Verbal abuse to be legislated as part of domestic violence in Malaysia?

Since nowadays I hardly have the time to surf through the internet for news on Malaysia, I rely a lot on my Facebook friends to update me on something interesting.

Today, someone posted a link from The Star on the proposal to include verbal abuse as part of the Domestic Violence Act. Of course, as usual, the post attracted the attention of some witty fellow friends who couldn’t help but add humour to it. The Star is partly to be blamed for “belittling” the issue by giving it a title “Telling your wife she’s not pretty may soon be an offence”.

Naturally, verbal abuse is not quite the same as making unflattering remarks.

I don’t know exactly how far this proposal has gone or whether it will ever be adopted but it would be interesting to read the actual draft and even more interesting to know about the drafting process itself.

In Malaysia, whenever there is a legal proposal related to women’s rights, one can almost always guarantee protest to the extent of insensitive sexist remarks coming from a specific group of people; well, usually men; may it be law makers or religious authorities.

Mind you, we’re not exactly like many countries in the Middle East, Africa or Asia where women’s rights are considered as taboos but the fact that we still do not have a law against marital rape should explain that we’re not exactly there yet.

So, this proposal is particularly interesting. According to those who made the proposal, verbal abuse is as equally damaging as physical abuse. To many extent, I agree that emotional trauma can have a deeper and longer impact than physical violence. There is a famous saying, sticks and stones may break my bone, but words will kill me.

I found this from an article written by Patricia Evans, Verbal Abuse Precedes Domestic Violence:

Domestic violence is about the control of one human being by another. This control begins with verbal abuse and is similar to mind control. Verbal abuse attacks one’s spirit and sense of self. Verbal abuse attempts to create self doubt. "You don’t know what you’re talking about," "You don’t have a sense of humour," "You can’t take a joke," "You’re too sensitive," "You’re crazy."

Verbal abuse so controls ones mind that some women who have left a verbally and sometimes physically abusive relationship twenty or more years ago still find themselves wondering, "Maybe there’s something I could have done...," or, "Maybe if I’d tried to explain just one more time my relationship would have gotten better." 

While I think it’s a brave and commendable move to regulate verbal abuse, the ultimate challenge facing the victim, offender and members of the judiciary is the burden of proof. It’s hard enough to prove domestic violence when there is an absence of visible marks or scars in cases where women often fail to report the abuse on time, what more verbal abuse? It’s basically my words against yours.

I tend to see verbal abuse and physical violence as similar to rape and sexual harassment because in the end, it’s difficult to draft and implement such law and there are many issues to be considered. 

1) Definition – What is considered as verbal abuse as opposed to “unflattering” or offensive remarks?

For example: Is there a difference between “You’re full of crap”,“Move your fat ass, bitch!”, “You’re a worthless piece of shit!” and “I swear I’ll kill you one day!”?

Sexual harassment is typically defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favours, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that tends to create a hostile or offensive work environment. It doesn’t matter whether the offender is aware of his/her action, as long as it makes the victim uncomfortable, it’s considered as harassment.

Would this also apply to verbal abuse? Would it then make a difference if a husband makes a remark as a joke and with no intention to offend? If this is the case, does the wife have the responsibility to tell the husband that such remark hurts her feelings?

Let’s face it, a lot of women, particularly those who have been brought up in conservative societies are likely to take insensitive remarks without much protest.

2) Proof -  Like sexual harassment, verbal abuse will be difficult to prove unless a woman is vigilant enough to wire tape herself before being subjected to verbal aggression or if such abuse takes place in a public place.

Again, in a society such as Malaysia, couples are often careful when it comes to creating a scene in public. Chances are, it will happen at home. Even then, family members tend to turn a deaf ear when it comes to matters between a husband and wife.

3) Victims – Who will be considered as real victims of verbal abuse and according to what and whose standard? What if one woman is particularly more vulnerable than the other?

Will this law apply to men as well or we just assume that women are incapable of verbal abuse and men are simply too “macho” to get hurt?

4) Implementation – would police officers take verbal abuse report seriously or they’ll just simply laugh it off? Even if they don’t, how does one tell an officer that she has been verbally abused without feeling embarrassed or silly, unless it’s a death threat?

Women often don’t report far greater physical abuse for precisely the same reason. They feel shameful and often guilty for allowing herself to be beaten up. Unsurprisingly, they expect police officers not to understand or sympathise with them.

