When we think about diseases around the world, we usually imagine viruses like HIV, which kills upwards of one million people worldwide, or malaria, with a death rate of a similar scale. Yet, Switzerland does not necessarily suffer from viruses as much as other countries around the world, even when including swine or bird flu. So, what serious common diseases in Switzerland exist? Well, arguably, none.
If one looks at the common diseases in Switzerland according to government statistics, all diseases are non-transmittable, many of them chronic. In 2012, about 13% of the population have suffered from hypertension (high blood pressure), 7.3% have suffered from Rheumatoid arthritis, and about 3.2% have diabetes.
Every single one of these diseases is chronic, meaning that they kill over a long period of time. Note that the U.S. shows a significantly higher number for hypertension: 32% of the U.S. population suffers from hypertension. So, what common diseases in Switzerland are there that are not chronic or age-related?
The most worrisome diseases in Switzerland turn out to be transmitted through tick bites. Because the Swiss have a wide variety of outdoor activities to choose from, which are spread across the country, the chances of getting a tick bite are relatively high. Approx. 10,000 people are bitten by ticks yearly. These ticks can transmit two particularly dangerous diseases: Lyme disease and tick-borne Encephalitis.
Lyme disease will cause fevers, headaches and severe fatigue in the first month of transmission, for which people sometimes have to quit their jobs or leave school for recovery. What’s worse is that months later, the disease still affects the infected person with more fevers and more fatigue.
Just like Lyme disease, tick-borne Encephalitis also causes fatigue, additionally to muscle pains. Although two-thirds of patients recover with no further issues, one-third goes on to develop Encephalitis, Myelitis or Meningitis. All of these are serious conditions that affect the nervous system.
However, most Swiss are prepared for tick-bites. Every year, the most read newspaper in Switzerland, called 20 Minuten, announces tick season and educates the public on how to avoid tick bites. There exists a vaccine for encephalitis, which people use to protect against one disease, while no vaccine exists for Lyme.
Additionally, only 1.4% of ticks can actually transmit Lyme disease, making the actual transmission rate low. Nevertheless, it infuses an element of fear into the population. A vaccine for Lyme disease is currently going into clinical trials, which, if passed, will eradicate the problem entirely.
– Michal Burgunder
Photo: Pixabay
Initiatives on Water Quality in Portugal
With the passage of the European Drinking Water Directive 98/83/CE by the European Commission (E.C.) in 1998, Portugal has aimed to make 99% of its drinking water safe for human consumption. This has been done in order to protect human health from the adverse effects of water contamination as originally envisioned by the Directive.
It may seem like an ambitious plan, but water quality in Portugal has seen steady improvements. Prior to the directive, drinking water regulations in Portugal were controlled with laws that also governed the usage of both urban water and industrial water.
Today, a so-called “integrated risk analysis” approach is utilized to control the levels of pesticide in tap water, taking into account variables such as agricultural practices and type of water source that affect the presence of pesticides in drinking water.
Non-compliance with drinking water quality in Portugal is corrected by requiring the drinking water suppliers to not only register the causes for the possible health risks but also incorporate remedial actions with verification analyses.
This way, the Water and Waste Services Regulation Authority, known as ERSAR, and pertinent health authorities can apparently evaluate the water with greater immediacy. ERSAR was created in 1990 as a national regulatory agency to monitor water efficiency and ensure compliance.
However, this aim to make drinking water completely safe has not been dutifully followed in the past. Portugal initially failed to follow some of the parameters of the Directive in managing urban wastewater in 2007, forcing the E.C. to refer Portugal to the European Court of Justice (ECJ).
As an example, the E.C. noted that although Portugal had taken some steps to improve water treatment plants, almost 50% of water supply zones did not comply with the limits on total coliforms, while 20% of the zones did not comply with the fecal coliforms parameter.
Portugal’s water sources mainly include the rivers of Tagus, Douro, Guadiana and Minho. More than half of these water sources have significant levels of pollution.
