After reading all of my classmates blogs, I'm going to choose those which countries situation sounds most dire to me and in need of urgent help. There are 28 countries and these listed here are my top ten choices and they include the links to go to each blog.
Gustavo's Blog- Buongiorno Pricipessa
-I chose this blog because Italy's problems sound very serious to me and also it seems like if they don't deal with these problems right now, they might be in a worse position later on.
Adriana's Blog- Blog on Tibet
- Reading this blog, I realize how helpless Tibetians are. Adriana's resolutions sound very reazonable and I think they can be accomplished, if put enough effort.
Airined's Blog- Libya and Human Rights
- I'm a big believer in freedom of speech and expression and by reading this, it has sparked an interest in me. I think that what's going on in Libya now is very important and that we need to keep an eye on it.
Angelica's Blog- Sudan
- I chose this because I think the abuse going on in Sudan is very shocking and I agree, that like Angelica says that the United nations should come and help.
Karolina's Blog- ...about Ivory Coast
- This country situation sound very dire and helpless. I think that this should be payed more attention to and that it is very worriesome.
Miguel's C. Blog- Miguel's Human Rights Blog
- I picked Somalia because to me, it seems very out of control and like Miguel mentions I think that it needs a more stable government.
Sarah's Blog- Honduras
- I chose this as one of my nominations because it seems very interesting what is going on and her resolutions do point out good ways of resolving the issues going on.
John's Blog- Trains.Streets.Houses
- Indias human rights issue that is occuring with women is very bad and serious and should be helped rapidly. John's idea abotu a new device seem cool and new and I agree that it would definetly help.
Natalia O. Blog- An Amazing Syria
- I chose this because we should care more about Syria and I think that if the protest don't stop soon things will get more bad then they were originally.
Alberto's blog-My soul in another place
- I think his idea of China having more media communications sounds logical and also using the United Nations more sounds good.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Resolution To Indonesia's Issues
Fellows nations, Indonesia needs your help. Today, in our country, our basic human rights are being broken and we need your assistance to make everything right again. The rights of freedom of religion is not being followed and because of this many are sufferring and being affected . Furthermore, there is another violation occuring, which is that people are being tortured when in the Declaration of Human Rights of Man, it clearly states that this can not be done. These are just some of the cases that are happening in Indonesia.
Since all can not be done rashly, first, as a country, we have thought of ways to make sure people are receiving their human rights. One idea is to further the amount of United Nations representitives that are in Indonesia now. There could be a committee that would be more attentitive to the issues, then just only a couple of them can do. By doing this, we are ensuring that more people will follow the rules and the rights will not be as broken as much. Additionally, more people will receive their rights.
From the United Nations and the International community we need more military support, fair government and refugee assistance. Why do we need all these? Well, we need miliatry support because the military we have now is not as fair as it should be and when bad things happen they do not always help. A more fair government is needed because even though they are mostly fair, sometimes they do not pay enough attention or importance to some of the problems occuring in Indonesia. Plus, we need refugee assistance because many Indonesians are homeless.
I assure you that by helping us with these problems, we will be extremely greatful. If you help us, whenever you may require our services in anything we will do our best to be there. If you ever want or are short of some natural resource, just tell us and we will supply your country with what we may have of those resources. Also, if you are missing people to work we will send you others from our country over. By accomplishing our parts we will have a more united, supportive and stronger nations.
Since all can not be done rashly, first, as a country, we have thought of ways to make sure people are receiving their human rights. One idea is to further the amount of United Nations representitives that are in Indonesia now. There could be a committee that would be more attentitive to the issues, then just only a couple of them can do. By doing this, we are ensuring that more people will follow the rules and the rights will not be as broken as much. Additionally, more people will receive their rights.
From the United Nations and the International community we need more military support, fair government and refugee assistance. Why do we need all these? Well, we need miliatry support because the military we have now is not as fair as it should be and when bad things happen they do not always help. A more fair government is needed because even though they are mostly fair, sometimes they do not pay enough attention or importance to some of the problems occuring in Indonesia. Plus, we need refugee assistance because many Indonesians are homeless.
I assure you that by helping us with these problems, we will be extremely greatful. If you help us, whenever you may require our services in anything we will do our best to be there. If you ever want or are short of some natural resource, just tell us and we will supply your country with what we may have of those resources. Also, if you are missing people to work we will send you others from our country over. By accomplishing our parts we will have a more united, supportive and stronger nations.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Human Rights Issues In Indonesia
Indonesia's history at times has had violations of the Human Rights of Man. Some are well known, while others are just passed over as minor incidents eventhough they are important as the bigger events.