5) Punishment – How do you punish an offender to make sure that it’s fair, adequate and proportionate to the crime committed?

I was curious to know how many countries have legislated such law. It wasn’t easy to find and surprisingly Sierra Leone is one of them. I couldn’t find other more credible jurisprudence yet and I think it’s important to see how this law is being implemented and how effective it is.

The UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women defines violence against women within the community as ‘physical, sexual and psychological violence within the general community, including rape, sexual abuse, sexual harassment and intimidation at work, educational institutions and elsewhere, and trafficking in women and forced prostitution’. It doesn’t go as far as to spell out verbal abuse.

To sum this up, I acknowledge the harmful impact of verbal abuse and the need to address this issue. At the same time, I also acknowledge how such laws need to be drafted as carefully as possible in order to make a real impact and to avoid any  risk of abuse.

Needless to say, I also think that if we are genuinely concerned about the danger and “criminality” of verbal abuse, then we should also think about children who are being subjected to similar threats; may it be at home or in school.

It’s hardly fair to assume that only women suffer from it.

The simple pleasure of LIFE-style

I recently asked a leading lifestyle magazine in Phnom Penh whether I could write for them on a freelance basis. I thought it would be a good place for me to gain experience on writing something different, get professional input on my writing style and a good way of knowing the city more.

When I finally met with the Editor in Chief, I realise that there’s so much I don’t know about writing lifestyle issues. I made mental notes as he gave some pointers on how to start and what to look out for.

I had given him the link to my blog to view some samples of my writing and he reminded me (not in verbatim but something along this line), “Writing for this magazine is very different from blogging. You have to emphasise more on facts, on the places and people that you’re writing about, less about yourself and what you think. Of course you should include your thoughts and sense about a place if you’re reviewing a restaurant, food, shop, etc. but definitely less on a first person narrative.”

It sounds easy enough when you think about it – no analysis, no opinion, just facts. I can do that, at least I think I can.

When I got home, I started doing an online search on restaurant reviews just to have a feel of how a good review should be. Then, I begin to notice that I’ve been trained to search for facts, analyse the facts and then give my opinion based on my analysis. Much of my writings have been more focussed on politics and social issues that look into the intricacy of state policies, human interaction and social and economic behaviour. I’ve never really ventured into something beyond  the faculty of logical and critical thinking.

After reading some reviews, I gather that in order to write a captivating piece of review, I need to be able to describe all the sensations generated by our five basic senses; sight, smell, sound, taste and touch. Now, this is not as easy as it sounds, even to the most observant of person because the real challenge lies in using the right words to describe as precisely as possible those sensations you feel. This means more nouns and adjectives and of course excellent grammar to form coherent and yet lively sentences.

Yes, lifestyle writing to me is about bringing sentences to life so that the readers are able to feel (not think about) the sensations that you would want them to.

Would I be able to make that mental switch from critical to creative writing? I think I would always be tempted to “scratch beneath the surface”, partly due to my inquisitive nature which unfortunately, sometimes I feel as a liability rather than asset. For instance, instead of looking at a clock and just appreciate its beauty and ingenious design, I tend to ask how it works and by asking, I often lose sight of its aesthetic values.

I also find that I am not able to draw the line between social and lifestyle issues, although the Editor in Chief tried to explain  when I asked him whether he would consider an article about the challenges of expats who want to marry Cambodians (I’ve read on the news recently that expats who want to marry locals are forced to pay “additional” sum of money in order to get registered) as lifestyle or social. He made it very clear that the magazine is not interested in anything which would dig into what he considers as political or administrative flaws.

To reinforce his explanation, he then pulled up several copies of local newspaper lying recklessly on the table and pointed out the headlines, “Swine Flu – not interested.” Then another, “The Khmer Rouge trial – not interested.”

OK, OK, I get it. If I want to write about those issues, I should arrange for a meeting with the Phnom Penh Post or Cambodian Daily’s editors instead.

While preparing myself for my meeting with the Editor in Chief, I was bursting with ideas and now when I look at my list of ideas (which were meant to impress him); volunteering work, adoption issues, education system, understanding Buddhism, domestic helpers, HIV/AIDS, medical services, etc. they all look so “sedative” (There! My first creative word). My initial excitement was deflated because I’m not sure whether they will be given the response – NOT INTERESTED. Period.

