End Fossil Fuel Subsidies

Click on the link: End Fossil Fuel Subsidies, and sign the petition. I just did :)

Do not be a fusspot and say that online petitions do not actually have an impact.
They do.

On November 1, Change.org announced their victory over Bank of America’s $5 debit card fee after over 300,000 people signed a (online) petition asking the bank to eliminate the fee for all customers. The petition was created by an independent member of Change.org who also broadcasted her plea onto Facebook and Twitter. Dominitz says that Change.org depends on social networking sites so that people can use their connections to spread word of their cause with immediacy. He believes that online petitioning is a tool that goes hand in hand with why people reach out to one another online on sites like Facebook. “It’s looking for something that is larger than ourselves—making or signing a petition gives you a sense of being part of your world.”

Source: www.genyu.net

So yes. They have worked. 

photo-credits: http://priceofoil.org/2009/09/16/money-for-nothing-and-your-climate-for-free/

The Stigma of Silence

Stride 2012

On the Road to Rio+20

Keep your laws off my Belly.

The previous edition of the Activist which encapsulated views of several youth on abortion sparked a heated debate on the local social media scene and the blogosphere. Some comments questioned if 'pro-life-ers are anti women'.  Some even revealed shocking statistics such as: 77% of all pro-life leaders are male, and 54% of women who have had an abortion say they used contraception. As such, one stark reality that all pro-life responses underscored was the self evident truth that unless you've walked a mile in the shoes of someone who’s had or at least contemplated abortion; your criticism is only as credible as straight people condemning gay rights or the perfectly healthy denouncing euthanasia. Among the emails I received was the one from Ranmali (26). Hers was a deeply personal insightful message.

This is her story:

“I believed that abortion was something I will never consider going through until it affected my life. But the morality and all the teaching aside, I think people should be more careful about what they preach, especially when they don’t have a clue about what goes on in a person’s mind when confronted with a situation that is totally unexpected. Sure, a lot of people can say that if one has sex, they should be aware of the consequences, but then, for those who do take the necessary precautions against it, and still end up pregnant, what does the world say to them? I was not ignorant of the consequences of intercourse, nor was I not informed of contraceptives. I think I am one of those examples of what people call “everything gone wrong”. I loved my boyfriend, and I was ready to start a family with him. But I did not expect to have a child till the moment I found out that I was pregnant. It came as a shock to me. I was hit with another blow when I found that my boyfriend was cheating on me. He was pro abortion from day two of us getting to know that I was pregnant. On day one, he was happy thinking that he was going to become a father. It was after some time later that I found out that he was cheating on me. It kind of explained to me why he wanted to get rid of the child. Nevertheless I was not convinced that I wanted to go through something illegal nor did I want to kill my child. But sometimes we are faced with situations where we do not have much choice. Do I raise a child alone and let society call me a 'bad woman' and my child a bastard, or do I put an end to all this and go through an abortion? I ended up keeping the child. This led to a lot of dilemmas in life. I could never have done something illegal. And yet the options that were available were not the safest either. I was told by many that certain doctors would perform abortions, and was recommended certain hospitals as well. But knew I could not face the world if something went wrong, nor could I imagine how it would feel after the abortion. But what surprised me were my mum’s sentiments on hearing that I was pregnant. She said that she would have made sure I terminated the pregnancy had she known in advance. Sometimes parents can surprise you, my mother certainly did. I never thought that they would react to a pregnancy in that way, but I guess most of us judge things wrong. If we take a closer look, I am sure that despite laws that prohibit abortion, there would be many who would see things in a logical manner and act without a shroud of imposed morality blocking their senses.”

If 77% of all anti-abortion leaders really are male: then 100% of them will never get pregnant.  As such, it may be difficult for us men to relate to pregnancy and everything else it entails: from the bulging belly and disapproving parents to ridicule from distant relatives and pro-lifers shouting ‘murder’. After all, if you can't trust a woman with a choice how can you trust her with a child?

Originally published on The Nation:

Spare the child or swing the paddle

Corporal Punishment perpetuates a cycle of violence. Perpetrators of Corporal Punishment often tend to justify their action by reasoning that being subjected to Corporal Punishment as children did not do them any harm. However, they are oblivious to the stark reality that they themselves are inadvertently trapped in a vicious cycle of violence. Adults resorting to corporal punishment, teaches children that it is acceptable to use violence as a last resort.  Wars are fought on this principle. However, just as there is no such thing as a just war, inflicting of pain on a minor, too, is unjustifiable.