In 2015, the director of ERSAR’s water quality department referred to the annual Quality Control of Water for Human Consumption report, stating that “we continue to be able to drink tap water in Portugal without worry and, despite already being close to perfection, the safe water percentage continues to rise, from 98.2% in 2013 to 98.4% in 2014.”
In the 1990s, Portugal could only guarantee about 50% of its water to be safe for human consumption. Even that came at a great disparity between rural and urban areas.
According to a report by European Environmental Agency in 2013, Portugal was one of the eight European countries listed as having an “excellent” water quality with 87% of the country’s bathing waters meeting environmental standards.
Luís Simas, the head of Drinking Water Quality Department at ERSAR summarized in a Regulatory Model Report that ensuring good water quality in Portugal in the future can be accomplished through “the national implementation of the water safety planning approach and the application of a certification scheme for all products in contact with drinking water.”
– Mohammed Khalid
Photo: Flickr
Addressing the Risk of Common Diseases in Iran
Iran, one of the largest countries in the Middle East, has a population of just more than 82 million. Although 92% of the population has access to clean drinking water and 90% of the population has access to sanitation facilities, Iran suffers from a number of common and prevalent diseases. Common diseases in Iran are transmitted through mosquitos or contaminated food or water.
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever is the most widespread tick-borne viral disease of humans throughout the world, according to research done at the University of Texas Medical Branch. The first case of a human diagnosis was discovered in 1999. Since then it has been classified as a “viral zoonotic disease” which is endemic in Iran. Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever can be transmitted through the bite of a tick or contact with infected animal blood or tissues.
The disease is most commonly found among agricultural and slaughterhouse workers. Early-onset symptoms can include sudden fever, headache and muscle aches. As the disease progresses patients display hemorrhaging in the bowels, urine, nose and gums. The mortality rate for Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever is approximately 30 percent.
Typhoid fever
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 26 million cases of typhoid fever are reported annually worldwide. Human contact is the sole source of the infectious bacteria, transmitting the disease through contact with fecal matter through the consumption of contaminated food or water. The most common symptom is a sustained high fever, and if untreated, the mortality rate can be 20%. Typhoid fever has caused major public health problems over the course of the last five decades in Iran. Luckily, as a result of development throughout the country, the number of cases has drastically declined.
Tuberculosis
In 2015, the World Health Organization estimated there had been 13,000 cases of tuberculosis throughout Iran. The tuberculosis-specific bacteria most commonly affect the lungs but are known to spread throughout the body to areas such as the kidneys, spine and brain. The disease is spread through air contact with an infected individual. People near the infected person may breathe in the bacteria and become infected. Often the bacteria will lay dormant, not showing any signs or symptoms within the infected person but will still be able to spread to those around them.
Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends being vaccinated for hepatitis A and hepatitis B before traveling to the Middle East, due to it being one of the most common diseases in Iran. Hepatitis A, a liver disease, spread by consuming contaminated food or water, can cause fever, tiredness, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and yellowing of the eyes. Hepatitis B is a contagious virus, transmitted through blood and other bodily fluids. Similar symptoms are seen as with hepatitis A.
In research conducted in 2009, in mid-endemic areas, such as Iran, the lifetime risk of hepatitis B infection is 20-60% across all age-groups. A vaccine was introduced in Iran through a National Immunization Program in 1993, required for all individuals under 18 years old. Despite efforts, hepatitis A and hepatitis B remain common diseases in Iran.
Iran’s population is categorized in the CIA World Factbook of having an “intermediate risk” of contracting an infectious disease. With focused programs from government and international organizations, some of this risk can be mitigated and the population can move toward universal prosperity.
– Riley Bunch
Photo: Flickr
The Causes of Rural Poverty in Albania
Southeastern Europe is one of the most beautiful regions in the world. Being a region that has vast amounts of untouched nature, beautiful views and fantastic hiking trails are commonplace in this region. This region is where the small republic of Albania resides.
