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The mural will not be whitewashed: How dissident poet Joseph Brodsky continues to inspire free-thinking Russians · Global Voices
Filip Noubel

Screen shot from Alexei Navalny's YouTube channel showing how Brodsky's graffiti is painted over in white on May 25, 2020.
The 80th anniversary of the birth of Russian poet and Nobel laureate Joseph Brodsky was marked this year in Russia by an incident on May 25 highlighting the special place writers still hold in Russian political culture.
Iosif Brodsky (known as Joseph Brodsky in the English-speaking world) holds iconic status in Russian-speaking culture: he is considered a master of Russian poetry, one of the very few approved of by that giant of Russian poetry of the 20th century, Anna Akhmatova. Brodsky won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1987, one of the only six authors who write in Russian to receive the award (the others are Ivan Bunin, Boris Pasternak, Mikhail Sholokhov, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Svetlana Alexievich). He is was also a political dissident who was finally allowed to leave the Soviet Union in 1972, after having been imprisoned, and detained in mental institutions and forbidden to publish.
Even though he was invited back to Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, he never returned to his native land. Yet he became extremely popular in Russia—his work was widely published and studied, and even included in the Russian school curriculum. The anniversary of his birth, May 24, 1940, is an annual observance, and the celebration of what would have been his 80th year was anticipated this year.
One of the many tributes paid to Brodsky took the form of a photorealistic mural painted by artist Oleg Lukyanov on a wall on the street where the Brodsky museum is now located in St. Petersburg, which is also the location of the “one-and-a-half room” where he lived before being able to leave the country.
On May 25, however, the image was painted over in white by the administrator of the school to which the wall belongs. The school alleged that Lukyanov did not have permission from the city authorities to paint on the wall.
This tweet from the pro-government TV station REN TV shows the wall before and after:
В Петербурге объяснили, почему закрасили граффити-потрет Бродского. В аддминистрации отметили, что сам писатель вряд ли бы одобрил свое изображение на школьном заборе. И рассказали, что рисунок не был согласован с профильными комитетами города, поэтому и был замазан … pic.twitter.com/bmnh3XjfSv
— РЕН ТВ | Новости (@rentvchannel) May 25, 2020
In Saint-Petersburg the authorities explained why they painted over the graffiti-portrait of Brodsky. The administration noted that the writer, most likely, would ot have approved to have his image painted on the wall of a school. And they said there had been no prior agreement with the relevant committee of the city, thus is was painted over.
But the matter did not end here. The Russian media and blogosphere rapidly shared the news, turning the wall into a symbol of freedom of expression in a country which for the last 20 years, under the influence of Vladimir Putin, continues to restrict artistic freedom and freedom of expression, and has become obsessed with controlling the public sphere.
By May 26 the white paint began to be covered by quotes from Brodsky himself, with fans also bringing candles and flowers. As the popular independent TJournal news platform tweeted (not without humor):
История с изображением Бродского в Петербурге не закончилась. Вчера граффити закрасили, но на его месте стали писать стихи, которые потом тоже закрасили.
Кажется, на всё это уйдёт много краскиhttps://t.co/Ks3qUHnlY0 pic.twitter.com/U0L33WR9aZ
— TJ (@tjournal) May 26, 2020
The story about Brodsky's image in Saint-Petersburg is not over. Yesterday the graffiti was painted over, but people started writing verses over it, before being painted over as well. It seems this story will require a lot of paint.
The backlash took on even larger proportions as writers, artists, and meme-makers jumped on the case to express their frustration with censorship in Russia and with the servile, cowardly reactions of public administrations to the appearance of any narrative that does not follow the Kremlin line, particularly in public space.
In Russian and Soviet history, there is a long list of writers, and particularly poets, who have displeased rulers and paid a high price because of their refusal to be censored: Pushkin, Mayakovsky, Pasternak, Akhmatova and many more—the list is long.
In this video, prominent authors including Aleksandr Genis and Tatiana Tolstaya—both renowned for their refusal to support Putin, unlike many other Russian intellectuals—discuss the issue in an online show called White Sound Tolstaya launched in April 2020 together with journalist Ksenya Burzhskaya. In this episode from June 4, Tolstaya dubs Putin “the Emperor”, while writer and journalist Yakov Gordin, explains Brodsky's current popularity in Russia among young people under 25.
Well-known Russian journalist and music critic Artemy Troitsky posted photoshopped images of the white-washed wall featuring among other things, a Bansky-style image in which Putin is depicted as the wall's cleaner:
Потрясающий перформанс на зависть Павленскому и Верзилову происходит стихийно в Питере. Сначала в ДР Бродского И.А. поклонники сделали художественный граффити. Затем его замазали белым (см.) и народ начал творить: от детородного слова до профессиональной графики в стиле Бэнкси. pic.twitter.com/d9GUgh7f5Z
— Артемий Троицкий (@aktroitsky) May 26, 2020
The meme featured in the tweet below draws a comparison between the censoring of the Brodsky mural and the recent amendments to the Russian Constitution that would further extend Putin's rule if approved in a July 1 vote (lower image):
Закрасили Бродского, Закрасим и Конституцию! pic.twitter.com/Y1mMkDWhvC
— Alex Galimov (@alexgalimov72) June 3, 2020
They painted over Brodsky, let's paint over the Constitution
And the image shared in this tweet shows one of Putin's typical television addresses to the nation, whitewashed over in the same manner as the Brodsky mural:
pic.twitter.com/PsRtItNPwr
— Net.gov (@Net_gover) May 26, 2020
Alexei Navalny, one of Putin's few political opponents, also commented on the case in an eight-minute video on his YouTube channel that has been viewed by over 100,000 people. In the video—which is titled called “Paint over. Destroy. Forbid”, a member of Navalny's team makes a long list of street art recently banned and painted over in Russia:

author: Filip Noubel


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The rise of artemisia in Cameroon in the fight against COVID-19 · Global Voices
Boris-Karloff Batata

The artemisia plant has long been used as a medicinal herb to cure malaria and other ailments in Cameroon and throughout Africa. Screenshot from “The malaria business: Big pharma vs natural medicine,” a documentary by Franc24 via YouTube.
When Cameroon recorded its first COVID-19 case on March 6 in Yaounde, the capital, public health officials reassured citizens that the government would take swift measures to contain the spread of the virus, including compulsory face masks in public areas.
But the virus rapidly spread and also wreaked havoc on its economy.
By March 17, when Prime Minister Joseph Dione Ngute announced 13 guidelines to stem the spread, 10 people had tested positive. Since March, Cameroon has recorded 8,060 cases, with over to 200 dead and over 4,700 recovered cases since June 8.
Yet, on April 30, Ngute eased various COVID-19 measures, following an inter-ministerial committee meeting aimed at restoring the economy and local markets.
As the coronavirus cases continue to soar in Cameroon, many who believe in local herbs have turned to the artemisia plant as the government plans to reopen the country. Most Cameroonians believe in the efficacy of the artemisia plant to treat malaria and other illnesses.
Conglad Ngwa, a plant scientist and fungi researcher at the University of Buea, told Global Voices that the edible artemisia plant can treat headaches and stomach disorders, in addition to many other ailments.
On April 25, Archbishop of the Douala Metropolitan Diocese, Samuel Kleda announced over the national broadcaster CRTV that he has come up with an herbal treatment for COVID-19 that features the artemisia plant. Archbishop Kelda said:
Given that I already knew the plants according to the symptoms of the coronavirus, I have simply put together these combinations, prepared them and given to persons with the symptoms and they were relieved.
Kleda has about 30 years of research experience with medicinal plants, with a focus on herbal treatment for ailments affecting the respiratory system.
The government of Cameroon took some time to react to the clergy’s treatment of the coronavirus, raising questions among Cameroonians. Surprisingly, on May 19, President Paul Biya encouraged the use of homemade treatments to beat the dreaded coronavirus in a televised address to the nation.
The president’s call prompted Cameroonians to further rely on the local herbal combination to treat COVID-19 symptoms. The potency of artemisia — also known as wormwood or absinthe — has caused an upsurge in its cultivation in Cameroon.
The common recipe includes lime, lemon, pineapple, fever grass — and the artemisia plant, boiled and drunk as a tea.
When I flew to Cameroon few months ago, I was given this ‘Artemesia’ tea to drink, as a preventive shield against malaria.
Interesting to learn it may offer some level of immunity against CoronaVirus too, should be further studies on this plant's properties vs. Covid-19 ?? https://t.co/LYF5RY0qbY
— FLOЯIΛN ?? ?? ? (@Florianaire) May 1, 2020
Atoh Mercy Acca, an accountant working in Doula, Cameroon, told Global Voices that her parents sent her pre-prepared traditional herbs for her to boil and drink after she complained that her boss’ family were exhibiting coronavirus symptoms:
As soon as I informed my parents about my boss whose child died of an alleged COVID-19, my parents did not hesitate to send my bottles of traditional herbs for me to boil and drink.
Bekondo Nestorine, a printing press clerk in Limbe, Cameroon, told Global Voices that he and his colleagues boil and drink the artemisia plant nearly three times a day in his office, including ginger to fortify their immune systems.
Asaba Lynda, an environmental enthusiast working with the southwest regional delegation of environmental nature protection and sustainable development, told Global Voices that “it is thanks to the coronavirus that lots of persons have turned back to growing plants — especially those they think help in the treatment of the virus.”
Set Ekwadi Songe, another regional delegate, expressed concern about a possible shortage of the artemisia plant due to its surge in popularity as an essential ingredient in herbal home remedies:
As people want to protect themselves from COVID-19, many herbalists, many traditional practitioners, are now going to nature to look at all types of species to produce cures, hence tampering with the existence of such species. Like the artemisia plant, it’s going to be difficult for us to get the plant because everybody wants it to treat COVID-19.
Delegate Songe added, however, that he is happy because the plant is there to help the population.
The rise of artemisia as a respected plant is not a surprise in Cameroon, where traditional healers have used the plant for centuries to cure a host of ailments including malaria.
Now that the pharmaceutical world has recognized the efficacy of the plant in potential cures for contagious diseases, there's been an increase in artemisia plantations, both large and small. This may be perceived as an affront to big pharmaceutical companies who attempt to control its production, according to Irene Teis, in her blog for Malaria World. Last year, she wrote:
Artemisia plantations are spreading like a bushfire all over Cameroon, under the vigilant eye of universities and local organizations who avoid that the plant is improperly cultivated, handled and used.
Teis claims that the lives of traditional healers have been threatened and local artemisia plantations have been destroyed by police:
Several cases of murder or attempted murder have become known recently. It is also discouraging for them that their research and numerous clinical trials are ignored or depreciated by the medical neocolonialism, mostly by French experts.
The artemisia plant recently made headline news when Madasgar President Andry Rajoelina put forth the claim that COVID organics, a locally-produced herbal concoction featuring artemisia, could cure symptoms caused by the virus.
The World Health Organization quickly dismissed the efficacy of COVID organics, insisting there is no known cure for COVID-19, but the leaders of several African nations signed on to the product, including Tanzania and Comoros.
Netizen Kathleen Ndongmo made a plea on Twitter for further research on the power of traditional plants and herbs to cure contagious viruses.
Madagascar's recently released #COVID19 drug is largely artemesia based.
Now, shouldn't #Africa have a council of experts taking a deeper look at the natural medicines we've used for years?
How many of us “swear” by lemongrass, pineapple skin tea, hibiscus, paw-paw leaves?
— Kathleen Ndongmo (@KathleenNdongmo) April 30, 2020

