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General-Secretary of La Francophonie Wants a Seat for Africa at the UN Security Council  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Abidjan Net writes [fr] that General-Secretary of La Francophonie Abdou Diouf demanded at the opening of the 2012 Francophonie Summit [fr] that the African continent be granted a seat at the UN security Council. He argues that the current situation allows for some nations to be blamed for human rights violations whereas others nations are getting away with similar actions for the sake of commercial and geopolitical interests.


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Ghana: Obstacles to the Advancement of Women · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

Betty Mould Iddrisu, jurist and Minister of Justice of Ghana, writes [fr] on pambazuka.org:
To reach the upper level is rare, and once you have arrived there, you still have to face hostility and doubts about your abilities, because you are a woman. A woman at the top works harder than a man to prove her skills, and yet she still must face entrenched prejudices and hostility, in her role as manager and leader, in a work environment largely dominated by males.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Abdoulaye Bah


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Maldives: The Assassination of A Lawmaker · Global Voices
Rezwan

Buggee posts a photo story on the death of Dr Afraasheem Ali, a lawmaker of the Maldives Government qualition, who was stabbed to death outside his home.

author: Rezwan


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Mali: MOJWA Threatens the Lives of Hostages and French President over Military Intervention  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

The Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA) via its speaker Oumar Ould Hamaha  has threatened the lives of hostages and French President [fr] because of the planned military intervention in Northern Mali that the UN security council has unanimously approved [fr]. Activist associations Coren and the FDR organized a march on October 12 in Bamako [fr] to support the military intervention. After being initially reluctant [fr], Algeria has also approved military actions.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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São Tomé & Príncipe: Deforestation Threatens Biodiversity · Global Voices
Mário Lopes

São Tomé and Príncipe, like other islands in the Gulf of Guinea such as Bioko and Pagalu, is one of the countries on the West African coast that stands out when the issue at hand is biodiversity. For this reason, since the end of the 19th century these “beautiful equatorial islands” have attracted enormous interest from international researchers [pt].
Their forests have been classified by the international organisation WWF as one of the two hundred most important areas in the world in terms of biodiversity. They are the habitat for around 25 species of endemic birds, an extraordinary number and comparable [pt] to the “Galapagos Archipelago (22 species), which is eight times larger than São Tomé and Príncipe, and more than double the number of the Seychelles (11 species), which are slightly smaller than São Tomé and Príncipe”.
The Olive Sunbird – Cyanomitra olivacea. Photo from the blog Apenas a Minha História (used with permission)
In the nineties, Birdlife International included the São Tomé and Príncipe forests in Africa's “Important Bird Areas (IBAs)“, located in the top 25% of the 218 “Endemic Bird Area (EBAs)” in the world.
Making the country a world reference for birds [pt], which are unarguably the most obvious representatives of the immense biological wealth, the islands have been a constant cause for celebration and appreciation, as is the case in the newspaper Jornal Quercus Ambiente [pt], where Martim Pinheiro de Melo affirmed in an article:
As ilhas de São Tomé e Príncipe no Golfo da Guiné teriam certamente fascinado Darwin se ele por lá tivesse passado.
The São Tomé and Príncipe islands in the Gulf of Guinea would have definitely fascinated Darwin if he had gone there.
It was precisely in search of the allure, magic and splendour which the “beautiful equatorial islands” offer visitors with open arms that Portuguese biologist João Pedro Pio went to southwestern São Tomé in July 2012 [pt], to Ribeira Peixe to be exact. His intention was to find birds (the Island Bronze-naped Pigeon, São Tomé Green Pigeon and Maroon Pigeon) and other rare species in danger of extinction, as is the case for the Ibis, which is at the top of the list [pt] as one of the critically endangered endemic birds.
The blog Apenas a minha história [pt], where João Pedro relates his experiences over the course of a year as a foreigner and researcher in São Tomé, describes the scene of devastation he found in the area where it should have still been possible to see the birds:
Bem, quando o transecto começou, numa zona que anteriormente seria floresta cerrada, agora era um descampado enlameado. Já não haviam árvores nenhumas! Foram todas cortadas indiscriminadamente (…) com a excepção de um ou outro Viru-vermelho que permanecia comicamente sozinho no meio de toda aquela destruição, não havia uma única árvore de pé.
Well, when the transect started, in an area that used to be closed forest, it became a muddy clearing. There were already no trees at all! They had all been cut down indiscriminately (…) with the exception of one or two Viru-vermelho remaining comically alone in the middle of all that destruction, there wasn't a single tree standing.
“In the distance a bulldozer works ruthlessly while the whole landscape seems to cry at the destruction.” (Image used with permission.)
Ribeira Peixe, also called Emolve [pt] (after the vegetable oil company), was a large semi-abandoned oil palm plantation, a monoculture that always presented a danger to the island's biodiversity, a danger aggravated above all by the threat to go ahead with plans to rehabilitate and expand the plantation from the current 610 hectares to approximately 5,000 hectares, a fact confirmed [pt] in 2009 when the São Tomean State signed an agreement with Belgian company SOCFINCO for palm oil operation.
João Pedro created the following map of the area:
“The green line marks the border with the Obô National Park. The whole red area is old palm plantation or forest that I have already seen has been cut down. As you can see, there is a lot of forest that used to stand together with the Emolve palms and has now been lost…”
The young researcher wrote that “the Government decided that it would be more profitable for the country to swap all its biodiversity, which is unique in the world, for a few tons of oil”:
O governo de São Tomé e Príncipe assinou um contrato com a Agripalma, cedendo-lhes 5000 ha, ou seja, terra suficiente para que o negócio de venda de óleo de palma se torne rentável. (…) E como se o Ibis e as outras aves endémicas presentes na zona não fossem suficientes para parar o abate descontrolado de árvores, é aqui que se pode observar o fantástico Pico do Cão Grande que, só por si, poderia e devia ser explorado como um foco de atracção turística importantíssimo para São Tomé e Príncipe! Mas não (…)
The São Tomé and Príncipe Government signed a contract with Agripalma giving them 5000 ha, in other words, enough land so that the business of selling palm oil would become cost-effective. (…) And as if the Ibis and other endemic birds in the area were not enough reason to stop the uncontrolled logging, it is here that the fantastic Pico do Cão Grande [Great Dog Peak] mountain can be seen by itself; it could and should be explored as an important tourist attraction for São Tomé and Príncipe! But no (…)
The former International Coordenator of the World Rainforest Movement, Ricardo Carerre [es], in the report titled “Oil palm in Africa: Past, present and future scenarios” explains the processes that led to the 50 – 75 [pt – both links] million dollar deal in exchange for priceless riches.
São Tomé and Príncipe is one of the signatories of the Convention on Biological Diversity and has committed to finding solutions for the preservation of biodiversity. However, citizens and Internet users alike ask themselves if perhaps a study or evaluation has been carried out by a qualified entity on the environmental impact that this monoculture system will have in both the short and long term.
The palm oil may be used for the production of “biofuel” for commercial purposes, but these palm plantations aggressively degrade the environment, absorbing the soil's nutrients and leaving it extremely poor until, in less than two decades, it becomes totally barren land, serving only for scrub growth, which is perfect fuel for fires. Furthermore, the factories that emerge to process this oil typically produce a large amount of contaminating waste, represented by husks, water and fat residues and, as it is presumably a monoculture, it will need a large amount of herbicides, fertilizers and pesticides.
There is the saying “learn from others’ mistakes”, and the benefit of history is that we can learn to not make the same mistake. In Indonesia and Malaysia, for example, entire forests have disappeared with palm oil operations, as if they had never even existed. Close to two million hectares of forest are destroyed annually and the exploitation in question only seems to benefit large farming operations and corrupt governments, the weakest can only look the other way, an occurrence that has been spreading in other developing regions in the world.

author: Mário Lopes


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Spain: Government Insults Judge for Exonerating Protestors  · Global Voices
Lourdes Sada

