Monthly Archives: February 2017

The men competing for love in the deserts of Chad, Africa

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The men competing for love in the deserts of Chad, Africa

Monday, February 27, 2017

From BBC News, the section Africa

Pictures and words by Tariq Zaidi.

How the men of Chad’s Wodaabe culture put on their make-up and don their best clothes to impress would-be brides at a week-long festival.

Wodaabe men perform the “Yaake” ritual dance as part of the Gerewol, a week-long courtship ceremony in Chad. It must be one of the only African cultures which allows girls to take the lead in choosing their betrothed and even married women have the right to take a different man as a sexual partner. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Wodaabe means “people of the taboo” – these are subgroups of Fulani and Tuareg, who have migrated around this part of Africa for centuries. Here a Wodaabe man wakes up as dawn breaks in the Sahel desert – his donkeys and very basic shelter his only possessions. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

The Wodaabes mostly live on milk and ground millet, with yoghurt, sweet tea and occasionally the meat of a goat or sheep. Here a child here shakes the milk in a calabash and churn it into yoghurt. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Men start preparing for the Gerewol at daybreak. From early on there is a mounting sense of anticipation, as some years see more than 1,000 people gather for the festivities. The men paint their faces with make-up made from clay, stones and animal bones crushed and turned into a paste. Some men were said to paint their lips black with chemicals from batteries to emphasise their white teeth. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

This participant has shaved his hairline to elongate his forehead and is practising the eye-rolling, teeth-baring aspect of the dance, which shows off the features Wodaabe women find desirable.  Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

A Wodaabe family shelter from the blazing sun in their basic home. Their wooden beds house all their possessions and the whole family sleep together.  Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

A Wodaabe man pours his morning brew. Drinking tea is an important ritual in this culture. During Gerewol, men drink a tea made with fermented bark which is said to have a hallucinogenic effect, and also enables them to dance for hours on end. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Preparations for the Gerewol festival are communal and everybody pitches in to help the men look their best. The hours the men spend on their clothes and make-up has led to the Wodaabe being called “the vainest tribe in the world”  Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Some make-up is believed to have magical powers and the Wodaabe go to great lengths to secure it. The orange face powder is only to be found beside a special mountain near Jongooria in central Niger, and some clans must undertake a 1,400km (870-mile) round trip on foot to secure a supply. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Gerewol only happens once a year, so the pressure and anticipation is huge and finding a wife is so important. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Wodaabe men make some last-minute adjustments to their costumes for the night’s festivities, checking their reflections in brightly coloured pocket mirrors – indispensable accessories for the Wodaabe male. They look at them constantly, a bit like some people and their smartphones. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Although the girls wear less make-up than the men, they also take great pride in their appearance, plaiting and decorating their hair. The tattoos on this girl’s face are caused by scarification at a young age and indicate tribal affiliations, as well as strength and valour.  Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Here Wodaabe men grimace during the dance to show off their white teeth. The ostrich feathers in their hats emphasise their height. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

 A long line of Wodaabe men and boys, wearing bejewelled leather tunics and sparkling crowns and feathers, sways rhythmically backwards and forwards. Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

Two Wodaabe men take a break from dancing to catch their breath. The Gerewol festival is a gruelling test of endurance for the men, who dance for hours in stifling heat in the hopes of impressing a woman.  Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

This is the moment at the end of the week-long ceremony where, with the slightest of hands, a woman selects her husband at Gerewol. It all happens very subtly and quickly, she does not even look him in the eye. The festival is an inter-clan affair, in which women of separate lineages will pick men from opposing clans.  Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

At sunset the ostrich feathers in the mens’ caps resemble palm trees. They make the Wodaabe, already an incredibly tall and lean people, even taller. Once the week-long festival is over, the Wodaabe return to their day-to-day life as nomadic herders.  Image copyright Tariq Zaidi Image caption

For more information please visit the following link:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-39070587

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The Harbin International Snow and Ice Sculpture Festival, 2017 in China

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🙂 🙂 🙂 Happy Valentine’s Day Everyone 🙂 🙂 🙂

The Harbin International Snow and Ice Sculpture Festival, 2017 in China

Harbin 2017: In China, a city made of ice

By CNN Staff

Updated 11:52 PM ET, Mon January 9, 2017

See the world’s best ice-sculptors in action 01:08

33rd Annual Harbin International Snow & Ice Festival kicked off January 5

At night, the massive sculptures are illuminated

(CNN)Always wanted to visit a real life winter wonderland, complete with its own ice castle?

Now’s your chance.

The Harbin International Snow and Ice Festival, famed for its gigantic illuminated sculptures, has officially kicked off in northern China.

The annual event, held in the capital of Heilongjiang Province, is now in its 33rd year.

The festival is made up of several themed zones. The main attraction is the Harbin Ice and Snow World, which covers more than 750,000 square meters and features up to 180,000 cubic meters of ice.

For more information please visit the following link:

https://www.cnn.com/2017/01/09/travel/harbin-winter-festival-china/

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Hundreds of Whales Dead after Mass Stranding in New Zealand

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Thanks to the New Zealand people who are helping the stranded whales at Farewell Spit in Golden Bay, New Zealand

Hundreds of whales dead after mass stranding in New Zealand

By Ben Westcott, CNN

Updated 8:55 AM ET, Fri February 10, 2017

(CNN)Desperate efforts are underway to save dozens of pilot whales still alive after hundreds stranded themselves on a New Zealand beach, in the third largest mass stranding in the country’s history.

At least 250 whales were already dead of 400 found beached on Farewell Spit in Golden Bay on the tip of the South Island Friday, the Department of Conservation said in a statement.

Rescuers attempted to refloat more than 100 whales mid-morning, of which about 50 returned to sea.

However, another 80 to 90 whales who were freed re-stranded themselves in the same place just five hours later, Inwood said.

Thanks to the New Zealand people who are helping the stranded whales at Farewell Spit in Golden Bay in New Zealand

Hundreds of volunteers have come out to help the pilot whiles, pictured here at high tide.

Volunteers swoop on site

Hundreds of locals turned out to help keep the whales cool.

“There’s like two to three hundred car loads of people who have come to help, maybe three to four hundred people,” Department of Conservation Community Ranger Kath Inwood told CNN.

Cheree Phillips @Chazza1014

Just arrived at #farewellspit for sunrise to find whale stranding. Utterly, utterly heartbreaking. #stranding #whales #nz

12:51 PM – 9 Feb 2017

According to Inwood, the area regularly saw beached whales and many residents were already trained in keeping the animals comfortable and helping to refloat them.

