Stefano Marinelli Blue Sky

On the way to Mali and Burkina Faso

2009-08-26T23:16:00.002-09:00

Tomorrow night me and my trip-mate Juan leave Barcelona to Bamako. My first holiday in Africa, visiting Mali and Burkina Faso.

Lookimg for contact with local people.

Afghanistan election day

2009-08-20T01:52:00.003-09:00

What will it happen? More freedom and rights for afghanian sisters and brothers?
The situation is very complex, election day in the middle of the war.

http://www.reuters.com/article/gc05/idUSTRE57J0QF20090820?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=11611

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KH21Df02.html

Honduras

2009-07-06T00:35:00.004-09:00

Coup d'etat in Honduras, police shoot demonstrators waiting Zelaya arrival at airport. Is there any difference between central amerca 60-70-80 dictatorships and the current situation. Maybe only the media impact. I hope the whole world will pressure Micheletti's government to give it up and to re-establish the democracy.
Let's see what will happend during the next days.

http://ecodiario.eleconomista.es/internacional/noticias/1383257/07/09/El-frustrado-retorno-de-Manuel-Zelaya-deja-un-muerto-en-Honduras.html

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/zelaya-fails-to-return-to-honduras-violence-spirals-20090706-d9sj.html

Xinjang

2009-07-06T00:27:00.004-09:00

Chinese police murder 140 people and injury almost 1000 in the province of Xinjiang. Where are the human rights organizations?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/07/06/2618032.htm?section=justin

Urban guerrilla in Barcelona

2009-03-19T07:07:00.004-09:00

Source: La Vanguardia

We believe we are in a democratic and socialist country. Are we sure? What happened yesterday night in Barcelona it is a shame. It looked like police's repressions of past's dictatorships.
And just close to the municipality of Barcelona and Generalitat de Catalunya head offices.
Politicians and chief of police owe us some explanation of the facts!

Does any country have no right to launch satellites?

2009-03-12T13:31:00.004-09:00

North Korea wants to launch his own satellite. For what? I do not know, but maybe we should have to ask the same question to all the capitalist nations (so many).
In the case of North Korea, the public opinion is that it is for testing long distance missiles. Oh my God, again against the witches, the Iraq lesson has not been learnt yet!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/12/north-korea-satellite-missile

Web about satellites (known....) in the world: number, owner, use, etc.
Guess who is at the top of the list????

http://www.rhoyos.com/english/satellites/

Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO)

2009-03-12T13:07:00.004-09:00

Crisis - not only Obama, Brown, Sarkozy, Merkel, Berlusconi, Zapatero, etc etc. are worried about the global crisis!

Asif Ali Zardari (Pakistan president) and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (Iran president)

Some of the countries of middle east (from Turkey to Pakistan) meet in order to share strategies about cooperation and development.
Does anyone know about this? This is the 10th edition!!!

http://www.iran-daily.com/1387/3359/html/

I bambini di Sifani - Sifani's children

2009-03-11T08:04:00.007-09:00

Sifani é un paesino di montagna dell'Oman orientale, dal quale si vede il mare e ovviamente la montagna. Sono stato lí, dove quello che esiste sono case fatte di legno, stracci, paglia, dove lo stile di vita é quasi nomade, dove ancora non c'é luce, dove il governo sta costruendo case di cemento dove questa gente possa ripararsi (ovviamente solo inverno, perché in estate preferiscono fare la loro vita).
Come sempre, tante capre, un po' d'agricoltura e poco piú. Tanti bimbi, timidi, timorosi, non abituati a vedere uno straniero. Bimbi che se ti avvicini con una macchina fotografica ti tirano pietre e sabbia....giustamente!
I bambini di Sifani - ogni tanto scendono a Tiwi, al gran paese (3000 persone). Quella domenica due di loro (a sinistra nella foto dove ci sono io) erano con me seduti in spiaggia. Parlavamo.....a gesti e con l'aiuto di qualcuno che mi aiutava dall'arabo all'inglese.
E a giocare....
Alla fine con il bimbo con la tunica verde, Ahmed, giocammo a biglie, ma senza biglie. Con le pietre della spiaggia....
I bambini di Sifani.

Sifani is a small village in the mountain in the east of Oman, from where it is possible to see the sea and, of course, the mountains. I have been there, there are "houses" made with wood, tatters, straw, where the lifestyle is almost nomade, where there is no electricity, where the government is building concrete houses ...............................

