The ‘infamous’ Wikileaks has released a cable from Afghanistan revealing U.S. government contractor DynCorp threw a party for Afghan security recruits featuring trafficked boys as the entertainment. Bacha bazi is the Afghan tradition of “boy play” where young boys are dressed in women’s clothing, dance for leering men, and then sold for sex to the […]
The Story of Gandhi’s ‘Invisible Hands’
December 6, 2010 by 1 Comment
This wonderful piece, written by an impassioned grandson, tells the story of Gandhi’s earliest and closest helpers, his invisible hands. mmm The author, Ian Desai, is a postdoctoral associate and lecturer in South Asian studies and history at Yale. He received his doctorate from Oxford, where he studied on a Rhodes scholarship. mmm Ian Desai […]
Obama praised Mahatma Gandhi to India’s Parliament
November 9, 2010 by Leave a Comment
President Obama praised the “father of your nation” Mahatma Gandhi and noted Gandhi’s influence on Martin Luther King and the non-violent resistance that typified the American civil rights movement in his address to the Indian Parliament Monday. “I am mindful that I might not be standing before you today, as president of the United States, […]
Obama and Michelle Celebrate Diwali with Mumbai Kids
November 7, 2010 by 1 Comment
MUMBAI: “Hello! Namaste! Good Morning!”, said a beaming 49-year-old Obama to the media as he entered the venue wearing black trousers, a matching tie, a spotless white shirt with folded sleeves and without the formal jacket. Imparting a touch of informality, US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle on Sunday danced spiritedly to a […]
Coconuts removed from Trees at Mumbai Gandhi Museum for Obama’s Safety
November 4, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Source: Telegraph.UK . India is preparing for Barack Obama’s first visit to the country by removing coconuts from palm trees in Mumbai’s Mani Bhavan Gandhi Museum to protect the US president. . Mr Obama will arrive in India on Saturday for the first leg of an Asian tour. But as well as the usual security measures that come […]
Promoting Children’s Rights with Sri Lanka ‘Street Drama’
October 16, 2010 by Leave a Comment
It was noon at a Hatton bus terminal when 12-year-old Shanthi, clad in a brown gown and tenderly touching her 10-year-old brother’s head, cried, “My heart is heavy with sorrow,” as crowds gathered around her. Shanthi is one of the actresses in a “street drama” in central Sri Lanka promoting awareness on child labor, child […]
Forms of Child Labour Found in Asia
October 13, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Bonded child labour is extensively rooted in socio-cultural and political structures in parts of South Asia. Source: Sona Sahu / CoolAvenues.com – “Child is the father of the man” or he is the future of tomorrow? But no more. With the growing exploitation and the way we are depriving him of his basic rights, the […]
Child Slavery Now: A Contemporary Reader
October 10, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Child Slavery Now: A Contemporary Reader Author/Editor: Gary Craig Format: Hardcover , 360 pages Publisher: Policy Press (October 10, 2010) The issue of modern child slavery is plagued with self-aggrandisement, shoddy research, and sensationalism. Child slavery now is a powerful antidote to this trend. Gary Craig brings together real experts and deep thinkers to carry […]
Remembering Sunanda Gandhi
October 10, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Editor’s Note: Sunanda Gandhi’s birthday was today, 1932. Sunanda Gandhi (1932–2007) was an author, researcher, nurse and, along with her husband Arun Gandhi, co-founder of the M. K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence presently located at University of Rochester Prior, Sunanda and Arun, along with friends, organized India’s Center for Social Unity which developed self-help, economic models for […]
CNN photographs shocking child labor images at Commonwealth Games construction
October 7, 2010 by 4 Comments
The images, taken by Harvard fellow Mr Kara and released by CNN, drew criticism from Save The Children. ‘We are concerned about reports of young children working on construction sites,’ said the charity. ————– Carrying the can: A naked child walks with a pail as Commonwealth Games labourers look on at a site in Delhi […]