Although the nation is known as one of the poorest countries in Europe, even more worrisome is that Albania has a huge issue with poverty in some of its rural districts.
This article’s purpose is to indicate some of the causes of poverty in rural Albania and what is currently being done by the government and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to deal with this issue.
Moving From A Controlled Economy To A Free Market
One of the causes of rural poverty in Albania stems from its transition from a controlled economy to a free market. This shift took place after gaining independence from the Ottoman empire in 1912. The effects of this change have mostly been felt by the country’s most impoverished people.
Even though the country’s economy has seen massive growth in the past two decades, about 7.5% of the citizens in Albania live under conditions of extreme poverty. The poorest in Albania tend to live in the most rural of regions, particularly the mountainous areas of the country which are almost impossible to grow food in. The lack of an ability to grow food is one of the causes of poverty in rural Albania.
Farming is one of the primary sources of income for this group of people and due to the cities being much more expensive to live in for citizens without a high skill occupation, many have to make ends meet by farming in mountains where small amounts of crops can get yielded from the soil. These two issues in tandem contribute to 19% of children having their growth stunted and 7% of the infants being born with a low birth weight in the country. Thus, citizens having a difficult time attaining a job and children dealing with malnutrition both contribute to the causes of rural poverty in Albania.
Scarcity Of Market Information
Another factor contributing to the causes of rural poverty in Albania relates back to the lack of market information for the farmers in the country’s rural regions. Albania struggles with having a strong enough government to ensure food-handling hygiene and safety standards for the food it produces. This fact makes citizens of the country hesitate from buying food from unregulated farmers in the mountains and only buying food from government-backed companies.
Recently, farmers in the region have asserted that the government should re-establish control of the food distribution, allowing their products to get reintroduced to the market. However, this is a solution that is not possible due to the mass amounts of the public being against the re-establishment of communism into the country.
The Solution
As outlined by the two above problems, the causes of rural poverty in Albania are mainly economic. If the citizens living in rural regions obtained access to better sections of land to grow crops on and understood the implications of trying to compete with established companies, they would have a fighting chance in the emerging Albanian economy.
Thus, the solution to this issue is having the farmers understand the benefits of collaboration and create avenues for small family farms to partner up to create larger organizations, which would have the ability to compete with the established companies and gain a reputation for being compliant with government regulations. Once the rural, family-owned farms joined to create a larger organization, they would have the economic ability to buy high-quality plots of land to grow their food.
The economy of Albania has been on the rise ever since the country gained its independence, even though it still struggles with poverty in its most rural areas. Although the public understands the causes of poverty in rural Albania, the solutions above need to be implemented to allow real change to occur in the region. Once farmers know that partnering up will benefit them, they will have a real shot at competing with the established companies in the area and would thus gain a good reputation for their products. These factors in tandem would allow for the rural regions of Albania to escape the cycle of poverty and catch up with the rest of the country’s economy.
– Nick Beauchamp
Photo: Flickr
Water Quality In Belgium Key to Prosperity
A key indicator of the economic prosperity of a nation is the water quality. In first world countries such as the U.S., Canada and most of Western Europe, citizens can drink tap water without any concerns about getting a water-borne illness. One must contrast this to many developing nations where drinking water from their water systems without purification first could potentially be fatal.
Originally a part of the Netherlands, Belgium gained its independence in 1830. Currently, Belgium is a federal constitutional monarchy, which also utilizes a parliamentary system to deal with the day-to-day legislation of running the country. Due to its parliamentary system allowing citizens to have input in what the government does, the water quality in Belgium is very high compared to even first world countries such as the U.S.
A majority of the 589 municipalities in Belgium have programs in place run by their local governance responsible for maintaining the water supply and water quality. Also, Belgium has more than 62 water supply utilities throughout the country.
On top of this, Belgium also has 100 small municipalities that are privately owned that help improve the water supply. This combination of private and public water sanitation allows for the free market to help lower prices for clean water without forgoing having a governmental backup in case the free market fails. All three of these programs is one reason for the high water quality in Belgium.
