The Best of Tharwa's Arabic Reports
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Tharwa Reports
1360
(3 votes, average 3.67 out of 5)
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Subhi Muhammad
Monday, January 26, 2009
 On January 26, 2009, the Syrian newspaper Tishreen published a story of a shocking crime perpetrated in the city of Homs. The article related a raid on a house in the neighborhood of Bayyadah, inside of which was hidden an illegal slaughterhouse. The animals found inside that slaughterhouse, according to the reported testimony of Director of Health Issues, Dr. Muhammad Ali Ghali, were unfit for human consumption. They were rotten, kept under clothing rather than in properly sanitized rooms. The owner of the house admitted that he sold the rotten meat to local butchers, who would mix it with fresh meat, spices and other condiments, and then sell it to consumers as fresh.
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1346
(2 votes, average 5.00 out of 5)
Firas Mohammad Ali
Thursday, January 22, 2009
 Recently, there have been a series of discussions at the University of Damascus about the phenomenon of students cheating on exams. New rules and methods have been put in place by the administrators of the university to prevent this widespread cheating. Yet the new measures taken by the school have little chance of success if they are not in some way supported by the student body. |
1332
(2 votes, average 4.00 out of 5)
Firas Mohammed Ali, student
Saturday, January 10, 2009
 Under the current regime in Syria, even spontaneous mass marches and demonstrations are organized by the authorities. This has been the case for decades: people no longer take part in street marches unless the decision to hold the march has been made by officials in the government. Such state sponsored marches bear little resemblance to those marches in which people take to the street in order to object or support an issue of their choosing, as an exercise of their right to freedom of expression.
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Moussa al-Nomrani, student
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
 SANA'A -- January 13, 2009 marks an anniversary for the President of Yemen. On this day, two years ago, His Excellency declared at an elector rally in the provice of Saada, “We continue to march together for the eradication of poverty and illiteracy, and to create jobs for all unemployed people, wherever they are … In 2007 and 2008, with the help of all faithful and loyal men, poverty and unemployment will be eliminated entirely, through the creation of job opportunities for all brothers and sisters, all over the country.” He assured the crowd, “When I say something clear about this issue, it means we are really dedicated to continue to do something about it and make it a reality. This means that what we are saying is not just a political speech used to tickle the public sentiment …” On this day two years ago, fighting to keep his presidential seat, the President of the Republic made a public promise to every Yemeni citizen that unemployment would be eliminated over the course of the coming two years.
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Azzam Al Turkmani, Professional Journalist
Sunday, November 25, 2007
 Human trafficking exploits human beings in the most heinous ways. Victims are used for prostitution, forced labor, slavery, and even for their organs. In Syria, reports of human trafficking range from news about husbands trading their wives to other men for money, to young girls sold by their parents into prostitution.
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1150
(2 votes, average 4.00 out of 5)
 DAMASCUS -- A Japanese environmental organization had come to Damascus to measure the rate of lead in the air in the Dowelah area of the city. I was there, helping them. I will never forget their shock and dismay when they revealed their findings; the air had 86% more lead than unpolluted air, which has at most trace elements of lead in it. This heavy lead pollution in the air is the result of the constant traffic going in and out of Damascus, the jams and gridlocks that cause cars to spew poisonous fumes as they inch their way towards their destination. Lead can cause cancer and pulmonary inflammation, yet it is pumped into the air every day by these commuters.
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 At first glance, Al-Diabiyyeh doesn’t look as badly off as some of the other districts surrounding Damascus. Its proximity to Al-Seida Zainah municipality means that is occasionally receives some basic services. Once away from the main streets, however, the poverty of the district is striking. The alleys are covered in dirt or mud, depending on how recent the last rain is. The roofs of the houses are made from zinc and cloth awnings, and leak constantly.
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 In the Arab world, the role a father plays in the upbringing of his children is shifting. In response to economic necessities and the presence of satellite television, fathers have found themselves spending less time with their children. They rely on their wives and the educational system to fill in the absences they have left behind. Yet in Syria, as in countries across the Arab world, the educational system is flawed. It is based on religion and often does not challenge the students’ minds. Children are taught in an atmosphere of intimidation, frightened by the corporal punishment still used in many schools.
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1067
(1 vote, average 4.00 out of 5)
Azzam Al-Turkmani, professional journalist
Monday, January 28, 2008
 There are some issues that people prefer not to speak of. We turn our eyes away and claim ignorance – our society, we say, is moral, our culture promotes values, and behavior that is incompatible with those claims is an aberration at most.
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Hassan Al Huwaidi
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
 In March of 1978, Taleb Al Jassim was Director General of the Al-Raqa sugar company. He had succeeded Al Rawi, a former pilot who had fled Syria for Iraq under threat of a political arrest. In his time as Director General, Al-Raqa sugar company was involved in a scandal when it was revealed that, under Taleb, the company had been mixing white lime grounds into the sugar beet paste, saving production costs by debasing their product.
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Friday, May 2, 2008
 ALEPPO – The situation for working women in Syria is difficult. Women in Syria are often offered lower salaries than their male peers. Traditions that call for women to stay in the home conflict with a modern economy that requires many women to enter the workplace in order to provide food and shelter for their families. Too many women, especially in the middle and lower classes, are the sole income provider for their families, with husbands either absent, unemployed or deceased.
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 One of the relationships that vary the most between cultures is the relationship between young men and young women. Religion, custom, and tradition dictate what kinds of interactions are considered appropriate between youths in their late teenage years and early twenties. For a culture in the middle of change, still finding its place between oriental tradition and Western modernity, this formative interaction is even more fraught with complications and perils. Today’s youth are influenced by new ideas of liberal movements that describe new ways for young men and women to interact. These new ways hold great appeal for many young men and women, but they clash with longheld custom. The result is often an attitude that what is approved for the actor is forbidden to others. One common example of this mentality is seen among young men who have a girlfriend or even a lover. They describe such a relationship as important and pleasurable to themselves. If, however, they have female relatives, they are quick to deplore the idea of those relatives taking a boyfriend or a lover. For young women, the behavior they allow in themselves they would often abhor in a younger sister.
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Azzam Al-Turkmani, professional journalist
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
 Since the 1990s, the Syrian coast has seen a large expansion of a greenhouse community. Syrians living along the coast build greenhouses to grow all kinds of fruits and vegetables, from tomatoes and cucumbers to bananas and strawberries.
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Monday, June 16, 2008
 In cities throughout the developing world, the plague of illegally erected housing, from a squalid house assembled from garbage to an entire slum, has become increasingly prevalent. In some areas, these illegal structures have even been known to outnumber their legal counterparts. |
 The name Tel Al Kharouf means ‘the hill of sheep,’ and a long time ago it was probably where Damascenes grazed their sheep. Now, however, it is a busy residential district housing three very distinct groups of people. One area is populated by soldiers, the second by Kurds and the third is populated by nomads of various kinds.
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