“Lots of people will be there pretty quick and already have the knowledge and training to help effectively,” she said.

Work will stop overnight for the safety of volunteers, who could be in danger around the large, stressed animals.

More than 400 pilot whales stranded themselves on a New Zealand beach on the evening of Thursday February 9.

‘This is a huge one’

The whales were first spotted in the water late on Thursday night, by a department staffer, before being found on Farewell Spit on Friday morning.

“Normally (they) are between November and March and it’s not many years we don’t have one. (But) obviously this is a huge one compared to most years … mostly they’re in ones and twos,” she said.

The largest whale stranding in New Zealand took place in 1918, when 1,000 whales stranded themselves on Chatham Islands.

The second largest was in Auckland in 1985, when 450 ended up on a beach.

“You don’t usually get this many traveling at once, we have 180 once before but I think a lot of (answers as to why) are unknown really,” Inwood said. “There’s a lot of different theories.”

For more information please visit the following link:

https://www.cnn.com/2017/02/09/asia/new-zealand-whales-stranding/?iid=ob_article_organicsidebar_expansion

Hundreds of Whales Are Dead Following a Horrific Mass Stranding in New Zealand

George Dvorsky     Today 9:15am

 Image: AP

In what’s considered the largest mass stranding in decades, over 400

pilot whales have beached themselves on a New Zealand shore. Hundreds of whales died overnight, and rescuers are now frantically working to save the dozens of remaining whales who are clinging to life.

According to New Zealand’s Department of Conservation (DOC), 416 pilot whales had beached themselves at Farewell Spit in Golden Bay, at the northern tip of the country’s south island. When the DOC arrived on the scene, around 250 to 300 whales had already perished, and by the time dawn broke this morning, more than 70 percent of the whales were dead. DOC staff and dozens of volunteers are now trying to save the remaining 80 to 90 whales.

 Image: AP

For those trying to help, the sight must be truly horrific. Images from the scene show the beach littered with the large black-bodied corpses. The ones still alive are surrounded by rescue workers who are desperately trying to keep them cool, wet and and calm.

“It is one of the saddest things I have seen, that many sentient creatures just wasted on the beach,” noted volunteer rescuer Peter Wiles in The Guardian. The DOC has made a plea to the local community to come and help, and to provide towels, buckets, and sheets. Some rescuers have been working in the cold, wet conditions for upwards of nine hours straight. The response was incredible, and the DOC says no more volunteers are needed at this time.

The next opportunity to save the remaining whales is scheduled for noon tomorrow (Saturday) when the tide comes in. Frustratingly, the remaining whales were “refloated” at high tide earlier today (at about 10:30 am local time), but 90 of them came back and re-beached themselves. As social mammals, they were likely trying to stay close to their pod—the majority of which are now lying dead on the beach.

“We are trying to swim the whales out to sea and guide them but they don’t really take directions, they go where they want to go,” said DOC team leader in The Guardian. “Unless they get a couple of strong leaders who decide to head out to sea, the remaining whales will try and keep with their pod on the beach.”

New Zealand has one of the highest rates of whale strandings in the world; about 300 whales and dolphins beach themselves on the nation’s shorelines each year. Golden Bay is particularly conducive to strandings because of its shallow topography, which makes it difficult for whales to swim out once they’ve entered.

On top of that, pilot whales are notorious for stranding themselves. Entire groups of these whales will beach themselves on account of their strong social bonds. It’s possible that the whales got stuck when an old, sick, or injured whale got stranded, and its pod-mates swam to its aid. The stranding may also have something to do with the pilot whales’ compromised ability to use echo-location in shallow, gently sloping waters. These whales, which are the largest of the oceanic dolphins, prefer steep areas such as continental shelf edges. Farewell Spit, with its shallow waters, is a death trap.

This stranding is now considered the third largest in New Zealand’s recorded history. In 1918, over a thousand whales beached themselves on the Chatham Islands, and in 1985, 450 stranded themselves at Great Barrier Island off the coast of Auckland. Two years ago, 200 whales were killed in a mass stranding at Farewell Spit.

[DOC, Guardian]

For more information please visit the following link:

https://gizmodo.com/hundreds-of-whales-are-dead-following-a-horrific-mass-s-1792213145

Hundreds of whales die in mass stranding on New Zealand beach

Urgent plea issued for locals to drop work and school commitments and head to the remote beach to save surviving whales

Volunteers try to save whales at New Zealand beach after mass stranding

Eleanor Ainge Roy in Dunedin

@EleanorAingeRoy

Thursday 9 February 2017 22.52 ESTFirst published on Thursday 9 February 2017 17.47 EST

Rescuers are trying to save dozens of whales after a mass stranding on a New Zealand beach thought to be the largest in decades.

The Department of Conservation (DOC) discovered 416 pilot whales had beached themselves overnight at Farewell Spit in Golden Bay at the top of the South Island, with more than 70% dying by the time dawn broke on Friday.

DOC staff and dozens of volunteers were on hand on Friday morning trying to save the remaining 100 whales.

Peter Wiles, who was one of the first volunteers to reach Farewell Spit, told Fairfax New Zealand that the white bellies of the whale corpses were lined up on the sand and floating in the shallows. “It is one of the saddest things I have seen, that many sentient creatures just wasted on the beach.”

As the morning wore on, an urgent plea was issued for locals to drop work and school commitments and head to the remote beach to save the whales, bringing towels, buckets and sheets to keep them cool, calm and wet.

Andrew Lamason, a team leader for the DOC Takaka area, said the stranding was the largest in living memory, and although he had “no clue” why the whales had beached themselves this time, Golden Bay was conducive to strandings because of its shallow bay, which made it difficult for whales to swim out once they’d entered.

At high tide, at 10.30am, the 100 remaining whales were successfully refloated, but early in the afternoon at low tide 90 of them re-beached themselves. DOC staff and up to 500 volunteers are now focused on keeping the surviving whales as healthy as possible until the next high tide at lunchtime tomorrow.

Lamason said it was common for whales involved in a mass stranding to re-beach themselves, because they were social animals and would stay in close proximity to their pod, the majority of which were now lying dead on the beach.

“We are trying to swim the whales out to sea and guide them but they don’t really take directions, they go where they want to go. Unless they get a couple of strong leaders who decide to head out to sea, the remaining whales will try and keep with their pod on the beach.”

