Monday, December 3, 2007
Sunday, December 2, 2007
World AIDS Day
Elaan, in partership with SAATHII mehendi-tattooed and quized it's way through WAD 2007 at Star Theatre this evening.
Participating NGO's - SAATHII (they conceptualized the event and laid the foundation with Priya Entertainment), Elaan ( with CSA at the forefront of all activities ), Diksha (an organization that works with the children of sex workers) and SPARSH, an organization which works with positive patients (apologies if i am mistaken)
Venue - Star Theatre rooftop amidst visitors and a foodpark
Duration - 6:30 to 8:15pm
Elaan's participation included - Overall documentation, The 20 question AIDS quiz with assistance from SPARSH and Mehendi tattoos for everyone ( keeps the AIDS ribbon on for longer).
Participants from Elaan : Pranaadhika, Mirna, Vijay, Madhurima, Mansi, Debolina, Abhinandan, Shreya, Bidisha and Chhandak ( who isn't officially a part of Elaan yet but will be).
Invisible participation from photographer and uncle Vivek Devburman who wasn't able to attend owing to an injury, but his camera made it. :-)
Highlights : Souvik as Lola (a much "slimmer,sexier,cuter, more romantic" Bula di) and his assistant in his many avatars / Mirna's beautiful "my brother nikhil" medley" and the sporting people who allowed us to (mehendi) tattoo them with AIDS awareness messages and their own NGO names. I have reason to believe that the latter option was rather popular !
Lowlights : The audience wasn't particularly delighted at the concept, despite our best efforts. However, not to be dampened, the participants themselves went out of their way to involve the handful that were interested during the quiz and Souvik/Lola had everyone in splits with their one-liners. The lighting could have been better as it was an evening event. Kolkata shone and Kolkata froze us out.
The important thing is, we did not back down from our individual messages. Homosexuality, Child Sexual Abuse, "jonno" (the bangla word for sex) were all mentioned as part of the programme and that gave us all a lot of satisfaction.
CSR or not, my good sirs, you may NOT stifle our Constitutional right to free speech.
Special mention : The kids representing Diksha were Stupendous. Mindblowing.
Photographs are huge (file size), will upload later. More discussion/feedback on the orkut community.
Participating NGO's - SAATHII (they conceptualized the event and laid the foundation with Priya Entertainment), Elaan ( with CSA at the forefront of all activities ), Diksha (an organization that works with the children of sex workers) and SPARSH, an organization which works with positive patients (apologies if i am mistaken)
Venue - Star Theatre rooftop amidst visitors and a foodpark
Duration - 6:30 to 8:15pm
Elaan's participation included - Overall documentation, The 20 question AIDS quiz with assistance from SPARSH and Mehendi tattoos for everyone ( keeps the AIDS ribbon on for longer).
Participants from Elaan : Pranaadhika, Mirna, Vijay, Madhurima, Mansi, Debolina, Abhinandan, Shreya, Bidisha and Chhandak ( who isn't officially a part of Elaan yet but will be).
Invisible participation from photographer and uncle Vivek Devburman who wasn't able to attend owing to an injury, but his camera made it. :-)
Highlights : Souvik as Lola (a much "slimmer,sexier,cuter, more romantic" Bula di) and his assistant in his many avatars / Mirna's beautiful "my brother nikhil" medley" and the sporting people who allowed us to (mehendi) tattoo them with AIDS awareness messages and their own NGO names. I have reason to believe that the latter option was rather popular !
Lowlights : The audience wasn't particularly delighted at the concept, despite our best efforts. However, not to be dampened, the participants themselves went out of their way to involve the handful that were interested during the quiz and Souvik/Lola had everyone in splits with their one-liners. The lighting could have been better as it was an evening event. Kolkata shone and Kolkata froze us out.
The important thing is, we did not back down from our individual messages. Homosexuality, Child Sexual Abuse, "jonno" (the bangla word for sex) were all mentioned as part of the programme and that gave us all a lot of satisfaction.
CSR or not, my good sirs, you may NOT stifle our Constitutional right to free speech.
Special mention : The kids representing Diksha were Stupendous. Mindblowing.
Photographs are huge (file size), will upload later. More discussion/feedback on the orkut community.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Manitoba to introduce mandatory reporting of child pornography
The province of Manitoba will today bring forward the first legislation of its kind in Canada to compel all citizens, including computer technicians and Internet service providers, to report any images or examples of child pornography.
The initiative is being introduced as an amendment to the province's Child and Family Services legislation by minister Gord MacIntosh and will expand the definition of child abuse, which already has a mandatory reporting law, to include child pornography.
"Under the new law, if someone comes across something they believe to be child pornography they have a duty to report it to Cybertip.ca," said Lianna McDonald , director of the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, the registered charity that runs the Cybertip website.
The penalty for failing to report will be up to two years in jail and a $50,000 fine, Ms. McDonald said. It's the same penalty for those who don't report child abuse, although Ms. McDonald said she doesn't know of any instances where that provision has led to a prosecution.
