Weekly Round-Up - IRINCAS-177: 20-Aug-04
U N I T E D N A T I O N S
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Central Asia
IRIN-CAS Weekly Round-Up 177
14 - 20 August 2004
CONTENTS:
AFGHANISTAN: UNHCR battling to help returnees with water
AFGHANISTAN: Voters keen to cast their ballots despite risks
CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap
IRAN: Information technology reaches rural areas
KYRGYZSTAN: Rabies remains endemic in south
KYRGYZSTAN: Labour migrants to get advice before travelling
KYRGYZSTAN-UZBEKISTAN: Experts come up with solutions for dangerous
uranium dumps
PAKISTAN: Activists call for reform of state-run shelters for women
PAKISTAN: Islamic Ideology Council rejects Hasba Act
PAKISTAN: Growing concern over humanitarian situation in tribal area
TAJIKISTAN: Boosting HIV/AIDS awareness among soldiers
TAJIKISTAN: Focus on rural drinking water
UZBEKISTAN: Demining in border areas underway, military officials say
UZBEKISTAN: Vitamin A supplementation campaign continues
AFGHANISTAN: UNHCR battling to help returnees with water
The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in
Afghanistan is working to alleviate water problems experienced by Afghan
returnees by constructing thousands of water points and household
latrines. While over 3.6 million refugees have returned over the past two
years, lack of clean water remains a huge problem for most returnees.
"Afghan refugees returning to their homes after years of war require not
just peace and employment but also water which is very scarce in
Afghanistan," Nader Farhad, a spokesman for UNHCR, told IRIN in Kabul.
Having access to water sanitation, public clinics and shelter was the
pressing need of not only returnees, but also millions of other Afghans,
he added.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42690&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=AFGHANISTAN
AFGHANISTAN: Voters keen to cast their ballots despite risks
As the country proceeds towards its first post-conflict presidential
election, Afghans are optimistic that despite many remaining difficulties,
a democratic poll will make a difference to their lives. Almost 10 million
eligible Afghans have registered for the forthcoming vote, most appear
enthusiastic about selecting a leader who would bring peace and prosperity
to the country. "I have got a voter registration card and I want to vote
for the one who can help us and guarantee that there won't be further
conflicts," Sahib Shah, a 60-year-old farmer, told IRIN in Khairkhana, a
village north of the capital Kabul that was on the front line between
Taliban and opposition Northern Alliance forces during the civil war.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42733&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=AFGHANISTAN
CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap
The Uzbek trial of 15 people allegedly involved in a series of suicide
bombings and violence in March that left more than 40 people dead resumed
on Tuesday, international media reported. The trial originally began in
July, but was adjourned on 9 August after suicide bombers staged new
attacks outside the US and Israeli embassies and the office of the chief
prosecutor in Tashkent. Olimjon Usarov, a spokesman for the Uzbek Supreme
Court, reportedly said half of the defendants, who had already been
questioned, pleaded guilty.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42774&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=CENTRAL_ASIA
IRAN: Information technology reaches rural areas
A rural IT project has been launched in Iran as part of a joint effort by
the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the government of
Iran. The centre, which is the first of 100 planned centres, has been set
up in a school in Maranak, a small village in the foothills of the
Damavand mountain range in northern Iran. The project includes classes on
IT programmes, such as learning to use the Internet and the use of IT
facilities.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42710&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=IRAN
KYRGYZSTAN: Rabies remains endemic in south
Rabies is increasingly becoming a serious health concern in southern
Kyrgyzstan, where over the past two months alone three people have died of
the disease. The situation with regard to rabies cases is exacerbated by
the deteriorating epidemiological situation in the region coupled with a
lack of proper veterinary control, Jura Umurzakov, a prominent infectious
diseases specialist in the country, told IRIN in Osh, Kyrgyzstan's second
largest city. His comments followed the recent deaths of a 14-year-old
girl, a 54-year-old man and an elderly woman of 70, residents of the small
southern town of Kyzyl-Kiya, the Aravan district and the region's largest
city, Osh, respectively.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42687&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=KYRGYZSTAN
KYRGYZSTAN: Labour migrants to get advice before travelling
A special awareness raising campaign targeting Kyrgyz labour migrants
heading for some Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries is
kicking off this week. The project aims to distribute brochures explaining
migrants' rights and duties in destination countries. "These leaflets will
be given to Kyrgyz nationals leaving the country for the Russian
Federation, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. They outline the rules on how to be
in compliance with the law and how to apply for a work permit,
registration and other legal issues," Vasiliy Kravtsov of the Kyrgyz
migration service told IRIN from the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42712&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=KYRGYZSTAN
KYRGYZSTAN-UZBEKISTAN: Experts come up with solutions for dangerous
uranium dumps
Efforts to rehabilitate some 23 uranium dumps in southern Kyrgyzstan came
to a head on Thursday following a meeting of some 15 international
organisations, NGOs, local authorities and environmental groups in the
