Libya Protests-Violence on the Streets

There are so many protests taking place in Libya, every day. Although I cannot pinpoint exactly where or why they started, I can shed a light on the recent issues. From what I have read, the root of these problems are from the Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi. It seems as though there is a lot of hate towards Moammar Gadhafi and what he is doing to Libya. You might want to know, what crime has he committed? Recent news states that Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo wanted nothing more than for the judges to issue an arrest warrant for  Moammar Gadhafi at the International Criminal Court, along with Moammar's son, Seif al-Islam Gadhafi and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Sanoussi. The Prosecutor believes they should be arrested due to the violence created from Moammar Gadhafi targetting the people of Libya to lash out and go against the pro-democracy demonstrators. To the courtroom, he states evidence that Gadhafi had ordered violent attacks upon unarmed civilians. The issue is clearly an attack on human rights. Gadhafi has created hate and violence toward humans who have been trying to express themselves and their opinions. The violence has gone too far, with so many Libyans murdered. If the arrest is issued, this would mean that Gadhafi, along with his son and the intelligence chief, could be arrested in any of the United Nations member countries. Although there is a warrant, this doesn't mean that Gadhafi can be caught.

Recently, CBC radio had a broadcast on the issue of these protests. Here it is said that there are about 200 deaths in Libya at the moment, but there are many reports giving much higher numbers. To give you an idea of the extent of the violence, a Libyan-Canadian, Omar Bengezi, tells some of his story. Omar now lives in Hamilton, Ontario, but once was a citizen of Libya. After Omar's brother insulted Gadhafi, he, along with many other citizens had to flee their homes because of their "incorrect" political views. It's unbelieveable how easy it is to get killed, become homeless and have other horrible things happen to you just because you don't agree with the Libyan leader, or because you have the "wrong" views.

BBC News says that in Gadhafi's first major speech he urged his supporters to go and attack the "cockroaches" that go against his rules. He also said how he has only brought glory to Libya and that he will remain the head of the revolution. He reffers to all of the protesters as " rats and merceneries". While Gadhafi says his speech, there were reports of gunfire and extreme violence in Libya's capital, Benghazi. Not only was there gunfire, the civilians who were watching the BBC News report were throwing shoes at the screen in anger. In the video of Gadhafi's speech ( not known to be live or pre-recorded ), the cameras would cut away to show a statue of a giant fist crushing a US war plane.

There have been many people, and many groups/activists trying to get rid of Gadhafi for years now. One of the oldest groups is the National Front for the Salvation of Libya. This group was established on October 7th, 1981. It is led by a former Libyan military officer, Ibrahim Abdulaziz Sahad.  The NFSL has held a very large number of protests, media campaigns and political alliances with other anti-Gadhafi groups over the years. They have been in many disputes, and recently have had much support and recognition due to the severeness of the Libyan civil war.

More and more people are realizing the extreme damage Gadhafi is causing Libya, and are creating movements across the world to make this stop. It is great to see people hold their opinions high and not stop until the war ends. In recent blogs, it has been tough to see that so many people are not noticing the issues in Africa, and not helping, but slowly Libya is receiving more help and hopefully, in future years, it will start to become a much more stable country, hopefully without Moammar Gadhafi as their leader. The protesters definitely do start violence from protesting in the first place, but in my opinion and many others, the protesters wouldn't have started this if Gadhafi hadn't been so violent and done what he has done to many of their families and friends.

 

Moammar Gadhafi adressing general assembly at the United Nations

  To view more photos on the impact of  Leader Moammar Gadhafi, click here.
Also, view a video on a protest mob in the streets of Libya. ( warning, this may be disturbing for some people.)

Somalia:Without a Functioning Government

Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991. Their result of having no functioning government has not been good. This has resulted in armed conflict, thousands of people killed, tens of thousands of people having to flee their homes, several rapes and more. There are over one million people displaced in Somalia and five-hundred thousand people fleeing to other countries in the area. The Somalis that have fled the country over the years are now in very poor conditions with overcrowded camps in a very unsanitary environment. Some of these camps takes place in Somalias neighbouring countries; Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Yemen. The Issues in Somalia are progressively getting worse and worse. The UNHCR ( The UN Refugee Agency ) article shows just how extreme these conditions are, stating how there are camps, such as the Dadaab camp in northern Kenya, with facilities for about ninety-thousand people. Yes, this seems like a ton of people, but there are still about two hundred-eighty thousand refugees with no access to housing, clean water, and all of the other basic needs for human life. To this day people still constantly show up at several camps trying to survive. The UNHCR is accepting donations from anyone around the world so that they can create a place for the people of Kenya to recieve their basic needs. It is a very devistating thing to hear about these people who have no place to go, and no neccessities to live. From what I'v read, these refugee camps are extremely unsanitary, which result in hundreds of people developing several diseases. To think of a place where people live their life every day in fear of getting murdered, shot, raped, or just having to live in these poor conditions, I don't think anyone could understand how they feel. This is their daily life, and what is "normal" to them, which is simply not right.
                                