Am I disappointed or discouraged? On the contrary. I’m excited to embark in this new experience. I think this “adventure” will open up my senses and give me a much needed new perspective towards life; that is if I manage to hand in an acceptable piece of writing by the end of next week (I’m put on trial).

Above all, I think it will teach me to appreciate some of the simple pleasure of life – more on the living and less on the probing and analysing.

Beware of this scam from this scum

I received this email from this address yousf@yousfam.com, c.ced to this address katecallikan@hotmail.com on my spam box today and it drives me crazy to think that people like this are around. If I’m in Malaysia, I would have submitted this to the police.

YOUSF MUSTAFA LAW CHAMBERS
LEGAL SOLICITORS/PRIVATE
LAW 11 SRI MUDA KUALA
LUMPUR, MALAYSIA.
DIRECT LINE +60143292085

ASSALAM-ALAIKUM!

Your e-mail address came up in a random draw conducted by our law firm; YOUSF MUSTAFA Law Chambers in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia My name is YOUSF MUSTAFA. A personal Attorney to our late client Mr. TAN SRI LIM GOH TONG who built a hilltop casino in Malaysia (Genting Highland), Mr. TAN SRI LIM GOH TONG a well known Philanthropist, before he died, he made a Will in our law firm stating that $3M (Three Million U.S. dollars only) should be donated to any Philanthropist of our choice overseas.

We have made a random draw and your name and e-mail address was picked as the beneficiary to this Will. I am particularly interested in securing this money from the Bank, because they have issued a notice instructing us to produce the beneficiary of this Will within two weeks which happens to be you or else the money will be credited to the Government treasury as per law here.

It is my utmost desire to execute the Will of our late client. You are required to contact me immediately to start the process of transferring this money to any of your designated official account. I urge you to contact me immediately for further details bearing in
mind that the Bank has given us a date limit. Please contact me urgently with the following .

CONGRATULATIONS!

NOTE:  IF YOU WISH TO KNOW  MORE ABOUT MY LATE CLIENT
KINDLY CHECK THE LINK BELOW:
http://thebiographychannel.blogspot.com/2007/11/tan-sri-lim-goh-tong-1918-23-october_23.html

Regards,
YOUSF MUSTAFA [Esq.

Hairline cracks

“So I guess honeymoon’s over, huh?” I heard my husband said a week ago.

Hmmm…it only takes 8 months but still, it isn’t the worst record so far. It was much shorter in Ethiopia. For me, it was about one month. In Afghanistan, it was about a year and Timor Leste, it never really stopped. The 10 months that I was there had been more or less a bliss, right until the end and if I could, I wanted to go back for more.

The honeymoon period I’m referring to is the length of time taken for reality to set in, you know, all the novelty of being in a new country where everything seems new, exciting and exotic until one day, you realize that things aren’t that rosy after all.

What is the deal breaker for Cambodia? Yesterday morning while waiting for my ride to work, I read on the front page of the Cambodia Daily of a crime so heartless and cruel that it made my stomach churned. Just a day ago, I passed by Wat Lanka, a temple close to my apartment and saw some sort of big ceremony. At first glance, I thought it was just another religious ceremony that the locals are so fond of, but quickly deduced that it was a funeral judging from the sombre mood and the pre-dominantly white attire worn by those in attendance.

It was then revealed on the paper that the funeral was for three children, savagely killed at their home last Sunday. Apparently, two armed men had carried out the triple murder, but not before torturing them first, forcing one of the victims to call her mother home to witness the crime and then finishing them off by smashing their skulls with steel pipes.

According to the local police, “This is a case of revenge.” The father of the two victims is a prominent figure in Cambodia. He is the Director of the Royal Academy for Judicial Professionals. Last week, he was put on the spotlight when rumours circulated that students were paying between USD20 – 30,000 to be eligible for a position in the courts upon graduation. It is not clear how this is related to the crime in terms of motive.

This is not the first time I’ve read incidents and crimes motivated by revenge in Cambodia. A popular method is splashing acid on the targeted person. I’ve also heard that it costs USD300 to hire a hit man to get rid of someone. Apparently a few years ago, it was much less, only USD100. Over the last 8 months, I’ve read fatal incidents involving gunshot in broad daylight in the middle of busy streets. Most of these crimes are committed by jealous spouses, over land dispute or injured egos.