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.
On October 5th Judge Pedraz's decision [es] to close the case against eight people detained as a result of the 25-S demonstrations in the area surrounding Congress because he could see no indications that a crime had been committed was made public. The Judge's writ criticises politicians, referring to “the perceived decline of the so-called political class.” Amongst other things, in Judge Pedraz's decision we can read:
El hecho de convocar bajo los lemas de rodear, permanecer de forma indefinida …, exigir un proceso de destitución y ruptura del régimen vigente, (…)  e iniciar un proceso de constitución de un nuevo sistema de organización política, económica o social en modo alguno puede ser constitutivo de delito, ya no solo porque no existe tal delito en nuestra legislación penal, sino porque de existir atentaría claramente al derecho fundamental de libertad de expresión (…).
“The fact of organising, under the slogan of surrounding, remaining indefinitely…, demanding a process of dismissal and breaking off with the current regime, (…) and initiating a process of creating a new system of political, economic or social organisation can in no way constitute a crime, not only because no such offence exists in our penal legislation, but because should it exist, it would clearly threaten the fundamental right of freedom of expression (…)”.
These words have not been at all well received in government circles, where the Congress
September 25th protest in Madrid. Photo from the Facebook page «15M: Marcha Bruselas.»
spokesperson Rafael Hernando, in declarations made to Europa Press [es] described the order as “indecent and unacceptable,” and said of the judge that “although he intends to come across as an anarchist ‘pijo’, in reality he is a judge with all the attendant responsibility” (pijo means big-headed, vain, snobby). He also holds him responsible for “any act of intimidation, harassment or aggression which may take place against any representative of national sovereignty.”
This outburst has prompted a great deal of response on the social networks, where the hashtags #pijo, #25s and #hernando became Trending Topics that very afternoon, and on #pijoacrata [posh anarchist], we can read tweets like these:
@GonzoBrios: César, los que vamos a morir acatamos tus resoluciones y no las cuestionamos, pero eres es un #PijoÁcrata.
@GonzoBrios: Cesar, we who are about to die obey your resolutions and do not question them, but you are a #PoshAnarchist.
@jcmisanz: Si eres capaz de decir 3 veces sin respirar “Decadencia de la denominada clase politica” eres un auténtico #PijoAcrata Que lo sepas #25s
@jcmisanz: If you're capable of saying “Decline of the so-called political class” 3 times in a row without breathing, you're a true #PijoAcrata Just so you know #25s
@ROMANSVQ: Wayoming en El Intermedio ha dado en el clavo al dar la definición de #pijoacrata: el pijo que no cree en Dior
@ROMANSVQ: Wayoming on ‘El Intermedio’ has got it just right in giving the definition of a #PoshAnarchist: a posh bloke who doesn't believe in Dior [a play on the Spanish ‘Dios’ for God]
The deputy tried to clarify his words on his Twitter page:
@Rafa_Hernando: La valoracion como acrata pijo del juez Pedraz no es un insulto personal sino la descalificacion d un grave e irresponsable auto
@Rafa_Hernando: My description of Judge Pedraz as a posh anarchist is not a personal insult but the disqualification of a serious and irresponsible writ
This provoked even more responses from internet users:
@LuciaMOdriozola: El #pijoacrata no era el juez, sino el auto. Pues si llega a ser un descapotable…
@LuciaMOdriozola: So the #PoshAnarchist was the writ not the judge. Imagine if it had been a convertible… [play on the word ‘auto’, which can mean both ‘writ’ and ‘car’ in Spanish]
Rafael Hernando, after insulting a deputy on September 12th. Screen grab from a YouTube video
It is not the first time that the deputy Rafael Hernando has made the headlines for his unorthodox behaviour. In 2005 he almost assaulted Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba [es] in the corridors of Congress shouting at him “You don't say that to my face,” and it was only the intervention of two colleagues which prevented him from doing so. On September 12th, he appropriated the words of the writer Ortega y Gasset to insult the IU [Izquierda Unida, a left-wing party] deputy Alberto Garzón, saying: «(…) one does not come to this Parliament to play a clown, nor a tenor, nor a wild boar. I regret having to repeat to you today, in the same terms, this reference,” as one can see in this YouTube video [es].
Some internet users interpreted Hernando's comments as a threat against Judge Pedraz, recalling events which took place with Baltasar Garzón, whose persecution by certain far right groups and animosity from the most reactionary sectors of judicial power have succeeded in removing him from his career as a judge:
@rafagutterman: El facherio irá ahora a por el Juez Pedraz, al igual que hicieron con Garzón. #PIJOÁCRATA#abortemosalPP#aPPorEllos#25s#7Oyovoy
@rafagutterman: The right will now go for Judge Pedraz, just like they did with Garzón. #PIJOÁCRATA#abortemosalPP#aPPorEllos#25s#7Oyovoy
JJM also sees certain parallels between the two judges in his comment on eldiario.es:
Máximo respeto a las decisiones judiciales – siempre que hagan lo que ellos quieren. Al que no se deja instrumentalizar, o es un “pijo ácrata” (qué esfuerzo dialéctico, no le habrá visto pinta de ‘togaflauta’) o se le monta un proceso por prevaricación.
Greatest respect for judicial decisions – as long as they do what they want them to. Those who don't let themselves be manipulated are either “posh anarchists” (what a dialectical effort, he must not have seen him as a ‘togaflauta’) or are prosecuted for prevarication.
This polemic arises in parallel with the controversy provoked by the declarations of the government delegate to Madrid, Cristina Cifuentes, who would like to «modulate» the right to protest [es] (supposedly in order to avoid disturbances to residents of Madrid). Besides, the Euro deputy Mayor Oreja became a trending topic [es] when he said that he believes that it is “foolish for all problems of public order to be televised with television cameras, because they incite people to protest,” and President Rajoy expressed his “recognition for the majority of Spaniards who do not protest,” which also provoked a new avalanche of tweets [es].
With this state of affairs, it is hardly surprising that many Spaniards believe that their liberties are threatened by some politicians who do not like criticism and whose only option appears to be to silence them by force if necessary. As Félix Población says in his blog Diario del Aire:
Front page of the Financial Times on September 27th. Image from the Facebook page «Asamblea virtual»
Cabe la posibilidad, también, de que al emplear el término modular doña Cristina haya querido utilizarlo (…) con la intención acaso de que sean convocadas en Los Monegros o cualquier otro despoblado ámbito de la geografía patria.
A tales emplazamientos no podrían acceder, por supuesto, los medios informativos, según prescripción de Mayor Oreja, de modo que se estimulara así la mayoría silenciosa que tanto valora Mariano Rajoy (…) y toda reivindicación fuera equiparable con un clamor en el desierto.
It is also possible that in using the term modulate, Cristina meant to use it (…) with the intention perhaps that protests would only be called in Los Monegros or some other deserted area of the national territory.
Of course, the media would not be able to access these places, according to the orders of Mayor Oreja, and in this way the silent majority which is so appreciated by Mariano Rajoy would be encouraged (…) and any complaints would be like a cry in the desert.
The behavior of the police during the protests held between September 25th and 29th has attracted severe criticism because of the violence used to suppress protestors, the vast majority of whom were peaceful. This has been reported upon by international media sources such as Aljazeera, the BBC, the Guardian, Euronews [fr] and the Financial Times (see image). The people have not been discouraged, however, with more protests already scheduled for October 13th.
This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.

author: Lourdes Sada


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Sri Lanka: The Future In The Hand Of Young Leaders · Global Voices
Rezwan

Sri Lanka Unites (SLU) is a youth reconciliation movement led by a team of young professionals drawn from different ethnicities and religions in Sri Lanka who are working towards reconciliation, peace, change and are kindling hope. Since 2009 it has built many networks of clubs in schools by visiting them. It has organized workshops, leadership conferences and many more events across the country (see Global Voices report).
The 26 year long civil war has damaged inter-ethnic relationships, especially between the Sinhala majority and Sri Lankan Tamil minority. SLU is a non-political initiative, which is trying to show that reconciliation between these most divided ethnic groups can be possible.
Anita Amendra writes about the movement:
Sri Lanka Unites identifies today’s priority as: ‘How will the youth engage in reshaping the next decades and give leadership to positive changes that must take place?’
The committee and members are young adults, aged 18-30, working on a largely voluntary basis, from all ethnicities and religions. One pursuit is, ‘to motivate young leaders in schools across the country to understand the need for reconciliation in post-war Sri Lanka, and empower them to undertake and give leadership to inter-community reconciliation initiatives in their localities’.
This year SLU's fourth Future Leaders conference took place in Vaddukkoddai, Jaffna from August 28 to September 1. Gnana Moonesinghe was present in that conference and writes:
Who will not be proud when after all the turmoil “a new generation dares to unite the nation”, in an environment where the leaders have become fractious and complacent and are therefore unable to bring sustainable peace to the country.
The young leaders have taken the initiative to provide leadership to bring together over 500 students in the age group of 15 – 18 years from all over the country and to groom them to be the stakeholders of the vision of Sri Lanka Unites.
For People like Yas at Gecko Sri Lanka the conference was a unique opportunity to connect with the people of Sri Lanka in all their diversity. “This in itself I feel has brought me closer to the country as a whole,” comments the blogger. You can see photos of the conference here.
Prashan De Visser, the President of Sri Lanka Unites, writes in a guest post:
Members of our youth movement that number well over 10,000 representing over 70 chapters (including 6 outside Sri Lanka) continue to make an impact. We have a firm conviction that reconciliation is not solely a government mandate but equally a civilian endeavor. With over 70% of Sri Lankan youths without connections or contact with people outside their own ethnic group, we have seen over a thousand leaders participate in the Future Leaders’ Conference and draw their communities closer together, breaking generations of prejudice and misconceptions.
The School Relations tour on October 7, 2012. Image courtesy Sri Lanka Unites
The Sri Lanka Unites team is currently on a Sri Lanka Road Trip visiting schools nationwide. You can read the stories of the trip in Sri Lanka Unites blog. An example is this entry on Day Nine fetauring the recations of their first visit to Keppapillavu, a resettlement camp in Mullativu:
Show You Care Campaign Poster
The tragedy and suffering we witnessed is truly distressing and we're all deeply moved. [..] They have gone through so much and the stories they tell have you inspired by their moral strength. [..] In the words of Windya; “I'd seen and heard about situations like this on TV but this was the first time I'd seen something this grave in real life. If I ever had to live like that, I don't know what I would've done…”
Sri Lanka Unites’ upcoming campaign is the ‘S.H.O.W You Care: Stop Harassment Against Women’ campaign, which is aimed to build trust between communities. The event will feature awareness campaign with a forum theatre and some musical performances. It began as a mobile campaign in a bus in mid June, and it has transformed into an island-wide campaign to eliminate harassment from Sri Lanka as a whole.
Please follow Sri Lanka Unites on its Blog, Twitter, Facebook page, Flickr and YouTube channel.


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United States: Immigration Absent in Vice-Presidential Debate  · Global Voices
Robert Valencia

