By Terri Moon Cronk American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, May 20, 2011 - Stemming the incidence of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, requires awareness, education and recognizing its symptoms, a senior military psychiatrist said.
"[It's important] to make sure people are aware, educated, and that they look for it in themselves, their friends and fellow service members. They must act on it so something is done," Hammer said. Taking action doesn't necessarily call for a major intervention, he said. "Sometimes reaching out and talking to someone can put that person on the right path to get the help he needs," he suggested. Recognizing signs of the stress disorder early can be the key to successfully diagnose and treat affected individuals, he said. "PTSD can be a really complicated entity," he said. "People think it's one thing, but it can manifest itself in a lot of different ways and contexts." PTSD is not gender-specific, and tell-tale signs vary from one person to the next, but Hammer said some factors might add up to the stress diagnosis. He said it's important to recognize such symptoms as combat stress, substance abuse, talks of suicide and depression. Getting help begins with awareness and education at all levels of the military, he said. Hammer said post-traumatic stress was once a condition discovered only after troops returned home following deployments. Now, however, the services include post-traumatic stress awareness instruction for new recruits in basic training, and warfighters are monitored for symptoms during their military careers. "We've got to take care of ourselves and take care of each other," Hammer said. "The idea of awareness is to take appropriate action and have the courage to reach out and take help." "The Army [incorporates awareness] in resilience training and comprehensive soldier fitness, and by training master resilience trainers," he added. "So there's a huge effort among the services to really develop a level of resilience." Combating the stigma attached to mental health counseling also is taught to service members as part of the military's awareness campaign, Hammer said. For many people, the longtime stigma is an overwhelming barrier to diagnosis and treatment. Denial of post-traumatic stress also can develop, which he described as a "tougher nut to crack." Denial is a person's perception that people are doing fine, Hammer added. "They don't want to see themselves or be seen as weak, damaged or ill," he said. "I think huge headway has been made on stigma," he said. "You see senior officers and senior enlisted members who are much more willing to speak out and talk about it. I can't imagine a time, when I first came in, that I would hear a sergeant major talk about PTSD, and now it's routine." "No doubt the stigma is still out there, but we've still made an enormous amount of progress," Hammer said. "But there's more to do. We're not resting on our laurels. We're still working on it." | ||
| Related Sites: Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury | ||
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Education is Key in Fight Against PTSD
'Dog' Company Takes Fight to the High Ground
By Karen Parrish American Forces Press Service GAYAN DISTRICT, Afghanistan, May 20, 2011 - "Dog" Company's mission, here near the Pakistan border, is simple: "climb mountains and kill bad guys."
Army Capt. Edwin Churchill commands the company, part of the 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment's fighting force for the 4th Brigade, 101st Airborne Division. "You've got to be willing to own the high grounds and stay out overnight," Churchill said. "You need to go where you know [enemy forces] are, and have the confidence that you'll push them out of the area." From Forward Operating Base Tillman here in the Paktika province, Churchill's troops literally went to the high ground recently. The company spent five days, from May 14-to 18, marching into the mountains of the Gayan district, carrying tons of weapons and equipment, aided by Afghan army and border police partners and a small Army engineer detachment. Their mission: slow the flow of enemy fighters from the border region into the rest of Afghanistan. On May 14 – a Saturday - the company's first and third platoons set up positions on three hilltops, with the first platoon split between two positions. The soldiers flew in by Chinook, then marched and climbed to their assigned positions before dawn. Churchill said the overwatch positions covered an area roughly seven by three kilometers, centered on a road that provides an illegal crossing into Pakistan. Local Afghans use the road to cross into Pakistan, where the nearest bazaar is located. But the road also provides a route for insurgents to move men and equipment into Afghanistan without passing through a checkpoint, Churchill said. "We've been hitting that area hard, and it's created quite a fight from [the enemy.] They very dearly want to hold on to that crossing point," he said. A primary objective of the operation was to disable that road, he added. Engineers accomplished that Monday morning, setting off a series of explosive charges that left two craters in the road. One is 22 feet long by 8 feet deep, and the explosion rolled a 1,000-pound boulder into the pit, he said. The second crater is 15 feet wide and 6 feet deep. "The enemy can bring heavy equipment out to try to fix it, but we'd instantly react ... and find out who it was," Churchill said. Legitimate residents will detour through the traffic control checkpoint near FOB Tillman, and