I could easily ignore this kind of news before but not this time. Anyone who could have the heart to orchestrate the murder of three innocent children, whether for revenge or not, is beyond my comprehension. And if it was indeed out of personal revenge, I am now thinking twice before voicing out my opinion in case I unconsciously step on anyone’s toes.

I know someone who is in the midst of firing a local staff for gross misconduct. I must admit that after reading this news, I felt a bit uncomfortable, afraid for the person’s safety. The thought of being over-paranoid did come across my mind but then again, being relatively new to the country, I wasn’t sure whether the fear was as unfounded as I thought. I also question whether I would have reserved the same amount of respect and esteem for the person if he were to compromise his integrity and principles for fear of reprisal.

I talked to a colleague of mine who has been living in this country for 7 years and is married to a Cambodian. She told me never to take the typical smiles and hospitality of Cambodians for granted. Beneath the amiable facade, there is a sort of hidden sinister side often triggered by jealousy and loss of pride/face. She didn’t think that anything will happen to my friend but losing face (as a consequence of being fired) is a greater wrath than losing a job, particularly if the person’s incompetency is made known to others. According to her, Cambodians in general do not welcome criticism, more so in public, and do not like to be held responsible for any wrong doing. She warned me that when dealing with Cambodians, diplomacy, politeness and discretion must be strictly observed.

Strangely enough, these characteristics are very similar to those in Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Timor Leste but the truth is, I haven’t felt as worried as I do now. I think it has a lot to do with appearance. I went to Afghanistan with a clear understanding and expectation of the culture. I knew that it would be potentially a dangerous work place and hence, I was mindful of the possibility of being harmed. Since Afghans are extremely conservative and proud, I was prepared to face any unpleasant reaction from those who might not approve of my views, particularly when it concerned human rights. Besides, the real threats often came from the Taliban, their sympathizers and warlords out of political or religious motivation.

Ethiopians are equally proud people and it is difficult to gain their trust. They too are warm, friendly and hospitable people. However, they usually display their dislikes for someone by ignoring or snubbing them. The Timorese whom I had come across were more ready and eager to express their intentions and hence, more transparent and easier to read.

What has made it more difficult for me in light of this new revelation is how long it took me to look beyond the appearances and I almost wish that I didn’t. I think it’s also important for me to clarify here that it would be completely unfair and wrong for me to generalise all Cambodians and the other nationalities mentioned above. It’s equally important to acknowledge that high crime rates are manifestation of low and weak law enforcement.

About a year ago, my husband and I were discussing about where we would like to settle down eventually. He prefers somewhere along the Mediterranean Sea while I prefer the Indian Ocean. Wherever it may be, we both know that unless we are able to look beyond idealism and accept the fallibilities of governments, societies and people, we will not be happy anywhere. I spent most part of my time in Ethiopia by loathing the country and being utterly unhappy. It wasn’t until towards the end of my stay that I began to live and start to see the positive side of things. Once I was able to open up my heart, there was room for other things apart from anger and bitterness and that was how  I made my peace and thankfully, it was not too late.

So, I think it’s important for us to learn to embrace life as it is; all the imperfections and perfections that come with it. Above all, not to allow our lives to be over powered by irrational fear which is ultimately the most debilitating of all diseases. It prevents you from living. A wall doesn’t cease to be a wall despite all its hairline cracks.

In the mean time, I will also remember my Mother’s advice to me when I first left home.  “Do not harm others but do not allow others to harm you as well.” What she meant was (mostly referring to my initial naiveté) while I should not hurt others, I should be weary of others who might and hence should be wise enough not to present any opportunity for others to endanger my life.

A fable on retribution

As a child, I’ve always enjoyed reading classic short stories by Hans Christian Anderson and fables from La Fontaine or Aesop. These stories are not only interesting and fun but also impart some sort of wisdom or moral lessons which are easy to understand and relate to.

I’ve long forgotten the joy of reading them until I came across one story by Beverly Naidoo in a book I’m currently reading, Lebanon, Lebanon; an anthology of short stories by a panel of world-renowned writers across the world. Since the book is sort of a tribute to the Lebanese people after the Israeli-Lebanon war in 2006, this story managed to capture the essence of how most wars come to being.

I hope I’m not infringing any copyrights law by replicating the story here. All credit must be given to the author. According to the book’s list of contributors, Beverly Naidoo joined the resistance to apartheid as a student in South Africa. After detention without trial she came to England, into exile. Her writings have won many awards including the Carnegie Medal.