Israel vs. Palestine

2009-01-02T02:33:00.008-09:00

Interesting comments about the WAR between Israel and Gaza in order to clarify some of the TV and newspapers topics (in spanish).

http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2008/12/30/internacional/1230654642.html#uno+

No position taken by Obama yet! Will US international policy change one day?

http://www.reuters.com/article/email/idUSTRE4BT36O20081230

Samera Baalusha (34) (right) sits with her daughter Eman (15) and surviving son Mohamad (15 months) while waiting to see the body of her 4-year-old daughter Jawaher Baalusha during the funeral held for Jawher and her four other sisters who were all killed in an Israeli missile strike, on December 29, 2008 in the Jebaliya refugee camp, in the northern Gaza Strip. Jawher Baalusha and her sisters were killed during an Israeli air raid while they were sleeping together in their bedroom. Medics stated that the raid had targeted a mosque near their home in Jabalia. (Abid Katib/Getty Images)

Happy new year 2009

2009-01-01T23:54:00.003-09:00

I wish you the best for this new year 2009.

Sudan student. Photo by Debbie DeVoe/CRS

Somalia situation vs. Pirates's attacks

2008-11-19T23:53:00.011-09:00

This is the livelihood situation in Somalia but the only thing that appears on newspapers and TV news are the pirates's attacks to intenational commerce traffic in Gulf of Aden.

Maybe a great relathionship exists between these two issues.......

For more details enter this link:

http://ochaonline.un.org/Default.aspx?alias=ochaonline.un.org/somalia

Black is beautiful

2008-11-06T05:29:00.002-09:00

Congratulations Mr. Hussein!

Black is beautiful!

US fireworks

2008-10-28T05:57:00.001-09:00

US celebrating the new president election in advance.

Unjustified attack to Siria!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://jonkepa.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/us-helicopter-raid-inside-syria-usa-ataca-siria/

Charity work in Argentina - Chaco

2008-10-19T23:20:00.002-09:00

This is the link where there are description and photos of the work we carried out at Centro Comunitario jesús María - Chaco -Argentina.

Soon on Facebook a large selection of photos of this trip.

http://blogvoluntarios.telefonica.es/argentina/

Some of me - muslim sisters and brothers

2008-10-17T01:50:00.009-09:00

Me and Sallah, one of my best friends, at his parents home in Tiwi

Mohammed kids (my yemeni guide) at a mountain nearby Sana'a

Singing "Frijolito song" with little sisters at Hatt - Oman

Muslim brothers at Jalan Bani Bu Alí mosque - I was allowed to get in

Yemen - Taiz - Ajim with jambiya threatening me

Not only US elections and economic crisis

2008-10-15T06:51:00.003-09:00

Conflict with dead people between Thailand and Cambodia:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27192483/

Iran vision of first world capitalism collapse:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7663487.stm

Sudan: interesting web with news and foto. Khartoum, a genocidal regime, chosen chair of Group of 77 (http://www.g77.org/) ....something contradictory!?!?!

http://www.sudanreeves.org/Article225.html

First US missils on northwest of Pakistan (still looking for Bin Laden):

http://www.thenews.com.pk/updates.asp?id=57900

Moving troops from Irak to Afghanistan (or/and Pakistan)

2008-10-12T01:02:00.004-09:00

Against drug traffic or against the new Pakistan government? Maybe "just" to have troops in a strategic influence area like west Pakistan (Peshawar province), in order to take under control Al Qaeda at Afghanistan-Pakistan borders.
Who will take care of Pastu people of both countries?

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/10/10/nato-drugs.html?ref=rss

Chaco argentino

2008-09-18T07:57:00.002-09:00

This is my second week in Argentina, collaborating with Centro Jesus María, for the education of childreen and adolescents from 3 up to 15 years old. I'm here with María and Fran, two other volunteers of Fundación Telefónica.
The center we work in is in Barrio Nueva Alianza, Tres Isletas, town located in Chaco, drought and quite depressed area located in north Argentina.
The main focus of this center is giving complementary education, in add of the governamental schools and colleges. People come to the center in the morning or in the afternoon, depending of the scheduling of their regular classes.
At lunch time food is distributed for the family and there is a refectory for the childreen.
In Barrio Nueva Alianza water and food are scarce resources, people live in bad conditions, childreen are dirty, quite aggressive and not used to learn anything.
The work I do consists in helping local teachers in differents tasks: teaching in classes of 15-20 childreen for basic education and tutoring adolescents in their college tasks in the library. In add of it we make differents workshops from 5.30pm: english, dance, handicrafts, sport.
Some of the childreen emerge and I wish they will be the models for the rest of their classmates.

