Angelina Jolie Watch

Angelina wasn’t actually able to sit down with CNN’s Anderson Cooper (his plane hit some bad whether) but the two did manage to pull off a satellite interview about the refugee crisis around the world. Angelina has used this week’s activities to focus a spotlight on the international refugee crisis.

Anderson stuck mostly to topic but couldn’t resist asking if she and Brad planned on more kids. (His excuse was that everyone in the office wanted to know. Right Anderson.) Angelina smiled and said, “We love children, we want a big family, so we never - you know, never say no.”

Here’s more of Angelina’s interview:

So many kids so many birthdays:
“I do have the twins, and I just had Shi in May. We have so many kids that we just have year-round birthdays. It’s a lot of fun now ’cause the older kids are old enough to help plan the birthdays for the younger kids. So it’s one of the great pleasures of life, the birthdays.”

How she’s been effected by her meeting with a paralyzed 15-year-old refugee orphan:

“He had this really remarkable, unbreakable spirit, a spirit beyond anything I can imagine.

“He had lost everything and he was just so full of laughter and kindness. He passed away a few months after I was there. And so I always wonder about him and young people that you meet and you just think, in any other situation, if this person had been given a chance, what an extraordinary adult he would have been.”

Angelina works so hard so that refugees around the world can have food shelter and safety. Please visit the UNHCR website to find out what you can do to help.

Today Angelina Jolie, NBC reporter Ann Curry and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres attended the 2009 World Refugee Day Commemoration at the National Geographic Society in Washington D.C.

“Refugees have profoundly changed my life. They have taught me what it is to be brave … to be a mother … to have strength of character,” Angelina told the crowd referring to her 8 years as UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador.

“There are millions of desperate families, so cut off from civilization that they don’t even know [World Refugee Day] exists,” she added.

Angelina also reiterated the World Refugee Day theme “Real People, Real Needs”.

“I believe we must persuade the world that refugees must not be simply viewed as a burden,” she said. “They are the survivors. And they can bring those qualities to the service of their communities and the countries that shelter them.”

Angelina also sat down with CNN’s Anderson Cooper this evening to talk about the plight of refugees around the world. (We don’t have the video just.) In that interview, she talked about how her work with refugees effects how she raises her kids.

“I usually just explain to [my kids] that there are other families in the world that aren’t as fortunate as ours and other kids’…And so I tell them that it’s important for all of us to do what we can and then go to these places and understand what’s happening.Hopefully I’ll take them to as many countries as I can and raise them witwith an education of the world.”

“And I think by…meeting them, by making friends with these type of people and these type of children, it will make my children better people as they get older,” she added.

Coming fast on the heels of the Pitt clan’s donation to a Missouri hospital, is another large donation from the Jolie-Pitt family.  Today, the Jolie-Pitt Foundation announced a gift of $1 million to the United Nations Refugee Agency specifically to help Pakistani refugees. Angelina has been to Pakistan three times during her time as Goodwill Ambassador for the UNHCR but it was too dangerous to film there while she worked on A Mighty Heart.  Agency head António Guterrest thanked the foundation for their contribution.  He said the situation in Pakistan is “the most challenging humanitarian crisis of the past decade.” More than 2 million people have been displaced.

On Thursday, Angie will appear on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 and host a World Refugee Day reception in Washington D. C. on (Hillary Clinton will be there as well.)  Angelina will  also appear on Friday’s Today Show.

I didn’t realize that Brad was with Angelina in Thailand. You’ll notice he’s got a couple of cameras around his neck. I’d love to see(but probably never will) his photos of these beautiful, heroic people. The first video is a UNHCR produced segment for the public at large and the second seems to be UNHCR piece that was released to the media. The second features Angelina talking about her work and the history of the UNHCR.

The United Nations Council of Refugees was founded after World War 2 to handle the refugees crisis created by that war. Since that time, the UHCR has worked tirelessly to resettle, house, clothe and educate those that have been forced form their homes. Angelina became a UNHCR Goodwill ambassador in August, 2001 and has worked tirelessly for refugees around the world since.