Although the water quality in Belgium is high enough for its citizens to drink tap water without any ill health effects, the wastewater treatment in the country has lagged behind. In fact, wastewater sanitation did not start to get addressed within the country until 2007 after the European Court of Justice forced the Belgian government to make changes in 2004.
Wallonia, a region of Belgium, supplies 55% of the national need for water while it only contains 37% of the countries population. This fact becomes an issue due to the fact that Flanders and Brussels both rely on water from Wallonia. Flanders and Brussels rely on receiving clean water from Wallonia, 40%, and 98%, respectively.
Although there are present issues with wastewater sanitation in the country, the Belgian government has made strides in the past decade in improving its water supply after the court ruling in 2004.
The high water quality in Belgium is one reason why living in the nation is so desirable. One other reason is that the Belgian sanitation departments in the Belgian government recognize the importance of the fundamental right to water.
To help all citizens be able to achieve access to clean water, the Walloon and Brussels regions have set up a program to provide economic support for individuals who have trouble obtaining drinking water. This fund is called The Social Funds for Water, and through this organization, citizens in those regions of Belgium have had their access to water increase dramatically. In addition to this program, every citizen in Flanders has the right to a supply of 15 cubic meters of water per person per year in the country.
The high water quality in Belgium is something the international community should applaud. Every citizen has a right to access clean water, and both the private and public sectors strive to make sure this can happen. Although the country has issues with wastewater sanitation, great strides have been made to improve the water sanitation systems in the country better since the court ruling in 2004. The water quality in Belgium is something all nations strive to achieve, not only due to its quality but because every citizen has the right to drink clean water.
– Nick Beauchamp
Photo: Flickr
Organizations That Are Investing in Women
Investing in women can cause multiple benefits for the economy, food security and healthcare. There are many organizations that have programs for women’s education and there are some that solely concentrate on getting women access to what they need. Two organizations that are dedicated to women are Womensphere and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF). By supporting and helping women around the world, these organizations are creating growth in developing countries.
Womensphere was founded in 2007 by Analisa Balares, who is currently the chief executive. Balares started Womensphere with the goal of unleashing women’s potential to lead and transform the world. Womensphere does this by investing in programs that educate or help develop women and girls, mobilizing others to do the same and hosting its own conventions where women can collaborate and share their skills.
Womensphere is investing in women by hosting conventions that allow women to share their accomplishments. One of these conventions is an award ceremony for different organizations that are making a difference for female activism. One award recipient, Nicole Schwab, received the Luminary Award for her Gender Equality Project. This project is working to close the global gender gap by developing a global standard assessment for companies that is non-gender based. This allows women to be included more and have opportunities at higher positions. So far the project tested its idea on seven companies and five countries and hope to use this assessment framework for companies globally. Womensphere also funds and develops different leadership projects that advance women as public, societal, or entrepreneurial leaders.
WILPF was established in 1915 that is dedicated to bringing women around the world together to end violence for peaceful political, societal, and economic climates for all. WILPF four main programs as of this year are disarmament, human rights, women, peace and security and lastly crisis program. All of these programs unite women around the world to solve common problems that are happening in multiple areas. To achieve this WILPF creates awareness on issues like women’s rights as well as financing initiatives that advocate against violence.
The Disarmament Program started in 1915 when the organization was established. In 1999, the Crisis Program was developed to coincide with it. These projects are decreasing violence that directly affects women and children. The programs do this through monitoring, advocacy and reporting military spending. These programs also work to control and decrease various weapon systems to disallow any unnecessary violence.
Both of these organizations see the importance of empowering women and are dedicated to bringing women together. According to the Global Citizen, there are plenty of reasons why supporting women has a positive impact on society. One of these reasons is that women can change the global economy. Studies show that 90% of what women earn goes back to their families. The more women work, the more they spend on their children’s needs, food and healthcare. Education and awareness of childbirth and sex can cause lower maternal deaths of young children and decrease the number of teen pregnancies.
