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Nationwide Better HealthSM Continues to Enhance Workplace Offerings by Adding Disability Insurance

April 3, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Flexible Plans Offered Through Employers Help People Prepare for the Long-Term
Effect of Debilitating Injuries and Illnesses
COLUMBUS, Ohio–(Business Wire)–
Nationwide Better HealthSM recently enhanced its workplace benefits offering by
adding group short-term and long-term disability plans with flexible features
and benefit levels. The company`s workplace benefits portfolio, which also
include group term life insurance, group dental plans, medical stop loss
insurance, business travel accident, and accident/hospital Ca$hBack plansSM,
allow employers to provide benefits that help safeguard their employees`
physical and fiscal health.

“Without regular income, most people aren`t prepared to cover their daily living
expenses, let alone ongoing financial obligations if a disability would prevent
them from working,” said Melissa Gutierrez, vice president of Nationwide Better
Health. “Our group disability plans can help employers provide peace of mind and
long-term well-being for their employees and their families.”

Many people are not prepared for the effects of debilitating injuries and
illnesses

Employees face a greater chance of serious long-term disability than having an
auto accident, a home fire or even dying young.1 In fact, 30 percent of
employees just entering the workforce will become disabled before retiring.2
Roughly one in seven people will be disabled for five years or more before
retirement3 while 72 percent of Americans don`t have enough savings to handle
short-term emergencies4.

“Not all disabilities are the same. And neither are all employers. We offer a
choice of group disability plans so employers can build the plan that best suits
the needs of their firm and their employees,” added Gutierrez.

Nationwide Better Health`s long-term disability plans, which are underwritten by
Nationwide Life Insurance Company, offer features and services that make it
easier for employees to return-to-work while improving their overall health and
well-being. The plan offers rehabilitation and return to work incentives such as
social security coordination assistance and workplace modification, along with
optional benefits and services to enhance the base plan such as 401(k) or
pension plan contribution, spousal disability coverage, or extended or dependent
care benefits.

Nationwide Better Health`s workplace benefits products are backed by the
financial strength and long-term stability of Nationwide® which has an A+ rating
from A.M. Best, Moody`s and Standard & Poor`s.

About Nationwide Better Health

Nationwide Better Health, a subsidiary of Nationwide®, is a leading provider of
health and productivity management solutions, aimed at improving the health and
productivity of America`s workforce. The company’s health and wellness, disease,
disability, absence, medical and maternity management, along with group
workplace benefits products, help employees make healthy lifestyle changes that
help reduce health care costs in the workplace. For more information, call
888.674.0385 or visit: www.nwbetterhealth.com.

© 2010 Nationwide Better Health. Nationwide, Nationwide Better Health, the
Nationwide framemark and On Your Side are service marks of Nationwide Mutual
Insurance Company.

1Field Guide to Estate Planning, Business Planning & Employee Benefits, 2009

2Social Security Administration, Fact Sheet, 2007

3Health Insurance Assoc. of America, 2000 (from 1998 Commissioners Disability
Table)

4Nationwide Investment Watch Survey, 2004

Nationwide
Elizabeth Stelzer, 614-249-1025
stelzee@nationwide.com

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Charities discuss rehab clinic

March 31, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

The Salvation Army and Sunrise Way directors are discussing the establishment of a drug and alcohol rehabilitation clinic at Toowoomba.

Sunrise Way is trying to get a 24-hour clinic running in the city’s east.

Major Rick Hoffman from the Salvation Army says talks are in the early stages, with the costs of running a service running into the millions.

“The kind of gross estimate of running a centre of up to 30 beds would be in the order of $1.2 million a year and that’s why we don’t want to rush into or make promises that we wouldn’t be able to keep,” he said.

“But we would be looking at support from the community and the Government.”

Councillor Hoffman says such a service is needed in the Garden City.

“The figure I heard was one every two weeks [overdose] in the great Toowoomba region,” he said.

“I can’t verify that figure but it’s pretty horrific if that’s true and certainly addiction to alcohol and drugs is a big community problem.

“A large regional centre like Toowoomba would have quite a number of people who could benefit from a recovery program.”

