URUGUAY APOLOGIZES OVER ALLEGED HAITI SEX ASSAULT

URUGUAY APOLOGIZES TO HAITI
FOR ALLEGED SEX ABUSE

Montevideo (AFP) - Uruguay’s president has apologized or the “outrage” carried out by peacekeepers accused of sexually assaulting a young Haitian man and vowed the “maximum penalty” for anyone found guilty. The soldiers, who were based in southern Haiti, stand accused of raping an 18-year-old man in the small coastal town of Port-Salut. Video footage of the alleged attack on a Uruguayan base has been circulated on the Internet. “I come at this terrible time to offer you and the dear and heroic people of Haiti my apologies for the outrage that some soldiers of my country committed,” Uruguay’s President Jose Mujica said in a letter. “I share your sadness, which I feel as my own,” he said, adding that authorities would investigate and apply the “maximum penalty” to those responsible. 

Uruguay’s defense minister had earlier admitted that the incident had caused “a lot of damage” to the armed forces, which provide around 2,400 peacekeepers worldwide, mostly in Haiti and the Democratic Republic of Congo.  The five peacekeepers accused of sexual assault must be tried in their home country for any crimes allegedly committed during their deployments abroad.  Haitian President Michel Martelly has condemned the alleged attack and demanded a detailed report on the exact circumstances of the incident, according to his office.  Martelly has also requested a meeting between Haitian officials and UN mission staff so that “measures can immediately be taken to ensure that such acts do not reoccur,” his office said in a statement. On Monday, hundreds of people demonstrated in Port-Salut to demand justice for the alleged victim, while some Haitians have asked for the UN mission - in the country since 2004 - to be shut down.

Several hundred Haitians demonstrated Monday in support of an 18-year-old man who says he was sexually assaulted by peacekeepers from Uruguay on a U.N. base along the southern coast of Haiti. Uruguay’s President Jose Mujica has apologized to Haiti for alleged sex abuse involving his country’s peacekeepers in the Caribbean nation, and promised that those responsible will receive the maximum penalties.  It is said that the UN mission - formed to help maintain peace - has already committed other anti-social actions in Haiti.  When it comes to sex and violence, heartless and lustful men do not distinguish between male and female.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

For the practitioner of devotional service, dhairya - patience  - is extremely necessary. Those who possess the quality of dhairya are called dhira, sober. Due to lack of this quality, men become restless. Those who are impatient cannot do any work. By the quality of dhairya, a practitioner controls first himself and then the whole world. ... There are six types of urges: namely, the urges of speech, mind, anger, belly, tongue, and genitals. ... The urge of the genital is formidable for persons who are averse to the Lord. In the Shrimad Bhagavatam (11.5.11) it is said: “In this material world the conditioned soul is always inclined to sex, meat-eating, and intoxication. Therefore religious scriptures never actually encourage such activities.” ... Persons who are filled with attachment for material enjoyment can never tolerate the urge of the genital.

Śrīla Saccidananda Bhaktivinoda Thākura :
“Śrī Bhaktyaloka: Illuminations on Bhakti”
“Six Qualitis That Enhance Bhakti” - Dhairya Patience
Translated by Bhumipati Dasa

ELEVEN KILLED, 66 INJURED IN DELHI TERROR ATTACK

‘BRIEFCASE BOMB’ EXPLODES
OUTSIDE NEW DELHI HIGH COURT

New Delhi (AP) - A bomb exploded outside New Delhi’s High Court on Wednesday, killing at least 11 people and injuring 66, in an act of suspected terrorism in the heart of India’s capital that further heightened concerns about the nation’s security vulnerabilities.  The high-intensity blast occurred at 10:14 a.m. near the courthouse reception area. Officials said they believed the bomb was placed in a briefcase.  Addressing reporters in Bangladesh, where he has been visiting, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, “We will never succumb to pressure from terrorists. All political parties must unite to crush the scourge of terror.”  Indian news channels said the Islamist militant outfit Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami had claimed responsibility for the attack in an email to media organizations.

The bombing appears to be the worst attack in India’s capital since blasts at shopping centers in 2008 that left 22 people dead. Security experts say Wednesday’s bombing is particularly worrying because it comes three months after a low-intensity explosion outside the same courthouse in New Delhi, reflecting a lackluster response by the government. The May blast didn’t result in any injuries.  India vowed to redouble efforts to crack down on terrorism after the country suffered its worst-ever terrorist attack nearly three years ago in Mumbai, when Pakistan-based gunmen rampaged through the city and killed 166 people. But despite some moves to beef up intelligence gathering coordination and strengthen police capabilities, attacks have continued. In July, a series of bombs ripped through crowded shopping areas in Mumbai, killing 20 people and injuring 131. Police have yet to name any suspects for those blasts.

