Cultural News: Top Stories

	Top Stories Uganda sees tourism earnings up five per cent in 2008 France: First stone laid for Louvre's Islamic art gallery Light up a hundred villages the goal of India film industry's concert tour

	Top Stories US: Maharishi Vedic Pandits observe traditional Vedic celebration on American Independence Day Germany: Weekend of Total Knowledge celebrates religion and culture Delegation from the Amazon visits MERU, Holland - Part III

	Top Stories Ukraine grapples with alarming rise in hate crimes Study: Many US teens get alcohol from adults Women with children working more: US study
Positive Trends 10 Short Summaries of Top Stories Uganda sees tourism earnings up five per cent in 2008 20 July 2008 - Uganda projects $500 million earnings from its growing tourism sector in 2008, up five per cent from last year, a marketing official said. The country has battled a brutal insurgency in the north for over two decades, but on-off peace talks have restored some normalcy in the region of late. The Uganda Tourism Board said two investors were looking to put up two hotels in the north, a sign that businessmen were confident of peace. Uganda straddles the equator but enjoys a tropical climate. It prides itself as being the source of the Nile and having Lake Victoria, the second largest fresh water lake in the world. (more) France: First stone laid for Louvre's Islamic art gallery 17 July 2008 - The first stone was laid Wednesday at the Louvre's new Arts of Islam gallery. President Nicolas Sarkozy and a major donor for the project, Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, took part in the ceremony to start work on the addition, which includes a shimmering glass wave hanging over a 19th-century courtyard. The project's architects say it resembles a cloud or a flying carpet. The wing, expected to open in 2010, will display a vast collection of Islamic art from the seventh to the 19th century. (more) Light up a hundred villages the goal of India film industry's concert tour 17 July 2008 - Some of the most famous people in India's film industry are teaming up with a renowned climate change scientist to help brighten the lives of a billion people through a project that aims to provide 200,000 villages with electricity for the first time. The tour of North America and Europe will help raise money for the 'Lighting a Billion Lives' campaign through concert proceeds. The tour starts in Toronto on 18 July and will help provide electric lanterns to some 100 villages, Rajendra Pachauri, head of the Nobel Prize-winning UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said. (more) Morocco sends moderate Muslim preachers to Europe 17 July 2008 - Morocco plans to send scores of moderate Muslim preachers to Europe during the holy month of Ramadan to help fight extremism in the Moroccan community abroad, the ministry for religious affairs said Thursday. The preachers are instructed to 'answer the religious needs of the Moroccan community abroad', said part of a statement from the religious affairs ministry in Rabat, the Moroccan capital. There are an estimated 3.3 million Moroccans living abroad, 10 per cent of the total Moroccan population. Most live in Spain, France, Belgium, or the Netherlands. (more) Groundbreaking interfaith meeting shuns extremism 16 July 2008 - Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah opened an unprecedented meeting of Muslims, Christians, Jews, and other believers on Wednesday with a call to shun the extremist violence that has tarnished the reputation of religious faith. The three-day conference in Madrid, Spain aims to showcase a more tolerant side of the Kingdom's strict Wahhabi Islam. It was the first time Saudi Arabia invited Jews to such a meeting. The King also invited Buddhists, Hindus, and Sikhs. Participants at the meeting saw a huge step forward in inter-faith engagement. (more) Saudi Arabia King calls for religious reconciliation 16 July 2008 - King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia exhorted followers of the world's leading faiths to turn away from extremism and embrace a spirit of reconciliation, saying at the start of an interfaith conference in Madrid on Wednesday that history's great conflicts were not caused by religion itself but by its misinterpretation. (more) Saudi Arabia-backed interfaith meeting starts 16 July 2008 - King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia was kicking off an interfaith conference in Madrid on Wednesday -- an effort to bring Muslims, Christians, and Jews closer together amid a world that often puts the three faiths at odds. Spanish King Juan Carlos was also addressing the gathering -- which the Saudis have billed as a strictly religious affair. (more) South Africa choirs shine at World Choir Games 15 July 2008 - South Africa's youth and children's choirs