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Council lobbies for local rehab centre

March 30, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

The Carpentaria Shire Council in north-west Queensland is continuing its push for a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre near Normanton.

The project has been in the pipeline for several years.

Mayor Fred Pascoe says he wants a 17-bed centre in the Gulf so patients do not have to travel to Mount Isa for treatment.

He says people need support in their own communities.

“They come home and there’s nothing in the community as far as support goes, so they usually fall straight back into the cycle that put them there in the first place,” he said.

“[With] this facility they’re starting to think about getting people better but [also] then having resources in the Gulf community.

“So far Doomadgee, Normanton and Mornington have been targeted but also our facilities and programs to keep these fellows on the straight and narrow.”

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Veraval riots: Nanavati Commission not to issue notice against Modi

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Ahmedabad, Sep.19 (ANI): In a major reprieve for Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, the Justice Girish Thakorlal Nanavati Commission on Saturday confirmed that it would not be issuing any notice to him in connection with the communal riots in Veraval.

However, the commission has asked the State Government to give it transcripts of the conversations that took place prior to the riots, during the riots and in its aftermath.

The commission has so far given a clean chit to Modi in the post-Godhra events. The Nanavati Commission said there was no evidence to show there was lapse in Modi’s or his ministers’ role in providing protection, relief and rehabilitation to the victims of communal riots or in the matter of not complying with the recommendations and direction given by the National Human Rights Commission.

Communal attacks on Muslims took place in Gujarat between February and May 2002.

The riots occurred after the burning of the Sabarmati Express. According to official figures tabled in the parliament, more than a thousand people were killed (790 Muslims and 254 Hindus) in the violence after the train incident. More than two hundred and fifty thousand people were displaced (about 200,000 Muslims and 40,000 Hindus).

Organizations such as Human Rights Watch criticized the Indian government for failure to address the resulting humanitarian condition of people, “overwhelming majority of them Muslim,” who fled their homes for relief camps in the aftermath of the events.

Many of the investigations and prosecution of those accused of violence during the riots have been opened for reinvestigation and prosecution. According to an official estimate, 1044 people were killed in the violence, including those killed in the Godhra train fire. Another 223 people were reported missing, 2,548 injured, 919 women widowed and 606 children orphaned. About 100,000 Muslims and 40,000 Hindus were in relief camps. (ANI)

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Flintoff to coach UAE cricket team for six months

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Sep 18(ANI): England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff will be coaching the United Arab Emirates national team during the period that he recovers from knee surgery.

“A partnership has been agreed with Dubai Sports City to use their gym and facilities as a base for his rehabilitation. In return he will be carrying out some coaching for the UAE national team over the next six months,” The Independent quoted Andrew Chandler, Flintoff’s agent, as saying.

Consistently rated amongst the top international all-rounders in both ODI and Test cricket, Flintoff had announced his retirement from Test cricket at the conclusion of the 2009 Ashes series, but made himself available for future commitments in One Day International and Twenty20 International matches.

Flintoff’s career has also been marred with injuries due to his heavy frame and bowling action. He recently had surgery on his knee, which had been troubling him for long, and last week he had moved to Dubai, where he hopes to open a cricket academy.

“His partnership with Sports City will also help raise the profile of his Dubai academy,” Chandler added. (ANI)

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Flintoff’s decision to reject ECB contract will benefit Chennai Super Kings

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Sydney, Sep 18 (ANI): The Indian Premier League would be benefited after Andrew Flintoff rejected the ECB contract, said Chennai Super Kings, the team the England all rounder plays for in the IPL.

Chennai Super Kings manager VB Chandrasekhar said Flintoff’s decision to reject the contract would greatly benefit Chennai, but only if he was fit.

“But the thing is,” he said, “it’s not just about what a cricketer can give on the field. ‘Fred gives us a full package – in terms of marketing he is very valuable. Last time he was of great value to our dressing room, even when he wasn’t playing; someone of that aura can lift the team,” The Sydney Morning Herald quoted him, as saying.

The development comes amid bizarre reasoning by his manager, Andrew Chandler, that Flintoff rejected the ECB contract because he might have to go “bungee jumping”.