In a statement released today, Angelina Jolie urged Thailand  to treat Muslim Refugees fleeing Burma (Myanmar) with greater fairness and compassion.

Thailand’s treatment of the Rohingyas, an oppressed Muslim minority from mainly Buddhist Myanmar, has been widely condemned as evidence emerges that hundreds were rounded up by the Thai military and towed out to sea.

Angelina was deeply troubled by her visit with Burmese refugees in Northern  Thailand.

“I was saddened to meet a 21-year-old woman who was born in a refugee camp, who has never even been out of the camp and is now raising her own child in a camp.”

The camp Angelina visited is home to 18,111 refugees who are not allowed outside the camp for work or schooling.

“With no foreseeable chance that these refugees will soon be able to return to Burma (Myanmar), we must find some way to help them work and become self reliant,” she said. “I hope we can work with the Thai authorities to speed up the government admissions process and that you will not be forced to go back to Burma if danger remains.”

“Visiting Ban Mai Nai Soi and seeing how hospitable Thailand has been to 111,000 mostly Karen and Karenni refugees over the years makes me hope that Thailand will be just as generous to the Rohingya refugees who are now arriving on their shores.”

“I also hope the Rohingya situation stabilizes and their life in Myanmar improves so the people do not feel the desperate need to flee, especially considering how dangerous their journey has become,” she added. “As with all people, they deserve to have their human rights respected.”

Angelina talked with another young woman that was forced to flee her home in November for the safety of the camps.  Angelina asked the young woman if she was scared.

“Yes, I was scared,” Pan Sein said. “It was dangerous to flee, but even more dangerous to stay in my village.”

Again and again Angelina brings our attention to perilous situations around the world.  I had no idea that Thailand was discriminating against refugees based on their religion.  I’ll keep an eye out for opportunities for us to support the cause.  I’m sure their will be(or is) some organized letter writing campaign.

Source: UNHCR

Source: Reuters Canada

Angelina completed her first post-twins UNHCR trip yesterday.  She visited Afghan citizens who’d returned home from neighboring countries like Pakistan.

During her trip, Ms. Jolie visited recent returnees in the eastern province of Nangarhar, where almost 20 per cent of all Afghans who return to the homeland have settled since 2002.

Refugees told Angelina that they are not able to return to their homes of origins because of poor security and lack of land. People who have are still in their home country but are not able to return to their original city and state are classified as internal refugees.

Angelina was impressed with the “the courage, resilience and quiet dignity of returnee families rebuilding their lives against the kind of adversity few of us can imagine shows the human spirit at its best.” She encouraged more international age fore resettling Afghanis.

As always,  kudos to Angelina.

Angelina Jolie has recorded a Public Service Announcement to bring awareness to Friday’s World Refugee Day.

“They have survived war, they have survived displacement, they have survived rape, they have survived hunger and disease,” Angelina says during the spot. “For those who have survived and for those who did not, we are thinking of you on this day.”

The dialouge is accompanied by photos of refugees around the world. An article penned by Angelina will appear in U.S. papers on Friday as part of the Word Refugee Day activities.

Other activities include a replica of a Darfur Village in London’s Trafalgar Square. Rome’s Colosseum will be lit with the refugee agency’s logo.

For more information got the UNHCR website.

I forgot to mention this but the forum was co-sponsored by Angie’s group Education Partnership for Children of Conflict. She founded the group with Gene Speerling last year as part of the 2007 Clinton Initiative. In this video from Tuesday’s conference, she’s talks about how transformative education can be to a child of conflict.

To read additional facts about children of conflict click below. I am eternally grateful to Angelina for her continued education on this subject. (more…)

Rumors started swirling yesterday that Angelina might join brother James Haven on the Hill to lobby for Global Action for Children. That was sorta right.