THE CROCODILE AND THE STORK

Stork was in mourning. Her black feathers hung like a cloak around her white breast. Crying had made her eyes as blood red as her long beak. But tears could not bring back her babies. She was resolved to have her revenge on Crocodile, who had raided her nest.

“Crocodile shall cry tears like mine,” she vowed.

Everyday she waited for hours in the reeds beside the water. The leg on which she stood was as still as a reed itself. Only in the evening shadows, when hunger made her feel faint, did her beak strike down like an arrow to catch one or two fish. Afterwards, she returned to her mute pose.

From her hiding place she saw where Crocodile hid her eggs in a hole on the riverbank. Patiently Stork waited, day after day, until the young had hatched. Silently she watched Crocodile carry the first baby in her mouth and lower it gently into the water. Stork remained perfectly quiet. As soon as the little crocodile began to swim away from the bank, its mother set off for her nest to collect another. Stork saw her chance and swooped. Lifting the crocodile baby in the cradle of her beak, she flew down the river and dropped it into an empty animal pen at the edge of the village. By the time the baby shrieked, its mother was too far away to hear.

One by one, while Crocodile’s back was turned, Stork captured every one of her twelve babies. When Crocodile realized that they had all disappeared. she screeched with rage and pain. Stork now flew up into a tree above the riverbank.

“Have you seen my children?” Crocodile cried. Giant tears welled up in her eyes.

“Oh yes,” Stork replied. “I have taken them.”

“Where are they?” Crocodile roared. “Give them back or I’ll..”

“If you want them back, you will have to bring me seventy fish for each child,” Stork said calmly.

Crocodile gnashed her teeth and whipped her tail but, in the end, it was agreed that the exchange would take place three days later. Crocodile knew that she would have to work night and day to collect enough fish in time.

On the day of the exchange, Crocodile pulled heavy basket of fish upstream towards the appointed place. On the way, she passed some villagers plucking a large bird near a fire. A small gust of wind caught one of the feathers and blew it towards Crocodile. It was a long, black feather. Fear lodged in Crocodile’s throat. She swam closer to the shore, and sure enough, the bird that the villagers were preparing to roast was Stork!

Crocodile wept tears of fury. She knew that she would never see her babies again. With a heavy heart, she turned away, swearing to kill all those who ate the bird that had stolen her babies.

Global aid contributes to global pollution

“We the peoples…A stronger UN for a better world.”

These are the first words you see when you click on the UN official webpage. I’ve stolen the words but replaced them with a green font. I’m sure if you look at other major organizations’ mission statement, it bears similar sentiment of wanting to make the world a better place.

This article is about how global aid operations, in all its good intention have unconsciously or perhaps consciously neglected the environmental impact caused by excessive carbon emission from vehicles and generators, imperishable pollutants such as plastic bottles as well as chopping down of trees to accommodate its paper-based administration.

The UN is being singled out here for the mere reason that by far, it has the biggest peacekeeping/peace building and humanitarian operations in the world. Nevertheless, wherever there is a UN presence, there are hundreds more smaller aid organizations working alongside, including other inter-governmental agencies and UN agencies. Hence,the burden of responsibility is not limited to the UN only.

Currently, the UN is operating in Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Haiti, Timor Leste, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Cyprus, Georgia, Kosova, Lebanon, and many more. In each mission, depending on the mandate and  resources poured into it, thousands of four-wheel drive and trucks are being deployed to assist the logistic aspect of the operation. On top of that, thousands of military and civilian staff are being recruited to execute  its mandates. With such sizable workforce, one can assume the amount of waste  being accumulated each day.

Now, in developing countries like those in Africa where cars are rare,  UN vehicles are probably the biggest contributors to environmental pollution. In addition to that, generators are often used to compensate for the often inadequate and erratic electricity supplies. Since clean drinking water poses a huge problem in most of these developing countries, all staff resorts to gallons of bottled water which are often disposed off without any thought on the environmental impact it produces. During these missions, hundreds of thousands (if not more) of A-4 paper are being used to print out often thick and lengthy documents which are read only by a handful of people.

Climate change is fast gaining global attention and yet aid organizations focussing on sustainable development are slowly addressing this issue. We have now begun to understand and recognize that climate change is one of the biggest causes of natural disaster, which in turn,  propagates the cycle of poverty. Tsunamis, earthquakes and hurricanes may have killed hundreds of thousands of people in the past few years, recurring flash flood and drought are the permanent nemesis of generations of people who rely on agriculture as their main source of livelihood.

