Cesar Chelala - The Japan Times

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Cesar Chelala

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Cesar Chelala

Cesar Chelala, MD, PhD, is an international public health consultant for several UN agencies, and a writer on human rights, medical and foreign policy issues. He is a winner of an Overseas Press Club of America Award. His articles have been published in more than 70 countries worldwide.

COMMENTARY / World

Feb 23, 2007

Iraqi survivors face health-care collapse

NEW YORK -- In a letter addressed to British Prime Minister Tony Blair, 100 prestigious doctors have denounced the harm to children's health and lives wrought by the war in Iraq. The signatories -- British doctors who have worked in Iraq, Iraqi doctors, leading British consultants and general practitioners...

COMMENTARY

Jan 9, 2007

Oil angst may fuel Iran's nuclear quest

NEW YORK -- Any analysis posing Iran as a potential threat to peace in the Middle East is generally based on the assumption that its aggressive pursuit of nuclear power can only have the most ominous consequences for the region.

COMMENTARY

Dec 14, 2006

Pinochet's death marks the end of an era

NEW YORK -- The death of Chilean dictator Gen. Augusto Pinochet Ugarte, on Dec. 10, Human Rights Day, marks an appropriate coincidence: the end of one of the bloodiest tyrants in recent Latin American history at one of the most significant human-rights celebrations.

COMMENTARY

Dec 5, 2006

Citizen musicians giving peace a chance

NEW YORK -- Political and religious leaders could improve their peacemaking ability by paying attention to what some contemporary musicians are achieving. "Inter-religious" orchestras comprising Jewish, Muslim and Catholic musicians point the way toward a diminishing climate of violence while signaling...

COMMENTARY

Nov 20, 2006

Time for U.S. to change course on Cuba

NEW YORK -- The changed political landscape in Washington offers a unique opportunity to right a wrong foreign policy decision that has been maintained for almost half a century, the embargo against Cuba.

COMMENTARY

Oct 26, 2006

Antidepressant drug raises new hopes

The news that Dallas Cowboys football player Terrell Owens had attempted to commit suicide because of depression alarmed sports fans worldwide, for whom he is one of the game's biggest stars. However, recent information on the uses of a drug with positive effects on depressed patients raises hopes that...

COMMENTARY / World

Oct 5, 2006

A differing view on the war on terror

NEW YORK -- Recent revelations in The New York Times on the fight against terrorism and the war on Iraq present a differing view on the problem worth pondering about. According to classified information in the National Intelligence Estimate leaked to the Times, the American invasion and occupation of...

COMMENTARY / World

Sep 28, 2006

Chavez and Bush on a collision course

NEW YORK -- Of one thing you can be sure with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez: You won't be bored listening to him. Chavez's recent criticism of George W. Bush at the United Nations is only the latest in a war of words with the U.S. president. Chavez has accused the Bush administration of trying to...

COMMENTARY / World

Sep 18, 2006

Chronically hungry children of America

NEW YORK -- While it is normal to expect high levels of hunger and poverty in a developing country, it may come as a surprise to observe such conditions in one of the richest countries in the world. The Food Bank for New York City recently reported that nearly 20 percent of children in the city rely...

COMMENTARY / World

Sep 12, 2006

Donor pledges to Gaza not good enough

NEW YORK -- Although several governments have recently pledged $500 million to help the Palestinian people, the response is late, incomplete and likely to be ineffective unless the aid is accompanied by political measures to alleviate a situation in which Palestinians, particularly in Gaza, have become...

COMMENTARY / World

Aug 30, 2006

Amnesty International on track with call for inquiry

NEW YORK -- An Amnesty International report severely criticizes the Israeli Defense Forces's behavior during the recent war in Lebanon and calls for an independent commission of inquiry. Such a commission should investigate the actions of not only the IDF but also Hezbollah, as civilians were the main...

COMMENTARY / World

Aug 15, 2006

Children died as Western leaders stared

COMMENTARY / World

Aug 11, 2006

Cluster bombs add to terror

NEW YORK -- As if the ruthless air attacks on Lebanese civilians weren't enough, Israel has been using illegal cluster munitions in populated areas of that country. Human Rights Watch researchers working on the ground in Lebanon have confirmed that an attack with cluster bombs was carried out on the...

COMMENTARY / World

Aug 7, 2006

Abortions up in China as taboos weaken

NEW YORK -- Parallel to the economic revolution in China is a sexual revolution, particularly among youth, which is having far-reaching consequences on their health and quality of life. Since feu- dal times, sex has been a taboo subject in China. Even today, despite progress in many areas, many Chinese,...

COMMENTARY / World

Jul 26, 2006

Adolescent suicide: a serious problem in every country

NEW YORK -- It happens every day, and with alarming frequency. Adolescent suicide is a serious problem in every country, and Japan is no exception. An estimated 30,000 Japanese of all ages kill themselves each year.

COMMENTARY / World

Jul 18, 2006

Collective punishment is hardly a policy

NEW YORK -- Israel's invasion of the Gaza Strip and of Lebanon's southern border is exacting a heavy price on the civilian population in those regions. Isra- el's actions are worsening a humanitarian situation that was already critical, particularly as far as children's health and the quality of their...

COMMENTARY / World

Jul 15, 2006

'Comfort women' issue far from closed

NEW YORK -- V-Day, a global movement to stop violence against women and girls, is putting the "comfort women's" crusade for reparations in its spotlight for 2006. As part of the activities, in the summer of 2006 the Global Campaign will include celebrity benefit performances of "The Vagina Monologues"...

COMMENTARY / World

Jul 7, 2006

Iran to send U.N. a fox in the henhouse

NEW YORK -- Iran's decision to include Tehran's prosecutor general, Saeed Mortazavi, in that country's delegation to the new United Nations Human Rights Council sends a wrong message to the international human rights community worldwide. By choosing one of country's most notorious human-rights violators,...

COMMENTARY / World

Jun 28, 2006

Women in China falling victim to gender violence

NEW YORK -- Although it is under-recognized and underreported, it is one of the most significant epidemics in China today. It is gender violence, manifested essentially as violence against women. This kind of violence occurs in all regions in China. It affects families of all ethnic backgrounds and social...

COMMENTARY / World

Jun 15, 2006

Breaking the Iran stalemate

NEW YORK -- The conclusions of a study led by former U.N. chief weapons inspector Hans Blix are important to overcome the present stalemate with Iran. According to the independent Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission, "the first line of defense against the spread of nuclear weapons is to make states...

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.

Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.

The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'

By Tomoko Otake

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