With Flintoff’s troubled injury history and the unproven results of his radical treatment in Dubai, any further damage to his knee could be career-threatening and he may be forced to pay for his own treatment.

The Super Kings pay Flintoff 1.55 million dollars a season and expressed sympathy with his plight, saying they may pay for rehabilitation depending on the circumstances, but did not guarantee it.

“There is a rule that says if it is a pre-existing injury, then the IPL team is not liable,” Chandrasekhar said.

“If you have taken a player in and if it is a serious injury and has occurred during the IPL, sometimes you have to weigh that up. We pay him on a match-to-match basis,” he added.

Under the IPL regulations, players must declare previous injuries, but Chennai is fully aware of the well-publicised knee problem that kept Flintoff out of the fourth Ashes Test.

Flintoff’s IPL future after 2010 is also in doubt, as he requires a No-Objection Certificate from the ECB. Granting him one would set a dangerous precedent for the board, as other players could follow his lead – precisely what the certificate is designed to prevent. (ANI)

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Flintoff’s ECB contract rejection threatens Test cricket, but he plays it down

September 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Sep.17 (ANI): All-rounder Andrew Flintoff may have unwittingly incited the break-up of international cricket by his refusal of an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) incremental contract, but he has played down reports of a possible backlash.

Flintoff has assured that his rejection of an England increment contract, a second tier deal offered to him because of his retirement from Test cricket, did not lessen his commitment to England. The all-rounder, who is Dubai undergoing rehabilitation after knee surgery, made it clear that he has no intention of missing any England games should they clash with matches in the various Twenty20 franchise competitions he also hopes to be part of.

Although Flintoff has put all negotiations on hold while he recovers he is known to have been in preliminary talks with teams in Australia, where their revamped Twenty20 competition is to be called the Big Bash and South Africa, where the Pro20 is easily the most popular professional cricket in the country.

Sean Morris, the chief executive of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, said yesterday that other players would join Flintoff in rejecting national deals and that there may be a rash of early retirements from international cricket.

“I think there will be a lot of serious discussion in Johannesburg later this month among the parties and between the parties. I can’t overestimate its importance. In the space of a few weeks we have had two leading players withdrawing from components of the international game, Andrew Flintoff from Tests and Ricky Ponting, from Twenty20 internationals,” The Telegraph quoted Morris, as saying.

Flintoff’s move may stimulate more than debate.

England captain Andrew Strauss was mildly surprised by the decision.

“I’m not going to sit in judgement of him because we don’t know the reasons. We need to sit down and speak to him about why he’s done this and we’ll then make an informed decision about what that means to his availability for England,” he said. (ANI)

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Nirupama Rao discusses India, Nepal ties in Kathmandu

September 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Kathmandu, Sep 15 (ANI): Visiting Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao met Nepal Foreign Minister Sujata Koirala and discussed various bilateral issues including greater sharing of vital information between the two countries.

According to Nepalnews, both the leaders also discussed electricity import from India, signing of extradition treaty and the agreements reached during Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal’s visit to India last month.

Talking to reporters after the meeting, Koirala said that the discussion basically revolved around building greater cooperation between India and Nepal, Constitution drafting and the peace process.

“India was keen on providing more assistance to help develop Nepal’s poor infrastructures, building transmission lines for the import of electricity from India, signing of the new extradition treaty and address other trade issues,” Koirala added.

Earlier Nirupama Rao met her Nepalis counterpart Gyan Chandra Acharya and discussed joint strategy for implementation of the 34-point agreement signed between the two countries last month.

During the meeting, she assured substantial amount of Indian investment in Nepal if peace is established in the country.

She also called on former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Girija Prasad Koirala at his residence and suggested that Koirala has a great role to play in the days ahead to end the political impasse in Nepal.

She also met CPN UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal and extended an invitation to visit India on behalf of the government of India. During her meeting she advised Khanal to seek a practical solution on rehabilitation and integration of former Maoist combatants.