claimed a total of 15 gold medals in Part I of this year's World Choir Games -- the world's biggest global choral competition. Hosted in the city of Graz, Austria, the 5th World Choir Games attracted 441 choirs from 93 different countries from the United States to Australia. In the first round of medal presentations, South Africa surpassed all other teams taking home a total of 23 medals. South Africa's performance was followed by Russia who claimed a total of 18 medals (3 gold), and Indonesia with 14 medals (4 gold). (more) Scotland: National Museum opens new gallery covering significant events 11 July 2008 - Scotland's National Museum has opened a major new gallery covering the dramatic changes the country has undergone over the past 100 years as part of a refurbishment of the museum complex in the heart of Edinburgh's Old Town. The gallery runs the gamut through weaving tweed cloth on the Hebridean island of Harris, extracting North Sea oil, the glory years of shipbuilding on the Clyde river, and inventions by Scots. (more) Latvia: Thousands celebrate traditional song festival 8 July 2008 - Thousands of choral singers, dancers in traditional costumes, and folk music lovers have descended on the Latvian capital this week for a massive festival which only comes round once every five years. Large song festivals have been a solid fixture for the small Baltic state and its neighbours Lithuania and Estonia, dating back to the 19th century and surviving 50 years of Soviet rule. (more)
Success of Maharishi's Programmes 10 Short Summaries of Top Stories US: Maharishi Vedic Pandits observe traditional Vedic celebration on American Independence Day 10 July 2008 - Speaking 4 July 2008 on Maharishi's Global Family Chat, Dr Bevan Morris, Prime Minister of the Global Country of World Peace, reported on the traditional Vedic Celebration of total Natural Law administering the universe, which was observed on American Independence Day by Vedic Pandits in Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa, USA. (more) Germany: Weekend of Total Knowledge celebrates religion and culture 26 June 2008 - Speaking 17 June 2008 on Maharishi Global Family Chat, Dr Wolfgang Gied, National Director of Religion and Culture for the Global Country of World Peace in Germany, reported on Germany's second Weekend of Total Knowledge, which focused on the topic of religion and culture. (more) Delegation from the Amazon visits MERU, Holland - Part III 19 June 2008 - A delegation of traditional leaders from the Amazon were recently welcomed at the International Capital of the Global Country of World Peace in MERU, Holland. Raja Jose Luis Alvarez, Raja of Invincible Latin America for the Global Country of World Peace, spoke about their visit and about traditional peoples enjoying Maharishi's programmes throughout his Domain. (more) Delegation from the Amazon visits MERU, Holland - Part II 16 June 2008 - A delegation of traditional leaders from the Amazon in Latin America were recently welcomed at the International Capital of the Global Country of World Peace in MERU, Holland. The delegation enjoyed hearing about Maharishi's programmes to bring fulfilment to every culture in the family of nations, and about how these programmes are utilized by cultures around the world. (more) Delegation from the Amazon visits MERU, Holland - Part I 15 June 2008 - The Ministry of Religion and Culture for the Global Country of World Peace recently hosted a delegation of traditional leaders from the Amazon at the International Capital of the Global Country of World Peace in MERU, Holland. (more) Voice of America reports on David Lynch - Not your typical Hollywood director 22 May 2008 - Award-winning film director David Lynch credits his practice of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Transcendental Meditation Programme with profoundly enhancing his creativity. (more) Report by 20 Minutes, France: David Lynch and Transcendental Meditation 14 May 2008 - Renowned film director David Lynch recently wrote a book and made a documentary about Transcendental Meditation, a technique that has had a profound, life-transforming effect for him. (more) US: David Lynch discusses Transcendental Meditation 13 May 2008 - Filmmaker David Lynch, a practitioner of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Transcendental Meditation Technique for over thirty years, recently spoke at the David Lynch Weekend hosted by Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa, USA. (more) Le Parisien: David Lynch on Transcendental Meditation 11 May 2008 - Filmmaker David Lynch was recently in Paris speaking about his new book, in which he discusses creativity, film, painting, music, and Transcendental Meditation--a technique which he has practised daily for thirty-five years. (more) Maharishi School and Peace Palaces starting in Venezuela 9 May 2008 - Raja Jose Luis Alvarez, Raja of Latin America for the Global Country of World Peace, reported recently on Maharishi Global Family Chat about a new Maharishi School in Caracas and Maharishi Peace Palaces outside Valencia, Venezuela. (more)