 Due to the vast differences in each individual’s biological makeup, temperament, cognitive endurance, and personality not every person possesses an equal level of resiliency.  Corporal punishment has consistently been found to lead to Increased aggressive and destructive behavior, increased disruptive classroom behavior, vandalism, poor school achievement, poor attention span, increased drop-out rate, school avoidance and school phobia, low self-esteem, anxiety, somatic complaints, depression, suicide and retaliation etc…

Punishing children maybe a successful deterrent to wrongdoings, however, fear is not interchangeable with understanding or realization. When a child refrains from engaging in a wrongdoing because he or she may be punished, it is his/her fear for punishment that keeps the wrongdoing at bay, not the self-realization of the moral implications of his action. Real discipline is not based on force, but grows from understanding, mutual respect and tolerance. Therefore, while corporal punishment maybe a good deterrent it is questionable whether, it a good teaching technique. Teachers should develop more effective creative, positive, non-violent, approaches to school discipline.

Sometimes corporal punishment becomes an outlet for adults’ pent-up frustrations, stress and masochistic tendencies rather than a genuine attempt to educate children. Children then are at the receiving end punishment simply decided by the mood of the teacher.

Children, as all human beings, are entitled to the right to respect for their human dignity and physical integrity, corporal punishment is a clear breach of the same. Severe Corporal punishment is simply unacceptable. While physical punishment may hurt the child insensitive verbal abuse can also leave scars that last a lifetime.

There may also be teachers that abuse their position of authority, gaining self-esteem through the humiliation of minors. Recently, there was a report of a teacher that allegedly forced a student to eat inedible produce. Such sadistic tendencies must not be tolerated.

The normalization of corporal punishment reinforces societal acceptance. It is looked at, as an inevitable part of growing up, as opposed to a problem that exists in society that needs to be addressed.

I am not opposed to the very institution of punishment however, on a comparative basis; the deliberate, repeated, violent and insensitive punishment is simply unacceptable.

Issues that matter : An old interview that went on the Sunday Times

By Hansini Munasinghe

The gleaming facade of the United Nations headquarters in Vienna, welcoming hundreds of young delegates who had gathered from more than 40 countries is what Senel Wanniarachchi recalls of his experience at the Vienna International Model United Nations (VIMUN) 2011. “ We lived the life we wanted to live,” he says speaking of his experience as a Sri Lankan delegate at the event. Organised by the United Nations Youth and Student Association of Austria - Academic Forum for Foreign Affairs (UNYSA-AUSTRIA-AFA), this global event was held recently in Vienna, Austria. Senel was awarded the Best Delegate Award for representing Sri Lanka at the Human Rights Council, where he addressed the issue of refugees and political asylum seekers. Holding discussions in halls where international treaties were discussed and dining in rooms where world leaders had met, these young men and women were part of an unparalleled experience. It was a wonderful opportunity and we built a lot of connections and friendships with people from all corners of the world. “It was fun,” says Senel, recalling how he became the best dancer at the after party. Senel was adjudged the Best Delegate for representing Bangladesh in the Human Rights Council at the Sri Lanka Model United Nations. In addition, he has served as a chairperson at the Model UN in Rajasthan, India, and participated at the International Convention of Quality Control Circles in Turkey. He has also attended the Young Reporters Training Camp in Singapore. Senel’s ambition is to work for the UN or the Sri Lankan Foreign Service and will start studying International Relations at the University of Colombo later this year. He is also hoping to follow an external degree in Law. Adding that “people don’t take you seriously if you don’t have the qualifications.” As a student at D. S. Senanayake College, Colombo, Senel captained the debating team and served as the president of the English Literary Association. He was involved in the Shakespeare “Believe in yourself. If you really want to do it, you can.” advises Senel encouraging other young people to “think big”. Senel, who studied English, French and Political Science for his Advanced Levels, believes that many students do not “utilize the options in the curriculum”.Drama Competition, Dreams and Teams (a voluntary service project organised by the British Council) and the school Media Circle. Many Sri Lankans believe that “arts is something girls and kids who fail do,” Senel adds with a laugh. A majority of the students, who study Mathematics or Science for Advanced Levels, have “no time to be concerned about anything else. He also adds that his family has been very supportive and encouraging, and never pressurized him. Discussing why many young people are oblivious to current issues, Senel says that many think that it is just “not cool” to be concerned about the world. “Some just don’t care or they just don’t know. They have access to information but they decide not to access it”. Helping the world doesn’t mean you have to study International Relations, explains Senel, who believes that you can make a change in any field or career you are interested in, be it medicine, journalism or the entertainment industry. These days he is busy getting ready for the Sri Lanka Youth MUN, which is to be held in Colombo in March 2012, which he hopes will serve as a platform for Sri Lankan youth to “make the world a better place.”

