Nobel Peace Prize

The Nobel Peace Prize

The founder of the Prizes

·         In the 1890s, Swedish, Alfred Nobel (right) donated his large fortune to the Nobel Prizes.

·         He dedicated the award to ‘the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity (peace or good relationships) between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace organisations.’

An Example:

·         The UN and its Secretary- General Kofi Annan (right) were chosen ‘for their work for a better organized and peaceful world.’ They aim to achieve peace and security in the world. He ran the UN for about 10 years and he was involved in work with trying to bring peace to non-peaceful areas.

The First Peace Prize

·         Henry Dunant, founder of the Red Cross, shared the first Nobel Peace Prize in 1901 with Frederic Passy, a leading international pacifist of the time.

·         In addition to humanitarian efforts and peace movements, the Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded for work and in a wide range of fields including advocacy of human rights, mediation of international conflicts and arms control.

Number of Prizes

·         The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to 120 Laureates (winners) – 97 times to individuals and 23 times to organizations.

The gender allocation

·         Of the 97 individuals awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, 2 are women. This is mostly because during the 1900s men were given more opportunities than woman and only recently in some countries woman have been given proper rights.

Organisations 

•  Organisations can also win the award for example the Red Cross and Amnesty International.

More information can be found at http://nobelprize.org/

Refugee Information

Refugees

United Nations definition
People who:

1.       Are outside their country of nationality or their usual country of residence and

2.       Are unable or unwilling to return to that country due to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. 

Some come from Afghanistan- to escape the fanatical Taliban government. They also come from Iraq, Iran and Somalia. People want to come to Australia, to get freedom for religion and beliefs. For many once they choose to leave their country they can’t return or they will be killed.

Rules for obtaining Australian Protection Visa

Asylum seekers who:

1.       Are refugees and owed protection in Australia

2.       Entered lawfully on genuine documents

3.       Meet health and character requirements

Are allowed a protection visa (PV), allowing permanent residence.

What if you comet to Australia without applying first?

The Temporary Protection Visa (TPV)

Asylum seekers who:

1.       Are refugees and owed protection

2.       Meet health and character requirements

BUT WHO HAVE ENTERED AUSTRALIA WITHOUT PROPER DOCUMENTS are granted TPV allowing 3 years temporary residence. People enter without authorisation as it is very hard to apply and the wait is for 72 weeks in the refugee camp. The legal authorised way is so long and hopeless and their lives are in danger and so they feel they must come to Australia the illegal way. If they come to Australia the illegal way they are denied the English classes that others are given.

How do refugees get here?

Refugees with proper documents arrive by air. But others start in Jakarta, they are taken by spotters to a cafe or hotel where the deal is made and thousands of dollars are spent. Once in Kupang they hide out till the spotters transfer them to a fishing boat.  They are then people smuggles from place to place until they reach Australia. Sometimes the boats are spotted by Australian air patrol.
This process was stopped at the end of 2001 and migration laws were changed. Ashmore reef was excluded from the migration zone, meaning anyone who landed there could not apply for a visa. They are instead transferred to detention centres in various parts of Australia.

Australia’s immigration laws

Our immigration laws require that people who arrive in Australia without authority to enter must be placed in immigration detention while their reasons being in Australia are investigated.

People go through so must stress in the detention centres, not knowing when to get out or if they will be killed. Many have left to seek a better life and have seen horrific things in their old life they want to escape from. One man says ‘I am very happy here’ though he wished others could be freed.

Refugees in Australia

Refugee Activity

Australia’s Refugee Dilemma!

Imagine if....

The following is an example of an imaginary scenario that can be used to encourage students to think about what it means to be a refugee.

Imagine that your mother or father arrives home from work one day and tells you that the police are about to arrive to arrest the whole family, because of your family’s religious beliefs.  You are told to pack a small backpack and be ready in 2 minutes. A family friend drives you overland to Darwin where you climb aboard a yacht. Your parents hand over thousands of dollars in cash. Six weeks later the yacht leaves you on a Japanese beach.  Police arrive and take you to a detention centre which is prison and home to refugees like yourself from various parts of the world, all speaking different languages. Only a few other people speak English.  The guards, canteen staff, doctor etc. all speak Japanese.  Your parents tell you that they are applying for refugee status in Japan, which means you will be allowed to live in the country, go to school there and eventually get a job. 

1.     What would you pack in your backpack?I would pack 5 of my favourite books, water, food, 4 changes of clothes, pencil, rubber, paper, address book and photos of friends/family.

2.    What would you miss most if you had to leave your home, your school, Australia?I would miss my dog, my freedom, all the places I visit regularly and my friends.

3.    What would be some of the problems of living in a detention centre in a foreign country?Not knowing anyone but your family, not feeling safe, not being able to speak the language of the foreign country, not knowing when you will be free or if you will be sent back home and worrying if you and your family will be split up.

4.    What would be the biggest challenges for you if you and your family were accepted as refugees?Learning the new language, making new friends, missing home and friends and fitting into the community.