soldiers will be on the lookout for people who are suddenly deviating from their normal travel patterns and those who are using illegal crossings, he said. In the wake of the explosions in the road, insurgents attacked third platoon's position early in the afternoon, and sustained the assault into Tuesday morning. [See related article "Infantry Troops Hold Border Hilltop."] Later that day, the company's other two elements converged on the third platoon's position, and were in place the following day when the enemy attacked again. "It was four to five different positions, machine gun and small arms fire coming from the same ridgeline," Churchill said. "The insurgents initiated and ... we had at that point four machine guns on the line plus five different squad automatic weapons [and] two 60mm mortar tubes." Within two minutes, Dog Company had fire superiority. The entire engagement lasted about 20 minutes. "We had just started to break down ... and get ready to leave," Churchill said. "We called for [air weapons] and immediate suppression from the 105 howitzers at FOB Tillman. We have an unbelievably good gun crew here, and we're very comfortable firing them 'danger close.'" The combination of indirect and direct fire quickly drove the enemy away, he said. "We know they broke contact back into Pakistan," he said. "At that point we sat at stand-to for a couple of hours waiting to see if they wanted to come back." Churchill said an estimated two squads' worth of enemy fighters were "removed from the battlefield" during the two engagements. His soldiers' performance during the mission was highly professional, Churchill said. He noted that most of the company's men have been involved in "more firefights than they can count" during their deployment, and have walked at least 700 miles of patrol through the mountainous border region. "Every infantryman finds that point in his career ... something like the other day, when those rounds were everywhere," he said. "How did they not find anything? Nobody [from Dog Company] got hit." | ||||
| Related Sites: NATO International Security Assistance Force 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division Related Articles: 101st Troopers Help Safeguard Paktika Province | ||||
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What was your country’s record on human rights?
Amnesty International's 2011 report reveals a world in which people continue to challenge oppression despite the powerful array of repressive measures used against them. It shows that the communities most affected by human rights abuses are the real driving force behind the human rights struggle. »
89 countries placed specific restrictions on free speech
48 countries imprisoned people for their beliefs; what we call ‘prisoners of conscience’
98 countries tortured and ill-treated their citizens and at least
54 countries put people through unfair trials.
India
Head of state
Pratibha Patil
Head of government
Manmohan Singh
Death penalty
retentionist
Population
1,214.5 million
Life expectancy
64.4 years
Under-5 mortality (m/f)
77/86 per 1,000
Adult literacy
62.8 per cent
Ongoing clashes between armed Maoists and state security forces escalated in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and West Bengal. More than 350 people were killed in bomb attacks in those states and in ethnically motivated attacks in Assam and other states. Protests by Adivasis (Indigenous communities) and other marginalized communities against moves to acquire their lands and natural resources without proper consultation or consent resulted in the suspension of key corporate-led projects. Human rights defenders in these cases were attacked by state or private agents, with politically motivated charges, including sedition, being brought against some. More than 100 people, mostly youth protesters, were killed in the Kashmir valley during protests between June and September. Torture and other ill-treatment, extrajudicial executions, deaths in custody and administrative detentions remained rife. Institutional mechanisms meant to protect human rights and human rights defenders remained weak and judicial processes failed to ensure justice for many victims of past violations and abuses. At least 105 people were sentenced to death but, for the sixth successive year, no executions took place.
Background
India’s rapid economic growth was limited to key urban and suburban areas; large parts of rural India continued to experience grinding poverty, aggravated by an agricultural crisis and declining food availability for those living in poverty. According to official estimates, about 30 to 50 per cent of the population were living in poverty. Of these, people living in rural areas were guaranteed at least 100 days of work per year, but the authorities continued to pay them below the national minimum wage.
US President Barack Obama’s November visit to India underscored the country’s growing international and regional status. However, India routinely put economic and strategic interests above human rights considerations. The Indian authorities did not speak out against gross human rights violations committed by the authorities in neighbouring Myanmar, and remained silent on demands for the Sri Lankan government to be held accountable for human rights violations committed at the end of that country’s war in 2009.
Relations between India and Pakistan remained fragile following Pakistan’s ongoing failure to adequately address the November 2008 Mumbai attacks. Relations were also undermined by a rise in pro-independence protests in Indian-administered Kashmir.