Two months after 26 people were killed in Mumbai (Bombay), Delhi has been attacked again.  A bomb apparently hidden in a briefcase has exploded outside India’s high court in New Delhi, killing 11 and wounding at least 66.  Some analysts feared these attacks, culminating in the July attack in Mumbai, signaled an effort to regroup by the Indian Mujahedeen - a domestic militant group blamed for many of the 2008 attacks.  Violent humans beings are causing unnatural death regardless of the innocence of the murdered women and children. By doing so, they are attacking human dignity itself.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The present-day world appears to be running fast towards destruction. As per Indian scriptural evidence, the conditioned souls are enveloped by Lord’s illusory energy consisting of three primal qualities - Sattva, Rajah, and Tamah.  ‘Tamah’ indicates tendency to commit vice or to inflict injury.  In fact, Tamah tendency has now engulfed the whole world and is spreading over like fire and showing its most monstrous destructive ugly appearance.  The sagacious persons are bewildered to find any solution of this terrible tendency of violence. ... Lord does not think much about sins of other living beings who have got no such discriminating power. They do actions out of instinct. But God has bestowed discriminating power to human beings. In spite of that if they commit heinous crimes, surely they will be punished. They will never be spared.

Śrīla Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Mahārāja :

“Human’s sins will never be spared”
Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya Math - www.sreecgmath.org

MISSING LITTLE GIRL FOUND DEAD IN ARGENTINA

AFTER 9 DAYS MISSING, 11-YEAR OLD
ARGENTINEAN GIRL WAS FOUND DEAD

www.buenosairesherald.com - The mother of missing 11-year old Candela Rodríguez, Carola Labrador, identified her daughter’s body, which was found inside a plastic bag on the side of the Oeste Highway, in Morón.  “They killed my daughter!” she said after seeing her body, and suffered a nervous breakdown.  Buenos Aires Governor Daniel Scioli was also at the site, accompanying her.  While police authorities were combing the area, a witness assured she had found a bag containing the body of a young girl which has been dead for three days. She was not wearing any clothes and her body showed signs of violence. Residents in the Hurlingham area were seen in shock after the unexpected outcome.  They had held several vigils and marches, demanding for her immediate appearance.  On Tuesday, a 48-hour campaign featuring many Argentine celebrities was started, in hopes it would raise awareness about the girl’s disappearance.

The last time Candela Rodríguez was seen alive, she was heading towards a church a few blocks away from her home, where she was scheduled to meet other girl scouts who were waiting for her. Police authorities were looking into several theories of her abduction that ranged from a human trafficking case to a revenge exacted on her father, currently in prison over a truck robbery. According to police authorities, only 48 hours earlier Candela’s mother had received several threatening phone calls, warning her that if she “didn’t return the money” her daughter would turn up dead.  In the last few days, over 1600 policemen were searching for the girl and authorities will now investigate to identify the culprits of such a heinous crime that has shocked an entire country.

An Argentinean missing 11-year-old girl, whose disappearance in Buenos Aires gripped the nation and sparked a celebrity-led campaign to locate her, was found dead.  The girl’s mother had received several threatening phone calls earlier in the week, warning her that if she “didn’t return the money” her daughter would turn up dead.  Authorities said Candela Rodriguez’s body was not wearing any clothes and had been dead for three days. The autopsy revealed that the girl was killed by asphyxiation 7 days after being captive. The purpose of society should be to live in peace and always avoid acts of cruelty so everyone can advance spiritually.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?   

