Newsletter11

Bolivarian Government of Venezuela

Ministry of People’s Power for Foreign Affairs, Office of the Deputy Minister for Africa

Permanent Mission of Venezuela to the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in Kenya Concurrent to Rwanda, United Nations Environment programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Human Uganda,Tanzania and Somalia Settlements Programme (UN Habitat).

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

Vol. 3: Issue 11, 20th March, 2017

Pico Bolívar

Pico Bolívar is the highest mountain in Venezuela, at 4,978 metres.

Located in Mérida State, its top is permanently covered with granular snow and three small glaciers

Venezuela to intensify human rights policies already recognized by the UN

Venezuela ratified on Thursday its commitment to maintain and intensify human rights policies that were achieved during the revolution and that already have been recognized by the United Nations.

This commitment was reaffirmed by the Minister for Penitentiary Services, Iris Varela, who on behalf of the Executive, presented to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva the report on the results of the adoption of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), which the country signed on the 1st November 2016.

On that date, Venezuela presented a report on human rights achievements and challenges, and the Council, in recognition of its human rights policy, recommended that it continues to maintain and intensify these actions aimed at raising the quality of human life.

The Venezuelan Government evaluated the recommendations and this Thursday, through Minister Varela, informed the Council that it had decided to take on 24 voluntary commitments that were presented and 70% of the suggestions that were offered in 2016.

The acceptance or non-acceptance of the recommendations is optional. However, Venezuela decided to accept 70% in accordance with its policy attached to institutionalism and respect for human rights, said Varela.

In all, Venezuela received 193 of the 274 suggestions, mostly related to areas in which it has an advance path, such as access to justice, gender equality, sexual and reproductive rights, eradication of poverty, political participation and a leading role in public affairs, among other areas.

The remaining 81 recommendations were not accepted because they were value judgments and political attacks without fundamentals, as explained by executive secretary of the National Human Rights Council, Larry Devoe, via press release.

He pointed out that the Venezuelan State legitimately decided not to accept the remaining 30% of recommendations made by some nations because they deviate "from the constructive spirit of the UPR, with unfounded value judgments and deliberate political attacks."

The UPR is a mechanism of the UN Human Rights Council that allows each Member State to declare what measures it has taken to maintain and improve the human rights of its people.

Venezuela has already submitted two reports to the UPR, one in 2011 and another in 2016 and both have been recognized for their good work on human rights. www.avn.info.ve

Inside This Issue 1.Venezuela to intensify human rights policies...

2. Let us defend Venezuela against all interventions !

3. Venezuela is recognized at the United Nations...

4. Venezuelan film festival 2017

5. Promoting the unknown about Africa

Let us Defend Venezuela against all

interventions !

Venezuela is recognized at the United Nations for achievements in penitentiary matters

The Minister of People's Power for the Penitentiary Service Iris Varela, presented on Tuesday the progress made by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela with regards to protection of human rights of prisoners, from the Headquarters of the United Nations (UN) in Switzerland.

During her address to 120 delegations from different countries around the world, Varela provided clear evidence of Bolivarian achievements in matters related to prison, and recalled that before the arrival of President Hugo ChĂĄvez, "no one ever spoke in Venezuela about the penitentiary issue."

She continued to highlight the construction and rehabilitation of 38 structures that have improved prison conditions for prisoners, as well as completely eradicating overcrowding.

Among other achievements during her tenure are the creation of ten symphonic orchestras and how he managed to empower six students who were in prison.

Venezuela’s advances in this area were recognized by the delegations from the Republic of Nicaragua and the Republic of Cuba to the United Nations in Geneva, as well as by the representatives of Bolivia and Ecuador, who affirmed in the UN that achievements of Venezuela in their penitentiary system have to be recognized. www.mre.gob.ve 3

On the occassion of the 4th ANNIVERSARY of the SOWING of President Hugo ChĂĄvez

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3VENEZUELA

Alliance Francaise Nairobi

FESTIVAL (VFFN) Nairobi

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Oriana

Duration: 88 min Language: Spanish (with English sub-titles)

29th March 2017

La casa del fin de los tiempos ( The House at the End of Time ) Duration: 1hr 41min Language: Spanish (with English sub-titles)

30th March 2017

TIME: 6:30pm Ministry of People’s Bolivarian Government Power for Foreign Affairs of Venezuela Office of the Deputy Minister for Africa

Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in Kenya Concurrent to Rwanda,Uganda, Tanzania and Somalia

Permanent Mission of Venezuela to the United Nations Environment programme (UNEP) and the United Nations 4 Settlements Programme (UN Habitat).

Human

KENYA:

RWANDA:

PROMOTING THE UNKNOWN ABOUT AFRICA

UGANDA: TANZANIA: SOMALIA:

200 home-based healthcare givers graduate in Rwanda The Ministry of Health has graduated up to 211 home-based care practitioners that have been trained to give palliative care to non-communicable diseases patients, carry out tests, and deal with malnutrition, among other activities.

The Ministry of Health, through the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC), unveiled the healthcare givers at the launch of the Health Week campaign programme 2017 edition in Rwamagana District, on the 13th March, 2017.

‘Solutions to problems’

The Health Week campaign aims at delivering an integrated package of medical services and sensitisation through outreaches carried out by the Ministry of Health medics and partners in different parts of the country.

Presiding over the launch of the campaign, the State Minister for Public Health and Primary Healthcare, Dr Patrick Ndimubanzi, referred to the different interventions under the campaign as “solutions” to certain problems that patients have been facing both at home and in hospitals, especially in form of inadequate care. “We ask you (the new health workers) to demonstrate dedication, honesty, zeal and love. Go close to the suffering patients and help them,” he said.

The week focused on improving maternal and child health, fight malaria, HIV, noncommunicable diseases and malnutrition in communities.

The introduction of the home- based healthcare practitioners is a stand-out factor for this year’s edition, which runs until the 17th March with different activities across the country.

Augustine Rusine, one of the healthcare practitioners, said their work will help to reduce the costs that palliative care patients would incur in the past by being confined to hospital beds for all the time they had to receive it.

These include blood donation, immunisation, giving vitamin A to children aged six months to five years, deworming children below 15, and prevention of gender-based violence.

Nicole Umugwaneza, another healthcare practitioner, said the move will be good for patients, especially those who live alone or have families that wake up in the morning and go to work and leave them unattended.

Dr James Kamanzi, the deputy director-general of Rwanda Biomedical Centre, said the home-based healthcare practitioners attended a six-month training in different hospitals across the country.

Eugenie Kampire, a cancer survivor from Rwamagana said: “In villages we rarely go to hospitals to meet doctors and so we find out that we are sick when it is late. We now have an opportunity that these medics will be close to us and will make follow-up on people from home, check us and treat us.”

They will, among other activities, be following up on patients from their homes, and give them care in form of medicine and counselling.

They will also give information concerning deaths in families and the different causes of deaths so that the government can use the information in national statistics.

Judith Kazayire, the governor of the Eastern Province, pledged support to the Ministry of Health from the local leaders, especially in form of sensitising residents about healthy living.

Kamanzi said the health workers will be working in 100 cells across the country with the goal to spread the service in all cells countrywide in the near future.

www.newtimes.co.rw 5