Thanks for your solidarity!

December 20, 2017

Thanks for your solidarity! Dear colleagues and  friends Season’s greetings from us all at the IFJ Asia-Pacific team. Thanks for all your collaboration, support and efforts throughout 2017 and we look forward to hearing your ideas on campaigns and activities that we can work together on in 2018. Until then, may the new year bring you stronger unions, good jobs, press freedom and peace. In solidarity, IFJ Asia-Pacific The IFJ Asia Pacific office in Sydney will be closed from Thursday December 21, 2017 until Wednesday January 17, 2018. If you need help or assistance during this time please contact the following people:  South Asia: IFJ South Asia Coordinator: ujjwal.acharya@gmail.com South East Asia East Asia Pacific Communications: Esti Ortiz: esti.ortiz@ifj.org Communications: Pamela Moriniere: pamela.moriniere@ifj.org Safety: Ernest Sagaga: ernest.sagaga@ifj.org  Share Tweet Share For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +61 2 9333 0950 The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries  Follow the IFJ Asia Pacific: Facebook Twitter Website

Copyright © 2017, the International Federation of Journalists Asia Pacific. All rights reserved.

Moroccan (and HAF) Reflections at the End of the Year

Moroccan (and HAF) Reflections at the End of the Year     Morocco is a place of infinite possibility.  That is so because of Morocco, its multicultural people, and its identity.  People’s participation in their development can occur in all its places, because it is encouraged - even obligatory - by multiple laws and programs of the land.      The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) creates project and partnership models that make national impact absolutely real.  We create the public, private, and multi-tiered relationships and project examples that engine national transformation.  Incredibly, Morocco’s full success of its participatory, decentralized development vision carries profound meaning for itself, the Continent, and the Middle East.  We are dedicated to Morocco fulfilling its global potential from its own national sustainable development.     HAF empowers women through their self-discovery, community-driven livelihoods, and knowledge of human rights.  HAF builds the power of youth through sharpening their abilities to create sustainable community and personal growth.  HAF brightens schools with new classrooms, gardens, and interactive environmental education.  HAF brings clean drinking water to marginalized communities.  HAF vastly expands the organic agricultural economy, and helps direct the new revenue to advance the people’s development.      HAF’s partnerships with cooperatives and associations, government, andreligious communities is seeing millions of fruit trees being grown and hundreds of millions more possible.  The planting season is now and we plant trees such as walnut, carob, and others that live for centuries.  We also monitor tree growth for carbon credit offsets.  We would be honored and grateful to provide you these credits.      Giving to HAF is giving to personal and national transformation, and to the international consequences of Morocco a truly fulfilled participatory nation.    It is a New Year celebrated by much of our planet.  Here is to all our resolutions of the heart.  Here is to Morocco and to all who strive for its complete potential. Yours faithfully, Yossef Ben-Meir President High Atlas Foundation

MAPPING NEEDS WITH WOMEN OF TALATAN, OURIKA VALLEY The HAF team, including Fatima-Zahra, Amina, Ibtissam, Gal and Abd-El Jalil, visited the Village of Talatan in the Ourika Valley.  We have been working in this mountain region a lot, and it is always exciting to see it changing in front of our eyes. The weather is indeed changing too.  The beautiful mountains are covered with snow.  The people of Morocco’s prayers for rain were answered; the mountains are white.Continue  Give to this project HAF PROMOTES TREE PLANTING & VALUE-ADDITION  The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) in Morocco is using innovative approaches to tackling poverty in this North Africa country,  as well as addressing the challenge of climate change.  HAF is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the livelihoods of rural households. The Foundation was established in 2000 by former Peace Corps Volunteers and registered in both the USA and Morocco.  It set an ambitious goal to plant one million trees and successfully met that challenge in 2014. HAF is not stopping and has agreed to support the Government of Morocco to reach its target to plant one billion trees, and has created model nurseries and partnerships to achieve this transformative milestone. Continue Give to this project   VOLUNTEERS CREATE WORLDS A world created is one that begins with a path taken by an individual who gives time, energy, thought, and care without personal material return, to people seeking a genuine change.  The volunteer-of-oneself may begin this journey with heavy concern over the unknown, with boundless belief in the infinitely possible, and with even outright alienation from the people to benefit.  The giver-without-recompense may start a dialogue within oneself, asking why am I here, what can I do that really matters, and must I do this and feel cold, tired, hungry, and alone?  Continue Thank you Farmer-to-Farmer (Land O' Lakes and USAID) and all HAF's Volunteers. Volunteer  with us.