Voices for Change: An ancient interview on the Colombo Spirit

November 1, 2011 (TCS) - It’s an unpleasant reality but human rights are violated on a frighteningly regular basis. Children are bullied, teenagers are ragged and adults are subject to domestic violence. This continues and is constantly swept under the rug – why? Because people are too afraid to speak out in their own defence.

The [Red] Movement is the voices of all these people, finally calling for a change.

While it’s widely known that it is ‘bad’ to steal and beat up people, this cause looks into the darker nooks and crannies, into issues that plague schools, homes and workplaces – bullying, abuse and domestic violence. The Movement, with a changing adjective according to the headline issue being addressed, was founded with the aim of promoting awareness among citizens of their human rights. They’re not addressing issues that make the front page every day but more sensitive, emotional situations that tend to be overlooked or ignored by society

It is of paramount importance that in today’s society, people – especially young children – know that these rights exist.

Sri Lanka is a country that’s seen war so up-close that people are almost accustomed to the violence. In comparison to the bombs and mass civilian deaths, an instance of bullying might seem insignificant. Quite on the contrary, this too has an adverse impact on society.

Founder of The Movement Senel Wanniarachchi states that the issues they’re aiming to bring to light are ones that people don’t talk about. “Situations like teenage suicide, bullying and domestic violence are issues conveniently avoided by society” he says.

There are a range of issues that The Movement plans to target. Bullying, ragging, teenage suicide and domestic violence are a few. Being that there are a significant amount of ragging-related deaths and suicides over the years, Wanniarachchi hopes to organize campaigns such as ‘Suicide Prevention Weeks’ as are commonly seen in Western countries.

“Society has set a range of stereotypes, what’s ‘cool’ and ‘uncool’ but we want to show kids that it’s alright to not conform to society’s expectations” Senel says. By collaborating with respected sports and society icons, they hope to project the ideology that it’s okay to break the ‘mold’. “We want to change the mindset of the people” he expressed, adding that they want to make society more sensitive to people with psychological conditions and other disorders that aren’t well understood.

The Movement is just getting off the ground and their main tool for spreading their message is the media. “It’s still a lot of mere ideas but at the end of the day, we want to get people talking” Senel says, awareness being their basic yet most powerful strategy at the moment.

Young, committed voices for change are what The Movement in looking for. Anyone interested in writing, graphics and helping the team get their word across can write to senel.wanniarachchi@gmail.com for more details.

Rio+20: the Future We Want

We are living in exceptional times. For climate change activists the last few decades have been ‘the best of times’ and ‘the worst of times’. While the world saw unprecedented efforts for environmental protection leading to many ongoing developments; our awareness on the need to take action and mitigate climate change has risen faster than our capacity to do so. 
Severn Cullis-Suzuki, then just 12 years old, addressing the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro said “I have no hidden agenda; I’m fighting for my future.” We cannot afford failure for if we don’t act today, our tomorrows will be at stake. 
What are Rio+20?

The Global Community will meet in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012 to define a plan for the future we want in terms of sustainable development. The 3 main objectives of the Rio+20 Conference are: securing renewed political commitment to sustainable development, assessing the progress and implementation gaps in meeting already agreed commitments, and addressing new and emerging challenges.  

The preparation for Rio+20 is an on-going country-led process coordinated by the United Nations for over two years, including 3 rounds of Preparatory Committee Meetings, Intercessional Meetings and Informal Consultations. The resulting inputs were compiled to serve as a basis for the zero draft of the Rio+20 outcome document.  At the Conference, world leaders, along with thousands of participants from governments, the private sector, NGOs and other groups, will come together to shape how we can reduce poverty, advance social equity and ensure environmental protection on an ever more crowded planet. It’s a chance to move away from business as usual, to act to end poverty, address environmental destruction and build a bridge to the future. 
Why do we need Rio+20?