And so, what are these organizations doing? They are developing more policies, resolutions and action plans to tackle food insecurity, population displacement, loss of assets and disaster management. All at the same time, unknowingly contributing to the cause of it. All these action plans are simply addressing the impact but not its cause.

I think that these aid organizations have failed to recognize and address one of the biggest catastrophes facing humanity today. It’s all well and fine when each wants to improve peace, human rights, democracy, rule of law, economic empowerment, mortality, health, education, etc. but what about our planet earth? Degradation of our planet is slowly becoming one of the main causes of human suffering and perhaps one day, a threat to the mere existence of humankind.

I think that if any of these organizations really want to make this world a better place, it should start to make concerted and committed effort in protecting our environment, especially of those that they claim to help. There are some measures that can be taken such as below and as idealistic as the idea sounds, one cannot deny the urgency that calls for such necessity.

1) Start from within. Each organization needs to set an exemplary role to others and this can be done by establishing internal policies and guidelines pertaining to environmental preservation. For instance, organizations like the UN which maintains huge presence in post-conflict countries should create an environmental unit to focus on what I would consider as one of the biggest challenges in the 21st century.

2) Practise what it preaches instead of just paying lip service. Aid organizations should consider turning green by implementing environmental friendly practices. Just as the many gender positions that have being created to promote and protect gender equality, environmental protection officers must be recognized as essential staff to help reinforce and promote these policies.

Some policies recommended are:

• Start minimizing energy and paper consumption. Procurement of greener cars in future operation, using energy saving bulbs, installing solar panels in countries with sufficient and often excessive heat from the sun to run electrical operated appliances. Encourage staff to use recycled paper and print what’s only necessary on both sides of the paper. Such exercise is not difficult particularly when big organizations such as the UN often benefits from tax-exemption and competitive rate as a result of massive procurement needs.
• Implement “green taxes”. Most aid workers, specifically the UN, do not pay income tax and as such, a small portion of their salaries can be used to subsidize some of the operational cost incurred by environmental policies.
• Recycle imperishable waste. In UN compounds that house hundreds of staff, some sort of recycling mechanism should be adopted to reduce the amount of pollutants.

3) Start moving from a reactionary mentality to one of prevention and preparedness. I often feel that human beings are good at responding to threat but not at prevention and perhaps this is where all the problems come from. By spending excessive amount of resources to supply aid  after a disaster hits does not solve the problem. It becomes a greater problem when the organization’s presence contribute to exacerbating the process of polluting the environment.

4) Make environment protection as part of its agenda. When drafting and allocating operational budget, consideration must be given towards the implementation of environmental policies. The only way to realize such policies is to pursue it as vigorously as it would of other agenda and this includes financial commitment.

5) Promote as well as protect. Organizations that have access to the community often have the advantage and ability to reach out to the mass. Instead of just going to a village to distribute aid, it should also disseminate information on environmental protection. Besides this, huge humanitarian operations often attract attention from the media and this serves as a great tool towards global awareness.

Just as more and more organizations are adopting zero-tolerance policy against sexual exploitation, environmental protection must be included gradually as one of its top agenda. Organizations such as the UN has a huge potential to pave and leave a greener path on our planet. By subscribing to environmental friendly products and practices, it will change the course of how commercial products are being made and marketed. After all, we’re talking about millions of dollars being spent on the procurement of logistic equipment and if any company want a piece of the pie, they might start to think twice about creating more environmentally friendly products.

Last but not least, the UN has the ability to become our planet’s advocate through all its minions across the globe. Just as those first three words you see on its webpage, “we the peoples…” and so they should start from the “We” before it starts to think about making this world better. 

I received this email today from an unknown source and I think it aptly concludes this article.

“We should expand national and local capacities for disaster response preparedness, and complement this with up-scaling disaster risk reduction. This should be our contribution to climate change adaptation. In relation to climate change mitigation, we should promote social mobilization towards “greener lifestyles”, and community programmes to protect environmental assets as part of sustainable development initiatives. We should advocate on behalf of vulnerable people who are most affected by climate change”

p/s: The recommendations above are not only applicable to big organizations, but should also be strongly considered by any organization that claims to serve the people, regardless of its capacity and size.