CELEBRATING WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT  In the heart of Ourika Valley, the Aboghlou Women’s Cooperative, YSL Beauté, PUR Project, and the High Atlas Foundation succeeded in creating a beautiful organic nursery of calendula and other medicinal plants, as well as almond trees. The nursery is managed by the Cooperative of 39 women. The women of the Cooperative showed a very warm welcome to the 100 guests by sharing their accomplishments Continue عربى Give to this project WATER, RAIN, COME OUR WAY! We are in the midst of a wrenching drought in Morocco.  There is ultimately no greater relief than rain.   There are though actions we can take together to help safeguard drinking water and the survival of the organic fruit trees we planted. Water conservation basically comes down to containment and efficiency, and empowered local community management.  In arid places, we also need to deepen wells.  Basins and pipes conserve water by eliminating seepage and enabling us to irrigate with better precision.  They also help to purify the water and reduce water born diseases and infant mortality.  Deepening wells by even five meters we can significantly reduce the economic shock of the drought, and stem food insecurity. Continue Give to this project   COMMUNITY PROJECT DREAMS $100 = One training workshop with 40 women on cooperative-building and human rights $500 = Grow 15,000 walnut seeds in a tree nurserygenerating income for 1,000 people $1,000 = Enable a local NGO to hire one pre-school teacher for one year for 30 children $2,000 = 2 bathrooms for girls and 2 for boys at a rural school of 100 students $2,000 = 4-day empowerment-human rights workshop with 25 women $5,000 = A well at a primary school for drinking water and garden for 100 students $80,000 = Grow 200,000 fruit trees and install a well and drip system, benefiting 8,000 people          Give to a Moroccan Dream

Give to Transform

Copyright © High Atlas Foundation All rights reserved.   Our mailing address is: Haf@highatlasfoundation.org HAF IN THE US High Atlas Foundation High Atlas Foundation 332 Bleecker Street, #K110, NEW YORK, NY 10014 - USA Phone: +1 (646) 688-2946 Fax: +1 (646) 786-4780 HAF IN MOROCCO Subscribed by the Last Hope  and Published For Public Awareness and Interest ================================== High Atlas Foundation 4 Rue Qadi AyaadAl Manar 4A - 3rd floor - Appt. 12 El Harti, Guéliz, MARRAKESH 40.000 - Morocco Tel: +212 (0)5 24 42 08 21 Fax: +212 (0)5 24 43 00 02

MEDIA RELEASE: Ruling party cadre attack journalists in Bangladesh

MEDIA RELEASE:BANGLADESH Download press release as PDF HERE December 13, 2017

Ruling party cadre attack journalists in Bangladesh The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Bangladesh Manobadhikar Sangbadik Forum (BMSF) condemn the attack on four journalists in Pabna of Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh on November 30. The IFJ demands fair investigation to ensure the perpetrators are punished. Saikat Afroz, 35, of Somoy TV, Rizvi Joy and Milon Hosssain, 25, of ATN News, and Partho Hasan of DBC News were beaten up by a gang while on duty. The journalists said a group of 25 to 30 people carrying sticks and iron rods attacked them on instructions from Shirhan Sherif Tomal,  the son of Land Minister Shamsur Rahman Sherif. The journalists were  recording footage of people damaging banners and posters welcoming the PM hung by Tomal's rival groups. The four received treatment at the Pabna General Hospital. Police has registered a case Tomal and 29 other cadre of the ruling Awami League for the attack after the journalists held a protest and gave an ultimatum to the local administration for arresting the attackers. The IFJ said: "The IFJ condemns the attack on four journalists by cadres of the ruling party in Pabna, Bangladesh; and demands fair investigation and punishment to the attackers. Bangladeshi journalists have long been facing threats from  political forces as well as religious extremist groups and the authorities should urgently take serious action to enable an environment for independent journalism.” Share Tweet Share For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +61 2 9333 0950 The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries  Follow the IFJ Asia Pacific: Facebook Twitter Website

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MEDIA RELEASE: French journalist arrested in Kashmir

MEDIA RELEASE: INDIA Download press release as PDF HERE December 13, 2017

French journalist arrested in Kashmir The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) expresses serious concern over the arrest and continuing detention of French freelance journalist Paul Comiti in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir region, India on December 10, 2017. The IFJ demands immediate release of the journalist. On Sunday, Kashmir police arrested Comiti for ‘violating visa regulations’ by filming protest activities in Kashmir, and presented him to the court, which remanded him on custody for five days. Comiti, 47, was visiting Kashmir to research for his documentary on a business visa valid until December 2018. According to media reports the police charged him with violating the Passport Act and carrying out activities not permitted under a business visa. He was waiting for the necessary permits, requested more than two months ago, before starting to film and was meeting military officials, separatist leaders and human rights activists. The Kashmir Valley has been dealing with an armed conflict and separatist movement since 1990. Journalists in the region have been working under extreme stress, threats and intimidation from the various actors in the conflict. Reporting the situation on the ground and informing the public is challenging, as the government and security forces attempt to restrict mobility, block access to sources and arbitrarily shut down telephone services and the internet. The IFJ said: "The IFJ expresses serious concerns over the arrest and detention of French journalist Paul Comiti in Kashmir, India and demands his immediate release. In addition to the blockade of information for local journalists, it is almost impossible for the international media to report on Kashmir due non-issuance of journalist visas. The IFJ believes these restrictions are attempts to control access to information by denying journalists their legitimate rights. The IFJ also urges the Indian government to ensure that it respects international standards of dealing with journalists.” Share Tweet Share For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +61 2 9333 0950 The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries  Follow the IFJ Asia Pacific: Facebook Twitter Website

Copyright © 2017, the International Federation of Journalists Asia Pacific. All rights reserved.