The debate between the vice-presidential candidates Joe Biden and Paul Ryan took place last night in Danville, Kentucky where as was to be expected, their differences on issues such as the economy, foreign policy, health care and abortion were clearly demarcated.
The debate began with an energetic Biden and a Ryan questioning the Obama administration's role in recent clashes in Egypt and Benghazi, Libya, where the United States ambassador Christopher Stevens was killed. At the end of the debate, some experts stated that Biden's steely posture could boost the Democrats’ campaign which was seriously affected by President Barack Obama's poor performance in the debate on October 4th.
The social networks recorded the smallest details of the debate. Vice-president Biden uttered colloquial phrases such as “Malarkey” which means “nonsense,” in answer to the criticisms that Ryan made of the Obama administration's response to the attacks on the American diplomatic body in Libya.
Joe Biden and Paul Ryan. Photo taken from the video of the debate on YouTube.
In the same way, the constant laughs and gestures made by the vice-president throughout the transmission gathered him around 500,000 mentions on Twitter. Users highlighted the work of the ABC News correspondent Martha Raddatz as moderator of the debate, making her name a trending topic. However, the volume of mentions on the social networks only reached half the number of those made a week ago during the Obama-Romney head-to-head, according to the company Bluefin: Last night's debate got 3.7 million mentions, compared to 11.2 million during the first presidential debate.
In spite of being considered an electrifying and historical debate because this was the first time that two Catholic candidates were to come face to face, some Hispanic users resented the fact that issues such as immigration failed to get a mention. Indeed, it was expected that the two candidates would touch upon this issue, as Aissa García G (@AissateleSUR) reveals:
@AissateleSUR: La curiosidad me atrapa. Debatiran Biden Y Ryan sobre tema migración? Sabemos que tienen posturas encontradas #debate #videpresidencia #EU
@AissateleSUR: I'm curious. Will Biden and Ryan debate the issue of migration? We know they have opposing views #debate #videpresidencia #EU
But, after the debate, users such as Fabian Núñez (@FbianNunez) expressed their objections that the issue of immigration, amongst others, had not been mentioned.
@FbianNunez: Es triste que no se hablara de Latinoamérica ni se tocara el tema de inmigración en el debate de esta noche. #destino2012 #debate2012
@FbianNunez: It's sad that they didn't talk about Latin America or the issue of immigration in the debate tonight. #destino2012 #debate2012
Roberto de Vries (@doctordevries) questions the work of Raddatz in this respect:
@doctordevries: #psicopolítica La moderadora no preguntó nada sobre los latinos ni los problemas de inmigración en el debate Biden/Ryan
@doctordevries: #psicopolítica The moderator didn't ask any questions about the latinos or about the problems of immigration in the Biden/Ryan debate
Lat-Am-Hoy (@LatAmhoy) makes the following statement:
@LatAmhoy: inmigración sigue ausente del debate presidencial en EE.UU
@LatAmhoy: immigration remains absent from the US presidential debate
Armando Avellaneda (@Arravellaneda) states:
@Arravellaneda: Migración y América Latina, grandes ausentes en debate de candidatos a vicepresidentes de Estados Unidos
@Arravellaneda: Migration and Latin America, significant absences in the debate between vice-presidential candidates in the United States
Rebe (@rbk_oceguera) wrote the following:
@rbk_oceguera: El debate fue interesante y muy dinámico. Faltó la referencia obligada para el voto latino a cuestiones de migración.
@rbk_oceguera: The debate was interesting and very dynamic. The reference to questions of migration which is essential for the latino vote was missing.
Aina Ruiz de Azúa (@ainagonzalez) showed her discontent with the debate:
@ainagonzalez: Vaya debate vicepresidencial :( what a vice presidential debate :( dont like it at all !
Others such as Jónatan Sark (@JonatanSark) took the debate with humour:
@JonatanSark: Por cierto, ABC, CBS, NBC y FOX emiten el Debate Vicepresidencial. La CW emite el piloto de “The Beauty and The Beast”, puro oportunismo.
@JonatanSark: By the way, ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX are broadcasting the Vice-presidential Debate. CW is showing the pilot of “The Beauty and The Beast,” pure opportunism.
Jordi Perez Colome (@jordipc) alleges that, if it wasn't for Obama's weak performance in the previous debate, this debate would not be considered important:
@jordipc: Hoy es el debate vicepresidencial: Biden-Ryan. Si Obama no lo hubiera hecho tan mal, tendría menos peso. A las 3am aquí http://www.c-span.org/Debates/Events/VP-Biden–Rep-Ryan-Debate-in-Kentucky/10737434293/ …
@jordipc: Today is the vice-presidential debate: Biden-Ryan. If Obama hadn't done so badly, it wouldn't matter as much. At 3am here http://www.c-span.org/Debates/Events/VP-Biden–Rep-Ryan-Debate-in-Kentucky/10737434293/ …
The second presidential debate will be held next Tuesday 16th October, in which it is hoped that President Obama will come back with greater force, as a result of Governor Mitt Romney's recovery in the last few days.
*Photo taken from a video of the debate, which can be viewed in full here.

author: Robert Valencia


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Bhutan: The Art of Politics · Global Voices
Rezwan

Tshering Tobgay, a leader of opposition party, explains the art of politics in Bhutan.


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China: Drinking Deer Blood · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Some Chinese believe that drinking deer blood can prolong life. ChinaSMACK translated a local report about the cruel business deer farm in China. [Warning: graphic]

author: Oiwan Lam


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China: Mo Yan Speaks Out For Jailed Dissident And Fellow Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

He [Mo Yan] can afford to get sick now — or, to extend the metaphor, at least wear less cumbersome clothing in this frosty and pathogen-plagued environment. Perhaps that’s the best thing the Nobel Committee did by awarding this year’s literature prize to a non-dissident, someone whom Peter Englund of the Swedish Academy said was “more a critic of the system, sitting within the system.” They’ve given him a chance to bust out.
Anthony Tao from Beijing Cream comments on Chinese Nobel Literature Prize winner Mo Yan's wish for jailed dissident and fellow Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo's freedom.


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Global Community: “We Should Not Pay” · Global Voices
Lourdes Sada

[All links lead to Spanish language pages]
On October 13, the initiative #globalnoise, supported by different activist movements such as Occupy Wall Street, Yosoy123, etc., called for a global “pots and pans” protest to let politicians know how they feel about the crisis that is happening around the world. The website #globalnoise coordinated the initiatives of movements and individuals:
Want to join #GLOBALNOISE?
Image taken from the web
Activistas de los movimientos occupy, 15m, indignados, etc comenzaron una campaña para lanzar la acción #globalNOISE #RuidoGlobal, una mani o cacerolada mundial planeada para el 13 de Octubre. La idea es que cada movimiento haga suya la propuesta, usando el método del ruido y el sonido para protestar por lo que ellos crean conveniente.
La cacerolada es un medio de llamar la atención sobre los problemas de nuestra comunidad a los que la estructura de poder no atiende, utilizando un método que es difícil de ignorar. (…)
Activists of the movements Occupy, 15M, Indignants, etc. rang the bell to launch action for the #globalNOISE world community on Oct. 13. The idea is for every activist movement to make a proposal, and use noise and sound to protest for what they believe is right.
The pots and pans protest is a way call to attention to those who are not benefitting from governmental power, utilizing a method that is difficult to ignore.
On the website Disassembling Lies you can read a manifesto with the claims from this citizen initiative, which are, among others:
Many other organizations and websites have united in this initiative- We Want Real Democracy! published a list of organizations that have joined the call in Spain.
This movement has already been called in 130 cities around the world including all of Europe, Mexico, Australia, United States, Canada, and various countries in Latin America. There have also been movements called in some Arabic cities of the world such as Tunis, Cairo, and Ankara. On this interactive map, click on each city to see the dates of each movement and the websites.
On twitter, hashtags including  #GlobalNoise, #O13, #13o, #cacerolada, #OcupaWallStreet or  #CaceroladaGlobal also offer information and related links.


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Greece: Police Post Photos of Youth Detained at General Strike · Global Voices
Maria Sidiropoulou

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.
Twitter users in Greece reacted in outrage over the detention, abuse and public outing of detained youths in the aftermath of one of the biggest anti-austerity demonstrations in the streets of Athens since the signing of the country’s first bailout deal in 2010, on Wednesday, September 26, 2012.
Hundreds of thousands of Greeks responded to a call for a 24-hour general strike by private and public sector unions. Austerity measures, steep new taxes, wage and pension cuts, as well as health cuts were some of the reasons for the wide participation, despite the sweltering temperatures of the day.
Citizen media collective Radiobubble.gr curated live tweets and news links in English from the protests and also liveblogged in Greek. The strike was overwhelmingly peaceful, even though international media once again focused on violence, which was actually limited.
Big workers’ & trade unions rally overflowing Patission street for many blocks. Photo by Asteris Masouras (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Peace in the streets
Many tweeps reporting from the streets agonized over the outbreaks of violence marring the portrayal of the protests in the media:
@mkahlili: Repeat: Do all you can to keep today's protests peaceful, ppl. If it gets violent, *that* becomes the story+ the msg is lost.#26sgr #Greece
@YannisMouzakis: “Violence, clashes, riots” for one of the most peaceful demos in last two years, how about the 10'000s that took to the streets? #Greece
@IrateGreek: #26sgr Dear intl media, plz stop repeating that demos in #Greece today were violent. As usual, the bulk of the demos were peaceful.
Global Voices author and translator Asteris Masouras exhorted for mainstream media to resist focusing on violence:
@asteris: Journo friend responded that MSM are only interested in footage of violence, was asked by a major network for just riot pr0n
@asteris: Once again: riot sensationalism sells ads but don't forget the masses that protested peacefully under scorching sun today in Athens #26SGR
Workers rallying at Syntagma square, in front of parliament. Photo by Asteris Masouras (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Violent dispersal
As the rally approached Syntagma Square near midday, a couple dozen “hoodies”, mostly minors, crashed the rally, with protesters yelling for them to leave. The hoodies hurled rocks and petrol bombs at the police and at the Ministry of Finance, to which police responded as usual by forcefully dispersing everyone, as can be seen in this video:
Protesters march through police “pincer” and teargas at Syntagma square. Photo by Asteris Masouras (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Protesters with anti-nazi banners fleeing from teargas. Photo by Maria Sidiropoulou (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
The crackdown was heavy-handed, with extensive use of teargas and flashbangs, detentions, and physical violence that resulted in injuries to both protesters and police officers:
@RegularGrrrl: The Greek police officially stated that they would not use tear gas against Greek strikers today. They lied. #Greece #26sgr
A large part of downtown Athens was saturated with teargas for hours. CNBC reporter Julia Chatterley tweeted:
@JChatterleyCNBC: Impossible to be outside without gas mask – plenty of people still outside parliament though.. http://yfrog.com/esvssgtj
But even journalists had to face the quandary of either suffocating or facing arrest for wearing a gas mask:
@asteris: TR @ioann_A Credentialed journalist detained for bearing gas mask, released after union intervened #rbnews #Greece #26sgr
Preemptive arrests
Before the rally even started, riot police targeted popular assembly points in remote parts of Athens, and forcefully detained people who gathered to join the main body of the protest. Two days later, police published online the photos and identities of nine youth, aged 18 to 25, who participated – or were about to participate – in the demonstration, charging them with perpetrating violent acts, disturbing the public peace, as well as possessing explosives (petrol bombs) and surgical or gas masks for covering their faces. Some of them were clearly injured, with bruises and casts visible in the photos [el]:
@YiannisBab: Teenagers pre-emptively arrested, bruises and broken hands, that's the true face of our police. #free26sgrpeople http://goo.gl/UXlGf
Twitter users coined the #free26sgrpeople hashtag in solidarity with the detained youths, to denounce the injustice of their arrest, mistreatment and outing:
@Kapafix: Από τηλ. επικοινωνία για τους #free26sgrpeople μερικοί είναι χτυπημένοι, κάποιοι άσχημα ψυχολογικά και 3 μέρες χωρίς “απολογία”.
@Kapafix: After a phone call about #free26sgrpeople, I found out that some have been beaten, some are in an awful psychological condition, held for 3 days without permission to “plea”
@Jaquoutopie: Ελληνική δικαιοσύνη: Συλλήψεις ανηλίκων, χιλιόμετρα μακριά από το συλλαλητήριο πριν αυτό ξεκινήσει, προληπτικά. #free26sgrpeople
@Jaquoutopie: Greek justice: Arresting minors, kilometers away from the demonstration, before it even starts, preemptively. #free26sgrpeople
@Antidrasex: Μπράβο στους μπατσους που έβαλαν τις φωτό των παιδιών φόρα παρτίδα. Ξέρουμε ότι αυτα τα παιδιά δεν έκατσαν στον καναπέ τους #free26sgrpeople
@Antidrasex: Well done to the police for publishing the photos of those kids. We now know those youngsters didn't just sit on their couches #freesgrpeople
Publicly naming youth
Police claimed that publishing the identity of detained youths was a tactic to crowdsource information about any additional criminal activity. Netizens, on the other hand, asserted that publishing photos of protester without evidence of wrongdoing was a strategy to deter anyone intending to join a peaceful demonstration.
@potmos: Δημοσιοποιούνται επιλεκτικά στοιχεία κακοποιημένων πιτσιρικάδων *ακριβώς* για να δοθεί το μήνυμα «μη πατάτε σε διαδηλώσεις» #free26sgrpeople
@potmos: They're selectively outing abused kids *precisely* to put out the message “dont participate in demos” #free26sgrpeople
@aboubouka: οι φωτογραφίες των παιδιών στην ασφάλεια με κάνουν να ντρέπομαι που δεν έχω κάνει αρκετά για να συλληφθώ κι εγώ μαζί τους
@aboubouka: the photos of those kids in detention make me feel ashamed for not having done enough to get arrested along with them
@thesspirit: Στην επόμενη πορεία όλοι με χειρουργικές μάσκες. Δεν μπορούν να μας συλλάβουν όλους. #free26sgrpeople
@thesspirit: At the next demo everybody pack surgical masks. They can't arrest us all. #free26sgrpeople
@MavriMelani: Αν αυτο το κανετε για να φοβηθουμε ολοι οι υπολοιποι ειστε γελασμενοι. Αλλάξτε δουλεια. Πάλι στους δρόμους θα μας βρειτε #free26sgrpeople
@MavriMelani: If you did this to intimidate us, think again. Change your line of work. You'll find us in the streets again. #freesgrpeople
For more related tweets, visit the storify pages below, by Asteris Masouras who contributed to this report:
This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.

