I have only begun to recover from the initial shock of the fact that these bombings are going on in the last couple of days. The first day it started happening last week, I woke up at my usual time to get ready for work and turned on National Public Radio (NPR) which was playing BBC World News Radio reporting on the bombings. The first thought I had was "Heddy, wake up!" because surely, I thought it could only be a dream. Surely, all this political broo-ha-ha over the captured Israeli soldiers did not warrant killing of innocent lives. It was almost the same eery feeling I had when I was listening to NPR the morning that the September 11th attacks happened right here where I live. Being in NYC, obviously my life is not in danger or anything; nevertheless what's going on makes me incredibly sad and my heart goes out to all the Lebanese, especially those living in Beirut, and everyone in the MidEast that these bombings are going to cause further pain and heartache for... it just seems so senseless. Having worked on human rights violations and genocide issues for 5+ years, you think one would be able to adapt and get de-sensitized but I've never found that to be true in my case. I wonder sometimes whether that's a good or bad thing...
Although Amnesty (where I work) has put out statements and are conducting advocacy around this issue - I can't help but feel powerless to do anything to help, even being a part of an organization like Never Again. We've mostly been internally focused for awhile, or at least from where I sit. Marian and I have been talking about the need for us to internally equip ourselves to better respond to emergencies like Darfur and these bombings in Lebanon. Yes, we are doing a wonderful job given the time and resources we have, but it still doesn't let us off the hook in terms of responding to the needs of the world. How to accomplish all of this without letting the urgent and important tasks (like stopping violence in Darfur immediately) not crowd out the less urgent yet still important tasks (like post-conflict peacebuilding in Rwanda). More questions than answers these days, but at least beginning to search is part of the solution...
For the non-BBC, non-CNN version of things, read here: http://la.indymedia.org/news/2006/07/168619.php
Sorry if this post was not what folks were looking for... I just can't do the clinical, political, emotionally detached analysis right now with people dying and continuing to live under threat.
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Peace Boards
Peace boards, based on Basia Forrest's Peace Posts that have been received enthusiastically by many members of Never Again, got to Stoke-on-Trent, UK, this weekend. The boards were accompanied by three soldiers sitting outwardly in the blazing sun.
They will stay for a few more weeks, giving us the opportunity to see how the people of Stoke respond to the chance to contribute their ideas to peacebuilding
Friday, July 14, 2006
Responsibility to Report
Never Again International in London invites you to join us in a conversation, 'Responsibility to Report'. Drawing on the lessons from Rwanda, 12 years ago this year, the debate will focus on current and future reporting of genocide and crimes against humanity. With a view to establishing a set of key recommendations to be put before media organisations, the debate will hear from those directly involved - from grass-roots reporters to editors setting news agendas.
In 2005, a change came that campaigners hoped would help prevent another Rwanda: the Responsibility to Protect. World leaders pledged that the international community, acting through the Security Council "was prepared to take collective action" in a timely and decisive manner" when states are "manifestly failing to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity." (1)
Since then, governments and civil society have been furiously debating the meaning ot R2P and its implications.The words have been increasingly used in the press. However, there has so far been little debate on the significance of this change for journalists.
Because something has changed. Extreme violent conflict is no longer simply the businesses of other countries, Britain as a member of the Security Council could, potentially, now be held culpable if it was to repeat its response of 1994 which was to push for the withdrawal of peacekeepers in Rwanda.
So Britain has new responsibilities. But what responsibilities do journalists have? What makes a situation serious enough for a journalist to be able to state quite clearly that this is a situation in which the international community should be responding, not because that is the journalist's view but because our governments have promised to do so.
We will ask you to share your experiences and put forward ideas about our responsibilities as people involved in the media. We define the media in a very inclusive way and hope to hear about new developments that could help, rather than threaten, mainsteam journalists. We hope to build bridges and widen all of our perspecitves on the possibilities for news, on finding more voices and information our thinking on how situations that all of us agree are Very Bad can get attention. We will hear about has changed - or not changed - since she was reporting from Rwanda 12 years ago. We want to talk about the blocks that can mean genocide isn't news, but we also want to come out with positive ideas on how the media can fulfil its responsibility to hold power to account.
