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Rwanda: Bloggers’ Reaction to Victoire Ingabire’s Trial · Global Voices
Etienne Mashuli

The trial of Rwandan opposition leader Victoire Ingabire resumed on Monday 5 September, 2011. An outspoken critic of President Paul Kagame’s leadership, Ingabire is accused of collaborating with terrorist organizations, forming an armed group with the aim of destabilizing the country. For seventeen years, Ingabire was exiled in the Netherlands but remained politically active among the Rwandan Diaspora.
She returned to Rwanda in January 2010 to run for the presidential election. However, she was unable to contest as her party was denied accreditation.
Victoire Ingabire, Rwandan politician and the Chairperson of the Unified Democratic Forces. Photo source: Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza for President Facebook page.
A few months prior to the elections, she was arrested and has been in detention since then. She was earlier arraigned in court in May but her trial was postponed to allow the defense to translate 2500 pages of documents used by the prosecutor from Kinyarwanda to English. She denies all the charges which she claims are politically motivated. Blogging at Democracy Watch, Susan Thomson bemoans the government’s interference with Ingabire’s prosecution and is concerned that the international community will remain silent:
Yet, on Twitter, the Government of Rwanda has declared victory in the case, stating that it (not the prosecution) has documents to prove her ties to ‘terrorist’ groups in the region, and thus her guilt. Nice to see the government being *this* transparent on its interference in the judicial system. I wonder what diplomats resident in Kigali might have to say on this. My guess is a muted response, particularly since President Kagame recently called international justice two-faced in reaction to the denial of visitors visas for several members of his delegation to France (or at least the timing of his reaction suggests as such).
Since parts of the charges are based on a poorly defined genocide ideology law, Susan is skeptical that justice will be met:
What I think we are looking at is not justice, but rather fodder for Kagame's duplicitous actions vis-a-vis international criticism of his regime. Indeed, Ingabire's trial corresponds to continued demands from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and others to revise and update the genocide ideology and ethnic divisionism laws.
Victoire Ingabire in handcuffs. Photo source: Free-Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza Facebook page.
On his part, Kigali blogger Sunny Ntayombya welcomes the trial, which he sees as an opportunity to silence international criticism. But he is almost convinced of Ingabire’s guilt:
I was getting tired of reading about her unfair imprisonment in ‘maximum security’ on the Internet. For too long she seemed like a victim that was being unfairly harassed by the State, but now that the case has begun, finally, people will have the opportunity to learn why she’s been in prison for almost a year now.
Dismissing the criticism that Rwandan courts lack judicial independence, Sunny hopes that Ingabire’s trial will vindicate his opinion:
Various ‘experts’ in all things Rwandan had immediately deemed the charges “politically motivated” without even analyzing the merits of the case. Opening the case to the full scrutiny of the general public was a masterful stroke by the Judiciary because it will force people to acknowledge the facts of the case. I’m not saying that the judges will necessarily agree with the Prosecution, that is their prerogative; however, the Prosecution will be given the opportunity to state the facts as they see them. And the defense will be also given the opportunity to dismiss these facts. I think that it’s important that this judicial process be seen as transparent, not just for the benefit of our foreign detractors, but to the general public as well. They must feel that the process is free, fair and transparent.
For Ambrose Nizeyimana, Victoire Ingabire is an icon of the struggle for democracy in Rwanda. Ambrose wants the British aid agency, DFID, to take a tougher stance against the Rwandan regime which he accuses of committing “despite an unspeakable record of crimes”:
The Rwandan government budget is today kept afloat with £83 millions from Britain each year. More than 50% of its budget is financed by donors despite an unspeakable record of crimes Paul Kagame is officially accused of by Spanish and French Judges, and UN through in its Mapping Report published on 1/10/10. Not reviewing and changing completely current approach of UK government towards recurrent abuses of human rights and freedom of speech by the Rwandan government look today as a sign of deplorable indifference for the thousands of Rwandan victims. While dictatorial regimes on the African continent are forced out for political change, it will positively be appreciated if the UK government disassociates itself immediately from regimes which are at the wrong side of African history.

author: Etienne Mashuli


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Sri Lanka: Youth-Led Reconciliation · Global Voices
Rezwan

Dilinika Peiris discusses whether youth-led reconciliation could put Sri Lanka back on the map.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Rezwan


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Tajikistan: The country in its 20 · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Christian Bleuer is analyzing the newest history of Tajikistan – both its internal politics and its geopolitical stand – as this country marks the 20th anniversary of its independence.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Turkmenistan: Challenges for education · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Annasoltan talks with a professional teacher in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, about education’s challenges in this country, from shifting generational and cultural values to corruption in the schools.


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U.S. Virgin Islands: Storm Warning  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

The region has its eye on another tropical storm; News of St. John reports.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Uzbekistan: Journalists face dress-code restrictions · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Tomyris reports that Uzbekistan, “a leader in the field of media censorship”, is imposing a new limitation to journalists. The female reporters seen on Uzbek state television will be seen only in a conservative manner – that means no skin exposure in inappropriate places.


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Uzbekistan: Opposition in exile gets more active · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Abulfazal says that the emerging oppositional movement of Uzbekistan citizens in exile has took its shape as the People’s Movement of Uzbekistan (PMU) with branches in Canada, Sweden and Norway.