Right now In Indonesia there are quite a few violations of the Human Rights of Man. One of the issues, for example is the banning of the Ahmadiyah faith in Provinces of Indonesia. This is an issue because it violates the right to freedom of religion. Indonesia has 300,000 people foolowing this faith. Attacks against them have been occuring during the years since from when it started in 2005. These attacks have left people wounded and some even dead. According to Jemaah Ahmadiyah Indonesia, he religious groups leader, there are16 provinces and regencies that have issued the anti-Ahmadiyah decrees since 2006. There have been tries to revoke the ban and even the Human Rights Watch has urged countries to call on Indonesia's government to protect these rights.
Right now In Indonesia there are quite a few violations of the Human Rights of Man. One of the issues, for example is the banning of the Ahmadiyah faith in Provinces of Indonesia. This is an issue because it violates the right to freedom of religion. Indonesia has 300,000 people foolowing this faith. Attacks against them have been occuring during the years since from when it started in 2005. These attacks have left people wounded and some even dead. According to Jemaah Ahmadiyah Indonesia, he religious groups leader, there are16 provinces and regencies that have issued the anti-Ahmadiyah decrees since 2006. There have been tries to revoke the ban and even the Human Rights Watch has urged countries to call on Indonesia's government to protect these rights.
Another issue is the abuse from the military to civilian, criminal and people and how it is down played. In October, there came a 10min. video in a cellphone of a man, Tunaliwor Kiwo, being tortured, beaten and burned by soldiers. Kiwo said that this went on for three days, but apparently military prosecuters thought that this wasn't torture, only an offense of disobeying orders. They only charged three of the six soldiers that were involved and only gave them sentence of eight to ten months. Apparently this three day torture isn't a serious human rights issue and even the President Yudhoyono said that it was a minor incident. This clearly was a violation to article 6 of the declarations of human rights that said no one shall ever be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
News Report of what occured
Most of the human rights issues that are taking place in Indonesia right now have to do with military abuse and the Ahmadiyah religious minority. On Feb.6, another event occured having to do with the Ahmadiyah. A mob of about 1,500 people attacked 20 members of that faith in Cikeusik village, Banten.
Video of what occured
Thinking about this issues, you realize that the saddest thing about this is how people will see and hear about this and probably say "oh how bad" and then go on with their lives like nothing is wrong. Sure people say "Why should we care? Its not like we can do anything to help" But the thing is we can. Any little thing would help. We should care for this because you never know if that is going to affect you. Also, you should always be aware of what's happening in the world, otherwise you'd be lost.
Links
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Sejara Indonesia! (History of Indonesia)
Sejara (history)
During the pre-colonial time in Indonesia, the two largest islands, which are now known as Java and Sumatra had already seen hundreds of civilations and two empires. In the 7th century, the kingdom of Sriwijaya flourished and Vajrayana Buddhism, pilgrims were attracted from all parts of Asia. Muslims traders were said to be the the ones that brought Islam. In Eastern Java came the Singhisari and Majapahit Empire which ruled much of the Southern Malay peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra and Bali from 1293-1500. This is known as a "Golden Age" of history of Indonesia.
In the Early 16th century came European traders seeking some spices in The Moluccas, they sought to dominate spice trade. Then the Portugese came seeking to extend their Roman Catholic missionary efforts. In 1602, the Dutch established the Dutch East India Company (VOC) dominating the trading. In three centuries many treaties were signed. However, the VOC dissolved following its bankruptcy. The Arrival of the Europeans in South East Asia is seen as a landmark in Indonesia's history.
In the 20th century, Indonesian independence movement began and spred rapidly during the two World Wars. The Japanese, for three years during World War II, occupied Indonesia. Then three days after the Japanese surrendered, a small group of Indonesian's led by Soekarno and Mohammad Hatta, proclaimed independence and established the Republic of Indonesia. The dutch tried to reestablished control, but after 4 years the Dutch gave up control to the Indonesian Government.
Important events
In 1999, there was a ballot held to choose between autonomy and independence. Many people were killed after the news of the pro-independence vote. In November Abdurrahman Wahid was named fourth president and in 2001, Megawati Sukarnoputri was the fifth presient. In 2004, elections were taking again and a retired general Yudhoyono won.
