People’s Tribunal on Sri Lanka

The Permanent People’s Tribunal (successor to the Bertrand Russell Tribunal) will be conducting a People’s Tribunal on the war in Sri Lanka and its aftermath in Dublin in January 2010. The People’s Tribunal will investigate the allegations that the Government of Sri Lanka and its armed forces committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during its final phase of the war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The Tribunal will also examine the local and international factors that led to the collapse of the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement.

The People’s Permanent Tribunal has a long history of carrying out independent investigations of human rights abuses ranging from Vietnam to Guatemala. The People’s Tribunal on Sri Lanka will be conducted by a panel of eleven eminent persons with vast experience in the field of human rights and in matters of justice, chosen from the Global South and North. It is being organised by the Irish Forum for Peace in Sri Lanka and the Irish School of Ecumenics, Trinity College Dublin. The Tribunal will take place at Trinity College Dublin on January 14 and 15, 2010, and its provisional findings will be announced at a public meeting on January 16. 04  December 2009

Members of the Panel of Judges of the People’s Tribunal on Sri Lanka:

1. Francois Houtart (UNESCO awardee for non-violence and tolerance, Chairperson of the UN Committee on Economic Recession., Prof. Emeritus, University of Louvain, Belgium. Founding Member of the World Social Forum, Honorary Member of the Academy of Sciences of Vietnam and Cuba, Laureate of the Camilo Torres Prize of the National University of Colombia, Bogota ) We have tried to list the panel according to age (Asian custom for respecting age)

2. Rajinder Sachar (Former High Court Judge of Delhi, headed the Sachar Committee appointed by the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, to prepare a report on the social,economic and educational status of the Muslim community of India)

3. Nawal al Saadawi (Egyptian writer, trained as a medical doctor, known for her outstanding work for women's rights in Egypt and in the region. She has been imprisoned for her activities and writings in Egypt.She has been United Nation's Advisor for the Women's Programme in Africa (ECA) and Middle East (ECWA) from 1979 to 1980. She is a prolific

4. Sulak Sivaraksa (Thai Buddhist peace campaigner and writer, initiator of a number of social, humanitarian, ecological and spiritual movements and organizations in Thailand. He was awarded the Alternative Nobel Prize (Right Livelihood Award))

5. Denis Halliday (Former Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations)

6. Gianni Tognoni (Secretary General, People’s Permanent Tribunal, Milan)

7. Daniel Feierstein (Director of the Centre for Genocide Studies at the 'Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero', and Professor in the Faculty of Genocide at the University of Buenos Aires)

8. Mary Lawlor (Director, Frontline, International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, Dublin)

9. Oystein Tveter (A Scholar in International law and member of the People’s Tribunal on extra-judicial killings and violations of human rights in the Philippines)

10. Eren Keskin (Kurdish-born lawyer and a human rights activist in Turkey, Vice President  of the Human Rights Association, Istanbul. She co-founded the project “Legal Aid For Women Who Were Raped Or Otherwise Sexually Abused by National Security Forces”, to expose the abuses happening to women in Turkish prisons. In 1995, she was imprisoned for her human rights activities and was adopted as a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International)

11. Francesco Martone (An ex-Senator in Italy, a leading activist in the non-governmental sector and an ecologist) Among those who cannot be on the Panel for various reasons but have agreed to publicise and  interpret the findings of the Tribunal:

1. Arundhati Roy (Writer and Journalist and Booker prizewinner)

2. Krishna Iyer (Former Judge of the Indian Supreme Court, former Minister in the Kerala Parliament and a figure of considerable prominence in India)

3. Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann (Senior Advisor on Foreign Affairs in Nicaragua, the outgoing President of the UN General Assembly, the former Minister for Foreign Affairs in Nicaragua, a liberation theologian and laureate of the Lenin Peace Prize and winner of the Thomas Merton Award)