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Venezuela: A Dairy Cooperative’s Struggle for Food Sovereignty · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

“PROLESA is a small dairy cooperative in the Venezuelan state of Tachira. […] the main focus of the cooperative is to purchase milk from  the local community for the production and distribution of cheese and  yogurt”: Venezuelan Analysis shares a video where “cooperative members share the amazing  stories of their struggles to achieve food sovereignty, their insights  for success and their visions for the future.”

author: Silvia Viñas


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Bosnia & Herzegovina: “Dumb ‘Ha-Ha’ References” to War in Books and Movies · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Amila Bosnae writes about being disturbed by the casual mentions of the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina “in random books or movies”: “But the book simply goes on, like I didn’t just get shocked right back into the ugly world where that exact war shaped my life.”

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Cameroon: Hackers Worthy of the Name · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

Ntrjack writes [fr] in his blog: “So the youth of Cameroon have discovered the gold mine of the free Internet and everyone now wants to go online using multimedia telephones, which are getting more and more common. This in theory is not possible, because the operators restrict access, but crafty sorts are making great efforts to get around all the barriers.”

author: Abdoulaye Bah


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Croatia: The Largest “Welcome” in the World · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Benita Hussain of Matador Network interviews Daniel Lacko, “a sponsored outdoor adventurer writing the largest ‘WELCOME’ in the world while exploring the Croatian coastline”; Lacko's travel blog is here.


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Cuba: Former Prisoners of Conscience Detained · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter reports that “José Daniel Ferrer Garcia was detained together with fellow former prisoner of conscience of the group of 75, Ángel Moya, Raumel Vinajera and Francisco Macias…in a sign that repression continues on the upswing in totalitarian Cuba.”


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Czech Republic: Milan Kundera and Privacy Issues · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

At OpenDemocracy.net, James Warner writes about Milan Kundera's work and the issues of privacy in the age of totalitarianism and now, in the age of new technologies and the internet.


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Egypt: Lebanese Blogger and Activist Denied Entry and Deported  · Global Voices
Tarek Amr

Imad Bazzi, the Lebanese award-winning blogger, and the director of CyberACT, an NGO that advocates for change and reform in the Middle East and North Africa region using social media tools, was denied entry to Egypt on Monday,  September 5, 2011.
Imad who is known on Twitter as @TrellaLB, called some of his friends, and tweeted from the police office in the Egyptian airport, to spread the message that he has been told that his name “was on a list of people banned from entering at the request of a security apparatus,” and that he will be put on a plane back to Lebanon after a short while.
Soon after this, users on Twitter started to wonder how such a thing can happen in what is supposed to be post-revolution and post-Mubarak Egypt.
@Dima_Khatib: Lebanese blogger @TrellaLB was detained, deported by authorities at Cairo Airport as he arrived.. He was “black-listed” !!! Where is #jan25?
@JustAmira: Lebanese blogger (@TrellaLB) being deported from Egypt. Is Mubarak back in power?
Human rights organizations such as The Arab Network for Human Rights Information [ar] and Samir Kassir Eyes were worried to hear the news.
After he returned to Lebanon, Imad wrote about the detention experience in Cairo airport [ar]. He wrote how he never imagined that his periodic visits to Cairo would turn out to become such adventure, especially with his previous decision to stay and work in Cairo. He also added how he didn't imagine that Egypt after the revolution would look much like it was before the revolution. He then summarized the discussions he had with the interrogators in the airport.
الى ان حضر شخص بمرافقة من الشرطة فيما كان هو باللباس المدني وكان في غاية الإحترام وسأل سؤالين وانصرف
الظابط : ما سبب إصابتك في الظهر
الجواب: ديسك
هل انت من “ولاد” الفايسبوك؟
الجواب: لم افهم السؤال
حسناً يا استاذ، عشر دقائق واعود…
Then came another officer with Imad's passport with him and started asking more questions.
الظابط: من هو وائل عباس ؟
الجواب : صديق
الضابط: و…. (لم يتمكن من قراءة الإسم فإستعان بشرطي) ومينا ذكري؟
الجواب: صديق الكتروني
الظابط: اي ده الفورين بوليسي مين دول؟
الجواب: مجلة عالمية
الظابط: ولم تمنحك جائزة؟
الجواب: ليست جائزة، انما تقدير
الظابط : على ماذا ؟
الجواب: نشاطي الإلكتروني
الظابط: هو انت من اللي بيدعموا الثورة؟
الجواب: هزة بالرأس بمعنى لم افهم ما يقصد
A third interrogator came to ask Imad two more question, and they one about his relation with Maikel Nabil, the first blogger to be jailed since Mubarak stepped down, and whom Imad had visited earlier in prison, since he is a pacifist and Imad himself is interested in studying pacifism.
This question made it a bit clear why Imad is banned from entering Egypt. The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar also tried to find out the reason [ar] for Imad's ban from entering Egypt.
يكشف بزّي عن السبب الحقيقي لترحيله من مصر: «لا شكّ في أن نشاطي على الإنترنت أثار شكوكهم، لكن الأهم هو زيارتي للمدوّن مايكل نبيل في سجن المرج العمومي في شهر حزيران/ يونيو
Finally, Imad wrote on Twitter how he is not sad, as long as the Egyptians will be able the restore their country and their rights soon.
@TrellaLB: Its ok that i was deported from Egypt. i'll get the chance to sit and watch the rebels tomorrow taking back the country, good luck #Egypt

author: Tarek Amr


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Lithuania: Mushroom-Picking and Basketball · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Lithuania – the best! writes about mushroom-picking and basketball: “I believe that mushroom hunting is second favorite sport in Lithuania after basketball :)”


