The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015 to end poverty, reduce inequality and build more peaceful, prosperous societies by 2030. Also known as the Global Goals, the SDGs are a call to action to create a world where no one is left behind.

Following our coverage of Goal Area 1 and Goal Area 2 reports, we are now highlighting the major talking points of the Goal Area 3 report:

Goal Area 3 aims to ensure that every girl and boy is protected from violence and exploitation. Two years into the implementation of the UNICEF Strategic Plan, 2018–2021, Goal Area 3 had progress rates of over 90 percent for two of the three result areas. Progress was slowest in the result area on access to justice, specifically on legal aid and birth registration.  UNICEF worked in over 150 countries in 2019 in its efforts to protect children against violence.

Every child is protected from violence and exploitation

In 2019, UNICEF fought to safeguard children from abuse and exploitation in more than 150 countries. With health and social work, 17% more children faced violence.

Strengthening child protection systems to reduce violence against children

Some figures from this chapter:

• 3 million Mothers, fathers, and caregivers reached through parenting programs in 79 countries (+10%)
• 7 million children who have experienced violence reached by services in 115 countries (+17%)

Accelerating national progress to reduce all forms of violence

In 2019, UNICEF stepped up efforts in 141 countries to scale up evidence-based violence prevention programs and institutionalize response services for child victims of violence, a 5% increase over the countries reporting in 2018.

Strengthening information management systems

Integrated Information Management Systems are a vital component of upgrading child safety systems, according to UNICEF. Case management, incident monitoring, and program monitoring are three types of data that UNICEF and partners maintain.

Child protection in humanitarian action

In 74 humanitarian crises, UNICEF offered protection to millions of children impacted by armed conflict, natural disasters, and public health emergencies. UNICEF sparked a global conversation around mental health and psychosocial well-being.

Some highlights:

• 7 million children are provided with community-based mental health and psychosocial support in 60 countries.
• 75 million children on the move received protective services in 61 countries.
• 3 million women and children reached with gender-based violence interventions in 46 countries.

Delivery of protection services to reduce harmful practices

Despite a dramatic decrease in recent years, the general rate of child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM) remains high. Progress must be considerably increased to eradicate harmful behaviors by 2030 (SDG 5.3).

-Child marriage

UNICEF and partners helped 58 countries from all over the world adopt rights-based programs to eliminate child marriage. While both boys and girls marry as children, girls marry at a rate six times greater than boys. UNICEF-supported programming reached approximately 5.7 million teenage females with preventative and care interventions.

-Female Genital Mutilation

UNICEF has made significant contributions to the elimination of female genital mutilation (FGM) in 21 countries where FGM programs are being conducted. UNICEF is striving to improve interventions such as the establishment of girls’ and women’s agencies, community surveillance, and opportunities for young people to promote the abolition of FGM in their countries and communities.

Promoting access to justice for children

128 countries reported progress on implementing interventions to improve children’s access to justice. This is a 44 percent increase over previous years. Strengthening justice systems for children contributes to ending violence against children and harmful practices.

– Improving birth registration

UNICEF helped 80 countries upgrade their civil registration and vital statistics systems, with Eastern and Southern Africa accounting for more than half (51%) of the total. In comparison to the previous year, the number of children reached in 2019 increased significantly.

The Outlook

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are experiencing the world’s worst global health disaster in modern history. Children and women would suffer severe and long-term consequences as a result of the pandemic’s devastating socioeconomic effects, including their care, protection, and well-being. Goal Area 3 programming must be agile, adaptable, innovative, scalable, and adaptive as we move forward, according to UNICEF.

This coverage by the Broken Chalk foundation is an excerpt from UNICEF’s official report site. For further details and the full report please visit the page

Education and human rights are both important tools for the advancement of mankind. However, both education and human rights are interlinked. Education brings awareness among people, educated people do not accept atrocities on them or others, and education leads to questioning political elites and demands that society and political class take specific care to serve their needs. Therefore, there is a need to understand Current Issues in Education and Human Rights. An understanding is required given that today education is required more than at any point in time.

