Culture Class

Bedoun in Kuwait

"Bedoun From Wikipedia, Bedoun ( ‎, sometimes bedoon, bidūn, bidoun) are stateless persons, from the Arabic bidūn jinsiyya (Arabic: بدون جنسية‎, without nationality).[1] The term is used mostly in Kuwait, where the large bedoun population has been a continuing problem,[2] and Bahrain. Although most of the bedoun are Bedouin, the two terms have different meanings. Contents Biduns may be people who did not fill in proper citizenship paperwork (perhaps due to illiteracy, xenophobia or ignorance) prior to 1920, have illegally entered these nations to avoid poverty or war, or those who have settled in Kuwait since 1920 but who have not been recognized by the state. In the 1920s there were no border control between neighboring countries, other people from other countries resided in Kuwait and want a Kuwaiti citizenship. They are not afforded the rights of a full citizen of the country and cannot vote. The children of bidun fathers are themselves considered bidun. Many of the bedoun in Kuwait, although they may have Bedoin roots, have been urbanized for several generations. A large portion of the Kuwait bedoun were born there, but are not deemed to be authorized citizenship under Kuwaiti law.[3] Some of these are bedoun simply because their male ancestor failed to file for citizenship in 1960 during the relatively brief time-window[5] as Kuwait achieved independence. Given that bedoun are a significant part of the population of Kuwait, the issues of their civil, legal and social rights cause constant stress.[2] Before 1990, the majority of bidun were Bedouin settlers from the northern Arabian Peninsula. Following the invasion by Iraqi forces into Kuwait, a third of the 300,000 bidun living in Kuwait before the invasion either fled to Iraq or produce proofs showing their citizenships (mostly Saudi or Syrian). Many Bidun succumbed to the Government's pressure and produce mostly faked passports from other nations to allow them to get a job or simply reside in the county. In the last few years, many Kuwaiti citizens and international organisations criticized Kuwait for its handling of the Bidun issue. Most of the Bidun people are not allowed to work or obtain a drivers license, nor are they allowed to travel as they lack any travel documents. Despite the Government's claims of trying to solve this issue, it has mostly ignored all calls to put an end to the suffering of these people. It granted citizenships to less than 2000 bidun families and failed to ease the restrictions on basic human rights imposed on more than 90,000 persons. In 2011, Kuwaiti courts ruled for the first time that bedoun are allowed to be issued certificates of birth, marriage and death.[6] Prior to that time bedoun were impeded in seeking education and employment by the lack of such documentation.[7] In 1980s, the Kuwaiti government did issue some administrative documents to bedoun, but the recipients had to identify themselves as illegal residents who claimed to have Kuwaiti relatives. [edit]Number of bidoon Although the exact number of bedoun residents was unknown, the Ministry of Planning[where?] estimated there were more than 100,000 bedoun in the country[where?] at the end of 2006. The government continues to discriminate against the bedoun in areas such as education, employment, medical care, and freedom of movement. Bedoun children may not attend public schools. Although the government accepted bedoun in an increasing number of government positions, it barred bedoun from enlisting in the armed forces. Bedoun generally did not qualify for the subsidized health care that citizens received, and the government also made it difficult for them to obtain official documents necessary for employment or travel, such as birth certificates, civil identification cards, driving licenses, and marriage certificates. On February 18th 2011, emboldened by popular uprisings across the Arab world, hundreds of stateless residents in the province of Al-Jahra took to the streets to demand their rights. They clashed with security forces. Human Rights Watch reported that 120 demonstrators were arrested and approximately 30 others requiring medical treatment." Bedouns are people they don't have any nationality and they were live in Kuwait for long time. In the past bedouns had free education and health care but now they dont have it,and they need to pay to private school and hospital .some of them are Kuwaiti but they don't have any paperwork to inprove they are Kuwaiti. It is big problem for Bedouns they were live in this country for long time and the couldn't leave this country because they don't have a passport to go somewhere.Now the government try to fix this problem to give them free education , health care and passport but still they are not Kuwaiti .

Indigenous groups in Ecuador

There’s around 55 indigenous groups nowadays in Ecuador or in other words is a plurinational country and they are control and represent by the CONAIE (Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador) and it was establish by the followings demands to the government:

▪ “A public declaration that Ecuador is a plurinational country (to be ratified by the constitution)

▪ The government must grant lands and titles to lands to the nationalities.

▪ Solutions to water and irrigation needs

▪ Absolution of indigenous debts to FODERUMA and the National Development Bank

▪ Freezing of consumer prices

▪ Conclusion of priority projects in Indian communities

▪ Nonpayment of rural land taxes

▪ Expulsion of the Summer Institute of Linguistics

▪ Free commercial handicraft activities

▪ CONAIE protection of archaeological sites

▪ Officialization of Indian medicine

▪ Cancellation of government decree that created parallel land-reform granting bodies

▪ The government should immediately grant funds to the nationalities

▪ The government should grant funds for bilingual education

▪ Respect for the rights of the child

▪ The fixing of fair prices for products”[1]

These are some of the examples how there are treated in my country that somehow is very similar to Native Americans.

The Natives from my country have a lot of political power and influence over national issues that affect all the country and they tried to get benefits only for them, they expect benefits from the government without reason only because they are indigenous groups, they are really different from the Native Americans because the Native Americans have suffered a lot of things but the natives from my country expect to have different laws and benefits from the state.