Natural Disasters
Many natural disasters have devastated Indonesia. In 2004, a 9.1 - 9.3 earthquake took place in the Indian Ocean which resulted in an tsunami that killed more than 130,000 people in Aceh and left over 500,000 homeless. On March 2005, there was an 8.7 eathquake in between Aceh and Nothern Sumatra that killed 905 people and displaced thousands of people. After seismetic activity in Mt. Merapi in April, there was an 6.2 eartquake in May 2006, which killed over 5,000 and left 200,000 homeless. On September 2, 2009 there was an 7.4 earthquake in Tasikmalaya that killed a 100 people. Then on September30,2009 there was a 7.6 earthquake in Western Sumatra.
During the pre-colonial time in Indonesia, the two largest islands, which are now known as Java and Sumatra had already seen hundreds of civilations and two empires. In the 7th century, the kingdom of Sriwijaya flourished and Vajrayana Buddhism, pilgrims were attracted from all parts of Asia. Muslims traders were said to be the the ones that brought Islam. In Eastern Java came the Singhisari and Majapahit Empire which ruled much of the Southern Malay peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra and Bali from 1293-1500. This is known as a "Golden Age" of history of Indonesia.
In the Early 16th century came European traders seeking some spices in The Moluccas, they sought to dominate spice trade. Then the Portugese came seeking to extend their Roman Catholic missionary efforts. In 1602, the Dutch established the Dutch East India Company (VOC) dominating the trading. In three centuries many treaties were signed. However, the VOC dissolved following its bankruptcy. The Arrival of the Europeans in South East Asia is seen as a landmark in Indonesia's history.
In the 20th century, Indonesian independence movement began and spred rapidly during the two World Wars. The Japanese, for three years during World War II, occupied Indonesia. Then three days after the Japanese surrendered, a small group of Indonesian's led by Soekarno and Mohammad Hatta, proclaimed independence and established the Republic of Indonesia. The dutch tried to reestablished control, but after 4 years the Dutch gave up control to the Indonesian Government.
Important events
- 1955-Country's first nationwide election and parliament was divided into different political parties
- 1961- Negogations with the Dutch failed and armed clashes broke out between the Indonesian and Dutch troops
- 1962- The two sides reached an agreement.
- 1965-1966- Soekarno tried to restore his political stature
- 1966- Soekarno transferred political and military powers to Suharto.
In 1999, there was a ballot held to choose between autonomy and independence. Many people were killed after the news of the pro-independence vote. In November Abdurrahman Wahid was named fourth president and in 2001, Megawati Sukarnoputri was the fifth presient. In 2004, elections were taking again and a retired general Yudhoyono won.
Natural Disasters
Many natural disasters have devastated Indonesia. In 2004, a 9.1 - 9.3 earthquake took place in the Indian Ocean which resulted in an tsunami that killed more than 130,000 people in Aceh and left over 500,000 homeless. On March 2005, there was an 8.7 eathquake in between Aceh and Nothern Sumatra that killed 905 people and displaced thousands of people. After seismetic activity in Mt. Merapi in April, there was an 6.2 eartquake in May 2006, which killed over 5,000 and left 200,000 homeless. On September 2, 2009 there was an 7.4 earthquake in Tasikmalaya that killed a 100 people. Then on September30,2009 there was a 7.6 earthquake in Western Sumatra.
2004 tsunami
Poverty
According to the governments statistics bureau, 18% of the population of 220 millon are poor, which is 4 million more than in 2005.
Health Issues
There are many health issues in Indonesia going on, including infectious diseases. Some are malaria, Dengue, HIV, typhoid fever and many more.
Helpful Links
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Budaya Indonesia!
Budaya... is culture, actually its the Indonesian way of saying it, pretty cool huh!
As we know Indonesia is filled with many different ethnic groups which make it kind of hard to understand. So lets dig a little deeper to its religion to maybe find out a bit more about it.
Religion is Indonesia is a complex issue there and not easily taken by social classes nor ethnic groups. The government also discourages reiligious groups with participating with politics. The state has some tolerance for it like for Christianity, Islam, Buddhist and Hinduism, but only if their out of politics.
http://atheism.about.com/library/FAQs/islam/countries/bl_IndonesiaIndex.htm
Did you know that the Indonesian official langauge is Bahasa Indonesia. It is taught in school and spoken by nearly every Indonesian!