There are many benefits to investing in women and Womensphere and WILPF are just two organizations that are helping empower women and giving women more opportunities.
– Deanna Wetmore
Chronic Conditions Most Common Diseases in Switzerland
When we think about diseases around the world, we usually imagine viruses like HIV, which kills upwards of one million people worldwide, or malaria, with a death rate of a similar scale. Yet, Switzerland does not necessarily suffer from viruses as much as other countries around the world, even when including swine or bird flu. So, what serious common diseases in Switzerland exist? Well, arguably, none.
If one looks at the common diseases in Switzerland according to government statistics, all diseases are non-transmittable, many of them chronic. In 2012, about 13% of the population have suffered from hypertension (high blood pressure), 7.3% have suffered from Rheumatoid arthritis, and about 3.2% have diabetes.
Every single one of these diseases is chronic, meaning that they kill over a long period of time. Note that the U.S. shows a significantly higher number for hypertension: 32% of the U.S. population suffers from hypertension. So, what common diseases in Switzerland are there that are not chronic or age-related?
The most worrisome diseases in Switzerland turn out to be transmitted through tick bites. Because the Swiss have a wide variety of outdoor activities to choose from, which are spread across the country, the chances of getting a tick bite are relatively high. Approx. 10,000 people are bitten by ticks yearly. These ticks can transmit two particularly dangerous diseases: Lyme disease and tick-borne Encephalitis.
Lyme disease will cause fevers, headaches and severe fatigue in the first month of transmission, for which people sometimes have to quit their jobs or leave school for recovery. What’s worse is that months later, the disease still affects the infected person with more fevers and more fatigue.
Just like Lyme disease, tick-borne Encephalitis also causes fatigue, additionally to muscle pains. Although two-thirds of patients recover with no further issues, one-third goes on to develop Encephalitis, Myelitis or Meningitis. All of these are serious conditions that affect the nervous system.
However, most Swiss are prepared for tick-bites. Every year, the most read newspaper in Switzerland, called 20 Minuten, announces tick season and educates the public on how to avoid tick bites. There exists a vaccine for encephalitis, which people use to protect against one disease, while no vaccine exists for Lyme.
Additionally, only 1.4% of ticks can actually transmit Lyme disease, making the actual transmission rate low. Nevertheless, it infuses an element of fear into the population. A vaccine for Lyme disease is currently going into clinical trials, which, if passed, will eradicate the problem entirely.
– Michal Burgunder
Photo: Pixabay
How to Help People in Mexico
When people think about the country of Mexico, people reflect on some of its cultural features. These include the country’s food, music and clothing style. What people do not know about Mexico is that between the years of 2012 and 2014, the number of individuals living in conditions of poverty has increased by two million.
With this fact in mind, many people ask how to help people in Mexico. Due to the Mexican government spending many of its resources fighting the growing problem of cartels within its borders in conjunction with helping grow its economy, private solutions to poverty in Mexico appear to be much more adequate solutions to this issue.
This article highlights some NGOs that address the problem of how to help people in Mexico. Below are two NGOs that are currently doing this.
Children International
Drug violence and drug trafficking has transformed the cities of Mexico — essentially into war zones — and has taken hold of every section of the country’s state and national politics. The people most affected by the influence of the cartels in Mexico are the nation’s child populations. The NGO, Children International, is helping people in Mexico by focusing on the child populations living in the country’s cities.
Children International is helping people in Mexico by creating community centers that act as safe havens for the kids residing in this region. These centers contain books and computers for educational purposes, and toys to keep them entertained. On top of this, these centers also serve as a hub for child program activities that teach kids they can have a better life, and how to achieve that life.
One way to begin helping people in Mexico is to either donate to this NGO or to do volunteer work with their organization. Although volunteering is the most effective way of helping these people, any donation made makes a great difference.