In Chhattisgarh, clashes escalated between armed Maoists and state forces supported by the Salwa Judum militia, widely believed to be state-sponsored. In November, during a hearing at the Supreme Court on petitions filed against impunity, the state authorities claimed that this militia was no longer active. However, human rights organizations said it had been reconstituted as a local “peace force”.
Similar clashes and bomb attacks took place in Adivasi areas of Jharkhand and West Bengal. Both sides routinely targeted civilians, mainly Adivasis, who reported killings and abductions. Around 30,000 Adivasis continued to be internally displaced in Chhattisgarh alone, of whom 10,000 lived in camps and 20,000 were dispersed in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Orissa.
In May, at least 144 passengers were killed and 200 others injured when an express train derailed reportedly after an explosion on the track in West Medhinipur district. The area routinely saw violence between armed Maoists on the one hand and on the other, the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) and the central paramilitary forces. In August, one of the people accused in the explosion case, Umakanta Mahato, an Adivasi leader of the People’s Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA), was extrajudicially executed after a round of political violence in which three CPI-M supporters were killed by the PCPA.
In September, security forces engaged in anti-Maoist operations in Chhattisgarh illegally detained 40 Adivasis, stripped and tortured them. They detained 17 other people, two of whom were 16 years old, and sexually assaulted two of the women. The authorities failed to pursue the findings of an initial inquiry which held security force personnel responsible for the violations.
Peace activists belonging to Vanvasi Chetna Ashram (VCA), a Gandhian NGO, were forced to stop working in the conflict areas of Chhattisgarh. VCA founder Himanshu Kumar could not return to Dantewada town which he had fled in 2009 following persistent harassment and intimidation by Salwa Judum, the state police and paramilitary forces.
In September, the Chhattisgarh police accused Adivasi leader and prisoner of conscience Kartam Joga, whose petition against impunity was being heard by the Supreme Court, of collaborating with armed Maoists.
In December, a local court in Chhattisgarh convicted human rights defender, medical practitioner and prisoner of conscience Binayak Sen of collaborating with Maoists and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
Both the authorities and companies failed to ensure adequate consultation with and protection of the rights of local marginalized communities affected by mining, irrigation and other corporate projects. In several states, Adivasi and other marginalized local communities staged protests – some of them successful – against the authorities’ failure to respect their claims, guaranteed by the Constitution and recent legislation, over lands which were threatened by corporate ventures.
In a landmark victory for Adivasi rights, the Indian government rejected plans to mine bauxite in the Niyamgiri Hills, Orissa, and to expand an alumina refinery in nearby Lanjigarh. The plans were proposed by a subsidiary of UK-based Vedanta Resources and the state-owned Orissa Mining Corporation. The authorities found that both projects violated forest and environmental laws and would perpetrate abuses against the Dongria Kondh and other Adivasi communities.
In June, a Bhopal court sentenced eight Indian executives at Union Carbide to two years’ imprisonment for their role in the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy. The gas leak killed between 7,000 and 10,000 people in its immediate aftermath, and a further 15,000 over the next 20 years. The case was reopened by the Supreme Court in August, following public anger at what were widely viewed as excessively lenient sentences.
The police used excessive force to quell protests by local communities against forced evictions and the acquisition of their lands for corporate projects. The police failed to protect protesters when private militias, reportedly allied with ruling political parties, violently suppressed protests. The authorities did not carry out impartial and timely inquiries into most of these incidents.
In May, Adivasi leader Laxman Jamuda was killed when police fired at people protesting against the acquisition of Adivasi lands for a proposed Tata Steel project in Kalinganagar, Orissa. Nineteen people were injured, 10 sustaining bullet wounds. One thousand police officers cordoned off the villages while 200 private militia members forced their way in and demolished some houses.
In May, at least 20 protesters were injured when police used tear gas and batons to disperse about 1,000 farmers demonstrating against the takeover of their farmlands and village common land for South Korean Pohong Steel Company’s (POSCO) proposed steel project in Jagatsinghpur district, Orissa.
In July, two fishermen were killed when police fired at a protest against the government’s takeover of land for a thermal power project promoted by Nagarjuna Construction Company in Sompeta town, Andhra Pradesh. Five people sustained bullet wounds, and 350 people, including 60 police officers, were injured as police, assisted by a private militia, dispersed protesters from 10 villages. The next day, the authorities cancelled the environmental clearance given for the project.
