Volunteer for the environment, The International Volunteer Day in Syria

"Dear colleagues, partners and friends,

You are all cordially invited to participate in our InternationalVolunteer Day 2008 activities, which will take place Friday 5thDecember. We need a lot of volunteers, and UN staff and staff fromsponsor organizations are especially encouraged to sign up. RedCrescent is our main implementing partner, and is organizing themobilization of volunteers in Damascus (call the Red Crescent andregister yourself).

This year a number of UN agencies and NGOs in Syria are promoting volunteerism for environmental awareness (MDG 7) through organizing anEnvironmental Campaign focusing on canvas bags as an alternative toplastic bags. The campaign is taking place in Lattakia and Damascus, incl.UNRWA Yarmouk camp.

In each city, we are going to clean up selected areas for plastic andother waste, distribute canvas bags, flyers and booklets to raiseenvironmental awareness, and organize children to paint their owncanvas bag within the concept of "Learning How To Play". NGOs will also be invited to display their activities to the children andvisitors. We are mobilizing 500 volunteer and 500 children in each city + 150 children in Yarmouk camp.

Please see the IVD campaign spots and program for the Damascus event below:

Activity: Clean-up of plastic and other waste
Location:Selected areas of Damascus
Time: 8.30
Pick up at al-Fayha by busses11.00 Cleaning finishes.
Breakfast at al-Fayha for the volunteers, Children painting their own canvas bag Environmental awareness raising to childrenAl-Fayha
10.30 Official Opening of IVD for partner organizations and sponsors
12-18.00 Children are invited to participate in activities organizedby the volunteers and NGOs19.00 Celebration reception for the volunteers onlyDistribution of canvas bagsEnvironmental awareness through flyers, booklets and documentation showCham City Center + Grandmart supermarket
13.00 Distribute canvas bags in the Supermarket, and raiseenvironmental awareness from IVD stand
16.00 Shops open. Distribute flyers and booklets on all floors of theCity Center.

Even if you don't sign up to become a volunteer, you are most welcometo visit our activities on the day. Canvas bags are distributed forfree in the supermarket to customers.

In the name of the Volunteer Spirit and hopes for a great event,

Signe Ejerskov (Ms.)
UNV Programme Officer
UNDP Syria
Visit us online: http://www.undp.org.sy/, http://www.un.org.sy/, http://www.unvolunteers.org/
Tel.:+963 11 612 98 11 (ext. 293)
Fax: +963 11 611 45 41 "

you can see the poster(Arabic) here, I couldnt upload it to blogspot, if you need English posters please send me an e-mail cause the posters are too big to download.

See you guys there, bring friends and cameras!
Be there or be square ;)

If a dog chews shoes, whose shoes does he choose?

I just feel a little silly today, such a tragedy strategy to survive Fridays though…Bear with me my fellow bears.

Okay, here are some nice tongue twisters that can drive your whole family away from the house so you can have the house for your self and have a party the whole night without even hearing from your family till the next day…
Or if you wanna annoy some one who is easy to irritate, do it in group… trust me it works!

" She sells sea shells on sea shore the shells she sells are seashells for sure."

"Cheap sheep on cheap ship eating cheap chips ( 10 times quickly)"

"Betty Botter had some butter,"But," she said, "this butter's bitter.If I bake this bitter butter,it would make my batter bitter.But a bit of better butter--that would make my batter better."So she bought a bit of butter,better than her bitter butter,and she baked it in her batter,and the batter was not bitter.So 'twas better Betty Botterbought a bit of better butter."

" They both, though, have thirty-three thick thimbles to thaw"

It's silly and time consuming?! What a selfish shellfish I am!

Cheers every one ;)!

Mr. presedent, are you committed to justice?