Nirupama Rao also met Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, Deputy Prime Minister Bijay Kumar Gachhadar, Chief of Army Staff Chatra Mansingh Gurung and Maoist leader Babu Ram Bhattrai New Delhi is sending a high-level official to Nepal at a time when the constitution-drafting and peace process has been stalled due to differences among major political parties.

This is Nirupama Rao’s first visit to Nepal after being appointed Foreign Secretary on July 31.

She will also visit Pashupatinath temple and offer her prayers later today. (ANI)

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Pak Army determined to chase Taliban till the very end: Kayani

September 5, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Rawalpindi, Sep.5 (ANI): The Pakistan Army is determined chase the Taliban till the very end, and would continue its offensive against the extremists until they are rooted out from the country, Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Kayani has said.

Speaking at a function after inaugurating a rehabilitation centre for young Taliban recruits, General Kayani said ‘Operation Rah-e-Rast’, being carried out in the Swat and the Malakand Divisions, has broken the back of extremists.

General Kayani, who visited the war ravaged Malkand Division on Friday, told local leaders that terrorist network has been dismantled and peace and prosperity would soon return to the valley.

“The army will chase these militants till the very end,” The Daily Times quoted General Kayani, as saying.

The rehabilitation centre named ‘Sabawoon’ (morning light) will look after the young men brainwashed and indoctrinated by Taliban for suicide attacks on security forces and other targets in Swat, an ISPR statement said.

Many such youths were nabbed by troops or found in camps in raids during search and clearance operations in the valley. (ANI)

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Bihar CM seeks flood relief from Manmohan Singh

September 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Sep 2 (ANI): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here and sought rehabilitation package for the victims of last year’s devastating floods.

Kumar said that Prime Minister Singh has assured he would visit the state soon.

“I had to discuss flood situation and also the rehabilitation package for the victims of last year’s Kosi floods, for which I have been urging since long. People, whose houses were damaged, have been facing hardships for the last one year. We have requested the Prime Minister that a decision on this should be taken at the earliest,” Nitish Kumar said.

Kosi river burst its banks in Bihar and flooded half of the state last year, wiping out villages and farms and displacing more than three million people.

Despite deficient monsoon rains across the country this year, major rivers were in spate in Bihar.he Kosi, a tributary of the mighty Ganges, last year flooded an area roughly the size of Belgium. The floods changed the course of the river, shifting it 120 km (75 miles) towards a dry river channel it last flowed through 250 years ago.

Bihar is the fifth largest producer of rice in India and agriculture experts say it will take a long time for the region to recover. (ANI)

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2,500-pound machine strapped around Flintoof’s knee to save his cricket career

August 30, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Aug 30 (ANI): England all rounder Andrew Flintoff is praying that the 2,500 pound machine strapped around his knee will save his cricket career.

The Lancashire all-rounder has to strap himself to the contraption for eight hours every day as he starts his gruelling rehabilitation from his latest operation.

The state-of-the-art Continuous Passive Motion equipment was prescribed by surgeon Andy Williams and is designed to bend the 31-year-old Ashes hero’s knee up to 1,500 times a day, News of the World reported.

“I had a choice of either using this machine or doing three sets of 500 knee bends a day, so I thought the machine might be the way forward. I strap my leg into it for eight hours a day. It bends my knee up and down all the time and makes sure the movement is controlled,” Flintoff revealed.

“I will have the machine on most of the time, even when I’m sleeping. The hard part is getting used to having your leg strapped into a machine for most of the day. It’s designed to help with the healing but, inevitably, my right leg is going to waste away a bit and the muscles are going to disappear. There’s not a lot I can do about it because I can’t bear any weight on my right leg for six to eight weeks.”

Flintoff underwent keyhole surgery in London on Monday night – just a day after helping England beat Australia at the Oval to regain the Ashes.

It was the second op on his troublesome knee and the ninth of his career, following four on his left ankle, two for hernias and another on his back.

Flintoff announced his retirement from Test cricket during the Ashes after admitting his 16-stone body could no longer cope with five-day cricket.

“I have set myself a target of returning for the tour to Bangladesh, which is from mid-Febuary to the middle of March, but whether that’s realistic or not, I’m not sure,” admitted Flintoff.