2012 is the first year to awaken to a world population of 7 billion, and by 2050 it is predicted that there will be as many as 9 billion earthlings. With considerable implications for sustainability, urbanisation, access to health services and youth empowerment, a world of 7 billion also offers a rare call for renewing global commitment to a healthy and sustainable world for all. Statistics show that one out of every five people – 1.4 billion – currently lives on $1.25 a day or less, that almost a billion people go to bed hungry every day and that more than a third of all known species will go extinct if climate change continues unchecked. Rio+20 provides an opportunity to think globally, so that we can all act locally to secure our common future.

At Home, the 2009 documentary by Yann Arthus-Bertrand questions “what’s important is not what’s gone, but what remains. We still have half the world’s forests, thousands of rivers, lakes and glaciers, and thousands of thriving species. We know that the solutions are there today. We all have the power to change. So what are we waiting for?”  We can’t afford to wait any longer. If our actions at Rio+20 are too little, it will surely be too late.

How racist are We?

the Best Delegate.

Love is very funny actually.

One Day on Earth- The World's Story is Yours to Tell

When the UN convened the first Earth Summit in Rio in 1992, technology played a minor role in the task of   setting global development agendas. Twenty years later, the situation is completely different. Digital and social media have proved that they have a potentially crucial role to play in sustainable global development.  On the 22nd of April which was the United Nations designated International Mother Earth Day, the United Nations Information Center (UNIC) - Colombo in collaboration with the youth group “Youth for Greener Sri Lanka Platform”, organized a workshop on “using digital and social media to address sustainable development”. The workshops highlighted how today, modern technology and social media have the power to transform the world and use technology as a force.

Youth as a powerful tool

 Attending Earth Day celebrations, the Secretary to the Ministry of Environment said that the youth are a powerful tool in creating awareness on risk issues and that the Ministry believes in mobilizing the youth in these efforts. UNIC, Colombo, supported by UNDP Energy & Environment, promotes Youth efforts in “National Road to Rio+20 campaigns in Sri Lanka. 

One Day on Earth

Following the successful conclusion of the workshop, the documentary film “One Day on the Earth” was screened followed by the music video, ‘Make it Green Again’. This was a historic feat as the film was screened in over 160 countries around the world, on the same day. One Day on Earth is a grassroots film project that, once a year, captures the human experience in every country on earth on the same day. This feature-length documentary film premiers on Earth Day, April 22, 2012 and -- screened in over 160 countries around the world. It showcases the work of many UN partners and over 19,000 volunteer filmmakers– novice and professional –and sets a world record: the first movie to feature footage from every country in the world on the same day. The movie starts with the birth of a newborn in UK and encapsulates rare footage from all over the world giving a unique opportunity to see our world and the issues we face through a new lens. The footage links the crises, which confront the world today; from increasing population, consumption, waste production, environmental degradation and water shortage faced every day.  The documentary visualizes diminishing resources and the message that it's is, after all a shared planet. (The video is available for public distribution at UNIC. Tel: 2580791).  

Rio+20

The Global Community will meet in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012 to define a plan for the “ future we want “ in terms of sustainable development. Rio+20 is a part of a process of global awareness that led to calls for action. The 3 main objectives of the Rio+20 Conference are: securing renewed political commitment to sustainable development, assessing the progress and implementation gaps in meeting already agreed commitments, and addressing new and emerging challenges. The ocean is one of seven critical issues identified, with jobs, energy, cities, food, water, and disasters.

The preparation for Rio+20 is an on-going country-led process coordinated by the United Nations over two years, including 3 rounds of Preparatory Committee Meetings, Intercessional Meetings and ‘Informal-informal’ Consultations. The resulting inputs were compiled to serve as a basis for the zero draft of the Rio+20 outcome document.  

We cannot afford failure. The security and sustainability of life on Earth depends on our success.  As Secretary General Ban Ki Moon said, “Rio+20 is a once-in-a generation opportunity that all of us must seize, driving at the interrelations such that solutions to one problem translate into progress on all.”.  If our actions at Rio+20 are too little, it will surely be too late.

Unchopping a Tree: Reconciliation in Sri Lanka

Marry Outside the race?

Ragging in Sri Lankan Universities