Lamason said whale strandings, which were common in Golden Bay, were an emotionally exhausting event and anyone who wasn’t fit and strong and equipped to cope with the trauma were advised to stay away from the beach and not participate in the rescue effort.

“It is cold, it’s wet and some of us have been in and out of the water for nine hours now, we can only cope with robust volunteers, not ones that are going to break down, which happens quite often.” he said.

“We are in the farthest corner of the universe here but now volunteers have started turning up en masse and there are hundreds of people here and they have brought food and supplies so they are prepared to be here all day and all night if needed.”

View image on Twitter

Farewell Spit in New Zealand. (Image: NASA)

 Cape Farewell is a headland in New Zealand 400 pilot whales who have become stranded at Farewell Spit in Golden Bay.

5:24 PM – 9 Feb 2017

Tony @Tonylean

The beach was still littered with the bodies of the nearly 300 dead pilot whales which died overnight, but plans for disposing of their bodies naturally at sea were on hold while rescuers “concentrated on the living”, Lamason said.

The stranding at Farewell Spit makes it the third largest whale stranding in New Zealand’s recorded history.

In 1918, 1,000 whales beached themselves on the Chatham Islands, and in 1985 450 stranded at Great Barrier Island off the coast of Auckland.

According to Project Jonah, a whale rescue group, New Zealand has one of the highest rates of whale strandings in the world, and on average about 300 whales and dolphins beach themselves on Kiwi shores every year.

The reasons for whales strandings are still unclear, but it is thought a combination of factors contribute, with old, sick and injured whales being particularly vulnerable. Navigational errors among pods are also common, especially when chasing food or coming close to shore to avoid predators such as orcas.

Since 1840, more than 5,000 whales and dolphins have beached themselves on New Zealand shores according to DOC records.

Strandings occur year round, but usually involve only one or two animals. DOC respond to about 85 events a year, usually involving just a single animal.

For more information please visit the following link:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/feb/10/hundreds-whales-die-mass-stranding-new-zealand-beach

JamesKeye 

Direct causal evidence for this particular beaching may not be discoverable, but human action has been changing ocean chemistry, adding mechanical pollutants and turning the whole ocean into an acoustic combination hall-of-mirrors and shooting range for some time. Even if these activities are not the proximate cause of beaching, we’ve no right to destroy the ecological systems arrived at by billions of years of biophysical process….much less the sanctity of life there.

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Nobel Peace Prizes and other Nobel Prizes in other disciplines

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Nobel Peace Prizes and other Nobel Prizes in other disciplines,

2016 and Previous Years

“There are many causes that I am prepared to die for but no causes that I am prepared to kill for.”
Mahatma Gandhi
The Story of My Experiments with Truth, 1927
2 October, is the International Day of Non-Violence, marked on the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi was nominated for the #NobelPeacePrize a few days before he was murdered on 30 January 1948.
More on Gandhi and the #NobelPeacePrize at Nobelprize.org: https://goo.gl/eqkkHI

Nelson Mandela casts his vote in the first South African elections held without the discrimination of voters on grounds of race – on 27 April in 1994. It was the first time Mandela had voted in his life.
From Nelson Mandela’s 1993 Nobel Peace Prize Lecture:
“We stand here today as nothing more than a representative of the millions of our people who dared to rise up against a social system whose very essence is war, violence, racism, oppression, repression and the impoverishment of an entire people.”
To watch the lecture: https://www.nobelprize.org/mediaplayer/index.php?id=1855 #PeaceDay
Photographer: Paul Weinberg. License: CC BY-SA 3.0. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

 

Nobel Peace Prize For Colom bia’s Juan Manuel Santos
• 7 October 2016
• From the section Latin America & Caribbean
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end the 52-year conflict with left-wing rebels.
The Nobel committee praised him for a peace deal signed with Farc rebels, but rejected by Colombians in a vote.
Mr. Santos said he dedicated the award to “all the victims of the conflict”, and the Farc leader congratulated him.
About 260,000 people have been killed and more than six million internally displaced in Colombia.
The award did not include Farc leader Rodrigo Londono, known as Timochenko, who also signed the accord.
• Who are the Farc?
• Colombia media hopeful over Santos peace prize
• Viewpoint: What next for Colombia?
• Santos: From hawk to dove
The head of the Nobel commitee said the award recognised the president’s “resolute efforts” to end the conflict.
“The award should also be seen as a tribute to the Colombian people who, despite great hardships and abuses, have not given up hope of a just peace, and to all the parties who have contributed to the peace process,” Kaci Kullman Five added.
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-37585188

Nobel Peace Prize For Colom bia’s Juan Manuel Santos
Juan Manuel Santo
• Born in Bogota in 10 August 1951 in an influential family
• Elected Colombian president in 2010 and re-elected in 2014
• Served as defence minister from 2006 until 2009
• Married, has two sons and one daughter
Sources: BBC Monitoring, Colombian presidency
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-37585188

 Colombia President Juan Manuel Santos awarded Nobel Peace Prize for bid to end half-century conflict
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end a 52-year-old war with Marxist rebels, a surprise choice and a show of support after Colombians rejected a peace accord last Sunday. (Reuters)
By Michael Birnbaum and Nick Miroff October 7 at 2:22 PM
BRUSSELS — Five days after the worst defeat of his political career, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for his dogged, but unfulfilled, effort to end a half-century of civil war.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee said it made the decision because of Santos’s landmark attempt to stamp out one of the world’s longest-running conflicts, which has killed more than 220,000 people and driven at least 7 million from their homes since 1964.
Juan Manuel Santos was recognized for his work to end a half-century conflict with Marxist rebels in his country.
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/colombia-president-juan-manuel-santos-awarded-nobel-peace-prize-for-efforts-to-bring-peace-to-his-nation/2016/10/07/c6e0d3c4-8a84-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506_story.html

Colombia President Juan Manuel Santos awarded Nobel Peace Prize for bid to end half-century conflict                                                                                                          Peace in Colombia
It Is a Good Example for Syrian Leaders
Peace for All Syrians and for Humanity as a Whole
‘Last armed conflict in western hemisphere’
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and Farc leader Timoleon Jimenez, known as Timochenko, will sign an agreement at a ceremony on Monday, 26 September, 2016.
• From the section Latin America & Caribbean
https://www.bbc.com/news/video_and_audio/headlines/37469364
Colombia peace deal: Historic agreement is signed
Analysis, by the BBC’s Lyse Doucet in Cartagena:
The Farc’s 52-year fight
Image copyright Reuters
1964: Set up as armed wing of Communist Party
2002: At its height, it had an army of 20,000 fighters controlling up to a third of the country. Senator Ingrid Betancourt kidnapped and held for six years along with 14 other hostages
2008: The Farc suffers a series of defeats in its worst year
2012: Start of peace talks in Havana
2016: Definitive ceasefire
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-37477202