 

In my opinion, one very big issue connected to education and human rights is the digital divide. The World Economic Forum in its report has stated that “Fewer than 1 in 5 people in the least developed countries are connected (Broom, 2020)” to the internet or have access to online mediums. The impact of the low-level penetration of the internet is being felt in the developing world, especially during the Pandemic. UNICEF has reported that “Two-thirds of the world’s school-age children – or 1.3 billion children aged 3 to 17 years old – do not have internet connection in their homes” (Thompson, 2020). The equivalent number for the age group 15 to 24 years is “759 million or 63 percent unconnected at home” (Thompson, 2020). The consequence is the denial of the right to education a human right under the UDHR because of the inability to travel to school like in normal times due to pandemic prevention measures.

 

The next issue is the ever-present structural barriers to education that will only be exacerbated by the pandemic. These barriers have only been exacerbated by the Pandemic. The World Bank predicts that “COVID-related school closures risk pushing an additional 72 million primary school-aged children into learning poverty—meaning that they are unable to read and understand a simple text by age 10″ (The World Bank, 2020). Moreover, due to the pandemic, World Bank also predicts that it could increase the “percentage of primary-school-age children in low- and middle-income countries living in learning poverty to 63 percent from 53 percent, and it puts this generation of students at risk of losing about $10 trillion in future life-time earnings (The World Bank, 2021)”. These are again human rights issues because they are in one sense a denial of the right to employment and education of human beings due to the pandemic. These statistics also show that states need to do more to combat the issue of learning poverty.

Finally, there will also have to be a focus on social ills that can create barriers to education and exacerbate human rights situations in fragile countries. Earlier, this year UNICEF reported that “10 million additional girls at risk of child marriage due to COVID-19” (Wylie, 2021). There are many other issues like child marriage that have to be dealt with if there is any possibility of children’s education not being compromised and ensuring the long-term prosperity of people.

 

Sources

1. Broom, (2020). Coronavirus has exposed the digital divide like never before, Retrieved from Click the Link

2. Thompson, (2020). Two-thirds of the world’s school-age children have no internet access at home, a new UNICEF-ITU report says. Retrieved from: Click the Link

3. Pandemic Threatens to Push 72 Million More Children into Learning Poverty—World Bank outlines a New Vision to ensure that every child learns, everywhere, (2020). Retrieved from: Click the Link

4. Wylie, (2021). 10 million additional girls at risk of child marriage due to COVID-19. Retrieved from: Click the Link

 

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015 to end poverty, reduce inequality and build more peaceful, prosperous societies by 2030. Also known as the Global Goals, the SDGs are a call to action to create a world where no one is left behind.

Following our coverage of the Goal Area 1 report, we are now highlighting the major talking points of the Goal Area 2 report:

The Annual Results Report for Education published by UNICEF highlights major trends and issues in the field of education. The Strategic Plan’s midterm evaluation, which took place in 2019, revealed that all three results areas in Goal Area 2 had made progress. It did, however, emphasize the need to quicken the pace of advancement and raise the bar on ambition.

Every child learns

According to World Bank figures, 53 percent of children in low- and middle-income countries are “learning poor”. UNICEF report highlights that 420 million children will fail to attain basic skills in childhood by 2030. Many of the children trying to learn are doing so in education systems that face multiple challenges, including conflict, disease outbreaks, and the growing impact of climate change. The number of children whose lives have been disrupted by conflict and crisis surged to a record high in 2017 and has remained at that level throughout 2018 and 2019.

-Equitable access to education

UNICEF works to reach the most vulnerable children through educational initiatives at all levels. Countries have been assisted in making inclusive and early education a priority in their sector strategies.

-Inclusive education

Inclusive education helps children with disabilities to learn in a mainstream classroom context. It also helps all children work towards achieving their potential.

-Accessible Digital Textbooks for All

UNICEF provided technical support and guidance for the ‘Accessible Digital Textbooks for All’ initiative in Kenya, Paraguay, Rwanda, Uganda, and Uruguay.

-Reaching the most disadvantaged

UNICEF Côte d’Ivoire experimented with an innovative construction approach that used recycled plastic waste bricks. There are presently 26 fully functional classes operating around the country. This alternative method is quicker than standard approaches, lowering the time it takes to build a classroom.

-Education in emergencies

In 2018, more than half of the 20 countries with the lowest levels of learning faced humanitarian crises. In crisis-affected countries, 128 million primary and secondary school-aged children are out of school. Following the crisis in Venezuela, UNICEF provided humanitarian assistance to millions of children both within the nation and those migrating throughout Latin America.