southern Kyrgyz town of Mailu-Suu. Organised by the Kyrgyz emergency
ministry and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE), the event coincided with a meeting of the Kyrgyz and Uzbek working
groups on the rehabilitation of mine dumps in the area, a long standing
legacy of the former Soviet Union. The two groups assessed how ongoing
activities by specialists from both countries were proceeding, with a
particular emphasis on safeguarding the facilities.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42762&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=KYRGYZSTAN-UZBEKISTAN
PAKISTAN: Activists call for reform of state-run shelters for women
Human rights activists have called for drastic reforms in the existing
structure of the state-run women's shelters across the country. The call
came after the recent escape of some women earlier this month from a
public shelter located in the second largest city of province Sindh,
Hyderabad. The escapees later levelled serious charges of harassment and
abuse against the management of the refuge centre when caught by police
from a nearby village. "We have been expressing concerns over the state of
these refuges for a long time, but the authorities turned a deaf ear to
our recommendations," Nuzhat Shirin, regional coordinator of the Aurat
Foundation, an NGO working for rights of women, told IRIN from the
southern port city of Karachi.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42685&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=PAKISTAN
PAKISTAN: Islamic Ideology Council rejects Hasba Act
Pakistan's leading religious affairs advisory body, the Council for
Islamic Ideology (CII), has rejected the proposed 'Hasba' legislation,
prepared by the provincial government of Pakistan's North West Frontier
Province (NWFP) for the implementation of Shariat law, an English-language
daily has reported. According to the 'Daily Times' on Sunday, the CII
"reviewed the Hasba Act on Thursday and rejected it." The CII has also
proposed the establishment of the provincial and district ombudsman's
office for the provision of justice to the people, the main concern of the
NWFP provincial government, according to the newspaper.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42731&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=PAKISTAN
PAKISTAN: Growing concern over humanitarian situation in tribal area
Aid agencies are concerned over a possible humanitarian crisis in the
conflict-hit tribal belt of Wana bordering Afghanistan where a military
offensive against militants by Pakistani security forces is continuing.
"We are reading the media reports about the sufferings of the civilian
population, but as an independent organisation we need to carry out our
own assessment of the situation," Frederic Gouin, communications
coordinator for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) told
IRIN in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, on Thursday.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42765&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=PAKISTAN
TAJIKISTAN: Boosting HIV/AIDS awareness among soldiers
Efforts to raise the awareness of thousands of Tajik military personnel
over the risks of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)
are continuing under a joint programme by the Tajik Ministry of Defence
and the US government. "I didn't know a great deal about HIV/AIDS before.
Now I have a better understanding of the risk factors involved,
particularly with regard to STDs," Sergeant Bahriddin Negmatov, who just
months away from completing his national service received a half days
training on HIV prevention, told IRIN outside the Tajik Central Military
Hospital in the capital, Dushanbe.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42732&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=TAJIKISTAN
TAJIKISTAN: Focus on rural drinking water
For Bakhtiyor Zoirov and his friends, keeping cool in the scorching summer
heat of Tajikistan's southeastern Khatlon province couldn't be more
natural. Diving into the cooling waters of a nearby irrigation canal - the
same canal that provides drinking water for his village and irrigation for
local cotton fields downstream - he retains a youthful sense of humour.
"Sure it tastes funny, but we try to clean out the sand before drinking
it," the 16-year-old told IRIN near the southern Tajik city of Kulyab, 200
km southeast of the capital Dushanbe.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42680&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=TAJIKISTAN
UZBEKISTAN: Demining in border areas underway, military officials say
The Uzbek military is clearing mine fields in the Ferghana Valley part of
the Uzbek-Kyrgyz border which have in the past claimed the lives of many
civilians. "[Preliminary] work on demining actually started at the
beginning of August. We assessed the area and demining efforts are now
underway along the Uzbek-Kyrgyz border," Komil Jabarov, an Uzbek defence
ministry spokesman, told IRIN from the Uzbek capital, Tashkent on Tuesday.
Demining would also cover the borders of the Uzbek enclaves of Sokh and
Shakhimardan located within Kyrgyzstan, Jabarov added.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42705&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=UZBEKISTAN
UZBEKISTAN: Vitamin A supplementation campaign continues
A micronutrient supplementation campaign aimed at ensuring sufficient
intake of vitamin A amongst millions of Uzbek children has been running
this week, IRIN learnt on Friday. "We are conducting a week of vitamin A
supplementation all over the republic [of Uzbekistan] for children up to 5
years of age," Dilorom Akhmedova, chief paediatrician of the Uzbek health
ministry, told IRIN from the eastern Uzbek city of Ferghana, another stop
on her nationwide tour to monitoring the campaign. "We are also covering
women who gave birth over the past 6 to 8 weeks."
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=42771&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=UZBEKISTAN
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