The mission of Drishtipat is to empower and enable the underprivileged and the marginalized segment of the society and individuals living in social and economic poverty so that they can exercise their most basic human rights with dignity, opportunity and hope. To visit the current projects of each chapter, please visit the local chapter homes page from the top menu.
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Campaign for Child domestic workers
http://www.drishtipat.org/cdw/
Child domestic workers represent one of the most blatant examples of human rights abuse in many countries of the world, including Bangladesh. There are over 300,000 kids working as domestic servants in often exploitative conditions that offer little hope of a better future. Poor rural families often send their kids to the live and work with well-to-do urban families, often as a means to improve their own difficult economic conditions and to provide some path to a better future for their children. Detail ...
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United Bangladesh Appeal - A compensation fund for sidr victims. Drishtipat led the united effort to raise money for the families of the dead for cyclone sids.
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CLIMATE CHANGE:
IS ANY BODY LISTENING?
A Project to highlight plight of Bangladeshis and their rights in the politics of Climate Change.
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Drishtipat 20K Challenge gave grants to 5
projects. From helping build school dormitories
to helping build senior citizen center, these
grants help in providing help where help would
not need reach typically.
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Saving Bhobodoho: Drishtipat
Virginia
Helping with the education
of village bhobodoho: victim of man-made natural
diaster.
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Rehabilitation of paralyzed people in
Bangladesh via CRP - Drishtipat Australia
Website
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Rehabilitation of Acid Victims:
Drishtipat New York
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Project S: Sanitiation
Project by Drishtipat Canada
Website
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Garments workers rights - Drishtipat
London
Website:
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Arek
Kansat -- Documenting a people's uprising for electricity.
Website
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Saving Madhabi - the domestic worker who
was a victim of abuse
Website
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ShipBreakers' story
Website
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| Immediate Past
Campaigns: |
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From
March 26th, 2005, Drishtipat started a new
section on its website called "Tales of
inspiration from Bangladesh". We are featuring
stories from rural areas of Bangladesh of real
people. These will be stories of hope, stories
of never giving up and stories of courage. These
will show how people of Bangladesh in spite of
tremendous odds are fighing back against
adversities. These will show the creative ways
these people are fighing back against poverty
and lack of opportunities. We aim to highlight
these cases hoping that one day we will be able
to institutionally support them at their unique
endeavors. |
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Uttorshuri, an internet forum for Bangla
speaking from all over the world with technical
help from Human rights organization, along with
Drishtipat, has taken the initiative of this
website as a mean of a constructive protest and
to fulfill the need for documenting important
historical events pertaining to Bangladesh . We
all know that fact and truth about the events
are one of the victims also; they soon fade from
our collective conscience. In this context, we
host this website to chronicle the bombing
campaign that has been plaguing Bangladesh;
follow up the investigations and legal
proceedings involving these crimes and monitor
the activities of the government of Bangladesh
in dealing with this bombing campaign. Please
visit and record your protest at Stop Violence
Portal Site |
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On
April 11th, 2005, the 9 storied Garments Factory
in Palashbari, Savar collapsed killing more than
70 people and injuring many more. Authorities
now say that the factory, at Palashbari Savar,
32km from Dhaka, collapsed because of its poor
construction on reclaimed marshland. This
incident is the latest in a series that reflects
inadequate enforcement of safety standards in
the garments industry. Detailed report on this
incident and the aftermath can be found here.
While much needs to be done in the long
term to implement systemic changes to prevent
the recurrence of such disasters, in the
immediate short term, assistance needs to be
provided to those families who have lost their
main bread-earner and to those workers who have
been permanently disabled. As a step in that
direction, Drishtipat has partnered with
Uttorshuri to initiate an on-line fundraising
effort. Details |
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| Past
Campaigns |
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Women of 71
campaign
Drishtipat, with the
help of Ain O Shalish Kendro, has identified
seven such women who made supreme sacrifices in
the war of liberation of Bangladesh, but are in
desperate need of financial assistance to live
their lives with dignity. It is bad enough that
they never got justice for the barbaric crime
against them. But it is unacceptable to any
conscientious human being to see them lead a
life of indignity and extreme poverty. Please
stop by at the website we have prepared after a
lot of hard work to honor these brave women
(website for women of 71). Listen to their
stories and make a difference to the lives of
Najma, Halima, Fatema, Rokeya, Jolekha,
Ameerjaan and Shohorbanu - our unsung heroes of
the war. Your donation will go to the liberation
war museum which in turn will give the money on
a trust fund for a prosperous future for these
women.. Campaign
website Implmentation
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Ahmadiya
Persecution
Drishtipat helped
Naeem Mohaiemen to screen his documentary
Muslims or Heretics to raise awareness for the
rights of the minority Ahmadiyya commnunity. The
screenings are beingwidely attended and a lively
discussion session follows.
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Arsenic Campaign
Project:
In September 2002,
Drishtipat completed its third fundraiser for
the Arsenic victims in West Shapania village.
The fund collected has been a little more than
what we targeted. Our original target was $3500
and we collected $3850. The collected money will
be channelled to Brotee via Bangladesh
Environment Network. Brotee already started
mobilizing the village people to form Gono
Gobeshona Dal. The money will be utilized for
the pond preservation (safe drinking water
solution) and treatment of the Arsenicosis
victims.
