Wednesday, October 21, 2009 SILVER SPRING: In a bold effort to end all forms of violence against women and girls around the world, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is co-sponsoring a petition that seeks 1 million signatures from 200 countries and territories, as part of a global initiative launched recently called enditnow, whose main goal is to stop oppressive practices aimed at the female gender. "This petition is an important first step in this campaign because it shows that people from around the world are taking a stand to say that violence against women is no longer acceptable in any of its forms," said Hearly Mayr, director for Public Awareness at ADRA International, and a petition organizer. The petition has found growing support internationally. Hundreds of people from more than 70 countries have already signed the written and online petition in the initial days of the enditnow campaign. Signatures will be presented to the United Nations to draw attention to the issue, advocate for the creation of new policies to protect women and girls, and publicly declare the efforts of the Seventh-day Adventist Church to end violent practices against women and girls. Enditnow, sponsored by ADRA and the Women's Ministries Department of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, was launched October 13. More than 15 million Adventist church members from around the world are encouraged to join this growing movement in order to create change within their own communities and mobilize their peers to raise awareness. Follow ADRA on Twitter and get the latest information on the campaign. ADRA is a non-governmental organization present in 125 countries providing sustainable community development and disaster relief without regard to political or religious association, age, gender, race or ethnicity.
Friday, August 14, 2009 MUMBAI: A 26-year-old woman died Thursday of H1N1 swine flu in the southern city of Bangalore, raising India's death toll from the virus to 20, authorities said.The death was the first reported in India's information technology capital, the Press Trust of India reported.Meanwhile in Pune, the worst-affected in India, two more victims of the virus died Thursday, raising the death toll in that western city near Mumbai to 12, the report said. The victims were an 11-month-old boy and a 75-year-old old woman.US media reported movie halls, schools and colleges were ordered closed Thursday for three days to a week in Mumbai, the commercial and financial capital of the country, as fear of the pandemic spread.Prajakata Lavangare, a spokeswoman for the government of Maharashtra state of which Mumbai is the capital, said similar orders were issued in Pune, which is also located in the state.The woman who died in Bangalore was identified only as Roopa, a teacher in
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