Persons who are attached to sinful activities generally become envious and violent toward other living entities.  Committing violence is a heinous sin.  It is everyone’s duty to give up violence.  Violence toward human beings is the gravest sin. ... Violence toward other living entities is the root of all sinful activities.  Those who are fortunate enough to engage in Krishna’s devotional service naturally do not possess a propensity for violence. ... There are three kinds of violence: violence toward human beings, violence toward animals, and violence toward demigods. Violence is born from hate. ... There are two types of cruelty, cruelty toward humans and cruelty toward animals.  Cruelty toward men and women causes great disturbances in the world. When people practice cruelty toward one another, compassion leaves the world and irreligiousness in the form of cruelty become prominent. (Caitanya-siksamrta 2/5)

Śrīla Saccidananda Bhaktivinoda Thākura :
‘Violence Toward the Living Entities’
“Śrī Bhaktivinoda Vānī Vaibhava”  - Vol 2. “Abhidheya”
Compiled by Śrīpad Sundarānanda Vidyāvinoda

REBELS DEMAND ALGERIA RETURN QADDAFI FAMILY

LIBYAN REBELS DEMAND RETURN  
OF GADHAFI FAMILY FROM ALGERIA

(CNN) - The wife of fugitive Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, three of his children and some of his grandchildren arrived in Algeria on Monday morning, Algerian diplomats said.  Mourad Benmehidi, the Algerian ambassador to the United Nations, said he relayed the news to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon earlier Monday.  Benmehidi said his country granted entrance to Gadhafi’s wife, Safia, his daughter, Aisha, sons Hannibal and Mohamed and their children on “humanitarian grounds.”  The ambassador said he did not know whether Moammar Gadhafi was expected to seek entry into Algeria and claimed none of the Gadhafis were subject to U.N. Security Council sanctions.  News on Monday of the Gadhafi relatives’ departure from Libya came the same day that a senior rebel commander reported that Khamis Gadhafi, a son of the Libyan leader and military commander in his regime, had been killed Sunday night in a battle with rebel forces between the villages of Tarunah and Bani Walid in northwest Libya.

The information minister in the rebels’ interim government says, “We are determined to arrest and try the whole Gadhafi family, including Gadhafi himself.”  The departure of some of his family members is one of the strongest signs yet that the longtime leader has lost his grip on the country.  Gadhafi’s children have played important roles in Libya.  Hannibal headed the maritime transport company, Mohammed headed the national Olympic committee and Aisha, a lawyer, helped defend Iraq’s Saddam Hussein in the trial that led to his hanging.  The rebels had previously speculated that Gadhafi could be trying to reach Algeria or Libya’s southern neighbor Chad, both countries with which his government had close ties.

Libyan rebels are demanding that Algeria return Moammar Gadhafi’s wife and three of his children for trial.  Gadhafi’s wife, daughter Aisha and sons Hannibal and Mohammed fled Libya and entered Algeria yesterday. Gadhafi and several of his other sons remain at large.  Gadhafi appears to be on his way to defeat but he is not there yet.  When Saddam Hussein was captured, he was hiding in a hole in the ground, alone and without an army. Gadhafi is still fighting and posing challenges. The war is not over.  The desire to keep fighting of these leaders makes them to forget the number of innocents - women and children - who suffer in these conflicts.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

There are so many problems of war in this world. As Prabhupada said, they made a League of Nations after World War One, and they made a United Nations after World War Two. But has there ever been a time without wars? Prabhupada said that the pinprick in the whole system is so simple: We are forgetting that Krishna is in the center.  And even among devotees, due to material nature, because we are living in material existence, there is the propensity to argue, to disagree, to fight, to form positions and defend our positions, to criticize, to find fault, to undermine people. This has been going on in every religion, including our own, throughout history as well as today. These problems arise and are perpetuated when there is selfishness.  But if we can just maintain our focus on keeping Krishna at the center, this propensity will naturally diminish.

Śrīla Radhanath Swami Mahārāja :
“Thoughts For The New Year”
January 2010, Bhaktivedanta Manor England
http://jivacow.blogspot.com/2010/01/thoughts-for-new-year-by-radhanath.html
http://www.radhanath-swami.net/  -  http://radhanathswami.info/

AT LEAST 53 KILLED IN MEXICO CASINO

ARSON FIRE KILLS 53
IN A CASINO IN MEXICO

Mexico City - In what Mexican officials have called an “act of terror,” a half dozen gunmen burst into a casino in Mexico’s industrial capital of Monterrey Thursday, sprayed the place with gasoline, and started a fire in the bingo section, killing at least 53 people.  Speaking to Monterrey’s leading newspaper El Norte, Nuevo León Gov. Rodrigo Medina said that at least 53 people had been killed in the attack, making it the bloodiest attack suffered by this prosperous city, which has been rocked by spiraling drug violence in the last year. Monterrey is the capital of Nuevo León state.  Officials said they expected the death toll to continue to climb in what appeared to be an attack linked to warring drug cartels, although there was no immediate information linking the massacre to drug traffickers. Up to 80 people were in the casino when it was attacked.