In places of worship your are supposed to dress appropriately and women should dress conservatively. Also public displays of anger, ridicule and blame is considered extremely bad mannered. What is actually very interesting is that in Jakarta, which is the capital there are laws that ban giving money to beggars, buskers and unofficial traffic officers. Also, Gambling is illegal.
http://www.iexplore.com/world_travel/Indonesia/Culture
As we know Indonesia is filled with many different ethnic groups which make it kind of hard to understand. So lets dig a little deeper to its religion to maybe find out a bit more about it.
Religion is Indonesia is a complex issue there and not easily taken by social classes nor ethnic groups. The government also discourages reiligious groups with participating with politics. The state has some tolerance for it like for Christianity, Islam, Buddhist and Hinduism, but only if their out of politics.
http://atheism.about.com/library/FAQs/islam/countries/bl_IndonesiaIndex.htm
Did you know that the Indonesian official langauge is Bahasa Indonesia. It is taught in school and spoken by nearly every Indonesian!
Traditions
Indonesia's society is broken up into numerous ethnic groups and minorities. All of them know there is a large diversity in their society. When trying to explain their differences they use the word adat, which is culture or tradition. When one ethnic group tries to explain another they say they contain many differences. For example each group might have a diiferent way of expecting respect, observing religious holidays, attending mosque and burying the dead. So each have their own different things, but do share somethings.
Cultural Norms
Indonesian people are usually nice and they understand that western culture is different, and it would be good if you respected theirs. Their religious customs must be respected, like for example during their holy month of Ramadan. Visitors are expected to be polite and avoid public displays of affection and also it is impolite to accept things with the left hand. In places of worship your are supposed to dress appropriately and women should dress conservatively. Also public displays of anger, ridicule and blame is considered extremely bad mannered. What is actually very interesting is that in Jakarta, which is the capital there are laws that ban giving money to beggars, buskers and unofficial traffic officers. Also, Gambling is illegal.
http://www.iexplore.com/world_travel/Indonesia/Culture
Indonesian Music
Indonesian Music plays a big part in its art and culture. Its origins come from the islands of Java, Sumatra and Bali. There is the Gamelan which is traditional music and Dangdut that is a popular style of music which is accompanied by free dance style. Other styles are the Sansong from West Timor, Keroncong,its roots from Portugal and Degung and Angklung from West Java.
The Gamelan is recently known as the Indonesian orchestra and is believed to been created by a Javanese in the third century. It is played with various instruments like the gongs.
The Gamelan
Dance
Traditional dances in Indonesian show forms from the Ramayana and Mahabharata of India. There are also dance forms from Javanese and Balinese dance that is shown in Indonesia's art and culture. Mythlogical events are also portrayed in the dances.
Indonesian Cuisine
Indonesia's cuisine is very distinctive with influences from the Chinese, European, Middle Eastern and the Indians. The most common food of Indonesian dishes is rice with meat and vegetables. In most dishes like fish and chicken fundamental ingredients are coconut milk, spices and chili. Vietnamese and Thai food flavors can also be from their foods.
Art
The Indonesian arts are many and the paintings are unique pieces. Intricate and expressive Balinese paintings often show natural scenes and themes from Indonesian art. There is also the tradition of sculptures thta can be seen in Indonesia's art and culture and dates back to the bronze and iron ages. Indonesian art is also famous for its unique batik, ikat and songket cloth that is still very popular.
Wow! What a culture, but there's still more to go, so stay with it!
Monday, April 4, 2011
Getting To Know Indonesia!
I've always wondered what's in Indonesia , what does it contain, how is it, etc. We always ask ourseves these questions about any country, but never really answer them. Now, starting this project I'm excited to learn more about it and let others know as well. So let's start this new adventure!
Indonesia is an archipelago between the Indian and Pacific Ocean in South Eastern Asia. It's area is 1,904,569 sq km, which is less than 3 times the size of Texas! It's climate is tropical and is moderate in the highlands. It's mostly coastal lowlands and larger islands have interior mountains.
Natural disasters that occur our floods, severe droughts, tsunamis, earthquakes,volcanoes and forest fires. Indonesia's environmental issues are deforestation, water pollution, sewage, air pollution in urban areas and smoke and hazes because of the forest fires.
Indonesia's population: 245,613,043
Government type: Republic
In Indonesia, people age 15 and older can read and write. In the total population 90.4% can write and read, 94% being male and 86.8% female. The school age expenctancy is 13 years old.