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Boris-Karloff Batata


text:
What next for Taiwan after pro-Beijing mayor ousted in recall vote? · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Rally to campaign for the recall of Han Kuo-yu on June 5 2020. Photo from We Care Kaohsiung
A rising politician and former presidential candidate who favoured stronger relations with Beijing has been recalled as mayor of Taiwan's second largest city, creating a fresh irritant in strained relations with China.
Han Kuo-yu's recall marks the first time a mayor was jettisoned by this method prior to completing a term.
The pretext was a June 6 recall vote that saw 939,090 voters vote in favor of Han’s removal and only 25,051 votes against.
Under Taiwanese law — revised in 2016 — over a quarter of Kaohsiung's nearly 2.3 million-strong electorate needed to vote for the recall and outnumber dissenters in order for the move to go through.
Han Kuoyu described the recall campaign as a national-scale smear campaign staged by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), whose candidate Tsai Ing-wen defeated Han in January presidential elections.
Han won the Kaohsiung mayoral election in 2018 with 892,545 votes. The southern city is considered “deep-green” — its residents had voted in favor of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party for 20 years prior to his election.
The recall campaign was led by a number of small political groups. We Care Kaohsiung, one of the major citizen groups behind the campaign, accused Han of failing Kaohsiung residents by running for the presidency rather than fulfilling his promises to solve the city's problems.
Han’s political agenda is all about economic prosperity and he sees closer economic and political cooperation with China as the only path to that goal.
In 2018, his election slogan was “Goods go out. People come in. Kaohsiung makes huge profit” (貨出得去，人進得來，高雄發大財). The aim was to ramp up exports to China and bring in more tourists from the mainland.
But Kaohsiung’s economy failed to flourish as he focused his energies on the 2020 presidential election,  which put a dent in his popularity at local level.
His national election campaign slogan was “Safety for Taiwan. Money for the People”（台灣安全 人民有錢), which implied that Taiwan’s national security and prosperity relied on its relationship with China.
The campaign missed its mark and Tsai Ing-wen won a landslide victory.
Han's defeat at both national and local levels indicates the limitations of pro-Beijing platforms in Taiwan's current climate.
Pro-independence groups accused Han of being backed by the Chinese Communist Party. Han publicly supported the 1992 Consensus, an agreement signed between then-ruling party Kuomingtang and China, whose principle was “One China with different interpretations.”
In January 2019, however, Chinese leader Xi Jinping went further, initiating a push to make Taiwan sign up for “One Country Two Systems” in the spirit of Hong Kong.
But the subsequent chaos there — triggered by China's efforts to ram through an extradition bill via its proxies in the Hong Kong legislative council — has convinced many Taiwanese that “One Country Two Systems” is not what it is portrayed as being.
Chen Yichi of the Taiwan Statebuilding Party, a pro-Taiwan independence political party that was a key mover in the recall campaign, celebrated the campaign's success on Facebook.
韓國瑜罷掉所釋放的國際政治訊息就是，台灣人民向中國說不，讓習近平難堪，挺香港。…? 內除中共代理人跟滲透，真的是我們要認真實踐的事情啊！
The international message behind the successful recall of Han Kuoyu is that Taiwan people have said no to China, embarrassed Xi Jinping and expressed their support for Hong Kong… We have to be serious and act on countering the infiltration of CCP’s agents in Taiwan.
The overwhelming vote in support of Han’s recall also represents a broad blow to the KMT who viewed the business-minded politician as a saviour (一人救全黨) and had therefore mobilized around him.
Hung Hsiu-chu, a leading figure in the KMT echoed Han's criticism of the vote and attacked the ruling DPP for backing the campaign.
罷韓程序及過程完全違反了民主的基本原則。執政黨連最基本的行政中立都未遵守、甚至發動綠媒圍剿！根本就是假藉民主之名踐踏民主，製造仇恨對立，已然埋下台灣不公、不義、不安的種子！…無論罷免成功與否，沒有贏家，已是全民皆輸的民主醜聞！民主退步台灣之恥！
Han’s recall is against the principle of democracy as the ruling party did not follow the principle of administrative neutrality. It mobilized pan-green media outlets to smear Han. It treads on democracy in the name of democracy and manufactures hatred and antagonism. It has spread the seeds of unjust, injustice and political instability around Taiwan… regardless of the result, there is no winner as this is a democracy scandal that everyone has lost. It is a shameful regression of democratic development in Taiwan.
But current KMT Chairperson Johnny Chiang took a different tack, expressing respect for the choice of voters and apologizing to Kaohsiung residents for the party’s failure to fulfil their expectations.
China-focused political analyst Alex Payette predicted a crisis inside the century-old KMT, which ruled without opposition until DPP won the presidential election for the first time in March 2000.
#HanKuoyu ‘s #韓國瑜 defeat on June 6 triggered a political crisis inside the #KMT #國民黨 . We might see a new party emerge in #Taiwan #台灣 formed by the more progressive elements of the #Nationalist Party as the #Taiwanese economic elite is still waiting a middle ground party
— Alex Payette, PhD (@alex_payette) June 7, 2020
On the other hand, some commentators anticipate that Beijing will turn to increasingly strongarm methods to get its way if the KMT decides to abandon its long-held “One China” principle.
Kaohsiung will elect a new mayor for the city no later than September 12. DDP’s Vice Premier Chen Chi-mai is likely to run in the vote while the KMT has yet to put forward a candidate or a platform.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Actually, anti-Blackness has everything to do with Sri Lanka · Global Voices
GroundViews