“Six hooded gunmen came in, shouting obscenities and firing their guns,” said a person at the scene who asked not to be named. “They drenched the place with gasoline. People were running as the place went up in flames. Those who stayed behind burned to death.”  Videos of the Casino Royale by local news channels showed a grim scene of rescue workers dragging bodies out by their feet as billowing clouds of black smoke came out of the building. One fireman appeared to be attempting rescues from a crane. The entrance to the casino was charred black and a sign reading “Royale” stood beside it.  The massacre in the Casino Royale in an upper-middle-class area of the city was the second such attack on an entertainment center in the past two months in Monterrey. The attack on the casino, located on one of Monterrey’s main avenues, took place at about 3:30 p.m. when six men drove up in two cars, officials said.
Armed men burst into a casino in the northern Mexican city of Monterrey and set a fire that killed at least 53 people and injured several others.  The attack at the Casino Royale, was the worst massacre since a crackdown on drug gangs by the authorities and infighting among the gangs exploded more than five years ago.  Casinos, growing in number across the country, have also emerged lately as targets of extortion, violence and money laundering.  Kali-yuga resides in four places: brothels, liquor shops, slaughterhouses and gambling casinos.  There, greed, lust, pride, and violence are perceived.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

King Pariksit, in disciplining the Personification of Kali, submitted to his earnest plea and granted him five places for his residence, irreligion to flourish. These are namely gambling, liquor and all other stimulants, illicit sexual intercourse, violence (brutal killing of defenseless creatures) and gold (money used in the service of the Lord properly does not fall into this category). The practice of gambling breeds dishonesty, drinking of intoxicants and taking of stimulants lead to loss of austerities. ... Hence those desiring their highest welfare should not indulge in any of these sinful activities at all, especially the religious minded person. A King and spiritual leader or ‘guru’ should shun all such activities from a distance. Such indulgence in irreligion will only deteriorate the character of the individual and all his so called preaching will be of no avail.

Śrīla Bhakti Promode Puri Mahārāja :
“Essence of Pure Devotion”
Part V -  “Preaching and Self-Practice”
Bhaktivedanta Memorial Library - http://bvml.org/SBPPG/eopd5.htm

UN: 600 KILLED IN SOUTH SUDAN UNREST

DEATH TOLL PASSES 600 FROM RAID
IN SOUTH SUDAN, U.N. CALLS FOR TALKS

(CNN) - The U.N. on Monday called for reconciliation in the newly-established Republic of South Sudan after fighting reportedly left at least 600 dead and at least 26,000 cattle stolen.  The Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General, Hilde F. Johnson urged restraint Monday after fighting between the Murle and Lou Nuer communities in Jonglei State, killed at least 600 and left more than 750 wounded.  Clashes broke out early Thursday morning and lasted through the day, South Sudan authorities reported.  The U.N. on Friday dispatched an assessment and verification team to two of the conflict areas.  The team found 28 casualties at one site and 30 at another along with a number of huts burned to the ground, said Aleem Siddique, spokesman for the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. 

The violence occurred when members of the Murle tribe attacked villages of the Lou Nuer, Siddique said.  Though the violence had largely stopped, reconciliation efforts were needed to maintain the peace, he said.  “Peaceful dialogue is the primary means for reconciliation, and the tribal leaders need to sit down and work out their differences.”  Between January and the end of June 2011, nearly 2,400 people had died in 330 clashes across South Sudan, according to a July U.N. report.  Most of these casualties resulted from cattle rustling incidents in Jonglei State's Pibor County.  Cattle rustling is a main source of insecurity in South Sudan as cows represent wealth and social status, and are used as “blood money” or compensation and payment of dowries.  Sticks and spears have historically been used to carry out rustling and the violent disputes it often causes.  However, the proliferation of small arms changed the nature of this practice, making raiding far more deadly.

