WHO'S HAPPY WHO'S NOT?

1. Who's Happy, Who's Not?

sify.com

LONDON, ENGLAND, November 21, 2006: Young people in developing nations are at least twice as likely to feel happy about their lives than their counterparts in the developed ones, says a global survey by MTV Networks International. Indians are the happiest overall, while Japanese are the most miserable. The survey covered more than 5,400 young people in 14 countries, and only 43 per cent of the world's 16- to 34-year-olds said they were happy with their lives. MTVNI said this figure was dragged down by young people in the rich countries, including those in Britain and the United States, where fewer than 30 per cent of young people said they were happy. Only eight per cent in Japan said they were happy. The reasons for unhappiness across the developed world included a lack of optimism, concerns over jobs and pressure to succeed. In developing countries, the majority of people in the same age group expected their lives to be more enjoyable in the future. "The happier young people of the developing world are also the most religious," the survey said.
2. Indian Boy Wins Children's World Peace Prize

news.bbc.co.uk

NEW DELHI, INDIA, November 20, 2006: A 14-year-old Indian boy, Om Prakash, has been awarded the International Children's Peace Prize for leading a campaign against child labor and child slavery. Om was forced to work as a farm laborer for three years. After he was rescued, Om set up a network that aims to give all children a birth certificate as a way of helping to protect them from exploitation. Om was awarded the $100,000 prize organized by a Netherlands-based group at a ceremony in The Hague. After he was rescued, Om campaigned for free education in his native Rajasthan. He then helped to set up a network of what are known as "child friendly villages." "This is our right - that (adults) have to listen. This is children's rights. And if they are not abiding with that right, we will work harder to make them hear," he says.