This conversation will be taking place in London in late July, bringing together youth, media experts, journalists, editors and grassroots voices. In the run-up to the event, we invite you to collaborate on this issue in our wiki project page.
In 2005, a change came that campaigners hoped would help prevent another Rwanda: the Responsibility to Protect. World leaders pledged that the international community, acting through the Security Council "was prepared to take collective action" in a timely and decisive manner" when states are "manifestly failing to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity." (1)
Since then, governments and civil society have been furiously debating the meaning ot R2P and its implications.The words have been increasingly used in the press. However, there has so far been little debate on the significance of this change for journalists.
Because something has changed. Extreme violent conflict is no longer simply the businesses of other countries, Britain as a member of the Security Council could, potentially, now be held culpable if it was to repeat its response of 1994 which was to push for the withdrawal of peacekeepers in Rwanda.
So Britain has new responsibilities. But what responsibilities do journalists have? What makes a situation serious enough for a journalist to be able to state quite clearly that this is a situation in which the international community should be responding, not because that is the journalist's view but because our governments have promised to do so.
We will ask you to share your experiences and put forward ideas about our responsibilities as people involved in the media. We define the media in a very inclusive way and hope to hear about new developments that could help, rather than threaten, mainsteam journalists. We hope to build bridges and widen all of our perspecitves on the possibilities for news, on finding more voices and information our thinking on how situations that all of us agree are Very Bad can get attention. We will hear about has changed - or not changed - since she was reporting from Rwanda 12 years ago. We want to talk about the blocks that can mean genocide isn't news, but we also want to come out with positive ideas on how the media can fulfil its responsibility to hold power to account.
This conversation will be taking place in London in late July, bringing together youth, media experts, journalists, editors and grassroots voices. In the run-up to the event, we invite you to collaborate on this issue in our wiki project page.
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Darfur and the ICC
NEW YORK: Yes, it gets tiring to see things getting worse but not better and it's easy to be a cynic. But a really good friend recently reminded me that we need to "be the change [we] wish to see in the world".
I sent the following letter to Condi Rice and my elected representatives in US Congress. You can do the same here: Take Action
July 11, 2006
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Condoleezza Rice,
I am profoundly concerned about the egregious crimes committed against the people of Darfur. I believe that the International Criminal Court (ICC) is an important instrument to protect human rights in Sudan, as well as deter future crimes in the region. I appreciate the U.S. administration's willingness to assist the ICC in carrying out its work in Darfur, and I urge even closer cooperation with the Court in the future. Please do everything in your power to keep pressure on the Government of Sudan to cooperate with the ICC investigation.
Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Heddy N.
I sent the following letter to Condi Rice and my elected representatives in US Congress. You can do the same here: Take Action
July 11, 2006
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Condoleezza Rice,
I am profoundly concerned about the egregious crimes committed against the people of Darfur. I believe that the International Criminal Court (ICC) is an important instrument to protect human rights in Sudan, as well as deter future crimes in the region. I appreciate the U.S. administration's willingness to assist the ICC in carrying out its work in Darfur, and I urge even closer cooperation with the Court in the future. Please do everything in your power to keep pressure on the Government of Sudan to cooperate with the ICC investigation.
Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Heddy N.
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Celebration & challenge
Yesterday I spoke to Quakers in Woking about Never Again as part of a day called Africa: Celebration and Challenge.
While I was there to talk about peacebuilding and reconciliation, the other speakers created an very varied programme. We heard about Quaker practice in Kenya, where there are more Friends than anywhere else in the world, from Hazel Morris who worked in Zimbabwe for 2 months last year and Robin Robison who lobbies huge international institutions for fairer trade and debt relief.