The United Nations says tribal fighting in South Sudan's Jonglei state has killed at least 600 people since Thursday.  The U.N. mission said there are reports that at least 750 others have been injured.  The fighting stems from a cattle and land dispute between the Murle tribe and the Lou-Nuer tribe and this new retaliatory attack has raised fears of ethnic instability on the deeply impoverished country.  The U.N. said that the cycle of violence must stop, and called for reconciliation efforts.  Unless people understand that we are inseparably connected, whether they are poor or rich, there will be always fight for land, riches and women.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

To determine the root-cause of unrest we ought first to determine the meaning of the self. I strongly believe, that ignorance of our real-self is the cause of unrest, discord and anxiety. ... It has already been stated that differences in the individuals are unavoidable as they are conscious units.  Now the problem is to find a common ground and interest for the solution of these differences. A sense of common interest can be fostered among individuals, if they know that they are inter-connected, are parts of one Organic System and are the sons and daughters of one Father. ... Unless and until the eternal relationship of the people is known to them and they realize that they cannot exist and be happy without the Godhead, Who is All-Bliss, the natural inclination of the people towards the Godhead and diversion of their attention from the material aspects of life cannot be effected.

Śrīla Bhakti Dayita Madhava Mahārāja :
“Realistic Solution for Diverse Humanity”
Speech at a ‘Spiritual Summit Conference’ - 1968 Calcutta.
http://www.sreecgmath.org/scgmtimes/scgmsbdm.php
Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya Math - www.sreecgmath.org

AL QAEDA VOWS ‘100 ATTACKS’ FOR BIN LADEN’S DEATH

AL-QAIDA IN IRAQ VOWS 100-ATTACK
CAMPAIGN FOR BIN LADEN DEATH

Baghdad (AP) - Al Qaeda in Iraq has vowed to carry out “100 attacks” across the country, starting in the middle of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, to exact revenge for the death of Osama bin Laden.  The terror group’s statement was released on militant websites late Friday. It said the attacks will avenge bin Laden, who was killed by U.S. forces in Pakistan in May, and other slain senior al Qaeda leaders.  “By God’s will, the campaign starts in the middle of the fasting month (of Ramadan) and ends by God’s will after 100 attacks exactly,” it said. The statement said the campaign would include “varied attacks, including raids, martyrdom operations (suicide attacks), roadside bombs, silenced guns and snipers, in all cities, rural areas and provinces” across Iraq.  Monday marked the middle of Ramadan.

On that day, a wave of crushing attacks swept across Iraq - from the northern city of Mosul to the southern Shiite heartland. At least 70 people died in suicide bombings, roadside bombs and shootings in what was Iraq’s deadliest day this year.  Al Qaeda did not explicitly claim responsibility for those attacks in Friday’s statement, but the chaos is widely believed to be the work of al Qaeda in Iraq.  A little over a year ago, U.S. and Iraqi officials said the deaths of al Qaeda in Iraq’s two top leaders in a raid had dealt a severe blow to the organization. The group has suffered from a drop in funding and just two weeks ago was calling on former members to come back to the fold, a sign of its diminished status.  But Monday’s violence suggests that al Qaeda in Iraq has the ability to resurrect itself and still carry out vicious attacks.

The al-Qaida militant group in Iraq announced a campaign of 100 attacks across the country, starting from the middle of holy Muslim month of Ramadan to take revenge for the death of its former leader Osama bin Laden.  “The campaign started in the middle of the fasting month of Ramadan (middle of August) and, if God wills, will end after exactly 100 attacks,” they said in a statement posted on an Islamic website.  Self-defense and fighting for the just cause forms an important part of the righteous duty, but revenge is not sanctioned in Hindu religion.  Desire for vengeance only lead to the destruction of the worlds.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

We are all for establishing peace in the world, for that is a state of Dharma, but some violence may be necessary to preserve Dharma from violent forces, to bring about peace, as we have seen from the past. This does not mean we use violence that is based on ego, or a political agenda, or for revenge. But it is for the defense and protection of Dharma. This was the reason for the Kurukshetra War, which lead to the speaking of the Bhagavad-gita by Lord Krishna to His friend and warrior Arjuna.  In this way, Arjuna understood that the purpose of acting as a warrior was to preserve the moral and religious principles as held and presented in Sanatana-dharma. But part of that included the destruction of the asuric or demoniac elements that were determined to ruin society by neglecting or even demolishing and annihilating the great spiritual lifestyle as found in Sanatana-dharma, the great Vedic culture.

