Category: Education

WASHINGTON — The United States honored 12 women from Colombia, Iraq, Libya, Myanmar, Vietnam and other countries, with the State Department saying they have demonstrated leadership and a willingness to sacrifice for others at an "International Women of Courage Award" ceremony Monday in Washington.

This year's honorees include Syeda Rizwana Hasan, an environmental lawyer from Bangladesh; Simone Sibilio do Nascimento, one of Brazil's most prominent prosecutors; Ei Thinzar Maung, Myanmar's pro-democracy opposition National Unity Government Deputy Minister for Women, Youths, and Children Affairs; Josefina Klinger Zúñiga, a human rights and environmental defender from Colombia; Taif Sami Mohammed, Iraq's deputy finance minister known for fighting corruption; Facia Boyenoh Harris, who advocates for women's rights and speaks out against gender-based violence in Liberia; Libya's first woman foreign minister, Najla Mangoush; Moldova's parliament member Doina Gherman, who promotes women's inclusion; transgender activist Bhumika Shrestha who is from Nepal; Carmen Gheorghe, who promotes women's rights in Romania; Roegchanda Pascoe, a crime prevention activist from South Africa; and jailed Vietnamese journalist Ph?m Ðoan Trang.

Jailed Vietnamese journalist absent in virtual ceremony

Ph?m Ðoan Trang did not attend Monday's virtual award ceremony, since she is currently in prison.

Pham Doan Trang is seen as a leading advocate for human rights, rule of law, and the inclusion of all voices in political spaces in Vietnam. She was sentenced to nine years in prison on Dec. 14, 2021, for "making, storing, distributing or disseminating information, documents and items against the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam," according to Amnesty International.

"We condemn her unjust imprisonment. We call for her immediate release," said Secretary of State Antony Blinken during Monday's ceremony.

Pham Chinh Truc is Pham Doan Trang's brother. He attended the trial in December with their 81-year-old mother. Pham Chinh Truc told VOA Vietnamese he raised objections at the hearing and called the verdict "completely absurd and unacceptable."

"Trang was convicted under Article 88 'Propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,'" he said in the VOA interview. "As far as I know, this article has been criticized by many individuals, social organizations, and even the United Nations, who have asked the Vietnamese government to revoke this law because it is too vague. Its boundaries are not clear, but it has been used to arrest many people who have views that are contrary to the views held by the party and state."

Ph?m Ðoan Trang was a journalist with government media before leaving to write independently on democracy and free elections, according to advocacy group The 88 Project.

The United States values its comprehensive partnership with Vietnam but believes firmly that "in order for this country to thrive, it needs to embrace the openness, transparency, inclusion, and respect for the rights of all of its citizens that Ph?m Ðoan Trang has relentlessly sought through her writing and advocacy," said U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper in a pre-taped message.

Burmese award winner

Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced since a military coup that toppled the democratically elected government of Myanmar, also known as Burma, on Feb. 1, 2021.

The U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) said the number of internally displaced people in the country is now over 800,000. Some 440,000 people have been newly displaced since the coup, adding to an existing 370,000 who had fled their homes previously.

This month, Myanmar's junta stripped the citizenship of 16 prominent opposition figures, including senior members of the National Unity Government, which is leading the resistance to the military regime.

Ei Thinzar Maung is among the NUG members whose citizenship was revoked.

She was honored with the State Department's 2022 Women of Courage Award for her commitment to democracy and work for a strong, inclusive and democratic Myanmar that respects human rights.

"We are not going to ever give up. Democracy must be restored," said Ei Thinzar Maung in a pre-taped message. While being forced into hiding due to torture and death threats, Ei Thinzar Maung continues to speak out against the 2021 military coup. She is the youngest woman to run in Myanmar's general election held in 2020.

A champion of the rights of women and young people, Ei Thinzar Maung also advocated for ethnic minorities. She was beaten and jailed for more than a year after leading a 644-kilometer march from Mandalay to Yangon in 2015 to protest a national education law that excluded ethnic languages and restricted student unions.

On Oct. 30, 2020, she spoke to VOA Burmese in its Weekly Women's Corner program.

"I'm 25 years old and I've been competing as an adult, but in the eyes of others they see me as a child. No matter what I say."