Improving learning outcomes

When learning outcomes are highlighted and evaluated, several encouraging programs have shown tremendous gains for children. Learning assessments must provide information on how to enhance teaching and learning to parents, teachers, and policymakers.

Highlights from the chapter:

– 12.4 million children received learning materials.

– 60,561 school management committees received training.

– 48% of countries have effective education systems for learning outcomes.

– 36% of countries have gender-responsive teaching and learning systems.

Skills development

There is an urgent need to expand, rethink and transform education and learning systems. All children and adolescents, especially those who are marginalized and in conflict and emergency settings.

-Gender equality in skills development

In many countries, progress in educational achievement among girls and young women is not translating into employability. This is because of barriers to skills development opportunities, such as restrictive gender norms. UNICEF is supporting gender-responsive programs and innovations that help bridge secondary education with the world of work.

The Outlook

Even before the pandemic, the world was falling behind on its goal of providing universal access to high-quality education and learning by 2030. UNICEF plans to expand on the growing body of information about the efficacy of various ways to changing education systems to improve learning outcomes. The full effects of the crisis will be enormous, and it will linger for many years in ways that are still unknown. The new Education Strategy establishes UNICEF’s position in regards to the work that needs to be done in Goal Area 2 for the organization to contribute more to the SDGs. It is based on the belief that the most important purpose of education is for every kid to learn.

This coverage by the Broken Chalk foundation is an excerpt from UNICEF’s official report site. For further details and the full report please visit the page

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015 to end poverty, reduce inequality and build more peaceful, prosperous societies by 2030. Also known as the Global Goals, the SDGs are a call to action to create a world where no one is left behind.

Each year UNICEF produces Global Annual Results Reports (GARRs) in advance of the Annual Session of the UNICEF Executive Board in June.

This report details UNICEF’s and its partners’ contributions to Goal Area 1 in 2019, as well as the impact of these achievements on children and their communities.

As Broken Chalk editorial group, we skimmed through the report and summarized it for our readers.

Here are some highlights from the Goal Area 1 Report:

Every child survives and thrives

UNICEF is focusing on solving the major obstacles that have slowed progress in children’s survival, growth, and development. In 2019, worldwide program spending in Goal Area 1 totaled $2.15 billion across 152 countries. UNICEF also works with teenagers to ensure that they receive services in the areas of health, nutrition, HIV/AIDS, and other issues. The organization works in a variety of fields.

Health

UNICEF’s health programming is informed by human rights approaches and principles. In 2019, health programs were implemented in 119 countries with the help of 1,079 technical staff.

UNICEF put a specific emphasis on increasing the quality of care at the time of birth in 2019. It is hastening global efforts to improve neonatal care for small and sick newborns.

Highlights from the chapter:

– UNICEF-supported programs resulted in 27.4 million live births in health facilities.

– More than 6 million women received two or more doses of the tetanus toxoid vaccine.

– UNICEF assisted 31 countries to improve the quality of maternal and newborn care in areas where neonatal and maternal mortality are high.

– In high-burden nations, 3,008 healthcare facilities have increased access to WASH to improve the quality of maternity and neonatal care.

Nutrition

UNICEF prioritizes interventions to prevent all forms of malnutrition. Well-nourished children are more likely to survive and thrive. Early detection and treatment of children with life-threatening wasting are critical to saving lives, says UNICEF.

Highlights from the chapter:

• UNICEF supports the provision of nutrition services to school-aged children and adolescents to improve nutrition knowledge and skills, promoting healthy eating habits, and providing vitamin and nutrient supplementation when necessary.
• UNICEF prioritizes the early detection and treatment of children with severe acute malnutrition (SAM). About 5 million children with SAM were reached with treatment and care in 2019. Of the children admitted for treatment, 88 percent fully recovered in 2019 compared with 82 percent in 2018.

HIV and AIDS

The global coverage for antiretroviral treatment among pregnant women living with HIV has nearly doubled. This translates to 150,000 new infections in children in 2019, far short of the end 2020 target of <20,000 per year.

Highlights from the chapter:

• Treatment is life-saving for the 1.8 million children living with HIV, and just over half have access to treatment. Treatment coverage has stalled in the last four years and far from the global target of 95%. Mortality has declined due to the prevention of mother-to-child transmission efforts.
• In 2018, an estimated 1.6 million adolescents (10–19 years old) were living with HIV, up 4% from 2010.
• The number of new HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women (15–24) is still three times greater than the global target established for 2020.