“There is a possibility I may not play again. It’s something I’m going to have to be prepared for in case the operation is not as successful as I hope. There will be a question mark in my mind about whether I have played my last game until I know how the operation has turned out.

“I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t crossed my mind, but the success rate for an operation like this is pretty good,” the paper quoted him, as saying. (ANI)

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Karunanidhi asks for more relief for Tamilians in Sri Lanka

August 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Chennai, Aug 29(ANI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi on Saturday asked the Central Government to ensure more help for Sri Lankan Tamils.

“The relief and rehabilitation steps being provided to Sri Lankan Tamils are not enough, many of the Tamilians in Sri Lanka are facing hardships and struggling with rain and therefore we demand more attention of the government towards this issue,” Karunanidhi told reporters in Chennai.

Sri Lankan Tamils have historical and cultural links with about 60 million Tamils in Tamil Nadu.

In the recent past, the Government of India has requested the Sril Lankan Government to ensure early rehabilitation of the Tamil Sri Lankans after Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) chief V Prabhakaran’s killing by Sri Lankan Army.

The Sri Lankan Government declared victory over LTTE in May, ending one of Asia’s longest conflicts.

Sri Lanka has pledged to resettle the bulk of the displaced within six months, a tall order given the thousands of landmines that have to be cleared across former Tiger territory. (ANI)

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Government to scrap all health regulatory bodies

August 28, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Aug.28 (ANI): The Union Health Ministry has decided to scrap all health regulatory bodies, including the Medical Council of India (MCI), Dental Council of India, Pharmacy Council and the Nursing Council.

There will instead be a single regulatory body-the National Council for Human Resources in Health, which will oversee seven departments related to medicine, nursing, dentistry, rehabilitation and physiotherapy, pharmacy, public health/hospital management and allied health sciences.

However, the move needs a formal government notification.

Sources have claimed that medical education today is dictated by bank balance and caste.

The existing councils, besides being unwieldy, have failed to provide a synergistic approach and there is an urgent need for innovation in health-related education.

Sources said the task force report has been discussed with the Prime Minister on August 26, 2009, which state, “Professional councils such as the MCI/ Nursing and Pharmacy Councils have been set up to regulate the practice of their respective professions, including education.

However, it also says that many of these councils have drawn criticism from all sections of society and got judicial censure on several occasions.”

This action comes barely two months after a private television channel exposed private medical schools in Tamil Nadu charging students huge capitation fees.

The Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry has since initiated action against the erring colleges. The state government has issued showcause notices to both the private medical colleges after the scam came to light. (ANI)

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Asif clears ‘tough’ fitness test enhancing chances for Champions Trophy

August 21, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Lahore, Aug. 21 (ANI): Tainted Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Asif has cleared a ‘tough’ fitness test enhancing his chances of securing a place in the ICC Champions Trophy squad.

Former wicketkeeper captain Rashid Latif, who is supervising Asif’s rehabilitation, confirmed Asif clearing the multi-stage fitness test.

“The Bleep test is the toughest fitness test and Asif secured points which were more than the minimum required by any player to clear it,” Latif said.

Asif, 26 had joined the emerging players’ camp after chief selector Iqbal Qasim asked him to prove his fitness to earn a place in the 15-man squad for the Champions Trophy.

The final decision regarding the right-arm speedster will be taken after the selectors review reports of the latest fitness test, The Nation reports.

Asif was banned from international cricket for one year after failing in the dope test. His ban expires on September 22, the day Champions Trophy is scheduled to begin in South Africa.

Asif’s career had plummeted after he failed a dope test during the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) inaugural season. He is hoping to find a place in the Pakistani team after serving a one-year ban imposed by the PCB.

The PCB has already included him in the preliminary list of 30 probables for the Champions Trophy. (ANI)

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Music lessons may boost a person’s ability to hear in noise

August 18, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Aug 18 (ANI): Musical training could enhance a person’s ability to hear speech despite the deleterious effects of background noise by strengthening auditory memory and the representation of important acoustic features, according to a new Northwestern University study.