author: Maria Sidiropoulou


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Greece: Theater Critic Assaulted by Neo-Nazi and Religious Protesters · Global Voices
Asteris Masouras

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.
Religious groups and neo-nazis protested against gay-themed play Corpus Christi in Athens on 11 October, 2012. Deeming it blasphemous, they assaulted a theater critic and forced the cancellation of the performance. He was attending the premiere and tweeted his experience immediately afterwards. Netizens reacted in shocked outrage, demanding an end to the unchecked spiral of violence perpetrated by neo-nazis in recent months.
Orthdox Christian religious groups had previously attempted in vain to get the play banned in court:
@zairacat: απορρίφθηκε η αίτηση ασφαλιστικών μέτρων παραθρησκευτικών οργανώσεων, κατά της παράστασης corpus christi. κανονικά απόψε η πρεμιέρα.
They called protests, in which members and MPs of the Golden Dawn party took part:
@Inflammatory_: Golden Dawn allegedly protesting in Gazi district of Athens over Corpus Christi, a theater show accused of blasphemy by Greek Church #rbnews
Religious groups protest the premiere of Terrence McNally's play “Corpus Christi” in Athens, 11 October 2012. Photo by Christos K, CC license
According to @stratosathens, theater critic Manolis tweeted a detailed report of his assault and battery by the protesters in full view of apathetic police officers:
@stratosathens: Journalist @manolis says he was beaten by GD members and at least 1GD MP. Police standing by, refused to intervene. #Greece
Several tweeps translated his testimony on the spot. Community news collective radiobubble chronicled attempts to censor Corpus Christi and compiled Manolis’ tweets, translated in English by Aliki:
At the entrance of the theatre, there were Golden Dawn and priests tearing down the show posters and stepping on them. I took out my mobile to take pictures for the blog. 5 Golden Dawners and a cop surrounded me. They ask ‘Are you a journalist?’ [..] They pull me aside, call me ‘faggot’ and ‘queer’, pull my beard, spit in my face, hit me in the stomach.  Cops nearby. I shout “They're beating me, do something?” Reply: I've seen nothing, move along please. The cop's wearing 3 stars. They put a lit cigarette in my pocket. A woman standing near warns me, in front of the cop. He pretends he hasn't heard.  I start to get scared, move away from the entrance. They shout after me ‘Go away, you dirty faggot, go suck someone's cock!’ I turn back to observe. A known Golden Dawn MP follows me, punches me twice in the face, knocks me down. Downed, I lose my glasses. The Golden Dawn MP kicks me. The police are exactly 2 steps away. Their backs are turned. Repeatedly, I shout to the cop “THEY”RE PUNCHING ME, DO SOMETHING!” Back still turned, he walks away. The rest of them shouting at me next to the police officer “Cry, you pussy, queen, little girl” We pass dozens of cops hanging out. I tell them I was beaten at theatre entrance. They ignore me. One blows me a sarcastic kiss.
ON THE WAY TO ITHACA summarized the events of the night, embedding videos that show a Golden Dawn MP launching threats and verbal abuse at the cast and crew of the play. The blogger mused:
I am beginning to wonder if this charade is going to become a weekly thing for as long as the play lasts… And to be honest this is getting a little too spooky for my taste
The incident marked an ominous turn in the outbreak of violence by Golden Dawn members, thus far aimed mostly at immigrants. It has led many to question the state of democracy in the land that gave birth to both it and theater:
@zoemavroudi: Tweeps point out attacks outside of gay-themed play in Athens tonight is 1st organized Golden Dawn targeting of Greeks instead of migrants.
@IrateGreek: #Greece #rbnews LPC @KHatzinikolaou: Theatre owner: Last time a play had police guard was in Junta, don't want to believe it's Junta again.
Shocked and outraged netizens flooded Twitter with messages of support for the victim of the assault, denouncing the police for colluding with neo-nazis, and demanding action from the government, which they held responsible for promoting racism:
@CrippleHorse: Ι am Greek. In my country, the government, the police &the justice system have let loose Golden Dawn, a Nazi gang, free to commit any crime.
@northaura: we demand action MT @IrateGreek: Min Public Order @NikosDendias. Torture. Human shields. Neo-nazi MPs running amok.All on your watch. #Greece
Many pointed out that neo-nazi violence, rampant against immigrants for more than a year, especially since Golden Dawn entered parliament, is now targeting other groups as well:
@nikoxy: Το σόου των νεοναζί στο θέατρο Χυτήριο αποτελεί πρελούδιο για τη μετα-ρατσιστική βία Χρ Αυγής. Οχι μόνο εναντίον ξένων.
@mi_kitas: Αρχικά ήταν οι μετανάστες, μετά ήταν οι αλλόθρησκοι, μετά ήταν οι αριστεροί και οι ομοφυλόφιλοι. Περιμένεις την σειρά σου;#xytirionow
@Kat_McKork: Ας αφήσουμε αυτά τα “πρώτα οι μετανάστες, μετά οι ομοφυλόφιλοι, μετά εσύ” δεν είναι αυτός ο λόγος, το “μετά εγώ”. Δεν πρέπει να είναι. Όχι.
Another theatergoer during the same night who was met with hate and derision by protesters chronicled her attempts to reason with them in her blog, Invisible Ink:
My efforts, and the Atheist Union t-shirt I was wearing, attracted the attention of protesters who started to comment:
“What does she want? To see the play?”
“She's a lesbian and wants to see the fags?”
“Look at her t-shirt! Atheist Union!”
“She's an atheist!” [..]
“You want to see the faggots? They're faggots! Perverts!”
“They swear against our Christ, our Virgin Mary!”
“How do you know? Have you seen it?”
“No, but so they told me. They told me it swears against our Christ. It must be banned!” [..]
“Hey, don’t waste your time on her, she’s not worth it.  She’s trash.”
“Get out of here, Albanian!”
“I'm Greek.”
“Greek? True Greeks don't do such things! You're Albanian!” [..]
“Listen here, bitch, we are Greek Christian fascists! 90% of Greeks are Christian fascists, understand?  As a fascist, i have the right to tell you to get out of here.”
“As a fascist, you have the strength, but not the right.”
The combined effect of the relentless debt crisis and austerity, the mounting police and neo-nazi violence with impunity have left many Greek netizens aghast, forlorn of hope and feeling forced to leave the country. But some vow to persevere, in spite of it all:
@thesspirit: Πιστεύω στους θεσμούς κ τον άνθρωπο. Πιστεύω ότι η λύση μπορεί να είναι μόνο πολιτική κ ότι η βία γεννάει βία. Αλλά σήμερα πιστεύω λιγότερο.
@tinaletina: #Greece 2012, Nazi & state violence: some will give up, some will leave, some of us will stay n defend our dignity and lives. Fighting back.
Check out more curated tweets and links on this story by the author on Storify.
This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.

author: Asteris Masouras


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India: Lending Voice to Social Campaigns Through Street Plays  · Global Voices
Aparna Ray