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Malaysia: Service Tax on Prepaid Phones · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Dr Jacob from Malaysia is opposed to the plan of mobile phone operators to pass the new 6 percent service tax to consumers.

author: Mong Palatino


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Philippines: Lolong, World’s Largest Crocodile · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

A 21-foot (6.4-meter) male saltwater crocodile is now under captivity in Bunawan, Agusan del Sur which is located in the eastern part of Mindanao island in the Philippines. The crocodile is said to be the largest living of its kind in the world and is named “Lolong” in honor of the person who captured it.
According to reports, the crocodile will be transferred into an eco-tourism park but animal rights activists are urging the government to release the crocodile into the wilderness. Netizens debate whether it’s right to keep ‘Lolong’ in captivity. Below are some twitter and facebook reactions
@jamelaaisha: I worry for the kind of themed park they will create for the croc in #Agusan. No natural habitat for him to live in freely and safely?
@aaaussy: AWW the giant croc at Agusan has zoochosis aka depression from being in captivity! Hug giant croc! It's World Suicide Prevention Day!
@harold_geronimo: Sometimes I can't understand PETA's cause. It's absurd to ask for d release of the giant croc that can devour five human beings in one meal.
@jeroplane :Not sure if putting that croc in an ecotourism park is a good idea, but I'd be terrified to know that something that big is roaming free
@liberated_jr03 I understand that animals like Lolong should be released back to the wild. However, we don't have an area far from the communities.
@AntonioAEmberda: How long would it take to find another “Lolong” from among those rehabilitated / reforested mining sites?
Love Anover: just a thought!BUWAYANG LOLONG is almost a 100yrs resident of the AGUSAN MARSH w/c is a protected area by the way.NOT EVEN PROVEN yet na SIYA ang pumapatay sa mga tao dun di ba?bakit kailangan siyang palayasin sa KANYANG TAHANAN?
'Lolong' crocodile photo has gone viral online
Since crocodiles are often associated with corrupt politicians, it seems inevitable for many netizens to compare ‘Lolong’ with controversial Filipino politicians
@kingdjlogan: Big Croc in Agusan del Sur Phils is currently the largest in Captivity. The bigger one from Pampanga was just released from the hospital. (author’s note: Pampanga is the home province of former President Gloria Arroyo who is currently facing several plunder charges. She was recently discharged from the hospital after undergoing an operation.)
@tonyocruz: Tandaan: Maraming mas malalaking buwaya sa pamahalaan.
@jocereisma: Crocodile captured. FG in the hospital. Congressman punched a security guard. hanuva yan, puro na lang BUWAYA ang balita ngayon!
@RAndRat: Giant croc is “stressed” and needs “time to heal”… Sounds suspiciously like the Arroyos…
@adeltamano: World's biggest crocodile caught in Agusan del Sur. Traditional Politicians are advised to be careful when traveling in that region.
Jograts Mountaineers: Bakit hndi na lng mga tunay na Buwaya sa Gobyerno ang ikulong. kaya pakawalan si Lolong sa wild.. ;)
Daniel Radcliff Jazmin III: Di ako naniniwala na si Lolong ang biggest crocodile…………..BUTIKI lang siya kumpara sa nakararami sa GOBYERNO!
Below is a youtube video of ‘Lolong’ right after it was captured
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iamtsPypgXQ&feature=player_embedded#!


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Reducing Corruption in Malaysia · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Greg Lopez of New Mandala notes that despite the numerous anti-corruption efforts in the past years, corruption continues rise in Malaysia.


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Russia, Italy: Andrei Tarkovsky’s Polaroids · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Jana writes [sr] about Instant Light, a collection of 60 Polaroid photographs by film director Andrei Tarkovsky, and posts some sample photos from the book.


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Russia, Ukraine: “PayPal’s Epic Fail” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Svetlana Gladkova of Profy writes about PayPal's erroneous announcement of the upcoming lifting of some of the limitations for users in Russia and Ukraine.


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Spain: Intense Political and Social Debate on the Constitutional Reform · Global Voices
Chris Moya