Nobel Peace Prize
The heroines of peace-the 16 women awarded with the Nobel Peace Prize so far (1901-2015)
Celebrating Peace Day with the 16 Heroines of Peace
1905: Bertha von Suttner
1931: Jane Addams
1946: Emily Greene Balch
1976: Betty Williams
1976: Mairead Corrigan
1979: Mother Teresa
1982: Alva Myrdal
1991: Aung San Suu Kyi
1992: Rigoberta Menchu Tum
1997: Jody Williams
2003: Shirin Ebadi
2004: Wangari Muta Maathai
2011: Ellen Johnson Shirleaf
2011: Leymah Gbowee
2011: Tawakkol Karman
2014: Malala Yousafzai
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.facebook.com/nobelprize

Dr. Wangari Maathai, 2004 #NobelPeacePrize – Founder of a grass roots movement to combat deforestation, she “thought globally and acted locally”.
In 1977, Maathai started a grass-roots movement aimed at countering the deforestation that was threatening the means of subsistence of the agricultural population in Kenya.
The campaign encouraged women to plant trees in their local environments and to think ecologically. The so-called Green Belt Movement spread to other African countries, and contributed to the planting of over 30 million trees.
Wangari Maathai shared the Peace Prize “for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace”. Her mobilization of African women was not limited in its vision to work for sustainable development; she saw tree-planting in a broader perspective which included democracy, women’s rights, and international solidarity.
In the words of the Nobel Committee: “She thinks globally and acts locally.”

Photo: Wangari Maathai (1940–2011) during an interview for Nobelprize.org in Stockholm, 2 April 2009. Photographer: Annalisa B. Andersson. © Nobel Media AB.
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.facebook.com/nobelprize

Rest in Peace Mr. Shimon Peres. Your biggest contribution for your country and the world was to lay the groundwork for Peace between Israel and Palestine. It is now up to the citizens of Israel and Palestine to complete Shimon Peres dream of peace between these two countries, living side by side with prosperity in peaceful coexistence for all.
• Ing-On Vibulbhan-Watts, Friday, September 30, 2016
Shimon Peres and Nelson Mandela, after a meeting at Mandela’s house in Houghton, Johannesburg, Tuesday Sept. 3, 2002.AP
The one thing Shimon Peres longed for in life remained out of his reach
How Shimon Peres’ last tweet reflected his forward-thinking spirit
Shimon Peres changed from hawk to dove ‘before my eyes,’ says author Amos Oz
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.744917

• From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat receiving the Nobel Peace Prize following the Oslo Accords in 1994 for the Middle East Peace Process.
• From 1990 Peres led the opposition in the Knesset until, in early 1992, he was defeated in the first primary elections of the new Israeli Labor Party (which had been formed by the consolidation of the Alignment into a single unitary party) by Yitzhak Rabin, whom he had replaced fifteen years earlier.[29] Peres remained active in politics, however, serving as Rabin’s foreign minister from 1992.[29] Secret negotiations with Yasser Arafat’s PLOorganization led to the Oslo Accords, which won Peres, Rabin and Arafat the Nobel Peace Prize. But in 2002, members of the Norwegian committee that awards the annual Nobel Peace Prize stated they regretted that Mr Peres’ prize could not be recalled. Because he had not acted to prevent Israel’s re-occupation of Palestinian territory, he had not lived up to the ideals he expressed when he accepted the prize, and he was involved in human rights abuses.[56]
• For more information please visit the following link:
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimon_Peres                                                                                                Shimon Peres funeral: Leaders hail legacy of former Israeli leader
“Peace is not the pursuit of war by other means. Peace consists of putting an end to the red ink of past history and starting anew in a different color.”                               
Shimon Peres, 1996[54]
• BBC News from the section Middle East
• For more information please visit the following link:
• https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-37515057

Bob Dylan
Born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941 (age 75), Duluth, Minnesota, U.S.
Residence Malibu, California, U.S.
Other names Elston Gunnn, Blind Boy Grunt, Bob Landy, Robert Milkwood Thomas,
Tedham Porterhouse, Lucky Wilbury, Boo Wilbury, Jack Frost, Sergei Petrov
Occupation Singer-songwriter, artist, writer
Years active 1959–present[1]
Home town Hibbing, Minnesota, U.S.
Religion Judaism, Christianity
Spouse(s) Sara Dylan (m. 1965;div. 1977), Carolyn Dennis (m. 1986;div. 1992)
Children Maria Dylan (adopted), Jesse Dylan, Anna Dylan, Samuel Dylan, Jakob Dylan
Desiree Dennis-Dylan
Musical career
Genres Folk, blues, rock, country, gospel
Instruments Vocals, guitar, keyboards,harmonica
Labels Columbia, Asylum
Associated acts Joan Baez, The Band, Johnny Cash, Grateful Dead, George Harrison,
Mark Knopfler, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers,Traveling Wilburys

BREAKING NEWS
The 2016 ?Nobel Prize in Literature is awarded to
Bob Dylan
“for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition”.
Prize motivation in Swedish:
“som skapat nya poetiska uttryck inom den stora amerikanska sångtraditionen”.
Age: 75
Born: May 24, 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota, USA
Press release: goo.gl/xgiAKO
Biobibliographical notes in English: goo.gl/CXyTDt
Biobibliographical notes in Swedish: goo.gl/CXhZrj
Press material in French, German and Spanish will be available later this afternoon.
Biobibliographical notes
Bob Dylan was born on May 24, 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota. He grew up in a Jewish middle-class family in the city of Hibbing. As a teenager he played in various bands and with time his interest in music deepened, with a particular passion for American folk music and blues. One of his idols was the folk singer Woody Guthrie. He was also influenced by the early authors of the Beat Generation, as well as by modernist poets.
Dylan moved to New York in 1961 and began to perform in clubs and cafés in Greenwich Village. He met the record producer John Hammond with whom he signed a contract for his debut album, called Bob Dylan (1962). In the following years he recorded a number of albums which have had a tremendous impact on popular music: Bringing It All Back Home and High-way 61 Revisited in 1965, Blonde On Blonde in 1966 and Blood On The Tracks in 1975. His productivity continued in the following decades, resulting in masterpieces like Oh Mercy (1989), Time Out Of Mind (1997) and Modern Times (2006).
Dylan’s tours in 1965 and 1966 attracted a lot of attention. For a period he was accompa-nied by film maker D. A. Pennebaker, who documented life around the stage in what would come to be the movie Dont Look Back (1967). Dylan has recorded a large number of albums revolving around topics like the social conditions of man, religion, politics and love. The lyrics have continuously been published in new editions, under the title Lyrics. As an artist, he is strikingly versatile; he has been active as painter, actor and scriptwriter.
Besides his large production of albums, Dylan has published experimental work like Taran-tula (1971) and the collection Writings and Drawings (1973). He has written the autobiog-raphy Chronicles (2004), which depicts memories from the early years in New York and which provides glimpses of his life at the center of popular culture. Since the late 1980s, Bob Dylan has toured persistently, an undertaking called the “Never-Ending Tour”. Dylan has the status of an icon. His influence on contemporary music is profound, and he is the object of a steady stream of secondary literature.