Ten years after college, when a group of friends with a passion for theatre decided to collaborate and put up a play at a community theatre festival, a spark was lit. On 23rd January, 2011, their first performance as an independent theatre group saw the birth of Aatish (which means ‘fire’ or ‘fireworks) – a theatre group “aiming to lend a voice to issues that are often marginalized”.
The Delhi-based group Aatish is best known for their street plays, though they also conduct workshops with marginalized, underprivileged groups. Their Facebook page explains the group's raison d‘être as follows:
Born out of those people who firmly believe that voicing one’ beliefs is crucial, we are all theatre actors. We believe that change is each and everyone's responsibility, and whoever wishes to see it, needs to add their bit, to see it.
[…] We believe in vocalizing and bringing to fore not only our opinions, but also the different issues that plague our society at large, and the few steps that can be taken towards larger and greater solutions.
Till date, the group has scripted and performed street plays that deal with issues such as women's empowerment, child labour, children's education, usage of solar energy, the need to vote, examining the state of democracy, anti-sedition etc. They have partnered with non-profit, grassroots organizations and conducted workshops in Delhi as well as in rural areas – spreading awareness regarding critical issues such as menstrual hygiene and post-natal care. The group also conducts workshops with children, often among those living in shelters run by NGOs, where they not only inspire children to perform and learn acting skills but also tackle serious issues such as child abuse.
Aatish performs a play on post-natal care in a village in Northern India. Image by Ravi Kant, taken from the Group's Facebook Page. Used with permission.
Global Voices caught up with Ankita Anand, founder member of the group and asked her via Email to tell us about Aatish in greater detail. Here is an excerpt from the interview:
GV: What made Aatish focus on social issues and street plays?
Ankita: We felt that not enough street theatre is being done currently. In different people’s campaigns and struggles, so much hard work is done by activists and when they try to sensitize people to such developments that are often not highlighted or mis-projected by the mainstream media, they face challenges. We thought of employing it (street theatre) because visual impressions are strong.
We wanted to creatively mould our anger and frustration with what is happening in the Indian State unbeknownst to so many who are fed with false hopes and visions of incredible India. The idea is not to prophesy apocalypse but for all of us to sit up, take notice and get in on the act. The very fact that we do these plays with no props, lights or sets—by transforming our ordinary bodies and physical spaces like street corners into something less routine—is our way to assert that the regular, routine, seemingly mundane has immense potential and should not be undermined or rejected in waiting for something extraordinary to descend and transform our lives.
We also want to break down the myth that street plays cannot be used to treat the nuances or subtleties of a complex theme. We have done plays on issues like sedition and the stereotypes associated with motherhood and have had engaging discussions with our audience. Also, we want that theatre should not be confined to big auditoria but should reach a much wider audience.
The Aatish Team engages a rural audience in a post-play discussion. Image by Ravi Kant, taken from the Group's Facebook Page. Used with permission
GV: How do you select where to stage these performances? Do you work with other NGOs in this respect? How do you select your themes?
Ankita: Our performances so far have been in collaboration with other host organizations.We are invited by organizations working on particular issues to stage plays around those themes. While their suggestions and ideas are important to us, the scripting and directing is done by us and we take decisions regarding the final content and presentation.
We choose our performances on topics close to us that are often marginalized but about which we want to take a stand, in a small effort to lend our voice to a cause that needs it the most.
GV: What kind of response/ awareness/ change do you want to effect in the audience?
Ankita: We hope to see two kinds of change. First, we want that there should be motivation to act about the issues portrayed. Secondly, theatre should be seen as something creative but doable and accessible. So we want more and more people to start doing their own kind of theatre and using it both for individual and social improvement.
An Aatish street play urging people to be responsible citizens and cast their votes. Image by Richa Chaturvedi, taken from the Group's Facebook Page. Used with permission.
GV: Currently, what are the biggest challenges that Aatish faces? Do you have any vision/plans regarding how they can be overcome?
Ankita: The challenges we face are common to every voluntary group. The group has members with full-time jobs. We have to spend a lot of time deciding upon the rehearsal venue and time because we have to consider everyone’s limitations. We do not have a permanent rehearsal space.
As people with full-time jobs, we realize how tough it is to get involved in other things. But we also know it is possible and that the rewards are rich. Aatish is not a hobby for us. Nor do we see it as merely a theatre group. It is a collective manifestation of what we wanted to do individually, a way of putting our thoughts into actions. We feel that while all of us need to earn a living, it should not stop us from living itself.
GV: Where do you see Aatish going from here?
Ankita: While street plays are close to our heart, we also mean to push the limits of expression and storytelling, and experiment with new forms. We have done one stage play so far but there are others ideas lined up. We only want that in such plays too our politics should be clear and for them to be made in a way that they can easily be performed in open spaces as well.

author: Aparna Ray


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Japan: “Global Noise” Against the IMF · Global Voices
Keiko Tanaka

A flyer shared by Global Noise Tokyo
In Japan, a series of actions to protest against the International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings are being called for by Global Noise Tokyo and @OccupyTokyoJp on October 13, 2012. More about Global Noise around the world can be found here.

author: Keiko Tanaka


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Pakistan: Who Are The Taliban? · Global Voices
Rezwan

Taimoor Mughal at Teeth Maestro provides a holistic view about the categories of Talibans in Pakistan.


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Saudi Arabia: Women2Drive Steps Up Tone; Blames Government Policies · Global Voices
Anas Soliman

Manal al-Sharaif is a Saudi women rights activist, best known for her role in Women2Drive campaign. In May 2011, she uploaded a video clip of herself, challenging the ban on driving.  Following the clip, she was arrested by the secret police for nine days, during which, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and other international groups called for her release.
Women2Drive, later renamed Right2Dignity, has been campaigning for lifting the ban on women's right to drive by calling for days in which women get behind the wheel and supporting lawsuits against the Interior Ministry for refusing to grant women driving licenses. They have also sent appeals to Saudi monarch King Abdullah, hoping for reform.
However, one position they have not explicitly stated until very recently: blaming the government of the absolute monarchy, which is, in fact, the only one that can end discrimination imposed by the government itself.
In her speech at San Francisco Freedom Forum 2012 on September 28th, al-Sharif stated:
More importantly, calls for change from the people are not welcomed at all in an absolute monarchy that demands allegiance from its citizens by professing to be the sole protectors of their faith and welfare. […] I was under the false impression that Saudi society was opening up and that the government was also pushing towards more opportunities for women, but I guess I miscalculated.
These remarks come in agreement with a Right2Dignity statement that was issued on August 31st, which was the first to explicitly blame the government for preventing women from driving:
Unfortunately our government has contradicted its own Basic Law of Governance.  The State discrimination is based on gender so that men are granted the right to freedom of movement and even adolescents and children driving is tolerated while women are strictly prohibited. This is unjust. This is also not complying with the Basic Law of governance of the country.
The Internet has played a huge role in giving Saudi women and the supporters of the Women2Drive, and later on the Right2Dignity, campaigns a voice.

author: Anas Soliman


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Serbia: Wikimedia CEE Meeting 2012 · Global Voices
Danica Radovanovic

Wikimedia CEE Meeting 2012 took place in Belgrade on October 13–14, 2012, and is the first Wikimedia CEE Meeting for Central and Eastern Europe. The primary goal of the event is to intensify cooperation among the Wiki communities, Wikimedia chapters, and other interested groups from Central and Eastern Europe. The program included presentations and workshops on the themes related to the Wikimedia movement, as well as keynote addresses by speakers from outside the movement. You can find the live documentation here.

author: Danica Radovanovic


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Sierra Leone: Is Ami Musa the Saddest Pinterest Page in the World? · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

One blog, Lovelyish, considers a Pinterest campaign by UNICEF UK to raise awareness about children living in poverty in Africa “the saddest Pinterest page in the world.” The campaign involves a 13-year-old girl Ami Musa from Kenema District, Sierra Leone.
Pinterest profile, Ami Musa, from Sierra Leone.
Pinterest is an online pinboard website that allows users to create, manage and share image collections of events, humor, interests, etc. Users can re-pin or like images.
Ami Musa's board titled “Really Want These” has images of basic needs that she wants with the message:
This is what 13-year-olds like Ami from Sierra Leone really want. Repin to remind people of what the world’s poorest children dream of. www.unicef.org.uk…
The images show that what she really wants are basic necessities such as clean water, food, school supplies and clothing.
Each pin is linked to a donation page that says:
Children like Ami need basics that many of us take for granted: food, education, healthcare, a clean supply of water.
Your donation can help us provide these and other essentials. Thank you.
Lovelyish says that the campaign reminds people of what poor children dream of:
Ami Musa needs shoes. Image source: Ami Musa's Pinterest page.
While many of us pin hairstyles that we like, tips for making our smaller bathroom look larger and ways to make a recipe better, Ami Musa's board, titled “Really want these.” reminds people of what the world's poorest children dream of: food, clean water, basic clothing and the opportunity to learn.
I'm not going to lie, when I found this board and clicked back to my homepage, which mainly consists of designer wear that I admire and graphic design work, I cried. Most of us truly do not realize how lucky we are.
Jan Angevine, a Pinterest user, comments on the page:
I lived in Asia for a year. The first thing that struck me when I returned ot the U.S. and walked into the Los Angeles airport was that every, single, person wore shoes. I cried.
Ami Musa wants education. Image source: Ami Musa's Pinterest page
Another user, Michelle LeBlanc, says:
Great campaign to put all of my “wants” in perspective.
Hilton Foundation congratulates UNICEF UK for creative use of Pinterest:
Congratulations on a really creative use of Pinterest! Hope it wins you even more fans.
Tom Murphy argues that Pinterest represents a bit of a brave new world for NGOs to reach newer audiences:
The pins were sent out at the beginning of September, a point in time that coincided with the developing cholera outbreak in Sierra Leone and Guinea. Each received over 100 repins, over 40 likes and a handful of comments.
Pinterest represents a bit of a brave new world for NGOs to reach newer audiences. There is an opportunity for fundraising because the majority of the audience is quite homogenous. Over 2/3 of Pinterest users are women, roughly half are between 25 and 44 years of age and a quarter have an annual household income above $100k (not really sure how this is calculated). All that adds up to potential donors.
Marion aan ‘t Goor at Viral Blog asks, “Pinterest Campaigns: Effective Or Overhyped?”:
I need food. Image source: Ami Musa's Pinterest page.
The question is, will UNICEF receive more donations, solely by setting up this campaign on Pinterest? Or are they just using the buzz around Pinterest without thinking about what they want to achieve? The “really want these” board contains only 9 pins, the last one dated 2 weeks ago. Some might say UNICEF should keep Ami’s account up to date, by showing followers images of possible improvements of circumstances children like Ami are living in, because of donations made. Others say the possibility for users to repin the photos that are already pinned and virally spread them across the platform makes updating the account with new photos unnecessary.
Either way, all we really know is that awareness was raised among Ami’s 915 followers, because the pins were repinned several hundred times. But is this enough to speak of a successful campaign, despite of the fact UNICEF did not actively involve Facebook or Twitter?
Tom Murphy concludes his post by saying:
Who is going to truly innovate on the ways that issues are discussed with the public in a manner that is not just a slick repackaging of Live Aid?

