The stories are not ones that have never been
reported, but are often second-rung issues that need more thorough,
balanced and regular attention. The list itself is a snapshot of the
most compelling stories that, at this point in time, the Department of
Public Information believes are in need of more media attention. And
the top story is merely the first among equals. The list includes the
plight of child soldiers in Uganda, who are emerging as central figures
amid deadly violence and a growing humanitarian emergency; the crisis
of children orphaned by AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa; and overfishing as
a threat to marine biodiversity.

Far from the eyes of the world, some sixty-four
indigenous peoples living in voluntary isolation in Amazonian Ecuador,
Peru, Brazil and Bolivia – the Tagaeri, Huaorani, Taromenane, Corubo,
Amamhuaca, Mascho, Kineri, Nanti, Nahua and Kugapakori, among others
– are condemned to gradual extinction. These tribes remain
mysterious, avoiding all contact with strangers and preferring the
isolated existence they have maintained for centuries. What little is
known about them has been gleaned from other indigenous groups and from
chance encounters with developers and rights groups. But what is clear
is that their numbers are rapidly dwindling: the Coruba now number only
40; and the number of Mascho speakers is estimated to be between 20 and
100. The Amamhuaca language, it is thought, is spoken only by 720
people: 500 in Peru and 220 in Brazil.