and the article isn’t half bad, either.  check it.  from the NYTimes.

here’s an excerpt from the article, titled “Uganda Enlists Former Rebels to End a War”:

In an unorthodox strategy that could help end this seemingly pointless war, the Ugandan Army is deploying special squads of experienced killers to track down the L.R.A.’s leader, Joseph Kony, one of the most wanted men in Africa, who has been on the run for two decades.

So I know this is a day late, but I figured I would enlighten you guys anyway.  Yesterday was World Water Day, and in its honor, I am posting about one of my favorite charities.  It’s called charity: water.  Here’s an email I got from them just yesterday:

Today is World Water Day, and we’re proud to launch Unshaken.
Unshaken is a campaign to help Haiti recover by providing long-term clean water solutions. Watch the trailer now and help us spread the word.

Unshaken - charity: water’s campaign for Haiti from charity: water on Vimeo.

Ever since the massive earthquake struck Haiti, charity: water has been working with our partners on the ground to find solutions to the growing water needs. Over a million people have been displaced from Port-au-Prince, and the need for clean water in the rural areas is greater than ever.

charity: water has identified 11 areas that need help now. We know exactly how much money is needed, and as always will use 100% of donations to directly fund projects, proving each one using photos and GPS.

There’s an incredible amount of work that needs be done in Haiti, but the first step is simple.

charity: water has raised a ton of money, and 100% of donations go to their projects.  (They have a group of private funders who sponsor their administrative costs.)  This is hugely important, as for many organizations, so much of donations ends up going to maintenance and administration.  The 100% of charity: water’s donations go toward projects such as hand-dug wells, deep wells (boreholes), rehabilitations, spring protections, rainwater harvesting schemes, and biosand filters. They have water projects in schools, clinics and villages in locations such as Cambodia, Sierra Leone, Honduras, Haiti and many others.

There are so many people in the world who don’t have resources; water is the most basic need to stay alive, therefore places where it’s hard to come by have the potential for conflict over it.  Getting rid of that potential is one thing charity: water does, and it is impressive indeed.  For more information, go to www.charitywater.org, and check out what they’re doing.  Tell your friends.  And if you have any feedback for me, comment, comment, comment!

It is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it and fear of the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it. –Daw Aung Sun Suu Kyi

This woman is amazing.  He name is Aung San Suu Kyi, and she is the daughter of General Aung San–founder of the modern Burmese army and negotiator of Burma’s independence from the United Kingdom.  She drew much of her political inspiration from India’s Mahatma Gandhi, especially with regards to her policy of non-violence.  Her Buddhism also influenced her politics.

Suu Kyi rallied for a new democracy in Burma, as a military junta had taken over.  However, in 1988, she was put under house arrest, being told that they would free her if she left the country and never returned.  She refused to leave, even though her two sons and her husband remained out of the country.

In 1990, the military junta, led by General Than Shwe, held a general election in which the National League for Democracy won with 82% of the votes.  Aung San Suu Kyi, being the party’s prime candidate, would have assumed Prime Ministership, but instead, the junta nullified the election results.  This created a huge international outcry, but Suu Kyi remained in her home, under arrest.  She spent 14 of the next 20 years under house arrest, but during those times she was out of house arrest, she never left the country, knowing that she would not be allowed to re-enter.

She has received many peace prizes, notably the Nobel Peace Prize she received in 1991, for her non-violent and peace-promoting practices.  The Nobel committee stated:

well this is interesting…

After countless attacks on how detrimental an effect the Internet, or rather, social networking, has had on people, it is unexpected to see that the Internet may be a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Endorsed by companies such as Google, MTV Networks, and Microsoft, the Internet for Peace (I4P) was nominated by WIRED Magazine.  Supporters and “ambassadors” range from the Vice President of Paraguay, Luìs Federico Franco Gómez, to Shirin Ebadi, 2003’s Nobel Peace Prize recipient, to designer Giorgio Armani.

In a press release, I4P stated, “the basic idea is that, being available to everyone and conveying messages of sympathy and humanity, the Internet really is a great tool for democracy”.  I’m not gonna lie, I kind of like where they’re going here…

If you support the campaign, here is some info on how to join.  You can also go to the website to see the various media they have related to the subject.  What do you think about the Internet winning the Nobel Peace Prize?  Do you think it’s a good idea?   Comments are appreciated.

below is I4P’s mission, as seen on www.internetforpeace.org:

We have finally realized that the Internet is much more than a network of computers.
It is an endless web of people. Men and women from every corner of the globe are
connecting to one another, thanks to the biggest social interface ever known to humanity.
Digital culture has laid the foundations for a new kind of society.
And this society is advancing dialogue, debate and consensus through communication.
Because democracy has always flourished where there is openness, acceptance,
discussion and participation. And contact with others has always been the most
effective antidote against hatred and conflict.
That’s why the Internet is a tool for peace.
That’s why anyone who uses it can sow the seeds of non-violence.
And that’s why the next Nobel Peace Prize should go to the Net.
A Nobel for each and every one of us.

The U.S. Marine Corps have figured out an interesting way to get information.  I say interesting for two reasons: it is non-confrontational and involves women from both the US and Afghanistan.

The new strategy used by the Marine Corps involves groups of four to five women accompanying the teams of men going on patrols in the Helmand Province of rural Afghanistan.  Their mission is to attempt to gain the trust of Afghan women, who have more influence than one would expect.  If they win over the women, the Marines hope to gain the trust of the rural population as a whole.

The tactics: engagement.  Because Afghan women are culturally off-limits to outside men, it has been difficult to get information from them, as female Marines have not been able to go on patrols full-time until now.  These “engagement teams” will meet women in their homes (after getting permission from the house’s elder), and begin a conversation with them by asking basic questions, trying to get as much information as they can.

Gaining the trust of the general population by beginning with the women is not the only reason that the engagement teams are there.  Women are also a great source of information, as they exchange news from one village to another when they meet at communal places, like wells.  They can carry intelligence involving the political dynamics of their community, and more importantly, information on insurgents and the Taliban.

Speaking with the women is also a great way to get information on how to improve the communities.  “If the population has told you that their biggest problem is irrigation and your unit does something about it, that’s a huge success,” said Marina Kielpinski, the instructor of the team’s program.  (She also said, “If you have a pony tail, let it go out the back of your helmet so people can see you’re a woman.”)

The strategy is a part of General Stanley A. McChrystal’s campaign for Afghan hearts and minds.  He says that “you cannot gain the trust of the Afghan population if you only talk to half of it”.

I read about this issue in the New York Times.  Their article, by Elisabeth Bumiller, is here.

Send me your comments! What do you think of the new strategy?  Will it work?  What are the risks involved?  Would love to hear your opinion.

for more information, go to www.peaceoil.org