You may want to know how people in Somalia make money, and how it may be spent. A BBC NEWS report from November 2004 states that on their way from an airstrip located close to the capital, Mogadishu, there are seven checkpoints that you pass which are each guarded by a different militia. At each of the checkpoints you are required to pay en entry fee anywhere from $3.00-$300.00, depending on the value of goods that you may be carrying. You would hope this money being made would go to things to better the community, like roadwork, medical care, etc., but it does not. The militia men are known to use some of this money  for a drug called khat, which is an addictive stimulant, and who knows what else they use the money for. So really this shows the life of Somalia without a government. It proves you can pretty much be anyone and make your own rule to gain money for whatever you want, whenever. It is scary to realize that this can happen anywhere in Somalia, even scarier to think of what they may be using the money for.  I find one of the most powerful statements in this article to be the true proof of the trouble they are facing: " Those who can afford it travel with several armed guards - and then you can pass the road-blocks unmolested. "

one Somalia border

                                                            Refugee Camp in Somalia

Here are some Somalian facts that may shock you:

Population: As of July 2001, Somalias population varies between 7,488,773 - 9,656,500

Life Expectancy: The average life expectancy for women and men is only 46.6 years

Literacy: Only 24% of the total population
Internationally Displaced Persons: 350,000
Total Refugees: 451,600
Children working(from ages 5-14): 41.9%

Although Somalia has no functioning governement at this time, and probably won't for quite a long time, President Abdulkassin Salat Hassan and Prime Minister Hassan Abshir Farah are planning on using the Transitional National Government which has recently been established in Somalia to try and create unity within the country.


working hard in Somalia


In this video you see a man who travels to Somalia to see how people live in a country with no functioning government.

My opinion has been very clear throughout this blog on Somalia's troubles. It is sad that they were left without a functioning government, and the only thing I can say is that I hope they create one soon. A country should not live every day in fear and pain, no matter where in the world.

Kenya:Human Rights Abuses

Kenya is under a violation of many different human rights and people are very concerned. People have been blaming the majority of these problems on the Law Society of Kenya or LSK. There have been many reports of illegal killings, police torturing and gunning down suspects. This is a touchy subject because the members of the Kenyan parliament get one of the largest salaries but are not respecting human rights and human life. If you have people of parliament who are supposed to be supporting you and doing what's best for the country, as well as respecting your rights and you arent getting that it is just not fair. The fact that they typically get payed the highest salary and don't do anything to help is a huge problem. They should be doing all they can to look out for the people in the country, put their money to good use and atleast try to show that they respect human rights. For it to be well known that police have slaughtered so many people for protesting and trying to stick up for their rights is wrong. The police force are known to serve and protect society, meanwhile they are getting rid of the people who are trying to help society.

We can't just sit around and watch children get sicker, and sicker..

Another issue is the AIDS epidemic. Children who are infected with AIDS as well as any other person infected with AIDS in Kenya are violated of their human rights. They do not get the medical help that they deserve and are treated with disrespect compared to those who are not infected. People in Kenya do not get educated on the virus and because so many people are a victim of rape the chances are very high of developing the virus. The usual human rights violations that children with AIDS experience is abandonment,hazardous child labour, human trafficking, sexual abuse, and more. This is a very disturbing thing to read about because it is clearly not the child's choice to be infected with such a harmful infection. Yes, I am focusing this mostly on children, and the infection does affect more than just them, but all I have read about shows that the children are the majority affected by this. It is sad to think that so much sexual torture and rape is going on and noone is there to stop it. Depending on their age, children don't know the difference between what is right and wrong and since there is so much of it going on there really is nothing they can do about it themselves. There needs to be more action on this; not only to stop the sexual crimes but also create improved medical attention. Knowing that just because they are infected, they are disrespected, is something that is hard to believe from where we come from. I find it so disturbing to think of all the children that are going through this torture and this infection, being disrespected and not getting the help they need. I wish there was more that I could do to get them that medical attention and create a better society for them but unfortunately there's not, especially at the age I am at. But I believe that if everyone gets together and contributes even the littlest things will slowly make a difference.
                                               
Women have little to no human rights in Kenya. They cannot own or inherite any property. They often get abused physically, mentally and especially sexually. Women are treated with much less respect than men. This is a problem in many places that humans do not realize because in the Western society today women tend to have many more rights and can typically do anything that a man can.
                                                      

An everyday job for a woman in Kenya

In the society that we live in today, we don't really stop to think about places, like Kenya, where women are still disrespected and have to live without basic human rights. Ofcourse to them it is just a way of living, but that shouldn't be the case. This is probably going to be one of the hardest issues to break because they have been living this way for so long, and there is definitely nothing we can do, really, it is up to the government or the Law Society of Kenya.

But we shouldn't loose all hope, afterall, there are people out there who are taking action to try and make a change. The United States Institution of Peace is trying to shed a light on these issues and do what they can to help. It is said that Kenya once was a "haven of stability", but ever since the national electroral commision made Mwai Kibaki the winner of the presidential poll, there has been a massive blowout of ethnic violence, humanitarian crisis, economic disruption, and questions on the future of Kenya's political direction. The African Union is now trying to created mediation movements. It is not a surprise that people are questioning Kenya's political direction in the future.Obviously the people of the country weren't too impressed with Mwai Kibaki winning the presidential poll as the crime went up significantly since then; But this isn't the only problem. It isn't just because they may not like who got elected, but more what Mwai Kibaki is doing for the country. You would think with a new election people hope for the best, and someone who will help create a better country. If this was true, I'm sure the crime rate would have changed, or you would have atleast seen some kind of peace movements, medical advancements or something to show that he was trying.

                As I stated in the first paragraph, many human rights in Kenya are not being followed. Police have killed many human rights activists without great reasoning, which has stirred the pot creating anger in the country. To view proof on this, watch here .