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NEWS - Seattle Times Reporter Paula



Seattle Times Reporter Paula Bock Wins Human Rights Award from United
Nations Association

               LA Times
               29-DEC-97
               SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 29,
               1997--On International Human Rights Day,
               December 10, 1997, Seattle Times
               journalist Paula Bock received a human
               rights award from the Seattle chapter of
               the United Nations Association for her
               article "A Land of War, A Journey of the
               Heart." 

               The Seattle Times and photojournalist
               Tom Reese also received recognition for
               their contributions to the story, which was
               published in the newspaper as a separate
               special section on September 28. 

               Bock's article chronicled her return to the
               war-torn Thai-Burma border in search of
               two little girls whose village had been
               overrun by the Burmese army earlier this
               year. Bock had met the children during an
               earlier visit to Burma, when she had
               accompanied her husband during his
               tenure as a volunteer doctor with the
               refugee population. Much of Bock's story
               focused on the valor of physician and
               refugee, Dr. Cynthia Maung, who has
               spent the past eight years establishing
               and running medical clinics for thousands
               of Burmese refugees. 

               In accepting the award, Bock said, "It is a
               great pleasure to accept this human rights
               award on behalf of Dr. Cynthia and the
               brave families of Burma, who struggle so
               hard to live lives of peace despite the war.
               Telling the story of Dr. Cynthia Maung was
               a real honor, both inspiring and
               heartbreaking." Larry Dohrs, a Burma
               specialist with the Seattle Burma
               Roundtable, noted that "It is crucial that
               the refugees be kept in the international
               spotlight. Otherwise they can be raped,
               tortured and killed with impunity. Paula
               Bock, Tom Reese and The Seattle Times
               have saved lives by telling this story." 

               Reader and community reaction to Bock's
               story also has been powerful. More than
               400 readers of The Seattle Times have
               donated over $24,000, as well as clothing,
               antibiotics, medical equipment and
               supplies to Dr. Cynthia's work. 

               Bock and Reese will present a slide show
               of their trip on January 13, 7:30 p.m. at the
               Elliott Bay Book Company at 1st Avenue
               South and South Main Street in downtown
               Seattle. The entire section of "A Land of
               War" is available in The Seattle Times
               lobby, downtown Seattle; and for viewing
               on the World Wide Web at
               http://www.seattletimes.com/burma/ . 

               The Seattle Times is a locally and
               privately owned newspaper. Its family
               shareholders represent the fourth
               generation of family ownership since the
               newspaper was founded by Col. Alden
               Blethen in 1896. The Times is the winner
               of two 1997 Pulitzer Prizes for Beat and
               Investigative Reporting, for a total of
               seven Pulitzer Prizes.