Website bobdylan.com
Bob Dylan at Azkena Rock Festival in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, in June 2010
For more information please visit the following links:
https://www.facebook.com/nobelprize
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan

 

 Nobel Prize
The official Nobel portrait photo of Svetlana Alexievich, awarded the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature “for her polyphonic writings, a monument to suffering and courage in our time”.
Photo: Alexander Mahmoud. © Nobel Media AB 2015.
For more information please visit the following link:
https://www.facebook.com/nobelprize

 

Nobel Prize
The 12 Nobel medicine women
1947: Gerty Theresa Cori
1977: Rosalyn Yalow
1983: Barbara McClintock
1986: Rita Levi-Montalcini
1988: Gertrude B. Elion
1995: Christiane Nusslein-Volhard
2004: Linda B. Buck
2008: Francoise Barre- Sinoussi
2009: Carol W. Greider
2009: Elizabeth H. Blackburn
2014: May-Britt Moser
2015: Youyou Tu
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Nobel Prizes 2016
Physics
– David J. Thouless
– F. Duncan M. Haldane
– J. Michael Kosterlitz
“for theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter”
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This year’s chemistry Nobel Prize has been awarded to Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir J. Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L. Feringa for the design and synthesis of molecular machines. https://go.nature.com/2de9bsc
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The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm, Sweden awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2016 jointly to Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir J. Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L. Feringa “for the design and synthesis of molecular machines”.
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Jean-Pierre Sauvage, J Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L Feringa win 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Trio of Jean-Pierre Sauvage, J Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L Feringa have won the prestigious 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has chosen them for this award for their individual efforts in developing molecular machines. These three laureates will share the 8 million Swedish kronor (around $933,000) prize equally. What are molecular machines? Molecular machines or nanomachines are the world’s smallest machines. Their working is inspired by proteins that naturally act as biological machines within cells. Molecular machines are discrete number of synthetic molecular components fused together. They produce quasi-mechanical movements in response to specific external stimuli such as light or temperature change. Molecular machines can be put to work as tiny motors, pistons ratchets or wheels to produce mechanical motion and can move objects many time their size. Future Potential Applications: Molecular machines can be developed to function as artificial muscles to power tiny robots or even prosthetic limbs in case of Bionics. They may lead to developments like new sensors, materials and energy storage systems. They can be used to deliver drugs within the human body directly to target a specific area of tissue to medicate or cancerous cells. They can be used to design of a molecular computer which could be placed inside the body to detect disease even before any symptoms are exhibited. Contributions of Jean-Pierre Sauvage (France): He had taken first step towards a molecular machine in 1983, after he successfully linkied together two ring-shaped molecules to form a chain. J Fraser Stoddart (Britain): In 1991, he threaded a molecular ring onto a thin molecular axle and successfully demonstrated that the ring was able to move along the axle. Bernard L Feringa (Netherlands): He is the first person to develop a molecular motor. In 1999 successfully designed molecular rotor blade to spin continually in the same direction. He also had designed nanocar using molecular motors.
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Nobel Prize
October 11 at 2:39pm •
Fraser Stoddart, awarded the 2016 #NobelPrize in Chemistry together with Jean-Pierre Sauvage and Bernard L. Feringa.
Photo: Denise Wilson, The University of Edinburgh
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Embassy of the Netherlands in Hungary with Ben Feringa and Nobel Prize.
October 10 at 12:19pm •
Dutch synthetic organic chemist Bernard L. Feringa receives Nobel Prize
Teamed up with Jean-Pierre Sauvage and Sir J. Fraser Stoddart, Prof. Feringa created the world’s smallest machines – molecules with controllable movements, which can perform a task when energy is added. “The 2016 Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have miniaturised machines and taken chemistry to a new dimension” – the Nobel Committee`s laudation reads. Prof. Ben L. Feringa obtained his PhD. at the University of Groningen, where he was appointed full professor in 1988, after working as research scientist for Shell. Under his guidance the Feringa group has developed extensive expertise in the fields of organic chemistry, nanotechnology, asymmetric catalysis. His discovery of the molecular motor ranks highly among the many discoveries made over the years.
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Dutch synthetic organic chemist Bernard L. Feringa receives Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2016 is awarded to Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir J. Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L. Feringa for their design and production of molecular machines. They have developed molecules with controllable movements, which can perform a task when energy is added. https://bit.ly/2e1Ll6H
2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry Awarded for World’s Tiniest Machines
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2016 to for the design and synthesis of molecular machines.
labmanager.com

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Nobel laureates in Physics

In 1910 Johannes Diderik van der Waals of Netherlands received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his work on the equation of state for gases and liquids”[16]

In 1911 Wilhelm Wien of Germany received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his discoveries regarding the laws governing the radiation of heat”[17]

In 1012 Nils Gustaf Dalén of Sweden received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his invention of automatic valves designed to be used in combination with gas accumulators in lighthouses and buoys”[18]

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Nobel laureates in Physics
In 1908 Gabriel Lippmann of France received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his method of reproducing colours photographically based on the phenomenon of interference”[14]

In 1909 Guglielmo Marconi of Italy and Karl Ferdinand Braun of Germany received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for their contributions to the development of wireless telegraphy”[15]

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Nobel laureates in Physics
In 1905 Philipp Eduard Anton von Lenard of Austria-Hungary & Germany received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his work on cathode rays”[11]

