Annual focus 2008: Pacific Islands
Witnessing to God's Peace is the theme of the 2008 DOV Annual focus on the Pacific Islands, who face their own particular challenges.
- Click on the map to enlarge.
Source: Oceania (2008). In Student's Encyclopædia. Retrieved 7 April, 2008, from Britannica Student Encyclopædia.
The Pacific Region (Pacific), over 20,000 islands scattered across the largest ocean (196 million square kilometres) in the world, is home to a population exceeding over 7.5 million. Although the ocean stretches from the Tropic of Cancer, crosses the Equator and south to the Tropic of Capricorn (excluding Australia), the land mass is only 10 million square kilometres. While they may share the same ocean, the Pacific is as unique as its many volcanic islands and atolls. The island region discussed here fall culturally and geographically into three main areas: Polinisia (Polynesia), Melanisia (Melanesia) and Maikoronisia (Micronesia).
Regional Threats of Violence Statistic :
- Injuries and violence cause an estimated 1.2 million deaths annually, or nearly 3300 deaths every day, with suicides, traffic accidents and drowning accounting for the majority of cases.
- The top five causes of injury deaths in the Region in 2000 were self-inflicted injury or suicide (approximately 318 000 deaths per year), road traffic accidents (292 000), drowning (137 000), falls (109 000) and poisoning (73 000).
- Over 93% of injuries in the Western Pacific Region occur in low-and middle-income countries, involving the 5-44 year age group in particular .
- Violence against women is often committed by husbands or intimate male partners
- Physical violence in intimate relationships is often accompanied by psychological abuse
- One third to over one half of cases of physical violence are accompanied by sexual abuse
- Drink-driving and domestic violence related to alcohol consumption is a growing problem
- Suicide is believed to be a hidden problem (undocumented)
Source: WHO (More statistics available on the WHO website)
Pacific Focus of the International Day of Prayer for Peace
This year's International Day of Prayer for Peace (IDPP), on 21 September 2008, will also focus on the Pacific region.
Click here if you wish to submit your prayers for the 2008 International Day of Prayer for Peace.
Pacific - Links
- Pazifik-Informationsstelle
The aim of the "Pazifik-Informationsstelle", with head office in Neuendettelsau, Germany, is to share information about economic, social and ecological issues in the Pacific region.