Stephen Knapp (Śrīpad Nandanandana dasa) :
“Crimes Against India And the Need to
Protect its Ancient Vedic Traditions”
“The Purpose of Defending Dharma”
http://www.stephen-knapp.com  -  http://www.stephenknapp.info/
http://www.stephen-knapp.com/purpose_of_defending_dharma.htm

STUDENT PROTESTS IN CHILE ERUPT IN VIOLENCE

WITH CLASHES AND RIOTS, THOUSANDS
DEMAND EDUCATION REFORM IN CHILE

http://news.sky.com - Student protests in Chile have turned violent again as tens of thousands took to the streets demanding changes to public education.  Masked demonstrators burned cars, looted storefronts and threw furniture at police in the capital Santiago and other cities.  Apartment buildings were also attacked as riot police used tear gas and water cannon to push back students.  Police have said 23 officers were injured during the protest which saw 273 demonstrators detained.  Students have been demanding a fundamental change to how Chile finances public education.  They also called for private universities enjoying a non-profit tax status to reinvest revenues into educational improvements, as is required by law.  University of Chile student president Camila Vallejos claimed that 150,000 marched on Santiago’s side streets because they were denied permission by the government to protest on the main avenue.

Deputy interior minister Rodrigo Ibilla doubted these figures, estimating that 70,000 to 80,000 had protested in the capital.  The demonstration had started out peacefully with many students wearing costumes, dancing, singing and waving signs.  However, a group of masked protesters split off from the main parade and attempted to break through police barricades blocking the way to the presidential palace.  A protest five days earlier, which had been deemed illegal, ended with 900 arrests and many civilians and police officers injured.  Teachers’ union president Jaime Gajardo reiterated the students’ call for a national referendum on their demands.  The leaders of the governing centre-right coalition have dismissed this as unconstitutional and dangerous.

Tens of thousands of teachers, students, parents and sympathetic labor activists marched in downtown Santiago, Chile, for the fifth time in two months to demand reforms from the conservative government.  Apart from a rising anger over poverty, the top of the list of demands is education, which is the privilege of the few.  Some protesters started fires and threw rocks at police, who responded with tear gas and water cannon.  When there are different centers of interests, nobody can avoid clashing of groups, so Nama-Sankirtan is a universal remedy which can unite all people's hearts.  

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

According to Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Transcendental Divine Love is the strongest spiritual force on earth which can establish close relation of love and unity of hearts amongst all human beings and thereby establish real peace in the world. There is an outbreak of conflagration of group clashes throughout the world. Nowhere you will find peace. ... False egos create false interests and by that clashing of interests we see the forest fire in this world. ... In the present age, “Nama-Sankirtan” is the best medicine and effective way to achieve the summum bonum of human life as it can be performed under any sort of circumstances.  Sri Chaitanya Gaudiya Math institution is engaged in the propagation of the all-embracing doctrine of Transcendental Divine Love of Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to counter the present trend of violence and cruelty and to bring unity of hearts amongst all irrespective of caste, creed and religion.

Śrīla Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Mahārāja :
“Strongest Spiritual Force on Earth”
Press conference, on 29 December, 2000, Mumbai.
Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya Math - www.sreecgmath.org
http://dir.groups.yahoo.com/group/sreecgmath/message/64

TORTURE CAMP REVEALED IN ZIMBABWE

DIAMOND “TORTURE CAMP”
DISCOVERED IN ZIMBABWE

London (www.nytimes.com) - Britain has urged the authorities in Zimbabwe to investigate a BBC report that its security forces are beating and raping prisoners at two camps in the Marange diamond fields in the east of the country. International monitors voted to allow exports from the fields to resume in June despite objections from the United States, Canada and the European Union.  The BBC’s documentary program “Panorama” said the camps hold workers who were recruited by the police and the military to dig illegally for diamonds for them, but who then demand too large a share of the profits or civilians caught mining for themselves.  A  released prisoner who was not named said guards at the camps were beating prisoners three times a day, with 40 lashes at a time.  Dogs were loosed to bite shackled inmates, and imprisoned women were frequently raped, the program said.  The Zimbabwean authorities offered no immediate comment.

The government of President Robert Mugabe has been working to increase its legal sales of diamonds. Mr. Mugabe’s political opponents fear that he will use diamond income to finance a violent campaign to win elections that are likely to be held next year.  One of the torture camps identified, Diamond Base, is about a mile from the Mbada mine, which the BBC says is run by a friend of Mr. Mugabe. Witnesses cited by the program described Diamond Base as “a remote collection of military tents, with an outdoor razor-wire enclosure” to hold the prisoners.  “They beat us 40 whips in the morning, 40 in the afternoon and 40 in the evening,” said the man, who still could not use one of his arms after the beatings and could barely walk.  “They used logs to beat me here, under my feet, as I lay on the ground. They also used stones to beat my ankles.”

