Underreported from WNYC's The Leonard Lopate Show

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Underreported: More on Iraq's Healthcare Crisis Jul 19, 2007

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Last week we heard about Iraq's healthcare crisis. This week, find out what's being done to help Baghdad's sick and wounded in Jordan and in northern Iraq. Nicolas de Torrente of Doctors Without Borders has just returned from a trip to the region to try to set up faster and more effective ways to treat Iraqi patients.

Underreported: Gatumba Massacre Survivors Jul 19, 2007

Show notes

On the night of August 13th, 2004, Hutu militants crossed from Congo into Burundi and attacked the Gatumba Transit Center in which fifteen hundred Banyamulenge Congolese Tutsi refugees had sought safe haven. Hundreds were killed and wounded. Now nearly 600 hundred of the survivors have been resettled in the US. On today's Underreported, we'll find out what happened during the massacre, and how the survivors are dealing with the aftermath and getting the help they need. Leonard talks to Sasha Chanoff of Mapendo International, one of the architects of the Gatumba resettlement; also, Olivier Mandevu, president of the Gatumba Refugee Survivors Foundation.
Event:
The Third Annual Gatumba Genocide Memorial
will be held on Sunday, August 12
at Pinnacle Mountain in Voorheesville, NY
For more information, go to gatumbasurvivors.org

Underreported: Iraq's Health Care Meltdown Jul 12, 2007

Show notes

What happens to the people who are gravely injured in the almost-daily attacks and bombings in Iraq? Iraq's health care system appears to be in a downward spiral. Hospital beds have been stolen, there are not enough medicines and equipment to go around, and some patients have even been murdered while in the hospital. Science writer Michael Mason traveled to Iraq to see firsthand what's happening in Iraq's health care system. His new article in the August issue of Discover magazine is "Iraq's Medical Meltdown."

Underreported Update: Libya 6 Jul 12, 2007

Show notes

Yesterday, the Libyan Supreme Court upheld the death sentence against the so-called Libya 6, the 5 Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of deliberately infecting over 400 children with HIV in Libya. We've been following their case on Underreported for awhile, and today journalist Declan Butler explains yesterday's developments. Butler is a senior reporter with Nature who runs a blog about the case.

Underreported: The Spread of Failed States Jun 28, 2007

Show notes

The world's weakest states aren't just a danger to themselves. They can disrupt the stability of countries halfway across the world. The Fund for Peace and Foreign Policy magazine have recently released their third annual Failed States Index, and on today's Underreported, we'll find out what a failed state is, where the worst ones are, and how instability spreads from one country to another. Leonard talks to political scientist Pauline H. Baker, president of The Fund for Peace. She has more than 40 years of experience working on issues concerning weak and failing states.

Underreported: Anti-Union Violence in Colombia Apr 05, 2007

Show notes

In mid-March, the Ohio-based banana company Chiquita Brands admitted to paying $1.7 million to Colombian right-wing death squads who have killed thousands, including union organizers. In Colombia, trade unionists and organizers who are not murdered are often threatened, attacked, or kidnapped. On Underreported, we'll find out what's behind the anti-union violence there, and how it might affect US-Colombian free trade agreements. Maria McFarland is a researcher with Human Rights Watch, and Adam Isacson is director of programs for the Center for International Policy’s Colombia Program.

Underreported: Is the Endangered Species Act Endangered? Mar 29, 2007

Show notes

Since George W. Bush became president, 57 species have been declared endangered, usually as a result of lawsuits. That's fewer than under any president since the Endangered Species Act was signed by Nixon in 1973. Now Bush administration officials are reviewing proposed changes to the way the ESA is enforced. On today's Underreported, we'll look at which species are threatened and which are thriving these days....and how the proposed changes to the ESA could affect the survival of endangered species. Leonard talks to Stuart Pimm, a conservation biologist and Professor of Conservation Ecology at Duke University.

Underreported: Fish for the Future Mar 29, 2007

Show notes

Scientists have warned that fish in the seas could be extinct by 2048. Now a group of experts has come up with a way to prevent sea extinction, rebuild fishing stocks, and restore fishing communities. David Festa, director of the Oceans Program at Environmental Defense, tell us the details of the plan.

Underreported: Girl Soldiers in the DRC Mar 01, 2007

Show notes

Former Congo militia leader Thomas Lubanga will be brought to trial soon at the International Criminal Court. He's accused of war crimes that include conscripting child many girl soldiers he conscripted were also kept as sex slaves. Bukeni Tete Waruzi, director of AJEDI-Ka/Projet Enfants Soldats in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, talks about these girl soldiers, and what happens to them when they're demobilized and returned to their villages.

Underreported: New Garbage Solutions Feb 15, 2007

Show notes

Dogs and cats in the United States produce about 10 million tons of waste each year. Biowaste expert Will Brinton (director of Woods End Laboratories explains how all these pet droppings could be converted into a valuable energy source. And he talks about turning food scraps into yet another useful energy source.

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