We're going to Regionals! 関東大会出場！

Results in Japanese ----- Results in English below

Yesterday we had the Tokyo High School Karate League's Spring Tournament, which was the Summer Kanto Regional qualifier. Our girls kumite team achieved 3rd place, qualifying them to the Regionals event in June!

昨日、東京都高等学校総合体育大会空手道競技会と関東高等学校空手道大会東京都予選会（団体戦）が行われました。我が校の女子団体組手チームが予選を通過しました！

Results by high school name (1st to double 3rd):

Boys Team Kata: Setagaya - Hozen - Tsurugaoka - Teikyo
Boys Team Kumite: Setagaya - Hozen - Teikyo - Fujimori
Boys Ind Kata: Setegaya - Hozen - Teikyo - Setagaya
Boys Ind Kumite: Setagaya - Hozen - Setagaya

Girls Team Kata: Tsurugaoka - Yagumo - Teikyo - Kinjo
Girls Team Kumite: Teikyo - Tsurugaoka - Kinjo - Seiritsu (us!)
Girls Ind Kata: Tsurugaoka - Tsurugaoka - Tsurugaoka - Yagumo
Girls Ind Kumite: Teikyo - Teikyo - Teikyo - Tsurugaoka

Dadaab refugee camp's 1/2 million people ダダーブ難民キャンプの５０万人

500,000 refugees. Some 8000 grandchildren of refugee children live in the camp.
In a space for 90,000. So some people must take places amongst garbage.

And children suffer from dehydration due to water rationing.

Here are their stories...

Dadaab ...

Future of human rights video 人権の将来ビデオ

On April 2, Kenneth Roth, the Executive Director of Human Rights Watch (HRW), gave the key note speech Stanford Law School's Human Rights Center to begin their year-long series regarding the future of human rights.

Mr. Roth's explanation about HRW's efforts to engage with non-Western democracies - from Japan to South Africa - as a reflection on the change in political power is quite interesting.

Also, he clearly explained the power of social media to allow people to feel empowered to join social rights movements. For example, there were over one hundred thousand people who supported on Facebook the plan to protest in Cairo's Tahrir Square in early 2011 by stating they would show up. As more people signed up, this in turn encouraged even greater numbers of people to support the protest plan, the exact opposite type of organization to what a dictator wants to see. And then even if on the day of a protest only 10% of the Facebook supporters actually showed up, at least the social media platform had allowed for people to feel safe enough to support the idea. And of course, many more people did protest, eventually leading to a regime change.

Of the many points he brings up, the new idea being floated by Brasil 'responsibility while protecting' - a variation of responsibility to protect - was something I actually covered in my PhD international humanitarian law class this week. It means it's one thing to intervene for humanitarian reasons, but there may be a need to monitor those who are doing the supposed protecting.

To follow and support the efforts of Human Rights Watch, click below;
English
日本語

Syrian Refugee Camp in Iraq イラクのシリア難民キャンプ

The UNICEF field workers at the Domiz Syrian refugee camp in northern Iraq have a really interesting blog describing the lives of the refugees in the camp. Mud, rain, snakes, yet also friendships and perhaps some hope. But there are lots of children dealing directly with the harsh realities of the camp being exposed to the elements...

Click here!

Great healthcare system video とてもいいへルス・ケア ビデオ！

I watched, I learned and jeez, I almost cried. A really well done animation on how important a properly working health care system requires a global network of knowledge and learning to support.

Videos: Japan High School Karate Champs ビデオ：全国高等学校空手道選抜大会

Thanks YouTube account ' kururunha6693 ' for uploading some videos of the girl's events.
(Do you have any of the boys too?)