In 1906 Joseph John Thomson of United Kingdom received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his theoretical and experimental investigations on the conduction of electricity by gases”[12]

In 1907 Albert Abraham Michelson of United States received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his optical precision instruments and the spectroscopic and metrological investigations carried out with their aid”[13]

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Nobel laureates in Physics

The first Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded in 1901 to Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, of Germany, who received 150,782 SEK, which is equal to 7,731,004 SEK in December 2007.
“in recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered by the discovery of the remarkable rays subsequently named after him”[7]

In 1902 Hendrik Lorentz, and Pieter Zeeman, of Netherlands received Nobel Prize in Physics
“in recognition of the extraordinary service they rendered by their researches into the influence of magnetism upon radiation phenomena”[8]

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Nobel Prize
Albert Einstein’s letter to Marie Curie in November 1911 when he told her to ignore the haters:
“Highly esteemed Mrs Curie,
Do not laugh at me for writing you without having anything sensible to say. But I am so enraged by the base manner in which the public is presently daring to concern itself with you that I absolutely must give vent to this feeling…”
Marie Curie was awarded the #NobelPrize in Physics 1903 and in Chemistry 1911. Albert Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics 1921.
Story on the letter: https://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/…/albert-einstein-marie-cur…
Also explore the Einstein Papers at: https://einsteinpapers.press.princeton.edu/
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“Falling in love is not at all the most stupid thing that people do – but gravitation cannot be held responsible for it.”
Albert Einstein apparently scribbled this on a letter sent to him from a correspondent in 1933 – asking the influential Nobel Prize-awarded physicist if ‘perhaps it was while upside down, standing on their heads, that people fell in love and did other foolish things’?

The story is recorded in the book Albert Einstein, The Human Side: Glimpses from His Archives, edited by Helen Dukas and Banesh Hoffmann with Ze’ev Rosenkranz (Princeton UP, 2013).
Photo: Einstein in the library of Paul Ehrenfest’s home. Leiden, 1916. Source: Boerhaave Museum (p08608). Public Domain. Via Wikimedia Commons.
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Nobel laureates in Physics
In 1904 Pierre Curie, (Maria Sk?odowska-Curie’s husband) of France and Maria Sk?odowska-Curie of Poland & France received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for their joint researches on the radiation phenomena discovered by Professor Henri Becquerel”[9]

In 1904 Lord Rayleigh of United Kingdom received Nobel Prize in Physics
“for his investigations of the densities of the most important gases and for his discovery of argon in connection with these studies”[10]

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Nobel Prize
Marie Curie (née Sklodowska) is the only individual who has been awarded the #NobelPrize in both Physics (1903) and Chemistry (1911).
FAQ on Marie Curie: https://www.nobelprize.org/…/laure…/1903/marie-curie-faq.html
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Nobel Prize
Trivia about twice Nobel Prize-awarded scientist – and teacher – Prof. Marie Curie (1867–1934), center in photo with four of her students:

• She was born Maria Sk?odowska, the youngest of five children of a teaching couple.

• She attended an illegal “floating university” in her youth – a night school changing locations to elude authorities during a time of czarist Russia’s occupation of Poland, that forbade women to study at university.

• At age 16, Curie starts work as a private tutor and later governess to help support her elder sister Bronya’s medical schooling in Paris. The agreement is that Bronya will return the favour after graduating.

• Outside of work, Curie spends spare time teaching the illiterate children of her employer’s peasant laborers. She is 24 when she finally joins Bronya in Paris to begin studies at the University of Sorbonne.

• By the time of her marriage to physicist and collaborator Pierre Curie in 1895 (with whom she is awarded her first Nobel Prize in Physics 1903 for research on radiation), Marie holds two master’s degrees – in physics and math – and decides to earn a certificate that will allow her to teach science to young women.

• In 1897, she becomes the first lecturer at France’s most renowned teacher training institution for women, introducing lab work to the physics curriculum.

• In 1906 she becomes the first woman to teach at the University of Sorbonne.

• Also in 1906, Marie Curie helps start and run a cooperative school with a number of other professional parents who disapproved of the rigid French school system.

One of the pupils is Marie Curie’s oldest daughter Irène, who grows up to join her mother’s research staff at the Radium Institute, along with husband Frederic Joliot.

The couple Joliot-Curie discovered artificial radioactivity and were jointly awarded the 1935 Nobel Prize for Chemistry.

–
Sources: Marie Curie and the Science of Radioactivty” by Naomi Pasachoff, online exhibit at the American Institute of Physics:https://www.aip.org/history/exhibits/curie/sitemap.htm
Nobelprize.org story on the Curies and their work:https://goo.gl/l471NC
–
Photo: taken between 1910 and 1915 by unknown photographer. Source: Library of Congress. No known copyright restrictions.
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Colombian Peace Process

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Colombian Peace Process

The Colombian peace process refers to the peace process between the Colombian government of President Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC–EP) to bring an end to the Colombian conflict. Negotiations began in September 2012, and mainly took place in Havana, Cuba. Negotiators announced a final agreement to end the conflict and build a lasting peace on August 24, 2016. However, a referendum to ratify the deal on October 2, 2016 was unsuccessful after 50.2% of voters voted against the agreement with 49.8% voting in favor. Afterward, the Colombian government and the FARC signed a revised peace deal on November 24 and sent it to Congress for ratification instead of conducting a second referendum.[1] Both houses of Congress ratified the revised peace accord on November 29-30, 2016, thus marking an end to the conflict.[2]

(wikipedia, for more information please visit the following link:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colombian_peace_process )

Peace in Colombia
It Is A Good Example For Syrian Leaders
Peace for All Syrians and For Humanity as A Whole
‘Last armed conflict in western hemisphere’
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and Farc leader Timoleon Jimenez, known as Timochenko, will sign an agreement at a ceremony on Monday, September 26, 2016
• From the section Latin America & Caribbean
https://www.bbc.com/news/video_and_audio/headlines/37469364

Colombia’s President Santos says Farc deal must rebuild country
• Media caption Juan Manuel Santos: “The signature of the deal is simply the end of the conflict then the hard work starts”
• Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos says peace with the Farc rebel group will boost economic growth and enable the country to rebuild its social fabric.
• “War is always more costly than peace,” he said in an interview with the BBC.
• Mr Santos and Farc leader Timoleon Jimenez, known as Timochenko, will sign a historic peace deal later on Monday.
• But it will take a long time for Colombian society to recover from more than five decades of conflict, he said.
Juan Manuel Santos the Signature of the deal is simply the end of the conflict then the hard work starts

Colombia’s President Santos says Farc deal must rebuild country – BBC News    (bbc.com)

Mr Santos and Farc leader Timoleon Jimenez will sign the historic peace deal at a ceremony in the port city of Cartagena on Monday evening.
The document will be signed using a Baligrafo – a bullet turned into a pen – as a symbol of a peaceful future.
Some 2,500 attendees are expected, among them UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, US Secretary of State John Kerry and several Latin American leaders including Cuba’s Raul Castro.
Victims of the conflict will also be present.