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Zambia: YouTube Documentary on Negative Impact of Copper Mining · Global Voices
Gershom Ndhlovu

A documentary on Zambian copper mining and its negative impact on society has emerged on YouTube and has so far attracted over 6,000 hits.
The clip “Zambia: Good Copper, Bad Copper” was first reported in the blogosphere by the Zambian Economist. Chola Mukanga, the creator of the blog, wrote:
A powerful documentary on the economic plunder of copper mining in Zambia and the associated environmental damage. These are issues we have discussed many times on this website but it is good to see them brought together in this video. The video was produced April 2012. Sadly, it takes non-Zambian journalists to put a documentary like this together. Where are our investigative journalists?
A number of netizens have reacted to the clip. George Chisenga responded:
i really do not even know what to say but all i can say is that i feel so disgusted and i really do not know what we can do and what we shall do to make the dice fall in our favor as zambians one day
TheJosok bemoaned:
Cry our beloved country.
Why should we remain poor when a coveted product is plenty and mined at the expense of the locals’ health
Map of Zambia showing the copper mining area in Zambia. Image released by Wikipedia user Acntx  under Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).
gogohasme2 wrote:
[…] i am zambian too and after watching this i think we need to come up together and try to fight for our country and not just watch the video and let go we need to come up with something,we are not going to say MMD OR PF HAVE DONE THIS ,,we can stand up and let our voices be heard ..
The least Zambians can hope for is that political leaders in the country not only get to watch the documentary but do something about it as well.

author: Gershom Ndhlovu


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Angola: Elinga Theatre, from Glory to Oblivion  · Global Voices
Vania Negrao

The curtain rises for a voyage into the world of theatre and in this moment we escape reality and open the doors to a dreamworld where the unexpected becomes the backdrop. For 24 years the Elinga Theatre in Luanda opened the doors to this dream and allowed thousands of people to enter into the magic of theatre. Its opening is often confused with the birth of theatre in Angola.
Considered as one of the only spaces in Luanda dedicated to theatre, the association always remained open to the promotion and development of theatre and of the imagination. Just like other historical buildings surrounding it, the theatre is now about to disappear, letting the curtain fall definitively, to give way to modernisation.
In an article for Le Monde newspaper, the journalist Christophe Châtelot says that [pt]:
Um importante centro da cultura angolana, vai desaparecer, como tantas casas antigas do centro da capital. Os arranha-céus, esses, crescem como cogumelos e deslocam para os subúrbios, a toque de bulldozers selvagens e de bastonadas da polícia, os musseques, essas favelas angolanas sem água nem eletricidade em que se amontoa a maior parte dos 6 a 7 milhões de habitantes de Luanda.
An important centre for Angolan culture will disappear, just like so many other old houses in the centre of the capital. The skyscrapers, on the other hand, grow like fungus and move into the suburbs, accompanied by savage bulldozers and police beatings, to the ‘musseques’, those Angolan favelas without water nor electricity in which the majority of Luanda's 6 to 7 million inhabitants crowd together.
Elinga Theatre, photo by Stef Meaow published on the site Buala under CC licence(BY-NC-SA)
The building was built in the 19th century, a ‘living’ symbol of the passage of the Portuguese through Angolan lands, and was declared a historical monument by the Angolan Minister for Culture. However, in April this year this status was rescinded in order to make way for the Elipark building project, which will comprise a car park, offices and a hotel.
The threats to demolish the building which houses the theatre have given rise to negative reactions on the social networks. On his blog “Morro da Maianga”, journalist Reginaldo Silva emphasised [pt]:
Uma batalha antiga do “gangue do betão armado” que está prestes a ser ganha. Um decreto da ministra dá o dito pelo não dito ao dizer que já não há mais história naquele edifício. Acabaram-se as histórias por ali. Agora história é outra. Por este andar (…) a baixa histórica de Luanda vai desaparecer completamente dentro de 20 anos ou menos. Espero ainda estar vivo para apagar a luz e fechar a porta.
An ancient battle of the “armed gang of concrete” which is about to be won. A minister's decree goes back on its word by saying that there is no longer any history in this building. That kind of history has come to an end. Now history is something else. At this rate (…) Luanda's historical downtown area will completely disappear in 20 years or less. I hope to still be alive to turn off the light and close the door.
Photo shared on the Facebook page of the Elinga Theatre.
One of the Elinga Theatre's founders, actor Orlando Sérgio, speaking to the newspaper Público, said that [pt] “the building and the way in which it was experienced have given a unique feel to the city's downtown area, so, some day, Luanda will be just like so many other cities”.
The director and playwright José Mena Abrantes, in a note on Facebook, tells the story and trajectory of the Elinga Theatre:
O grupo Elinga-Teatro (do umbundo ‘elinga’, que significa acção, iniciativa, exercício) foi criado no dia 21 de Maio de 1988. A sua existência inscreve-se, no entanto, numa linha de continuidade iniciada com o grupo Tchinganje (1975/76) e prosseguida com o Xilenga-Teatro (1977/80) e com o Grupo de Teatro da Faculdade de Medicina de Luanda (1984/87).
De comum entre todos, a presença do mesmo director artístico, a activa participação de um núcleo de actores (…) e, acima de tudo, um mesmo projecto de teatro, voltado para o resgate e promoção da cultura angolana a todos os níveis, incluindo um tratamento moderno dos seus valores tradicionais, e para a difusão de um repertório teatral universal.
De um propósito vincadamente interventivo do ponto de vista político, em que o teatro foi utilizado principalmente como instrumento de mobilização e consciencialização popular (Tchinganje), passou-se a uma etapa em que começou a ser dada ênfase a uma função expressiva mais elaborada (Xilenga e grupo de Medicina), até à fase actual, em que a pesquisa de linguagens novas e a experimentação se tornaram dominantes (Elinga).
The Elinga Theatre group (from the umbundo ‘elinga’, meaning action, initiative, exercise) was created on May 21st 1988. Its existence, however, follows in a long line which began with the Tchinganje group (1975/76), succeeded by the Xilenga Theatre (1977/80) and the Theatre Group of the Luanda Faculty of Medicine (1984/87).
Common to all of these initiatives is the presence of the same artistic director, the active participation of a nucleus of actors (…) and, above all, a single theatre project, aimed at rescuing and promoting Angolan culture at all levels, including a modern treatment of its traditional values, and at spreading a universal theatrical repertoire.
From a pronouncedly proactive purpose from a political standpoint, whereby the theatre was used primarily as an instrument of popular mobilisation and awareness-raising (Tchinganje), it then moved into a phase in which the emphasis began to fall on a more elaborate expressive function (Xilenga and the Medicine group), right up to the current phase, in which the investigation of new languages and experimentation became dominant (Elinga).
Internationally recognised, the Elinga has performed plays in 8 countries including Mozambique, São Tomé, Spain and Portugal. Nothing suggested that the theatre and, as a consequence, the cultural hub where numerous events linked to art and culture are held, were to be wrapped up.
In 2009 the Theatre's members had already received an eviction order from the Provincial Housing Board, in which it was stated that the rental contract on the space had come to an end. At that time the plan to reorder the Luanda Marginal and to build a five-star hotel was still in progress.
Contained within an “old house” which always needed work, the old building and cultural heritage site of the Angolan people also had an area dedicated to art, music concerts and dance. Numerous plays were performed at the Elinga, plays which will be remembered forever, such as “The Wardrobe and the Bed”, a comedy about the mistakes made in love and friendship.
At the current time it is not known where the new home of the Elinga will be, and a farewell to the theatre's magic seems ever nearer.

author: Vania Negrao


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Argentina: Guarani Leader Wins International Rural Women’s Day Prize · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Fionuala Cregan reports that Matilde Lucio, an indigenous leader in a Guarani community in Jujuy, in northern Argentina, “will be awarded one of 10 international prizes for her creativity in rural life” on October 15, International Day of Rural Women. Read more about Matilde and her story in Upside Down World.

author: Silvia Viñas


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Barbados: “Modest” Proposals for Political Reform · Global Voices
Matthew Hunte

Instead of adopting policies merely to “keep up” with the rest of the world, we need to adopt a system which enables for maximum prioritization in preemptive motioning for our country’s long term future.
“Brudah Bim” offers some proposals to reform Barbados’ political system.

author: Matthew Hunte


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Blogger’s Visit to Tokyo’s Rare Korean Book Center · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

North Korea Tech blogger posted about his visit to a small and rare book center in Japan archiving documents and contents related to North Korea.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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China: Cross-province News Censorship · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Jing Gao from Ministry of Tofu explains how the Fujian government extended its black hand to Yunnan to stop the publication of a news story that exposes the corruption of a Fujian government official.


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China: Is Mo Yan a Stooge of the Chinese Government? · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Mo may not be a ‘dissident’ in the model of Liu Xiaobo or Vaclav Havel, but his work is filled with depictions of the venality, cruelty, and stupidity of power and authority.
Brendan O'Kane from Rectified.name explains why 2012 Nobel Literature Prize winner Mo yan is NOT a stooge for the Chinese government.


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Costa Rica Advances in Legislation for Wildlife Protection · Global Voices
Jenny Cascante Gonzalez

On October 10, 2012, President Laura Chinchilla signed a decree that strengthens the controls on shark finning in Costa Rican waters. Although shark finning is illegal in Costa Rica since 2001, some gaps in current legislation allow the sale of shark fins. The aim of the decree is to outlaw the import of shark fins to the country in order to avoid the sale and export.
The announcement was received with great joy by environmentalists, NGOs and hundreds of citizens who had sent letters to the Executive Power of the Republic to raise awareness of such painful practice. As expressed by Carol Corrales in a post for Rainforest Radio [es]:
El aleteo de tiburón es una práctica devastadora y cruel, donde los tiburones son mutilados para extraerles sus aletas, y luego devueltos al mar ya sin ellas, donde el animal muere después de sufrir una nefasta agonía
Shark finning is a cruel and devastating practice where sharks are mutilated to extract their fins, and then returned to the sea without them, where the animal dies after suffering a desperate agony
Shark Photo by Flickr user Philippe Guillaume, under Creative Commons license (CC BY 2.0)
Positive comments reacting to the President signing the decree are visible on Twitter under the hashtag #NOALALETEO (“No to finning”). Such is the case of Marianela Castro (@necascru) [es] who tweeted:
@necascru:#noalaleteo Cero tolerancia al aleteo! que la ley se cumpla! Arriba las criaturas de nuestros mares! Vida libre a nuestra biodiversidad! #CR
@necascru: #noalaleteo Zero tolerance for finning! May the law be executed! Long live the creatures of our seas! Free life to our biodiversity! #CR
But this is not the only good news in the field of wildlife protection for Costa Ricans. On October 2, the Legislative Assembly approved the first reading of a reform for the Wildlife Conservation Law, which proposes the elimination of hunting sports in the country. The project was sponsored by the Association for the Preservation of Flora and Fauna (Aprelofas) and if it is approved in the second debate, Costa Rica would be the first nation in Latin America to criminalize this practice.
This project was supported by the citizens with up to 177,000 signatures in a petition that formed an important endorsement for the law. Under the motto “Hunting is Killing,” a large number of supporters joined the popular initiative, which is the first one at a national level to reach the Congress.
The blog “Generación Rebelde” (Rebel Generation) [es] describes the event as “a party for wildlife” [es] and finishes its post with a statement:
“Nosotros lo celebramos. Y nos disponemos a estar vigilantes para que cualquier intento por derogarla sea desechado y para que se cumpla al pie de la letra.”
“We celebrate it. And we will be vigilant so that any attempt to invalidate the law are discarded and so that it is observed to the letter.”
Congressmen who opposed the law in the first debate received strong criticism. As Susan wrote in Maecr’s blog [es]:
“En Costa Rica, matar animales silvestres para comer? En la edad de piedra quizás. El asunto de la caza deportiva y sus intereses, es el que entre palabras rebuscadas probablemente trata de esconder.
[…]
Se aproximan elecciones, quizás la mayoría no las siente tan cerca, pero es importante reflexionar y decidir bien a quienes les entregamos el poder, qué sujetos se van a sentar cómodos, con buenos salarios a elegir y decidir por TODOS los demás”
“In Costa Rica, killing wildlife to eat? Perhaps in the Stone Age. The issue of sport hunting and hidden interests relies between big words where they are probably trying to hide it.
[…]
National Elections are approaching, maybe most of the people do not feel it that close, but it is important to think and wisely decide who would we rather grant power to, who will just comfortably sit there, with good salaries, to choose and decide for EVERYONE else”
Tweets about the law can be read under the hashtag #LeydeVidaSilvestre [es] (Wildlife Law).
“Hanging Around”. Photo by Flickr user marissa_strniste, under Creative Commons license (CC BY 2.0)

