Where the angels live

I found peace in the most dangerous city of the world

Honduras

victoria gomis

Last summer I travelled with my soul mate to one of the poorest countries in Latin America: Honduras. The main purpose of my trip was to spend two weeks with my partner’s aunt who runs a shelter with nine homeless children. Before going there I knew only that it was one of the most insecure countries in the world and when I arrived at the airport I understood why. What I did not know at the time was that this trip would help me find my inner self. Nine curious little creatures surrounded me, interrogating me with questions trying to understand whom this new person was coming into their home. I was terrified from the first moment I stepped into Tegucigalpa. Unpaved and chaotic roads are lined with beggars and food stalls while the smell of petrol permeates the air. The centre of the capital was neglected but I had a weird feeling that this place had so much more to discover beneath this initial grimy layer.

 

The Valley of the Angels

The beauty among the weeds

I was right. I uncovered a hidden world through these children. They showed me the greatness of Honduras that does not appear at first sight. Their house was situated between mountains, in the middle of a valley. The beauty of waking up every morning at 7am with the birds singing and children laughing made each day unusual. Being a city girl, I’m used to the loud hustle and bustle of a lively city like London. However, the security guards stood at the entrance of a KFC with tommy guns terrified me. How could I be frightened when the kids seemed so carefree there? I stood paralysed by the scene until the kids came and grabbed my hand to drag me over to play with them.

The local street market was the most authentic place to visit. There was water sold in plastic bags and a variety of colourful fruits I had never seen. These small details gave a glimpse of a totally different style of living and culture that made me feel like an awestruck child.

Essential amenities such as water safety, lighting and electricity cables are rudimentary in comparison to the developed world. Everyday life is not easy in a country where basic needs such as health, education and security are not on the agenda. However, what caught my attention was the friendliness and simplicity of the people. After the first two hours there I no longer felt that I was in a strange land with foreign people. I believe that a piece of me stayed there.

The only difference

My name is Khan, and I am not a terrorist. I highly recommend this movie because is able to show to the world that we are not that different from each other. Values as racism and love fight together to create a story that easily can occur in this world. 

I keep the scene, what is the difference between a man with a knife and a man with a candy. The only difference is that one is a bad man and the other is the good man. 

There is always another side of the story, well this movie captures it.

Watch the trailer here and online is Spanish here This movie made me think, hope it can do it to you too. 

Free education? In Denmark is possible

Last February there was a concentration of universities in Ifema, a fair of education in Madrid where the Youth Godwill Ambassadors for Denamrk were invited to promote this country as the best place to study and live. Yes, the best country for students should offer advantages for that. Free education is a fact in Denmark. Would you like to go abroad, learn English, maybe Danish as well (it also free) and study a Master degree? Denmark offers you a solution here.

Three intense days where around 300 students and families approached the stand looking for more information abour the programs offerede by different universities, the level of English required, cost of living or the advantages of studying in Denmark.

If you have further questions, like us on facebook and leave your questions! Denmark welcomes you! Tak tak!

The importance of the geographical location of Cyprus

On Thursday, 16th of 2014, Nicos Anastasiades, President of Cuprus, was invited by the London School of Economics (LSE) to talk about the geopolitical role of Cyprus. 

Nicos Anastasiades, President of Cyprus

 Located in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, Cyprus has been pointed out as an important geo-strategic territory mainly because of the "volatility on the environment in which it operates," as Anastasiades described. Cyprus´ foreign policy includes several projects that remain significant for the international community:

-The Cyprus question at a regional level. Turkish-Cyprus vesus Greek-Cyprus. Anastasiades expalined this problem saying that, "Stability has been proven to be an expensive commodity."

-Safety of the natural resources. 

-Enhancing its participation within the EU policies, specially in the European security system. 

-Contibuting to building and promoting peace and security in the Eastern Mediterranean area

-And deepening its bilateral relations with other countries as UK, EE.UU. or Israel, as Anastasiades specified. 

