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Petrodollars, Megalomania and Human Rights in Equatorial Guinea · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

[All quotations translated from French can be viewed in the original post]
President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa, launched a charm offensive in 2011 and 2012 using his petrodollars to target the worlds of showbusiness, sport and international diplomacy.
Being chairperson of the African Union (AU) from January 2011 to January 2012 allowed him to court the media outside Africa's borders. Another opportunity for him to promote himself and his regime when he was president of the 7th ACP Summit of African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States. The ACP, which has links to the European Union, held the summit in Malabo, capital of Equatorial Guinea, from December 13 to 14, 2012.
However, following his accession to AU chairmanship, the media, civil society and blogosphere denounced him for his poor human rights record. Blog Gaboneco wrote [fr]:
The democracy he professes is just right for the outside observers, especially those in Western countries, who, intoxicated by the scent of petrol, have conveniently forgotten their views on democracy, human rights etc. So much so that the strong man of Bata can suppress his opponents and gag the press. The Human Rights organisations are the only ones who dare complain about what is happening in this country, which they do from time to time.
The second most expensive yacht in the world, belonging to the son of  president Obiang – public domain
Equatorial Guinea has the 4th strictest censorship in the world, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, which denounced this lack of freedom:
News and information was tightly controlled in Equatorial Guinea, which the CPJ identified as one of the world’s most censored nations. Nearly all news media were owned and run by the government or its allies. One independently owned newspaper circulated in the country, but it had to practice self-censorship; no independent broadcasters operated domestically.
The regime clamped down again just a few days before the start of the ACP summit. The blog Coup de Gueule de Samuel reported several cases [fr] of journalists being suspended and programmes pulled:
“cultura en casa” ‘Culture at home’ in Spanish, a programme on Equatorial Guinea national radio (RTVGE) was abruptly “stopped and suspended until further notice” on Friday October 19 for having tackled and denounced on air the abuse of power and incompetence of the courts and national parliament which the presenters spoke of.
Other, similar cases of suspensions [fr] were cited by the blog:
- A radio programme, “La Tertulia”, ‘The Gathering’ in Spanish, presented by Siméon Sopale, was taken off air four years ago today after denouncing and criticizing the authorities following the announcement that “taxis in Malabo would be Mercedes”.
- Juan Petro Mendene, a Francophone journalist, was suspended in May 2012 for having referred to Muammar Gaddafi even though coverage of the Lybian revolution had been forbidden to be broadcast on RTVGE by those in charge of censorship and against freedom of the press and freedom of expression in Malabo.
- Pedro Luis Esono Edu Bidang was also hit with a suspension in February 2010 until the present, for having announced the discovery of the bodies of seven Malians in a rubbish dump in Bata, economic capital of Equatorial Guinea.
Several days after the start of the ACP summit, Reporters without Borders were asking questions about the death of a journalist who had demonstrated his independence over many years faced with the Obiang regime:
Is it still possible to shed light on this case? … The government should issue a statement to dispel the suspicions under which it finds itself, and should order an investigation if the family requests one.
While the Malabo authorities seek the abolition of visa requirements [fr] with Spain, their security forces are tracking down African immigrants and, in some cases, killing them without hesitation. The blog France-Guinée equatoriale posted an article [fr] revealing these crimes, committed with impunity:
Attacks on African nationals, particularly on Malians, are frequent in Equatorial Guinea. They generally have the aim of extorting money from poor citizens, often illegal workers. When attacks are committed by police or soldiers, they normally go unpunished.
Commenting on the article from the Gaboneco blog, Ramirez le Rescape described abuses of power [fr] by the president's son:
Nepotism – his son is worse than Gaddafi's – because of his greatest extravagances, such as buying 250 suits in just a single day, a single purchase, a single shop, not to mention the Lamborghinis…
Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, prodigal son and luxury car aficionado is Second Vice President, charged with Defence and Security, a post which does not even exist according to the constitution [fr]. He loves to act the playboy and frequently causes controversy with his orgies of spending. He denies himself nothing – fancy townhouses, luxury villas, collections of Old Masters and stars’ memorabilia. Revealing the order of a yacht for his personal use, for the princely sum of 288 million Euros, equivalent to almost three times the education budget for his country. Global Witness blog reported:
Its total contract price is approximately 288 million Euros, or $380 million at current exchange rates. This would make it the world's second most expensive yacht, behind Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich's $1.2billion Eclipse.
The following video shows the seizure by French police of eleven luxury cars at the house of Obaing's son:
Placido Mico of the CPDS (Convergence for Social Democracy) is the main opposition MP in Equatorial Guinea. He is known for being strongly critical of the lack of political presence by the opposition in the country. On the subject of wasteful spending, he reported via diasporas-news.com [fr] that as far as the organisation of summits and conferences is concerned:
Projects such as Sipopo or Oyala – a city created on the mainland – do not serve as development. There are only a few huts around Oyala – no electricity, no schools, no running water, no hospitals. This project is crazy. When Brasilia was constructed, it was done to ease congestion in the capital. Rio and Sao Paulo both had water and electricity…
“We are a country of 700,000 people. Are we going to deport people to make them go to Oyala?”, he asked.
“It is scandalous. In the meantime there are no tables – in some schools lessons take place on the ground. There are no books”, he added.
According to MalaboNews, on Christmas Eve 2012, apparently trying to show off to the international community, the president donated the sum of 60 million Central African Francs to twelve ‘opposition’ political parties. Samuel Obiang (no relation) wrote in blog [fr] Coup de gueule de Samuel:
The majority of these parties led by the friends of President Obiang Nguemas think of their party as a veritable source of funds – a ‘business’ as the Equatorial Guineans call it.
Some of these parties have no members – who are the allocated funds for, we ask ourselves?
In a country where an independent press is not authorised, with corruption opposition, what future is there for Equatorial Guinea? It has been made rotten through corruption and misappropriation of public funds.
Poverty is escalating dramatically, but nobody is thinking about life after petrol.
Globalwitness.org reviewed some social statistics:
Incredibly, since oil was discovered in the mid-1990s, poverty levels have actually worsened. Equatorial Guinea enjoys a per capita income of about $37,900, one of the highest in the world. Yet 77 percent of the population falls below the poverty line, 35 percent die before the age of 40, and 58 percent lack access to safe water.
Equatorial Guinea is languishing in 136th place in international human development rankings as calculated by mean levels attained in three essential areas, namely, health and longevity, access to education and a decent standard of living. Although richer than many African countries, Equatorial Guinea spends less on investments to improve these key areas than most.
The priorities of those in power in Eqautorial Guinea are far removed from those of the people they govern.

author: Abdoulaye Bah


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‘Travelling with Nannies’ Proves Controversial in Brazil · Global Voices
Luis Henrique

It's vacation time in Brazil. Children are away from school and parents are figuring out ways to amuse them. Recently a blog post [pt] on Viajando com Filhos (Travelling with Children), presented what was supposed to be handy tips for families travelling with their nannies.  The post went viral, not because of its usefulness, but because some of it was downright pretentious:
Em outras oportunidades em que vc quer que ela [a babá] coma antes porque o restaurante é caro ou porque vão outros casais vc pode dizer problemas, tipo assim, “hj vamos a um restaurante com a comidas muito diferentes que vai demorar ou muito caro e etc, então vamos passar pra vc comer em algum lugar, vc prefere pizza ou Mc Donals”, porque, lembre-se ela está trabalhando.
There will be moments when you need her [the nanny] to eat before either because the restaurant is expensive or because other couples will join you. You can allege issues like this: ‘today we are going to a restaurant that offers very unusual types of food, or it will take a while, or it is too expensive, and so on. So we are going to stop by for you to eat somewhere else. Do you prefer pizza or Mc Donals´ [sic], because you should bear in mind she is working.
Amidst economic growth and the rise of the middle ‘C’ class, Brazilian society is seeing a transition in domestic work. We have written before about this type of employment and its connection to issues like social inclusion, bad work conditions, social hierarchies, gender inequalities and empowerment. Blogueiras Feministas [pt], a feminist blog, posted this reaction:
A mulher que escreveu esse post não é a única que pensa dessa maneira, portanto, não adianta culpar e crucificar apenas essa pessoa. As relações com trabalhadores domésticos no Brasil tem estreita relação com nosso passado escravocrata. Assim como ela, há muitos homens e mulheres brasileiros que encaram os trabalhadores domésticos como pessoas que devem ter gratidão por estarem empregadas e por terem a chance de conviver com uma família de classe social alta. Isso, quando não os tratam como bens da família, sem permitir qualquer tipo de vida particular.
The woman who wrote this post is not alone in this line of thinking, therefore it is useless to blame and crucify her. Work relations regarding domestic workers in Brazil are linked to our past slavery. Same as this author, there are many men and women in Brazil who see domestic workers as people who should be grateful for having a chance to cohabit with a family with a high standard of living. Not to mention when those workers are treated as a family asset, with no right to a private life.
Focusing on the matter of nannies travelling along with employers, Blogueiras Feministas adds:
Trabalhadores que viajam a serviço recebem hora extra, diária para alimentação, transporte e não estão à serviço 24 horas por dia. Por que um trabalhador doméstico não estaria submetido as mesmas regras?
Employees who travel for work earn overtime, daily allowances for food, transport, and are not at service 24 hours a day. Why shouldn't  a domestic worker be subject to the same rules?
Reflecting on the role of parents and the debate around “high earnings” of domestic workers, Blogueiras Feministas writes:
Questiona-se não só o valor pago para babás e diaristas, um trabalho menosprezado, não intelectual e majoritariamente feminino, como também questiona-se a maneira que cada mulher exerce a sua maternidade. Como se “cuidar das crianças” fosse apenas sua responsabilidade e o companheiro não tivesse nenhuma participação nessa relação. Perdem patroas e empregadas. Perdem as mulheres como um todo, quando não entendemos que o exercício das funções internas e domésticas são responsabilidade de todos os membros da família, independente do gênero.
The amount of money paid to nannies and maids is questioned – [it doesn't require] qualification, its not intellectual and is mostly a female job – the same way each the role of mothers are questioned. As if ‘looking after children’ was her sole responsibility and the partner didn't share any part on this. Both employers and domestic workers lose. Women as a whole lose, as we don't understand that internal and housekeeping tasks are duties of all family members, independent of gender.
In another reaction, BiDê Brasil [pt], a feminist a socialist blog, writes:
Ana Teresa Fernandez's sculptural instalation “Carry On” used with permission. “Through this installation, [Ana Teresa] Fernandez hints at a metaphor of immigrants within our society inconspicuously carrying the heavy workload of service and cleaning industries”.
Como disse no começo do texto não acho ser possível uma mãe dar conta de ser mãe, trabalhar, estudar e – no meu caso – militar. Não dá para dar conta, é extenuante, mas uma coisa é você saber quais são os flancos importantes para dividir o bem estar da criança e outra é delegar completamente a criação dos filhos para outrém.
I don't think it is possible for a mother to be a mother, to work, to study and – in my case – to advocate. One cannot stand it, it is exhausting, but one thing is knowing the parts of your life that can be shared aiming at the child's well being; yet another one is to completely delegate your child's upbringing to someone else.
And she adds that there is a debate to be had regarding public facilities to be offered by the State, such as public spaces and libraries. And another one regarding workloads and free time so that men and women can have time to themselves. But nothing justifies treating nannies like assets:
Mas isso não justifica tratar alguém que te ajude como se fosse um “item” da bagagem a se levar nas férias ou nas viagens.
It is not justifiable to treat someone who helps you as a baggage “item” to be taken on vacation or on trips.
These and other reactions led the blog post to be taken down, as this revoke note [pt] states:
Prezados leitores, sentimos muito que o texto do post “Viagem Levando Babás” tenha ofendido tanta gente. O objetivo do nosso blog nunca foi ofender ninguém e, por causa disso, retiramos o post do ar. Considerando o feedback de todos, a partir de agora teremos mais cuidado com o conteúdo publicado no blog.
Dear readers, we feel sorry the post “Viagem Levando Babás” (Travel along with a Nanny) has offended so many people. The objective of this blog was never to harm anyone, and because of that, we have taken down the post. Considering everyone´s feedback, from now on we shall be more careful with the contents we post on the blog.
Classe Média Sofre [pt], a Tumblr page that “stimulates self-criticism” based on middle class stories and a share of Brazilian's very own “pettiness” did post a link to the blog post that originated the discussion, but later on, published a critique against some of the reactions:
mas é impressionante a facilidade com a qual pessoas que nem a conhecem já assumem imediatamente uma posição de superioridade moral e se arrogam o direito de fazer comentários fortíssimos que não se justificam (…)
but it is impressive how easy people who don't know her [the blog post author] immediately assume they are positioned on higher moral ground and have the right to post unjustifiably strong criticism (…)
Slapping with a velvet glove, the Tumblr page states:
jogar pedra na moça sem-noção que viaja com babás é a melhor maneira de não pensar na maneira como você trata seu porteiro.
throwing the clueless girl who travels with nannies to the wolves is a way of forgetting how you treat the doorman at your place.