Early Childhood Development

In 2019, there was a considerable increase in recognition and repeated commitments across sectors, including governments, UN agencies, CSOs, and corporations, to improve collaboration and investment in Early Childhood Development (ECD).

Highlights from the chapter:

• With established government ownership and a costed action plan, 45 nations are on pace to scale up multisectoral ECD packages.
• With a national strategy or action plan in place, 83 countries have created an enabling policy environment for ECD.
• The ECD in the Emergency program provided play, stimulation, and early learning opportunities to 61,000 children affected by humanitarian situations.

The Outlook

The world is currently not on track to meet sustainable development goals. UNICEF will aim to ensure that children’s right to survive and thrive services are protected. The agency will look for opportunities to harness new technology and innovations to reach children and families most at risk during the ensuing economic downturn due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The world needs to take bold steps to create a world that helps children survive and get the best start in life.

This coverage by the Broken Chalk foundation is an excerpt from UNICEF’s official report site. For further details and the full report please visit the site

 

Translated from: Парламент комитети Орхан Инандынын уурдалышы боюнча чукул кайрылуу таратты

The Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Security has sent an urgent appeal to the relevant government agencies on the disappearance of public figure Orhan Inandi.

The text of the appeal:

On May 31, 2021, Orhan Inan, President of Sapat Educational Institution, well-known educator, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor, Laureate of the Medal of Honor of the Kyrgyz Republic, public figure, was abducted by unknown individuals in Bishkek. His whereabouts are still unknown. The shocking news spread like wildfire, causing panic in the Kyrgyz community. Civil society, education teachers, thousands of alumni, and their parents have expressed concern and called on the authorities to take decisive action.

The crime was also covered in the international media and made headlines. Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov also reacted to the disappearance of Orhan Inandi, instructing the State Committee for National Security and the Interior Ministry to intensify the search and attract additional forces.

The Kyrgyz intelligentsia, led by Roza Aitmatova, has also expressed concern and called on the country’s leadership to continue its efforts to find survivors.

In his address to the President and the Jogorku Kenesh, prominent members of the public noted that the fate of Orhan Inan is closely linked not only with his personality but also with the independence of Kyrgyzstan. According to them, no external force should infringe on the dignity and life of a respected teacher, a Kyrgyz citizen, who has made a significant contribution to the education system of independent Kyrgyzstan.

Article 24 of the newly adopted Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic of April 11, 2021, states: “The Kyrgyz Republic shall ensure the rights and freedoms of all persons within its territory and under its jurisdiction. No one shall be discriminated against on the basis of sex, race, language, disability, ethnicity, religion, age, political or other beliefs, education, origin, property or another status, or any other circumstance. ” We adopted the Constitution to ensure the rule of law, justice, and equality.

Therefore, no one has the right to overturn the confidence in the new Constitution and the new government. It is the duty of the relevant law enforcement agencies to investigate this criminal and resonant incident, which took place in the capital of our country in the middle of the night and to reveal the real situation.

There is speculation in the community that this was done with foreign intervention. If the hypothesis is confirmed, one of the main tasks of the state is that the Cabinet of Ministers must take decisive steps to protect the rights of our citizens from violence abroad.

I WANT TO INFORM YOU SHORTLY ABOUT BROKEN CHALK AND OUR PROGRAM.

As you know in the globalizing world people reach whatever they want. Although it seems like making life easier, unfortunately, on the other hand, there is a rapidly increasing in violence, starvation, ignorance in different parts of the world.

That’s why Education plays an important role.

What makes Education so important is that it can help us eliminate the evils, violations, and problems in society,  introduce and increase the good.

Broken Chalk Foundation, in March 2019, was founded by a group of educators abroad who experienced and have been experiencing severe human rights violations in Turkey who had to ask for asylum currently in several countries.

Broken Chalk wants to draw the attention of the public and stakeholders that Education is in danger in several different parts of the World.

We are aware of the significant role that education plays in the development of societies, as well as its contribution to an individual’s future. We believe that this development and change will only occur with a social impetus and with the participation of people from all layers of society.

