you have connections in Haiti, try to volunteer! In the coming weeks and months, volunteers will be needed to help rebuild country, so if you have the time and means, volunteering will show the Haitians that the world cares.

A group from my church is heading to Haiti in February, so if everyone could keep them, as well as all of the other aid workers and volunteers in Haiti, in their thoughts and prayers, that would be really appreciated. Let's pray that Haiti's suffering will end soon and that they will use this as a chance to rise from the ashes and become the country it was meant to be.

For More Information & For Ways in Help:

- Slideshow of the Aftermath

- New York Times Article on Earthquake

- Donate to Red Cross

- Yéle Haïti

- Médecins Sans Frontières in Haiti/Donate to MSF

- World Relief

Photo via New York Times

Haiti

Media Monday

A Decade in Review

Well, it's the start of a new decade and today's Media Monday is looking back the significant events in the last ten years. From 2000 until today, many monumental events have occurred around the world. The National Post published a slideshow of various international events that took place over the past ten years. Some of them you have have heard about, some you may have not. The pictures are all stunning (and one is quite funny) so I hope you enjoy them. As we head into a new decade, let's not forget the humanitarian disasters taking place as I write this. Let's all work towards peace and understanding. Happy New Year everyone!

Media Monday

Thailand

Early this year brought Thailand even more political turmoil. For the past few years, Thailand has had some ongoing political crisis. In 2006 Thailand had a coup d'etat and in late 2008 a state of emergency was declared. On April 13 of this year, protesters took to the streets where they faced government troops. After two days of rioting, 2 people were killed and more than 100 were injured.

This past week Thailand was in the news again. Last week, Thailand deported 4,000 Hmong refugees from their camp in central Thailand and returned them to Laos, where they face prosecution. They say no violence was used but nobody can say how the Hmong will be treated when they return to Communist-ruled Laos.

For More Information and How You Can Help:

- New York Times Articles

- New York Times Slideshow

- Karen Hilltribes Trust

- The Asia Foundation

- MSF and Hmong Repatriation

Photo via New York Times

Thailand

Iran

2009 has been filled with Iranian protests. Protesters took to the streets after the disputed presidential election in June (aka the Twitter Revolution and the Green Revolution) and also on December 27, where they were met by government forces. The number of people who died from the election protests is unknown since most forms of media where being blocked, but the protests this past Sunday are known to have killed at least 8 and resulted in over a thousand arrests. Iran's leader, President Ahmadinejad, has brought international attention to Iran because of its nuclear facilities and human rights violations. Iran is a country the world will have to watch in 2010 and hope that the protests make some type of change in the country. Remember, we can help by spreading the word.

For More Information:

- New York Times

- Slideshow of December Protests

- Iran Daily

- International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran

- Iran Human Rights (@iranhr)

- Amnesty International

- Tehran 24

- Pictures and Videos of June Protests

Photo Via New York Times

Iran

Somalia

2009 brought Somalia pirates, drought, and a continued state of violence. The fighting since 2007 has killed around 20,000 Somalis and displaced an additional 1.5 million! Somalis fleeing the situation have gone to the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya where an estimated 270,000 people have went this year. They've also been risking their lives to cross the Red Sea to reach Yemen, which is in its own civil war. When people are fleeing one place of danger to go to another place just as dangerous, that's when you know things have reached the bottom. As healthcare and the situation in Somalia seem to continue to diminish, we can only hope that 2010 will bring some change to the country that's been fighting itself for decades.

Somalia

Sri Lanka

This year brought bad and good news for Sri Lanka. The bad news was that their civil war (occurring since the '80s) continued into this year. The good news was that it finally ended on May 19, 2009 (about thirty years too late if you ask me!). The Sri Lankan civil war was fought between the Sri Lankan government and the ethnic Tamil minority who wanted to create their own country. A peace agreement was signed in 2002 but was broken by the Sri Lankan government in 2008. Unfortunately, several aid groups and human right groups have accused both the Sri Lankan government and the Tamils for partaking in crimes against humanity. The Sri Lankan government was responsible for countless Tamil 'disappearances' and needless attacks on civilians, while the Tamils were accused of using child soldiers. To further complicate the situation, aid groups were forbidden to enter conflict zones, which left tens of thousands without the proper aid and health care they needed. Now, around 300,000 Tamils need to be relocated. What makes me even more angry is that we (for those of us living in the West at least) don't hear about situations such as this...instead, we have a month's worth of news profiling Michael Jackson. Is our society really that self-centered that we don't care about the mass killings in another country? Hmm, that's pretty sad if you ask me. I think we need to get our priorities refocused.

For Some Further Reading, Check Out These Websites/Organizations
- Amnesty International
- Médcines Sans Frontièrs
- New York Times

Photo via New York Times

Sri Lanka

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

I probably should have posted this on December 10th (International Human Rights Day) but I forgot (whoops!) so better late than never! The video above is wonderfully done and has the entire Declaration of Human Rights in it. The UDHR has several rights that everyone in the world should be granted and is the most translated document ever! Once you're done with this video, I'm sure you'll have the names of several countries in your mind that are obviously violating this document. Surprisingly enough (or maybe not) Burma, Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan signed this document...hmmm, how ironic.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Sudan

For the next few days leading up to 2010, I'll be profiling an event or country that was significant in 2009. Some of them may be underreported events that didn't make Western news, or they might be well-known but often overlooked. If you have any suggestions on a country or event that I should profile, be sure to leave a comment!

I think no matter what year it is, Sudan unfortunately makes the news. The Sudanese government has been accused of genocide throughout its civil wars and even its most recent conflict, Darfur, which has forced 3 million to live in camps. Also, 2009 has been the most violent year in Sudan since the 2005 peace agreement that ended its decades long civil war. Sudan is most definitely a country to keep an eye on this coming year.

Learn and Get Involved
Here are some links where you can read about the situation in Sudan as well as ways to help:
- MSF Press Release on the situation in South Sudan
- Sudan Tribune
- Called To Compassion blogposts about Sudan and organizations that help Sudan

photo via Stop Genocide Now

Sudan