“Colonial rule resulted in social stratification that privileged English speakers and those mixed with European ancestry. And it thrived off a fragmented nation, polarizing our ethnic groups to prevent a united front that would defy the colonial state.” Photo: The Governor of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) introducing Sinhalese chiefs to the Prince of Wales, 1876. Public domain.
This post by Shenali Pilapitiya originally appeared on Groundviews, an award-winning citizen journalism website in Sri Lanka. An edited version is published below as part of a content-sharing agreement with Global Voices.
It is easy to feel disconnected from incidents of police brutality in the USA, and ongoing race wars across the world that continue to marginalize and disenfranchise Black communities, when we fail to recognize our own connection to the issue at hand. The truth is that regardless of where you are Sri Lankan in the world—be it a member of the diaspora, or a resident at home—Sri Lankans are complicit in systems of anti-Blackness. As long as colonial legacies continue to govern our sense of identity, politics, and society, and until we unearth internalized and systematic prejudices against Black communities and ourselves, we will continue to be complicit in anti-Blackness.
In light of recent events of police brutality resulting in the murder of George Floyd—and the centuries’ worth of cases that we may never hear of—a global outcry against the prevalence of anti-Blackness has emerged.
At its core, anti-Blackness is the systemic and normalized marginalization, belittling, and undermining of Black folks and those in proximity to Blackness. Within our communities, it manifests itself through racism, colorism, and false logics of Asian superiority and exceptionalism. The concept emerges through colonialism, wherein anti-Blackness was used to dehumanize Black bodies and therefore justify a white supremacist sociopolitical order. Anti-Blackness and racism are inseparable schemes; it is the logic of anti-Blackness that enforces racial hegemonies worldwide.
Recognizing systems of anti-Blackness is a critical step towards solidarity against white supremacist institutions that continue to affect people of color. What is so distinct about racism is that it is heavily intertwined and inseparable from social organization, class relationships, and societal stratification processes. With the onset of modern capitalism, which is founded through the anti-Black and racist transatlantic slave trade, a world order based on the economic exploitation of the Global South emerges. There is no modern industry, no world trade, and no capitalism—the very foundations of the West as we conceive it today—without slavery and imperialism. And of course, slavery and imperialism are materialized through the injurious and devastating construct of racism, which has always relied on anti-Blackness.
The reach of imperialism and modern capitalism was soon extended from the African continent to our own shores with the arrival of colonization. It was the economic exploitation of Sri Lankan goods and labor that gave rise to a prosperous colonial state. Colonial rule resulted in social stratification that privileged English speakers and those mixed with European ancestry. And it thrived off a fragmented nation, polarizing our ethnic groups to prevent a united front that would defy the colonial state. Today, racial hierarchy is continually evidenced through the global monopoly on trade by Western countries, the exploitation of Asian and African economies through structural adjustment programs, and trade agreements that ultimately harm our nation and others in the Global South.
The anti-racist struggle is thus the collective struggle of the Global South, of which Sri Lanka is naturally a part. It is the rejection of a colonial logic that perpetuates Blackness as inferior, and denies humanity and dignity to people of color. By being complicit in systems of anti-Blackness, we are merely contributing to a sustained racial hierarchy that privileges white supremacy.
To propel systemic anti-Blackness, other minority groups have been co-opted to further a white supremacist agenda. The Model Minority Myth, as originating in relation to the Asian-American community, characterizes Asians as a monolith: polite, hard-working and law-abiding peoples who have achieved higher levels of success than other people of color and immigrants – specifically, Black people. The result is a false narrative of Asian exceptionalism. The myth fallaciously lauds Asians in service and in proximity to whiteness, while erasing narratives of Asian poverty, exploitation, and continued subordination to a white supremacist governing class.
For diaspora Sri Lankans, the Model Minority Myth is integral to the immigrant experience. It is the social conditioning that wires us to believe that hard work and compliance will reward us and ease our integration into white society. And it forces us to believe that we are somehow better than other minority groups, particularly, Black and Latinx communities, because we have abided by the status quo. The tragic Catch-22 of the myth is that we merely become pawns in a racial game designed to uphold white supremacy, and are complicit in the subjugation of other minorities.
At home, our colonial hangover crashes course with the Model Minority Myth at the intersection of white institutions and credibility. Its manifestations are numerous: the prestige and exclusivity of international schools, the prevalence of foreign advisors in our government institutions, the brain-drain of Sri Lankan intellectuals to the West, the major missionary schools that dictate much of our social conditioning long after the completion of final A-level examinations.
A common example of the Model Minority Myth at home is the presence of ‘foreign-only’ and ‘tourist-only’ businesses. Despite government threats to cancel the licenses of such institutions, these businesses have prevailed over the years due to economic dependency on white, foreign patronage. If you are a local Sri Lankan visiting popular tourist destinations such as Ella, or Mirissa, you are no stranger to the foreign-only service concept.  And, even when restaurants and businesses do not explicitly state that they only serve foreigners, the foreigner-only mentality prevails and you are certain to feel unwelcome at these locations. Of course, the notion that it is favorable to serve a white customer reveals an insidious, internalized racism—to serve people from your own racial and ethnic background is belittling because they are somehow ‘lesser than’. In reality, it is simply contributing to the model minority myth, a fallacy spearheaded by white supremacist norms that applaud us as exceptional because we are hardworking in our service to them. We proudly champion our hospitality, but this quickly turns to indulgence when our businesses pander to serve foreign customers. We are complicit in systems that patronize and condescend to us, and we internalize a logic that we must uphold and cater to white supremacy.
The lesser-known minority of Sri Lanka are the Kaffirs: an ethnic group of Afro-Sri Lankans originating from the slave labor brought into Sri Lanka by the Portuguese. Today, the Kaffirs face cultural and linguistic extinction; there are only 500 or fewer Kaffirs living on the island. It is impossible to ignore the anti-Blackness that has contributed to a lack of cultural preservation and awareness of Kaffir peoples. Kaffirs have historically lacked property and have largely been relegated to work as daily paid laborers, which contributed to a lack of economic capital and mobility within Kaffir communities. They have faced discrimination and isolation on the basis of their distinct physical features. Their histories are not taught in schools, and their narratives are not incorporated into the vista of Sri Lankan identities. The result is a chronic neglect of Kaffir peoples, marginalizing and isolating their communities for generations. It is undoubtedly their Blackness that has relegated them to a status that is somehow “less” Sri Lankan, or deviant from whatever it means to be Sri Lankan in mainstream understanding.
Across Sri Lanka, colorism is hardly a foreign concept. A newspaper advertisement for a suitable bride will use fair skin as a bartering tool. The praise of lighter-skinned women is a recurring theme in Sri Lankan popular music—one of our favorite Baila anthems is literally titled “Sudu Menike”, meaning white or fair-skinned lady. Proximity to whiteness, via fairer skin tone, has conferred privilege in our societies resulting in practices such as skin bleaching which have vast physical and mental health consequences. It is the epitome of anti-Blackness, a Machiavellian notion that dark skin is inferior.
Anti-Blackness is relayed through covert, everyday forms of racism and appropriation. It is the use of the word “kalu” (black) as an insult, as opposed to “sudu” (white or fair) as a compliment. It is using the N-Word and undermining the severe historical and present-day ramifications of the slur. It is the selective participation in Black culture—to love reggae and rap, to mimic Black fashion and trends, and to then ignore the very real and damaging sociopolitical issues that plague Black communities worldwide.
Assuming that we are untouched by anti-Blackness as Sri Lankans is a false and harmful premise. We have directly benefited from systemic anti-Blackness, and we have also internalized these racist systems in ways that are harmful to our own communities. We are implicated in anti-Blackness the minute we interact with Black culture and knowledge production without accounting for—and acknowledging—the ongoing oppression of Black folks. We fail to recognize that being complicit in anti-Blackness is contributing to our own socio-economic exploitation by Western capitalism.
Nevertheless, there are some simple steps we can take to rectify anti-Blackness. We can dismantle and reject the Model Minority Myth. We can take collective steps to preserve and celebrate our own Kaffir peoples. We can consciously work to correct colorism in our societies by calling out the people around you who reinforce colorist standards, reporting damaging media promoting whiteness as beauty. We can support local and small businesses, Black artists and musicians, and attempt to reclaim some economic leveraging that has been compromised by the economic monopoly of the West.
Eliminating racial oppression must come from confronting the implicit biases in our personal and structural wiring. Addressing anti-Blackness can hopefully resolve some of the long-lasting implications of colonization and white supremacy by promoting solidarity across communities of color.

author: GroundViews


text:
Black Lives Matter protests in Trinidad & Tobago spark discussions about race · Global Voices
Jada Steuart

Protestors at the Black Lives Matter protest in Port of Spain, Trinidad, June 8, 2020. Photo by Jada Steuart, used with permission.
The horrific killing of George Floyd, an African American man who died from asphyxiation after a white police officer consistently pressed on his neck in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25, has been the catalyst for putting the concerns of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement back on the front burner.
Protestors at the second Black Lives Matter demonstration at the Queen's Park Savannah in Port of Spain, Trinidad. Photo by Ashley Thompson, used with permission.
BLM's mandate to campaign against violence and systemic anti-black racism which manifests dangerously in acts of police brutality have inspired similar protests around the world.
On June 8, more than 500 people joined in solidarity with #BlackLivesMatter by demonstrating in front of the United States Embassy in Port of Spain. It was the second public protest on the issue in four days, with this one reportedly being more heated than its predecessor, though certain segments of society remained antagonistic toward the cause.
“No justice, no peace,” were the words echoed as protestors assembled in the Queen's Park Savannah. Drivers passing along the perimeter of the city's main green space held their hands in fists out of cars, sounded their horns, and shouted the slogan “Black Lives Matter” in solidarity not only with African Americans, but also in acknowledgment of the deep-seated racism still festering under the surface of Trinidad and Tobago's multicultural society.
While there were altercations with the police, mainly over lack of consent with regard to an officer filming protestors, the protest was peaceful and harmonious overall. For the most part, protestors practised proper social distancing protocols, which were further enforced by the police present.
In fact, US Ambassador Joseph Mondello spent some time talking with protestors. He commended everyone who turned out for their message — and for wearing masks and practising safe social distancing.
Demonstrators at the Black Lives Matter protest in Port of Spain, Trinidad, June 8, 2020. Photo by Jada Steuart, used with permission.
In the wake of Floyd's death, discussions about race have dominated social media in Trinidad and Tobago, fuelled by insensitive remarks made by business owners like Gerald Aboud, whose Facebook comments telling black people to change their mindset were widely deemed racist. The consistent tone-deafness displayed by Aboud and several others has prompted calls for boycotts of their businesses, the decision by black entrepreneurs to pull their products from these stores and the creation of lists of black-owned businesses shared on social media.
At the protest, Aboud's name was seen multiple times on signs and placards:
The placard reads, “Dear Gerald Aboud, I did not steal my sneakers. Sincerely, ‘The Blacks.’ Photo by Jada Steuart, used with permission.
In a country that prides itself on equality and unity — the national anthem, after all, proclaims, “Here every creed and race find an equal place” — it is telling how much the #BlackLivesMatter movement has triggered such a response.
There is no disputing, however, that racism thrives in Trinidad and Tobago, in a multitude of ways: subtle or sometimes blatant racial tensions between different ethnicities, institutionalised racism that has traditionally made it harder for black people to thrive economically, and the fact that the majority of the country's wealth lies in the hands of the one percent.
Demonstrators on stilts, honouring the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival character of the Moko Jumbie (a tradition that originated from West Africa), at the Black Lives Matter protest in Port of Spain, Trinidad, June 8, 2020. Photo by Jada Steuart, used with permission.
As a postcolonial society, the issue of race is an integral part of Trinidad and Tobago's history; racist attitudes can be cross-generational.
Trinidad and Tobago Carnival, arguably the country's biggest national festival, is one example of this. Although its modern incarnation may look like a glorious street party, some Carnival bands remain segregated by class and colour. The festival's origins were rooted in rebellion against colonial authorities.
The inequitable systems Trinidad and Tobago inherited from Great Britain post-independence have not been completely dismantled. Many of those structures still cast a long and imposing shadow on the lives of black people, but if we are to judge by the turnout at the June 8 protest, young people especially no longer seem prepared to look away.
While the majority of the turnout was people of African descent, there were other people of colour and white Trinidadians present as well, coming together through a global movement aimed at challenging the systems that keep the wheels of racism turning.
They are speaking with their voices and their wallets, and they seem ready to have the tough discussions necessary for true equality to emerge. Many are also sharing resources, educating others about black history to foster greater understanding:
Hiii fellow Caribbean people ?? The Black Lives Matter movement is especially relevant to us, and we want to share why! Please take some time to read this post and engage with the resources we’ve listed. Hope you are all safe and doing well. One love ❤
A post shared by  ✨U of Bristol CARIBBEAN SOC✨ (@uobcaribbeansociety) on
It is a long-overdue discussion.

author: Jada Steuart


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Burundi’s President Pierre Nkurunziza unexpectedly dies, but the political party continues · Global Voices
Liam Anderson