The main challenge for Cyprus is still the reconciliation with the region. Its historical situation, after the annexation of Cyprus to the British Empire, is still the ethnic dispute between the Turkish and the Greek since the Turkish invasion in 1974, the commonly called, Cyprus question. 

On this point, the President of Cypus said not to look backwards on the invasion because the division will not give a common vision. Tobuild trust is necessary cooperation between Turkish and Greek Cyprus. And he added, "Cyprus is a place where miracles still happen."

Making Europe a better place

"National problems, European solutions: Is the EU grass still greener?". This was the title of the European Youth Media Days, 2013 organized in Brussels by the Euroepan Parliament last October.

120 journalist from all Europe gathered together to work on this topic in different teams. The result of the workshop is here. Also, Rebecca Bengtsson, main coordinator of the program describes the importance of these activities:

There are also many other Euroepan initiatives that promotes the unity among its member states and that helps to create a better Union. Antonis Christakis, Vice President of Youthnet in Greece explains what the European Citizens´ Initiative means to him:

Finally, Ioannis Darmis, Head of the Media Services and Monitoring Unit, EP gives an overview about the role of the journalists to create a Union of people in Europe:

Now, it is the moment of thinking ahead. Next step, the European Elections 2014: "Act, React, Impact".

A join project to promote an European Society

The European Youth Media Days (EYMD) 2013 started today in Brussels with the support of the European Parliament (EP) . These three workshop´s days gather 120 professional and student journalists from all Europe with the purpose of "reflecting questions that something we [EP] forget", said Ioannis Darmis, Head of media services and monitoring unit of the EP.

The first day impressions, as they explained in the introduction speech, are that there are not national problems that countries can solve on their own. Europe needs to work at a higher level of integration. Othamar Karas, Vice President of the European Parliament in charge of communication expressed this way, "We need to act together" and in this democratic process journalists are needed to influence the decisions to be taken.

The most important thing is to create a fair, independent and responsible media where journalists should represent a true reality because Europe is not only black and white, but very diverse. As Karas highligtthed, "We are all Europe" and it is all at the interest of the community.

The problem of coverage
Breaking stereotyes -The role of media in promoting an inclusive European society- was the title of the last panel discussion of the day. Here, the crucial point is to know when coverage goes right and when goes wrong. What is the main responsibility? has it anything to be with ethics? influencing society? to what extend do we have resposibility as a journalists?

Journalists should not talk only about one side of the discussion, they need to have the complete picture of the situation, show the diversity and create a honest relation with readers. Tell the story as it is and do not reinforce steroetypes.

Journalists are the only ones who can research for the truth, show it their audience and create a more integrated Europe.

"National Problems: European Solutions?

Next 15th to 17th of October, the European Youth Media along with the European Parliament host the European Youth Media Days 2013 (EYMD) under the title; "National Problems, European solutions? Is the EU´s grass still greener?"

My workshop there is called "#EU- European policies online, is the EU keeping up eith the present times?" We need to know and analyze how the EP is communicating, what´s the strategy behind and what are they doing to improve the conncetion with people.

I believe this topic has a lot in common with the globalization movemetn. The social media has given us the opportunity to share and being in touch with everybody in the globe without barriers and this is a positive thing. However, it is necessary to regulate the web somehow and its contents, giving people alternatives, in the way everybody will be prepresented. Pluralism on the social media is important. Also, reaching people through Internet.

I would like to mention here the anti-globalization movements that took place in Seattle in 1999. This movement grew in importance thanks to the social media.

Nowadays, along with the economic crisis, the uncertainty about if the EU is going forward towards a more political intregation, or backwards towards a more national independence (instead of interdependence) is an important questions itself. I believe in the European Union, but it is visible that its primiry ideas has been distorted. We cannot fail again as it happened in the Copenhagen Summit in 2009. We need to work together to get out of this situation, to fight back stronger than ever and this initiatives (as well as the European Initiative for Media Pluralism) help to reach an agreement. The EU needs to provide alternatives to youth Europeans to gather together and maybe to make real the idea of the United States of Europe.