To be part of a native group of my country one of the requirements is to be son or daughter of one native at least and work for the community.

Here are some examples of native groups in Ecuador:

Valdivia

Tsachila

Shuar

Saraguros

Otavalos

[1] Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved September 19, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confederation_of_Indigenous_Nationalities_of_Ecuador

Wenchuan earthquake

At four seconds, twenty-eight minutes, two pm, May 12th, 2008, a big earthquake happened in Wenchuan City, Sichuang Province, China.
According to the government, sixty-nine thousand two hundred and twenty-seven people died, three hundred and seventy-four thousand and six hundred and forty-three people were hurt. Also, seventeen thousand and nine hundred and twenty-three people were missing. The earthquake left about four point eight million people homeless, though the number could be as high as eleven million. Approximately fifteen million people lived in the affected area. It was the deadliest earthquake to hit China since the 1976 Tangshan earthquake, which killed at least 240,000 people, and the strongest since the 1950 Chayu earthquake in the country, which registered at 8.5.

After the location of the earthquake's epicenter, Wenchuan City in Sichuan province. The epicenter was 80 kilometres, west north-east of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, with a focal depth of 19 kilometres.
Strong aftershocks, some exceeding magnitude 6, continued to hit the area even months after the main quake, causing new casualties and damage.
On November 6, 2008, the Chinese government announced that they will spend 1 trillion yuan over the next three years to rebuild areas ravaged by the earthquake. 

A lot of people from China went to help the people in Wenchuan, also, people from the world came to China to help the people in Wenchuan.

Tacoa... hell on earth for one day

It was on the morning of december 19 of 1982, three workers were transferring fuel from the boat to the tank #8 from Tacoa generating plant. Two of them climbed to the top of the tank to check the fuel level when suddenly it explode. The tank was only 1/3 full with 3.5millions of gallons of heavy oil. The gases inside the tank burt in flames. The two workers where gone forever.

The third one drove for help, injured as he was. When the firefighters arrived they figured out the reach the flames inside the tank was difficult because it was located on a hill 150feets above the ground, the intense heat and smoke were making difficult to reach the flames, and the water and foam on the trucks weren't enough. Instead they decided to look for tank #9 and avoid it going into flames.

Couple hours later the reporters were saying that the flames were under control, the people that had approached to see the event didn't know what was about to come.

The tank #9 suddenly explode creating a ball of flaming oil, that went as far as 1500 feet into the air. After this, the heal was unleashed, a rain of burning oil start falling in all directions. The people couldn't do nothing. Some of them died instantly, others died trying to help others.

At the end more than 150 people died, some of them never were identified; there were more than 300 injured and more than 20$ millions in losses.

Two mysteries are about this accident, one is what started the flames at the tank #8?, and second how the explosion or boil over occurred?. These are questions that today, almost thirty years later, still being a mystery.

If you want to know more about Tacoa's tragedy you can look at the next links:

http://www.fireworld.com/ifw_articles/boilover_0409.php

http://www.urv.cat/catedres/enresa/en_historic_catastrofics.html#tacoa

if you want to know more about what is a boil over, check this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boilover

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StKvP01MtBE

Polish indigenous.

The Gorale, the oldest Polish tribes First of all, I would like to show the following list of Polish tribes(Wikipedia)—tribes which created the lands of Poland in the Early Middle Ages, at the start of the Polish country.

§ Masovians (Masovia, in Polish "mazowszanie") § Mazurs (Mazurians) (Masuria, in Polish "mazurzy") § Kurpie (in Polish "kurpiowie" or "kurpie") § Polans (Polanes, Polanians, in Polish "polanie") (Warta river basin) § Bambrzy § Silesians (in Polish "ślązacy") (Silesia) § Warmiaks (Warmia, in Polish "warmiacy") § Pomeranians (Farther Pomerania and Pomerelia, in Polish "pomorzanie") § Kashubians (Cassubians, in Polish "kaszubi") § Slovincians (in Polish "Słowińcy") § Kociewiacy § Borowiacy § Bieżuńczanie

§ Bobrzanie § Dziadoszanie § Golęszyce § Goplans (Kuyavia and Pomerania, in Polish "goplanie", or "goplani") § Lędzianie (Lesser Poland, in Polish "lędzianie") § Lachy Sądeckie § Opolanie (upper Odra, Silesia) § Kujawianie § Pyrzyczanie § Ślężanie (Lower Silesia) § Trzebowianie § Vistulans (Lesser Poland, in Polish "wiślanie") § Gorale (in Polish "górale", i.e. highlanders) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poles)

The Gorale (literally "highlanders") are a group of indigenous people found along southern Poland, northern Slovakia, and in the region of Cieszyn Silesia in the Czech Republic. There is also a important Goral migration in the area of Bukowina in the western Ukraine and in northern Romania, as well as Chicago, the seat of the “Polish Highlanders Alliance” of North America.

The Gorale are famous all over the country and abroad, because of their unique culture, food, tradition, language and outfits. The Gorale don’t live in the big cities and they are attached to their lands and you cannot find them anywhere else but in the Polish mountains. They are a big attraction for tourists, who are pleased with the fact they can live on their lands to enjoy this amazing culture.