Pierre Nkurunziza, then the president of Burundi, captured during the Opening Plenary of the World Economic Forum on Africa 2008 in Cape Town, South Africa, June 4, 2008, Flickr via CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
Burundi’s government announced on Tuesday, June 9, that President Pierre Nkurunziza died on Monday, June 8, after 15 years in power and a recent election confirming his successor.
He took ill on Saturday after watching a volleyball match and his condition improved on Sunday, but then surprisingly deteriorated on Monday while at Cinquantenaire Hospital in Karusi. National mourning of seven days was decreed.
URGENT: Le Gouvernement de la République du Burundi annonce avec une très grande tristesse le décès inopiné de Son Excellence Pierre Nkurunziza, Président de la République du Burundi, survenu à l’Hôpital du Cinquantenaire de Karusi suite à un arrêt cardiaque ce 8 juin 2020. pic.twitter.com/PP46kKzAM5
— Burundi Government (@BurundiGov) June 9, 2020
BREAKING: The government of the Republic of Burundi announces with a great sadness the unexpected death of his excellence Pierre Nkurunziza, President of the Republic of Burundi, which happened at the Cinquantenaire Hospital in Karusi after a heart attack this 8 June 2020
Born in 1964, Nkurunziza lost his father as a young man to anti-Hutu violence. He then studied physical education and became a teacher. In 1995 he joined the rebellion with the National Council for the Defense of Democracy–Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD) — after escaping an attack himself — and went on to rise through the ranks, eventually becoming president in 2005, with the end of the war and CNDD-FDD becoming a political party.
He was very religious and often said he had been chosen by God for this role.
Burundi saw some peacetime gains in terms of political and economic stability, with measures such as free health care for infants. The CNDD-FDD, ex-rebel group turned party, though, gradually dominated power in an authoritarian way, which intensified particularly after Nkurunziza's controversial election in 2015 to a third term.
The CNDD-FDD violently excluded opposition and media voices and cut ties with foreign governments and international organizations. Many opponents and moderate members of CNDD-FDD left the country.
The Imbonerakure — the party’s youth wing — became powerful and has often been accused of armed violence and coercion.
There is an ongoing International Criminal Court investigation into alleged crimes against humanity committed in Burundi. With the constitutional changes begun in 2018, which strengthened presidential power, critics argued his government was leaving behind the Arusha Accords which facilitated the end of the war.
The government announced Nkurunziza's death from heart attack complications, but many suspect that he was ill with COVID-19. His wife was hospitalized with it, and RFI reported that doctors spoke of COVID-19 symptoms when he was first hospitalized — and a ventilator was transported to the hospital.
His wife, Denise Bucumi Nkurunziza, was reportedly evacuated to a Nairobi, Kenya, hospital, with COVID-19 symptoms, late on May 27. There was little official communication on this, although she sent an audio message to her church on June 5 saying she was well, and then returned on June 9.
Medical staff expressed alarm recently by the rise in cases with COVID-19 symptoms. The lack of testing capacity, though, means the situation is suspected to be worse than reported — only 83 cases registered — with authorities downplaying the pandemic and even expelling World Health Organization agents, likely wanting to avoid admitting a lack of health care capacity and to avoid postponing the recent elections.
Olucome, a nongovernmental organization, called for more vigilance, referencing large crowds at rallies during the electoral campaign. Meanwhile, the government said that Burundi was protected by God. There were also cases reported inside Ngozi prison with COVID-19-like symptoms in early June.
The health minister was reportedly hospitalized with COVID-19 symptoms following the elections and spent some days in a Kenyan hospital, before returning.
The recent election was marked by harassment of opponents and a lack of observers. An appeal was submitted by opposition, alleging irregularities. Surprisingly, on May 28, the Independent National Electoral Commission president, Pierre Claver Kasihize, announced the withdrawal of the results it had publicly announced, saying they were just a draft which should not have been published.
The election results were later confirmed officially, though, by the Constitutional Court. The ruling party and its candidate, Évariste Ndayishimiye, won the presidential and legislative elections with 68.7 percent and 68 percent respectively.
Nkurunziza’s unexpected death changes things for the new president’s term. It was predicted that Nkurunziza’s influence would hang over him — Nkurunziza was given the title Supreme Guide of Patriotism — balanced with the influence of the powerful council of generals within the party.
This has now changed as Ndayishimiye will not have Nkurunziza’s influence to balance. However, the council of generals remains — who supported his candidacy — and who also have a military-rebel background.
Qui dirige le #Burundi depuis hier ?
Pascal Nyabenda ou Gaston Sindimwo & le gouvernement selon le prescrit de la Constitution ?
Allons-nous vers l'investiture précipitée d'Evariste Ndayishimiye ?
Le communiqué du gouvernement est étonnamment muet sur le sujet. pic.twitter.com/jrj01GVAPp
— Pacifique NININAHAZWE ?? (@pnininahazwe) June 9, 2020
Who rules Burundi since yesterday?
Pascal Nyabenda or Gaston Sindimwo and the government according to the constitution?
Are we heading to a rushed inauguration of Evariste Ndayishimiye?
The government’s communiqué is surprisingly quiet about the subject.
Analyst Thierry Vircoulon argued that the CNDD-FDD party government and its systems of patronage remain in place, with the powerful council of generals, and therefore, overall, little structural change is to be expected.
The new president, in his new seven-year term, faces challenges ranging from increased poverty and the pandemic to tense diplomatic relations and the several hundred thousand Burundians still living as refugees.
Nkurunziza would have remained in office until August 20 and the new president's inauguration.
RFI said that according to the constitution, it would be Pascal Nyabenda, National Assembly president, who would then be interim president; he was reportedly Nkurunziza’s preferred choice for successor before accepting Ndayishimiye.
Ndayishimiye's inauguration could be brought forward to reduce uncertainty.
In this unusual moment, SOS Medias Burundi reported the streets were calm in the former capital, Bujumbura. In Gitega,  made the political capital in 2019 by Nkurunziza’s government, things were even calmer than usual, with people waiting to see what happens next.
Tributes to him were broadcast on TV.
Condolences came from various governments, including Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, a nation considered an “enemy” by Nkurunziza's administration due to tense relations.
The first vice-president of the Republic and Union for National Progress Party's (UPRONA) presidential candidate, Gaston SIndimwo, gave his condolences, as did the main opposition National Freedom Congress party, or CNL.
Meanwhile, reactions from Burundians reflect the divisions arising from his presidency:
En cette semaine de deuil national, la blogueuse Painette Niyongere rend hommage au président Pierre #Nkurunziza qui vient de nous quitter à travers quelques bons souvenirs qu'elle garde de lui.#Burundi #politique https://t.co/gjzy1JYXO9
— Yaga Burundi (@YBurundi) June 10, 2020
In this week of national mourning, the blogger Painette Niyongere gives homage to president Pierre Nkurunziza, who has left us, with some good memories that she keeps of him.
As I learn of the passing of Pierre Nkurunziza, I think of the thousands of lives that his regime cut short. The families that won't see justice.
I also think of his wife hospitalized in Kenya. His mother hospitalized in Ngozi. His sister, other members of his family…all sick.
— Thierry Uwamahoro (@ThierryU) June 9, 2020
Antoine Kaburahe, founder of Iwacu newspaper, which has suffered harassment from authorities in recent years, wrote that Nkurunziza's death marks a “time for reflection in Ubuntu,” a southern African philosophy that emphasizes the interconnectedness of humanity. Kaburahe currently lives in exile and recently, four Iwacu journalists were jailed and their appeal rejected.
Following the president’s death, contested elections, and long-term problems of economic exclusion and political violence and exile — there is much to reflect on.

author: Liam Anderson


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Censorship tactics overshadow Vietnam’s successful COVID-19 response · Global Voices
The 88 Project

Vietnam's COVID-19 response is hailed by many but its restrictive policies on free speech are often overlooked in reports. Image by Thomas Gerlach from Pixabay
This article is from The 88 Project, an independent news site covering Vietnam, and was edited and republished on Global Voices as part of a content-sharing agreement.
Vietnam has emerged as a success story in dealing with COVID-19 as the pandemic continues to ravage the planet. With official statistics showing only 300 confirmed cases and no fatalities, there is little doubt that the authorities have delivered remarkable results containing the spread of a disease that has claimed more than 400,000 lives worldwide.
This achievement should not eclipse the repressive tactics employed by the Vietnamese government to censor information related to the pandemic, however.
Countries such as Taiwan and the Republic of Korea have also shown the world their competence with low transmission and mortality rates. But they did not resort to state repression in order to achieve these results. Indeed, many of the Vietnamese authorities’ actions indicate they are utilizing the pandemic to normalize police state practices.
According to one state-owned newspaper, by the end of March, 700 individuals had already been fined by the public security forces, who operate under the Ministry of Public Security, for expressions related to the coronavirus.
A closer look at these cases suggests that most of them involved individuals merely expressing concern on social networks. These concerns could easily have been addressed by the government through transparency and intensive information programs to support citizens.
For instance, in Ha Giang Province, three teachers were fined around 10 million Dong (approximately 450USD) for simply saying “The outbreak is out of control!” while posting photographs of Vietnamese patients in a quarantine area.
According to public security forces, these posts caused “unnecessary panic” among the public. They also asserted that this constituted misinformation because the photographs were from different provinces, and not Ha Giang.
A doctor in Can Tho was fined for a short status saying, “Can Tho (province) has its first case. The residents should enhance their immunity system by eating more vitamins and mineral-rich food.”
The local authorities in Can Tho duly announced their first case shortly after his post.
The majority of online expressions resulting in fines were neither dangerous to the public nor damaging to the national effort against COVID-19. But “perpetrators” were summoned, briefly detained, and interrogated by local public security forces as if they had committed serious crimes.
By free-riding on public support for a “national unifying cause” of combating COVID-19, the authorities justify the excessive and arbitrary involvement of the security apparatus in public life.
The acceptance of this practice will continue to undermine the role of public opinion in checking and balancing the already powerful Vietnamese regime, and thereby negate the right to freedom of expression in the long run.
Whilst so-called panic-mongering has mostly been targeted with fines, criticism of the state during the pandemic has resulted in jail time in some instances.
Ma Phung Ngoc Phu, a resident of Can Tho, was arrested on April 11, 2020 and later sentenced to nine months in prison. Her alleged crime was to ask “There is news that one person has passed away from coronavirus in Vietnam, why do no news outlets talk about this?” in a Facebook post.
Other items included in the investigation were her “likes” and comments under several posts critical of the state's COVID-19 measures and policies.
Another victim of this arbitrary practice is Dinh Thi Thu Thuy — also a Can Tho resident. According to the accusations against her, Thuy opened multiple Facebook accounts to edit, post, and share thousands of documents defaming and slandering the leadership of the ruling Communist Party.
Public security forces also added that during the course of the “national war” against COVID-19, Thuy used social media to distort state policy and create confusion among the public. Thuy is currently in pre-trial detention and faces between five and 12 years in jail if convicted.
In Thai Nguyen Province, the People’s Procuracy officially charged Pham Van Hai under Article 288 of the Criminal Code for “illegal provision or use of information on computer networks or telecommunications networks.” On social media, Hai had contended that people infected by the coronavirus had died in Thai Nguyen province. Hai questioned the integrity of official information.
These cases of arbitrary criminalization of free speech are a violation of the legal requirements of international human rights law. The restriction of freedom of expression and related punishments are neither “provided by law,” as required by Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, nor do they pass the test of “necessity and proportionality,” as explained in General Comment No. 34 in the same covenant.
As many international rights groups have observed, the COVID-19 pandemic has offered a unique opportunity for dictators and authoritarian regimes to assert their superiority over the old “liberal democracy” model and strengthen repressive systems.
A brief overview of the situation in Vietnam shows that these tactics contribute little to a sound and successful anti-COVID campaign. More importantly, it threatens to lower even further the bar for repression of online expression that may long outlast the pandemic.