Continuing protests forced the authorities to reconsider existing land acquisition laws. In September, the Federal authorities proposed new legislation for the extractive sector with benefit-sharing arrangements for local communities along with new frameworks for free, prior and informed consent for Adivasis and consultation for other marginalized communities. New legislation containing improvements in land acquisition procedures and rehabilitation and resettlement policies was pending before parliament.
People defending the land rights of Adivasis and other marginalized communities, in some cases by using recent legislation to obtain information to protect their rights, continued to face serious threats and violent attacks from private militias.
In January, Sadhu Singh Takhtupura was killed in Amritsar district, Punjab, after he led local farmers to resist land grabs allegedly by an alliance of local political leaders, contractors and corrupt officials. In October, another peasant leader, Pirthipal Singh Alishar, was shot dead by assailants after he led a campaign against usury by money lenders. In both cases, local communities alleged that the police failed to investigate and bring those responsible to justice.
In January, Satish Shetty was murdered after refusing to stop exposing land grabs in Pune city using new Right to Information legislation.
In July, Amit Jethwa, who had campaigned against illegal mining in the Gir forest of Gujarat, was shot dead outside the high court complex in Ahmedabad.
Campaigners against human rights violations faced harassment, intimidation and arrests on false and politically motivated charges.
Between March and June, the Gujarat police detained 13 activists, including Adivasi labour activist Avinash Kulkarni. They faced trial on charges of collaborating with armed Maoists.
Impunity for abuses and violations remained widespread; despite ongoing protests in the north-east, the authorities remained unwilling to repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958, which facilitates impunity. Perpetrators of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions and other human rights violations in Punjab between 1984 and 1994, and Assam between 1998 and 2001, continued to evade justice. Members of Dalit communities in several states faced attacks and discrimination. The authorities failed to use existing special laws enacted to prosecute perpetrators of such violence.
1984 massacre
In September, the Supreme Court directed the trial of Congress Party leader Sajjan Kumar to proceed. The case against another former Congress Party leader, Jagdish Tytler, was closed in April by a Delhi court. Both men were accused of inciting their supporters to commit the Delhi massacre, in which thousands of Sikhs were killed, following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984.
Communal violence
Cases against some of those responsible for the 2002 attacks against Muslim minorities in Gujarat, in which about 2,000 people were killed, made little progress. Proceedings were marred by the authorities’ openly hostile attitude towards witnesses, the investigating agencies’ refusal to examine crucial evidence including official telephone records, and the destruction of evidence linking key political leaders to the violence.
In December, Teesta Setalvad of the Centre for Justice and Peace and a team of lawyers defending victims’ rights were harassed by Gujarat police who charged them with concocting evidence.
Jammu and Kashmir
Impunity for past violations in Kashmir, including the disappearance of thousands of people since 1989 during the armed conflict in Kashmir, continued. Official inquiries into some of the violations made slow or little progress.
Between June and September, the police and security forces fired at protesters during pro-Independence protests demanding accountability for past violations in the Kashmir valley. More than 100 people, mostly youths, were killed and 800 others, including media workers, were injured. An inquiry, instituted by the state authorities, covered 17 of the 100 deaths, despite demands by Amnesty International and other organizations for an independent, impartial and thorough investigation into all the deaths. The inquiry made little progress.
The authorities made widespread use of administrative detentions, detaining 322 people between January and September. Following the protests, on the basis of recommendations by a government-appointed team of interlocutors who visited the valley, the authorities released two separatist leaders, Shabir Shah and Mohammad Nayeem Khan.
Fourteen-year-old Mushtaq Ahmad Sheikh was charged with taking part in violent protests and detained in Srinigar in April. He was later transferred to jails in Udhampur and Jammu where he remained.
Recent data disclosed by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on people killed in clashes with the police between 1993 and 2008, showed that of the 2,560 deaths reported, 1,224 occurred in “faked encounters” implying they were extrajudicial executions. By the end of the year, the NHRC had awarded compensation to the relatives of 16 victims. Convictions of those responsible for extrajudicial executions were exceptionally rare and proceedings in such cases remained slow.
In January, the Supreme Court ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the 2005 killings, allegedly by the Gujarat police, of Sohrabuddin, his wife Kausar Bi and accomplice Tulsiram Prajapati, after finding the state police investigation shoddy.
In November, the Gujarat government constituted a new special police team to investigate the killings of Ishrat Jahan and three others at the hands of the Gujarat police in 2004.