Today, the Washington Post confirmed that Angie is in DC. She, Pax and Maddox were spotted at the Air and Space Museum yesterday where lots of tourist took photos at a respectable distance. Mad wore a navy blue hoodie while Pax sported an olive green jacket. Pax also asked a lot of questions as the brothers toured Space Hall, Skylab and the WWI and WWII exhibits. (Guess he’s well versed in English now.)

Angie was actually in town to attend last night’s Vital Voices Global Leadership Awards gala. She’s also expected to be at the Council on Foreign Relations today. According to Policy Director Leila Nimatallah “She might” help James with the lobbying effort.

Marianne Pearl was one of the women honored at the Vital Voices Event for her reconcilliation work after the the death her her husband.

Here’s a bit ‘o information that I didn’t know. James is actually a youth pastor at “Saddleback Church, the SoCal evangelical megachurch run by Purpose-Driven Life author Rick Warren.” I knew he was a devout Christian but I had no idea he’d gone into ministry. He’s also on the advisory board for Global Action for Children. These two really have done their mom proud.

Updated while posting. Angelina was indeed at the Council on Foreign Relations. See photos above and after the cut. She really is getting big. Wonder when this baby is due.

(more…)

Angelina wrote a thought provoking editorial this week for the Washington Post. Unlike most of the liberals( I think saying Angelina is liberal is a safe assumption-I’m also pretty liberal so no judgment here.) she thinks we should stay in Iraq.  Based on her Iraqi experiences in Febuary, she thinks this is the best course of action for the country, and the region at large. Here’s a snippet:

“My visit left me even more deeply convinced that we not only have a moral obligation to help displaced Iraqi families, but also a serious, long-term, national security interest in ending this crisis.

Today’s humanitarian crisis in Iraq — and the potential consequences for our national security — are great. Can the United States afford to gamble that 4 million or more poor and displaced people, in the heart of Middle East, won’t explode in violent desperation, sending the whole region into further disorder?

What we cannot afford, in my view, is to squander the progress that has been made. In fact, we should step up our financial and material assistance. UNHCR has appealed for $261 million this year to provide for refugees and internally displaced persons. That is not a small amount of money — but it is less than the U.S. spends each day to fight the war in Iraq. I would like to call on each of the presidential candidates and congressional leaders to announce a comprehensive refugee plan with a specific timeline and budget as part of their Iraq strategy.

As for the question of whether the surge is working, I can only state what I witnessed: U.N. staff and those of non-governmental organizations seem to feel they have the right set of circumstances to attempt to scale up their programs. And when I asked the troops if they wanted to go home as soon as possible, they said that they miss home but feel invested in Iraq. They have lost many friends and want to be a part of the humanitarian progress they now feel is possible.

It seems to me that now is the moment to address the humanitarian side of this situation. Without the right support, we could miss an opportunity to do some of the good we always stated we intended to do.”

Read the article in its entirety here. 

CNN got this exclusive sit down with Angelina while she was in Baghdad. It features many of the quotes found in my previous post. Angelina says she came to Iraq to learn about the issues facing the region personally. Apparently the reporter almost asked her about being pregnant but Angelina dodged. I can’t find any he footage which happened at the very end of this video. I don’t know that it actually aired more than once on CNN if at all. I’ve posted a snippet of the transcript below.

Damon: There are reports out of Hollywood that… (laughs)

Jolie: But I don’t have to answer. OK?

Angelina chows down with the troops in Iraq today. Wonder if she’s eating for two or three.

Well it looks like we were wrong. Angelina wasn’t headed to Jordan but to Iraq. She touched down today in Iraq to highlight the plight of refugees. Angie’s trip included a visit with Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Angie is concerned that there is no concrete plan for the nearly 2 million internal refugees. An internal refugee is one that has been displaced their own country or territory. Think Katrina victims who were forced to move after New Orleans flooded.