Political and social debate in Spain has been intense these past few months. The latest news that has once again caused thousands to take to the streets in protest is the so-called #reformazo (#bigreform). It refers to changes to the Spanish Constitution made by the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party), with the support of the PP (People's Party) — changes implemented just three months short of the general elections, during the height of the summer, without any warning to the people or to other congressional groups, and bereft of even the slightest debate among the ranks of the very political parties behind the reform.
The article in question is 135, with the changes intended to limit public spending on account of the current economic crisis, yet owed in part to pressure from the so-called financial markets and coming top-down from Europe.
Article 135 of the Spanish Constitution will now read as follows:
The debate has centered on two fronts, the political and the social.
Political debate has emerged from the ranks of the Socialist Party itself, with cases such as those of the congressional representative and the former secretary general of Workers’ Commissions (Spain's largest trade union), Antonio Gutiérrez, who announced he would not seek another candidacy if the policies of the Socialist Party continue on their current course, which involves adopting measures closer aligned with right-wing neoliberalism. Bear in mind the latest labor reforms implemented by the socialist government.
Photo by @anderinaki http://yfrog.com/j22muhj
In turn, there have been protests throughout the country organized in part by  the assemblies of Puerta del Sol and seconded by the entire 15M movement against what Real Democracy Now! has  called the Financial Coup D'État.
That same day, typical cat-and-mouse tensions began to emerge between an already nervous police force and the press.
acampadasol: Thursday's agreed-upon slogan: “No to constitutional reform. Down with orders from the markets and (the) capital.” #AGSol
A change that will lead to the country's future shift to a loss of social benefits in the face of privatization and neoliberal policies and to which reporter Iñaki Gabilondo has recently made reference.
On September 2, the Congress approved the constitutional reform, with 316 representatives voting in favor and 5 against. The United Left (Izquierda Unida), represented by Gaspar Llamazares, opted to veto the vote so that the consensus between the PSOE and PP would not also benefit from the support of the Catalan congressional group CIU, whose votes would have given the reform more political strength.
Juan_Nadie: Gaspar Llamazares against the constitutional #reformazo (#bigreform) and in favor of the referendum: Text and video wp.me/p1IvYw-dc

author: Chris Moya


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Tanzania: Real-time Information on Zanzibar Boat Accident · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

You can follow real-time information on the Zanzibar boat accident 10th Sep 2011 or send report by sending a tweet with the hashtag/s #ZanzibarBoatAccident or #Zanzibar or #Pemba.

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Trinidad & Tobago: Addiction Advice  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“What every single one of us have found is that at some point…it stops being your decision. You lose control over it, and using becomes involuntary. Willpower has nothing to do with it at that point”: Plain Talk blogs about addiction and offers solid advice to families.


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U.S. Virgin Islands: Expecting Tropical Storm Maria  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

News of St. John says that the center of Tropical Storm Maria is expected to pass over the island at 2 p.m. today, adding: “The Governor has declared a State of Emergency and ordered a curfew from 7 p.m. Saturday to 5 a.m. Sunday and ordered Emergency Shelters to be opened.”


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Ukraine: Commemorating Georgiy Gongadze on Sept. 16 · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Україна – Ukraine blog writes [uk] about the upcoming commemorations of Georgiy Gongadze, a Ukrainian journalist who disappeared eleven years ago, on Sept. 16, 2000: on Facebook [uk], and in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities [uk].


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Ukraine: Photos From Sevastopol’s City Hospital #1 · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

English Russia translates LJ user aquatek-filips’ photo report [ru] from the City Hospital #1 in Sevastopol, Ukraine.


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Ukraine: “The Book ‘Wot Yanukovyhc Rote’” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Vasyl Pawlowsky of uaMuzik, LEvko of Foreign Notes and Alexander Motyl of Ukraine's Orange Blues comment of Opportunity Ukraine, a new book that is said to have been written by President Victor Yanukovych.


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WikiLeaks Cables on Malaysia · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

uppercaise reports that the 994 cables from the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur in the WikiLeaks database is now online. There are 462 unclassified cables, 438 classified as confidential, and 94 classified as secret


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Zambia: Political Parties Campaign Online For September 20 Polls · Global Voices
Gershom Ndhlovu

Less than two weeks before Zambia goes to the polls on September 20, 2011, political parties have taken their campaigns beyond what has been the traditional methods of using posters, TV adverts and radio jingles to a totally new platform—the worldwide web.
Six of the ten parties that are fielding presidential candidates are running websites in an effort to reach out to the nearly 817,000 registered Internet users with 137,000 on Facebook.
One of the parties, Alliance for Development and Democracy (ADD), explains why it was formed:
Despite Zambia being endowed with many minerals and probably oil and having such great potential in both tourism and agriculture, Zambia still remains poor with the vast majority of its people wallowing in abject poverty. This group of people came together with the realization that something had to be done.
The website includes a campaign section for the ADD presidential candidate, Charles Milupi.
The ruling MMD has also put up a colourful website for its party and presidential candidate Rupiah Banda.
In his welcoming remarks to the website President Banda says:
Photo of President Rupiah Banda on the ruling party website.
As President, I together with the MMD team have dedicated ourselves to improving Zambia's economy, ensuring security, stability and prosperity for all Zambians. We have worked especially and particularly to improve health care and education, to increase agricultural production and to secure and increase the number of jobs in Zambia, particularly for those in rural areas.
As you browse through our party web site, we want you to see why we need to continue working together,  supporting the MMD Party for all Zambians, to continue with the development agenda we have been pushing forward for the greater development of our great nation Zambia.
National Restoration Party well known by its acronym, NAREP, has the following message among many:
NAREP’s vision is to create not only 1 million new jobs not only through the promotion of Zambia as an energy superpower, but to create 10,000 new businesses owners in each province. Our message of real change is unequalled but we need every person in Zambia to hear it. For this we need money and material support. We need your help and we are calling upon you, our supporters and well-wishers, to join us in building a new Zambia.
The Patriotic Front (PF), currently the biggest opposition party, has also taken advantage of the Internet to reach out to netizens. The website features a profile of the PF candidate Michael Sata whose one of his subtle principles states:
does not drink bottled water …until all Zambians have equal access to clean water.
The website of the United Party for National Development (UPND), the second largest opposition party, is more personalised to its party president, Hakainde Hichilema and candidate in the presidential elections and bears his name.
In a call for Zambians to vote for him, Hichilema gives his rich resume with the website stating:
The presidential candidate Hakainde Hichilema (HH) and the United Party for National Development (UPND) are the hope of all people of Zambia for a change to a better future.
The Zambians for Empowerment and Development (ZED) has also jumped on the bandwagon to offer a website to its supporters and sympathisers.
*Thumbnail image: Campaign photo of Patriotic Front presidential candidate Michael Sata.

