Possibly my favorite television journalist, Aaron Brown's new show on PBS, Wide Angle, will be tackling the massive humanitarian crisis that is Darfur.

In the half-century since Sudan was granted independence from colonial rule, the country has been in a chronic state of civil war. Most of the fighting has been between the Arab-controlled central government in Khartoum and rebels in the predominantly Christian and animist south. But in 2003, rebels in the Darfur region of western Sudan — a predominantly black, Muslim area — rose up against the central government, angered by the economic and political marginalization of their region.

In response, government-backed militias known as the janjaweed began a “scorched earth” campaign — riding on horseback, the janjaweed looted shops, raped women, and burned entire villages to the ground. Five years later, United Nations officials estimate that as many as 300,000 people may have been killed, and more than 2.5 million have been displaced.

[...]

Heart of Darfur takes a look at the people and places affected by the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Our cameras follow the people working to bring an end to the conflict and suffering, such as Mohamed Siddig Suliman, a Darfuri aid worker who has been working in the region for more than 20 years. We travel into the expanding Sahara desert with Siddig, where, he explains, three decades of drought conditions have led to fighting over scarce resources—one of the root causes of the conflict in Darfur.

We also meet General Martin Luther Agwai, the former head of the Nigerian Armed Forces, who now leads UNAMID, the joint U.N./African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur. The film follows Gen. Agwai as he helicopters into hostile areas to meet with leaders of various rebel factions. We learn that he is concerned about the fragmentation of the rebel groups, the logistics of UNAMID’s deployment, the expectations on the mission, and the limits of his power. Still, Gen. Agwai manages to have a positive outlook.

The documentary premiers on July 1, 2008.

I'm not going to say anything about the organization, Operation Blessing, that provided this video because I have don't know anything about them. But I will ask this, after you watch this video and before you go watch American Idol, make a donation to someone who's trying to provide relief to the Burmese people.

You can donate directly to the Red Cross/Red Crescent here.

I'm in a hurry this morning and don't have a lot of time to post, but I did want to get something up in regards to the earthquake yesterday in China. Here's an updating list of news items about the earthquake, that should have the 15 most recent articles on the web. It should also update automatically every time you refresh the page.

 

China earthquake rebuilding to cost $147 billion

China's government estimates it will cost $147 billion to rebuild from the massive earthquake that struck the central part of ...

Source: USA Today

 

Exploring Sichuan Fault

ScienceDaily (Aug. 14, 2008) Durham University expert, Alex Densmore, is to explore the fault lines that caused the May 12th earthquake in China that killed 69,000 people. Dr. Densmore, Director of Hazards Research at the Institute of Hazard and Risk

Source: Science Daily

 

Durham scientist explores Sichuan fault

Durham University expert, Alex Densmore, is to explore the fault lines that caused the May 12th earthquake in China that killed 69,000 people. Dr. Densmore, Director of Hazards Research at the Institute of Hazard and Risk Research at Durham University,

Source: EurekAlert

 

China quake work to cost $150bn

China says almost $150bn is needed to rebuild the region devastated by the Sichuan earthquake.

Source: BBC News

 

Canada matches relief donations to China, Burma

TORONTO - Canada will match nearly $30 million in private donations for victims of the Sichuan earthquake, and more than $11.6 million for the cyclone relief effort in Burma, Minister of International Co-operation Bev Oda announced Thursday. \"Thousands

Source: Canada.com

 

Initiatives for China’s President: Yang Jianli’s Personal Statement

Published after Yang was refused entry into Hong Kong On May 1, Yang Jianli attended press conference at Russell Park in front of Capitol Hill, Washington D./C., USA. (Yiping/The Epoch Times) On August 6, two days ahead of the opening ceremony for

Source: The Epoch Times

 

One Year Later: Red Cross Helping Peru Earthquake Survivors Rebuild

Editorial note: To arrange media interviews in English and Spanish contact Winnie Romeril in Peru at +51.199.460.0527 WASHINGTON, Thursday, August 14, 2008 Last summer's massive earthquake left this region of Peru crumbled, infrastructure destroyed,

Source: Red Cross

 

Government of Canada Contributes $18-Million in Support of Red Cross Relief Efforts in China and Myanmar

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Aug. 14, 2008) - The Canadian International Development Agency announced today that Canada has matched over $16-million to the Red Cross China earthquake operations and ...

Source: Malaysia Sun

 

China's quake reconstruction to cost nearly US$150b

BEIJING: Nearly 150 billion US dollars are needed to rebuild areas in southwest China devastated by a massive earthquake in May, the government said on Thursday. The 51 worst-hit counties and cities will need about one trillion yuan (145.7 billion US

Source: Channel News Asia

 

Dalai Lama curious about China's path post-Games

PARIS: The Dalai Lama said on Wednesday that he is disappointed by the latest round of talks aimed at easing tensions between his supporters and China and added that he wants to see what path Chinese authorities will chart once the Olympics are over.