5.    Why is this ‘imagine’ story a very unlikely one?The story is very unlikely as in Australia we are very safe and we have a very stable fair government.

United Nations 10 Articles

United Nations 10 Articles

“Declaration of human rights,” There are 30 human rights to protect the dignity of humans.

The United Nations began to stop a world war occurring again.

Article 10: Everyone is entitled to a fair public hearing by an independent and a fair based court of justice.

Article 11: Right to be considered innocent until proven guilty.

Article 12: No one has the right to interfere with an individual’s privacy, family, correspondence or home. Nor to attack on the reputation and honour of another.

Article 13: Everyone has the right to travel freely.

Article 14: Everyone has the right to enjoy other countries and find peace. Right to asylum in other countries from persecution.

Article 15: Everyone has the right to a nationality and freedom to change it.

Article 16: Everyone is entitled to the right to marry who they want and marriage shall be entered only with true thoughts from both partners.

Article 17: Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others and no one shall be deprived of their property.

Article 18: Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, and to change their belief or religion at any time.

Article 19. Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

Village Space Presentation - Climate Change

Climate Change Science

·         What was the issue about?

There are 4 main feedbacks for this issue:
1. The ice is melting in the arctic which is causing sea levels to rise.

2. There is too much carbon in the atmosphere for trees to absorb.

3. Permafrost around Russia and Canada which means all the ice and tundra is melting.

4. The ice is also melting in West Antarctica and Iceland

As a result of these feedbacks the ice sea levels are rising which could soon put small islands under water.

·         What is causing the issue?There is becoming a 2-3 degree rise in the earth’s temperature which causes the ice to melt resulting in the sea levels rising. This is all occurring due to too much carbon dioxide being pumped into the air from things such as cars and factories.

·         Who is affected?

o   People living in places where land is low or on small islands

o   Us, because the price for food will increase due to the extreme climate in the world and the earth’s temperature rise.

·         What can be done?

o   save the use of energy

o   reduce carbon emissions

o   try not to travel so often and use public transport more

o   use environmentally friendly products such as eco bags and solar panels

o   ‘recycle, reuse and reduce’ – e.g. plastics

The United Nations

United Nations, the Declaration of Human Rights

Human Rights

Necessity that all people should have access to:

·        Fair pay

·        Food

·        Water

·        Shelter

What are human Rights?

Human Rights are the rights and freedoms we all should have.

·        Some human rights are based on our physical needs.

o   The right to live. To food. To shelter.

·        Other human rights protect us.

o   The right to be free from torture, cruel treatment and abuse.

·        Human rights are also there to ensure we develop to our fullest potential.

o   The right to education. To work. To participate in your community.

Everybody deserves human rights no matter of their race, nationality, language or religion. You have the duty to respect the rights of others, just as they have the duty to respect yours. Nobody can take your rights away.

Why do Human Rights Matter to Me?

In the UK:

·        One Child in 3 is poor

·        One child in 4 is physically abused

·        One child in 7 does not have a proper home

It is vital that all young people know their rights!

Where do Rights Come From?

Human Rights are based on the values of:

·        Dignity – self respect

·        Justice – fairness/legal system

·        Respect – for others and their differences

·        Equality – equal treatment/justice

Human rights were officially recognised as values by the world when the United Nations was set up.

What is the United Nations?

·        The United Nations (UN) is an international organisation that was established in 1945, the year the Second World War ended.

·        Its founders hoped it would be able to prevent catastrophes like the Holocaust from happening in the future.

·        So promoting human rights become and aim of the UN, along with maintaining international peace and reducing poverty.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is the most famous human rights agreement in the world. It contains 30 human rights.

According to the UDHR you have the rights to:

Who Wrote the UDHR?

The writers of the UDHR came from Australia, Chile, China, France, Lebanon, the former Soviet Union, the UK and the US.

The Power of One

The Power of One

Brief Summary of the movie:

The movie is about the incredible, moving story about a young boy, PK, who endured hardship and much adversity in order to do what he thought was right. The movie is set in South Africa, between the 1930s to 1950s, a time when black people and white people were treated differently and not as equals. PK goes through much adversity, losing his mother, going to boarding school and being harshly mistreated for being English, going to prison with a friend as the friend did not sign up as a soldier in the war, losing a good friend and teacher, losing a lover for trying to make things right, having his refuge because he ‘mixed’ with other races and losing many of his great friends and acquaintances along the way. PK did not believe there was a difference between blacks and whites and he spent most of his time with the good natured native, dark skinned South Africans.  The movie explores the themes of racism, self realisation, oppression, power and leadership and can be quite confronting and moving to the audience.

So many terrible things that happened to the main character, PK, it made me realise that problems in my life which seem huge and are actually tiny compared to what some people have been through or are going through. One of the interesting scenes was when PK was trying to teach the black people English, it started off well until the German soldiers found out and came into the school and confronted one of the teachers, ordering the school to stop letting these lessons run. The teachers and  scholars had no power over the soldiers, no one did, whatever the soldiers demanded they got, no matter how wrong or cruel.