Broken Chalk aims to remove barriers to education and to be the voice of people who faced human rights violations at the scope of education in the world for them to overcome their challenges.

Broken Chalk opened its door to all individuals from all across the globe, from all professions, and to all individuals.

IF YOU WANT TO BE A MEMBER OR VOLUNTEER IN BROKEN CHALK OR IF YOU WANT TO DONATE YOU CAN FIND OUR LINKS  ON THE TOP RIGHT OF THIS PAGE.

This program was prepared by the education volunteers of the Broken Chalk Foundation to contribute to building solidarity and tolerance, intercultural dialogue, and activities, emphasizing the possibilities of living together with our cultural differences.

FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO GIVE INFORMATION ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS DAY.

IT IS OFFICIALLY KNOWN AS ‘’ THE WORLD DAY FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY FOR DIALOGUE AND DEVELOPMENT.

THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY FIRST DECLARED THIS WORLD DAY IN 2002

EVERY YEAR ON 21 MAY IT IS CELEBRATED BY UNITED NATIONS AND THIS DAY IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO HELP COMMUNITIES UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY AND LEARN HOW TO LIVE TOGETHER IN HARMONY.

 

THE WORLD DAY FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY FOR DIALOGUE AND DEVELOPMENT IS AN OCCASION TO PROMOTE CULTURE AND HIGHLIGHT THE SIGNIFICANCE OF ITS DIVERSITY AS AN AGENT OF INCLUSION AND POSITIVE CHANGE.

 

WE ARE BEGINNING WITH USA AND DR FERHAT OZTURK IS GOING TO GIVE US A PRESENTATION ABOUT “Community Engagement Activities’’

• Dr. Ferhat Ozturk is the events coordinator of Raindrop Foundation San Antonio since 2019.

Dr. Ozturk received his Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2007 and studied at the University of Nebraska Medical Center as a postdoctoral researcher. He served as founding chair of the Molecular Biology and Genetics Department of Canik Basari University in Samsun, Turkey.

Following the July 15th coup attempt, Dr. Ozturk was among the persecuted academicians; thus, he left Turkey and resettled in the US in 2016. He worked as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Alma College of Alma, Michigan.

As a long-term human rights activist, Dr. Ozturk serves at various committees of the Advocates of Silenced Turkey (AST) and is the spokesperson of Scholars Rights Watch (SRW), which focuses on raising awareness about the persecuted academicians.

To download the presentation from Ferhat Ozturk: About Raindrop Foundation comp

• Isa Erbas (ALBANIA)

DR Isa ERBAS is a lecturer at the Department of Education and English language, Beder University, Tirana-Albania. He is also an administrator at the Turgut Ozal High School Tirana. Dr. Erbas has worked in different educational institutions since 1999.

His presentation is about

‘’The significant role of youth in advancing intercultural dialogue in society’’

To download the presentation from Isa Erbas:  Isa Erbas-DIALOGUE Språk og kultur – 18.pptm

• KERIM KARA (NORWAY)

I hold a Master’s degree in linguistics and worked as a language teacher in an international school in Vietnam for 8 years.
I have been living in Norway since 2017.

I have been the project manager of the Language and Culture Association in Trondheim since 2018 and working as a coordinator at Church dialogue Center since 2020.

He is going to make a presentation with the title ‘’ Celebration of diversity”

To download the presentation from Jerim Kara: Språk og kultur – 18.pptm

• MUSTAFA OZ (ROMANIA)

I have been working in Romania since 2000. During this period, he worked as a teacher and school manager (16 years) at Lumina Educational Institutions operating in Romania. Since September 2020, he has been working as the manager of Ass. for dialog And Universal Values-PresidentAss. for dialog And Universal Values-President

He is going to make a presentation about the ‘’multiculturalism in Romania’’

To download the presentation from Mustafa Oz: Cultural diversity in Romania-4

AFTER THE PROBLEMS IN TURKEY THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE MOVED TO DIFFERENT COUNTRIES ALL AROUND THE WORLD. AND I BELIEVE THAT THIS MOVEMENT WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE CULTURAL DIVERSITY IN THE WORLD. AND THESE INTERACTIONS WILL ENABLE SOCIETIES TO GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER BETTER, AND PERHAPS REDUCE PROBLEMS AND HOSTILITIES BETWEEN SOCIETIES.