author: The 88 Project


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How Kazakhstan’s youth are forging their own national identity · Global Voices
Filip Noubel

A photo collage from the Kazakhstani LGBT magazine Kok.team. The Russian language text reads: “LGBT Versus Coward”. Image used with permission.
A row between a lesbian activist and a weight fighter has launched a fierce debate on Kazakhstan’s social media networks, revealing deep fractures about national identity among the youth of this Central Asian nation.
In mid May 2020, the Kazakh heavyweight fighter Kuvat Khamidov started uploading a series of tweets on his account calling for the killing and rape of members of the LGBTQ community, including posts such as:
почему есть отстрел бродячих собак, но нет отстрела педиков?
— Kuat Khamitov (@Kuat_Khamitov) May 22, 2020
Why are stray dogs shot, but not fags?
This caught the attention or Nurbibi Nurkadilova, an LGBTQI rights activist who responded to Khamitov on May 17, the International Day against Homo-, Trans- and Biphobia. She wrote a long letter addressed to the fighter on her Instagram account, which has so far received nearly 3,000 comments.
Part of her letter states:
Я являюсь открытым представителем ЛГБТ+ сообщества!
И своим заявлением, вы оскорбили меня, моих друзей и моего любимого человека! Что в вашем понимании, «такие люди хуже собак»? Вы сравниваете мои человеческие права, права гражданина этой страны, с собачьими – то есть, считаете меня бесправной? Своими высказываниями, вы откидываете страну назад! Вы препятствуете развитию!
I am a member of the LGBT+ community!
With your statements, you have insulted me, my friends and the person I love! What do you mean when you say that “those people are worse than dogs” [In reference to one of Khamitov's tweets, since deleted.] Are you comparing my human rights, my civic rights with those of dogs? Does that mean you consider me to have no rights? With your statements, you're taking this country backwards! You are an obstacle to progress!
Following her post, Nurkadilova says she has received threats from sportsmen and wrestling fans:
В срочном порядке мне пришлось сменить место жительства, меня эвакуировали правозащитники. Я сменила квартиру, потому что ко мне домой начали заявляться незнакомые люди.
I had to urgently leave the place where I used to live, I was evacuated by human rights activists. I changed flats when unknown people started showing up at my door.
Clearly she has struck a nerve, which she mentions in her long post: the different – and conflicting directions young people in Kazakhstan would like their country to take.
In the ideological vacuum left after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, a number of post-Soviet states had to build alternative nation-making narratives. It was a challenging task: many former Soviet republics had only a very short prior history as modern nation-states, their intellectual elites had been wiped out in the Stalin-era purges of the 1930s, and the ethnic balance of power had been established by Soviet policies of privileging ethnic Slavs and Russian speakers. Kazakhstan was no exception.
The relative ideological leniency of the perestroika period of the mid-1980s allowed for the emergence of new discourses which had been severely suppressed in previous decades. The strongest of these new discourses concerned religion and national identity.
So when Kazakhstan became independent in 1991, the groundwork for an ethno-nationalist awakening had been laid for decades. Citizens sought to rekindle religious and conservative social norms and models which they could define as both non-Soviet and non-western. They advocated a return to an imagined and invented “traditional” model of patriarchy, heteronormativity, and strictly defined gender roles. It was a trend observed across the former Soviet Union, from Central Asia to the Caucasus and Russia itself.
In this understanding of Kazakh society, LGBTQ people were outsiders. Although the country decriminalised same-sex activities in 1998, there is still no legal protection against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity; according to Human Rights Watch hate crimes against LGBTQ people are frequent. Meanwhile, religious leaders of both the Islamic (about 70 percent of the population) and Orthodox Christian communities are known to support a strongly anti-LGBT discourse.
But there are some young Kazakhstanis who reject those values, such as Nurkadilova herself.
Global Voices asked the founders of Kok.team, a trilingual Kazakhstani LGBT online magazine founded by Daniyar Sabitov and Anatoly Chernoussov what the Nurkadilova versus Khamitov spat reveals about the worldview of Kazakhstan's youth:
Мы еще раз убедились, что в Казахстане существуют два лагеря людей, которые радикально противостоят друг другу, когда речь заходит о правах человека в контексте ЛГБТ. Их борьба очень важна, потому что ведется она на поле третьего лагеря – людей, которые пока не определились.
This once again confirms to us that there are two groups of people in Kazakhstan who stand in radical opposition to each other when discussing the human rights of the LGBT community. Their fight is important, because it takes place before third group — people who remain undecided.
Nevertheless, Sabitov and Chernoussov believe that this scandal is particularly unique:
То, что у Нурбиби большая стабильная лояльная аудитория подписчиков, которая только растет – вот это может быть индикатором того, что у части молодежи есть запрос на новых героев. Это первая ЛГБТ-активистка не из числа “купленных Америкой городских сумасшедших”, как думают о нас, а активистка с большим социальным капиталом.
The fact that [Nurkadilova] has a stable and loyal audience that keeps growing is perhaps an indicator that part of Kazakhstan's youth is seeking new role models. She is the first LGBTQ person who cannot be simply dismissed as one of the “urban crazies who are influenced and bought by the US,” as we are often described. She is an activist who has her own significant social capital.
In recent years, music has become an important means for Kazakhstan's youth to raise issues of identity and gender inequality. One band which has played an important role in that discussion is the wildly popular K-pop style boys band Ninety One. The band sings almost exclusively in Kazakh and its public presentation shows its members’ interest in subverting gender stereotypes and identities. This video alone received five million views — not a trivial number given that Kazakhstan has a population of 18 million.
The fact that such a band could become cultural icons is highly significant in modern Kazakhstan. Yevgenia Plakhina, a Global Voices contributor and close observer of Kazakhstan's popular culture, co-produced a documentary about Ninety One which seeks to expand the debate about role models for Kazakhstan's youth. She shared her thoughts with Global Voices about the band's importance to discussions on gender identity in Kazakhstan:
Группа Ninety One появилась, когда в Казахстане полным ходом шел процесс ре-традиционализации – перепридумывания традиционных ценностей. Почему они стали причиной ожесточенных дебатов? Во-первых, у них очень много фанатов по сравнению с другими казахскими группами – около 600 тысяч подписчиков на YouTube, около 575 тысяч подписчиков в Instagram. Во-вторых, они выглядят не так, как канонически должен выглядеть казахский мужчина – сережки в ушах, крашеные волосы, яркая одежда. В третьих, за это они очень нравятся девушкам и женщинам, уставшим от образа казахского мачо. В четвертых, против них сложно использовать риторику, что все зло приходит с Запада. K-Pop, который в Казахстане, превратился в Q-Pop пришел к нам с Востока. В пятых, ребята поют на казахском и собирают вокруг себя ту аудиторию, которую хотели подмять под себя традиционалисты.
The band Ninety One emerged when Kazakhstan was undergoing a “return to traditions”, or the reinvention of traditional values. Why did the band become the subject of so many debates? Firstly, because they have a large number of fans compared to others in Kazakhstan: around 600,000 subscribers on Youtube and 575,000 on Instagram. Secondly, they do not appear as traditional Kazakh men are supposed to: they wear earrings, dye their hair, and wear bright clothes. This is why many young girls and women love them;they are tired of the typical Kazakh macho man. Furthermore, one cannot use them to advance the narrative that all evil comes from western culture: K-pop [Korean pop] came from the East, and turned into Q-pop in our country [Kazakh is written Qazaq in Kazakh Latin script]. Finally, they sing in Kazakh and gather the audience that supporters of traditional values would like to influence the most.
Фанаты Ninety One открыты для новых идей и не хотят строить такое общество какое строили их предки 200 лет назад. Конец 1990-х в Казахстане,был временем относительной свободы. В мои студенческие годы популярной была MC Гуль – женщина, читающая рэп (кто бы мог подумать!). В казахоязычной среде, я думаю, это была группа «Орда». Именно оттуда вышел продюсер группы Ninety One – Ерболат Беделхан.
Ninety One fans are open to new ideas and do want to build a society inspired by their ancestors 200 years ago. In the late 1990s, Kazakhstan experienced relative freedom. When I was a student, the female rapper MC Gul was popular. In Kazakh-speaking areas of the country, it was the band Orda, whose member Erbolat Bedelkhan became the producer of Ninety One.
It can even be argued that Ninety One has been more successful than Kazakhstan's government in promoting the use of the Kazakh language, by singing almost exclusively in Kazakh and promoting the new spelling of the language in the Latin alphabet. The following video, which already has over 200,000 views on YouTube, is a good example:
Perhaps the strongest message of Nurkadilova's letter was that Kazakh culture is not solely the property of nationalists and traditionalists —and that exploration and a thirst to explore new pastures is not a novelty for Central Asia's largest country.


text:
Information warfare: COVID-19’s other battleground in the Middle East · Global Voices
Saoussen Ben Cheikh