32nd All-Japan High School Karate Championships, March 25-27, 2013, Wakayama Prefecture.
第32回全国高等学校空手道選抜大会


Girls Team Kumite Finals
Kacho High School (Kyoto) vs  Gotenbanishi High School (Shizuoka)

女子団体組手決勝
華頂女子(京都) vs 御殿場西(静岡)


Girls Finals for Kata
Tsurukawa (Nihon Kuko High School, Yamanashi) vs Ooya (Nitai Tsurugaoka High School, Tokyo)

 女子個人形決勝
古川(日本航空) VS 大矢(日大鶴ヶ丘)

Video: SAVING 10,000-Winning a War on Suicide in Japan 自殺者１万人を救う戦いビデオ

This is a truly well thought-out video on the suicide problem in Japan and how to solve it.

Explanation below from official website.

SAVING 10,000 - 自殺者１万人を救う戦い
Visit the official site: http://www.Saving10000.com/

In a war on suicide, who is the enemy?
'Saving 10,000' is the story of an Irishman's personal passion to uncover the true causes of the high suicide rate in Japan. The disturbing findings include the Japanese media`s perverse love affair with suicide, a variety of cruel and predatory economic pressures and an outdated and failing mental health care system. With the help of front-line experts and ordinary Japanese, many touched by the horror of suicide, the movie delivers practical proposals on how Japan can win a war on suicide. However with suicide such a taboo, the odds are nobody will listen. Or will they?

自殺との戦いにおいて、「敵」はいったい誰なのか。映画『Saving 10,000 - 自殺者１万人を救う戦い』は、日本の高い自殺率の真の原因究明に挑む一人のアイルラン

­ド人の物語である。作品を通じて、日本のマスコミによる自殺報道のあり方、経済的圧力­、うまく機能していない精神医療制度などの重要な問題が浮かび上がってくる。第一線で­活躍する専門家から一般人まで、約100人へ取材し、日本がどうすれば自殺との戦いに­勝利できるのか、具体的な方策を提示している。しかし、自殺の話題がタブー視されてい­る日本で、一体どのくらいの人が耳を傾けてくれるのだろうか。

Master's degree graduation 修士課程終了しました！

On March 26, two long years came to an end as I received my M.A. in Global Studies from Sophia University's Graduate Program in Global Studies, in Tokyo!

(The first picture says Year 2012, meaning school year April 2012 to March 2013).

Graduation thesis title;
'Globalization of Karate; The politics of a martial arts tradition from the late 19th century to the early 21st century'.

Extra thesis-length independent research paper title;
'The Re-emergence of Human Rights: How global human rights movements ended the Cold War and Apartheid, leading to the establishment of the UN Decade of Human Rights Education campaign (1995-2004)'.

Japan High School Karate Nationals Results 全国高等学校空手道選抜大会の結果

Osaka Gakugei High School Boys Kata Team

32nd Japan National Karate High School Championships, held at Wakayama Prefecture's 'Big Whale Stadium', 3/25-28.

*Winners*

Boys Team Kumite - Naniwa H.S., Osaka

Girls Team Kumite - Kachojyo H.S., Kyoto

Boys Team Kata - Setagaya H.S., Tokyo

Girls Team Kata - Shukugawagakuin H.S., Hyogyoken

Boys Kumite - student Funabashi, Naniwa H.S., Osaka

Girls Kumite, student Miyahara, Teikyo H.S., Tokyo

Boys Kata - student Shimizu, Kansai-DaiIchiGakudai H.S., Osaka

Girls Kata - student Furukawa, Nihonkouku H.S., Yamanashi

3/25-3/27 第32回全国高等学校空手道選抜大会 / 和歌山ビックホエール

男女個人形優勝決定！
＜男子＞
清水孝羅(近畿・関西大学第一高校）

＜女子＞
古川かれん(推薦・日本航空高校）

男女団体形優勝決定！
＜男子＞
世田谷学園高等学校(推薦・東京都）

＜女子＞
夙川学院高等学校(推薦・兵庫県）

男女個人組手優勝者決定！

＜男子＞
船橋真道(推薦・浪速高校）

＜女子＞
宮原美穂(推薦・帝京高校）

男女団体組手優勝決定！
＜男子＞
浪速高等学校(推薦・大阪府)

＜女子＞
華頂女子高等学校(共催地・京都府）