More than 100 people were detained without charge, for periods ranging from one week to a month in connection with bomb attacks in several states, including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. Reports of torture and other ill-treatment of suspects led to protests by both Muslim and Hindu organizations. Security legislation, tightened after the November 2008 attacks in Mumbai, was used to detain suspects. Despite ongoing protests, the authorities refused to repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act 1958, which grants security forces in specified areas or states the power to shoot to kill in circumstances where they are not necessarily at imminent risk.
In December, India voted against a UN General Assembly resolution calling for a worldwide moratorium on executions. At least 105 people, including Ajmal Kasab, the sole surviving Pakistani man accused of involvement in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, were sentenced to death. However, for the sixth successive year, no executions took place and the death sentences of 13 people were commuted to life imprisonment. Amendments to the law extended the death penalty to hijackers. Under new legislation, 16 states published death row figures, but at least five others refused to do so.
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Thursday, May 19, 2011
J & K Authorities to Release or Charge Teenage Protester
Thu, May 19, 2011 at 10:04 PM Thursday, May 19, 2011
Amnesty International Calls on Jammu and Kashmir Authorities to Release or Charge Teenage Protester
Amnesty International Calls on Jammu and Kashmir Authorities to Release or Charge Teenage Protester
Washington, D.C.: The Jammu and Kashmir authorities must immediately release or charge a teenage anti-government protester who was rearrested this week after spending three months in administrative detention, Amnesty International said. Murtaza Manzoor, 17, was briefly released from prison on Wednesday after the High Court found that his administrative detention was unlawful. He was immediately rearrested by police.
Amnesty International said it is likely that a repeat administrative detention order for Murtaza Manzoor will be passed, allowing police to detain him without charge or trial for up to two years.
"The police in Jammu and Kashmir are playing a game with the judiciary. Courts order a person's release only for the police to wait outside prison to re-arrest them. This farce should stop," said Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific director.
"Murtaza Manzoor must be released immediately, unless he is charged with a recognizable criminal offense," said Zarifi. "If so, he should be remanded in custody by an independent court and his rights as a child should be recognized. The authorities must not order his repeat administrative detention."
Although he is 17 years old Murtaza Manzoor is being treated as an adult because the laws of Jammu and Kashmir define boys above the age of 16 as adults. This contravenes both Indian law and the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir has said that the laws will be amended to make them consistent with international law and standards.
"We can clearly see the need to amend the law in Jammu and Kashmir because teenage boys are held in jails with no special facilities for juveniles," said Zarifi.
Police arrested Murtaza Manzoor on January 21 in the state capital Srinagar. He was accused of attempted murder, assault and rioting, based on allegations that he led a June 2010 protest against the Indian government that turned violent and resulted in protesters rioting and pelting police with stones.
On February 8, fearing that Manzoor would be released on bail, police placed him in administrative detention under the highly problematic Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act (PSA), which allows for up to two years’ detention without charge or trial.
On May 13 the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir found Murtaza Manzoor's detention to be unlawful and ordered his release.
On May 18, instead of being released to his father who was waiting outside the Kot Bhalwal Jail, Murtaza Manzoor was escorted from the prison by four policemen of a specialist counter-insurgency team and taken to the Joint Interrogation Center at Jammu.
Police told his father that Murtaza Manzoor would be kept at the interrogation center for a few days before being handed over to a police station in Srinagar.
"Murtaza’s case illustrates the 'revolving door' nature of detentions widespread in PSA cases, as documented in Amnesty International’s recent report, A Lawless Law,” said Zarifi.
Murtaza Manzoor's family was not given any information on the alleged offenses for which he is being held. Amnesty International said it believes his detention may be unlawful.
At least 322 people are reported to have been detained without trial under the provisions of the Public Safety Act in Jammu and Kashmir from January to September 2010 alone.
A number of them, including children, have been detained on similar grounds of stone pelting and rioting during various protests against the Indian government throughout the summer of 2010.
Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 3 million supporters, activists and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.
# # #
My Husband's PTSD
American Forces Press Service
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May 13, 2011
My husband's PTSD manifested itself in different ways. I remember Fourth of July at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., when we were all standing outside listening to the band, enjoying the picnic and listening to fireworks. The fireworks bothered Adrian because they sounded so much like gunfire. It made other soldiers upset too, and we all went inside. I thought it was ironic because the celebration was supposed to be for the American soldiers; they couldn't even enjoy it.