"What it means is that under the proposed legislation, [citizens] have a legal responsibility," she said. "The idea is to facilitate reporting."
Ms. McDonald said that making it a legal requirement might remove some of the moral qualms that exist for those who find images of abuse on a computer, for example, and might be concerned about violating someone's privacy.
"It certainly will facilitate things for people thinking, 'Should I or shouldn't I report?' It makes it clear. For companies that repair computers, it's clear they have a duty to report," she said.
The proposed law could have significant implications for Internet service providers, according to Roz Prober of Beyond Borders, an organization that advocates for the protection of children.
It's already mandatory in the United States for Internet service providers to report instances of child pornography, but the issue has not been tackled in Canada until now.
"The foot-draggers in this scenario are the Internet service providers," Ms. Prober said. "In the U.S. they can be heavily fined [for not reporting child porn] and I think that's the way to go here."
Ms. Prober said she hasn't seen the proposed legislation but expects it to be comprehensive.
Citizens will be directed to report their suspicions to the Cybertip.ca website. The site receives funding from the federal Department of Public Safety and from Manitoba Justice, Ms. McDonald said, and since 2005 it has acted as a national clearinghouse for all Internet child sexual-abuse reporting. In that time, it has received more than 25,000 reports from the public.
Ms. Prober said the site is very sophisticated and secure and would be able to resist attempts to infiltrate its database.
She said it's important the public pass on as many tips as possible because each new image allows police to narrow in on the victims and perpetrators of sexual abuse
URL - http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071128.wmanitoba28/BNStory/National/home/
Do visit the website and have a look through the comments section. I find that most insightful, more than the article actually !
The initiative is being introduced as an amendment to the province's Child and Family Services legislation by minister Gord MacIntosh and will expand the definition of child abuse, which already has a mandatory reporting law, to include child pornography.
"Under the new law, if someone comes across something they believe to be child pornography they have a duty to report it to Cybertip.ca," said Lianna McDonald , director of the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, the registered charity that runs the Cybertip website.
The penalty for failing to report will be up to two years in jail and a $50,000 fine, Ms. McDonald said. It's the same penalty for those who don't report child abuse, although Ms. McDonald said she doesn't know of any instances where that provision has led to a prosecution.
"What it means is that under the proposed legislation, [citizens] have a legal responsibility," she said. "The idea is to facilitate reporting."
Ms. McDonald said that making it a legal requirement might remove some of the moral qualms that exist for those who find images of abuse on a computer, for example, and might be concerned about violating someone's privacy.
"It certainly will facilitate things for people thinking, 'Should I or shouldn't I report?' It makes it clear. For companies that repair computers, it's clear they have a duty to report," she said.
The proposed law could have significant implications for Internet service providers, according to Roz Prober of Beyond Borders, an organization that advocates for the protection of children.
It's already mandatory in the United States for Internet service providers to report instances of child pornography, but the issue has not been tackled in Canada until now.
"The foot-draggers in this scenario are the Internet service providers," Ms. Prober said. "In the U.S. they can be heavily fined [for not reporting child porn] and I think that's the way to go here."
Ms. Prober said she hasn't seen the proposed legislation but expects it to be comprehensive.
Citizens will be directed to report their suspicions to the Cybertip.ca website. The site receives funding from the federal Department of Public Safety and from Manitoba Justice, Ms. McDonald said, and since 2005 it has acted as a national clearinghouse for all Internet child sexual-abuse reporting. In that time, it has received more than 25,000 reports from the public.
Ms. Prober said the site is very sophisticated and secure and would be able to resist attempts to infiltrate its database.
She said it's important the public pass on as many tips as possible because each new image allows police to narrow in on the victims and perpetrators of sexual abuse
URL - http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071128.wmanitoba28/BNStory/National/home/
Do visit the website and have a look through the comments section. I find that most insightful, more than the article actually !
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Adivasi Girl stripped - and everyone took photographs (?!)
Ongoing discussion - http://www.orkut.com/CommMsgs.aspx?cmm=24455884&tid=2568922879391121981&na=4
A young Adivasi girl was stripped and photographed running for protection as onlookers whipped out their ever-handy camera phones and took photographs, videos and mms clips.. another sign of technology at it's mis-used best.
One wouldn't consider this as Sexual Abuse really.
Look again.
Publicly exposing a young girl - she was completely naked.
The onlookers did not have good intentions on their minds when they were taking those photographs.
Further information -
We do not have concrete proof of this yet but it is alleged that the girl was sexually assaulted. Given the circumstances, it is not impossible.
Shame on whoever is responsible for this. We refuse to upload the currently available photograph of the girl for reasons of journalistic integrity.
It is unfortunate that even the most widely-circulated Kolkata daily, "The Telegraph" did not blur out her face, even though it blur out her personal body parts.
A young Adivasi girl was stripped and photographed running for protection as onlookers whipped out their ever-handy camera phones and took photographs, videos and mms clips.. another sign of technology at it's mis-used best.