4. Irene Fernandez (A leading Malaysian Trade Unionist and a human rights campaigner)

5. Alfonso Perez Esquivel (Argentinian human rights campaigner, and a Nobel Peace Prize The jury has been chosen from across the global south and north in order to transcend geopolitical barriers and to ensure that its findings will be both credible and ethically binding. Ireland has been chosen because of its historical status as a post-colonial nation, the success of the Northern Ireland peace process, and its traditional policy of neutrality.

funny video compilation

Hello folks! while waiting for my new laptop to arrive i decided to go surfing and find a funny video to lessen the stress and uplift my condition before i proceed to my work

(UPDATE) Mayon volcano showing signs of increased activity

MANILA - The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) on Sunday said it is studying the possibility of raising the alert level of Mayon Volcano in Albay in the Bicol region after it recently showed signs of increased activity.

PHIVOLCS said it has intensified its monitoring on the activity of Mayon Volcano.

PHIVOLCS confirmed that the crater glow of the volcano has intensified from level one to two which means the glow is visible with the naked eye.

Ed Laguerta, PHIVOLCS resident volcanologist, said the increase in the crater glow means the magma activity inside the volcano has increased.

Aside from the crater glow, Phivolcs has also noted an inflation of the volcano's edifice in the ground deformation survey conducted this June compared to the 12 millimeter deflation recorded in the survey conducted last January. The survey was conducted in Buang Leveling Line in Barangay Buang in Tabaco City.

This also indicate an abnormal activity of the volcano PHIVOLCS said.

Meanwhile for the past 24 hours, PHIVOLCS also said it has recorded four low frequency volcanic earthquake.

Alert level one however is maintained over Mayon volcano and residents and tourists are advised not to enter the seven-kilometer extended danger zone and the six-kilometer permanent danger zone. PHIVOLCS said with the recent abnormal activity of the volcano, a sudden phreatic explosion is possible.

Phreatic eruptions is desribed by US Geological Survey as steam-driven explosions that occur when water beneath the ground or on the surface is heated by magma, lava, hot rocks, or new volcanic deposits (for example, tephra and pyroclastic-flow deposits). USGS says the intense heat of such material (as high as 1,170° C for basaltic lava) may cause water to boil and flash to steam, thereby generating an explosion of steam, water, ash, blocks, and bombs.

PHIVOLCS noted that the alert level can be raised if there is a continuous increase in parameters such as seismic ground deformation and sulfur dioxide emission rate.

Mayon Volcano’s last eruption happened in July until August of 2006 which had the alert level of the volcano raised to four. No casualties were recorded in the last eruption.

Friendster relaunches new website; targets Asia for growth

Checking this new look and new environment on friendster, finally the management had taken to change their website but needs to catch up other social networking site by adding new games and application for better social interaction on it's user...

Arroyo Declared Martial Law in Maguindanao

Let's keep an eye on gloria arroyo decision and beg the congressman to revoke the martial implemented in maguindanao

DUTERTE GO... GO... GO..Nograles NO...NO...NO

While reading an article on a newspaper and surfing the Internet i found an article of a father and daughter tandem and its gives me an idea to write this simple point of view since that I'm already staying in Davao city- think of it  that would great teaming up together especially that rudy duterte is considered and proved himself that he is worthy to keep the city in order and safe which is one of the primarily need by growing city. In addition to these, i would also recommend to the duterte family to focus on the livelihood and attract more investor to the city that might give an eye opener to the nearby city  to improve their own locality by gaining access on what the Davao city has.

     In connection to the upcoming election we had seen their colors and it will be seen on the upcoming days as the election comes  (green, orange, and yellow) but what really gave me interest was the filing of speaker prospero nograles for mayoral position  who we all knew that he is one of the great ally of the administration block as we knew that put shame to Philippines  in the  international community.I think it would be best to take leave on politics and enjoy vacation while clearing his involvement on the present administration. I know that the speaker has a good intention in developing the city but on my points of view take a vacation, enjoy life and let the people speak when you face the the outgoing mayor of the city.