Timochenko travelled to Cartagena on Saturday for the historic ceremony
Image copyright AP Image caption

The Colombian government and left-wing Farc rebels have signed a historic agreement that formally brings an end to 52 years of armed conflict.
The rebel leader Timoleon Jimenez, known as Timochenko, apologised to “all the victims of the conflict” and was greeted by cheers and applause.
He said: “I would like to ask for forgiveness for all the pain that we have caused during this war.”
Guests dressed in white at the ceremony in Cartagena, to symbolise peace.
The last of the major Cold War conflicts killed 260,000 people and left more than six million internally displaced.

• Timochenko said the Farc, which began as the armed wing of the Communist Party in 1964, is leaving armed conflict behind and moving in to peaceful politics.
• “We are being reborn to launch a new era of reconciliation and of building peace,” he said.
• “Let us all be prepared to disarm our hearts.”
• The president and Timochenko used a pen made from a bullet to sign the deal.

Analysis, by the BBC’s Lyse Doucet in Cartagena:
This was the first time Timochenko addressed the nation live on TV. He promised the Farc would give up its guns, and more than that, he asked for forgiveness.
It earned him a standing ovation. That would have been unthinkable not long ago.
But after 50 years of war, many Colombians still aren’t ready to forgive. As President Santos put it, the hard work of building peace now lies ahead.

Analysis, by the BBC’s Lyse Doucet in Cartagena:
Under the deal, the Farc will be relaunched as a political party. Correspondents say that although there is widespread hope that the deal may bring an end to the kidnappings and bloodshed that have blighted Colombia over five decades, it has also led to divisions in Latin America’s fourth-biggest economy.
Some people are angry that it allows rebels to enter parliament without serving time in prison.
Correspondents say President Santos has risked his political future on the success of the peace deal.

Analysis, by the BBC’s Lyse Doucet in Cartagena:
As Mr Kerry arrived in the country, he praised Mr Santos’ efforts to secure the deal and pledged $390m (£300m) to help implement it.
The US is not yet ready to remove the Farc from its list of terrorist organisations, he said, but is prepared to review that sanction once the peace agreement is up and running.

Farc rebels must now hand over weapons to the UN within 180 days.
But the smaller ELN rebel group is still active, as are right-wing paramilitary groups.

The Farc will be relaunched as a political party as part of the deal, which is due to be put to Colombian voters in a popular vote on 2 October.
“We could have grown between 2% and 3% more per year for the past 23 years,” Mr Santos told the BBC’s Lyse Doucet, adding that the conflict had also had a profound impact on Colombian society.
“We have even lost our compassion, which is the ability to feel some kind of pain for others.
“A country at war for 50 years is a country that has destroyed many of its values,” said President Santos.

Mr Santos said he was “very, very confident” that most Colombians would vote in favour of the deal.
“The latest polls say that between 65% and 70% of the people approve of the peace process,” he said
But he warned that if the agreement was rejected in the popular vote, the conflict would start again.
Image copyright AFP Image caption “The people vote yes to peace,” reads an sign in Cartagena
“We will go back six years and continue the war with the Farc. That’s plan B,” he said.
Colombia’s second largest rebel group, the ELN (National Liberation Army), announced on Sunday a unilateral ceasefire until the referendum.
ELN leaders have publicly expressed their wish to engage in their own peace process with the Colombian government.
• President Juan Manuel Santos said: “Colombia celebrates, the planet celebrates because there is one less war in the world.
• We will achieve any goal, overcome any hurdle and turn our nation into a country we’ve always dreamed of – a country in peace.”
Analysis, by the BBC’s Lyse Doucet in Cartagena:
There was so much symbolism in this historic signing – a pen made from a bullet to sign the peace deal, the singing of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, everyone dressed in white.
President Santos said this historic moment was a message from Colombia to the world: no more war. “No more war,” the crowd chanted in return.

The deal comes after four years of talks in Havana, Cuba, between government and rebel negotiators. It must be approved by the Colombian people in a popular vote on Sunday before it can pass into law.
Polls indicate the majority of Colombians will vote for it, although there has been some opposition, led by ex-president Alvaro Uribe.

Dignitaries attending the ceremony included UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, US Secretary of State John Kerry and Cuban President Raul Castro.
Mr Ban told the ceremony: “You can look to the future with optimism. You are inviting Colombians to live in peace.”

Correspondents say most Colombians are expected to support the deal – these supporters have made a sign of the Spanish word for “peace” Image But some people are opposed to it – demonstrations against the deal were held in Cartagena on Monday
However, only hours before the signing, the EU announced it would suspend the Farc from its list.
“This decision will allow us to support the post-conflict programme and will be of benefit to all Colombians,” EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on social media.

Colombia peace deal: Historic agreement is signed
Analysis, by the BBC’s Lyse Doucet in Cartagena:
The Farc’s 52-year fight
Image copyright Reuters
1964: Set up as armed wing of Communist Party
2002: At its height, it had an army of 20,000 fighters controlling up to a third of the country. Senator Ingrid Betancourt kidnapped and held for six years along with 14 other hostages
2008: The Farc suffers a series of defeats in its worst year
2012: Start of peace talks in Havana
2016: Definitive ceasefire

• From the section Latin America & Caribbean
https://www.bbc.com/news/video_and_audio/headlines/37469364