author: Jenny Cascante Gonzalez


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Controversy over Nobel Peace Prize to European Union · Global Voices
Lourdes Sada

The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the European Union (EU) has sparked a lively debate in the media and on social networks in Europe and the rest of the world.
On October 12, The Nobel Committee announced the EU as this year's winner. It came as a surprise because the EU had not even been among the favorites for the award. According to the committee, the EU deserves the prize:
Prize motivation: “for over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe”
The evolution of the European Union began with creation of the name European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), in line with the project led by Robert Schuman and Jean Monnet, who together wrote the Schuman Declaration. The following is a quote from the declaration:
The member states of the EU are in blue, candidates for membership are in orange. Image from Wikipedia licensed by CC BY-SA 3.0
Europe will not be made all at once, or according to a single plan. It will be built through concrete achievements which first create a de facto solidarity. The coming together of the nations of Europe requires the elimination of the age-old opposition of France and Germany.
On March 25, 1957, the ECSC decided to go one step further, forming the European Economic Community (EEC) that expanded the powers/competition of the common market to other goods. In the following years, common policies were created and the number of members was increased, until the European Union came to be what it is today, with 27 members, its own parliament, an administration that acts as a legislature for all countries. Both physical and trade borders have been eliminated between these countries (Schengen Area).
The prize comes at a time when social rights achieved by Europeans in years of political stability are suffering a major setback because of the economic crisis that has highlighted the discord among member states. The most prosperous countries of the north blame the crisis on Southern countries [es], calling them wasteful and corrupt, while the poorer Southern countries complain about austerity measures imposed by the north, accusing them of impeding growth and keeping them in such an extreme situation.
The Germans call the Greeks «cheaters of the European family». The Greeks accuse the Germans of being hypocrites and participating in its huge debt since 1945. Photo courtesy of the blog cafebabel.es
Within hours following the announcement, news, commentaries and articles flooded the internet in favor and against the award. On Twitter, where the hashtag #nobel has continued to be a trending topic in countries such as Spain, France, Italy and the United Kingdom, the majority of messages oscillate between skepticism and flat out rejection.
@alobatof1: Premio Nobel de la paz a la Union Europea… Menos mal que no le han dado el de Economia…
Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the European Union…At least they didn't win the Economy award…
@pedrolanteri: Nobel de la Paz a la Union Europea, proximo año al Oceano por ser tan Pacifico
Nobel Peace Prize to the European Union, next year to the Ocean for being so Pacific.
montxoarmendari: La Unión Europea gana el premio Nobel de la Paz :( ¿Por recortes y las armas que venden a otros países?
The European Union wins the Nobel Peace Prize :( For budget cuts and for the weapons they sell to other countries?
@AlberZeal: La Unión Europea premio Nobel de la paz. Qué escándalo. Qué será lo próximo, ¿al presidente de los Estados Unidos? Oh. Espera. Ya.
European Union wins Nobel Peace Prize. What a scandal. Who will be the next winner? The President of the United States? Oh. Wait. That already happened.
Those who support the award argue that in reality, the Nobel has been awarded to a long-term project whose most significant success has been the longest period of peace among the member states. Indeed, the member states of the EU have not suffered a war since World War II. Dylan Matthews provides his perspective in his article Five reasons why the EU deserved the Nobel Peace Prize:
Ruins in Colon (Germany) in 1945. Photo courtesy of alfonsopozacienciassociales.wikispaces.com licensed by CC BY-SA 3.0
1. But seriously, Germany hasn't invaded France in 70 years.
2. It made the continent —especially poor countries— richer. And that stopped war.
3. It has spread democracy, and democracies don't fight each other.
4. It started a process that will keep hurtling toward more integration.
5. It makes people think of themselves as European.
On the contrary, David Swanson argues that the EU did not deserve the award on the website Dissident Voice:
[The EU] has not during the past year — which is the requirement — or even during the past several decades done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations. Ask Libya. Ask Syria. Check with Afghanistan. See what Iraq thinks. (…)
The West is so in love with itself that many will imagine this award a success. Surely Europe not going to war with itself is more important that Europe going to war with the rest of the world!
Maureen K. Reed, American and Executive Director of the Nobel Peace Prize Forum tells us:
Emigrantes europeos llegan a la isla de Ellis en 1902. Foto de Wikipedia con licencia CC BY-SA 3.0
Are there consequences of this 2012 Prize or lessons to learn from it? Europe is an example of why we should hesitate before dismissing any endemically conflict-ridden region as “hopeless.” A hundred years ago our European great-grandmothers might well have characterized Europe as hopeless. In fact, it’s precisely the reason why many of them left. All the pessimism directed towards Europe in 1912 has parallels in other parts of the world today. Somalia? The Middle East? Burma? The EU’s prize reminds us that pessimism is premature, and no region or people should be written off simply because conflict has existed for centuries.
Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party, wrote in Express [en]:
One final thought, maybe they handed the prize to the EU, because they couldn’t wait. Nobel prizes cannot be awarded posthumously.
Finishing with a positive thought, we end with a quote from Carlos Salas on La información.com [es]:
[La UE] Ha sido la mayor integración voluntaria de pueblos en la historia de la Humanidad sin existir una grave amenaza exterior.
[The EU] Has been the largest voluntary integrator of people in the history of Humanity without the existence of a serious external threat.


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Hong Kong: A Fight between Dogs and Locusts  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

In reaction to the “locust” label put on mainland Chinese by some Hong Kong people, a mainland Chinese student in Hong Kong recently called Hongkongers “dogs”. Dictionary of politically incorrect Hong Kong Cantonese translated the fight.


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India: Online Video Archive for Performing Arts · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

“Shabda” means “sound” or “speech” in Sanskrit, and it is the name given to a unique online archive of videos presenting lecture demonstrations on various Indian art forms.
Started by three musicians, T.M. Krishna, H.K. Venkatram and Shriram Kumar, Shabda aims to bring Indian arts and culture to a wider audience.
Inspired by the TED talk format, Shabda's creators invite experts in music, dance or theatre to give a lecture on the topic of their choice for twenty minutes.
A Shabda event has six to eight speakers, including talks for both scholars and those less knowledgeable about Indian arts. The founders hope that as well as being a source of information, the site will become a constructive, interactive community.
The lectures, which are all in English, cover a wide range of subjects. In the first Shabda talk, Lakshmi Vishwanathan demonstrated how a Bharatanatyam dancer can effectively use music to enhance and elevate a dance performance.
Professor V.V. Subramaniam presented a lecture demonstration on how the essence of music is interpreted and performed on the violin.
Brigha Bessel showed how expressive techniques are used by a Bharatanatyam dancer.

author: Ayesha Saldanha


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Indonesia: Setback in the Fight Against Illegal Drugs? · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Multibrand questions the sincerity of the Indonesian government in fighting illegal drugs after a drug trafficker was granted clemency by the president.

author: Mong Palatino


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It’s Blog Action Day! Celebrate the “Power Of We” · Global Voices
Solana Larsen

Every year, bloggers around the world join forces and write about one topic, on one day, to reach a collective audience of millions. It's Blog Action Day today (October 15, 2012) and this year bloggers around the world are reflecting on “The Power of We” – when people get together to make the world a better place. To participate, you can register your own blog on  Blog Action Day's website. They also have a liveblog and a Tumblr blog where they track all contributions. On Twitter, the hashtag to watch is #BAD12.
On Global Voices, you'd think it was Blog Action Day every day, since we're always sharing new information about online movements and brave people everywhere. We warmly support a day to reflect on “the power of we” and any initiative that shows how bloggers can make a difference together.
We'll be updating this post throughout the day with links to all #BAD12 entries by Global Voices contributors.

author: Solana Larsen


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Jamaica: Who’s a Minority? · Global Voices
Matthew Hunte

The sad irony of race in Jamaica is that numerical minorities tend to hog the majority of social space in so many arenas.
Carolyn Cooper deals with the response to her column dealing with the projection of a multiracial Jamaica.


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Madagascar: Global Voices in Malagasy Reaches Milestone  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Lingua Project Global Voices in Malagasy
Lingua project Global Voices in Malagasy has just published its 5,000th post. The project was started on September 12, 2007 and was one of the first African lingua project. There are currently 16 active Malagasy translators, among them is one of the youngest Global Voices translator, 16-year-old Radifera Felana Candy.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Mauritania: Confusion Reigns over “Accidental” Shots that Wounded President Aziz   · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

“@weddady: The official version on Aziz being “wounded lightly” was completely nonsense. He is seriously injured à la Dadis Camara.. #Mauritania“
Twitter update from Mauritanian activist Nasser Waddady upon hearing official reports that Mauritanian president Aziz was accidentally shot (video of Aziz at a Nouakchott hospital). Aziz was then airlifted to a Hospital in Clamart, France for treatments (video).  Mauritanian blogger Vlane wonders why Aziz did not seek treatments in neighboring countries instead of France [fr].