Freedom From Hunger
Freedom From Hunger is an NGO that is helping people in Mexico by creating programs that aim to reduce the country’s food insecurity issue. Food insecurity gets defined as the inability to meet one’s basic nutritional needs for some or all of the year. On top of having 53% of the country living in poverty, and having 24% of the population living in extreme poverty, many people outside of these two groups struggle with food insecurity.
Freedom From Hunger is partnering up with local organizations in Mexico’s major cities and food banks. This partnership is being done to reach out to the needy in the country and give them access to a better food supply.
On top of this, Freedom From Hunger is helping people in Mexico by creating savings and loan programs for the people living under conditions of poverty. Although the incomes of these groups may be low, the issue of poverty only gets exacerbated when families fall further into debt or make poor financial decisions with what little money they do have.
Between helping the poor in Mexico deal with food insecurity and their economic issues, Freedom From Hunger is making great strides in fighting poverty in Mexico. In their first year, they reached out to 14,000 people in villages and cities where these services are needed. To support this group, and to begin helping the people in Mexico, volunteering one’s time or donating is a great way to start.
Private institutions are not always as efficient at making the substantive change needed to begin eliminating poverty, and at the current moment, the Mexican government is unable to make real change for its people dealing with poverty. With time and commitment, these organizations offer solutions for how to help people in Mexico and can continue to make the change needed in the country.
– Nick Beauchamp
Photo: Flickr
Agricultural Solutions to Poverty in Moldova
Over the past decade, Moldova had remarkable progress in the form of economic growth, the reduction of poverty and greater shared prosperity. However, poverty in Moldova is at one of the highest rates in Europe.
The World Bank reports that Moldova’s economy had rapid growth over the past decade, with an average growth rate of 5% per year. In addition, the poverty rate dropped from 60% to 27% between 2000 and 2004 and reached 11.4% in 2014. While impressive, these data points fail to demonstrate the instability caused by the very factors that spawned this progress.
Economic growth was largely driven by an increase in private consumption. However, this does not necessarily signal that Moldova’s economic situation improved, as this growth is primarily funded by remittances. In 2014 remittances accounted for 26 percent of Moldova’s GDP and were received by more than 25% of households. The decline in employment from 55% in 2000 to 40% in 2014 further demonstrates that while Moldovans may have more money and are actively participating in the economy, the past decade’s growth was not spurred by internal progress.
Any steps taken to create such progress face significant obstacles due to spatial and cross-group inequalities as access to assets, services and economic opportunities varies greatly across the population. The lack of progress toward expanding economic opportunities within Moldova pushed many to leave the country. The lack of employment opportunities was particularly damaging to rural areas, where the slow-growing farming industry remains the primary sector. Limited access to markets and non-farm jobs fostered a system where residents of rural areas are persistently poorer.
Declining fertility and the increasing emigration of the young population left the state with a rapidly aging population and a shrinking workforce. This means that pensions, which were a significant generator of income growth over the past decade, are no longer a viable tool for lifting households from poverty.
Rural areas are home to most of the poorest 40% of Moldova’s population. Residents of these areas have significantly less education and typically have inadequate access to healthcare. Even when health services are physically accessible, many lack insurance and either refuse to pay for care or are driven further into poverty in Moldova by high out-of-pocket costs.
Many believe that the 2014 association agreement with the European Union, which opened up trade opportunities, will stimulate Moldova’s domestic economy in preparation for greater dependency on exports. However, this fails to account for the significance of Moldova’s small scale farming sector which, by design, does not have access to the same opportunities as industrial farms.
Recommendations for leveling these inequalities and avoiding economic stagnation include strengthening the domestic labor market, addressing corruption in the business environment and improving the government’s social assistance scheme. Perhaps most important is the advice of Alex Kremer, World Bank Country Manager for Moldova, who urges that “enhancing the livelihoods of small farmers is paramount” for Moldova to foster internal economic progress.