source: news-globalvoices

license: Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

author: Luis Henrique


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Volunteers Settle Dispute Over Size of Moscow Protest? · Global Voices
Andrey Tselikov

No Russian opposition rally and protest march is truly over, it seems, until there has been an Internet flame war over the strength of its attendance. By now it's a formulaic ritual: pro-government bloggers cite official police reports which minimize the number of protesters and thus their relevancy, while members of the opposition claim to have witnessed a much larger showing. The low and high estimates usually vary widely, while the truth, as it often happens, is somewhere in the middle.
The January 13, 2013 “March Against Scoundrels” was no exception — if anything, there was more at stake in the numbers game after a poor showing at last month's unauthorized Lubyanskaya Square rally [GV]. Leading up to the march people were curious: will this event attract the tens of thousands of people that anti-Kremlin protests did last winter? Needless to say, the speculation started early. Unofficial protest leader Alexey Navalny, for example, was pessimistic [ru]:
На собрании по поводу митинга я дал свой прогноз численности сегодняшнего марша в 400 – 1200 человек.
At the meeting about the rally I made a prediction of the size of today's march to be 400 – 1200 people.
As people started assembling, however, it was clear that his prognosis was wrong. At 1:00 PM, an hour before the start of the march, BBC Russia correspondent Jüri Maloverjan tweeted [ru] that there were already “several thousand” people present. Just 40 minutes later Ilya Yashin, Coordinating Council member, estimated [ru] the column to be around 20,000 strong. At around the same time leftist opposition leader Sergey Udaltsov counted [ru] 30,000, while young revolutionary Roman Dobrokhotov weighed in [ru] at 50,000. In a few minutes Yashin updated his count [ru] to 40,000 “at a minimum.” By 2:30 PM both Yashin [ru] and Udaltsov [ru] agreed on 50,000.
March against scoundrels. Moscow, Russia. 13th January 2013. by Anton Belitskiy. © Demotix
Thats not to say that everyone was on the same page. Opposition journalist Oleg Kozyrev, for one, was sure that the numbers were much higher, tweeting [ru]:
Воможно сегодня самая массовая акция в соаременной истории.
Today's rally is possibly the most numerous in modern history.
Later [ru] he estimated the marching column to be 150,000 people, a number he soon upgraded [ru] to 200,000:
Конечно четверть миллиона вряд ли пока была. Но 200000 тоже хорошо
Of course, I doubt there was a quarter of a million yet. But 200000 isn't bad either
Kozyrev explained his rather fantastical estimate (most would agree that Russia's largest mass rallies of the past year have barely topped 100,000 people) by pointing out that [ru]:
Все, кто пытается считать участников, не ждали хвоста колонны. А я ждал.
Everyone who tries to count the participants didn't wait for the tail of the column. But I waited.
Oleg's exuberant tweeting was noticed by a number of people who commented [ru] on his apparent lack of a “sense of reality,” leading DemVybor's Stanislav Yakovlev to quip [ru]:
На время протестных акций отбирайте пожалуйста у Олега Козырева твиттер. Сто нашистов так не высмеивают движуху, как один он.
During protests please take twitter away from Oleg Kozyrev. One hundred members of NASHI don't mock the movement the way he does all on his own.
Meanwhile, the official police head-count came in at 9,500 [ru], a number lower than the lowest witness estimates, and certainly at odds with the opposition leaders’ consensus of 50,000. Who was closer to the truth? Never fear, Russian netizens were on the case! Unlike previous marches where estimates were made hand counting people [ru] on photographs (a very rough method of approximation), this time there were at least three groups that used independent approaches to produce a realistic count.
Tally counters similar to ones used by Ternovsky's team. 12 February 2010. by Wesha. Wikimedia Commons CC 3.0
Photographer and blogger Dmitry Ternovsky, for instance, got together a team of eight volunteers [ru] to stand by the metal detector frames at the start of the march, the idea being that participants would have to pass through a police operated metal detector to attend. Each volunteer would use a hand operated clicker, or tally counter, to make an exact count of the people passing one metal detector. Since it was impossible for eight people to count all forty-six metal detectors, Ternovsky's team spread out to capture random detectors both in the center and sides of the two rows of frames. They then used the counts to roughly estimate how many people walked through an average detector, and arrived at a total of 24,474.
This result is, of course, likely fraught with inaccuracy at a rate much higher than Ternovsky's self-admitted 5% margin of error. However, elementary statistics does necessitate that such sampling must work on a basic level. And, even with a 20% margin of error, Ternovsky's data would mean that there were between 20,000 and 30,000 people marching — numbers different from those estimated by both the opposition and the police.
Ternovsky's findings were corroborated [ru] by another team of volunteers. They used a similar interpolation method to estimate average detector counts and ended up with 21,805. In addition, unlike Ternovsky, who apparently has been loosely tied to pro-Kremlin groups in the past, Dmitry Ionov, the leader of the second team, has opposition “credentials,” [ru] being an active participant in Citizen Observer and other election observer programs.
Finally, if these two counts aren't convincing enough — there is a third. Analtoly Katz, a computer scientist, used a completely different method to make his estimate — based on footage he shot from an apartment window [ru] overlooking the march route and then ran through a proprietary piece of software. Katz describes [ru] his methodology:
Мы зафиксировали фотокамеру в одном месте, и делали примерно один снимок в секунду, пока вся толпа проходила мимо нас.  Если мы знаем скорость и плотность толпы в каждый момент, суммируя эти данные по всему времени шествия, мы получим общее количество пришедших.
We fixed a camera in one place, and made around one photograph per second, while the crowd walked past us. If we know the speed and density of the crowd at each moment, summing these data over the time of the march we will get the total number of participants.
Katz's program counted 24,500 people, very much in line with the other two estimates. He has also produced his data for independent verification.
In the end, however, those who are sure that there were fifty or one hundred thousand participants won't be convinced by counts, no matter how independent. Why try to explain the loss of popular support by the opposition, when it's much simpler to call anyone who says so a Kremlin stooge? A few days after the march Roman Dobrokhotov, who made the first estimate of 50,000 people, brushed off [ru] Katz's analysis when cited by Ternovsky:
dternovskiy да это жулик очевидный, он из твоего доклада цифру и взял.
dternovskiy well he's an obvious crook, I bet he just took the number from your report.
Truly, faith brooks no argument.

author: Andrey Tselikov


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An African Platform for Open Access Academic Articles    · Global Voices
Laila Le Guen

Video on how www.hadithi.org works to improve access to research resources in Africa
On January 24, the official launch of Hadithi, a platform for hosting open access academic content will take place in Nairobi, Kenya. Various scholars and digital players will get together to discuss digital open access in higher education in Kenya. Hadithi will search, view and download articles from research institutions around the world. To register for this event, find Hadithi on Facebook and Eventbrite.

author: Laila Le Guen


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Earthquake Debris Disposal Divides Japan  · Global Voices
Keiko Tanaka

