"It's either some colossal cluelessness or remarkable indifference to that reality that would somehow try to equate raising one's hand with a diamond on it as a promotional counter-measure to the effect of the film." -- Edward Zwick, director of Hollywood film Blood Diamond, attacking a campaign to get film stars to display gems at awards events. The US diamond industry is donating USD 10,000 to African charities for each star raising a hand with a ring at events including the Oscars. Zwick, whose Africa-set film highlights the issue of illegal diamond profits funding wars, called the move a "charitable bribe" and "distasteful." The World Diamond Council (WDC) said so-called "blood diamonds" made up less than 1 percent of new diamonds, compared with 4 percent in the late 1990s. Conflict diamonds have been linked to armed struggles in Sierra Leone, Liberia, the DRC (Congo) and the Central African Republic.

I'm off to Asia for the next few weeks, and will be posting intermittently, but with more direct news from the region. Stay tuned!

Now that we're in 07, 2015 doesn't seem all that far away. I've been hearing alot of discussion around the real attainability of MDGs recently. A recent paper by the World Bank assesses how much more funding would be required to reach the goal of reducing world poverty by 50%: an additional US$39 to $54 billion per year. The estimated costs for acheiving the MDG goals are: Education $10 - $30 billion, Health: $20 - $25 billion, Environment $5 - $21 billion, Total: $35 - $76 billion. However, as reaching the poverty goal will help reach the other goals and vice versa the final estimate is $40 to $60 billion per year. Putting a dollar amount on itself is actually the simple part- this additional aid will not be sufficient to attain the goals, as many countries will have to reform their policies and improve service delivery to make the additional spending effective.

"The real question all of us must answer is how we can ensure that the benefits of this new world order can be shared by not just some but all." -- Britain's finance minister Gordon Brown, who is expected to take over from Prime Minister Tony Blair, calling for a shake-up of the United Nations and other institutions to reflect a new world order. "I suggest it is by founding this emerging new order first around recognizing our essential interdependence in alliances for progress and by reshaping, for the needs of new times, our international institutions," he told industrialists in the southern Indian city of Bangalore. Brown said that Britain would support India's bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and that the G8 group of rich nations should be expanded to reflect the growing importance of countries such as India and China. He said the UN must be modernized so that it is both an effective peacemaker and peacekeeper.

God Grew Tired of Us, the best film I've seen in a long while, tells the story of the lost boys of Sudan. Forming a part of the more than 25,000 young boys who fled violence in Sudan for shelter first to Ethiopia and then five years later to a UN refugee camp in Kenya. This film tells the story of 3 of the young men, tracing their journey from the refugee camp to their new lives as refugees in the US for over 4 years. Brutally honest in it's portrayal, respecting the complexity of these simple lives (as it should) and offering their unique voice loud and clear, God Grew Tired of Us affected me deeply. The film shows how despite being amongst the lucky few who are chosen for the US, all 3 struggle with the guilt and enormous responsibility they feel for those left behind. Also deeply touching was seeing the reality set in and each character realising there would be no clear break from the past- that they would carry their stories with them even in the land of dreams. At times funny (seeing America in all it's bizzareness through their eyes), and at times heartbreaking, the film was uplifting more than anything. You root for these men who fight against so much adversity to be the hope for the many back home. I fell in love with the characters, with their bravery, their resilience and their dreams. For those with the "they should feel lucky to be here" attitude towards immigrants and refugees- the film accurately depicts that for everything that is gained in being a part of this land of plenty, there is just as much lost. Any of us who live between two continents and leave home to pursue our own dreams will identify with the struggles of these young men. Yes we have not seen the atrocities they have, but their struggle is very much a universal story. I hope you will see this film- it has a very important message.

Beijing Betrayed- a report available online on how governments have reneged on the commitments made at the UN's 4th World Conference on Women. Impressively it contains reports from women from 150 of the countries represented at Beijing- their stories contrast quite sharply with the reports filed by their governments. Rhetoric once again is far from reality.
Click here for report in full.

For those of us who have been following elections in the DRC with rapt attention, a new briefing asserts that the international community must renew its strong political engagement after Congo’s successful elections if the momentum of a still incomplete peace process is to be maintained. Congo: Staying Engaged after the Elections concentrates on several crucial decisions that must be made in the coming weeks to maintain the progress represented by the country’s first multi-choice elections in more than 40 years. It warns that the international community must remain engaged and help President Joseph Kabila cope with serious security and political challenges.

the year started off ominously in Thailand, which was home to me for 3 years. After a fairly quiet coup in 06 that ended Shinawatra's administration, Bangkok was rocked by 6 bombs on new years eve signaling perhaps more trouble ahead. The military junta has appointed a civilian government and vowed to produce a new constitution - it now looks certain that the new constitution will certainly curtail freedoms in favor of stability. NYT's offers a look at the status quo and quotes Surin Pitsuwan, former foreign minister: “The country is going to be in commotion, old elements will certainly regroup. I think the ruling group has been jolted into a new realization that things are not going to be as calm as they thought.” Shinawatra's supporters who are suspected of being behind the bombings have obviously been underestimated- even in (self chosen) exile he is proving to be a force in Thai politics eager for his comeback.