There were connections at many points. Hazel Morris painted a bleak picture of Zimbabwe, where people feel, she said 'very, very isolated'. On an international level the country is isolated, which is why the currency has been able to collapse where inother countries it would have been rescued by the IMF to avoid scenes reminiscent of 1930s Germany. Money needs to be transported in huge bags and nobody can predict prices or goods supplies from week to week.
The school at which Hazel taught operates a feeding programme for all the children and she said that many children had no food over the weekend - these children came in on Monday quiet and apathetic.
Just as Hitler was defended for his strong leadership, so Mugabe is now defended by many Africans who may be letting their anger at the West blind them to the cost of his failure to protect people.
In Kenya church-going is an occupation that takes all Sunday as people socialise and study the Bible. Nairobi has silent (unprogrammed) and programmed evangelical Meetings running in parallel so that people can join the worship they prefer for as long as they feel comfortable.
Various people at the talk were able to offer advice - and in many cases their children! - to Never Again. A Kenyan member of a London Meeting suggested that we work with the Friends Committee for Consultation, who have an office in Nairobi. Another Kenyan said that there is a lot of tribal conflict that still needed addressing and that Never Again's ideas would be welcome there.
In Britain, it was suggested that the Woodcraft Folk might make good partners, I know them from my childhood but hadn't realised they run projects around the world. Other connections were suggested that could see us reaching out to India and the Middle East.
The day was inspiring and its high attendance showed the level of interest in Africa and the willingness of Quakers here to reach out and learn more from their African Friends, Quakers or not.
Quakers in Britain have already supported Never Again generously, specifically helping to fund our Kigali office and a meeting between clubs. I hope we can call on them for help and support in the future - we have a lot to learn from their strong structures, core beliefs and practices like discernment and, in the words of George Fox 'Walking cheerfully over the word, seeing that of God in everyone'.
While I was there to talk about peacebuilding and reconciliation, the other speakers created an very varied programme. We heard about Quaker practice in Kenya, where there are more Friends than anywhere else in the world, from Hazel Morris who worked in Zimbabwe for 2 months last year and Robin Robison who lobbies huge international institutions for fairer trade and debt relief.
There were connections at many points. Hazel Morris painted a bleak picture of Zimbabwe, where people feel, she said 'very, very isolated'. On an international level the country is isolated, which is why the currency has been able to collapse where inother countries it would have been rescued by the IMF to avoid scenes reminiscent of 1930s Germany. Money needs to be transported in huge bags and nobody can predict prices or goods supplies from week to week.
The school at which Hazel taught operates a feeding programme for all the children and she said that many children had no food over the weekend - these children came in on Monday quiet and apathetic.
Just as Hitler was defended for his strong leadership, so Mugabe is now defended by many Africans who may be letting their anger at the West blind them to the cost of his failure to protect people.
In Kenya church-going is an occupation that takes all Sunday as people socialise and study the Bible. Nairobi has silent (unprogrammed) and programmed evangelical Meetings running in parallel so that people can join the worship they prefer for as long as they feel comfortable.
Various people at the talk were able to offer advice - and in many cases their children! - to Never Again. A Kenyan member of a London Meeting suggested that we work with the Friends Committee for Consultation, who have an office in Nairobi. Another Kenyan said that there is a lot of tribal conflict that still needed addressing and that Never Again's ideas would be welcome there.
In Britain, it was suggested that the Woodcraft Folk might make good partners, I know them from my childhood but hadn't realised they run projects around the world. Other connections were suggested that could see us reaching out to India and the Middle East.
The day was inspiring and its high attendance showed the level of interest in Africa and the willingness of Quakers here to reach out and learn more from their African Friends, Quakers or not.
Quakers in Britain have already supported Never Again generously, specifically helping to fund our Kigali office and a meeting between clubs. I hope we can call on them for help and support in the future - we have a lot to learn from their strong structures, core beliefs and practices like discernment and, in the words of George Fox 'Walking cheerfully over the word, seeing that of God in everyone'.