 

Burhan Kasap, Moderator

 

 

 

World Day Cultural for Diversity for Dialogue and Development

Webinar on World Day Cultural for Diversity for Dialogue and Development

with the theme of “Contributing to Cultural Diversity”

Moderator:

Burhan Kasap,

Broken Chalk, The Netherlands

“I worked 7 years as an English Teacher In Turkey. I also worked in different Educational organizations and we made different projects for the students. I have been living in Netherland since 2018.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Speakers:

 

Isa Erbas, PhD.

Turgut Ozal High Sch., Albania

The significant role of youth in advancing intercultural dialogue in society

 

Dr. Isa Erbas is a lecturer at the Department of Education and English language, Beder University, Tirana-Albania. He is also an administrator at the Turgut Ozal High School Tirana. Dr. Erbas has worked in different educational institutions since 1999.

He has finished his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in the program of the English language and Teaching at Penza State Pedagogical University, Penza-Russia. In addition to his master’s degree in English Language and Teaching, he has also finished his second master’s degree in Political Science and International Relations at Epoka University, Tirana-Albania. He has received his Ph.D. degree in Political Science and International Relations at the Tirana European University. He has taken pieces of training from the Oxford University Department for Continuing Education and Oxford University Press about ELT Management and Teaching English to Teenagers. Dr. Erbas has delivered presentations in conferences, symposiums, seminars, etc., and published articles in various journals.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/isa-erbas…

 

Kerim Kara,

Language & Culture Ass., Norway

Celebration of diversity

I hold a Master’s degree in linguistics and worked as language teacher in an international school in Vietnam for 8 years.
I have been living in Norway since 2017. I have been the project manager of Language and Culture Association in Trondheim since 2018 and working a coordinator at Church dialogue Center since 2020.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kerim-kar…

 

Mustafa OZ,

Ass. for Dialog & Universal Values, Romania

Multiculturalism in Romania

I was born in Kahramanmaraş / Turkey in 1977.
Graduate of Middle East Technical University (METU-ODTÜ ) Chemistry Teaching – 2000
Master in Educational Management at the University of Bucharest
I have been working in Romania since 2000. During this period, I worked as a teacher and school manager (16 years) at Lumina Educational Institutions operating in Romania. Since September 2020, I have been working as the manager of our Association and as the Chairman of the Board. I am married and I have 3 daughters.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mustafa-o…

 

 

Ferhat Öztürk, Ph.D.

Raindrop Foundation, San Antonio, USA
Community Engagement Activities

Dr. Ferhat Ozturk is the events coordinator of Raindrop Foundation San Antonio since 2019.

Dr. Ozturk received his Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2007 and studied at the University of Nebraska Medical Center as a postdoctoral researcher. He served as founding chair of the Molecular Biology and Genetics Department of Canik Basari University in Samsun, Turkey.

Following the July 15th coup attempt, Dr. Ozturk was among the persecuted academicians; thus, he left Turkey and resettled in the US in 2016. He worked as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Alma College of Alma, Michigan.

He moved to San Antonio in 2018 to teach Biomedical Sciences at the School of Science and Technology (SST). Dr. Ozturk currently conducts research projects in the field of Medicinal Use of Honey at the University of Texas-San Antonio (UTSA).

As a long-term human rights activist, Dr. Ozturk serves at various committees of the Advocates of Silenced Turkey (AST) and is the spokesperson of Scholars Rights Watch (SRW), which focuses on raising awareness about the persecuted academicians

 https://www.linkedin.com/in/fozturk/

‘World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development‘

Subject: Solidarity of Social Activities Performed by Legal Entities, Cultural Diversity and Contribution to Dialogue

Date: 21 May 2021               Venue: Virtual      Program language: English

Moderator: Burhan Kasap

 

Introduction

For all segments of society to benefit from sustainable development and to ensure solidarity, parts of the community must be in dialogue, and dialogue continuity is required. For this purpose; It has been brought to the agenda by the United Nations as the “World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development” to increase the value of cultural diversity, dialogue, and development all over the world.

Today, many forms of culture, diversity of cultural expressions; To reveal how these contribute to dialogue, mutual understanding, and the social, environmental, and economic aspects of sustainable development constitute an opportunity to articulate the activities undertaken.

