Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Vol. 1, Issue 3
1000 ID
EDITORIAL
available at the photographers disposal should be used well to communicate stories and voices with others all around the world. He suggests that we take the time to create well thought out stories and use the other tools we have to share these stories. The pay off can be great when [we] hear what people have learned from the stories [we] help tell. A self-taught humanitarian photographer from Chile, Heber Vega, works in Kurdistan with a vision of using [his] work for good, to help others, to bring hope, to respect cultures, and, ultimately, to advocate and help certain initiatives that are worth mentioning and spreading around the world. He wants to show people giving their lives for others, making this world a better place to live. Vega believes that photography is still somehow underes-
its and galleries. There arent any places to really study photography or to attend a workshop, at the very least. Theres a definite lack of appreciation for a good quality work. Companies still dont have experience with publicity, marketing, and specially understanding the power of images, so photography remains underestimated. I see a lot of mediocre work in advertisements and photos for local companies. These issues discourage many would-be photographers away from the profession, and if they are not addressed and attended to, there is a slim chance that photography will ever reach its high aspirations in Kurdistan and I will see no more DSL-R cameras on Salim Street. This craft will dissolve into chaos and turn from all the rage to nothing but rage.
Vol. 1, Issue 3
Local News
Vol. 1, Issue 2
International News
body. Many sceptics still do not believe Bin Laden is dead and think it is just another American conspiracy. Many items were confiscated and taken as evidence from the compound. Analysts are viewing them one by one to further understand Al-Qaeda and what their future plans could possibly be. Soon after the announcement, many videos and pictures showing Bin Laden as an old and frail man were released by the administration. These pictures and videos depicted a man unlike what people generally considered him to be; it was not the infamous Osama Bin Laden the world press portrayed him as, not a resilient man who walked from one cave to another hiding from American Intelligence, but an exhausted, worn out, and feeble man. Controversy still surrounds the truth as to why more proof of his death is not being released and why his body was dumped into the North Arabian Sea rather than given a traditional burial. World leaders expressed their joy and congratulated the Obama administration for the death of this dangerous man and the Navy Seal commandos for their bravery.
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The march has been regarded by many as an open challenge to the Iraqi government and forces. Muqtada al-Sadr has repeatedly threatened to re-activate his Mahdi Army militia the movements armed wing if the American troops stay any longer. The Mahdi Army engaged in fierce battle with US and Iraqi forces during the early years of the war. The parade shocked many politicians and government officials because of its massive scale. Due to the governments inability to provide jobs and basic services for the poor, many have put
their faith in the Sadr movement as a last hope. This has led to a gradual decline in US popularity among Iraqis, further strengthening the Sadrists position. With the deadline looming, Prime Minister Nuri alMaliki and his government face quite a dilemma. If the U.S. forces are allowed to stay longer, the Mahdi Army militia might rise again. If the US forces leave on time, there is the possibility that Iraq would plunge back into sectarian violence. Violence is already on the rise in Iraq with kidnappings and bombings happening on almost a daily basis.
Syrian Uprising
supply and still continues to run Hamza al-Kahtib, who was allow today. Also, wounded pro- legedly tortured and killed by testers refused medical treat- Syrian security forces. The body ment by local hospitals. of Hamza was returned to his On March 18, 2011, The Syrian government family almost a month after he Deraa, an agricultural city of is still sending tanks into restive disappeared. The image of the around 100,000 people, became the crucial point for the uprising in Syria. The protesting in Deraa, a city close to the border of Jordan, erupted in protests after a group of young teenagers were put in prison for writing graffiti denouncing the corruption in the local government. The citizens of Deraa and the whole of Syria were stunned by the actions of the local governor. Syria got its first taste of the rebellion in the Arab Spring. The momentum of the protesting grew and spread across several other Photo courtesy of Reuters cities such as Homs, Banias, A girl holding a poster outside the Syrian embassy in London. Deir-ez-Zar, and Damascus, the cities across the country, trying boys body has outraged Syrians countrys capital. Everyday doz- its hardest to silence and wipe and everyone worldwide since it ens of innocent Syrian citizens, out the protesting before inter- has been made available to the including opposition leaders, national forces such as NATO public on YouTube. The disturbare arrested and die at the hands decide to intervene. Syrian se- ing videos and images suggest of Bashar al-Assads army. curity forces have detained sev- that Hamza was tortured. There On April 22, 2011, more eral thousand protesters and were signs of burns and cuts all than a hundred Syrians were political opponents and are still over his body. killed in at least 14 different cit- doing so. The death toll of those The citizens of Syria ies bringing the death toll to 450 killed since the start of the pro- have five important goals that people. On April 25, the protest- tests has reached a 1000 people they hope to achieve. The five ing took a new twist when tanks and the number of those who goals consist of the resignation rolled into the city of Deraa. have being arrested has reached of president Bashar al-Assad, Hours before the army entered 10,000 people. changing the regime to bring Deraa, electricity and commuMore recently, Syrian ac- in democracy, expanding civil nications were cut off and out- tivities have urged the citizens liberties, and giving more rights siders were banned from en- of Syria for renewed protests in and recognition to the Kurds in tering the city. honour of the 13 year old boy Syria. Water and bread were at a short