She added, "Look around us and in Asia. Now the Thai student movement is led by students. The Hong Kong movement is led by students. There are a lot of students in the political process in Burma."

Bangladesh's honoree

Syeda Rizwana Hasan, a Bangladeshi lawyer, is also one of the recipients of the International Women of Courage Award this year.

The State Department says she has shown exceptional courage in her mission to protect the environment and defend the rights of marginalized Bangladeshis. As chief executive of Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association, she has won cases against deforestation, pollution, unregulated ship breaking, and illegal land development.

"In the context of Bangladesh, this award is important because it shows that working on environmental issues is important. It is also a recognition that this difficult job is done by a female leader," Syeda Rizwana Hasan said in an interview with VOA's Bangla Service.

Monday, first lady Jill Biden spoke during the ceremony about the barriers and struggles awardees continue to face.

"For 16 years, these awards have lifted up the voices of women around the world. It has shined light on the struggles and strength of women in the global north, south, east and west," Biden said.

"We will tell your stories, even when you cannot."

Source: Voice of America

KIEV— Barely a week into the evolving refugee crisis that has hit the country, the Ukrainian government has publicly acknowledged that African immigrants seeking to flee the violence have faced racist treatment amid social media and diplomatic backlash and fightback.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted that Russia’s invasion had “affected Ukrainians and non-citizens in many devastating ways.”

“Africans seeking evacuation are our friends and need to have equal opportunities to return to their home countries safely,” the official said, adding that Ukraine’s government “spares no effort to solve the problem.”

Individual African countries, the West African and continental blocs, ECOWAS and AU respectively, have slammed the mistreatment as have the UN and EU.

Willing African nationals are now being evacuated with most being from neighbouring countries like Romania, Poland and Maldova.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Feb 24 ordered a military operation in Ukraine after it emerged that the country was seeking entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization – which Russia sees as against its security interests.

Russian forces have been in Ukraine trying to take control of the capital and second largest city – Kyiv and Kharkiv respectively.

The resulting chaos has led to people fleeing their homes into neighbouring countries. A major issue that has come up is the racist mistreatment of Africans seeking to escape – it has been condemned by African countries and the AU.

Most African countries have started evacuating their nationals – mostly students – by having them cross land borders into neigbouring countries where they are given consular assistance.

Initial talks between the two warring parties took place on Feb 28, with a second-round expected on March 2, according to Russian media.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

BANGUI, CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC — As much of the world denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine Thursday, the Central African Republic's capital, Bangui, hosted a tribute to Russian paramilitaries who helped beat back rebels a year ago.

In Bangui’s city center, a human-sized statue erected last year depicts Central African and Russian security forces protecting a woman and her child.

As Western countries tried in vain Wednesday to prevent Russian military aggression against Ukraine, about 100 Central Africans gathered at the monument holding Russian flags.

The group was paying tribute to Russian mercenaries who helped defend the capital, Bangui, last year against rebels.

Blaise-Didacien Kossimatchi organized the ceremony. He heads the "National Galaxy" platform, a Central African group close to the government that often holds protests against France and the United Nations.

He says they say no to everything that is a smear campaign against our army and our Russians, especially by the international press who qualify the Russians as mercenaries.. Kossimatchi adds, "no, the Russians are not here to make exactions - the Russians did nothing!”

By exactions, Kossimatchi means crimes such as rapes and killings. U.N. experts accuse Russian mercenaries of abusing civilians in the CAR. and several other countries.

Several of those celebrating the anniversary wore T-shirts that read “I am Wagner,” a reference to the Wagner Group, the shadowy Russian network that supplied the mercenaries.

Analysts say Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ally, Yevgeny Prigozhin, is behind the Wagner Group.

Wagner’s fighters provide security for CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadéra and have been spotted from Syria to Libya and from Mozambique to Mali.

Yefi Kezza, a member of the ruling United Hearts Movement party, says they’re changing history. You see what is happening in Mali, says Kezza. This is a strong message that I’m sending to the French Embassy today, he says. It is time to cooperate with President Touadera and to try and liberate the country together, says Kezza. We’re grateful to the Russians. We are here today, he says, and we have invited the Russians to join us to thank them along with our national army.

