israelfacts:

Homs, Syria, December 4, 2012. (AP)

See also: Bashar al-Assad’s forces kill dozens of Syrians after targeting bakery in Halfaya with air strike

As of 21 December, 2012, the death toll in Syria is at 46,176.

nickturse:

IRIN: Rethinking urban poverty

Drawing on 20 years of research, a new book, Urban Poverty in the Global South: Scale and Nature, “documents how the scale and depth of urban poverty in Africa, and much of Asia and Latin America, is greatly underestimated due to ‘inappropriate’ definitions and measurements,” according to the United Nations’ news agency, IRIN.  “Almost all official measurements of urban poverty are also made with no dialogue with those who live in poverty and who struggle to live with inadequate incomes,” according to the book’s summary.  “It is always experts’ judgment that identifies those who are ‘poor’ who may then ‘targeted’ by some program; at best, they become ‘objects’ of government policy, which may bring some improvement in conditions, but they are rarely seen as citizens with rights and legitimate demands who also have resources and capabilities that can contribute much to more effective poverty reduction programs.”

tessrenker:

Walking near Lake Managua with local children.  Managua, Nicaragua June 2012.

mptc:

I felt so sad about them. My eyes tremble when I watched them. Soon I realized, they were still happy.. to be with.. each other… under the little place they call.. HOME..

tessrenker:

Someone’s home in Managua, June 2012.

tessrenker:

Part of a roof in La Primavera, a neighborhood in Managua where I stayed with a host family. 

goatsonthings:

Goat on a Shed

thepeoplesrecord:

India’s gang-rape protesters defy moves to quell outrage
December 23, 2012

The Indian government moved on Sunday to stamp out protests that have swelled in New Delhi since the gang-rape of a young woman, banning gatherings of more than five people, but still thousands poured into the heart of the capital to vent their anger.

Police used tear gas and batons to hold crowds back from marching on the president’s palace, just as they did the day before. About 30 to 35 people, including a few policemen, were being treated at a nearby hospital for injuries, two doctors said.

The 23-year-old victim of the December 16 attack, who was beaten, raped for almost an hour and thrown out of a moving bus in New Delhi, was still in a critical condition on respiratory support but responding to treatment, doctors said.

Six men have been arrested for the assault.

New Delhi has the highest number of sex crimes among India’s major cities, with a rape reported on average every 18 hours, according to police figures.

Most sexual assaults go unreported and unremarked, but the brutality of last week’s attack triggered the biggest protests in the capital since mid-2011 demonstrations against corruption that rocked the government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The protesters, predominantly college students but also housewives and even children, are demanding more steps from the authorities to ensure safety for women - particularly better policing - and some want the death penalty for the accused.

Several metro stations were closed and many roads into the administrative centre of the city were barricaded on Sunday to prevent a build-up of protesters.

However, by late afternoon the crowd around the India Gate monument - normally a festive place on a Sunday - had swollen to several thousand.

Scuffles broke out near government buildings, where youths shouted “Down with Delhi police!” and threw bottles at the forces holding them back. Angry protesters later overturned a vehicle and seized police vans.

Gandhi gets flak 

Since last week’s rape, the authorities have promised better police patrolling to ensure safety for women returning from work and entertainment districts, the installation of GPS on public transport vehicles, more buses at night, and fast-track courts for swift verdicts on cases of rape and sexual assault.

However, that has not been enough to placate protesters in New Delhi and other cities across the country, where the past week began with peaceful candle-light vigils and ended with a spasm of violence in the capital.

Bowing to public pressure, Sonia Gandhi, chief of the ruling Congress party, emerged from her residence after midnight to talk to protesters. She went out again on Sunday with her son, Rahul Gandhi, who is seen as a future prime minister.

“She assured us of justice,” said one of the students who met the Gandhis.

Some others, though, shouted “Down with Sonia Gandhi!” and accused politicians of indifference to the plight of ordinary citizens.

“It’s time she (Sonia Gandhi) takes the bull by the horns and make this country safe for women. Be it better policing or strongly penalizing offenders,” said Rukmani Dutta, a final-year political science student at Delhi University.

Protesters said they would continue to demonstrate until they get firm assurances from the government.

“Until and unless the government understands the pulse of the people and imposes strict action against these criminals, we will not relent,” said Sherry Kaur, a student at Indraprastha University, also in New Delhi.

Source