Photo taken on August 24, 2011 by flickr user infradept (BY -NC-ND-2.0) showing a pile of debris accumulated during reconstruction efforts following the 311 Tohoku Tsunami in Rikuzentakata, Japan
One year and ten months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake hit on March 11, 2011. The affected areas are now making steps towards recovery thanks to the support from all over Japan and around the globe. However one remaining issue, disaster debris incineration, is dividing the country.
There are 910,000 tons of disaster debris in Miyagi prefecture, and another 430,000 tons in Iwate prefecture which need to be incinerated [ja]. 370,000 tons of debris from Miyagi prefecture and 170,000 tons from Iwate prefecture are being arranged to be incinerated in 10 other prefectures, because there is just too much debris for them to dispose of themselves.
In May 2012, Kitakyushu city accepted the debris, and protesters desperately tried to stop incineration by crawling under the truck [ja] loaded with debris. A website [ja] dedicated to compiling information about local governments accepting disaster debris mapped the status of rubble from tsunami stricken areas.
Map of local authorities accepting rubble (as of April 16, 2012)Image used with permission.
Flickr user watashiwani posted this illustration with much concern about debris incineration:
Image by flickr user watashiwani, used with permission. ( CC-BY-2.0 )
But people in the affected areas, who have to see piles and piles of disaster debris every day, feel very differently about the debris distribution incineration program. The town of Onagawa in Miyagi prefecture showed their gratitude to Tokyo prefecture for accepting debris by distributing 60,000 saury fish for free at the Hibiya Park on October 20, 2012. The following comments are from Twitter mentioning the free saury distribution with a hashtag #秋刀魚収穫祭 ( saury harvest festival).
@monchicamera ハッシュタグで#秋刀魚収獲祭を検索すると、みなさんの楽しんでいる様子が写真付きでツイートされていて、こっちまで嬉しくなっちゃう! #秋刀魚収獲祭
@monchicamera Once I looked up this hashtag #秋刀魚収獲祭, I saw photos and comments of people enjoying the festival and it made me happy.
@leo_orebushi 女川が100年かかっても町内では処理できない被災家具のうちの10万tを引き取ってくれた東京都へのお礼に、さんま10万匹を届けるという企画が2012/10/20（土）に日比谷公園で催されます。 http://twipla.jp/events/30171 　いい企画だね。
@leo_orebushi This is such a good idea. –> Event detail : Onagawa town is to distribute 100,000 saury on October 20 to say thank you to Tokyo for accepting disaster debris which would otherwise have taken a hundred years to dispose off in their town. http://twipla.jp/events/30171
@hosssssyna
今日日比谷公園である #女川 #秋刀魚収穫祭 。魚ってどうなの？って思ったのでHP見てみたらこんなページが。私は行けないけど、 きちんと取組んでる人達を応援したい。【放射能測定は毎回の水揚げごとに行っています。】 http://onagawa-town.com/sanma/?page_id=40
@hosssssyna I wondered about the radiation level of fish for the #onagawa festival #秋刀魚収穫祭 and looked up their website and found this page. I can't make it to the festival but I want to support people who are doing a great job –>[by measuring the radiation level  with every haul] http://onagawa-town.com/sanma/?page_id=40 …
The town of Taki, in Mie prefecture had to withdraw its offer [ja] to accept debris, because 12 out of 13 members of their town council were against it. The prefecture is still looking into the incineration program, but Hahanowa [ja], a group of mothers handed a proposal to the Mayor of Ise City in Mie Prefecture on December 4 2012, asking for a clear explanation about debris incineration with a request to stop accepting all debris in the future.
In the blog of Hahanowa [ja], a mother of a one-year-old child writes about her anxiety about the wide debris distribution incineration program:
様々な勉強会に参加して、それから三重県主催の説明会にも参加して、ますます不安が募る我々。「低線量被曝は安全」、「がれきには放射性物質は付着していないから安全」等々、市民が主催する勉強会の内容とはまったく反対の説明をする環境省と三重県。
私達、どう対処すればいいの？
I have participated in various study groups [on debris incineration], and I also went to one hosted by Mie prefecture. But our anxiety continues to grow. The Ministry of the Environment and Mie prefecture tell us “low dose exposure [to radiation] is safe”, ” it's safe because no radioactive substance is attached to debris” and so on, all of which is completely opposite to what we have learned in study groups. What are we supposed to do about this?
Kyushu Himawari Project, a group that studies problems related to wide area incineration made a call to action [ja] to send letters, faxes and emails asking Governor Murai of Miyagi Prefecture to stop transporting debris to other prefectures.
Given that the petitions to stop debris from entering Kitakyushu city are flooding in to Miyagi's assembly, the Twitter account of newspaper Asahi Shimbun's Sendai branch commented that these persistent actions are giving mixed feelings to him [ja].
Another Twitter user yuirin25 commented:
@yuirin25 あたしはこの朝日の意見にまったく同感だわ。被災地がどんだけ困ってるか見てるからこそ、陳情を見てこれでいいのかとギモンを抱いたりもするんじゃーないか。また送ってくる側の行動が執拗に見えたりもするんだろう / “Twitter / asa…” http://htn.to/jwsTFx
@yuirin25 I totally agree with the comment by Asahi [Sendai branch Twitter user account]. Because reporters there must have been witnessing the struggle of the affected areas, no wonder they question the petition, I assume. And when letters never cease to arrive, it looks relentless.
According to a document published by the Japanese government's Reconstruction Agency [ja] on November 27 2012, of a total of 18,020,000 tons of disaster debris, only 27 percent has been disposed. The Reconstruction Agency's goal is to finish disposal of disaster debris by the end of March 2014.

author: Keiko Tanaka


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Profile of Brazilian Blogger Nessa Guedes, the Coca-Cola Girl · Global Voices
Diego Casaes

[All links lead to Portuguese language pages, except when otherwise noted.]
The Global Voices Online community works together to share the voices of thousands of bloggers and citizen journalists who live around the world. Sometimes, however, these same bloggers are the target of our curiosity.
In the interview below, we will discover a little bit more about Nessa Guedes, a 23 year old blogger from the south of Brazil relocated in São Paulo. A feminist, programmer, and vegetarian, the Coca-Cola Girl is above all somebody who does not stand down in the face of injustices in the world.
Global Voices: Who is Nessa Guedes?
Nessa Guedes: Programmer? Blogger? Project Manager? Volunteer? Feminist? Vegetarian? Cyclist? Bonne vivant? Digital activist? Open software enthusiast? Even today I can’t say who I am, because I never know if I’m speaking about my profession, activism, or activities. I left Porto Alegre to meet new people, and because I found myself identifying with a lot of different causes. I wanted to better understand what to do in order to participate in those causes and to experience other perspectives.
Blogger and activist, Nessa Guedes
Blog: http://garotacocacola.com.br/
Twitter: @nessoila
Facebook: Nessa Guedes
Favorite Link: ANDA (News Agency for Animal Rights)
GV: Why write a blog?
NG: The blog came about in a totally different context. I was 17 and had a lot of free time – I wanted to express my impressions of the word and share them with whoever was interested. With time, I stopped talking about my personal indignations exclusively and opened the blog topics to a more general realm, thinking about mobility, choices, politics, professions, careers, behavior and relationships.
This all was part of a long and continuous growth of perception and of the world. You can say that the blog is a faithful reflection of an adolescent girl becoming a woman.
GV: Why the “Coca-Cola Girl?”
NG: Coca-Cola Girl comes from a feeling of being a part of a world I don’t totally agree with, and from which I can’t effectively leave, which at times kills me. I have often thought about becoming a hermit, but even if I chose to live in a cave, private property would still follow me, since there is no land on the Earth that doesn’t have a landlord. So I would either have to buy a cave or invade it, which would leave me at the mercy of things that I don’t necessarily support. Another thing that doesn’t let me “abandon” the world in the way I would like is the fact that I know that there are people who need help, precisely because they don’t have the consciousness of living in an unjust context which forces the underprivileged to count on the bare minimum of food, sanitation, and freedom of choice.
Ser uma “garota coca-cola” é estar eternamente presa a propriedade privada, à mídia, à legislação, sem poder escolher estar ou não dentro delas. É não beber coca-cola mas ainda ser alvo de um mundo viciado em refrigerante. Apesar de que eu bebo coca-cola às vezes.
Being a ‘coca-cola girl’ is being eternally subject to private property, to the media, to legislation, without being able to choose whether or not you want to be a part of them. It’s not drinking coca-cola but still being the target of a world hooked on soda. That said though, I do drink coca-cola from time to time.
GV: What is your favorite post on the blog? And why?
NG: I think the post in which I admit to watching pornography – it’s a big taboo in Brazil to say that women consume this type of content. Another is the post in which I vent about the meritocracy and talk about the horrible experience when I saw a guy in agony in front of me and wasn’t able to do anything. The saddest thing about this post was the banality of the death of homeless people just because they live in the streets. It was as if life didn’t mean anything if the person didn’t have any possessions. Life, by itself, didn’t have any value. You have to be something to get protection, respect, and help: this is wrong. Very wrong.
GV: And how do people react to your posts?
NG: My friends are used to being the main readers of the blog. A lot of people e-mail me instead of commenting on the blog: as many to congratulate me as to disagree with me. I think it’s great, since I can exercise my ability to argue my ideas while also being able to look at my posts from a different point of view. Every once and a while a discussion will come up that is more intense and goes on to other topics outside the context of the original post, like lists of e-mail discussions and re-posts from other blogs.
Eu gosto dessa movimentação. Às vezes, inclusive, mudo de idéia sob certos aspectos – e acho isso extremamente importante para quem busca estar sempre à frente no entendimento das coisas que compreende como erradas no mundo.
I like this exchange. Sometimes I even change my opinion about certain aspects – and I think this is extremely important for anybody looking to be at the forefront of understanding things I think are wrong with the world.
GV: Has your activism caused you any problems?
NG: In 2011 I had problems when a video from the Folha de São Paulo, in which they interviewed me about the SlutWalk in São Paulo [en], I lost my professional standing because of the repercussion. But it was a manageable crisis that, along with other factors, culminated in my firing. I don’t regret having maintained my opinion, and I will never be ashamed of having it being exposed in my workplace; I never committed any crime. Criminals can be people who hide from unjust situations and don’t do anything to make it better, but people who speak up when they thing something is wrong and take the step to get out of their chair and really change the situation are never criminals. I’ve learned that lesson for life: to never get upset with myself if I loose an opportunity to work because of my opinions and ideas or because of things that I have done in my life. I thank the heavens for not having had to invest my time in jobs and people who don’t respect me like I would respect them.
Nessa Guedes holds a Blogueiras Feministas (Feminist Bloggers) sign dring the SlutWalk in São Paulo
Favorite quote:
“Be the change you want to see in the world.” Dalai Lama
Favorite person to follow on Twitter:
At @srtabia, because I admire the way with which she touches all the communities involved, and how she always expresses her opinion without compromising, or without offending people. She’s always very gentle and subtle with a lot of respect.
GV: Are blogs important in an era in which Facebook and other social networks dominate?
NG: Well, blogs are more than important in the era of social networks: They are our guarantee of political autonomy on the internet. When we use social networks or non-independent blogging clients, we all submit to the their use and privacy policies. With independent blogs, we are truly free.
GV: And what else does Nessa Guedes do?
Nessa Guedes in her developer hat at the iMasters hackathon, Intercon 2012. São Paulo, Brazil.
NG: Nessa works with digital production for a publicity agency. I’ve always liked technology and every once and while I get a freelance web developer job. I’m used to doing volunteer work in the area of Information Technology, and I participate as much as possible in any related events. One of my passions is to teach, and whenever I can I tech a developer course for people outside the industry. It’s not always for free, but always with a lot of enthusiasm. I’m a jedi member of the Garoa Hacker Club, and an outreach volunteer for the Mozilla Foundation. I’m also a member of the Blogueiras Feministas (Feminist Bloggers), a discussion board and portal about feminism in Brazil. I also write about web development on my other blog.
My background is in networking and computers, but I have done a bit of everything in my life, from a volunteer phone operator at an NGO which took care of dogs, to studying Physics as an undergrad for three frustrating years at UFRGS (Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul). I always loose myself when I’m asked what more I want to do beyond working, or beyond blogging; there are so many things…
GV: To finish up, an idea in one tweet to change the world:
NG: Don’t put off something you can do in the next 5 minutes.