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Nobel Peace Prize For Colombia’s Juan Manuel Santos
• 7 October 2016
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end the 52-year conflict with left-wing rebels.
The Nobel committee praised him for a peace deal signed with Farc rebels, but rejected by Colombians in a vote.
Mr Santos said he dedicated the award to “all the victims of the conflict”, and the Farc leader congratulated him.
About 260,000 people have been killed and more than six million internally displaced in Colombia.
The award did not include Farc leader Rodrigo Londono, known as Timochenko, who also signed the accord.
• Who are the Farc?
• Colombia media hopeful over Santos peace prize
• Viewpoint: What next for Colombia?
• Santos: From hawk to dove
The head of the Nobel commitee said the award recognised the president’s “resolute efforts” to end the conflict.
“The award should also be seen as a tribute to the Colombian people who, despite great hardships and abuses, have not given up hope of a just peace, and to all the parties who have contributed to the peace process,” Kaci Kullman Five added.
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Nobel Peace Prize For Colom bia’s Juan Manuel Santos
• 7 October 2016
• From the section Latin America & Caribbean
Juan Manuel Santo
• Born in Bogota in 10 August 1951 in an influential family
• Elected Colombian president in 2010 and re-elected in 2014
• Served as defence minister from 2006 until 2009
• Married, has two sons and one daughter
Sources: BBC Monitoring, Colombian presidency
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Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and his wife, María Clemencia Rodríguez Múnera

Colombia President Juan Manuel Santos awarded Nobel Peace Prize for bid to end half-century conflict
The award was a surprise because Colombians voted Sunday against Santos’s peace accord, which many viewed as too generous to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Santos was considered a leading candidate for the prize prior to the referendum, but his chances seemed to fade after voters sunk the deal by a narrow margin.
Offering a window into Nobel deliberations, the committee said its members were conscious that the Colombian peace efforts were imperiled and wanted to offer a boost.
“There is a real danger that the peace process will come to a halt and that civil war will flare up again,” said Kaci Kullmann Five, a former Norwegian politician who is now chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee. “We hope it will encourage all good initiatives and all the parties who could make a difference in this process in Colombia.”
Juan Manuel Santos and his wife, he was recognized for his work to end a half-century conflict with Marxist rebels in his country.
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Colombia peace deal: Government and Farc reach new agreement

13 November 2016, from the section Latin America & Caribbean

Image copyright GETTY IMAGES Image caption: The first peace deal met resistance as many claimed it allowed Farc rebels to get away with murder

The Colombian government and the Farc rebel group have announced a new peace agreement, six weeks after the original deal was rejected in a popular vote.

The two sides, which have been holding talks in Cuba for four years, said the revised plan incorporated proposals from the opposition and others groups.

The initial deal had been deemed to be too favourable to the left-wing rebels.

The new agreement is not expected to be put to another popular vote, but rather submitted to Congress.

“We have reached a new final agreement to end the armed conflict, which incorporates changes, clarifications and some new contributions from various social groups,” the two sides said in a statement.

It was read by diplomats from Cuba and Norway, the mediating countries, in the Cuban capital, Havana.

The statement did not give details of the revised agreement but Colombia’s lead negotiator, Humberto de la Calle, said it “resolves many criticisms” of the previous deal.

One new requirement was for the Farc to draw up a complete list of its assets, to be used for victim compensation, he added. Further details are expected to be released over the weekend.

Image copyright GETTY IMAGES Image caption Farc  representative Ivan Marquez (left) shook hands with government negotiator Humberto de la Calle

However the leader of the “No” campaign, former President Alvaro Uribe, said the new proposals did not go far enough.

The previous deal was rejected by 50.2% of voters in a vote held on 2 October.

Many objected to the lenient sentences given to fighters who confessed to crimes. Some would have avoided serving any time in conventional prisons.

Those who opposed the deal also balked at the government’s plan to pay demobilised Farc rebels a monthly stipend while offering those wanting to start a business financial help.

Polls had initially indicated that the agreement would be approved by a comfortable margin, but opposition to the agreement had been stronger than expected.

Despite the rejection of the deal by voters, President Juan Manuel Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his part in the negotiations.

Colombia’s largest rebel group

Image copyright GETTY IMAGES Image caption The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) was formed in 1964

Farc, Colombia’s largest rebel group, was formed in 1964 with the stated intention of overthrowing the government and installing a Marxist regime.

After modest beginnings, the group rose to prominence through the 1980s and 1990s as its association with the drugs trade improved its financial standing.

At its peak it was the largest and best-equipped guerrilla force in Latin America.

But the number of active Farc fighters has diminished from its estimated high of 20,000 to about 7,000 after thousands of guerrilla fighters were demobilised or killed.

Colombia’s second-largest rebel group, the National Liberation Army (ELN), has also been engaged in an armed conflict for more than five decades.

About 260,000 people have killed and millions displaced in the 52-year conflict.

For more information please visit the following link:                                         https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-37965392

“The Colombian government and left-wing Farc rebels have signed a historic agreement that formally brings an end to 52 years of armed conflict.
The last of the major Cold War conflicts killed 260,000 people and left more than six million internally displaced.”

“A Staggering New Death Toll for Syria’s War — 470,000” on FEBRUARY 11, 2016 report from FRONTLINE, PBS

For more information please visit the following link:                                          https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/a-staggering-new-death-toll-for-syrias-war-470000/

Syria refugee crisis:

UPDATED JANUARY 31, 2017

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China’s traditional lantern in Zigong lights up the world

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China’s traditional lantern in Zigong lights up the world

CNC News on Monday, January 15, 2017

China’s traditional lantern is going to light up the world …

Under a “cLantern World Tour” project, China plans to host at least 100 lantern shows in 100 cities both at home and abroad over the next five years.

Zigong, a city in southwest China’s Sichuan Province, is well known as “the City of Lantern”.

 Making lanterns has become a tradition in Zigong for about 800 years. 

Back to Tang and Song Dynasty, people in Zigong had established the tradition of making and appreciating lanterns. In Ming and Qing Dynasty, it developed into a lantern fair. 

For hundreds of years, the lantern fair has become an important activity during the Spring Festival. 

To promote the Zigong Lantern World Tour, the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) held a reception, inviting officials and representatives from various countries and international organizations. 

  (CHINESE): LI XIAOLIN, CPAFFC President

“The promotion of the Zigong Lantern World Tour is the first time for our association to incorporate local cultural elements. We shall create more opportunities in the future to promote rich Chinese traditions to our international friends.”

(CHINESE): LIU YONGXIANG, Mayor of Zigong

“The promotion of the Zigong Lantern World Tour will be held in countries and regions along the Belt and Road. Moreover, Zigong lanterns will also be presented in Hamburg, Germany during the 2017 G20 Summit.”

Lanterns in Zigong had been exhibited in 500 domestic cities and 40 foreign countries and regions. The cumulative number of visitors reached more than 400 million.

 For more information please visit the following link: https://en.cncnews.cn/

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