In this country, the languages spoken are Bahasa Indonesia, English , Dutch and local dialects.
Their religions include: Muslim- 86.1% of the population, Protestan- 5.7%,Roman Catholic- 3%,
Hindu- 1.8%, and other or unspecified 3.4%.
Birth Rate- 18.1 births
Death Rate-6.25 deaths
Life Expectancy-71.33 years old, 68.8 years old in males and 73.99 years old in females.
Indonesia has many Ethnic groups including:
The Unemployment in Indonesia is 7.1% in 2010 and it's population below the poverty line is 13.33%.
Indonesia's Industries include petroleum and natural gas, textiles, apparel, footwear, mining, cement, chemical fertilizers, plywood, rubber, food and tourism.
Indonesia has internet and media communications among others. About 33.958 million use the main land telephone and 159.248 million use the mobile phone alone! They also have 20 million internet users and 1.269 host. Their media mostly consist of the public radio, satellite and cable TV systems, and more than 100 local TV stations.
In the military service, Indonesians have to be 18 years old for selective cumpulsory and voluntary service. They also have a 2 year conscript service obligation with a reserve obligation to the age of 45 for officers and its only for Indonesian citizens.
An interesting fact about Indonesia is that did you know that they have stated a foreign policy objective of establishing stable fixed land and maritime boundaries with other countries. Also That about 200,00-350,000 are Internally Displaced Persons(IDP) and that illicit drugs their are the producers of cannabis for domestic use and producer of ecstasy and methaphetamine. I for one sure didn't know.
Well that's all I have of Indonesia, but stay close because there's more to come!
CIA World Factbook
Indonesia! Look how pretty it is!!
Indonesia is an archipelago between the Indian and Pacific Ocean in South Eastern Asia. It's area is 1,904,569 sq km, which is less than 3 times the size of Texas! It's climate is tropical and is moderate in the highlands. It's mostly coastal lowlands and larger islands have interior mountains.
Natural disasters that occur our floods, severe droughts, tsunamis, earthquakes,volcanoes and forest fires. Indonesia's environmental issues are deforestation, water pollution, sewage, air pollution in urban areas and smoke and hazes because of the forest fires.
Indonesia's population: 245,613,043
Government type: Republic
In Indonesia, people age 15 and older can read and write. In the total population 90.4% can write and read, 94% being male and 86.8% female. The school age expenctancy is 13 years old.
In this country, the languages spoken are Bahasa Indonesia, English , Dutch and local dialects.
Their religions include: Muslim- 86.1% of the population, Protestan- 5.7%,Roman Catholic- 3%,
Hindu- 1.8%, and other or unspecified 3.4%.
Birth Rate- 18.1 births
Death Rate-6.25 deaths
Life Expectancy-71.33 years old, 68.8 years old in males and 73.99 years old in females.
Indonesia has many Ethnic groups including:
- Javanese- 40.6% of the population
- Sundanese-15%
- Madurese-3.3%
- Minangkabau- 2.7%
- Betawi- 2.4%
- Bugis- 2.4%
- Banten- 2%
- Banjar- 1.7%
- other or unspecified- 29.9%
The Unemployment in Indonesia is 7.1% in 2010 and it's population below the poverty line is 13.33%.
Indonesia's Industries include petroleum and natural gas, textiles, apparel, footwear, mining, cement, chemical fertilizers, plywood, rubber, food and tourism.
Indonesia has internet and media communications among others. About 33.958 million use the main land telephone and 159.248 million use the mobile phone alone! They also have 20 million internet users and 1.269 host. Their media mostly consist of the public radio, satellite and cable TV systems, and more than 100 local TV stations.
In the military service, Indonesians have to be 18 years old for selective cumpulsory and voluntary service. They also have a 2 year conscript service obligation with a reserve obligation to the age of 45 for officers and its only for Indonesian citizens.
An interesting fact about Indonesia is that did you know that they have stated a foreign policy objective of establishing stable fixed land and maritime boundaries with other countries. Also That about 200,00-350,000 are Internally Displaced Persons(IDP) and that illicit drugs their are the producers of cannabis for domestic use and producer of ecstasy and methaphetamine. I for one sure didn't know.
Well that's all I have of Indonesia, but stay close because there's more to come!
CIA World Factbook
Indonesia! Look how pretty it is!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)