International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
25/11/2019
DID YOU KNOW .....?
1 in 3 women and girls experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime, most frequently by an intimate partner
Only 52% of women married or in a union freely make their own decisions about sexual relations, contraceptive use and health care
Worldwide, almost 750 million women and girls alive today were married before their 18th birthday;
200 million women and girls have undergone female genital mutilation (FGM)
1 in 2 women killed worldwide were killed by their partners or family in 2017; while only 1 out of 20 men were killed under similar circumstances
71% of all human trafficking victims worldwide are women and girls, and 3 out of 4 of these women and girls are sexually exploited
Violence against women is as serious a cause of death and incapacity among women of reproductive age as cancer, and a greater cause of ill health than traffic accidents and malaria combined.
Here's a video (2 mins 33 secs) which gives us all food for thought!
International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People
29/11/2019
This day was established way back in 1977 when the UN declared that Israel's occupation of Arab territories was illegal and that peace could only come about in the region if Israel withdrew from these places. No such withdrawal has taken place.
In 2018, Maria Fernanda Espinosa (the President of the General Assembly of the UN) reported that:
43% of the Palestinian population were refugees - and half of them were below the age of 18
47% of the population of the Gaza strip were living with food insecurity
the average water consumption of the Palestinian populations in Gaza was 66 litres per day - well below the recommended ration of 100 litres per day.
The Secretary General of the UN, Antonio Guterres, said on this day in 2018:
"Today, in particular, our hearts are heavy with the suffering of the people in Gaza.
Approximately two million Palestinians remain blocked in increasing poverty and unemployment, with limited access to adequate health, education, water and electricity.
Young people see little prospect of a better future.
I urge Israel to lift restrictions on the movement of people and goods, which also hamper the efforts of the United Nations and other humanitarian agencies, without jeopardizing legitimate security concerns.
I call on Hamas and other militant groups to halt their military build-up in Gaza, including the indiscriminate launching of rockets and incendiary devices directed at Israel. "
There seems to be little progress and, all the while, people suffer!
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
O Lord, You are the peace and peace emanates from You.
O God of Glory and Majesty grant us security and safety,
and alleviate the suffering of your people.
O Lord, bring comprehensive and just peace to our country and region
so that our people and the peoples of the Middle East and the whole world
would enjoy the fruit of peace, stability and coexistence.
We want peace for us and for our neighbours.
We seek prosperity and peace of mind for ourselves and for others alike.
O Lord, answer our prayers and make successful our endeavors
for you are most just, most merciful, Lord of the Worlds.
This prayer was offered by the Muslim President Abbas of Palestine in Rome when he met Pope Francis and Shimon Peres, the Israeli President in June 2014.
Day of Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare
30/11/2019
Chemical weapons have been used for centuries. In the 17th century, France and Germany signed an agreement NOT to use poison bullets! In 1899, countries at the Hague Peace Conference declared they would not use projectiles which contained "asphyxiating or deleterious gases".
However, during the First World War, over 100,000 humans died and more than 1 million were wounded by the use of gas.
In the Second World War, gas was not used in combat but was used in the Holocaust Concentration Camps.
In 1997, the Chemical Weapons Convention (proposed in 1993) came into force on 29 April. Its purpose was, “for the sake of all mankind, to exclude completely the possibility of the use of chemical weapons.”
And so, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons was set up to monitor this happening. There have undoubtedly been huge successes and OPCW Member States represent about 98% of the global population and landmass, as well as 98% of the worldwide chemical industry. The OPCW was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for what it has done to eliminate chemical weapons. OPCW claim to have eliminated 97% of all chemical weapons.
However, throughout the Syrian Civil War (which started in 2011) - and as recently as 2017 - chemical weapons have been used.
An estimated 40.3 million people are in modern slavery, including 24.9 in forced labour and 15.4 million in forced marriage.
There are 5.4 victims of modern slavery for every 1,000 people in the world.
1 in 4 victims of modern slavery are children.
Out of the 24.9 million people trapped in forced labour, 16 million people are exploited in the private sector such as domestic work, construction or agriculture; 4.8 million people in forced sexual exploitation, and 4 million people in forced labour imposed by state authorities.