Campaign Website
Implementation
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Campaign Tipu Sultan: Medical
Treatment of an Oppressed Journalist
In early 2001, Drishtipat
successfully publicized and raised over $16,000
for the medical treatment of journalist Tipu
Sultan. Sultan was investigating Feni crime boss
and ex-Member of Parliament, Joynal Hazari, and
was almost killed by Hazari's paid thugs. Tipu
was treated in a Bangkok hospital and has now
recovered and got back to his life.
Campaign
Website Implementation Report
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Cheye Dekho : Rehabilitation of the
minority oppression victims of Annada
Prasahd
The village Annada Prashad in
the district of Bhola, Bangladesh, predominated
by the Hindu community, saw unprecedented
violence upon them immediately preceding and
after the general election of 2001. Almost two
hundred women were raped and hundreds of
families were rendered homeless. The political
thugs came down heavily on the members of the
Hindu community. Drishtipat launched the
campaign to help rehabilitate the victims of
Annada Prashad village.
The
Campaign Website The
Implementation
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Saving
Mithu
In December 2003, after getting
viciously beaten by the ruling class, the case
of Mithu is a repeat affair of Tipu Sultan from
a three years ago. He was left for dead. His
right hand had been crushed and he has
neurological problems from having been beaten on
the back of his head with a chaapaati. The
attack was seen as areprisal for his reporting
on the local MPs' attoricities on the local
people. Drishtipat raised almost three thousand
dollars from individual and corporate donation.
Campaign
Website Implementation
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| Natural
Disasters |
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Warm cloth drive
Ektu Ushnota
Chai, Manusher Kache
January, 2003:: Only last night another
79 people died in Bangladesh cold wave. One
sweater for 75 cents could have saved one of
those lives. Drishtipat urged you to come
forward and to donate for this humanitarian
cause. Almost $8900 was raised in a week and
warm clothes were bought.
Campaign
Website Implementation
Report |
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Emergency
Flood Campaign
September
2004: Drishtipat helped SpandaanB and Volunteers
Association of Bangladesh to collect funds for
the flood victims. Drishtipat alsodonated to
each of these organization from its rapid
response fund.
Drishtipat also gathered
a list of credible organizations which are
involved in Bangladesh's Flood Relief Work for
2004. This list provided interested donors a
background of specific organizational projects
and activities centering the flood victims. Campaign
Website Implementation
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Helping Cyclone Sidr Victims.
Raised close to 25K for cyclone SIDR victims and organized the United Bangladesh Appeal.
Website
New York Project with Uttaran |
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From Ferry disaster to pushing in of
people in the India-Bangladesh border,
Drishtipat has raised various appeals at various
times. If you want to take a look at our past
petitions and appeals, visit the following page.
To see what press said about these
projects, visit the Drishtipat
Virtual Press Box |
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Some of Drishtipat Appeals and
Petitions for Raising Awareness:
Drishtipat
Letters |
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July 2003:Murder
in Meghna Another day, another ferry capsizes. This
time, the number nears around 600, although the
true number of dead will never be known. Could
this been avoided ??? More |
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June 2003: Rapid increase against
sexual violence against
women
Recent breakdown of law
and order in Bangladesh has resulted in an
alarming rise of horrifying violence against
women. Drishtipat protests the recent incidents
and calls for more attention from the government
in this issue and asks for swift action and
exemplary punishment of the
criminals.
Alarming
rise in Rape Incidents (updated)
More
women commits suicide facing
harrassment
Repeatedly
"raping" a raped woman - By Mahfuz
Anam |
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February 2003: Pushin at the
border
As an organization
concerned with the protection of fundamental
rights, Drishtipat members are joining voices
with many others inside and beyond the country
to express concern at the latest violence at the
border with innocent human lives being at stake.
More |
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November, 2002: 4 Journalist
arrested
Drishtipat issued
strong protest, petition and regular update on
the status of 4 journalists who were arrested
for "sedition". More |
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June 2001: Journalists
threatened
...Therefore we would
like to urge your kind attention to take
immediate action against the criminals,
regardless of their party affiliation, of recent
cases of atrocities against the journalists. For
the longer term solution of this problem, we
would like to urge you to create a new stringent
law to protect the journalists. The punishment
should be harsh and quick against any one who
commits a crime against the journalists. Also
the police officials, who violated the law by
physically abusing the journalists carrying out
their professional duties and whose conduct has
been termed "barbaric" by the home minister,
must be punished after proper investigation. More |
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February 2002: Appeal for the
migrant workers stuck in Saudi Arabia in
subhuman condition
We, like all
other fellow Bangladeshis, are deeply saddened
to learn about the conditions of some
Bangladeshi migrant workers in Saudi Arabia. We
came to know about their conditions in several
internet discussion groups and are calling for
the authorities to take swift measures. More
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December, 2001: Matir
Moina
MATIR MOINA provides a
nuanced and subtle view of Islam, rather than
the stereotypical Islam-bashing of western
media. We believe the FCB of Bangladesh has
committed a grave error by banning this film.
This action will only give ammunition to those
who portray Islamic culture as rigid and
unyielding. Rather than protecting religious
sentiments, the ban will only stifle open
discussion and progressive change. We urge the
FCB to reconsider their decision and give the
film the censorship clearance necessary for its
domestic release in Bangladesh. More |