author: Diego Casaes


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Sri Lanka: Reactions To The Impeachment Of The Chief Justice · Global Voices
Rezwan

The impeachment of the 43rd Chief Justice of Sri Lanka, Dr Shirani Bandaranayake has been the talk of the country. Bandaranayake is an academic and her lack of judicial background had led to several protests by lawyers and judges at the time of her appointment in 2011. The allegations brought against her are of abuse of power and failure to disclose her income and her foreign exchange. She says that she is not guilty of the charges the government brought against her. However, it is widely speculated that the impeachment proceedings were triggered by an adverse judgment given by her striking down the Divenguma Bill. Law and Other Things blog explains:
The bill would have centralized development funds which were previously devolved to local authorities, and would have granted greater discretionary powers to the Minister of Economic Affairs. Devolution has been a long standing demand of Tamil parties and was brought as part of the peace process. However, ethno-nationalist Sinhala politicians want to nullify even the limited devolution that has been introduced. Basil Rajapakse, the Minister for Economic Affairs, is the brother of the President Mahinda Rajapakse. The Speaker of Parliament, who initiated the impeachment proceedings and heads the Parliamentary Select Committee, is Chamal Rajapakse, another brother of the President.
Photograph of 43rd and first female Chief Justice of Sri Lanka, Hon. Dr. Shirani A Bandaranayake. Copyright Shaveen Bandaranayake CC BY 3.0.
An impeachment motion against Chief Justice Bandaranayake signed by 117 ruling party MPs was handed to the Speaker of the parliament on 1 November 2012. An eleven member parliamentary select committee (PSC) was appointed to investigate the charges against her who conducted three hearings and the opposition MPs withdrew from PSC on 7 December, 2012. In a report to the president the PSC it was revealed that three of five charges against Bandaranayake had been proven and this was enough to remove her from office. Opposition MPs have rejected the PSC report.
Law and Other Things reports:
On December 15, The Bar Association of Sri Lanka passed a resolution in support of Chief Justice Bandaranayake and asserted that it would not cooperate if a new person was appointed in her stead as Chief Justice by President Rajapakse. (Details here in a report in the Hindu). On December 19, the Chief Justice moved the Court of Appeal asking for the impeachment proceedings against her to be quashed. Details of her arguments are available in this story in the Washington Post.
Street protests also continued in the country. Indi.ca reported that protests for the Chief Justice was broken up by government supporters and the police stood by.
On 3 january 2013 The Supreme Court ruled that the PSC had no power to investigate allegations against the chief justice and the impeachment was therefore unconstitutional by misinterpreting the constitution. But on the following week the impeachment motion against Bandaranayake was debated by Parliament and the motion was passed with a majority vote. This move raised many legal debates.
On 13 January 2013 Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake was replaced by Mr. Mohan Peiris.
In an interview with Groundviews, Asanga Welikala, a Senior Researcher at the Centre for Policy Alternatives termed the impeachment as devastating. UNP parliamentarian Eran Wickramaratne said that parliament was the instrument used by the president to weaken the judiciary.
Patta Pal Boru reacts about the new appointment:
how can a person who has been advising the President of any country in the past three years or thereabouts in turn be appointed a Chief Justice, as by definition, his loyalties and objectivity is called into question, no matter how much standing he has in society.
Tisaranee Gunasekara writes:
The quintessentially Rajapaksa-impeachment produced a quintessentially Rajapaksa Chief In-justice. Mohan Peiris, the trusted acolyte of Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the man who lied to the world on behalf of his political masters, is the ideal choice to head the Rajapaksa judiciary, given the critical absence of a Rajapaksa Sibling, Son or Nephew capable of holding that fort.
There are also opinions favoring the removal of the Chief Justice. Malinda Seneviratne writes after the impeachment:
Demonstrators gather outside the Supreme Court in Colombo as they participate in a rally against Chief Justice Bandaranayake. Image by Tharaka Basnayaka. Copyright Demotix (4/12/2012)
The CJ, with or without the consent or complicity of her backers or rather the anti-regime circus, did herself no favors. [..] The antics of the Government and its backers certainly made it possible to tag ‘witch-hunt’ to the process. [..]
The behavior of the Chief Justice, before and after the process began, tells me in no uncertain terms that she falls well short of expectations. She has, by omission and commission, helped compromise the dignity of the position.
After her impeachment Bandaranayake claimed that she fears for her life and those of her husband and son.

author: Rezwan


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Bahrain Police Attack on Woman Stirs Anger · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

This post is part of our special coverage of Bahrain Protests 2011/2013.
As Bahrain was pretending to be secure enough to hold a regional sports event, its security men were attacking a woman protester in the middle of Manama, the capital. Last July, Zahra Al-Shaikh was released from prison after being detained and tortured. She stated, in an interview with Bahraini journalist in exile Lamees Dhaif, that the police wanted to force her to work for them. This time, Zahra was arrested in a protest during the football tournament for Gulf countries, which was won by the UAE team. News, pictures, and videos of her arrest were circulated online on the day of the final game, on January 18.
Mohammed, a Bahraini Twitter user, tweeted what he witnessed:
@ba7rainiDXB: A woman is being beaten right in the middle of the capital #Manama by #Bahrain gov merc[enarie]s. Youth and men confronting them.
Online, many refer to the Bahrain police forces as mercenaries – in reference to the foreign security forces and riot police from other countries brought in to crush the unrest in the country.
Later on, the video of her arrest was posted showing a big number of riot police men surrounding her and dragging her as she screams and cries bleeding from her mouth (video posted by Duraz14):
Another video from a different angle tried to show how police men stripped her off her hijab. Men around were trying to stop the riot police. At the end of the video, a man confronts the police about the Hijab and the police man replies that it was her fault (posted by Mr14change)
Many pictures of Zahra were posted on Twitter but within hours, users deleted her pictures – which showed her without the hijab, out of respect. Instead, pictures with her hair blackened out were posted:
“@SafaMohammed: woman being arrested in #Manama #bahrain her head cover was taken off and her mouth bleeding!!”
On Twitter, Zahra's sister tweeted her news:
تم توقيف #زهرة_الشيخ وستعرض غدا على النيابة بعد إتهامها باﻹعتداء على رجال أمن وقذف رموزهم والخروج في مسيرة غير مرخصة
@ZAlshaikh_BH: Zahra AlShaikh was arrested and will see the public prosecution tomorrow facing charges of attacking police men and insulting their symbols and protesting illegally.
AlShaikh was not the only woman arrested. The names of other women arrested were later posted online [ar]:
النساء المعتقلات: #حليمة_الصباغ #زهرة_الشيخ، #حرائر_السيتي: زينب دهيم. خديجة عبد الناصر. فاطمة الجشي.عقيلة المقابي. فاطمة عبدالجليل
@iProtestor: Women arrested are Halima AlSabagh, Zahra AlShaikh, Zainab Dhaim, Khadija Abdulnasser, Fatma Aljishi, Aqila AlMiqabi, and Fatma Abduljalil.
Poet Aayat Alqormozi, who was previously arrested for reciting an anti-government poem at a protest, tweeted:
اعتقال #زهرة_الشيخ بتلك الوحشية أوجع قلوبنا .. مؤلم أن تكون في بلد يتبجح بحقوق المرأة وفي الوقت ذاته يطأ كرامتها برجله #Bahrain
@AayatAlqormozi: The arrest of Zahra Al Shaikh in such a brutal manner breaks the heart. It us painful to live in a country which shows off about women's rights when at the same time it crushes the dignity of women
In reaction, protesters in Nuwaidrat village threw molotov cocktails and blocked the road against riot police to protest the arrest and attack on AlShaikh (video posted by Nuwaidrat Feb):
This post is part of our special coverage of Bahrain Protests 2011/2013.

author: Mona Kareem


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Chile: Expectation for the Dakar’s Finish in Santiago · Global Voices
Elizabeth Rivera