author: Gershom Ndhlovu


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Arab World: Remembering September 11  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices 9/11 Retrospective.
Twitter users from across the Arab world paid tribute to the 3,000 victims of September 11 as the world recalled the horrors committed by Al Qaeda terrorists who flew four passenger jets into buildings in the US 10 years ago.
Saudi cartoonist Malek Nejer says September 11 is a hideous crime, no matter who the perpetrators are.
9-11 Tribute in Lights, New York 2010 © Kamau Akabueze on Flickr (used with permission)
From Dubai, the UAE, AbstruseArif notes:
@AbstruseArif: today is one of those days that many wished didnt happen..yet it did..#screamsstillresonates #911
From Bahrain, blogger Mohammed Al Maskati or emoodz, tweets:
@emoodz: My thoughts and prayers go to the American, Afghan and Iraqi victims of the horrific terror acts of #911.. May their souls rest in peace..
He adds:
@emoodz: Lots of lessons to be learnt by how America handled the aftermath of #911.. Focus on the future but never forget the past.. #lulu #Bahrain
Saudi dentist Nouf Abdulrahman blames Saudi terrorist Osama bin Laden for the deaths of the September 11 victims, as well as those of both Iraq and Afghanistan – wars the US entered as part of its war on terror.
She tweets:
For Saud Al Sheikh, from Saudi Arabia, the remembrance brings up memories of other atrocities. He tweets:
@SAMAlsheikh: You remember 911 yet you don't remember the massacre of 8000+ muslims in bosnia.
@SAMAlsheikh: You remember 911 but you don't remember an estimated 2million palestinians killed since 1948
From Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, AhmadOTB makes a similar observation:
@AhmadOTB: It's 9/11 in the states but it's 24/7 in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan
And Nora Al Ashaikh, also from Saudi Arabia, adds:
@Neeart: I'm so sorry that some people died in 9/11 but it's happening every day in middle east, people are dying every day…
Fellow Saudi, Haneen Baitalmal is, however, appalled with the lack of consideration from some people. She notes:
@HaneenBa: I truly can't understand people who say 9/11 is overrated. Have some mercy in you for gods sake!
And last but not least, Dubai-based journalist Tom Gara observes:
@tomgara: In the ten years it has taken to almost build a new World Trade Centre, Dubai basically built Dubai.
This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices 9/11 Retrospective.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Azerbaijan: Caspian Dreaming… · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Aaron in Azerbaijan posts a well-produced music video by two of his fellow Peace Corps Volunteers in the country, singing under the name of the Caspian Dreamers, ahead of next year's Eurovision Song Contest to be held in the capital, Baku. The blog says that while Azerbaijan faces some serious problems in its transition from a former Soviet republic, the video showcases some of what the city also has to offer foreign tourists.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Bangladesh: Human Trafficking – A Modern Slavery · Global Voices
Rezwan

Khairul Kuader at Bangla Rights tells how girls from Bangladeshi villages are being lured into prostitution in India offering them better jobs abroad.


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Bangladesh, India: Hasina-Manmahon Summit – A Post-dated Review · Global Voices
Rezwan

Kh. A. Saleque posts a review of the recent summit of the Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh and its impact on the bilateral ties between both the countries.


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Bulgaria: Ruling Party Uses Children’s Holiday Posters in Election Campaign · Global Voices
Ruslan Trad

Bulgaria's ruling party GERB (Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria) has been using children's holiday posters in the city of Plovdiv in their campaign for the upcoming Oct. 23 presidential election. This poster, posted in the Facebook group of the left-wing Solidarna Bulgaria (Solidarity Bulgaria), shows how the ruling party has been campaigning in violation of the Bulgarian laws, which prohibit the use of propaganda in schools, universities and other public places for children.

author: Ruslan Trad


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Cote d’Ivoire: Ending the Culture of Corruption  · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

Y. Doumbia  writes about the measures taken by the Ouattara Administration to halt corruption [fr] : ” Under Ouattara today, the situation has radically changed. The state budget is managed with greater parsimony. Additionally, Ouattara also did away with the BNETD (the National Bureau for Technical Research and Development). The agency allowed for ministers to hire non-governmental experts for specific projects. This agency was in fact used by ministers to create fictional positions and then collect the allocated salaries themselves.”


