17 July CSC Newsletter

19.07.2021 Newsletter Edited by Fr.Mark Thang Khan Ai Director: Commission for Social Communications Archdiocese of Imphal Death of a Pulitzer Prize-winning photo journalist Danish Siddiqui Top news TV channels have covered extensively on the untimely death of young photojournalist Danish Siddiqui in Afghanistan while covering the fight between the Taliban and Afghan government forces. This came while the U.S forces were leaving Afghanistan shift by shift which was to be completed by September 11, 2021. Meanwhile the Taliban has already claimed three quarters of the nearly 400 districts of the country leaving thousands of Afghan soldiers to flee the country. President Biden had ordered total withdrawal by September. Danish Siddigui travelled with Afghan soldiers wherever operation took place. He was killed while covering the fight between Afghan troops and the Taliban militants near a border crossing with Pakistan in Kandahar province. The photo below shows young journalist Danish Siddiqui in full battle gear in one of the combat zones in Afghanistan as US Army withdrawal began Siddiqui was reporting from Afghanistan as U.S. forces complete their withdrawal, ordered by President Biden to wrap up by Sept. 11. As the U.S. leaves, the Taliban — long held at bay by American might — have been rapidly capturing territory, leading to concern that the Afghan government could collapse. Siddiqui reported to his editors earlier on Friday that he had sustained a shrapnel wound to the arm during a clash between Afghan troops and the Taliban at the town of Spin Boldak, but that he had been treated for the injury, according to Reuters. Later, as he was interviewing local shopkeepers, the Taliban attacked again, the news agency said, quoting an Afghan commander. Photos below show some of the most graphic moments he captured in his career

A crowded mass cremation site at the height of COVID pandemic Phase II A father carries his son during the migrants’ homeward journey, March 2020

PPE clad COVID patients covering their eyes A Rohingya refugee faints as she reaches the bank of a river

Rohingya refugees stretch their hands to receive aid distributed by local organisations at a makeshift camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh September 18, 2017 Siddiqui had been a Reuters photographer since 2010. In addition to his work covering the Rohingya and Afghanistan, he also shot pictures for the news agency during the war in Iraq, the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests of 2019-2020 and the deadly earthquakes in Nepal in 2015. In recent months, Siddiqui chronicled a growing COVID-19 wave that swept through India, killing thousands. The assignment was not without controversy, as some in India expressed outrage over photos showing mass cremations of those who died from the disease. Saad Mohseni, the CEO of Afghanistan's MOBY Group, the largest media company in the country, described Siddiqui as \"an extremely brave and talented journalist\" and said his death \"tragically demonstrates the dangers that journalists in Afghanistan face for doing their jobs. \"Mohseni said that Afghan journalists were being killed or threatened. \"Despite these dangers, they continue to do their work, reporting on the fighting that is consuming the country, on the human rights violations that are proliferating, and on the urgent humanitarian needs of the people of Afghanistan,\" he said. According to a United Nations report this year, 33 journalists were killed in Afghanistan between 2018 and 2021. DSSS continues to harness its task force DSSS last week bundled up more COVID isolation materials and unburdened them in Tengnopal under the care of the VA task force and Sr.Maria Goretti. They, along with Fr.James Baite, Parish Priest, met the DC of Tengnopal who welcomed them in his office and briefed them about the local situation. In this way DSSS continues to collaborate with government task forces and VAs to contain the spread of COVID-19 in various districts of the state.

Photo shows DC of Tengnopal interacting with DSSS staff and Fr.James Baite The isolation centre in Tengnopal complete with the usual items DSSS provides for every centre. The VA, Fr.James and sisters will run the centre The isolation centre in Chingjaroi which will be managed jointly by VA and the Parish along with sisters in the dispensary

MCYO and CMC Vaccination teams initiate COVID vaccination at Nungnang village Yesterday, 18 July, MCYO and CMC vaccination teams made an uphill journey to Nungnang village of Tamenglong District for COVID Vaccination campaign and were warmly welcomed by the VA. An earlier information showed 157 people who were ready for the vaccination but only 70 people received the vaccination. The usual hesitancy among people lessened the number of recipients and added to that was the hesitancy of the members of the local Baptist church failed to understand that MCYO and CMC teams were partners of the government. A hanging bamboo bridge spans over the river leading to Nungnang village. During flood this is the only way in and out. MCYO and CMC teams prepare to vaccinate upon reaching the village

Registration in progress The team gears up for vaccination

The teams poses for a photo in front of the local Catholic Church

North East Community Health Association (NECHA) does it again North East Community Health Association (NECHA for short) founded by Fr.K.C. George way back in the 1986 is back to business with the founder at the helm again. Till mid 90s, the association along with Catholic Hospital Association of India (CHAI for short) made tremendous strides in promoting community health and community organization beyond the Catholic Church. In the Archdiocese of Imphal it has well received among the non-Catholics too. A huge animation complex sprang up in Guwahati as its nodal centre for health and community related activities for the entire North East. Images of earlier NECHA’s success stories It was the dream of Fr.K.C George from the Archdiocese of Imphal that there can and must exist a new philosophy of community health whereby communities can develop a practical approach to alternative systems of treatment in North East by organizing communities to take upon themselves the responsibility of looking after their health. Fr.K.C George came up with this daring approach along with some active nurses from health care centres in Dibrugarh and Imphal dioceses. The target area of this new philosophy was the seven states of the North East of India, meaning the 15 dioceses of the North East that can make a difference in the community if the remote communities where health care system is nil or very little. Its services were disseminated through rural health centres managed by Member Institutions. Concretely, NECHA launched many developmental programmes in the areas of health, leadership building, advocacy initiatives, community health, capacity building, income generating activities, information dissemination and documentation. For this various free medical camps were organized in Diphu, Dibrugarh, Kohima, Guwahati and Shillong dioceses. Through these camps NECHA volunteers and health workers discovered the following most common diseases: diarrhoea, dysentery, fever, worm infestation, cold, cough and nutritional imbalance. More than 1000 became beneficiaries of the camps. What NECHA workers did was to train the people of these remote villages the methods of avoiding these diseases by following simple rules of health which they can afford and learn. It was a major departure from conventional treatment where and when people totally depended on health centres where medicines were dispensed without giving any motivation towards self help. NECHA almost fell into grace due to changes in leadership at the headquarters. Interestingly, Fr.K.C George the founder jumped into the situation again in 2019 and revived the fortunes of NECHA with himself as the head. NECHA now publishes its regular bulletin on its activities. Through it the association continues to motivate priests, religious and village leaders to take up community health to reduce the cost

of medical treatment by resorting to simple means of keeping one’s village clean and health, take to alternative means of treatment of common diseases through community organization and motivation. NECHA believes that only attending to few people near health centres is not going to keep communities healthy. It will mean walking the extra mile with communities under our parishes and training them to be healthy in their natural environment by following simple rules of health and wellbeing. This has become more pertinent when government health services are not reaching the remote villages. Pregnant women and children are not getting their proper vitamins and deworming tablets. Parish priests and sisters will do well to tour the villages to make a study of the health situation of the people within their territory and get health workers to train them in alternative means of treatment. According to Fr.K.C George funds and the space for health training had never been an issue with NECHA. Paucity of willing persons to promote community health is the greater issue. He is presently building up a team to rejuvenate the dream of NECHA. Read NECHA E-BULLETIN for more information about the activities of NECHA. NECHA’s E-Bulletin