Today, Saturday January 19th, 2013 is the end of the “most dangerous race in the world”: the Dakar, in Santiago. In this edition, participants crossed Peru, Argentina and Chile during the various stages of the competition. This is the fourth year in a row that the Dakar takes place in South America.
Chileans cheering their fellow countrymen at the last stage of the Dakar. Photo shared onDakar's official Facebook page.
Chilean netizens are excited about the finish line. Especially, they expect that their fellow countryman, Francisco “Chaleco” Lopez [es], a motorcyclist, may improve the third place he achieved in 2009 on this edition that ends at home. Also, in the quads competition, there are two Latin Americans with possibilities to be on the podium, the Chilean Ignacio Casale and the Argentinean Marcos Patronelli (@mpatronelli).
Here, we gathered some comments from Twitter – several of them from the competitors themselves – that have made Dakar and #Dakar2013 national trending topics in Chile and Peru:
Fransisco Lopez C, Twitter user Chaleco Lopez [es], tweeted before the last stage started:
@ChalecoDakar: Me queda 1 día, estoy 3° porq tuve que cambiar motor. Ha sido un gran Dakar, he ganado 4 etapas y me la jugaré por llegar a la meta mañana!
@ChalecoDakar: Only 1 day left, I'm 3rd because I had to change the engine. It's been a great Dakar, I have won 4 stages and I'll do my best to get to the finish line tomorrow!
Sports journalist Francisco Aure [es], gladly commented:
@FranciscoAure: #Dakar2013 MOTOS: Se termina el rally, ‘Chaleco’ López le descontó uno de los ocho minutos a Despres en el WP1. El chileno va por el milagro
@FranciscoAure: #Dakar2013 MOTOS: The rally ends and “Chaleco” Lopez has reduced the eight minutes Despres had of advantage at the WP1. The Chilean is going for the miracle
Argentienean UTV driver, Sebastian Scholz [es], thanked netizens who have been in touch with him to cheer him up:
@PITUSCHOLZ: Gracias a todos los q escriben x privado, a los q twittean, los que comentan. PROMETO regalos y responderles a c/u cuando vuelva #Dakar2013
@PITUSCHOLZ: Thank you to all of you who write privately, to those who tweet, to those who comment. I PROMISE gifts and answers to each of you when I get back #Dakar2013
Argentinean Javier Pizzolito [es] wrote:
@JavierPizzolito: Última etapa de este Dakar!! Los espera 121 km de enlace más 346 km de especial hasta la meta Santiago de… http://fb.me/25QO5WOwm
@JavierPizzolito: Las stage of this Dakar!! 121 kms of connection plus 346 kms of special until the finish line in Santiago http://fb.me/25QO5WOwm
On the other hand, BanderaCuadros [es] commented on the possibility “Chaleco” had to win:
@BaCuadros: Chaleco Lopez le descuenta casi 2 minutos a Despres. Si el chileno quiere ganar, depende errores o problemas para Cyril. #Dakar2013
@BaCuadros: Chaleco Lopez gets 2 minutes closer to Despres. If the Chilean wants to win, he depends on mistakes or problems for Cyril. #Dakar2013
Guillermo Orrego [es], jokingly, proposed a way to warranty Chaleco's triumph:
@Guille_Iqq: quien se anima a tirarle una vaca a DESPRES #dakar2013 xD
@Guille_Iqq: who volunteers to throw a cow to DESPRES #dakar2013? xD
The best of the day in a picture. Image shared on Dakar's official Facebook page.
And finally, Waldo Muñoz [es] echoes the hopes of Chileans:
@ranks12: Vamos @ChalecoDakar al Podio en este #dakar2013 vamos Chile !
@ranks12: Go @ChalecoDakar to the podium in this #dakar2013. Go Chile!

author: Elizabeth Rivera


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Chilean President Piñera Has Not Had the Presidency He Expected · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón

On an article originally published on the Chileno website, political analyst Patricio Zamorano reflects on the turbulent term of Chilean President Sebastián Piñera and summarizes crucial moments of his admnistration, such as the student reform movement, by saying:
The student reform movement and the activism of hundreds of thousands of young people has lead to a new wave of political leaders who, despite their youth, have started political careers to be elected to the Chilean Congress, amongst them Camila Vallejo, Giorgio Jackson and Camilo Ballesteros.
About the Mapuche activists, Zamorano states that “Piñera has chosen a military rather than a socio-economic approach to the complex situation of the Mapuche people, who are engaged in a struggle to recover their lands”. He goes on and says the country “thought to be a miracle of macroeconomics, is an illusion of development which owes a huge debt” and Piñera's low levels of approval reached “a historic low of 26%” in April 2012. And Zamorano ends up his extensive piece claiming:
In that sense, Piñera has not been inept in his government. Strictly speaking, he has not been able to govern. Or rather, to be fair, he has not had the Presidency he dreamed of…

author: Gabriela García Calderón


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Ecuador: The Case of the 10 from Luluncoto · Global Voices
Daniela Gallardo

Fadua Tapia, Cristina Campaña, Abigaíl Heras, Royce Gómez, Pablo Castro, Santiago Gallegos, Víctor Vinueza, Luis Merchán, Héctor Estupiñán y César Zambrano are the 10 from Luluncoto [es] who were detained on 3 March 2012 in the Sol Rojo [Red Sun] [es] operative. Accused of wanting to threaten the security of the State and of belonging to the Popular Combatants Group [es] (GCP), they lost their freedom when they went to discuss the policies of the government of Ecuador in a house in southern Quito. Police found notebooks, diaries, posters of Che Guevara, [and] newspapers in their possession, considered subversive material.
On 25 July, the Interior Minister [es] reported that the evidence presented by the Prosecutor's Office was sufficient to presume that the accused persons committed the offence.
Fadua Tapia received substitution measures because of her pregnancy; in an interview published by El Mercurio [es] she said that the police did not respect her pregnancy and ordered her to remain face down on the floor. The YouTube channel EcuadorFreeNetwork News Agency [EcuadorLibreRed Agencia de Noticias] [es] published a video with testimonies from relatives of the detainees, where they mention that on April 26, in the early hours of the morning, there were simultaneous forced entries at the houses of the detainees’ families in several cities in the country:
On the Popular Democratic Movement (MPD) webpage [es] it is reported that the date 17 July for the hearing for the criminal charge and the preparation of the trial for the detainees was set late. On 6 December those involved in the Luluncoto case began a hunger strike [es], as a form of protest to demand their release. On December 20, because of the delay in their transfer, seven of the Luluncoto group obtained habeas corpus and regained their liberty [es]. Expreso.ec [es] reported that on January 4, 2013, the First Chamber of the Criminal Magistrate of the National Court of Justice denied the appeal for the enforcement of freedom rights for Abigaíl Heras and Cristina Campaña, that a lower court had previously accepted.
On Facebook, there are support pages for the detainees, like We are not all here the 10 from Luluncoto are missing [es]. On Twitter, under the tag #los10deLuluncoto [es] you can read the reactions of users about the case:
The user Jorch Copy Paste ?! (@amrp24) [es] emphasized the sacrifice of the detainees:
@amrp24: Cuantas HORAS resistes SIN comer Dos? Cinco? Diez?? #AbigailyCristina llevan 552 horas SIN COMER! #10deluluncoto luchan x su libertad!
@amrp24: [es] How many HOURS will you last WITHOUT food Two? Five? Ten?? #AbigailyCristina [es] it's been 552 hours WITHOUT FOOD!#10deluluncoto [es] fight 4 your freedom!
Another point of view, Daniel Solórzano S. (@dani_solorzano) [es] is outraged:
@dani_solorzano: Que aún haya personas que estén en la cárcel por lo que leen es señal inequívoca de que no hemos cambiado. #10deluluncoto
@dani_solorzano: [es] That there are still people who are in jail for what they read is a sure sign that we have not changed. #10deluluncoto  [es]
Meanwhile, Karla Armas (@maka_al) [es] refers to the habeas corpus filed on behalf of two of the detainees:
@maka_al: No es justo que dos mujeres x pensar distinto se les prive de su libertad, fue negado el habeas corpus para abigail y cristina #10deluluncoto
@maka_al: [es] It is not fair that two women are deprived of their freedom for thinking differently, habeas corpus was denied to Abigail and Cristina #10deluluncoto  [es]
The La Hora newspaper (@lahoraecuador) [es] published on their Twitter account a photo of Abigail and Cristina surrounded by police:
@lahoraecuador: Nuestros cuerpos se han debilitado,pero las ganas de luchar por nuestro pueblo se han fortalecido. #10delulucoto http://twitpic.com/bsfcg6
@lahoraecuador[es]: Our bodies have weakened, but the enthusiasm to fight for our people has strengthened. #10delulucoto [es] http://twitpic.com/bsfcg6 [es]
In Vaderetro References, the Youth Rebel Union [La Unión de la Juventud Rebelde] of Brazil; the Argentina Communist Revolutionary Youth [la Juventud Comunista Revolucionaria Argentina]; the Caribbean Youth [Juventud Caribe] and Flavio Suero movements, of the Dominican Republic; the Revolutionary Youth Union of France [la Unión de Juventudes Revolucionarias de Francia] and other collectives from Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Spain, Lebanon and Turkey have developed social network campaigns to publicise what the 10 young people of Luluncoto are experiencing.
The www.libertadpresospoliticos.com [es] portal published a letter [es] asking for support for the defense of human rights in the case of the 10 from Luluncoto.
The Regional Foundation for Human Rights Assessment INREDH Ecuador [es], combined with the Ecumenical Human Rights Commission CEDHU [es], and the “Environmental Clinic [es] “Reparation Project produced a report [es] using psychological analysis and human rights tools, which allowed the psychosocial state of the victims and their families to be made clear.

author: Daniela Gallardo


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Russian Facebook of Horrors: It’s a Conspiracy! · Global Voices
Andrey Tselikov