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Montenegro: General Elections 2012 · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

BalkanInsight's live blog [en] of this past Sunday's parliamentary elections in Montenegro ends its coverage with this summary:
[…] No surprises in the Montenegro elections, if the preliminary results are confirmed. [Milo Djukanovic] looks set to continue to dominate the political landscape as he has done for more than two decades. […]

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Portugal: Global Noise Cultural Protest in Images · Global Voices
Sara Moreira

This post is part of our coverage Europe in Crisis
On Saturday, October 13, 2012 once again the streets of several cities in Portugal were filled with the protests of its citizens, only this time, accompanying the voices of the protesters, there was ‘a global cacerolazo, casserole, potbanging protest’, as part of the Global Noise events simultaneously taking place worldwide.
In Portugal Global Noise [pt] protests became ‘culture is resistance’ with concerts in 14 cities, under the motto #QueSeLixeaTroika, following massive ‘Screw the Troika! We want our lives‘ protests on September 15.
The Facebook event calling for mobilization in Lisbon explains the idea behind the cultural manifestation [pt]:
Woodstroika October 13, Praça de Espanha, Lisbon. Poster by Pedro Vieira shared on the blog irmaolucia
Há nesta altura um aumento da percepção da grave situação em que se encontra o país, sendo cada vez mais evidente e urgente a necessidade de outras perspectivas. A cultura é imprescindível para a consciência de um povo, e é essa própria consciência que por sua vez cria e dá conteúdo à cultura. Os profissionais da cultura não são excepção à situação exasperante em que o país e o mundo se encontram actualmente: é imprescindível reagir, é impensável não o fazer. Do encontro de vontades nascido nas mais recentes mobilizações surgiu a ideia de uma expressão cultural, uma manifestação marcadamente baseada nas artes e no espectáculo para contestar a austeridade e os seus implementadores: governo e troika.
Currently there is growing awareness on the serious situation in which the country finds itself, the need for other perspectives is becoming increasingly evident and urgent. Culture is essential for the awareness of a people, and it is that awareness which in turn creates and provides content for culture. The culture professionals are no exception to the exasperating situation in which the country and the world are now: it is essential to react, it is unthinkable not to do it. From the meeting of wills born out of the most recent mobilizations, the idea of a cultural expression arises — a manifestation based on arts and performance, to challenge the austerity and its implementers: government and troika.
Praça de Espanha in Lisbon was full of people and red banners stated ‘What am I to do with this sword?’
Demonstration in Praça de Espanha, Lisbon. Photo by @queselixeatroika
In Porto, protesters concentrated in Praça da Batalha holding pots and pans in their hands, “a symbol of our protest, so that tomorrow's soup is not missing for anyone”, read the Facebook call [pt].
“More austerity?”, Praça da Batalha, Porto, October 13. Photo by Miguel Oliveira on Tumblr (used with permission)
The march went through one of the city's main traditional shopping streets, as recorded in a video by Ana Cristina Seabra, and ended in Praça D. João I, where the concerts were to take place [pt].
Protesters in Praça D. Joao I, Porto. Photo by Valeria Patatin (@valeva2) on Twitter.
Tiago B.‘s video on Youtube illustrates the scene:
Nuno Fangueiro and RiseUP on Facebook, Miguel Oliveira and Nelson d'Aires on their blogs, and Pedro Ferreira on Demotix have photoreports.
In Coimbra the protesters held signs saying “Basta” (Enough) and “United for global change”.
Protesters in Coimbra. Photo by Pedro Eduardo
Students’ Collective Aacção (Action) created a video with images from the protests in Coimbra:
The cities of Aveiro, Angra do Heroísmo, Barreiro, Beja, Braga, Caldas da Rainha, Faro, Loulé, Portimão, Setúbal, Viana do Castelo and Viseu, also brought people, culture and noise together to the streets. The video “A Cultura Contra a Troika” (Culture counteratroika, a play with words with counterattack) by queselixeatroika on YouTube sums up the mobilizations across the country and abroad:
Not everyone agreed with the format of the protests though, such as Luís Costa who left multiple appeals [pt] on Facebook “boycotting the subversion of what should be a demonstration”:
alguem pagou para transformar uma manifestação num festival! e aposto que somos nós que estamos a pagar por esta palhaçada! é mais fácil juntar meia duzia de artistas e po-los a cantar do que ter um povo revoltado às portas da assembleia a desafiar os polícias e pronto para partir aquilo tudo. é mais conveniente que ao final do dia o povo vá para casa a dizer “epá isto da austeridade até dá concertos à borla”.
someone paid to turn a protest into a festival! and I bet it is we who are paying for this bullshit! it is easier to join half a dozen artists and put them to sing than to have a rebellious people at the door of the parliament to challenge the police and ready to break it all. it is more convenient that at the end of the day the people go home to say “hey, this austerity thing even gives concerts for free”
Despite pessimistic views, discontent towards austerity measures and the government keeps gaining momentum. A “Siege to São Bento [Palace]” [pt], the home to the Assembly of the Republic, has been called for October 15. Similar to what happened in Spain, the initiative aims to gather those who refuse current policies that lead to more unemployment, poverty, and social regression.
The manifesto [pt] that came out of protests on October 13, call for growing resistance and pressure against the state budget for 2013, to be voted on in parliament on October 31:
Começando hoje, aqui, e passando por dia 31, estaremos na rua para dizer: “este orçamento não passará!”
Starting here, today, and passing through the 31st [of October], we will be on the streets to say: “this budget shall not pass!”.
This post is part of our coverage Europe in Crisis

author: Sara Moreira


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Portugal: Siege to Parliament Live · Global Voices
Sara Moreira

Thousands of protesters in Lisbon are gathered in front of the Assembly of the Republic, in response to a call for a “Siege to São Bento [Palace]” [pt], the home to Portuguese Parliament. The protest is being livestreamed on bambuser, on Twitter the main hashtag in use is #OE13 (from State Budget 2013).


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Russia: Elections to Opposition Coordinating Council Fail to Attract Regional Voters · Global Voices
Andrey Tselikov

Leonid Volkov, the brains behind technical aspects of the coming independent opposition elections [ru], has posted an interesting bit of statistics [ru] on his blog. Out of the approximately 90,000 people currently registered to vote, 34.6% are from Moscow and Moscow Oblast, and 11.7% are from St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Oblast. This means that almost half of these relatively active members of the opposition come from Russia's two capitals. What is more striking is that next on the list are Sverdlovsk Oblast with 3.2% and Samarskaya Oblast with 1.8%.
The statistic continues to fall dramatically, with the lowest regions shown contributing only .02% of the electorate (i.e. around 200 people). These results seem to indicate the failure of the opposition movement to attract interest from outside the usual Moscow and St. Petersburg protest movement.

author: Andrey Tselikov


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Russia: Lawmaker Wants to Regulate Social Networks · Global Voices
Andrey Tselikov

In the echo-chamber of RuNet it is easy for bloggers to fall prey to sensationalist headlines. A case in point:
A few days ago several bloggers were incensed by the idea that a Duma committee responsible for legislating the internet was going to propose a new law [ru] requiring passport identification for users of social networks. After past attempts to regulate the Russian internet, such news is easy to believe. Anton Nosik, media-director of SUP, the Russian company that runs LiveJournal, immediately posted a rant [ru] on his blog, ridiculing the logistical challenges of such broadly reaching regulation:
…обязать Twitter, Фейсбук, Google или тот же ЖЖ отказывать новым пользователям в регистрации без российского паспорта и заблокировать десятки миллионов уже существующих аккаунтов — полностью бредовая и фантастическая затея, которую смешно даже обсуждать. Следовательно, паспортизация невозможна без полной блокировки доступа россиян к зарубежным площадкам.
…to make Twitter, Facebook, Google and LiveJournal refuse to register new users without a Russian passport, and to block tens of millions of current accounts – is a wholly rabid and fantastical endeavor, which isn’t even worth talking about. Consequently, “passportisation” is impossible without a complete blockage of Russian access to foreign platforms.
Anton Nosik in 2009. November 25, 2009. © Dmitry Rozhkov. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Nosik ended on a hopeful note: according to him the Russian agencies that would be potentially tasked with enforcing such laws are so inept that enforcement would be lax, or never actually happen. He reminded the readers about similar regulations proposed by the Ministry of Communications three years ago, which in the end led nowhere.
Indeed, given the tendency of the Russian government to come up with spurious legislation ideas (like St. Petersburg’s recent law against the “propaganda of homosexuality”) it’s hard to blame bloggers when they take these ideas seriously. In this case however, it is a clear case of false alarm. Although Nosik and others reported that it was the Duma Committee on Information Policy that proposed this new legislation, in fact it was the idea of a junior committee member, Vadim Dengin of LDPR. Committee chair, Alexei Mitrofanov has publicly registered his disagreement [ru] with the idea:
Это инициатива депутата Вадима Деньгина. Я отношусь к этой постановке отрицательно […] Более того, я думаю, что не будет поддержано большинством, потому что элементы китайской системы особенно нас не прельщают. Никто не собирается ставить китайскую стену. Никто не хочет цензуры в интернете. Но почему-то это ставится как инициатива комитета, меня зачем-то приплели.
This is the initiative of Deputy Vadim Dengin. My opinion of this proposal is negative […] Furthermore, I think it won't be supported by the majority, because we are not really attracted to elements of the Chinese system. No one wants to create a “Chinese wall.” No one wants censorship on the internet. But, for some reason this is presented as a committee initiative, and I got dragged in for some reason.
Vadim Dengin's rarely updated VKontakte page. How do we know it's really him? Screenshot. October 15, 2012.
Perhaps Dengin, who leads the LDPR youth wing, wanted to make a name for himself by stirring up some controversy. He defended his ideas [ru] on Twitter:
@mdvorkovich честному человеку нечего скрывать…поэтому ищем вариант реального подтверждения регистрации реального пользователя
@mdvorkovich an honest person has nothing to hide…so we are looking for a way to actually confirm the registration of an actual user
The statement that people have nothing to hide is not too dissimilar from Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg's ideas of privacy, which he has also been criticized for. If Dengin's proposal really never sees the light of day, we can be sure to expect more controversial proposals from him in the future.