The study showed that musicians, who are trained to hear sounds embedded in a rich network of melodies and harmonies, are primed to understand speech in a noisy background, say in a restaurant, classroom or plane.

“The study points to a highly pragmatic side of music’s magic,” said Nina Kraus, director of Northwestern’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory, where the research was done.

The findings strongly support the potential therapeutic and rehabilitation use of musical training to address auditory processing and communication disorders throughout the life span.

While hearing speech in noise is difficult for everyone, the problem is particularly acute for older adults, who are likely to have hearing and memory loss, and for poor readers who have normal hearing but whose nervous systems poorly transcribe sounds that ultimately are critical to good reading skills.

The study suggested that such populations could benefit from the reordering of the nervous system that occurs with musical training.

As the brain changes with experience, musicians have better-tuned circuitry-the pitch, timing and spectral elements of sound are represented more strongly and with greater precision in their nervous systems.

“Musical training makes musicians really good at picking out melodies, the bass line, the sound of their own instruments from complex sounds,” said Kraus.

And the study has for the first time confirmed that such fine-tuning of the nervous system also makes musicians highly adept at translating speech in noise.

The finding has particular implications for hearing certain consonants, which are vulnerable to misinterpretation by the brain, and are a big problem for some poor readers in a noisy environment.

The brain’s unconscious faulty interpretation of sounds makes a big difference in how words ultimately will be read.

The study had 31 participants with normal hearing and a mean age of 23 divided into a group with music experience, and another without it.

They had to listen to sentences presented in increasingly noisy conditions, and repeat back what they heard.

Better perception in noise was linked with better working memory and tone discrimination ability.

The results indicated that musical training enhances the ability to hear speech in challenging listening environments by strengthening auditory memory and the representation of important acoustic features. (ANI)

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Injured Hargreaves in Germany to save Man U career

August 9, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Aug.9 (ANI): Owen Hargreaves has secretly flown to Germany in a bid to save his Manchester United career.

According to The Sun, the England midfielder, 27, has been having treatment all week at the Munich clinic of top knee specialist Dr Hans Muller-Wolfahrt.

Hargreaves went to Munich after his latest setback and, although Sir Alex Ferguson said Hargreaves would return in ‘two to three weeks’, Muller-Wolfahrt told the player it could take six months.

Hargreaves, who had been at Dr Richard Steadman’s surgery in Colorado, is expected to fly back to America this week for more rehabilitation.

The England star has not played for United since the 1-1 draw at Chelsea on September 21 2008. (ANI)

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Zardari says focus of Government is to rehabilitate displaced persons

July 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Islamabad, July 13 (ANI): Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday said the entire focus of the government will now shift to the rehabilitation of displaced persons and rebuilding of the damaged infrastructure in Malakand Division.

He was addressing a select gathering of international donors, NGOs and civil society who had contributed to the relief of the displaced person in and off camps and who were specially invited to the Presidency to honor them for their efforts and contributions.

Briefing newsmen about the meeting, Spokesperson former Senator Farhatullah Babar said that the President described it is an auspicious occasion as the formal return of the displaced persons back to their homes has started today.

The President said that the beginning of the return journey of the displaced person marked the beginning of the end of one phase; and the start of another.

Zardari said that the issue of rehabilitation of displaced persons was a huge challenge before the nation which should be met through the collective effort of the people, the government and the international community.

Farhatullah Babar quoted the President as saying, “Perhaps never before the world witnessed such large scale displacement in such a short span of time. The fallout was enormous. The challenge was huge.”

The President appreciated the huge sacrifices made by the internally displaced persons.

“They were forced to leave their homes, businesses and workplaces. They underwent great hardships but they courageously endured it. Without their patience and endurance it would have been most difficult for us to pursue the fight against the militants,” the President said.

“I salute their courage and the sacrifices they have made,” The News quoted Zardari, as saying. (ANI)

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Swat IDPs to return home from Monday

July 12, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Peshawar, July 11 (ANI): The North Western Frontier Government has charted out a three-phased rehabilitation plan for the internally displaced persons (IDPs) of the Swat Valley.

Under the first phase beginning Monday, the IDPs from 11 camps will return to the valley, the Dawn quoted NWFP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain, as saying.