Last weekend the RuNet was abuzz with the sordid story of aspiring chef and unlucky restaurateur, Alexey Kabanov, who has allegedly strangled his wife, Irina Cherska, and dismembered her corpse in an attempt to escape the law. Scarcely a week later, Irina's murder has been eclipsed by two other deaths — an assassination [ru] of Russia's most influential crime lord and the suicide [ru] of a Russian political refugee in the Netherlands. Nevertheless, in the days immediately following Kabanov's arrest, Russian netizens experienced a rare period of introspection, liberally sprinkled with conspiracy theories.
Kabanov is shown participating in an “investigative experiment” with members of the police, explaining how he committed the murder. YouTube screenshot. January 20, 2013
RuNet Echo has previously alluded [ru] to the fact that Kabanov and Cherska were active blogosphere participants integrated into a social network of opposition members. Some of these friends and acquaintances spoke out online after the news of Irina's death, shedding light on the Kabanov family. Mitya Gutrin, a former colleague of both Alexey and Irina, wrote a blog post [ru] which described their financial difficulties and Kabanov's habit of borrowing large sums of money from Irina's friends to fund his failed attempts at opening up cafes. The money was rarely returned, and Kabanov generally appears to have been quite the grifter. Gutrin wrote:
Я всегда считал, что между жуликом и убийцей основательная пропасть. Теперь я знаю, что она не так велика, как мне казалось, а может ее и нет вовсе […]
I always thought that a hefty chasm lies between a swindler and a murderer. Now I know that it isn't as large as I thought, and maybe it doesn't exist at all […]
Such characterizations of Kabanov's moral character will likely be brought up by the prosecution, if and when this case goes to trial. Ekaterina Gajski, a friend of Irina's, agreed with Gutrin, alleging, in addition [ru], that Kabanov had a history of physically abusing Irina:
Сначала он просрал ее квартиру, потом их бизнес (дважды точно), потом поссорил ее со всеми из-за долгов – он хамил кредиторам, ее друзьям, которые им ссудили денег на бизнес. Еще он явно ее бил, я в этом уверена, хотя сама Ира всегда отрицала и защищала его…
First he pissed away her apartment, then their business (twice at least), then made her quarrel with everyone over the loans – he was rude to the creditors, her friends who loaned them money for the business. Also, he clearly beat hear, I am sure of this, even though Ira always denied it and defended him…
Such revelations about seemingly model representatives of Russia's “creative class” (a term first coined by sociologist Richard Florida, and later adopted by Kremlin ideologist Vladislav Surkov to describe young professionals that make up the core of the anti-government protests), have naturally resulted in some soul searching on the part of its members.
Self described eurosocialist blogger Pavel Pryanikov reacted by coining the term “creacl” [ru], a portmanteau of “creative class.” (The word seems to have taken off, with over 6,000 hits on Yandex already.) Priyanikov posted an article, heavy on sociology, in which he outlined the reasons for the coming tragedy of the creacls as exemplified by the Kabanov family:
1)бесперспективность существования приезжих в Москве 2)свёртывание объёма интеллектуальных работ 3)отсутствие социала для креаклов-аутсайдеров.
1)lack of perspectives for new arrivals to Moscow 2)a reduction in the volume of “intellectual” jobs 3)lack of social welfare for underdog-creacls
He was referring to the fact that Kabanov and Cherska, like many other transplants, lacked Moscow registration and were renting an apartment. Higher School of Economics lecturer Kirill Martynov was on the same page in a harsh post [ru] entitled “The End of the Creative Class”:
[…] оказалось, что внутри уютного доброго Фейсбука, населенного любящими мужьями, на самом деле прячутся монстры. […] Что вместо высоких идеалов свободы равенства и братства нас ждут […] безденежье, […] сплетни подруг, алкоголизм и простые маленькие чувства […] И вот ты стоишь на площади с плакатом “Путин должен уйти”, а сам отключил телефон, чтобы кредиторы не могли дозвониться, думаешь про бутылку с виски, думаешь, где бы еще занять денег, а наутро изобьешь жену.
[…] it turned out that inside the cozy, nice Facebook, peopled with doting husbands, there be monsters. […] That instead of lofty ideals of equality and fraternity we are faced with […] empty pockets, […] gossiping friends, alcoholism and ordinary, small feelings […] And so you stand on the square with a poster “Putin must go”, but you've turned off your phone so that creditors can't reach you, you are thinking about the bottle of whiskey, where else to borrow money, and in the morning you'll beat your wife.
While some turned to sociology, for other members of the “doomed” creative class the soul searching resulted in cognitive dissonance, which soon morphed into paranoia. Kabanov's arrest and subsequent confession left these people unconvinced. The sentiments are exemplified in the following comment [ru] left on one of Kabanov's Facebook posts:
А что, если чувака просто подставили? Согласитесь, в это легче поверить, учитывая его оппозиционную деятельность, чем в то, что он убил жену, расчленил её, начал поиски, но просто держал тело в багажнике…
What if the dude just got set up? Wouldn't you agree, bearing in mind his involvement in the opposition, that this is easier to believe than the fact that he killed his wife, dismembered her, started looking for her, but kept her body in the trunk…
The car Kabanov used to dispose of the body. YouTube screenshot. January 20, 2013
Indeed, for some it's easier to believe that Kabanov, a rank-and-file opposition marcher, was targeted by the Kremlin, which killed his wife, dismembered her, and put her in his trunk to set him up, than to believe he could have done that himself. Elina Hoffman, a psychic, thought [ru] it wasn't a government conspiracy, but rather a local one:
По моим ощущениям,его [труп] туда положили милиционеры для повышения раскрываемости.
My feeling is that it [the body] was placed there by the police, to improve their crime stats.
While blogger brill_poroshina demonstrated [ru] that belief doesn't have to be rational:
Ну не верю я в эту историю. Не верю, не знаю, почему конкретно [my italics, A.T.], но в целом история выглядит очень нарочитой и, главное, труп вытащили аккурат накануне марша 13-го.
I just don't believe in this story. I don't believe, and I don't know why exactly, [my italics, A.T.] but in general the story looks very fake, and, the most importantly, the body was found right before the march on the 13th.
Others made the same connection to the coming March Against Scoundrels [ru], insinuating that the government could be trying to discredit the opposition. Echo Moskvy blogger Andrei Cherepanov thought [ru] that the police could have “persuaded” Kabanov's confession. He was also sure that the state run media would use the tragedy to associate Kabanov with the movement. LifeJournal user bartang [ru] noted the similarities between Kabanov's story and accusations of child abuse against the opposition blogger Rustem Adagamov (drugoi):
Не верю, короче, что это он. Слишком вовремя, перед маршем протеста, нашли тело. […] Я предполагал, что протест будут ломать, но такого даже представить не мог. История с другим – разминка.
In short, I don't believe it's him. The body was found before the protest march, it's too timely. […] I did think that they would try to break the protest, but I couldn't have imagined this. The story with drugoi was a warm-up.
In other words, “No one is safe!” [ru]
Although it is true that state media and pro-Kremlin bloggers have been exploiting Kabanov's political views to ridicule the opposition, the idea that Kabanov was framed for his wife's murder for that reason is fantastical. Outspoken government critic and nationalist blogger Egor Prosvirnin has tied such theories [ru] with the inability of the protest movement to question its own leaders:
[…] белоленточных фейсбук-граждан можно ебать в глазницы, а они в ответ будут лишь улыбаться и говорить, что все это клевета с целью опорочить хорошего человека. Если даже разделка трупа жены неспособна подорвать веру фейсбук-общественности в своего товарища, то что уж говорить о менее ярких случаях […]
[…] you can skullf*ck the white-ribbon facebookers, and in return they'll just smile and say that its all slander, done to discredit a nice person. When even the dismemberment of a wife's corpse is incapable of shaking the faith of the facebook community in its comrade, then why even talk about less striking cases […]
As the political situation in Russia becomes more embittered, such accusations, recriminations, and conspiracy theories from both sides are likely to become the norm — especially in the impressionable environment of the RuNet.
Part I: Russian Facebook of Horrors: The Murder Trail
Part II: Russian Facebook of Horrors: From Tragedy to Humor


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Sri Lanka: Code of Ethics For Media · Global Voices
Rezwan

Freedom Of Expression Sri Lanka reports that the Sri Lankan government has started the process of introducing a comprehensive code of ethics, for both print and electronic media, in accordance with its overall aim to streamline the industry.


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Tajikistan Remains ‘Hell for Gays’ · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

Gay issues are a taboo subject in Tajikistan. Although the country decriminalized homosexuality fifteen years ago, there is still very little tolerance toward sexual minorities within its conservative society. In addition to homophobic attitudes, those rare individuals who dare to disclose their ‘unconventional’ sexual orientation become easy targets of physical and psychological abuse, including from police (pdf). As a result, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community remains “one of the most closed and secretive parts of Tajik society”.
A recent discussion in the country's blogosphere offers a rare glimpse into what it means to be gay in Tajikistan and how the country's people view members of the LGBT community.
‘It means PAIN…’
The discussion started after blogger Rishdor wrote [ru] about a violent incident at his university. Students there found out that one of their classmates was a gay. Rishdor writes [ru]:
Как-то все восприняли это как личную обиду. Гомика решили проучить. Человек 8 однокурсников избили его в туалете. Жестоко избили, у него все лицо и костюм были в крови…
For some reason, everyone took it as a personal offence. It was decided that the [gay] should be taught a lesson. About eight of our classmates beat him up in the bathroom. They beat him up badly; there was a lot of blood on his face and clothes…
Among many other comments under the blog, one reader suggests [ru] that the incident reflects a widespread popular attitude towards gays in Tajikistan:
[Д]умаю это не первый случай. Пока он в Таджикистане он будет с «этим отношением» сталкиваться. Каждый день. Когда он пойдет в правоохранительные органы за помощью, его выгонят издеваясь, везде его будут встречать с насмешкой, и толпа непонятных молодых людей будут всегда и везде его преследовать.
Мне искренне жаль его.
I think it is not the first time [that the boy was beaten]. As long as he is in Tajikistan, he will continue facing this attitude. Every day. And if he goes to [police] for help, they will kick him away, ridiculing the guy; he will face scornful attitude wherever he goes, and a crowd of young people will always be after him, everywhere.
I am truly sorry for him.
Another reader, Shakha, asks [ru]:
[П]очему в нашей стране сохраняется такое отношение к геям? Ведь быть геем это уже давно не преступление, за это не предусмотрено никакого официального наказания со стороны государства. И современная наука уже давно доказала, что гомосексуализм – это не какое-то психиатрическое отклонение, которое можно вылечить таблетками (или побиванием камнями, плетями)…
Why does this attitude toward gays persists in our country? Being gay is no longer considered a crime; the state does not officially punish people for this. And the modern science has proven that homosexuality is not some kind of a psychiatric aberration which can be treated with medicines (or through stoning or lashing)…
Responding to Rishdor's post, another blogger, Drugoi (Different) writes [ru]:
Вы знаете что значит быть геем в Таджикистане? Хуже ничего и не придумаешь!..
БЫТЬ ГЕЕМ ЗНАЧИТ, БЫТЬ НЕПОНЯТЫМ. Почти никем. Это значит, быть обреченным на одиночество и равнодушие даже родных и семьи, друзей, на их презрение и сожаление что ты такой. Попытки убедить тебя, а, скорее себя самих, что это лишь болезнь, как грипп и ее можно и нужно поскорей вылечить.
Это БОЛЬ, СТРАДАНИЯ, ОБИДА, ОДИНОЧЕСТВО, УНИЖЕНИЯ.
Do you know what it means to be gay in Tajikistan? Nothing worse that this can be imagined!..
BEING GAY MEANS BEING UNAPPRECIATED! By everyone. It means being doomed to loneliness and indifference towards you, even from your own family and friends; [it means] their scorn and pity about you being the way you are. [It means] their attempts to convince you, or convince themselves, that this is just a disease and that it should be treated as soon as possible.
It means PAIN, SUFFERING, INSULTS, LONELINESS, HUMILIATION.
In another response post titled “Leave Gays Alone”, blogger Fragaria urges [ru] readers:
Хватит лезть в чужую жизнь… Научитесь относиться к человеку как к человеку, а не как к девушке, парню или гею… Принимайте людей такими, какими они уже сформировались. Будьте толерантными. Какая вам разница, с представителем какого пола этот человек предпочитает секс?
Stop interfering in other people's lives… Learn to treat human beings as human beings, rather than as girls, boys, or gays… Accept people the way they have become. Be tolerant. Why does it matter to you whether a person prefers to have sex with men or women?
‘Hell for gays’
However, reader comments to this latest blog indicate that members of the LGBT community are not anyway near to gaining widespread acceptance in Tajikistan.
An anonymous reader comments [ru]:
Живём в среднековьи или в современном мире, всё равно запретное есть запретное. Не стоит продавать свою веру ради признания этих больных в обществе…
Whether we live in the Middle Ages or in the present time, what is forbidden is forbidden. One should not [abandon] her faith by recognizing these ill people as part of society…
Another blogger, Teocrat, argues [ru] that accepting the rights of gays is similar to accepting the rights of zoophiles and pedophiles. He also suggests that “if gays want to be treated as everyone else, they should behave as everyone else”.
Blogger Bachai Sako goes [tj] as far as denying gay men a place in Tajik society:
Гомосексуалисто на точик хастанду, на мусулмон. Онхо одамои касал ё хайвонот.
Homosexuals are neither Tajiks nor Muslims. They are ill people, or animals.
Under these comments, Mustafo writes [ru]:
Мне с гомосексуалистами в нашей стране как-то не доводилось встречаться. Но судя по коментариям Таджикистан ад для геев.
I have not had a chance to meet homosexuals in our country. But, judging by these comments, Tajikistan is hell for gays.