The Gate of Yemen in the capital Sana'a. Photo by Jialiang Gao, licensed under CC BY BY-SA 2.5
COVID-19 has exacerbated existing political tensions in the Middle East and North Africa, a region already marred by decades of conflict. Now, unscrupulous politicians blame their political enemies or neighboring governments for the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Director of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, sounded the alarm on the threat that mis- and disinformation poses to humanity:
“At the WHO, we’re not just battling the virus, we’re also battling the trolls and conspiracy theories that undermine our response,” he said, reiterating that false information can cause confusion and fear.
The MENA region is no stranger to conspiracy theories and disinformation practices. A 2019 Oxford University study revealed that the region is home to half of the top 12 countries identified as having a “high cyber troop activity” — including Egypt, Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates.
Those in positions of power use “information warfare” to frame narratives and control public opinion, and social media has become the main battlefield to employ influencers, trolls, bots, and commenter armies.
In Iran, Yemen and Syria, the so-called “axis of resistance” — whose legitimacy is often tied to virulent opposition to the West — leaders have seized on COVID-19 to reaffirm political positionality and channel hostile anti-Western ideologies.
Hezbollah, for example, has framed the coronavirus as a plot twist by their “enemies” — the West in general and the United States in particular. Hezbollah, a Shi’a political party based in Lebanon, and affiliated with Iran, is known for being a state within a state. It is considered a terrorist organization by most countries.
In March, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah affirmed:
The corona is a highly threatening enemy. We have to confront this invasive enemy. We should not surrender or despair or feel helpless. The response must be confrontation, resistance, and fighting. We will win this battle. It is only a matter of time.
In the battle for hearts and minds, the Iranian regime’s ideological army — the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — has led a counternarrative about the pandemic, portraying the virus as a conspiracy orchestrated by the regime’s traditional enemies — the United States and Israel.
The propaganda includes claims that the virus is an “American biological invasion” and a “Zionist biological terrorist attack,” leading some of the regime’s defenders to call for a retaliatory response.
Since its founding in 1979, the IRGC has been the “ruling clergy’s principal mechanism for enforcing its theocracy at home and exporting its Shi’ite Islamist ideology abroad, “according to Foreign Policy.
It collaborates with its allies in Arab capitals where it holds considerable influence —  Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. They share similar anti-Western, US and Israeli ideologies. The leaders of these nations often glorify fighting and martyrdom.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Nasrallah, for example, regularly preaches martyrdom messages to his base. In an interview, he explains: “Our fighter blows himself smiling and happy because he knows he is going to another world. Death for us is not the end but the beginning of real life.”
Yemen continues to grapple with the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, according to the UN, after plunging into a bloody proxy war in 2015, when a Saudi-led coalition intervened to remove Houthi leaders from power taken following a coup.
Houthis forces, backed by Iran, control the most-populated northern region, as well as the media. Houthi leaders have used the pandemic — described by some analysts as a “gift for the Houthis,” to attack rivals and deflect attention from the ongoing crisis. Houthi leaders also promote the Iranian regime’s conspiracy theory that the virus is an American plot.
Houthi Minister of Health Dr. Taha Al-Mutawakkil said in a public sermon aired on TV: “We must ask the whole world, we must ask all of humanity: Who and what is behind the coronavirus?” He concludes with a Houthi slogan: “Death to America! Death to Israel! Curse be upon the Jews! Victory to Islam!”
As the virus sweeps through Yemen in recent weeks, activists report dozens of deaths. Houthis leadership has denied the scale of the outbreak and downplayed its severity. In a press conference, Mutawakkil said:
We should not do like the rest of the world who have terrorized the population. The recovery of the virus is very high, it is in Yemen of over 80 percent. The treatment of the coronavirus will come from Yemen.
Houthis often conform to an ideology rooted in victimization and showcase that all of Yemen’s problems are caused by external interventions that started in 2015 with the Saudi-led military campaign. As such, they often blame the Saudi-led intervention that absolves them responsibility for the current crisis.
Mohamed Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Houthi Supreme Political Council, tweeted on March 16, that the Saudi-led coalition is to blame for any spread of coronavirus in Yemen.
وتتعمددول العدوان في المناطق التي تحتلها على عدم اتخاذ أي إجراءات إحترازية ولا طارئة ولا حجر صحي ولا أي شيء
وكان لا وباءيجتاح العالم يسمى #كرونا
نحمل العدوان الأمريكي وحلفائه مسؤلية أي حالة باليمن_فهويسيطر على الأجواء والمنافذ البحرية البرية_
ومسؤلية عدم التأهيل واتخاذ الإجراءات
— محمد علي الحوثي (@Moh_Alhouthi) March 16, 2020
In the territories occupied by the aggressor countries [Saudi led coalition] no precautionary or emergency or  quarantine measures have been taken or anything. There would not be an epidemic sweeping the world called corona. We hold the American aggressor and its allies responsible for every case in Yemen, as it controls the airspace, the land and ports.
Houthis leaders have also exploited the virus to push their base into action and boost military recruitment. On a Houthi affiliated TV channel, a speaker recommended the public to join the battlefield and die as martyrs instead of dying confined at home from the coronavirus.
The Gulf Council Countries (GCC) was formed in 1981 in the wake of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the Iran-Iraq war, by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain. Their union, from its inception, was to defend themselves against an Iranian threat.
However, the GCC has been in crisis since 2017, when a bloc of countries led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, came into conflict with Qatar over allegations of links with Iranian’s “terrorist groups.” A full blockade has been imposed since June 2017 against Qatar.
The coronavirus has been politicized against this backdrop. A widespread narrative in all GCC countries supports the story that the virus was imported from either Iran, the regional epicenter of the crisis, or Iraq, via Shi’a citizens returning from a pilgrimage in Iran.
The Saudi daily newspaper, Al Jazeera, accused Iran of “adding to its bloody terrorism health terrorism” for not having been transparent and allowing the virus to spread.
Saudi Arabia held Iran “directly responsible” for the spread of COVID-19 and Bahrain accused it of “biological aggression” by not stamping passports of Bahrainis who traveled to Iran.
In a region ruled by Sunni royal families over a large Shi’a minority, scrutinized for its perceived proximity with Iran, this scapegoating is likely to fuel sectarianism and tension.
The UAE and Saudi Arabia have launched social media campaigns to blame Qatar for the coronavirus using hashtags such as #Qatariscorona, claiming that Qatar manufactured the virus in China to jeopardize Saudi Vision 2030 and Dubai Expo 2020.
The internet has provided fertile ground for breeding and amplifying state-sponsored fake news and propaganda campaigns. In an era of social distancing and increased reliance on social media, allowing these narratives to spread unchallenged and unpunished undermines an effective pandemic response — and more widely — peace and democracy.

author: Saoussen Ben Cheikh


text:
The magic of paper and ink: A conversation with Iranian-American artist Hadieh Shafie · Global Voices
Omid Memarian

7 colors,  Rolled Paper containing handwritten and printed Farsi text Eshgh “Love/Passion”, water-based ink and acrylics, Diam. 36 x 4 1/2 in. (91.4 cm x 11.4)  Brooklyn Museum. Copyright: Hadieh Shafie.
Born in Iran and raised in the United States, Hadieh Shafie is fascinated with reimagining the book form. She is also interested in drawing textual forms and exploring the emotive power of color, as well as “looking at new modes of collapsing the space between what is drawing and sculpture.”
Shafie's works have been collected by New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Brooklyn Museum of Art, among others. In October 2019, her work “Transition 7″ was included in Christie's Middle Eastern Modern & Contemporary Art auction
Shafie’s paper-based work is expressive and labor-intensive. It invites the audience to a world that is imaginary but at the same time orderly and logical—a world of layers, where, with each visit, the audience becomes acquainted with a part of her worldview, technique and conceptual complexity and the magic of paper and ink. It's a journey that seems to have no end.  Her use of words and phrases are different from Persian or Arabic calligraphy; it's more like a gateway to an unresolved nostalgia, a place where the artist searches for her memories and identity in a peaceful and harmonic world.
In an interview with Global Voices, Hadieh Shafie spoke about her technique, creative process, and her connections to Iran. Excerpts from the interview follow:
Spike 10, Rolled Paper containing handwritten and printed Farsi text Eshgh “Love/Passion” , water based ink and acrylics 12” Diameter x 6” Deep, Private Collection, USA. Copyright: Hadieh Shafie.
Hadieh Shafie: My medium is paper. I like to rethink the ideas around drawing, painting and sculpture.

While focused on painting, I took paper-making and printmaking courses in undergraduate and enjoyed both processes. I liked how paint and ink would absorb into paper. When I moved to Brooklyn to attend the MFA program at Pratt in the winter of 1993, I was faced with serious financial constraints. At the time, since I had already found working on paper rewarding, I made the decision to work entirely with paper and drawing as I also thought it would be economical. At the same time, I was very interested in illuminated manuscripts and so it felt natural to explore the medium.
The paper scroll works came about from a series of works I was doing as an intervention performance in the early 2000’s, inspired by the children’s story “The Little Black Fish”.
In these performances, I would copy pages from the story, highlight and translate a sentence, then leave the page in a public space for someone to find.
I would leave them in books in public libraries, cafés and stores. I continued this exploration in my studio. I folded pages from the book into cracks of the floors and walls. I had a found table with a missing bolt that connected the leg to the tabletop. In order to get the pages of the book into that space, I had to roll the paper. When I did that, it was an “Aha” moment, and that is how the rolled paper works started. Later, a series of works based on these initial explorations were exhibited at School 33 Art Center in Baltimore in a juried exhibition by Allison Knowles, the renowned Fluxus artist.
Hadieh Shafie in her studio. Photographer: Erin Collett.
HSH: I zeroed in on the word “eshgh”, because I felt it had lost its meaning. Drawing the form over and over again is a meditative performance. I have developed several series in my drawing practice. As of today, there is the “Grid Series”, which is ink on paper.
There is also the “Draw, Cut and Peel” series, which are ink and acrylic drawings of text and colors on museum board where the surface is scored, cut and then peeled to create a dimensional surface. And most recently the “Draw, Cut and Rotate” series, which is pencil on museum board with concentric circles that are finally rotated to create seismic lines and abstract the writing of the text.
I am interested in abstracting and obscuring language.
In the paper roll series, I hide handwritten and printed text within the concentric rings of paper strips. I not only hide, but sometimes partially reveal, the interiority of the paper scroll works by pushing the circular forms out into spike forms that reveal what is contained within.
During the four years between 1979 and 1983, my main source of inspiration and refuge was making art and reading books. It was also during this time that I understood that some books that I had access to, like “The Little Black Fish” or books in translation like “Gone with the Wind”, were books that you did not take in public. It was then that books became precious objects. One of my favorite things to do was to lose myself in reading a book while eating lavashak or sour cherries on a daybed. So daydreaming about characters and storylines and holding books is rooted in me as moments of escape and happiness.
When I start a work I don’t always know what will be the final outcome. I do have a set of tools to play with, for example the word “eshgh” is one of these tools. Its meaning is profound in Farsi (revealed), but obscured in English (hidden). Other tools include a color palette or the form of a spike.
Grid 30, Ink on Paper 29 1/2×20 1/2 in. (74.93×52.07 cm) LACMA.  Copyright: Hadieh Shafie.
HSH: My work comes from deep within me. I naturally think in colors and abstract forms. My mode of working is fluid. I play with materials in the studio. I follow the experimentations and what I see happening and I develop them into a visual language.
The process for making the work takes time and energy, that is true, but it is only difficult when I have deadlines. But ever since I can remember I was making art and I loved to draw and paint. That’s all I ever wanted to do. It always felt so natural for me to think with abstraction. I find the process of being creative playful. To me that is joy.  Much of my work is me observing the things I see happening in the process of making a drawing or sculpture. I then create new works from those observations. My work is cohesive but always evolving. It became clear to me sometime in the late ’90s that there had to be joy in making work and so that is what I do—I make work that transforms sadness into joy.
Installation View at the Center for Book Arts New York, NY. Current Exhibition, 2020. Copyright: Hadieh Shafie.
HSH: In 1983, we left on a two-week vacation. Through a series of unexpected opportunities and without any planning, we found ourselves, as a family unit, intact and abroad.
It was a joy to know I had left Iran. But within a couple of years, I recognized the pain of leaving my motherland and not having said goodbye. We had left Iran with two suitcases. Everything was left in the house as you do when you leave for two weeks of holiday.
I often think of my relationship with Iran like being in a relationship with an abusive lover.
I was 10 years old in 1979 and the four years of life in Iran between 1979-1983 killed my childhood. Those four years provided so much joy flanked by sadness and despair that it will take a lifetime to recover from all the trauma those years offered. Today, I am certain that much of the unpacking of those experiences is happening through my artmaking.