He'd see a can on the side of the road and swerve, thinking it was an improvised explosive device. When he'd go out to dinner with other soldiers, I'd say it looked like a "The Last Supper" painting because they'd all sit there with their backs against the wall. If a room became too busy, he'd want to leave. He'd suddenly become unfriendly or unapproachable. At first, I confused his behavior with depression, or I thought maybe he was just tired. I also couldn't help but think it had to do with me; I'm only human.
I was fortunate that Adrian was willing to get help once he got back. Once he was diagnosed, I knew we'd know better how to deal with his symptoms. I educated myself on PTSD; I went to his group therapist and reached out to the Real Warriors Campaign for information. But the most important thing I did was to listen to Adrian.
After he took part in the DHCC program, I could tell there was a stark improvement in his ability to manage his PTSD symptoms. The program taught him different ways to manage the symptoms. I never thought he would be into activities like yoga or acupuncture -- now he's a convert!
I think because Adrian and I communicate well we've been fortunate. When a soldier comes home, there's usually a highly anticipated arrival and perception that everything's going to be OK now. The truth is, everything may not be OK and getting to that desired state may be more of a process. But in the end, it's worth it.
We recently moved outside Washington, D.C., and I'm looking to start a support group for significant others since we're so close to Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other bases. I think spouses need a support network just like service members, especially since some soldiers are not as open as my husband. Some families may have to cope with someone who is in complete denial -- being involved in a support network may help. My hope is to lead a group that does just that, provide support to military families.
(Note: This post originally appeared on the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury blog. Diana's husband also wrote a post about his experiences for the DCoE blog. You can read the post here.)
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
The Wellness International inaugurated
Director Mr. Devender Pal Singh, Yoga and Wellness Expert said our mission is to provide the most accurate and up to date center, where you get all the facilities under one roof.
Mr. Singh is certified international yoga teacher by SIVANANDA INTERNATIONAL VALMORIN CANADA, Certified cardio and muscular strength expert by REEBOK, Certified in REEBOK core PILATE and PILATE and YOGA on the BALL by LISA J HEMLIN (USA) MASTER TRAINER, Have 10 years work experience in this field.
You can feel the experience of practical knowledge of the field. Mr. Singh personally works with all the members and have regular checkout of the exercise session. You get regular DIET assessment and lifestyle guidance. Here you get the workout according to your physical strength level.
The Wellness InternationalHave All The Equipments from VIVA USA. All the machines are highly recommended and scientifically proved for all age groups. Here the CARDIO area is very spacious, ventilated and cool. Special wooden floor for Aerobics, Yoga, Pilate and Many more Variations of exercises. Special workout for fat burning of lower body parts. Its interior is very cool and calming. Here you get the new workout every day. Aerobics , Step Aerobics, Yoga ,Power Yoga ,Pilate , Swiss Ball Workout , Medicine Ball Workout, Tubing Exercise, Body Pump Exercise, Functional Training, Fat burning , Strength Training ,and many more. The main motto of this center is to provide HEALTH, HAPPINESS and SUCCESS. RECOMENDEDED BY HIGH PROFILE SOCIETY DELHI. --Photos and Report by Shalu Arora
Heart disease is a lifestyle disorder--Dr.H,S. Bedi
CMC doctor invited as guest speaker at International Yoga conference Yoga therapy beneficial for heart surgery patients
Ludhiana :Yoga is now playing a major therapeutic role in the treatment of various diseases. Heart disease is a lifestyle disorder which can be tackled at an early stage by Yoga. Dr Harinder Singh Bedi – Head of Cardio Vascular & Thoracic Surgery at Christian Medical College & Hospital in Ludhiana – has worked on the effects of yoga therapy before and after heart surgery. In a pilot study it was found that the results were dramatically better after yoga therapy.
Dr Bedi explained that at the CMC already they had results matching International standards. To further improve the results the complementary addition of yoga had various beneficial effects. Alternative medicine has already taken up in a big way in the West as was evidenced by the large number of papers and research work presented. Dr Bedi has previously delivered an oration at the 1st Interantional Yoga conference in Haridwar .He was judged by a distinguished panel which included Dr Luciano Bernardi from Italy, Prof Terence Ryan from UK , Dr Kim Innes from USA, Padamshri Dr Karthikeyan, Prof Robert Saper from UK , Dr Sat Bir Khalsa from USA and Dr Shirley Telles . There were 10 other International papers. Dr Bedi’s research protocol got a standing ovation. On the basis of this paper he has now been invited to deliver a guest lecture at the International Association for Yoga Therapists (IAYT) on Sep 23-25, 2011 in Boston, USA.