author: Alexander Sodiqov


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Turkish President’s Letter To Bangladesh Denounced · Global Voices
পান্থ রহমান রেজা (Pantha)

Last month [bn] Turkish President  Abdullah Gül sent a letter to the president of Bangladesh. The main content of the letter was a request for “clemency” of the accused Islamist leaders who are under trial for crimes against humanity during the Liberation War of Bangladesh. He wrote, if these leaders are punished, it might affect Bangladesh's socio-economic advancement and cause social instability and bloodshed.
A few days before sending the letter a 14 member Turkish NGO team came to Dhaka ‘hiding their identity’ and misusing ‘on arrival visa’ facilities for tourists and eventually visited the International Crimes Tribunal in Bangladesh to see its activities. They are alleged to be pro Muslim brotherhood. Many of the war criminals under trial are top leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, a like minded organization of Muslim Brotherhood.
It is to be mentioned that in 1971 during liberation war estimated 3 million people were killed by Pakistani army and approximately 250,000 women were raped. Local political and religious militia groups like Razakar, Al Badr and Al-Shams aided Pakistani soldiers in the killings especially against Hindus, and many of them were members of Jamaat-e-Islami. The International Crimes Tribunal was formed after 42 years of the independence to try the perpetrators of the crimes against humanity during that period.
Protests in Dhaka. Image by Youth For Peace And Democracy's Facebook Page.
There has been a lot of reactions online and offline against the visit of the Turkish delegation and the letter of the Turkish President. Protests have been arranged in and outside of Bangladesh. Institute Of Islamic Studies and Muslims from Netherlands denounced the letter. Netizens marked this as an interference in the internal affairs of the country and acts contrary to diplomatic norms.
Protests in front of the Turkish embassy in London, Image courtesy International Crimes Strategy Forum's Facebook Page.
Blogger Nijhum Mazumdar participated in the protest in front of the Turkish embassy in London on Wednesday, 16 January 2013, and says [bn]:
The Turkish President has caused an embarrassment in world politics by interfering in the internal legal process of a sovereign country. We had not expected such an irresponsible move from a democratic government.
Blogger Mizanur Rahman Milon wrote [bn] in Somewherein:
In the last century the first genocide was caused by Turkey. During 1919-1921 around 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Turkey- for which there had been no legal trial. The Armenians are pleading to the international community for justice for the past 100 years. Many Kurdi separatists are being killed by Turkey. It is thus no surprise that they would speak for the genocide perpetrators of other countries.
Trimatrik Kobi (Three-dimensional poet) reminds [bn] that Turkey had denied any hand in the Armenian Genocide:
It is a farce that the country which is responsible for one of the worst genocide of the world and has a history of fascism, sends a team to investigate transparency of an internal judicial trial and reports that to its president who preaches us about justice and peace.
Blogger and writer Arif Jebtik calls [bn] for stronger measures against interference in the internal affairs of the country:
As a citizen by birth I would request the government to cease diplomatic relations with Turkey. If having no diplomatic ties with Israel does not trouble us then why we should not press for not having diplomatic relations with Turkey for their unethical interference with a judicial trial?

author: পান্থ রহমান রেজা (Pantha)


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Uzbekistan’s Architectural Gems: Preservation and Destruction · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

Poi Kalon Essemble, one of Bukhara's architectural gems. Image from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Don Croner's World Wide Wanders posts great photos from the ancient Central Asian cities of Bukhara (also here, here, and here) and Samarkand, now in Uzbekistan. The cities’ magnificent architectural and historic landmarks attract crowds of tourists daily. Yet, while preserving this part of the country's cultural heritage, the authorities in Uzbekistan have destroyed many architectural monuments of the Soviet period. Alex Ulko on NewEurasia.net shares images of some of the destroyed objects. While some scholars explain the selective demolition of monuments as an attempt to get rid of Uzbekistan's “colonial” heritage, the blogger suggests that the authorities “simply see the beauty in a different way”.


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Rajoelina Steps Aside for Madagascar’s Presidential Race  · Global Voices
Rakotomalala

Andry Rajoelina sur wikipédia. License Creative Commons 3.0
[All links forward to french articles unless otherwise stated]
With interim President Rajoelina announcing that he withdraws from a bid to run for the presidential elections following a similar announcement by former President Ravalomanana in December 2012,  Malagasy people are likely to have a new president in 2013, provided that elections take place as planned in the electoral agenda. Many of the observers are skeptical about the elections timeline in light of the statements of Rajoelina after his announcement and his wishes to change the electoral agenda.
After nearly four years of political crisis with the same political leaders changing positions repeatedly, observers wonder if yet another reversal is in the works.
Andry counts himself among the skeptics [en] :
Are we really sure… that he [Rajoelina]  will just sit and  admire the landscape? Even if he made an official declaration to the nation, to all the Malagasy people, what guarantee do we have that he will keep his words? It is not the first time that he denied his own [words].
Maurice Beranto, one of the candidates for the presidential elections, asks a similar question on his blog :
Beaucoup d’entre nous, et moi en premier, se sont toujours demandé pourquoi autant de tergiversations face à une évidence. Comment pouvait-on effectivement imaginer que le président de la transition  pouvait se présenter à une élection qui va sceller la fin de la transition qu’il préside ? [..] En second lieu, en estimant que les législatives devraient être organisées avant la présidentielle, Rajoelina montre qu’il n’a pas pris cette déclaration de non participation à la présidentielle de gaité de cœur. Au lieu de calmer le jeu définitivement,  il va continuer à mettre de l’huile sur le feu..
Many of us, including myself, have constantly wondered why so much procrastination for a decision that is self-evident. How can he truly believe that the interim president will be a candidate for an election that should officially seal the end of the transition he chairs? […] Secondly, by stating that legislative elections should take place prior to the presidential ones, Rajoelina shows that he really struggled with the decision to not run in the presidential elections. Rather than providing a calming influence to the nation, he only managed to add fuel to the fire..
Rabelazao also questions whether there are any hidden agenda with his wishes to switch to organising  legislative elections prior to presidential ones, despite the fact that the decision has already been taken several months ago by the Independent National Electoral Commission for Transition CENI-T. Rabelazao posted on twitter [mg]:
@Rabelazao: @harinjaka kajy ankandrina daholo izany e! tsy hilatsaka ho fidiana ho prezida aho, de ahemotra aloha ny fifidianana prezida. fetsepr
@Rabelazao: @harinjaka That's just a trick ! I am not running for president so I will push back the presidential elections. Slick..
Jack goes further in analysing the reasoning behind Rajoelina's persistence to hold legislative elections before presidential ones:
Si il réussi à faire passer les législatives en premier, et toujours président de la transition, celles-ci se dérouleront de la même façon que le référendum. Le TGV sera majoritaire et une session parlementaire exceptionnelle transformera dans les 8 jours la constitution en semi-présidentielle. Il sera désigné premier ministre.
If he succeeds in holding the legislative elections first while still the interim president, those elections will turn out like the referendum [in 2010, with suspicion of fraud]. TGV will hold the majority and a parliamentary session will change the constitution into a semi-presidential regime. He will then be appointed as prime minister.
Rajoelina himself responded to such an hypothesis in an interview for Radio RFI. He evoked a scenario similar to the one that occurred in Russia with V. Putin [when Putin became prime minister after being president] . Here are excerpts from the interview with Christophe Boisbouvier :
CB: Vous vous posez en homme d’Etat. Y a-t-il un homme dont vous vous êtes peut-être inspiré, avant de faire votre choix ?
AR: Il y a deux personnes, effectivement. Un homme qui a beaucoup souffert, mais qui a gagné son combat : Nelson Mandela. Et puis, du côté européen, pourquoi pas, je ne serais pas le de Gaulle malgache?
Que retenez-vous, justement, de de Gaulle ?
Prendre une décision de se retirer au moment voulu. Mais le peuple s’en souviendra. Et c’est le peuple même qui réclamera celui qui doit diriger son pays, au moment voulu.
[..] Est-ce que vous envisagez un scénario à la Poutine ? Votre candidat est élu, vous devenez son Premier ministre et vous revenez en 2018 ?
Aujourd’hui, on n’a pas encore mis sur table de stratégie.
Donc, vous n’excluez pas ce scénario à la Poutine ?
Nous allons voir. Mais vous en serez beaucoup plus dans quelques semaines.
CB: You call yourself a statesman. Is there someone else that inspired you before making your decision?
AR: In fact, two leaders inspired me. One is a man who has been through much suffering, but eventually won his battle: Nelson Mandela. And, on the European side, why shouldn't I be the de Gaulle of Madagascar ?
What do you precisely remember of General de Gaulle's actions?
People will remember him with his decision to retire on his own term. And that is also what the people will remember. And the same people will decide who should lead the country when the time comes.
[..] Do you envision a Putin type of scenario? Your candidate is elected, you become his prime minister and you return in 2018?
At the moment, we have yet to decide on a strategy.
Therefore, you do not exclude this Putin-like scenario?
We shall see. You will find out more about that in the following weeks.
Patrick in the Madagascar Tribune details the hesitation before this announcement and explains that the legal risks surrounding Rajoelina have perhaps encouraged him to give up on his candidacy :
Le plus difficile avait bel et bien été obtenu avec le désistement de Marc Ravalomanana, car celui-ci avait toujours semblé plus rétif que son rival sur ce point. Toute résistance semblait désormais futile : au cas où la perspective de sanctions financières contre Madagascar n’avait pas été suffisamment dissuasive, il aurait par exemple suffi à la Justice française de se déclarer compétente vis-à-vis d’une plainte déposée en France par un binational franco-malgache pour mettre Andry Rajoelina et ses proches dans un sérieux embarras
The most difficult step was to get Marc Ravalomanana to withdraw from the race because he always appeared to be more reluctant than his rival on this issue. All resistance seems futile after that: sure, the prospect of financial sanctions imposed on Madagascar were not a sufficient deterrent.  But the prospect of an investigation by the French justice system following a complaint from a Franco-Malagasy bi-national that could put Andry Rajoelina and his family in serious embarrassment was seemingly sufficient.
Whatever the next turn of events are, the year 2013 promises to be a year full of surprises.  The plethora of candidates who remain will have some difficult tasks ahead. Rajoelina's desired electoral agenda notwithstanding, the preparation of the electoral process faces many obstacles, such as its financing. A report states that “13 million dollars  for financing the election set-up remain to be found”. However, the CENI-T adds that :
Le Ministère des Finances et du Budget a octroyé 3 milliards d’ariary de plus à la CENI-T la semaine dernière. Ces fonds feront partie du budget de fonctionnement interne de l’institution indépendante. L’Etat reste la principale source de financement pour le bon déroulement des activités dans le processus électoral
The Minister of Finances has allocated 3 billion Malagasy Ariary over to the CENI-T last week. These funds will become part of the operating budget of the independent institution. The state remains the main source of funding for the smooth running of the activities related to the electoral process.
The economic climate is still very tense in Madagascar. The latest report from the World Bank on poverty in Madagascar is at the very least alarming:
Selon ses prévisions, la pauvreté frapperait 84% de la population de Madagascar en 2013. En 2010, 77% des 20 millions d'habitants survivaient dans des conditions de vie difficile, avec 0,78 euro par jour [..] Chômage, inflation, baisse du pouvoir d'achat des ménages, tous les voyants sont au rouge.
According to estimates, 84% of Madagascar's population will be below the poverty line in 2013. In 2010, 77% out of the 20 million inhabitants lived  in these tenuous conditions with an income of 0,78 Euros/day […] All the main indicators such as unemployment, inflation, declining purchasing power per household, are in the red.