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Denmark: No Voting Rights for Danes Abroad · Global Voices
Solana Larsen

Since many Danish citizens living abroad are not eligible to vote in the upcoming election in Denmark on September 15, 2011 the Danes Abroad Business Group Online (DAGBO) hosted an informal online election poll for their members. Seventy percent of those questioned said loss of voting rights negatively affects their interest in Danish politics.

author: Solana Larsen


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Guatemala: Following the General Election  · Global Voices
Renata Avila

Today, September 11, 2011, Guatemalan citizens will elect local, municipal, legislative and executive authorities. Hundreds are working from early in the morning until midnight to make democracy a reality. Although Guatemalans living abroad cannot vote, thousands of people around the world will be closely following the event using new technologies.
This election will be special: for the first time in history the majority of voters will be young. Up to three million citizens are under thirty years old.
Also, for the first time in Guatemalan history the rural vote will be more important than the urban vote, and a woman will be elected Vice President –the three presidential candidates leading in the polls have selected women as their Vice President.
Josue Goge, jgoge on Flickr, "I'm ready to vote. Are you?" (CC BY 2.0)
Here is a selection of interesting projects and links to follow during the day (all links lead to Spanish-language sites):
@PlazaPublicaGT has set up a special coverage section with reports and independent analysis on the elections, publishing interesting articles and closely monitoring the electoral process with reporters in different areas of the country.
Tenemos el poder (We have the power) is a Web platform increasing the awareness of   young people and encouraging them to learn why their role in politics   will be crucial for the future of the country.
Pilas con tu voto is encouraging young people to inform themselves and vote. Other Websites are engaged in similar activities, like Ve por que, Se busca Presidente, Politica Stereo and Vozz Guatemala.
Guatemala Visible and Congreso Transparente provide comprehensive guides on the candidates’ backgrounds and preparation.
Guatemalans already started voting and while mainstream media is covering the election in the most important urban concentrations, hyperlocal and citizen media are doing so in rural areas. From very early in the morning, sites like Mi Jutiapa, Pueblo Clic, and @Barillas in Huehuetenangoare are reporting from villages across the country.
For the first time, “Mirador Electoral”, an observatory on the legality of the elections, installed a #Ushahidi platform to allow citizens to report irregularities during the election day.
On Twitter, #eleccionesgt is the general hashtag to follow the elections; an alternative hashtag is #evoto
The election authority, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, will publish preliminary results on its website tonight.
It is hoped that these elections will be a peaceful and inclusive celebration of democracy, of the right to vote and to demand results from elected politicians. A second electoral round is expected if neither of the presidential candidates reach 51% of valid votes.

author: Renata Avila


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India: A Magazine For Chakma Community · Global Voices
Rezwan

Paritosh Chakma uploads the August 2011 issue of Sojaak, a free magazine for the indigenous Chakma community.


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India, Bangladesh: Agreements Between Both The Countries · Global Voices
Rezwan

Kanak Banrman provides links to the recent agreements between Bangladesh and India which were signed during the state visit of Mr. Manmohan Singh, Indian prime Minister, to Bangladesh.


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India: Lax Security at Chandigarh Railway Station · Global Voices
Rezwan

Sidhusaaheb notices lax security at the busy railway station in Chandigarh and wonders whether authorities should be more vigilant considering the recent terror attacks in India.


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Iran: Photos from a Candlelight Vigil for 9/11 Victims · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Shabe Haftom has published several photos from 10 years ago of ordinary Iranians holding candles during a vigil in Tehran, Iran to mourn the loss of life in the United States after hijackers crashed two planes into the World Trade Center in New York.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Japan: The Case of an Exposed Online Pseudonym · Global Voices
Izumi Mihashi

