New, Statistical Materials for Learning About Japan
Resources of the Week
By Shirl Kennedy, Deputy Editor
Something different for you this week -- a small round-up of niche international resources.
Asia--Human Trafficking
Source: Asia Foundation TIPinAsia.info
"TIPinAsia.info provides quick links to country-specific information on trafficking in persons in multiple languages, as well as anti-trafficking news and information about individual countries. You may access this information by simply clicking on a country name or a national flag." This is actually a group of three portals -- for Cambodia, Thailand, and East Timor. Each offers news, conference notices, a discussion forum and case studies. You'll find links to directories of aid providers, laws and relevant documents. It's still a resource under development, so some areas are more content-rich than others. Some RSS feeds are available. Information is available both in English and in native languages. The Asia Foundation says in a press release that "Content in local language from seven additional countries will be added this year."
-- Arab Countries--Political Systems
Source: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
This webpage represents a joint undertaking of the Democracy and Rule of Law Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington and the Fundaci�n para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Di�logo Exterior (FRIDE) in Madrid. It provides easily accessible baseline information about the political systems of Arab countries, with links to official documents and websites, and will be frequently updated to provide information about reforms being introduced." Right now, you'll find country studies for Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. These are extensive documents -- in Microsoft Word (.doc) format -- that provide information on state institutions/separation of powers, citizen rights, political forces, election results, constitutional revision, corruption, ratification of international conventions. "The webpage complements the information about political reform in Arab countries provided by the Arab Reform Bulletin, a monthly online publication by the Carnegie Endowment."
-- Japan--Statistics
Source: National Diet Library Statistical Materials for Learning About Japan
"'Statistical Materials for Learning about Japan' is an English-language guide to statistical information about Japan. It introduces major statistical materials on Japan written in English, or in both Japanese and English, in the form of printed publications and Internet information. A bibliographical note is added to each piece of material. As a rule, the statistics presented are linked to relevant Internet sites in English, even for those available only in printed form." You'll find annotated links to data on: population, business/industry/economics, agriculture/forestry/fisheries, science and technology, commerce and services; labor and prices, housing, education, criminal justice and more. There's also a section on Reference Tools for Searching for Statistics, including the Guide to Official Statistics in Japan and the Statistics Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
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By the way, the U.S. Census Bureau maintains a comprehensive list of links to official statistical agencies in other countries. And the amazing University of Michigan Documents Center offers a large collection of links to Foreign Government Data Sources.
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