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UN International Year of Youth August 13th, 2010
International Youth Day was celebrated at United Nations headquarters in New York on August 12th with the global launch event of the International Year of Youth. The event was a celebration of young peoples’ energy, imagination and initiatives and will recognize their crucial contributions to enhancing peace and development.
To guide the celebrations of the International Year of Youth, the United Nations has developed the Framework Approach highlighting three key objectives for the Year, namely: increased commitment and investment in youth, increased youth participation and partnerships, and increased intercultural understanding among youth. Use these objectives to guide your activities related to youth. The complete Framework Approach is available at http://social.un.org/youthyear/
Sri Lankan Journalist Freed at Last July 19th, 2010
J.S. Tissainayagam
J.S. Tissainayagam, the Tamil Sri Lankan journalist who was sentenced unjustly to 20 years hard labor in 2009 on charges of inciting violence, was freed two months ago and recently granted a Presidential pardon. The pardon came after months of international pressure from human rights advocates and the US government.
Journalists in Sri Lanka have been threatened, murdered and disappeared. Most continue to operate under self-censorship.
Death Penalty News & Updates July 8th, 2010
Texas Judge Will Hold Hearing on State’s Death Penalty Law
A State District Judge in Houston has scheduled a hearing to listen to evidence on whether there’s a substantial risk that the death penalty law allows for the possible execution of an innocent person. The hearing, expected to last two weeks, will begin on November 8 and will likely include testimony from experts on the death penalty around the country. Early in March the same Judge ruled in a capital murder case that the Texas death penalty statute is unconstitutional.
World Coalition Against the Death Penalty- 2010 Annual General Assembly
On June 12 and 13, the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty convened in San Francisco, marking the first international abolition meeting in the United States. The World Coalition Against the Death Penalty Assembly was an historic occasion that brought together death penalty opponents from all over the world. The conference was an opportunity for American death penalty opponents to learn from activists elsewhere and share strategies for worldwide death penalty abolition. The conference featured panel discussions led by community activists, victim’s families, wrongfully convicted death row prisoners, and former members of law enforcement who are opposed to the death penalty.
Upcoming International Events on the Death Penalty:
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Worship Resource for International Eradication of Poverty Day – October 17 July 2nd, 2010
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed. (Luke 4: 18-19)
In 1992, the General Assembly of the United Nations declared 17th October the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The JPIC Commission of the USG/UISG aims to promote awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution in all countries, particularly in developing countries. A prayer service was prepared for the Commission by the NGO ‘Social Justice Ireland’. (Download PDF of the prayer service)
Democratic Republic of Congo: Celebrating 50 Years of Independence! June 29th, 2010
On 30th June 2010, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its independence from Belgium. The DRC has been described as the ‘heart of Africa’ and is home to enormous natural wealth and resources. However, for the last two decades, Congo has been caught up in armed conflict 
described as one the world’s deadliest. The fighting in the eastern DRC is fueled in large part by conflict minerals which include coltan (columbite-tantalite), cassiterite (tin ore) and wolframite (tungsten). These metals are used in consumer electronics such as cell phones and laptop computers. The Congo conflict has left millions of people dead. Thousands of women have been victimized by rape and countless children have been kidnapped to serve as child soldiers.
Marking the 50th Independence anniversary during the annual meeting of the Catholic Bishops, Bishop Nicolas Djomo, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Congo, said that the independence anniversary is an opportune time to offer prayers of thanks to God for a sense of belonging to a united nation and to ask God’s forgiveness for omissions and opportunities lost. He went on further to say that the anniversary is a time to renew a commitment to promoting the common good and national solidarity.
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