Thursday, June 01, 2006
The Never Again wiki now has over 100 registered users! Exciting as this is, the challenge now is to turn more of them into active participants, in the wiki and Never Again’s work as a whole, which is why they came in the first place (apart from the spammers, of course).
I was able to catch an interesting discussion last night on open source & non-profits with Boris Mann from Bryght. Since I don’t entirely understand exactly what Open Source covers, I was pleased when the conversation turned to wikis and how to involve volunteers in the tasks needed.
Never Again is a very empowering network and the wiki has a lot of potential (as I have been saying for nearly a year now). But it is hard to communicate to people that they really can be bold on it, that it is a place for collaboration, for adding ideas, for brainstorming. But the wiki is just one of our tools and it has become clear that it doesn’t function effectively as a way of channelling action, for that other tools are needed.
I’d like to share the tip from Boris that I found most helpful, which was to have a Gardener (I can’t remember the exact phrase he used, it was late in the UK, but the whole transcript should be online by the end of the week). I see the gardener’s role in a wide sense. Boris suggested that he/she would blog regularly to highlight the important areas of work on the wiki, or in other places in the network, and to ask for help where it is needed. Lots of links from the blog would make it easy for people to get to where they are most needed. With this sort of communication, hopefully ideas would be able to take root and blossom into something connecting lots of people. Of course, this doesn't have to be on a blog but also covers regular email communication and communicating updates to the clubs that meet in person.
There are lots of gardening jobs to do at the wiki too, of course. Pruning, tidying up, creating clear pathways, raking the lawn to keep it fresh and welcoming. Having an idea of what’s in the back of the shed so that it can be brought out at the best times. Holding regular barbeques, perhaps by Skype or IM - an empty garden may look lovely but it takes a lot of time for one person to maintain and isn’t much good unless it’s creating the connections and provoking the critical thinking that is our goal.
I thought this was a very helpful analogy and one I will be trying to use. Hopefully simply being a gardener would also give more people a role and a way of getting to know the network and what is around the wiki.
If I can only find my old watering can...
I was able to catch an interesting discussion last night on open source & non-profits with Boris Mann from Bryght. Since I don’t entirely understand exactly what Open Source covers, I was pleased when the conversation turned to wikis and how to involve volunteers in the tasks needed.
Never Again is a very empowering network and the wiki has a lot of potential (as I have been saying for nearly a year now). But it is hard to communicate to people that they really can be bold on it, that it is a place for collaboration, for adding ideas, for brainstorming. But the wiki is just one of our tools and it has become clear that it doesn’t function effectively as a way of channelling action, for that other tools are needed.
I’d like to share the tip from Boris that I found most helpful, which was to have a Gardener (I can’t remember the exact phrase he used, it was late in the UK, but the whole transcript should be online by the end of the week). I see the gardener’s role in a wide sense. Boris suggested that he/she would blog regularly to highlight the important areas of work on the wiki, or in other places in the network, and to ask for help where it is needed. Lots of links from the blog would make it easy for people to get to where they are most needed. With this sort of communication, hopefully ideas would be able to take root and blossom into something connecting lots of people. Of course, this doesn't have to be on a blog but also covers regular email communication and communicating updates to the clubs that meet in person.
There are lots of gardening jobs to do at the wiki too, of course. Pruning, tidying up, creating clear pathways, raking the lawn to keep it fresh and welcoming. Having an idea of what’s in the back of the shed so that it can be brought out at the best times. Holding regular barbeques, perhaps by Skype or IM - an empty garden may look lovely but it takes a lot of time for one person to maintain and isn’t much good unless it’s creating the connections and provoking the critical thinking that is our goal.
I thought this was a very helpful analogy and one I will be trying to use. Hopefully simply being a gardener would also give more people a role and a way of getting to know the network and what is around the wiki.
If I can only find my old watering can...
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