One wouldn't consider this as Sexual Abuse really.
Look again.
Publicly exposing a young girl - she was completely naked.
The onlookers did not have good intentions on their minds when they were taking those photographs.
Further information -
We do not have concrete proof of this yet but it is alleged that the girl was sexually assaulted. Given the circumstances, it is not impossible.
Shame on whoever is responsible for this. We refuse to upload the currently available photograph of the girl for reasons of journalistic integrity.
It is unfortunate that even the most widely-circulated Kolkata daily, "The Telegraph" did not blur out her face, even though it blur out her personal body parts.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Elaan in 2005 - down good o'l memory lane
Thinking about the Government's recent wake-up call to Sex Education pulls me backwards to this event at Oxford Bookstore which we hosted way back in the summer of 2005.
Dr.Sibnath Deb and Brother Brendan MacCarthaigh attended and provided some valuable input on the past and present statistics of abuse and incest in India and abroad.
The latter speaker's statements and crackling sense of humor educated and entertained while Dr.Deb's statistics roused verbal violence in the form of audience members wishing to inflict extreme physical pain on offenders. I recall being asked to speak but felt no need to, owing to the chemistry between the speakers and the spoken with (not to, mind you!).
Here's the URL , please ignore the photograph - http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050514/asp/calcutta/story_4735420.asp
Dr.Sibnath Deb and Brother Brendan MacCarthaigh attended and provided some valuable input on the past and present statistics of abuse and incest in India and abroad.
The latter speaker's statements and crackling sense of humor educated and entertained while Dr.Deb's statistics roused verbal violence in the form of audience members wishing to inflict extreme physical pain on offenders. I recall being asked to speak but felt no need to, owing to the chemistry between the speakers and the spoken with (not to, mind you!).
Here's the URL , please ignore the photograph - http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050514/asp/calcutta/story_4735420.asp
World Day for Prevention of Child Abuse
November 19th is the day we remember the promise we made to our children.
It is the day we read the UNCRC and make a check list to see if we are really giving our children their "writes" and "rights".
Elaan has been occupied with in-house restructuring and longterm planning activities and will not be holding an event this year.
We are, however, working on a 5 tier sex education plan who's longterm objective IS intended to benefit the child in conformity with the UNCRC, which India signed in 1992.
[UNCRC = United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child]
It is the day we read the UNCRC and make a check list to see if we are really giving our children their "writes" and "rights".
Elaan has been occupied with in-house restructuring and longterm planning activities and will not be holding an event this year.
We are, however, working on a 5 tier sex education plan who's longterm objective IS intended to benefit the child in conformity with the UNCRC, which India signed in 1992.
[UNCRC = United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child]
Monday, November 12, 2007
Online Abuse and Safety
Three examples of why online safety is recommended.
1 , 2 , 3 .
The aforementioned examples, although of cases not based in India, could very well be in India soon. As a matter of fact, they are occuring in local schools without the knowledge of parents and teachers.
A few years ago, a young student of St. *'s School, Kolkata, began meeting middle-aged men whom he discovered via online chat rooms. The men would meet him at his home, or theirs, and sexually abuse him.
A friend intervened and claimed to have "cured" him of his "homosexuality" and the matter was closed. The boy, now a confused young man, is unsure of his future and is reported to be scouting around online for the only solace he knows.
A young girl who had previously lived in a repressed social atmosphere, discovered freedom over the internet for the first time. She began communicating with a vengeance, "making friends" with everybody and even posting her personal cellphone number with semi-nude photographs on her online profile. It wasn't long before she began receiving solicitations that went beyond coffee invitations.
There are so many cases, all in India. Unless the media and society wake up to the fact that it does happen to their own people in this very country, it will continue to be a sad, repressed, pressure-cooker like existence for these victims of online sexual abuse who's fate and post-abuse trauma is similar to those who face regular abuse.
1 , 2 , 3 .
The aforementioned examples, although of cases not based in India, could very well be in India soon. As a matter of fact, they are occuring in local schools without the knowledge of parents and teachers.
A few years ago, a young student of St. *'s School, Kolkata, began meeting middle-aged men whom he discovered via online chat rooms. The men would meet him at his home, or theirs, and sexually abuse him.
A friend intervened and claimed to have "cured" him of his "homosexuality" and the matter was closed. The boy, now a confused young man, is unsure of his future and is reported to be scouting around online for the only solace he knows.
A young girl who had previously lived in a repressed social atmosphere, discovered freedom over the internet for the first time. She began communicating with a vengeance, "making friends" with everybody and even posting her personal cellphone number with semi-nude photographs on her online profile. It wasn't long before she began receiving solicitations that went beyond coffee invitations.
There are so many cases, all in India. Unless the media and society wake up to the fact that it does happen to their own people in this very country, it will continue to be a sad, repressed, pressure-cooker like existence for these victims of online sexual abuse who's fate and post-abuse trauma is similar to those who face regular abuse.
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