Vol. 1, Issue 3
Editorials
Vol. 1, Issue 3
Features
by immolation. Examples of honor violence include the attempted murder of a young woman for having sex with her boyfriend before marriage and the murder of a young woman simply for falling in love with a man unapproved of by her family. According to the United Nations Assistance Mission to Iraq Report, statistics indicate an increase in the occurrence of honor killings in the Kurdish region since 2003, however accurate counts of honor based murders are hard to ascertain as many of these crimes go unreported and numbers can vary significantly between sources. For example, the Directorate to Trace Violence Against Women in Kurdistan claim there were 104 murders of women in 2008 and 85 cases in 2009. This is a substantial difference from numbers reported in the New York Times which alleges more than 12,000 women were killed in honor crimes in Kurdistan from 1991 to 2007. Though accusations that the KRG has failed to implement real change regarding women does hold some merit, I do not believe this is indicative of a lack of commitment to womens issues by government leaders but rather a means of measurement indicating where Kurdish society is in regard to the process of change. Many long held cultural beliefs are being questioned as tradition and modernity clash. It must be understood that this cultural change will not occur overnight but rather over generations as the perceptions of women and notions of honor held from centuries-old cultural beliefs will not easily give way to alternative views.
The patriarchal control of women will not easily give way to the changes taking place in Kurdistan; however, change is inevitable. The concern for leaders, therefore, is the tension created in the individual lives caught in the midst of conflicting views and societal beliefs. A question the Kurdish people and Kurdish leadership must address is the line between what are viewed as long held cultural practices versus direct violations of human rights. Violence against women can no longer be tolerated or excused in the name of cultural relativism; it must be combated through every means possible. The role of government in protecting women must be expanded significantly to prevent further violence against women within Kurdish society. True reform will come only through continued efforts in multiple sectors to address womens rights as human rights, not to be viewed as a favor toward women but the opportunity for women to exercise basic human rights given by right of birth. While the anticipated changes will not and should not create a replica of Western society or Western feminist aims, they must include basic freedoms of women to participate in all walks of society without threat of violence. It is my hope that every avenue available for the protection of women in Kurdistan will be utilized and that doors of opportunity for women to participate in all facets of society will be opened as Kurdish society continues to undergo rapid change. The opportunity exists for Kurds to re-examine their cultural identity and perceptions and form an open society that could be a model of human rights for the entire Middle East.
erating major multi-national firms, the wasta system has a hand profits are skimmed to support patronage, tea-drinking jobs are created for the sons of the well connected, contracts are provided to the companies of loyal supporters, etc. The article in the Atlantic Monthly estimated that 50% of all employment in Iraq is either direct government jobs or jobs in businesses who deal exclusively or nearly so with the government. Is there any wonder, then, why foreign firms, despite the myriad entrepreneurial possibilities in an Iraq trying to recover from decades of misrule and years of war, are conspicuous here mostly by their absence? Third, wasta retards Kurdish society by perpetuating social and cultural assumptions and practices that are no longer suitable to a modern people. Systems of patronage and clientelism are by their nature hierarchical and paternalistic. They subordinate the young whose ambition and inventiveness are often the very sparks of progress for any society to the needs of the established generation. And invariably, women are seen as subordinate to men in disturbing ways, and not because there is some scriptural mandate, but because there is the claim of a tradition whose other benefits in this case supposedly protecting the honor (another of the bizarre byproducts of wastas old-fashioned hierarchy) of women by forcing into nearly complete submission are spurious at best. The truth of the Revolutionary Spring here in Kurdistan is this: it has had no direction, no credo, no manifesto because it has not addressed openly and honestly the true character of Kurdistans problems. Until the young are willing to absent themselves from the wasta system by declining the jobs, academic placements, political connections and so forth that sustain and justify this system, the system will endure, and not only endure, but prosper as a new generation is co-opted by its logic. I have spoken to any number of romantic youth who have told me of their willingness to die for a better Kurdistan. But I have yet to find one who is willing to turn down a tea-drinking job to accomplish the same end. If this werent so sad, it would be funny.
teach because unless the system is designed in a way that equips teachers with the right skills and values state education can only get worse. Rolling out the changes to other schools across Kurdistan must be a priority and the pace of change must be accelerated. The fast pace of development in Kurdish regions necessitate faster response towards calls for reform. It is obvious that reforming the education system in Kurdistan and building new schools will not bare fruits immediately. Reforming the education system
will cost money, and take time. The government on its own cannot make this a reality, but the community must acknowledge that they need to compromise and contribute in order to have a brighter future for their children. The failure of the education system cannot only be blamed on government mismanagement, but it is a collective responsibility of every member of the Kurdish community to support it and make sacrifices in order to make it a successes.