“There are over two million displaced people and there never seems to be a real coherent plan to help them,” she said. “There’s lots of goodwill and lots of discussion, but there seems to be just a lot of talk at the moment.”

“I don’t have the answers, but I know this is one thing that needs to be addressed and solved. (There needs) to be a real presence here to help count the people and register the people,” she added.

She’s is very concerned with refugee children.

“Of the two million internally displaced, it’s estimated 58 percent are under 12 years old. It’s a very high number of people in a very, very vulnerable situation and a lot of young kids.”

“So far, the different US officials I met with and different local people I’ve met with all have shared concerns, very, very strongly. They have spoken out about the humanitarian crisis, but there seems to be a block in.

“I don’t have the answers, but I know this is one thing that needs to be addressed and solved. (There needs) to be a real presence here to help count the people and register the people,” she added.

She believes refugee crisis will affect the entire Middle East.

“And a big part of what it’s going to affect,” she said, “is how these people are returned and settled into their homes and their community and brought back together and whether they can live together and what their communities look like.”

The UHCR hasn’t been able to aid refugees due to rampant violence outside of Iraq’s green zone. Angie even took the time to have an…institutional meal with the troops. She’s really taking bullet for the cause there.

Click HERE for video of Angelina eating with troops.

Click HERE for Angelina’s CNN interview.  

Source

Source

This is her first stop(and maybe her only stop) on the way to Jordan. I checked Expedia and it usually takes about 20 hours to get to Jordan from Los Angeles. The shortest flight is 17 hours. Connecting cities are Frankfurt, Paris and London. If you click in the picture you can see Angie’s ticket for BMI airlines which specializes in cheap flights from the UK to the Middle East. Some of the major carriers probably have agreements with BMI. Jordan is a fairly stable but the US Department of State has issued the following warnings about traveling to the country.

The threat of terrorism remains high in Jordan. Transnational terrorist groups, as well as less sophisticated local elements, have demonstrated the capability to pose threats in Jordan. Al-Qaida in Iraq network in particular continues terrorist activities against U.S. and Government of Jordan (GOJ) targets in Jordan. The Al-Qaida in Iraq network claimed responsibility for the November 9, 2005 bombings of three international hotels in Amman, which killed 60 people and injured over 100.

AND

Terrorists often do not distinguish between U.S. government personnel and private citizens. Terrorists may target areas frequented by Westerners, such as tourist sites, hotels, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, liquor stores, shopping malls, transportation hubs, places of worship, expatriate residential areas, and schools. In light of these security concerns, U.S. citizens are urged to maintain a high level of vigilance, to be aware of their surroundings, and to take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness. It is especially important for travelers to be unpredictable by varying their times and routes and to maintain a low profile. Moreover, U.S. citizens are urged to avoid contact with any suspicious or unfamiliar objects and to immediately report the presence of such objects to the authorities. U.S. Government personnel overseas have been advised to take the same precautions.

I’m sure everything will be fine. Still, we need to keep a good thought for Angelina as she does this important work.

Update:  Angelina’s final destination was actually Iraq. 

PageSix scoped out Angie at LAX this afternoon where she boarded a plane headed for Jordan. Angelina is surely doing some UNHCR work. Only recently would she even allow a bodyguard to travel with her. I don’t see one on the picture but I’m sure he(or she) is lurking around somewhere. She’s said that when traveling for the UN she goes alone, carries one bag and flies commercial.

According to the Mayo Clinic here are some of things that pregnant women should consider when flying.

• Ask for an aisle seat or a seat at the bulkhead — which offers the most space and comfort — or over the wings — which offers the smoothest ride.

• Fasten the safety belt under your abdomen across the tops of your thighs.

• Get up and walk every half-hour or, if the seat belt sign is on, flex and extend your ankles vigorously and frequently to prevent blood clots.

• Drink plenty of fluids. Low humidity in the cabin has a dehydrating effect.

Wishing Angelina a successful and safe trip.