This would be followed by return of off-camp IDPs, which would continue for 10 days. arlier, the Emergency Response Unit had prepared a plan for the return of IDPs from Buner, but most of them have already gone to their areas.

“We have assessed that around 70 per cent of the IDPs from Buner have already returned and, if required, we will provide transport to the remaining people from there,” an ERU official said.

Under the revised plan, around 5,760 displaced families from Landakai, Kota, Guratai and Barikot areas of Swat will leave for their areas on July 13 and 14 in the first phase.

In the second phase, another 5,760 families from Ghalagai, Maniar, Udigram and Ballogram would return on July 15 and 16.

In the final phase, around 11,520 families from Mingora City, Central City, Hajiabad and Malukabad would leave for their areas from July 17 to 20.

In a bid to thwart off any untoward incident, fool-proof security measures would be adopted and the route leading to Swat would be manned by the army, Frontier Constabulary and police, Hussain informed.

“Curfew will remain intact in the Malakand region and the vehicles used for transportation of the IDPs will carry special stickers,” he said.

Hussain added that army helicopters would also fly along the convoys. Each convoy will have about 40 vehicles, including buses and trucks.

A schedule for return of the IDPs from other areas of Swat, Dir and Buner would be announced after the completion of the three-phase plan. (ANI)

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Relief, rehabilitation in Swat, Malakand to cost billions: UN

July 11, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Islamabad, July 11 (ANI): The rehabilitation and reconstruction work in the war ravaged Swat and Malakand Divisions would cost billions of dollars, the United Nations (UN) has said.

Talking to media persons at a press conference here, the UN Under-Secretary General and Emergency Relief Coordinator, John Holmes, said that it would require a mammoth effort from the Pakistan government to rehabilitate over two million people who have been rendered homeless due to the military operation in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP).

“As for rehabilitation and reconstruction, costs should be in billions of dollars for a year or so,” Holmes said.

He said that the displaced people should not be forced to return to their homes in the Valley, and added that the conditions must be made favorable before asking them to return.

“We would like them to be able to return to their home as soon as possible, but the process has to be voluntary. They need to be involved in those choices, the conditions need to be right. That means the security needs to be right, the basic services need to be there,” The Daily Times quoted Holmes, as saying.

Urging the international community to donate more funds for the relief work, he said it will take time before peace and normalcy returns to the region.

“The security situation is not going to be 100 percent calm in these areas overnight and we must recognize that,” Holmes said. (ANI)

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New UN report takes firm stand on women’s rights in Afghanistan

July 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Kabul (Afghanistan), July 9 (ANI): A new United Nations report has called for an end to the prevailing abuse against women in Afghanistan, and warned that ignoring this culture of impunity will create an environment of political and social insecurity.

The report, titled “Silence is Violence,” documents the increasingly insecure environment for women in public spaces and the failure of state institutions to deal with it, reports the Christian Science Monitor.

The document, which was co-written by the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights (UNHCR) and the UN’s Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), says that the argument that it’s more important to “have security rather than human rights … is absolutely the wrong concept, since you need human rights for sustainable peace.”

Dr. Sima Samar, the chairperson of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, explained that the denial of women’s rights is usually on the grounds of culture and tradition.

The report documents violence that inhibits participation of women in public life, identifying perpetrators as anti-government elements, local traditional and religious power holders, women’s own families and communities and, in some instances, government authorities.

Sexual violence against women was found to be perpetrated by close family members, staff of prisons and rehabilitation centers, military commanders, and members of illegal armed groups and criminal gangs.

“The pattern of attacks against women operating in the public sphere sends a strong message to all women to stay at home,” says the report.

“This has obvious ramifications for the transformation of Afghanistan, the stated priority of Afghan authorities, and their international supporters.”

“Rhetoric [has not been] matched by reality,” says the head of UNAMA’s human rights unit, Norah Niland.

The UN report and its message were backed at the highest level of the UN’s presence in Afghanistan. It was released in the residence of the UN secretary-general’s special representative, Kai Eide, the top UN diplomat in Afghanistan. (ANI)

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