MR PRESIDENT (yes dears)
ARE YOU COMMITTED TO JUSTICE? (No need to question this)
THESE ARE THE THREE KEY STEPS ON AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL’SCHECKLIST FOR YOUR FIRST 100 DAYS (mmm, well...aaa)

ARE YOU COMMITTED TO JUSTICE? (hell, yeah!)
PROVE IT IN YOUR FIRST100 DAYS
(Eyes and mouth are wide open, Hilary pops her head up from the nearby window cheering)

1. ANNOUNCE THE TIMELINE TO CLOSE GUANTÁNAMO
2. ISSUE AN EXECUTIVE ORDER TO BAN TORTURE AND OTHERILL-TREATMENT, AS DEFINED UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW
3. ENSURE AN INDEPENDENT INQUIRY INTO THE USA’S DETENTION ANDINTERROGATION PRACTICES IN ITS “WAR ON TERROR” IS SET UPCOUNTER TERROR WITH JUSTICE
WE’RE COUNTING ON YOU (I'm not sure about this though!)

I just love Amnesty...I really do!

so anyway, what are we demanding from Obama's administration? : "NO MORE WARS!"

I think Bush's administration has raised the world's tolerance toward violations of human rights and injustice...

good night.

Religious Fever?!

I'm trying to analyze the reason behind the religious fever that is affecting Syrian blogosphere. I know it is a projection of the religious fever that is hitting the society. I'm really concerned about it, WHAT IS GOING ON?!

I don’t mind it, after all it is freedom of expression, but some of them are sending messages of not respecting the "other" freedom of expression, and more dangerously to attacking other's freedom of expression. Can any one help me out in here to figure this thing out? Is our society heading toward the religious mentality to hypnotize itself out of a miserable reality? Is it systematic? Chaotic? A normal result of giving the freedom of religious organization to move after decades of firm controlling? is it a type of defense system against the global media hostility against Islam?What is it?!

Our meeting with the British Foreign Secretary David Milliband

I didn’t know that it would be a face to face meeting in which the Secretary will have questions to ask us rather than I thought it would be like an informal reception to the Secretary at the ambassador resident.

He was interested in hearing from us as Syrian youth how we think the best way to develop relations between Syria and the UK; he was interested as well in hearing our thoughts about how we see development is going in Syria, the educational system that he said that it is "too French", and we talked about local NGOs as well.

at the same time we expressed our opinions after working with British NGOs and that led us to talk about the British Immigration law, as I explained to him my surprise to find such division between refugees and other locals that I've seen through working in Govan - a community of refugees and asylum seekers in Glasgow-.

He also was curious to know in which country we as Syrian youth are affected by and would like to travel to, and asked specifically if we look up to Iran and Turkey.
My answer was that after the US invaded Iraq, our youth are less interested in the American culture and now the eyes are on Europe.

The last two questions were:
- What would you think the British embassy and the British council can do to improve Britain's image among Syrians youth?
Most of the answers were far away from politics and included more support to Syrian NGOs and to programs that include exchanges between the two countries.
I explained that the embassy is rarely to participate in social events or support NGOs, and if the British Embassy's name as a political representive of Britain along witht the British council as a cultural represntive are more involved in the Syrian society, it would help to get the Syrians to see that Britains are intrested in the Syrian culture apart from politics.
Mr. Simon Collis the British Ambassador, explained that funding such projects comes from the British Tax payers and the Embassy along with the foreign and commonwealth office will have to provide the prove for the need to such projects. Syria could do a big part in it by doing business partnership with UK.

one of the questions was:

- Where would you see Syria in 10 years, if I came here in 10 years what would I see differently?
I said that the change certainly would involve a stronger and more vocal civic society.

It was really interesting 40 minutes, the Foreign Secretary was interested in getting an insight to the Syrian community apart from politics; I think that Britain now is serious about building good relationship with Syria which is in Britain interest as much as in the Syrian interest.

However, nothing can be isolated from politics... it was interesting but defiantly not satisfying enough at least to me.

Closer to heaven

Marmousa Monastery is where I can find God...