Vol. 1, Issue 3
plish if given the tools and opportunity. Occasionally, however, I still am. At the American University I see many students doing amazing things as they embrace technology and relish the knowledge they are acquiring. Recently, a group of students participated in a KRG\Microsoft-sponsored software competition called Imagine Cup. I was hoping for a respectable showing. We ended up taking first and second place. The top team will be going to New York City in July to compete with contestants from over 120 countries. They have developed an extraordinary application that may very well win the top prize. We will see. I think that knowledge and its great facilitator, technology, can leverage Iraqs future into something great. Everyone can and must have a hand in it. Thomas Friedman in his book, The World is Flat, describes the
Vol. 1, Issue 3
Sports
Kurdistan 2.0
One of the reasons why I was delighted to be invited to write this article is that it supports a vision on the part of the editors of this newspaper to stimulate thought and begin conversations across many different topics of interest to young people. As a teacher of information and knowledge technologies at the American University of Iraq-Sulaimani, I applaud this effort. I have the privilege of mostly witnessing -but also assisting where I can -the process where young people begin to accumulate knowledge and unpack their own personal blueprints for the future. They accomplish this by taking courses in a wide variety of subjects; but arguably they learn more outside class through activities like starting newspapers and immersing themselves in an array of new technologies, all of which are connected to the Internet. They
do this in a natural and intuitive way; unknowingly building a set of intellectual assets and skills that will help them in the future. These experiences help them establish meaning in their lives and recognize their role in this countrys growth and development. It is almost a clich to point out that todays youth are this countrys future. They drive change and always have. Wikipedia describes the northern region of Iraq as having a young population, and various sources indicate that approximately 40 percent of the population is under the age of 15. Youth and technology have a natural affinity and will unlock the regions great potential, I believe. Knowledge is like water. It is life affirming, and everyone is naturally thirsty for it. Following the many tributaries that make up the Web, knowledge follows a path of least resistance and flows willingly to those who seek it. Over time I have learned not to be surprised at the amazing things young people can accomthe killer (Ghostface) focuses on a new threat, only to make an impact on more-to-come killers of the legend. Wes, himself, has thought that giving it the boring taste of chasing one another is just like any other scream movie, thats why he intended this movie to be more of a changed reason. Scream is a clich of horrors and the best of its kind, it is a new style that had the terror feeling mixed up with the scheme of a movie inside a movie. If your not scared and you wont scream good news, this month, it hits City Cinema!
my opinion, just this action alone gives him a better perspective on how this country can build its future, and in his own small way he contributes to the collective intellectual growth of the region.
Scream 4
Scream 4 or presented as (SCRE4M), is an American horror film and the fourth installment in the series of Scream. Wesley Craven, the original creator of the series, has directed the movie once again. It is due to come out this month. The movie now, focuses on a new idea, new rules, and a re-creation of the elements of the previous movies. This time,
tears of heartbreak from others. As for the bigger European competitions, F.C. Porto won the UEFA Europa League by beating Braga 1-0 in the final on May 18. But all eyes will be on the mouth-watering clash of the season, the Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United on May 28. Each of the finalists had had the honor of being the champion three times before and was eager to add another glorious victory to their history. It was Barcelona who emerged as the new champion in an outstanding match where they won
3-1, courtesy of goals from Pedro, Messi, and Villa. It was a joyous day as players and fans celebrated their fourth European title. Although the leagues have just ended, the clubs are already in search for new players to improve their teams for the new season. Soccer has always been a remarkable source of entertainment, laying upon us mixed feelings. Fans are already anticipating the start of the new season and the massive matches accompanying it. So let us wait for the endless surprises the beautiful game holds for us!
ed by the chef, one instantly feels that they are going to be served great food. The waiters are really friendly and very polite and are always there to make sure that you are satisfied with the service. Their determination to use fresh, organic, and locally sourced meats and vegetables is very comforting to their customers and make them keep going back for more. You can top it all with a glass of their fresh fruit cocktails which make your evening even better. I highly recommend this restaurant and I guarantee you will have a memorable dining experience.
Vol. 1, Issue 2
Leisure
Helen Keller
homeland has separated me from music performances and the love of the community that taught me music. Other than this concert, I am currently working on a CD that will be released by August. Kamal Muhammad and I have many songs together. But we have not talked about releasing another piece together. I warmly welcome your newspaper. I truly appreciate several young people like you all who concern themselves with important matters and interview artists and singers.