Search Results for Tag: Asia
North Korean defector works toward democracy
Emma, 18, managed to flee North Korea with her mother. Now she’s networking with other young political activists with hopes of eventually developing democracy in her home country.
Listen to the report by Roberto Tofani, presented by André Leslie:
North Korean defector works toward democracy
Here are some organizations that promote democracy in North Korea:
Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights
Ydank (in Korean)
The National Democratic Institute
Environmentally friendly engergy source gives students a job
Wood is the main source of energy in Cambodia, which has resulted in widespread deforestation. In response, French NGOs have developed an alternative – charbriquets made from coconut shells and dried organic waste. The fuel does not use chopped lumber – giving it a clear advantage. The briquets are inexpensive and burn longer than wood. Factory manager Carlo Figa Talamanca who took over the company from his former employers now wants to reach a wider market. He is working with a French aid group that turns students into a sales force. Talamanca is confident that his social enterprise SGFE (Sustainable Green Fuel Enterprise) will soon reach profitability.
Comments deactivated Young refugee from Burma organizes medical aid for others
Halfway between Mae Sot and the Friendship Bridge linking Thailand and Burma stands the house of the Back Pack Health Worker Team, an association that, since 1998, has been giving health assistance to refugees and migrant workers in Thai territory and internal displaced people inside Burma.
A refugee and young mother herself, Snow is the deputy director of the Back Pack organization.
Listen to the report by Roberto Tofani (presented by André Leslie):
Young Burmese refugee organizes medical aid for others
Snow prefered not to be photographed. Here are some impressions from the region. Photos by Robert Tofani.
The Moei River forms a natural border between Thailand and Burma
These Burmese children are pictured on the border with Thailand, on the Thai side
These kids attend a school for refugees, which is run by local NGOs
Comments deactivated Survivors teach Khmer Rouge history to Cambodia’s teachers
Cambodia adopted a standard curriculum to help students learn about the atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge. To make sure the message gets across, victims of the regime’s crimes tell their stories to teachers.
How do you teach the next generations about a country’s dark secrets from the past? Has your country dealt with anything similar?
Read more from Cambodia here.
Comments deactivated Burmese activist risks personal safety for political change
Bo Bo, a 23-year-old Burmese student and musician, left his home behind because of politics. But his group of young political dissidents still advocates for change inside Burma, despite the huge risks.
Burmese activist risks personal safety for political change
The logo of Bo Bo's opposition organization, Generation Wave
Reporter David Meyers writes about the political situation in Burma:
In 1990, the people of Burma voted in civilian leaders to push their country forward – only to have Burma’s military rulers refuse to concede power. In the past year, the country experienced its first national election since the 1990 poll, yet in many respects, the state of democracy remains as stagnant as it was 20 years ago. Though Burma, or Myanmar as it is officially known, has at least nominally returned to civilian control, the election was widely seen as a foregone conclusion. Opposition figure Aung San Suu Kyi was finally released from her long-standing house arrest following the November election, yet her role in her country’s political future remains cloudy. And though Burma’s authorities released dozens of political prisoners earlier this year – including hip hop star Zayar Thaw, whose politicized music had landed him in prison – almost 2,000 still remain behind bars. Being a political dissident in Burma, then, remains a dangerous job. Members of the anti-regime group Zayar Thaw founded, Generation Wave, are politically active, yet they live under the threat of arrest and carry out their work underground.
Bo Bo has a lot of respecct for persecuted Burmese politican Aung San Suu Ky
Posters of Aung San Suu Kyi, which group members look up to, hang in the Generation Wave safe house
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