author: Rakotomalala


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Australia: Lactivists Demonstrate for Public Breastfeeding · Global Voices
Kevin Rennie

Lactivists have taken to social media and the streets to protect the right to breastfeeding in public in Australia. Two demonstrations have taken place following the ejection of Liana Webster, a mother breastfeeding at a public pool on 12 January 2013. As the local media reported:
SUNSHINE Coast mothers have staged a mass breastfeeding to send a clear message that nursing a child in public is their legal right. Mothers with hungry children in tow converged on the Bribie Island Aquatic and Leisure Centre yesterday for the peaceful protest.
The second protest had a national TV audience following comments by a morning show presenter:
About 50 women and children gathered outside the Channel Seven television studios in Sydney's Martin Place this morning, protesting against comments made by TV host David Koch about breastfeeding.
You can view the original Seven Sunrise item here. The online support for breastfeeding in public is indicated by the extent of activity at the Sunrise Nurse-in Facebook event and a related one started by Liana Webster A mother's right to breastfeed – Whenever, wherever, however. Sunrise Nurse-in explained that the protest was not a vendetta:
Just wanted to remind everyone, this event is not a hate campaign against David Koch, more of an educational exercise. I'd really love it if his attitude towards nursing changed.
The Little Leaf gives a good summary of the issues, following Kochie’s call to be “more discreet”. Her view:
It doesn't matter how well-intentioned or benign Kochie's comments were in his own mind. Outwardly, what he said was critical of breastfeeding in public. His suggestions that a woman be “discreet” or “a bit classy” confirm the misguided viewpoint that breastfeeding should be hidden.
On January 21, Seven Sunrise posted video of an interview with Breastfeeding advocate Amy Ahearn while the Nurse-in was taking place outside. There were over 2,200 comments by the afternoon. This comment and other likes it show that it’s not a one-sided debate:
How dare she inflict her boob on unsuspecting members of the public. Breastfeeding mother should express and use a bottle when out…. And for all of you people saying “if you don't like it, don't look”…when I squat and take a dump on your nature strip, if you don't like it, don't look
Anti-sexism group Destroy the Joint have been active in supporting Liana Webster. Their mission: ‘This page is for people who are sick of the sexism dished out to women in Australia, whether they be our Prime Minister or any other woman’. They created a collage of photographs of breastfeeding supporters, which has nearly one thousand Likes so far.
Nurse-in collage. Image courtesy Destroy the Joint facebook page
Mia Freedom, publisher of popular women’s website Mamamia, encouraged people to attend the Nurse-in.
It’s never a bad thing to remind people of the olden days, when men were men and women were……mostly invisible. When the only depiction of breasts that was acceptable was the sexy kind. When the idea of a woman using her bosom to feed her baby was….you know….yucky. …Viva la boobies.
It has been just a busy on Twitter. Try this hashtag #kochie to get the full flavour.

author: Kevin Rennie


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Blame Jihadis Financial Incentives, not Gaddafi’s Fall, for Troubles in Mali    · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Jihadis venture capitalism extended to an even more lucrative business: kidnapping western hostages all over the Sahara yielded over 90 Million Euros over a decade [..] The modus operandi was very simple: why get killed trying to create an Islamist emirate in “apostate-ruled” neighboring countries when you can build your own sanctuary AND have the West pay for it?
Nasser Weddady unpacks the reasons for the current troubles in Mali. He opines that the roots of the problem are more complex than the existing narratives in the media lead us to believe.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Diplomatic Passports for Religious Representatives in Brazil? · Global Voices
Melissa Rossi

Recently a lively debate has been ignited in Brazil after the country's Ministry of External Relations, known as Itamaraty, issued two diplomatic passports [pt] to the heads of the evangelical Igreja Mundial do Poder de Deus (World Church of the Power of God) pastor Valdemiro Santiago de Oliveira and his wife Franciléia de Castro Gomes de Oliveira.
The concession of diplomatic passports is regulated in Brazil by constitutional Decree 5.978 [pt] which determines that these official documents can be issued to presidents, vice- presidents, ministers, congressmen, heads of diplomatic missions, ministers of the supreme court and former presidents. However, diplomatic passports have also been traditionally conceded to representatives of the Catholic Church, based on the interpretation of Article 6, Paragraph 3:
Photo of Pastor Valdemiro Santiago from his public Facebook page
…às pessoas que, embora não relacionadas nos incisos deste artigo, devam portá-lo em função do interesse do País.
…to people who, although not listed in this article, need to attain it while fulfilling a role of interest for the country.
Although, as mentioned above, Catholic Church cardinals have benefited from this concession, other religious institutions recognized by the Brazilian state are not excluded from the application for diplomatic passports and indeed other evangelical representatives, such as controversial pastor Edir Macêdo, leader of Brazil's Igreja Universal (Universal Church) have received diplomatic passports in the past.
Thanks to the visibility drawn by the media to this particular case though, the Itamaraty has fallen under heavy criticism by the online community for its decision, sparking a discussion on the institution's power and on the violation of the very notion of secularism enshrined in Brazil's constitution.
A reader of the Folha de São Paulo newspaper, Renato Khair, posted the following comment in response to an article [pt] covering the case:
É inaceitável que o governo tenha se utilizado do Itamaraty para fornecer passaporte diplomático para o pasto líder da Igreja Mundial. É uma aberração que pessoas que não preencham os requisitos legais recebam passaporte diplomático, como é o caso dos filhos de Lula, do referido pastor e tantos outros. É desmoralizante o que estão fazendo com o Ministério das Relações Exteriores e o Itamaraty, que eram considerados instituições sérias e respeitadas.
Is is unacceptable that a government makes use of the Itamaraty to concede diplomatic passports to the World Church. It is an aberration that people who do not fulfill the legal requirements get to receive diplomatic passports, such as the sons of former President Lula, the Reverends in question and many others. What’s being done to the Ministry of External Relations is demoralizing institutions that were considered respectable and serious.
Blogger Parsifal Pontes also criticized [pt] the issuing of diplomatic passports by emphasizing:
A nossa chancelaria banaliza de tal maneira o passaporte diplomático que daqui a pouco as autoridades portuárias alhures vão gargalhar quando virem um.
The way in which our ministry takes for granted the concession of diplomatic passports will soon lead foreign customs officials to burst into laughter when they see yet another one.
Igreja Mundial do Poder de Deus. Photo by Roberto Castelhano on Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0).
On Twitter, under #estadolaicoja (secular state now) the general consensus is that the Brazilian state has gone overboard by violating the basic rules of secularism that it is meant to uphold.
Lawyer Thiago G. Viana (@thiago_fiago), who blogs with Comendo o Fruto Proibido, tweeted:
Legalidade, igualdade, moralidade e laicidade: são “só” esses princípios violados pelos passaportes especiais para pastores.
Legality, equality, morality and secularism: these are the “only” principles violated by the special passports for pastors.
Public prosecutor Chico (@chiconob) continues along the same line of thought:
Simplesmente NAO HÁ argumento plausível pra conceder passaporte diplomático pra religiosos. Que vexame!
There is simply no plausible argument to concede a diplomatic passport to religious representatives. How embarrassing!
The discussion online brings to light an old and ongoing debate regarding secularism in the Brazilian state. Although the constitution affirms the independence of State and religion, in practice the concession of diplomatic passports to religious leaders appears to violate this principal, after all, how can a religious leader carry a diplomatic passport without infringing the basic principal of secularism? A representative who carries an official privileged diplomatic pass should not, at any time, harbor a religious flag, let alone preach his/hers religious beliefs on foreign soil.

author: Melissa Rossi


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