author: Omid Memarian


text:
These officials flouted lockdown rules in Myanmar, Malaysia, and the Philippines · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Yangon City official attending a religious activity that sparked public criticism over the apparent violation of government prohibition on mass gatherings and religious festivals during the pandemic. Photo from the Facebook page of Yangon Region government.
Lockdown restrictions were enforced by many countries across the world to contain the spread of COVID-19, and Southeast Asia has hosted some of the harshest.
Most quarantine protocols require residents to stay at home, while mass gatherings are typically prohibited.
In Malaysia and the Philippines a particularly strict enforcement of these measures saw thousands of arrests and heavy penalties for violations from March onwards.
But a number of government officials were caught violating the very quarantine protocols they were supposed to oversee.
Global Voices looked into some of these cases, and their outcomes, which highlight how rules apply to ordinary citizens more than to powerful politicians.
We also considered a case in Myanmar that showed how religious discrimination can have a bearing on the application of the law.
Malaysia has arrested almost 30,000 people for violating its Movement Control Order (MCO). Harsh implementation was cited by authorities as necessary to prevent a surge in COVID-19 cases.
But the public noticed that several politicians flouted the guidelines. The Centre For Independent Journalism compiled documented many of these instances. In one case, Deputy Health Minister Noor Azmi Ghazali posted a now-deleted Facebook photograph of him and another elected representative sharing a meal with about 30 students. Deputy Rural Development Minister Datuk Abdul Rahman Mohamad meanwhile enjoyed an impromptu birthday party. Datuk Abdul Rahman Mohamad claimed that the party was a surprise sprung on him by friends and said he was unable to send them away for reasons of courtesy.
Datuk Abdul Rahman Mohamad denies defying the MCO by holding a birthday party in his house. The Deputy Rural Development Minister claims the gathering was spontaneous after visitors came to his home. Photos went viral showing Abdul Rahman & others not practicing social distancing pic.twitter.com/APTiSjNw5y
— BFM News (@NewsBFM) April 20, 2020
In many cases politicians and their families who got charged for failing to practice social distancing measures were slapped with light fines. Ordinary citizens, in contrast got maximum penalty fines and even jail time.
This prompted the Malaysian Bar to issue a statement about the ‘disparity in sentencing’:
The Malaysian Bar is disturbed by accounts of excessive sentences and cases of disparity in sentencing between ordinary people and those with influence, in relation to persons who have violated the MCO.
We acknowledge that the range of sentences handed down may well be within the ambit of the law, but the power of the Court to hand down sentences must be exercised judiciously in order to avoid any travesty of justice.
The Philippines is cited by the U.N. Human Rights Office as another country that relied on a “highly militarized response” to deal with the pandemic. More than 120,000 people have been arrested for curfew and quarantine transgressions. Checkpoint security measures have led to numerous human rights violations.
But the government's credibility in enforcing the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) guidelines suffered a tremendous blow after it was reported that Major General Debold Sinas, the director of the National Capital Region Police Office, benefited from a birthday bash organized by subordinates.
BREAKING: Metro Manila top cop Debold Sinas and other police officers were charged Friday for staging a birthday blowout on May 8 despite strict quarantine rules, the Philippine National Police says. https://t.co/9YUp5aFF35
— CNN Philippines (@cnnphilippines) May 15, 2020
Sinas insisted that there was no birthday party but only a ‘Mañanita’ — a police tradition that features an early morning serenade for the chief. But the public backlash forced him to issue an apology.
Critics pointed out that Sinas and his team have enthusiastically arrested activists and community workers organizing relief activities during the lockdown. They blasted the general for holding festivities at a time when millions have lost jobs and income due to anti-pandemic measures.
Sinas was later charged for violating ECQ rules but has so far managed to retain his position. His case is still pending in the court.
A retired military officer, Ramon Farolan, advised Sinas to step down:
Your apology would take on greater meaning if you step down from your position. Accept that you made a poor judgment call, showing insensitivity to the plight of our less fortunate. Don’t wait for higher authorities to decide your case.
In Myanmar, Yangon Chief Minister Phyo Min Thein and Naing Ngan Lin, chairman of the COVID-19 Control and Emergency Response Committee, are both accused of breaking the law by attending a Botataung Pagoda festival while the country is observing a ban on religious gatherings.
Photos uploaded on the chief minister's Facebook page showed dozens of individuals congregating at a riverside site to observe a Buddhist rite.
Social media reactions focused on the clear breach of government guidelines, which include a prohibition on gatherings of four or more people.
Phyo Min Thein denied that the activity was a ceremony, insisting instead that it was a pagoda renovation and that the other people in the photographs were mere onlookers.
Many commented that while the government has been consistent in jailing Muslims and Christians for holding religious activities during lockdown restrictions, it has been less decisive in probing activities connected to Buddhism — the country's most widely observed religion.
Kyaw Phyo Tha, news editor of the English edition of The Irrawaddy, criticized the chief minister's actions:
Whatever the case, the chief minister’s actions were unacceptable. They have put the Union government in an awkward position, as its orders have been undermined by a senior official. Due to U Phyo Min Thein’s shortsightedness, Myanmar will have to pay the price internationally by being accused of religious discrimination.
Phyo Min Thein may yet pay for his lockdown scandal — a growing number of Yangon regional legislators are seeking to file an impeachment case against him for breaking the rules.

author: Mong Palatino


text:
Amid Black Lives Matter protests, fresh calls to remove statuary that hijacks the Caribbean’s historical narrative · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

The statue of Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, which stands near the entrance to Bridgetown, the Barbadian capital. Photo by Nick Kocharhook on Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0.
Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests have seen a global resurgence following the killing of George Floyd, an African American, by a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States.
One ripple effect of the protests has been the denigration and defacement of symbols of black oppression. The Caribbean, with its long history of occupation, has its own symbols of oppression to reconsider.
In Richmond, Virginia, on June 2, hundreds of protestors assembled in front of the statue of General Robert E. Lee, a American Civil War Confederate general, shouting, “Tear it down!” The state's governor, Ralph Northam, announced that the statue of Lee would be removed; the process has since been blocked by a court order.
On June 7, United Kingdom protestors tore down a statue of Bristol slave trader Edward Colston and stomped on it before throwing it into the harbour. A statue of slave trader Robert Milligan was also retired in front of the West India Docks in London.
Some have supported the symbolic act of reclaiming dignity and exposing long-celebrated racists, while others have condemned this method of protest.
In the Caribbean, calls to rename certain places have surged. King George V Park in Port of Spain, Trinidad, for instance, is also called Nelson Mandela Park. However, statuary has largely remained.
Most regional territories have robust examples of public art that honour the slave struggle, including Bussa, who led the largest slave rebellion in the history of Barbados; Cuffy, the leader of a 2,500-strong slave revolt in Guyana; and the “Redemption Song” statue at Jamaica's Emancipation Park, but there are also myriad examples of statues that reinforce the tainted narrative of discovery and ownership.
Several Caribbean nations are challenging the wisdom of having such statuary on public display. Feminist and university lecturer Gab Hosein observed on Facebook:
I don’t think there has been a global uprising of this geographical scope and diversity since the 1970s. […] Sparked by the BLM movement in the US and now expanded into decolonial struggle and dismantling racism more broadly, it does seem like — for almost the first time in 50 years — we are listening to another world breathing.
In Martinique, where a statue of French abolitionist Victor Schoelcher was toppled, two of the young women involved explained their decision in a YouTube video:
We, the young people of Martinique, are sick and tired of being surrounded by symbols that insult us. We were not the first to attack these symbols. Many before us have tried in vain to get rid of them […]
What is a statue? It is stating this is someone we admire for the impact he or she has had in the course of our history. […] Schoelcher was in favour of the compensation of the plantation owners; there are many transcripts proving that claim. If he had not, maybe it would have been different.
As the pair pointed out, the discussion is not new.
Barbadians, for instance, have been agitating for the removal of a statue of Horatio Nelson for decades. In 2017, Sir Hilary Beckles, vice-chancellor of The University of the West Indies and chairman of the Caribbean Community's (CARICOM) Reparations Committee, referred to Nelson as “a vile, racist, white supremacist [who] disposed of black people, and dedicated his political and military life to the cause of protecting Britain’s criminal possession of the 800,000 enslaved Africans held during his lifetime.”
In the wake of Floyd's horrific murder, the discussion around such monuments has grown more urgent.
There are currently several online petitions circulating in the region, including the Barbadian thrust to do away with Nelson's presence in the nation's capital.
Artist Annalee Davis, who shared the petition, noted:
[…] while I don't think to destroy the statue of Nelson is useful, I do think that relocating it to the museum or somewhere outside of National Heroes Square is viable and worth a national discussion. It is no longer called Trafalgar Square and he is not a hero. Wherever his statue is relocated to, it should include complete signage to clearly demonstrate who he was, what he did and his role in the colonial machinery that oppressed people.
In response to a commenter who challenged the idea of taking down the statuary with a “Where will it end?” argument, Davis clarified:
I don't believe that our tourism product should only tell the story from the perspective of those who enslaved people. There is a term being used around the world called ‘dark tourism’ and this is used in places like Auschwitz for example, to speak about concentration camps and tell the uncomfortable narratives that we want to turn away from.
The statue of Christopher Columbus which sits on the entrance steps of Nassau's Government House. Photo by Robert Karma on Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Meanwhile, in the Bahamas, more than 3,000 people have signed a petition advocating for removal of the statue of Christopher Columbus, which looms over the front steps of Nassau's Government House.
A petition in Trinidad and Tobago agitating for the removal of two Columbus statues, explains:
We must face the fact […] that we continue to publicly glorify the murderous colonizer who initiated two of the greatest crimes in human history: the genocide of the Indigenous people of the Caribbean and the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, both of which are at the root of the racial injustice that our generation is protesting today.
Musician and actor Nickolai Salcedo, who publicly shared the petition on his Facebook page, asked:
Hey wouldn’t it be a cool bit of foresight if instead of waiting for a mob to tear down the statue of Columbus in [Port of Spain], the government was to preemptively remove it followed by removing any homages to our colonial past? […]
Our society […] still has monuments […] that literally litter and stain our landscape. Time for these monuments to the bloodthirsty to meet their blind dates; the sledgehammer of justice.
Commenters Polly Rawlings disagreed:
We can't pick and choose history, this is a significant part of history — Keep it, not glorify it — attach the correct story to it — hostile takeovers must always be remembered for the damage they are responsible for.
Journalist Judy Raymond, however, commenting on the removal of the Milligan statue, read the pulse of the matter very accurately:
[People] see a statue & assume that must be a great man. A plaque on an empty plinth might be more appropriate & useful. This is a discussion about visual memory.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