Not the same God that they told me about...

This is the place where I can create mine...

And it's the perfect place to get such perfect snapshots of the most meaningful looks ever!

Dancing in Heaven...Farewell Lawand!

I was shocked to hear the news this morning, Lawand Hajo the principal dancer and choreographer of Ramad was killed in his apartment in Kidsaya... I don't know what to say really... I am still shocked!

I only met Lawand twice, such an impressive and creative artist...

"Ramad" will not be the same with out you... not on April 29th, you created a unique style of dancing, faced lots of challenges, sold your house to get your passion out to the light...

you will be so missed Lawand

what a lose....!

Updates:" my friends told me that police confirmed that Lawand was tortured before being killed, they broke his bones, killed him and then burned his body and the house, it was a clear hate crime… those criminals are filled with hate toward his light and chose to turn it off… "

Realization

It's till last night when I realized this; it scared the hell out of me…
I don’t understand my self… I have always thought I do, I have always thought that I know myself very well, I was always able to predict myself, even others… but… when I realized it...

I fell…

Every piece of me is shattered into millions of pieces; I can't feel one structure of me, I lost the sensation of the ground beneath my feet, loosing the will to challenge or to fight, my reflection in the mirror is showing fuzzy pieces that were poorly manufactured.
This is the first time I feel unsure, hesitating, wavering, extremely weak and vulnerable, asking my self whys and not knowing the answeres…

I'm scared…

عودة إلى نظرية المؤامرة, سيداو هي مؤامرة صهيونية برأي د.البوطي

سيداو, اتفاقية مناهضة جميع أشكال التميز ضد المرأة هي بنظر د.البوطي مؤامرة صهيونية...

مع إحترامي للجماهيرية و الشعبية يلي بيتمتع فيها د.البوطي لكن لما قريت هالمقال في موقع نساء سوريا لم أستطع منع نفسي من الضحك, يعني الصهيونية عم تخطط لتخلي الأم السورية قادرة على منح جنسيتها لأطفالها...
يعني هلأ لما أنا بالقانون عندي حق حرية السفر و التحرك بكون عم "أضعف الأمة العربية"؟؟

كلام خالي من المنطق

من المعروف من الشخصيات الدينية و السياسية العربية عندما يفرغون من محاولات التبرير لأي اضطهاد باحتضان نظرية المؤامرة الصيونية...

مع أني مع حرية التعبير المطلقة... لكن لما حدا يعبر عن أنه حريتي هي عبارة عن مؤامرة صهيونية, فتجاوزت القصة قضية حرية التعبير
شي مؤسف نسمع هالشي من د.البوطي ... شي مؤسف لكنه مو غريب

Mabrook Obama...BUT

Iraq?
Pulling army from Iraq is like "hit and run", you can't just go into a country and fuck up every thing in it and then pull out… its not that simple.

Guantanamo?
Will prisoners in Guantanamo get fair trails and being treated as human beings according to the UDHR?
If not, then forget about the "change" every one is dreaming of.

And Left...

And left …100 years ago

It was dark outside, and so inside. I closed the window as it was raining heavenly; I tucked you in and softly kissed your warm forehead while you were in deep dreamless sleep. Your smile was so pure and so I just sat there listening carefully to the noisy silence of your existence.
I put my big bag on my back and left ...

And left… tomorrow

I was staring at the dead end, you couldn't see it… I saw you there walking fast, you were far away and I could hear you breath, I could feel your heart beats faster than the pace of your steps… I held your hand, kissed it good bye… and left your colorful existence fade away in the dusty wind... and...Left tomorrow

And left… Today
Your hands are cold; your eyes are closed… I lay my head on your chest for hours, nights and years… just like 100 years ago… but your hands are still cold… you left me, left my dim empty existence to start your journey in heaven, make it darker and make it sweeter.

I miss the sound of your heart beats… I miss home.