Annual Report of the Sata Foundation for the Year 2016

I. Donations

In the year 2016,the Sata Foundation made the following donations.

(1) Azerbaijan Critical Congenital Heart Defect Screening Programme

The Sata Foundation made a donation to the infant heart screening programme,which the Rostropovich Vishnevskaya Foundation (RVF; website: http://rostropovich.org/) was launching in Baku,the capital of Azerbaijan.

The purpose of the programme is to make possible the early detection of critical congenital heart defects (CCHDs) in newborns,so that treatment can be initiated as soon as possible and babies have a chance to grow up to lead normal lives. CCHD screening of newborns is extremely cost-effective and has prevented suffering and saved many lives in the United States and other countries,including Georgia,which borders Azerbaijan.

The programme in Azerbaijan was just getting underway. The programme uses the successful heart screening programme for newborns which the RVF initiated in the Georgian capital Tbilisi as a model to establish the programme in the Azerbaijani capital. The population of Baku is twice that of Tbilisi,and the cardiovascular centre in Baku is not as well-developed as in Tbilisi for treating infants with CCHDs. For this reason most Azeri babies with CCHDs – if diagnosed in time – are sent to Tbilisi for corrective surgery. However, Azerbaijan has an outstanding pediatric heart surgeon trained in the U.S. This programme is part of an effort to modernize the local cardiology capacity for infants in Baku. The early detection of CCHDs in newborns is a crucial element of the initiative to diagnose and treat babies with heart defects in-country rather than sending them abroad. The Sata Foundation's contribution helps make that goal attainable.


(2) Foundation for the Development of International Law in Asia (DILA)

The Sata Foundation continues to promote international rules of law in Asia by awarding annually the DILA Prize,valued at US$2,000 from the year 2005 onward, for the best international law essays by young Asian international legal scholars. The winning essays are published in the Asian Yearbook of International Law,under the auspices of the Foundation for the Development of International Law in Asia (DILA) [→ Note 1] . The Asian Yearbook informs the world about Asian perspectives on international law that underpins world peace and the international legal order. The DILA Prize thus serves to enhance the "understanding among peoples of all cultures,religions and beliefs of the value of peace and respect for universally recognized human rights",which is part of the Sata Foundation's Mission Statement.

The DILA Prize for the 2012 volume of the Asian Yearbook of International Law was awarded in 2015.  The winner is Professor Jaclyn Neo of the National University of Singapore for her article entitled "Incorporating Human Rights: Mitigated Dualism and Interpretation in Malaysian Courts." The article can be found on the DILA website:
http://www.dilafoundation.org/uploads/1/1/2/8/11284804/2012asybil_vol18_1-37__neo_.pdf

The DILA Prize for 2013 is awarded to Professor Tom Temprosa from the Philippines,currently visiting the University of Michigan,for his article "Reflections on a Legal Confluence: International Law in the Philippine Court,1940-2000". The winner for the 2014 DILA Prize is Mr. Matthew Seet of the University of Singapore,for his article "China's Suspended Death Sentence with a Two-Year Reprieve: Humanitarian Reprieve or a Cruel,Inhuman and Degrading Treatment?". The payment by the Sata Foundation to these two winners,totalling US$4,000,was made in March 2017.


(3) Banyan Home Foundation

The Banyan Home Foundation (BHF) which operates the Ban Rom Sai Children's Home for HIV/AIDS-infected children was set up by Mrs. Miwa Natori from Japan [→ Note 2] .

The Sata Foundation's donation in 2016 was a continuation of the Sata Foundation's donation to this charity since 2007. The donation for 2016 went to support the following projects:

(a) Teaching the children to enjoy reading;
(b) Community sports;
(c) Youth football competition;
(d) Summer camps for the children at the Ban Rom Sai and the local youth; and
(e) Practical training on accidents and first-aid help.

Approximately 50-100 persons took part in these activities. Thanks to the Sata Foundation' s donations during these years,the children at the Ban Rom Sai have been accepted and successfully assimilated to the society where they live. For example,several participants have been granted special quotas to study at high schools and vocational training colleges free of costs. Two children who used to live in Ban Rom Sai are now working full-time. Some of the children are now studying at universities in Chiang Mai Province and near-by Chiang Rai Province.
The oldest boy at Ban Rom Sai is 25 years' old; he first came to Ban Rom Sai when he was 7years' old. The youngest boy is 3 years' old.


(4) Shechen Clinic in Baudhanath,Kathmandu,Nepal
(http://karuna-shechen.org/category/health/)

The Sata Foundation made a donation to the Shechen Clinic in Nepal (http://www.karuna-shechen.org). This is a continuation of the Foundation's donations to the Clinic since the Clinic's establishment in 2000.

The Shechen Clinic is located in an overcrowded suburb of Kathmandu,the capital of Nepal. The Clinic provides quality medical care,regardless of religious,ethnic or political background,to the large community that includes refugees and other people from the mountain regions in India,Nepal,and Tibet. Services are provided on a sliding scale cost bases and,in the case of very poor patients,all medical care and medicines are provided at no cost. The Clinic also has mobile clinics serving 850 communities. The Clinic treats over 140,000 patients annually. The services provided include: general medicine,pharmacy,analysis laboratory,tuberculosis (D.O.T.),orthopedic,reproductive health,counseling for HIV and AIDS patients and their family; homeopathy,Tibetan medicine,Tibetan medicine factory,acupuncture,dental clinic,and dental laboratory.

The Clinic makes a special expression of gratitude to the Sata Foundation and the TKB Group in Japan for their ongoing support of the Shechen Clinic in Nepal since its inception.



II. The Madonna of Nagasaki and World Peace

In 2005,the Sata Foundation sponsored the first "Run for Peace" Cycling Rally and related events in France on 6 August 2005 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (on 6 and 9 August 1945,respectively) and to promote the humanitarian mission of the Sata Foundation with the Madonnagasaki as the main inspiration. After the great success of the 1st rally,the Peace Rally is held every year.

In 2016,the Run for Peace Rally was held on Saturday 30 July in Chailly-sur-Armançon,France,to commemorate the anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (www.courirpourlapaix.com),with approximately 500 cyclists taking part in three circuits: Hiroshima (158 km.),Nagasaki (113 km.) and Tohoku (72 km.).

The event is part of the fundraising for the Sata Foundation,to be used for the Sata Foundation's mission.


Notes:

  1. http://www.dilafoundation.org.
  2. It is located at 23/1 Moo 4 Tambon Namprae, Ampur Hangdong,Chiangmai Province, Thailand 50230: http://www.banromsai.org.


Professor Kriangsak Kittichaisaree
Executive Director,
Sata Foundation
9 August, 2017


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