Given the persistent spatial inequalities in living conditions and the fact that agriculture accounts for such a large portion of employment, it is important to note that the causes of poverty in Moldova remain much the same as they were a decade ago. To eradicate them once and for all, Moldova must invest in its human capital by improving living conditions across the rural-urban divide and foster quality education and healthcare services.
– Alena Zafonte
Photo: Flickr
Achieving Sustainable Peace After Colombia’s Class War
In 2016, Senators Ben Cardin, Bob Corker and 14 co-sponsoring senators of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed a resolution to help Colombia end its armed conflict of about 50 years. The violence of Colombia’s class war between the rebel militias Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN) and right-wing paramilitaries has resulted in the displacement of three million people and the harming of more than eight million people.
The resolution reaffirms its commitment to the continued partnership between the United States and Colombia on issues of mutual security. These include counternarcotics cooperation, combating transnational organized crime and ensuring justice for those who caused indelible harm to our populations. In addition, it commands effort to end Colombia’s armed conflict and encourages informed public debate about the details of potential peace in advance of voter verification.
After deliberation, the United States Agency for International Development commenced the resolution called Justice for a Sustainable Peace (JSP). Responding to Colombia’s class war, JSP is a four-year commitment to expand Colombia’s justice institutions in order to serve justice at the local level. Therefore, it strengthens local civil society organizations that will increase citizen participation and support. The resolution is implemented in 45 municipalities in Cauca, Choco, Narino, Norte de Santander and Putumayo.
USAID explains that JSP promotes the rule of law in targeted areas by:
Rebels and the government have been speaking on many topics, such as rural development, guaranteeing the exercise of political opposition and citizen participation, the end of armed conflict, drug trafficking and the rights of the conflict victims. Amplified communication between the people of Colombia and their government will surely produce mutuality. The methods of JSP will allow the resolution of abuses caused by Colombia’s class war and unify the people.
– Tiffany Santos
Photo: Flickr
Historic Abuses of Human Rights in Chile
During the period of 1973 to 1990, Chile was occupied by a military rule under Augusto Pinochet. In these two decades, General Manuel Contreras, who commanded Pinochet’s secret police, was responsible for an alarming number of violations of human rights in Chile.
It seems many of Chile’s current human rights issues derive from this era, as the Constitution adopted during the military government under General Pinochet made provisions outside of international human rights law. Between April and August 2016, the Chilean government began a consultation process open to all citizens as the first step toward drafting and adopting a new Constitution. The process is ongoing.
It was reported in March 2015 by the chief justice of Chile that 1,056 cases of human rights violations from the previous military rule were under investigation. A tenth of the cases were for torture, and other cases included killings and enforced disappearances. For example, in 1986, during a street protest, two teenagers were set on fire, killing one and maiming the other for life. Soldiers were forced under duress to testify that the students accidentally burned themselves with their own Molotov cocktail. It was revealed in 2014 that a patrol commander ordered soldiers to douse the students in gasoline and set them on fire.
Torture in the period of Contreras is not the only violation of human rights in Chile. Currently, torture is a common problem for detainees. Additionally, detainees are placed into overcrowded prisons where they often face repeated torture and violence. More than 2,000 inmates were surveyed in 2013 by a Chilean prison service, and it was noted that more than 30% claimed to have suffered violence from prison guards and over 20 percent claimed to have been tortured. Chile’s current criminal code does not ban or address torture in any form.
Another issue present under the current constitution comes from the power that military courts possess over the legal process. For abuses committed by the Carabineros, the uniformed police, military courts usually hold the cases. Under the military courts, criminal proceedings lack independence and due process guaranteed under normal criminal proceedings; the investigations are held in secret, usually only conducted in writing; and most of the time lawyers cannot cross-examine witnesses.
While there are still many steps Chile needs to take in addressing both its past and ongoing human rights violations, it has recognized these as problems and is making progress towards prosecuting human rights offenders and ensuring this is a part of its history never to be repeated. Hopefully, after a new constitution is drafted, Chile can look away from its dark past and towards a better future.
– James Hardison
Photo: Flickr