text:
Mozambicans take to social media to piece together the truth about the Cabo Delgado attacks · Global Voices
Dércio Tsandzana

Cabo Delgado bridge, Mozambique. August 4, 2009. Photo by F. Mira via CC BY-SA 2.0.
Twitter users in Mozambique are mobilising to share information on the violence in the province of Cabo Delgado, which has been the site of attacks by armed groups since 2017.
Since the start of the attacks, more than 900 people have been killed. In February this year, a local government report revealed that over 150,000 people had been affected by the conflict. The reason for the attacks is not completely clear, but there is some evidence that they are linked to an Islamic extremist group.
In mid-May, the Mozambican government joined other presidents from southern Africa at a high-level conference in an apparent attempt to generate external support for the fight against insurgency.
Days later, the president of Mozambique announced the death of two of the leaders behind the attacks in the north.
Many of the attacks have subsequently been revealed in videos and photos on social media, sometimes by the attackers themselves. In the absence of adequate information from the authorities, some users are trying to make sense of this content on social media:
#CaboDelgado as coisas pioram dia após dia, #massacres atrás de massacres, destruição de vilas umas das outras. Para quando o apoio militar da #SADC ??
#CaboDelgado the situation is deterioriating day after day, #massacre [HYPERLINK] after massacre, destruction of one town after the next. How long until military assistance from the #SADC?
— Egídio João (@Egidio_E_Joao) June 3, 2020
Afinal o que está acontecer em Cabo Delgado (Moçambique)?
After all of this, what is happening in Cabo Delgado (Mozambique)?
A Thread pic.twitter.com/kcVVZDBiTp
— Withney Osvalda (@withneysabino) June 1, 2020
Okok
THREAD CABO DELGADO
Peço que deixem aqui em baixo toda informação que há disponivel sobre o que está a acontecer em Cabo Delgado, vamo nos ajudar a ajudar, invés de reclamarem só!!
Okok
CABO DELGADO THREAD
Please add below any information available on what is happening in Cabo Delgado, let’s help ourselves to help, instead of just complaining!!
— soh fee uh (@smaquile) June 1, 2020
Para podermos ajudar temos que ter informação, e isso o governo não está a publicar, temos que estar a basear-nos em mouth to mouth information e videos fora de contexto que nos mandam de lá…
So that we can help ourselves we need to have information, which our government isn’t publishing, we need to rely on mouth to mouth information and videos beyond what they are giving us…
— druegas, sole da (@Queen_Tassy1) June 1, 2020
Lembrei de ter lido nalgum lugar que a forma mais fácil de roubar terra é criando instabilidade ao ponto dos proprietários fugirem. Não há terra mais barata do que aquela em conflito e miséria. Agora pergunto… a quem interessa comprar Cabo-Delgado?
I remember reading somewhere that the easiest way to steal land is to create instability to the point that owners flee. There’s no land cheaper than where there’s conflict and misery. Now I wonder who would be interested in buying in Cabo Delgado?
— manteiga de karité, bebé (@Leocadeea) June 1, 2020
Some have noted the fact that events outside of Mozambique appear to be receiving less attention than those taking place inside:
Tenho visto em muitos Moçambicanos “Black life’s Matter” e menos “Pray for Cabo Delegado”…
I have seen many Mozambicans with more “Black Lives Matter” and less “Pray for Cabo Delgado”
— ???? (@Djbavy) June 3, 2020
Also being shared are warnings about misinformation:
Mas muita atenção com a informação proliferada por este senhor, já várias vezes foi confrontado por mostrar imagens que não são de Cabo Delgado e ele tenta passar as images como “exclusivas”!
But beware the information shared by this man. He’s already been confronted for showing images that aren’t of Cabo Delgado and he is attempting to pass them off as exclusive!
— Micah Dunduro (@Donduro88) June 2, 2020
A movement has also resurfaced with the aim of organizing solidarity campaign in support of those affected by the escalating violence in Cabo Delgado:
Estamos a preparar a 4a Fase da campanha de solidariedade nacional por Cabo Delgado. Precisamos de voluntários para pré-organização
Por favor partilhem com os vossos amigos que possam ajudar-nos com cartazes e vídeos da convocatória✌?#CaboDelgado_também_é_Moçambique#CaboDelgado
We are preparing the 4th phase of the national campaign for solidarity for Cabo Delgado. We need volunteers for the pre-organisation phase. Please share with your friends who are able to help us with poster and video calls to actions #CaboDelgado_também_é_Moçambique#CaboDelgado
— Cídia Chissungo (@Cidiachissungo) June 3, 2020
Quem puder ajudar de alguma forma:#CaboDelgado #CABODELGADOIMPORTA pic.twitter.com/Itnq9V507K
If anybody can help in any way: #CaboDelgado #CABODELGADOIMPORTA pic.twitter.com/Itnq9V507K
— Alícia Cossa (@alicia_cossa) June 3, 2020

author: Dércio Tsandzana


text:
Post-crisis hackathon: Ecuadorian NGOs crowdsource for a world after COVID-19 · Global Voices
Carlos E. Flores

Hackathon. Photo from Andrew Eland/Flickr, under CC BY-SA 2.0 license.
This story was initially published on the Ecuadorian site Ojo al Dato (Eye on Data) and then republished and edited by Global Voices. Here are the first and second articles in the original series.
Many countries are slowly starting to emerge from lockdown and they are being forced to confront the hard realities of a world with COVID-19. In Ecuador, a country hit hard by coronavirus, NGOs organized a hackathon in April to crowdsource project ideas that would address some of these realities. On May 30, the winners were announced via a live YouTube broadcast, bringing public exposure as well as funding prizes to the successful projects.
In late April,  Ecuador had the third-highest number of registered cases in Latin America; and at the time of writing, official figures reported 3,642  deaths.
Launch image, photo from Estéfano Dávila, for free media use.
The Post-Crisis Hackathon, which took place from April 29-30, was attended by 549 people who brainstormed solutions to the issues that would affect the economy and society in a post-COVID Ecuador. Hackathons are collaborative spaces that seek solutions to specific challenges and this one focused on challenges related to ten areas: environment, work and employment, daily life and social practices, cultural industries, education, health and well-being, economy and production, and government and citizenship.
The event was organized by developer and sociologist Iván Terceros along with his colleagues from MediaLab (connected to the NGO CIESPAL) as well as various organisations and business networks. In an interview with Ojo al Dato, Terceros spoke about the motivation behind the event:
“Creo que no se está viendo claramente qué es lo que va a ocurrir el día después de la crisis […] Puede ser que esos sean los momentos más críticos”.
It is not clear what will happen the day after the crisis […] It could be that those are the most critical moments [for society].
The participants shared 116 projects and organizations participating in the Hackathon helped choose 19 finalists.
There were two votes: one from the public — which elected WiyaPoint and ChasquiCheck as winners of the public's vote — and one of from the jury. Nearly all the finalists received prizes.
WiyaPoint's mobile app addresses the use of plastic bags — a contamination point for COVID-19 — by rewarding users every time they turn down a plastic bag when making a purchase.  ChasquiCheck seeks to address misinformation around COVID-19 by setting up a digital platform to verify, identify and classify information to combat false news.
The WiyaPoint app will receive exposure, campaign launch, and social media advertising for a value of $1,000 provided by crowdfunding platform Green Crowds. ChasquiCheck will also receive the same amount of help to launch its virtual platform, thanks to the association of risk management professionals in Ecuador.
Fourteen other projects received some form of prize from the jury's vote. For example, participants thought of self-sustaining gardens as a response to a possible food shortage due to the pandemic. Both Grupo Faro and Incubadora La Libertad will offer them technical advice for a value of $1,000.
Todos Más Cerca is a digital platform connecting small and medium businesses to help them reactivate their economy. Through the platform, businesses can offer their products to users who are geographically nearby; the goal is to avoid agglomerations that could increase the number of COVID-19 infections. Todos Más Cerca already has agreements with Chambers of Commerce in parts of Ecuador, such as Zamora, Loja, Cuenca, among others.
The project will also receive a fund of $3,000 from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the La Libertad Incubator. The economic promotion agency Conquito will provide them with accompaniment, advice and mentoring.
In the case of Ecuador, Terceros explained that MediaLab will continue to support the projects that have been brought to life, so that they can be incubated as start-ups throughout the year.

author: Carlos E. Flores