More about this, in spanish:

http://blogvoluntarios.telefonica.es/argentina/

More conflicts....

2008-09-02T08:00:00.003-09:00

Many conflicts are still on and some of them are deteriorating.

Two examples (reasons are different but the result is the same) are Thailand and Philippines. Several links about it:

Crisis Watch http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=5649&l=1

Thailand http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/news/stories/200809/s2352843.htm

Philippines http://zamboangajournal.blogspot.com/2008_09_01_archive.html

September and more

2008-09-02T02:21:00.003-09:00

From 8th of september to 3rd of octuber I'm going as volunteer to Argentina-Chaco to collaborate with "Centro Comunitario Jesús María" inside Proniño frame program.
I think I will not be able to update my blog as usual.

For more info about "Centro Comunitario Jesús María" give a look to:

http://www.tresisletasjm.org.ar/

Obama president?

2008-08-29T13:03:00.004-09:00

For those who wonder if Obama will make it to the White House, I believe he will unless Mr Bush comes up with Bin Laden’s bleeding head!
Place your bets…………….4th November no more bets, thank you.

Pakistan and US after Musharraf

2008-08-26T06:37:00.008-09:00

Finally Musharraf left!!!!

Free elections in Pakistan for the new president: the candidates are Asif Ali Zardari, leader of the Pakistan People's Party and Nawaz Sharif leader of the Pakistan Muslim League.

US, after supporting during several years the dictatorship of Musharraf in order to keep controlled a state with nuclear army and terrorism incubation bases, have to reconsider their policy in Pakistan. Although Bush affirmed that Musharraf was "truly somebody who believes in democracy", during his era emergency rule was established, free media outlets were shut down, thousands of lawyers and civil society activists were jailed.

Obama or Mc Cain, if they want to continue to have a strong influence on this country, will have (or will be obliged) to make new agreements with Pakistan government after Musharraf.

I wish Pakistan and Pakistanis the best for the future of their nation.

NO MORE DICTATORS, PLEASE!!!!!!

More about this:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/aug/21/pakistan.usforeignpolicy?gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews

Latin America economic trends

2008-08-26T06:10:00.006-09:00

Recently I have been in Brazil, Chile and Argentina on job. Although I just spent few days in each country, I appreciated different expectations by the local people about the future of their country.
The worst situation I perceived was in Argentina: the official inflation is around 10% but people are convinced it is around 25-30%.
Which is the truth? Is it possible to have a sustainable economy with a continuous consumer prices increase?

In the link above there are global data about Latin America to make a fast comparison between the different countries:

http://www.iadb.org/research/homepageDetails.cfm?language=English&conid=86&page=1&frame=1

In this other link there is some more detail about real Argentina inflation and the trend of Latin America's economy:

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/columnists/andres-oppenheimer/story/615877.html

More about Russia, Georgia, NATO, etc.

2008-08-26T05:30:00.004-09:00

Interesting article by Gary Leupp about Russia's Georgia campaign, the parallel with the US-NATO and Yugoslavia war and the expansion of NATO toward the east Europe countries.

US is expanding the NATO presence in Europe to move the influence area till Russia's borders, recently an agreement for installing ballistic bases in Poland has been signed and the same will happen with Czech republic. US said this is not directed against Russia but against "rouge states" like Iran and North Korea.

It is really hard to believe!

Georgia campaign was just the first warning by Russia, what will happen in the future?

http://mikeely.wordpress.com/2008/08/20/humbling-the-hyperpower-russias-georgia-campaign-nato-expansion/

Georgia war (Stefano from Buenos Aires)

2008-08-10T05:30:00.004-09:00

Another war has arisen in the world. It is a civil war in Georgia against South Ossetia, a secessionist region.

Georgia is trying to make an "ethnic cleansing" in the region; Russia has a big role in this war, several georgian sites, including some civilian ones, have been bombed by russians.

Probable reasons behind this war: first, Russia wants to avoid Georgia joins NATO (they dislike to have NATO controlled countries at borders) and another point is the control of the natural gas pipelines that cross the region. Gazproma, a russian giant gas company, invests every year in South Ossetia a big amount of money and sure that Kremlin wants to mantain a strong influence in this region.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4493970.ece

Death penalty - bad and good news

2008-07-28T06:11:00.006-09:00

In Iran execution of juvenile offenders is somenthing against whom many human rights organizations are fighting.

http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/07/07/iran19270.htm

In the world there are 49 countries in which death penalty is still applied, ten of them are "democracies"

http://www.handsoffcain.info/bancadati/index.php?tipotema=arg&idtema=10000532

China doesn't want to confirm the absolute statistics, but it is the worst country about death penalty application. Saudi Arabia is the worst about executions per capita.

http://www.amnestyusa.org/Encourage-Worldwide-Abolition/Death-Penalty-Statistics-2007/page.do?id=1011348&n1=3&n2=28&n3=1277

The good new is the growing trend of abolitionist countries.