A torture camp run by Zimbabwe’s security forces is operating in the country’s rich Marange diamond fields and it is known locally as “Diamond Base”.  Witnesses said it is a remote collection of military tents, with an outdoor razor wire enclosure where the prisoners are kept.  They are routinely subjected to rape; sexual assault; severe beatings and some are mauled by dogs.  Civilians are recruited to illegally dig for diamonds for them and they are taken to the camps for punishment if they demand too large a share of the profits.  There are many kinds of vikarma, such as greed, cruelty, violence and lust for the wives of others.  

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The more you try to satisfy your senses, the more you will come under the control of lust, greed and anger. Lust is there when you want to satisfy your material desires. Greed is there when you want more than you need.  Anger will always be there in some form when you fail to achieve what you want, or when you attain it but then lose it. The unmerciful masters of lust, greed and anger will never leave you alone. ... A good standard of morals must be followed because such rules promote the prosperity of social life.  If a standard of morals is not followed, then the lack of respect people will have for each other, and the crimes that follow, will force all social happiness to quickly disappear.  Therefore, we should cultivate the principle sentiments of love, kindness, friendship, and mercy, for the promotion of social good and prosperity.

Stephen Knapp (Śrīpad Nandanandana dasa) :
"Toward World Peace: Seeing the Unity Between Us All"
http://www.stephen-knapp.com/toward_world_peace_ebook.htm
http://www.stephen-knapp.com  -  http://www.stephenknapp.info/

LONDON VIOLENCE EXTENDS INTO THIRD NIGHT

LOOTING, ARSON SPREAD WIDELY IN
LONDON, AS CIVIL UNREST ESCALATES

http://www.washingtonpost.com - Rampant looting and raging fires engulfed swaths of London on Monday as the wave of civil unrest that has gripped this sprawling capital escalated sharply, including riots in a neighborhood not far from that of the athletes’ village and shiny stadiums built for the 2012 Olympic Games.  The images of violence - with hundreds of youths looting shops, setting businesses ablaze and clashing with police in more than a half-dozen neighborhoods - deeply shocked Londoners, dealing this legendary city an enormously damaging blow less than a year before the start of the Olympics.  In the worst bout of urban violence to hit Britain in more than two decades, parts of the city morphed into lawless no-man lands. Gangs of youths attacked double-decker buses and started a fire burning across a street side in south London. Most of a block in the southern neighborhood of Croydon raged in flames. Shopping malls were attacked and set on fire.

The violence also spread to Britain’s second city of Birmingham, where hundreds of youths attacked and looted shops.  Prime Minister David Cameron cut short a vacation trip to Italy and was returning to London overnight to chair an emergency cabinet meeting to handle the mounting crisis. The embattled Metropolitan Police called in reinforcements from law enforcement forces outside London to help cope.  The violence first erupted Saturday night in Tottenham, a gritty north London neighborhood, after the fatal shooting of a black resident by police investigating gun crimes. Those riots triggered a ripple effect among disenfranchised youths in other parts of the city Sunday, and the unrest increased in size and intensity Monday.

Riots have spread to new areas of London while looting erupted in the cities of Birmingham and Leeds, as Britain's worst clashes in decades extended into the third night.  Some rioters broke into shops.  Police arrested more than 160 people.  Dozens of officers were injured.  The violence, which began in London's northern Tottenham district on Saturday, has now spread to the south of the city.  Materialistic science has tried to give answers to all social problems, but we are still not satisfied and need to find the ultimate source of all in order to be truly at peace.  

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Human society, at the present moment, is not in the darkness of oblivion. It has made rapid progress in the field of material comforts, education and economic development throughout the entire world. But there is a pinprick somewhere in the social body at large, and therefore there are large-scale quarrels, even over less important issues. There is need of a clue as to how humanity can become one in peace, friendship and prosperity with a common cause.  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam will fill this need, for it is a cultural presentation for the respiritualization of the entire human society.  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam should be introduced also in the schools and colleges, for it is recommended by the great student-devotee Prahlāda Mahārāja in order to change the demoniac face of society.   

kaumāra ācaret prājñodharmān bhāgavatān ihadurlabham mānusham janmatad apy adhruvam arthadam (Bhāg. 7.6.1).

Śrīla A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda :
Śrīmad Bhāgavatam - Preface
Bhaktivedanta VedaBase