Source: Times of India

 

China's GOME Q2 net triples from low base

HONG KONG: GOME Electrical Appliances Holding, China's top electronics retailer, nearly tripled its quarterly profit on Tuesday thanks to higher sales and a low comparison base caused by huge impairment losses a year ago. Analysts predict GOME, which

Source: Times of India

 

Three Months After Chinese Earthquake, UN Continues to Assist Recovery

United Nations agencies are continuing to help millions of people rebuild their lives in south-western China, three months after the region was devastated by an earthquake that left more than 80,000 people dead or missing. The Wenchuan earthquake not

Source: News Blaze

 

The Shanghai Diaries: A Trip to Earthquake-Torn Sichuan Province

I recently got to visit earthquake-torn Sichuan Province. I'll never be the same. The little girl, all of ten years old, fidgets in her bed like all little girls her age made to sit still for too long. She smiles shyly as her mother proudly tells her

Source: Blogcritics.org

 

It's no mirage. It's China.

It's no mirage. It's China. The tightly controlled and carefully orchestrated Games reflect the reality of China today, tomorrow and the foreseeable future. By Ted C. Fishman People in my home town, Chicago, are watching the Beijing Olympics carefully.

Source: USA Today

 

China earthquake rattles University community

As the death toll from Monday’s earthquake approaches 20,000 with thousands more still missing in China's Sichuan Province, the rubble has managed to fall upon the lives of students and faculty thousands of miles away in New Jersey. \"The earthquake

Source: Daily Princetonian

Quotes

Liu Xiang is the pride of China, the pride of Chinese people. He is my Olympic idol. He is a very nice person. I still remember after the Sichuan earthquake, a little boy who lost his arm called Liu Xiang, and he told him in a very soft voice to listen to doctors and take good care of himself

  Irish Times

The revenue of $6.7 million in the second quarter is respectable considering the transportation issues the company faced in June resulting from an earthquake in Inner Mongolia, China

  Centre Daily Times

China's tourism market encountered many challenges after the Sichuan earthquake this year, but Ctrip still maintained a stable growth in profit and revenue as a leading company in the industry

  Shanghai Daily

We would like to thank the Government of Canada for their generous contribution to the Red Cross earthquake response in China ... Thanks to their continued support and the generosity of Canadians, the Red Cross has been able to reach over one million survivors with urgently needed relief supplies and will be able to provide longer term recovery to affected families.

  Street Insider

Despite the unusual snow disaster early this year and the devastating earthquake in Sichuan Province on May 12, the Olympics have stimulated China's flat-panel TV market

  Xinhua

Although the travel industry in China encountered many difficulties during the second quarter of 2008 after the Sichuan earthquake, Ctrip delivered solid revenue and earnings growth

  PR Newswire

Thank you for your heartfelt condolences to people affected by the Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan, China and for your sincere donation to children in the quake zone

  Xinhua

China's open door to the foreign media will not close after the Games ... We regard the May 12 earthquake and the Olympic Games press coverage as an 'important test' of the media operation system reforms and will explore building a more open and transparent media system after the Games.

  International Herald Tribune

The military junta of Myanmar has once again proven it has no place in the modern world, this time by seizing food and medical aid shipments destined for tropical cyclone victims.

Authorities in cyclone-ravaged Myanmar have seized United Nations aid intended for victims of the disaster, a move that "shuts down" future flights from the organization, according to a U.N. World Food Program official.

The organization, which insists on distributing its own relief supplies, said the seizure of two aircraft-loads of food, medcine and equipment, has already hit out at Myanmar's refusal to all access to foreign eis workers.

"This is another example of them actively getting in the way of relief getting to the victims," said Tony Banbury, Asia director of the World Food Program.

Unfortunately, the world community is doing very little about the situation. Government's are willing to send money, food, and medicine, but so far not one single government has said they are willing to make sure it reaches the people who need it. While the Burmese people are dying, leaders are asking China to put pressure on the military leadership. As we know from past experience, this will accomplish absolutely nothing.

In my own opinion, this puts the deaths of tens of thousands of people not just on the shoulders of the military junta, but of the rest of the world's political leaders who refuse to do anything more than talk about it.

The Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies has issued a call for donations to help the relief effort in Myanmar. With now more than 22,000 dead and close to twice that number still missing, relief agencies are being pushed to their limits. Not only that, but there are fears that disease could set in due to unsafe water and lack of food, potentially killing multiple thousands more.

If you've got a few dollars to spare, go to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies website and make a donation. They can definitely use your help.