The sudden shutdown of the blog, Diary of an ex-NEET who works overseas, has spurred discussion in Japan about anonymous activity on the Internet. (NEET refers to a person not in education, employment, or training.)
Under the pseudonym “Overseas NEET”, the blogger regularly criticized Japanese working ethics and the common notion that one must prioritize work over any other aspect of life. He did not have any stable jobs in Japan because he hated the working environment. After venturing abroad, he found a job at a foreign-affiliated company and was happy with his new work style.
Commuting to work, Japan. Photo by Flickr user Miguel Michán (CC BY-NC 2.0).
His blog, which has the subtitle “Work is shit”, attracted many people who felt a sense of discomfort with the widely-accepted Japanese attitude toward work. It equally attracted a lot of negative comments.
On August 7, 2011, people started getting the following message:
ブログ終了のお知らせ。ブログが起因で身の危険を感じる出来事があったため、閉鎖に至りました。更新を楽しみに待って頂いていた方々、ごめんなさい。コンテンツは全て消しました。
Reactions
On hearing the news, @twt_user quotes a line in the blog [jp]:
海外ニートさんのおかげで仕事に対する違った見方が出来るようになった。閉鎖は残念。印象に残っている言葉は「死ぬ気で働いたら本当に死ぬからやめろ」
For @menchikatsu2010,  this blog has prompted him to quit his job [jp]:
海外ニートさんのブログを会社で毎日読んで、そして会社辞めて、って考え方１８０度変わったんだよなぁ。もっと読ませたかった連中いたのにな。出る杭は打たれ、下からは足を引っ張られるってことなのかな。
@terrakei: 海外ニートさんのブログ閉鎖か。海外（就職）系ブロガーは、たいていの場合、日本の労働・社会制度批判を多分に含むので、ヘイトを稼ぎやすいんだろうなあ。
Since the main purpose of the blog was to change the mindset of Japanese people, the relationship of the shutdown incident and the closed-off nature of Japan is an inescapable subject. @nasu_tea [jp] is daunted by how hard it is to ward off oppression:
海外ニート氏のブログ閉鎖か。twitterも垢消えてるし。詳細は不明だけど、海外へ逃げてもちょっとでも日本と関わり続けようとする限り、『日本的なるもの』の呪縛から逃れられんってのか。ヘビーだな……
Shinkansen Salaryman. Photo by Flickr user JanneM (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
On anonymity
Readers were surprised by the shutdown, which had no advance notice, and started to wonder about the cause:
『身の危険を感じたため閉鎖します』という残し書きがある。もしかして労道信者になんかされそうになったのかなあ。だいぶ前に閉鎖したスロバキア新卒就職ブログのHALさんも『アンチが大使館に連絡して個人情報を探りにきた』とか以前呟いてた
@d_sapi is wary [jp] of a Japanese person's ability to keep anonymous abroad:
海外就職ブログを書く人は、国は教えちゃだめ。一国の在留邦人が１万だとしたら、この時点で日本人口１億から１万、現地就職者は恐らく百人以下で、現地就職者は国際大企業に就職するので、勤め先はほぼ特定可能。性別・業種からほぼ完全に個人の特定が可能です。気をつけてください。
@d_sapi: 前に、どっかのスレである海外滞在者の「今日は気温ｘｘ度だ」みたいな呟きから、「欧州の天気予報で特定できる。パリじゃない？」みたいな流れになっているのを見たときは戦慄したね。遊びのつもりかもしれないけど、悪質すぎるよ。
Criticism
Some people thought the author should have continued blogging if he wanted to prove his opinion was worth hearing. @shi3z_bot questions his value as a freethinker:
@shi3z_bot: おれはどっちかっていうと海外就職とかいいながら日本でまじめに働いている人たちをバカにするような記事ばかり書いている人だから、てっきり調べればすぐ本名も所属もわかるような人だと思ってたよ。身元がバレたらブログ消すって、本人は海外就職していながら別に思想的な自由を獲得したわけでもなかったんだね
@TakahashiMasaki  raises eyebrows [jp] at his cowardliness:
このまとめでつぶやきが記録されてる奴もそうだが，ふだんから「社畜はだめだ」「日本人はだめだ」とかでかい主語で他者を傷つけてたやつがちょっと個人情報かなんかがばれた程度ですぐ削除かよ（なんて軟弱なんだ http://togetter.com/li/171658
@Ni_nja gives a different point of view:
海外ニートさんも独り身だったらブログ続けてたと思うよ。でも今奥さんいるじゃん、国際結婚の。もし自分の発言がきっかけでどこの誰とも知れない人に悪意向けられて、それで自分の大事な人が傷つく可能性が少しでもあるんだったら、そりゃ逃げるよ。相手が見えないんじゃ戦うことも出来ないよ

author: Izumi Mihashi


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Kyrgyzstan: 83 Candidates Register for Presidential Elections · Global Voices
Elena Skochilo

The small Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan, famous for its political unrest, will hold a presidential election in October, 2011. Now Kyrgyzstan has another chance to be famous: 83 Kyrgyz citizens are registered to participate in the race for the vacant presidential post.
The list of candidates is impressive: there are lawyers, farmers, businessmen, teachers, Ph.Ds., politicians and even a few unemployed people. Sixteen candidates are representative of the political parties, sixty-seven nominated themselves, and there are six women and seventy-seven men. All of them must collect 30,000 supporting signatures, provide an election deposit (around $2,200) and pass the Kyrgyz language exam.
The president of Kyrgyzstan is elected for six years. The same person cannot be elected twice. Only a citizen of the Kyrgyz Republic without any foreign citizenship, not younger than 35 years and not older than 70 years, resident of Kyrgyzstan not less than 15 years can be elected as a president.
Kyrgyz parliament. Image by Flickr user benpaarmann (CC BY 2.0).
83 presidential candidates
Of course, virtual Kyrgyzstan has widely discussed such a great variety of presidential candidates [all tweets translated from Russian]:
@AizatM: Eighty-three candidates!!! It is just funny!!! Anyway, I want to hope for better…
@Chingiz_KG: Eighty-three presidential candidates is a shocking number
@IlyaLukash: So what, country? My congratulations for eighty-three candidates!
The users of Diesel forum expressed more practical thoughts. They were curious how ballots would look like [ru]:
$kyMeR: Will the ballots look like a roll? ))
llena: The bulletins should be made as a toilet paper roll. It makes sense
Ilyich: Germany is famous for its cars, Japan is famous for its engineering, China is well-known for goods, and Kyrgyzstan is famous for the production of Presidents!
The 83 candidates made Kyrgyzstani netizens think about quality of the candidates, too. A number of the Kyrgyz politicians have already registered their accounts on social networks; a few of them have their own blogs.
Netizens’ reactions
Virtual Kyrgyzstan knows that almost all of the Kyrgyz politicians become active on social networks only before a large political events (rallies, elections and etc.). At other time their activity is near zero; this led to the creation of an event on Facebook “Down “dead” politicians!” [ru].
The event was created by Azamat Imanaliev, an editor of one of the biggest news agencies AKIpress, and an active user of social networks. The event calls all users of social networks in Kyrgyzstan to unfriend and to unfollow the Kyrgyz politicians from the friend list on September 25, 2011, a day when the agitation campaign starts:
@Azzzik: I wonder if we can make a flash mob to remove the accounts of the politicians from our friend list. They remember us only during election time. RT!
@Azzzik: Let’s remove them together in defined day. Imagine their bewilderment – they will lose such a large audience in one day. They will lose courage ))
The action got the ambiguous responses. While many users welcomed this idea, the others asked if it made sense at all.
Aliya Akmatova wrote [ru] on the wall of the Facebook event:
People, why are you so furious? This is nonsense. The campaigns activate in social networks before holidays, for example – it gives them traffic and sales. People are active when they need it, or have a profit, or when they want to capture attention. It is absolutely normal. This is worldwide experience
Peri Adanova said [ru]:
Why should we remove them if we had added them? They don’t bother anybody. I think that not only politicians use social networks for PR.
Diesel forum user DRIVE2.KG posted [ru]:
I don’t see any sense in the removal of the politicians. Why did I add them then? They don’t bother me. I know what is going on in their life when they write some, even if they don’t write themselves. Some of them are writing themselves, you can see it. Action doesn’t have any sense.
The number of the candidates is however, decreasing significantly. Many of them cannot pay the election deposit; a few failed the Kyrgyz-language exam and didn’t collect enough supporting signatures.
Registration of candidates will finish on September 25, 2011, and the election campaign will last from September 25 until October 29. Presidential elections in Kyrgyzstan will be on October 30, 2011.
We will see the reaction of the Kyrgyz politicians (if any) on September 25. But many users remain skeptical. As the main representative of the Russian newspaper, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Igor Shestakov said [ru]:
This is a prototype of our future e-government. You can even send a question or express an opinion, but the officials will never answer you.
The following is a list of accounts of those Kyrgyz politicians on social networks (thanks to Diesel forum user Afina):
Kamchibek Tashiev (FB)
Roza Otunbayeva (FB)
Omurbek Babanov (FB)
Tursunbai Bakir uluu (FB)
Temir Sariev (FB)
Iskhak Pirmatov
Shirin Aitmatova (FB)
Dastan Bekeshev (FB)
Felix Kulov (FB)
Emil Umetaliev (FB)
Joomart Saparbaev (FB)
Ulan Cholponbaev (FB)
Aida Salyanova
Omurbek Tekebaev (FB)
Nariman Tuleev (FB, Forum)
Edil Baisalov (FB)
Akylbek Japarov (FB)
Asiya Sasykbaeva (FB)
Adakhan Madumarov (FB)
Ravshan Jeenbekov (FB)
Alikbek Jekshenkulov (FB)
Ismail Isakov (FB)