No Russians attended the celebration in Bangui, but one Central African army commander was in the crowd.

One man held a sign that read, “Russia will Save the Donbas from War,” referring to the area in southeast Ukraine that Russia declared independent this week before launching its invasion.

A CAR government spokesman declined to comment on the celebration.

Source: Voice of America

The number of people on the brink of starvation across Africa’s Sahel region is ten times higher than it was in 2019, the World Food Programme (WFP) is warning, while the number of people who are displaced is up by 400 percent.

The combined effects of conflict, the COVID-19 pandemic, climate, and rising costs are putting basic meals out of reach for millions.

“An absolute crisis is unfolding before our eyes,” said WFP Executive Director David Beasley on a visit to Benin, having inspected WFP operations in Niger and Chad. “I’ve been talking with families who have been through more than you can possibly imagine. They have been chased from their homes by extremist groups, starved by drought and plunged into despair by COVID’s economic ripple effects.”

Beasley added: “We’re running out of money, and these people are running out of hope.”

The Sahel, which runs south of the Sahara desert, encompassing Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger, is currently experiencing some of its driest conditions in years.

Hunger is expected to affect 10.5 million people this year, including more than a million teetering on the edge of starvation, in the five countries.

This is up from 3.6 million in 2019, including 141,000 people who were on the brink of starvation. The current crisis is expected to outpace previous years' due to compounding factors including insecurity, an increase in poverty due to the coronavirus pandemic, and dramatic increases in the cost of staple foods.

While needs are sky high, resourcing to support some of the most vulnerable people is at rock bottom, forcing WFP into the difficult position of having to take from people suffering hunger to feed those who are starving.

In Niger, for example, a shortage of funding means that WFP halving food rations.

WFP requires US$470 million for the next six months to continue operations in the Sahel where, despite a challenging security context, in 20201 it worked with humanitarian partners to maintain lifesaving support reaching 9.3 million people in the five countries.

WFP has also been implementing resilience programmes to help families thrive. In just three years to 2021, WFP and local communities turned 270,000 acres of barren fields in five countries into productive agricultural and pastoral land, changing the lives of more than 2.5 million people. This work showed how investing in resilience can pay dividends in peace and stability.

There are further glimmers of hope. In Benin, for instance, where the threat of conflict spilling across from neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger into areas in the north is a growing concern, the Government-funded school feeding programme jointly implemented by WFP provides a nutritious meal to 700,000 children. It has been vital in creating jobs and strengthening the local economy.

Source: World Food Programme

Many Zimbabwean schools that closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic remain shuttered as teachers refuse to return to the classroom, citing a need for better pay.

The teachers are paid less than $100 a month. The government has offered a 20 percent pay increase and other incentives, but the teachers have rejected that offer as insufficient.

Meanwhile, some youths are studying independently. One such student, a 16-year-old, said, "My appeal [to the government] is for a salary increment for teachers so that they come to work, because we aren’t learning. It’s like we are paying fees for nothing. It’s so painful as my parents are struggling for it when I am not learning at all.”

The pay dispute goes back to October 2018, when the government stopped paying teachers in U.S. dollars, switching to the reintroduced Zimbabwean dollar. The new currency has steadily lost value, effectively reducing teachers' wages.

Obert Masaraure, president of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe, said the instructors want their old salaries restored and that the offer of a 20 percent raise amounted to almost nothing.

“We asked for the restoration of salaries, which were robbed from us by the government of the day," Masaraure said. "And the message to the government is clear: We need our pre-October 2018 salaries of 540 dollars U.S. We know these shenanigans of adding an extra dollar to our salaries — that does not add up.”

Government officials see the ongoing talks in a different light and voice optimism about a successful resolution.

Paul Mavima, Zimbabwe's minister of public service, labor and social welfare, said, "In many ways we already have a breakthrough. The leaders of the workers have to a very large extent welcomed this package and they are only saying: Let’s discuss how it is going to be implemented.”

The teachers and government are expected to meet in coming days to resume negotiations. Meanwhile, students wait to resume their studies months after the COVID-19 pandemic forced their schools to close.

Source: Voice of America