Women and girls are disproportionately affected by forced labour, accounting for 99% of victims in the commercial sex industry, and 58% in other sectors.
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Loving God,
who sees the unseen and notices the unnoticed,
help each of us to hear the Hidden Voices of those
who pray for release from slavery.
We pray for those who work to end exploitation and trafficking
that they (and we) be strengthened in resolve to free your people.
We pray this in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. AMEN
(Adapted from prayer by The Rt Revd Dr Alastair Redfern, Chair of The Clewer Initiative.)
It's World Arabic Language Day when the international community takes a moment to appreciate Arabic and its contributions to humanity. It is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world, used daily by more than 290 million people.
World Arabic Language Day is celebrated every year on 18 December since 2012. The date coincides with the day in 1973 that the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted Arabic as the sixth official language of the Organization. Maybe you could work out the other 5! (Answers below)
The Arabic language has given rise to developments in architecture, poetry, philosophy and song. It gives access to an incredible variety of identities and beliefs and its history reveals the richness of its links with other languages. Arabic has played an important role in passing on the knowledge of Greek and Roman sciences and philosophies to Renaissance Europe. Arabic numerals form the basis of mathematics
Classical Arabic is the liturgical (prayer) language of 1.8 BILLION followers of Islam!
Here are some English words which have come to us from Arabic:
in the abode of animals and birds: albatross (al-qadus), camel (jamal), gazelle (ghazal), giraffe (zarafah), jerboa (yarbu), monkey (maymum), nacre (naqqarah), popinjay (babbagha’), and tuna (tun);
in the area of food and drink: alcohol (al-kuhl), apricot (al-barquq), banana (banan), caramel (qanah), cafe (qahwah), jasmine (yasmin), lemon, lemonade and lime (laymun), mocha (mukha – port city in Yemen), orange (naranj) sugar (sukkar – borrowed by nearly every language in Europe) and tuna (tun);
In the sphere of geography and navigation: admiral (amir al-bahr), canal (qanah), monsoon (mawsim), safari (safarah)
in home and daily life: cable (habl), genius (jinn), hazard (al-zahr), jar (jarrah) and sofa (suffah);
in music and song: guitar (qitar) and troubadour (tarab al-dar);
in crime (magbarah): assassin (hashashin), mafia (mu’afi) and massacre (maslakh);
in personal adornment: amber (‘anbar), cameo (chumahan), henna (hinna’), mask and mascara (maskharah) and sequin (sikkah);
in science and mathematics: almanac (al-manakh), alchemy (al-kimiya’), algebra (al-jabr), average (‘awar), calibre (qalib), carat (qirat), chemistry (al-kimiya’) and both cipher and zero (sifr);
in the arena of sports: racket (rah) and tennis (tinnis);
in trade and commerce: cafe (qahwah), cheque (sakk), magazine (makhzan), ream (rizmah), traffic (tafriq) and tariff (ta’rifah).
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Loving God,
we give thanks for Arabic language and culture.
Help us to use their richness to inspire us
to communicate ideas and develop understanding,
building bridges between people.
AMEN
So, the other official languages of the UN are: French, English, Russian Chinese and Spanish
Jesus, born into a migrant family, help us:
to embrace each of your children as our own brother and sister,
to welcome migrants and refugees with joy and openness,
to respond to their needs with generosity,
to give witness to your love for all people as we celebrate the many gifts they bring.
AMEN
Solidarity is one of the fundamental values of international relations in the 21st Century, whereby those who either suffer or benefit least - deserve help from those who benefit most.
Therefore, the UN General Assembly, convinced that the promotion of the culture of solidarity and the spirit of sharing is important for combating poverty, proclaimed 20 of December as International Human Solidarity Day. It is:
A day to celebrate our unity in diversity;
A day to remind governments to respect their commitments to international agreements;
A day to raise public awareness of the importance of solidarity;
A day to encourage debate on the ways to promote solidarity for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals including poverty eradication;
A day of action to encourage new initiatives for poverty eradication.