 

Importance

In order to live together with our differences, it is essential to develop a dialogue arising from cultural unity, bringing solidarity to the forefront, and what is done to contribute to life in the social and historical harmony, which is the pool of tolerance of conflicts and dispute.

Cultural diversity, to contribute as the Broken Chalk Association on behalf of the programs that express cultural diversity, the peaceful coexistence of people from different cultures and values, and that will increase social activities and solidarity, such a program has been planned for the support of our association to emphasize what a vital function education and educators fulfill and the importance of sharing.

It is seen how societies that live together with the differences of cultural communities in their religion, daily practices, houses, jobs, places of worship, etc., exhibit tolerance and solidarity with their colorful structures.

A program emphasizing the work of the education volunteers of the Broken Chalk Association in this field was prepared in order to enable us to recognize different cultures and the opportunities of living together with our cultural differences, as well as to discover the truth, to build solidarity and tolerance, to contribute to intercultural dialogue and activities.

Nature of the Program

The program is designed for participants to share their contribution to cultural diversity in the countries where they live. Participants are asked to explain their activities to the audience by using visuals and the events they experienced.

For example; They can explain the purpose of a charity, who participated, what kind of effect it created, where and when it was done, and what the feedback after the bazaar was shared with various visuals.

 

Invitation

We invite you to the program prepared by our association, Broken Chalk, where educators, students, and community volunteers from different countries will share their social activities in the name of “contributing to cultural diversity.” In addition, If there are local foundations and associations whose participation you consider essential, our program will be more colorful with their invitation.

Thank you for your contribution and help.

 

Contact details:

Contact person: Burhan Kasap

Mail: mailto:socialmedia.en@brokenchalk.org

Phone: +31 6 84712594

According to Turkey’s state-run news agency, Turkish police detained the prominent pro-Kurdish party HDP politician Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu, weeks after he has stripped off his Parliament his conviction for social media posts which the courts considered “terrorist propaganda.”

For re-tweeting a 2016 article about a call for peace by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, Gergerlioglu was sentenced to two and a half years in jail after the court deemed the social media post as “spreading terrorist propaganda.” The appeals court upheld the sentence, which led him to lose his parliamentary seat, although his appeal to the Constitutional Court is pending.

The final judicial decision against Gergerlioglu was read in the Turkish Parliament on March 17. With the reading of the decision, Gergerlioglu was stripped of his membership in Parliament. Gergerlioglu then started the “justice watch,” where he stayed in the Turkish Parliament and refused to leave. During his fifth day in the Parliament, around 100 police officers entered the HDP’s hall in the parliament building, where Gergerlioglu stayed. They forcefully took him away in his pajamas and slippers without even sparing him a moment to change his clothes and wear his shoes.

On the evening of April 2, 2021, police raided Gergerlioglu’s home and arrested him forcibly after he failed to report to police within the 10-day legal notice. One of the police officers who arrived to arrest him was the same officer Gergerlioglu exposed as a torturer in a speech to the Parliament in 2019. This police officer and others aggressively pushed and kicked Gergerlioglu out of his house, once again dragging him barefoot, similar to the case in the Parliament raid. A police officer insulted him and threatened to punch him during his transfer. Gergerlioglu was sent to prison despite his chest pains and a physician’s health report. He was eventually taken to hospital from jail on April 3, hours after his arrest, where he underwent angiography for elevated blood pressure and was placed in intensive care. He then was transferred back to Sincan High-Security Prison to serve his sentence.

Gergerlioglu became a target for the Turkish government after repeatedly speaking out against human rights violations and torture claims in the country and strip searches of female inmates in prisons.

Gergerlioglu’s arrest over a social media post is yet another blow for Turkey’s democracy and an epitome of police brutality and the decline of the rule of law in Turkey.

 

References:

https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/21/Turkey-arrests-pro-Kurdish-MP-who-was-expelled-from-parliament-

https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/17/Turkey-s-parliament-strips-pro-Kurdish-deputy-of-seat-in-blow-to-third-largest-party

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey/turkey-opposition-lawmaker-arrested-in-ankara/2196627

https://www.duvarenglish.com/turkey-arrests-former-hdp-deputy-omer-faruk-gergerlioglu-news-56928

https://apnews.com/article/turkey-media-social-media-ankara-arrests-442c03d1e9004abf583a51f1bb34ef33