Flops 10 Short Summaries of Top Stories Ukraine grapples with alarming rise in hate crimes 11 July 2008 - The number of hate crimes are rising at an alarming rate in Ukraine, which is trying to hone its reputation as a bastion of democracy as it pursues a spot in the European Union and NATO. London-based Amnesty International warned in a report released Thursday of an 'alarming rise' in the attacks in recent years in this nation of 46 million. Foreigners in Ukraine have been stunned by the sudden and ferocious spike in violence. Rights groups also say the government aggravates the problem by denying that racism is growing. (more) Study: Many US teens get alcohol from adults 26 June 2008 - Many of the US' estimated 10.8 million underage drinkers are turning to their parents or other adults for free alcohol, a recent survey said. 'In far too many instances parents directly enable their children's underage drinking, in essence encouraging them to risk their health and well-being,' said acting Surgeon General Steven K. Galson. About one out of five of those aged 12 to 20, or roughly 7.2 million people, said they had taken part in binge drinking. About 3.5 million teens aged 12 to 20 each year meet the diagnostic criteria for having an alcohol use disorder, such as dependence or abuse. (more) Women with children working more: US study 12 June 2008 - Women with children are working more than ever before despite the so-called 'opting out' revolution popularized by the media, according to a new study. Working mothers are also spending more time at their jobs, the study found. More than 15 per cent of those born after 1956 work 50 hours or more a week, compared to less than 10 per cent among women born in earlier years. Women who have children and work, sleep less, have fewer leisure activities, and have less time to spend in 'civic participation', the study's creator said. (more) Afghanistan: Threat of ethnic clashes over grazing land 8 April 2008 - There are increasing fears of an imminent outbreak of ethnic conflict in central Afghanistan over access to grazing land between Kuchis and Hazaras. The estimated 2-3 million Kuchis (nomads) have traditionally moved all over the country with their camels, sheep, goats, and donkeys in search of greener pastures. The Hazara have warned that Kuchis will not be allowed to graze animals in 'their' areas. (more) India hires women border guards 4 April 2008 - India is enrolling women for the first time in a combat role. They will be deployed along the country's borders with Pakistan to the west, and Bangladesh in the east, which New Delhi says are the most common entry points for militants plotting attacks against the country. (more) World: Climate solutions seen harming indigenous peoples 2 April 2008 - Large-scale solutions to help slow global warming often threaten the very indigenous peoples who are among those hardest hit by a changing climate, the UN University said on Wednesday. Biofuel plantations, construction of hydropower dams and measures to protect forests, where trees soak up heat-trapping carbon dioxide gas as they grow, can create conflicts with the ancestral lands of indigenous peoples. (more) Chinese minority faces cultural extinction 13 March 2008 - The culture and language of China's second smallest minority, the Shamanistic Hezhen who number less than 5,000, are rapidly slipping away and they need more state aid, a community leader said on Thursday. Fewer than 20 Hezhen still speak their mother tongue fluently, according to the United Nation's cultural body UNESCO, and Chinese officials have named it one of the country's most threatened languages, along with the old imperial tongue Manchu. The only Chinese minority group with fewer members are the Lhoba of Tibet. (more) Tibet's language, customs fading away 9 March 2008 - Tibet's language, customs, and traditions are fading away and Tibetans live in fear as they become an insignificant minority in their Himalayan homeland, the Dalai Lama will say in a speech on Monday. (more) Yemen: Despite progress, still an uphill struggle for women 9 March 2008 - Yemeni women, especially those living in rural areas, continue to have high illiteracy rates, insufficient medical care and face gender discrimination, specialists said at an event held in Sanaa on 8 March to mark International Women's Day 2008. (more) Benin: More than 40,000 children trafficked each year 5 March 2008 - A new study released jointly by the Ministry of Family and Children and the UN in Benin shows that more than 40,000 children aged between 6 and 17 were trafficked in 2006. (more)