20 anys per 20 somnis - Pasqual Maragall

2008-07-24T01:25:00.005-09:00

Ahir amb la associació Amics de la Gent Gran amb la que col·laboro fa dos anys, vam realitzar al somni, millor dit, el desig de la Senyora Dolors, la usuària que visito un cop a la setmana: conèixer al Pasqual Maragall. El Senyor Maragall ens va rebre al seu despatx i vam xerrar una hora de tot un poc, en un ambient familiar i com si ens coneguéssim fa temps.

La Dolors es va quedar molt contenta de la trobada (i jo també, soc un admirador del Maragall).

Mediterranean union - Senegal point of view

2008-07-22T06:28:00.004-09:00

Last weekend I have been in the celebration of 20^th anniversary of the Senegalese residents Association in Catalonia.

They are working really hard to facilitate the integration of newcomers, helping them in order to regularize their position, find a job and have basic health assistance.

In the same week newspapers, TV and radio news, web information spoke about the Mediterranean Union. In the link there is the point of view of Senegal president to denounce the risks for “separating” North Africa from the rest of the continent. Maybe again it is an attempt to build a wall in add of make good deals.....

http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL16790720

US plans to open 'interests office' in Iran

2008-07-17T03:44:00.002-09:00

I'm astonished by this new, instead of planning an attack now US wants to establish an 'interests office' in Iran. The article speak about get easier the US VISA obtention for Iranian people (now they have to go to Dubai). I'd like to figure out what's happening?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7510899.stm

Electioneering or offense?

2008-07-15T22:44:00.003-09:00

NO COMMENT!

Rising food costs

2008-07-14T23:32:00.002-09:00

Very interesting figures about ethanol production from corn and the world crisis due to the growth of food costs.
In the article there is a comment about US bear corn market due to more favourable weather conditions.

http://www.reuters.com/news/globalcoverage/agflation

Italian shame - Berlusconi government

2008-07-11T02:47:00.007-09:00

In the nomad camps everyone, even children, will have to undergo fingerprints filing, like if they were in prison. It is difficult to explain, as Interior Minister Roberto Maroni tries, that 'this is not an ethnic filing'.

What will happen to the immigrants in Italy, they will be stamped with an identification mark on their arms? Have we forgotten the past yet?

The proposal....at the end of the article there is another example of building walls against the immigration, in this case in Lybia (like Spain in Mauritania) - european points of view coincidence....

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/2200020/Italy-to-fingerprint-all-Roma-gipsy-children.html

The EU "reaction" (focus the attention also on the votation result)

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3475074,00.html

More G8 - agreements on CO2

2008-07-10T06:37:00.003-09:00

G8 countries have been discussing on CO2 emissions reduction. The doubt is if we have taken a step forward or not.

Reading about the frame agreement to reduce CO2 emissions by 2050 remind me of Kyoto Protocol:

"The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The major feature of the Kyoto Protocol is that it sets binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions .These amount to an average of five per cent against 1990 levels over the five-year period 2008-2012."

What have these countries put to use during more tha 10 years? Are we starting again?

New York Times interesting article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/09/science/earth/09climate.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&ref=environment

Death during childbirth and G8

2008-07-09T00:29:00.004-09:00

An interesting and dreaful news item from Tehran Times - Social Section about women death during childbirth. Maybe one day G8 will start to discuss seriously about Millennium Development Goals.
I recommend to give a look to Tehran Times to realize how do Iran see us.

http://www.tehrantimes.com/Index_view.asp?code=172801

L'Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio

2008-07-07T22:29:00.004-09:00

The dream of Mauro Tronco and Agostino Ferrente, create an orchestra with musicians from all the world, the majority of them non-EEC immigrants, began in 2002. After years of hard work, L'Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio is nowadays well-known in Italy and abroad.
Saturday 6th of July I saw them in Grec Theatre and it was fantastic, I appreciated how the music can be a point of union between different cultures and different religions. It is not hard to integrate each other.