Dr Abraham G Thomas – Director of CMC & H – told that CMC & H is committed to bringing International level care to the people of this region and alternative forms of therapy including yoga therapy were under active research.
Overturn Gay Pride Event Ban:Amnesty International
Wed, May 18, 2011 at 8:13 PM
Moscow’s Deputy Mayor told the event organizer, Nikolai Alekseyev, and confirmed to Amnesty International, that his application to hold the event had been rejected due to the large number of objections it had received from members of the public.
"The Moscow City Authorities must overturn their decision to ban this year’s Moscow Gay Pride. So-called public morality concerns can never be used to justify restrictions on the freedom of expression of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people," said Nicola Duckworth, director of Amnesty International’s Europe and Central Asia program. "The right response to such objections is not to cave in to their demands, but to ensure that those seeking to exercise their rights lawfully are able to do so in safety and in dignity."
For the last six years, gay rights activists in Moscow have been denied permission to organize a pride event. Events that have taken place have been violently dispersed by law enforcement officials.
In October 2010, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia had violated the right to freedom of assembly of activists seeking to hold pride events in Moscow in recent years.
The court found that by "relying on such blatantly unlawful calls as grounds for the ban, the authorities effectively endorsed the intentions of persons and organizations that clearly and deliberately intended to disrupt a peaceful demonstration in breach of the law and public order."
Gay rights activists in St. Petersburg have recently enjoyed greater success in exercising their right to the freedom of expression.
In October last year, a St. Petersburg court ruled, for the first time, that the banning of the St. Petersburg Pride event was illegal.
Yesterday, an authorized gathering attended by more than 100 LGBT rights activists took place peacefully in the city.
Over the last year, however, activists across Russia have been assaulted for speaking out on the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.
"The Russian authorities must ensure that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Russia are able to express the identities and organize public events without hindrance or the threat of violence," said Duckworth.
"The last few years have seen some signs of greater tolerance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Russia, but they still face widespread discrimination," added Ducworth. "Moscow should be leading the fight for LGBT rights – not holding it back."
Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 3 million supporters, activists and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.
# # #
Amnesty International Calls on Moscow Authorities to Overturn Gay Pride Event Ban
Washington, D.C.: Amnesty International is calling on the Moscow authorities to overturn their ban on the city’s gay pride event, which had been set to take place on May 28. Moscow’s Deputy Mayor told the event organizer, Nikolai Alekseyev, and confirmed to Amnesty International, that his application to hold the event had been rejected due to the large number of objections it had received from members of the public.
"The Moscow City Authorities must overturn their decision to ban this year’s Moscow Gay Pride. So-called public morality concerns can never be used to justify restrictions on the freedom of expression of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people," said Nicola Duckworth, director of Amnesty International’s Europe and Central Asia program. "The right response to such objections is not to cave in to their demands, but to ensure that those seeking to exercise their rights lawfully are able to do so in safety and in dignity."
For the last six years, gay rights activists in Moscow have been denied permission to organize a pride event. Events that have taken place have been violently dispersed by law enforcement officials.
In October 2010, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia had violated the right to freedom of assembly of activists seeking to hold pride events in Moscow in recent years.
The court found that by "relying on such blatantly unlawful calls as grounds for the ban, the authorities effectively endorsed the intentions of persons and organizations that clearly and deliberately intended to disrupt a peaceful demonstration in breach of the law and public order."
Gay rights activists in St. Petersburg have recently enjoyed greater success in exercising their right to the freedom of expression.
In October last year, a St. Petersburg court ruled, for the first time, that the banning of the St. Petersburg Pride event was illegal.
Yesterday, an authorized gathering attended by more than 100 LGBT rights activists took place peacefully in the city.
Over the last year, however, activists across Russia have been assaulted for speaking out on the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.
"The Russian authorities must ensure that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Russia are able to express the identities and organize public events without hindrance or the threat of violence," said Duckworth.
"The last few years have seen some signs of greater tolerance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Russia, but they still face widespread discrimination," added Ducworth. "Moscow should be leading the fight for LGBT rights – not holding it back."
Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 3 million supporters, activists and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.
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