No Small Mercy: How a Rwandan genocide survivor made peace with the man who almost killed her
Fifteen years after Rwandan Hutu massacred hundreds of thousands of their Tutsi countrymen, one survivor and the man who cut off her hand tell the horrible truth about the genocide and explain how, even with so much suffering between them, they eventually made peace.
On the Frustrations of being from a “Restricted Country”
Carla Ortiz reflects on the emotional ups and downs, and the tangle of red tape facing visa applicants from so-called “restricted countries”.
Paul Martin on Human Rights – Interview
Joe Schumacher interviews J. Paul Martin, executive director of the Center for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University, New York Dr. Martin, together with Professor Louis Henkin (University Professor Emeritus/Special Service Professor, Columbia University), founded the Center in 1978, and has served as its executive director ever since. Dr. Martin spent several years as a missionary and university teacher in Africa, and over the years, Dr. Martin’s primary research interest has been human rights education, especially in Africa, as well as religion and human rights. Currently his work is focused on the impact of multinational corporations on developing countries from a human rights perspective.
Peace Process in Sri-Lanka Stalls
Peace Process in Sri-Lanka Stalls Author: Ravi R Prasad Originally Published at Peace and Conflict Monitor on: 09/20/2004 No war, no peace. This is how one can describe the current situation in the Indian Ocean island of Sri Lanka. The hostilities between the government troops and the armed separatist guerrillas ended in February 2002 with a Norwegian brokered […]
Politics of the Absurd: Sarah Palin and the mindset for war
Pandora Hopkins reflects on the adsurdity of the 2008 US elections, offering some insight into the archetypal “warrior” and “clanmom” figures of John McCain and Sarah Palin. Hopkins writes: “My hope is that, by using a folkloric perspective—by examining the tales told by and about Sarah Palin and John McCain (stock figures in this drama)–we can begin to find ways to promote the hope that Obama has inspired—and the satirical energy that Sarah Palin
engendered.”
Priestess of the Green Gospel
In this issue’s editorial, Dr. Edith Natukunda-Togboa offers tam-tams and ululations as Professor Wangari Maathai joins the select club of Nobel Peace Laureates.
Rods from who?
A recent U.S. Air Force proposal suggests militarizing space. But why even consider opening up this can of giant, planet-orbiting, laser-firing worms?
Self-immolation in Tajikistan
A significantly large number of young women in Tajikistan, and elsewhere in Central Asia, forced into marriage attempt suicide by setting themselves alight. The author explains why.
Social Misrepresentations in Hollywood War Movies
Fomotar provides an assessment of social biases in the Hollywood movie circuit. An overview of the historical underpinning sets the stage for the misrepresentation of blacks, women, and homosexuals. Navigating through the philosophical and the sociological, Fomotar brings certain criticisms to Hollywood’s doorstep.
Some Similarities Between the Armenian Genocide, 1915-1923, and the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda
The twentieth century witnessed systematic, state-sponsored killings of specific ethnic, nationalist, or religious groups across continents and cultures. Much can be learned from the individual ideologies of hate and insecurity that led to each genocide, but as Habyarimana argues, they also share significant similarities. Ultimately, genocide is not a problem that belongs to specific times and places, but a problem for all mankind. We all have a responsibility to understand what has happened, and build a future where such atrocities are an impossibility.