THANK YOU AND CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Creando muros en España

2008-07-05T02:05:00.004-09:00

Hay países que alzan muros para "defender" sus fronteras, véase EEUU conMéjico e Israel con Palestina. En España los muros los levantamos lejos, muros silenciosos, en Mauritania, delegando el trabajo "sucio" a otros, sin claras implicaciones directas.
Esta entrada está en español y el artículo a continuación lo considero muy interesante.

http://www.elpais.com/articulo/espana/Espana/presiona/Mauritania/detenga/cientos/supuestos/inmigrantes/AI/elpepuesp/20080701elpepunac_21/Tes

Peace or War

2008-07-04T04:55:00.004-09:00

Although we know that there are several conflicts in the world, we feel in peace and if someone asks us to mention 5 ongoing conflicts in the world, after Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestina, we have to think it over before answering.
In the link below, there are the theatres of conflicts around the world, so........are we in peace or in war? I'd like to know your opinion about it.

http://www.didyouknow.cd/story/conflicts.htm

Iran - My vision

2008-07-03T01:35:00.009-09:00

I have been in Iran during 16 days and I didn't find any terrorist and any atom arm, although I met people fed up with the government and with the restrictions. I respect Iran and I wish iranians the best for their future and more freedom; at the same time I hope the crazy owners of the world will not repeat the Iraq experience with Iran.

Esfahan - In a Madrasa with a mullah and our friend Ali.
Esfahan - Friend along the river
Yazd - With soldiers near Chakmak Palace
Shiraz - With children in a city park

Tabriz - Playing with Tadeo, the child of a christian-armenian family. At their home we had the best coffee in Iran.
Tabriz - With our friends Abbas and Ilgaar
Near Takht e-Solemain - With Kurds friends
Ashuradeh - With Shayan, our fisherman friend, having tea and speaking about life
Borders with Turkemenistan - With a Mullah, his son invited us to have lunch at home
Borders with Turkemenistan - With our elder friends
Me and Gioachino, my trip-mate, with the owner of a food shop.

Iran - international press vision

2008-07-01T23:50:00.004-09:00

Brown says Iran must prove does not want atom arms

Sun Jun 29, 2008 10:23pm BST

LONDON (Reuters) - Iran must prove it is not interested in developing nuclear weapons, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Sunday.

Iran says it only wants nuclear technology for energy purposes but others suspect Tehran desires a nuclear arsenal, sparking speculation of a military confrontation and helping to drive oil prices to record levels above $140 a barrel this year.

"Iran has not been totally honest with the international community," Brown told CNN in an interview.

"We need a firm and absolute commitment that Iran is not going to break from the Non-Proliferation Treaty and have nuclear weapons. That is the first stage."

The United States and European Union have said they want to find a diplomatic solution to the stand-off, but Iran has so far ruled out halting its atomic programme in exchange for economic incentives.

(Reporting by Matt Falloon; editing by Elizabeth Piper)

Child labor

2008-06-30T05:32:00.001-09:00

Three different photos to represent the same: child labor. In 2007 I have been in Nicaragua in a charity program (Pro Niño), whose main goal was eradicate the child labor. In this way, I was involved in complimentary education for children from 5 to 12 years old, to encourage creativity, social relationships between them and adults, self confidence, and to reduce the hours they spend out of the school.

Many African migrants try to reach Yemen

2008-04-11T05:11:00.000-09:00

Not all the immigrants go to Canarias Island, as we think in Spain

Yemen SANAA, 2008 April 1 (Reuters) - At least 53 Somalis have drowned off the coast of Yemen while trying to cross from Somalia to the Arabian Peninsula country, a Yemeni official said on Tuesday. The captain of the vessel carrying about 145 migrants forced them to jump into the sea off Yemen's southern province of Abyan to swim ashore, the provincial official told Reuters.About 92 survived and were sent to refugee camps, he said. Last week another 75 Somali migrants drowned in a similar incident. Many African migrants try to reach Yemen, which they see as a gateway to wealthier parts of the Middle East, and the West.

Gibuti mother and son in Seyun - Yemen

2008-04-02T07:03:00.008-09:00

Eyes of hope, expectancy, wish, desire, chance, .... people from East Coast of Africa move to Yemen to look for a better life....

Let's start!

2008-04-01T08:01:00.002-09:00

Hi everyone, this is my personal blog to share with you myself, my experience, my photos and my vision of the world.
I'd like to receive your comments and to discuss mainly about international events, charity work in the world, peace (and war), immigration.
The idea is to blog photos or think pieces and start a discussion about them.