author: Elena Skochilo


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Pakistan: Rain In Karachi  · Global Voices
Rezwan

Kashif Aziz at Chowrangi posts some photos depicting how the recent downpour caused trouble in Karachi.

author: Rezwan


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Peru: ‘Mistura’ Gastronomic Festival Kicks Off · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón

Peruvians are very proud of their cuisine. When living abroad, they often say the thing they miss the most is the food. Mistura is a very successful gastronomic festival that has recently opened its fourth editon which will go from September 9-18, 2011.
As the event's web page explains [es]:
Es una fiesta donde los peruanos de los diversos sectores sociales,  edades, género nos reunimos sin distingos sociales alrededor de nuestras  ollas y fogones para celebrar nuestra tradición culinaria,  sorprendernos ante nuestra creatividad, reafirmar nuestra identidad y  celebrar nuestra diversidad cultural. En el Perú a lo largo de los  siglos la comida ha estado asociada a las Fiesta. Es en ocasión de las  fiestas patronales, Inti Raymi, San Juan, Cruz de Motupe, Señor Cautivo,  navidad, semana santa y festejos familiares (matrimonios, cumpleaños,  bautizos) que se han preparado los mejores potajes utilizando técnicas y  recetas que nuestras guisanderas y cocineros han transmitido de  generación en generación.
Tickets were sold out days before the inauguration. Photo taken by the author.
The blog Viajes y Turismo al día [es] mentions some of this year's novelties:
La Feria Gastronómica Internacional Mistura se caracteriza por su continua innovación, en esta IV edición empiezan a  aparecer muchas novedades como por ejemplo el “anticucho de pota” y la  “empanada de mamey”, también se destaca el  elevado numero de turistas que han viajado exclusivamente para ser parte  de este evento.
Regarding visitors, Peru this week reports:
Pedro Cordova, Mistura operations manager, announced that an airline  is developing a promotional campaign to bring visitors to Mistura from  other parts of the country, like Piura, Chiclayo, Trujillo, Cusco,  Arequipa and Tarapoto.
This includes  “a complete package including air fare,  transport and accommodation and free entry to the show on three dates,”  he explained.
Cordova said that this year Mistura expects to receive 280 thousand  to 300 thousand visitors and the massive purchase of 50,000 tickets at  the presale stage reflects the enthusiasm of people to participate in  the largest food fair in America.
Anticuchos. Image by Jennifer Woodard Maderazo, Jen SFO-BCN on Flickr  (CC BY 2.0)
Some weeks before the Mistura inauguration, filmmaker Patricia Pérez received an important award for her documentary “Mistura, the power of food”. The blog Report Peru shared the news [es]:
El premiado documental “Mistura, The Power of Food”, de la realizadora Patricia Pérez, recibió  nuevos galardones en dos festivales internacionales realizados en  Colorado y San Francisco, en Estados Unidos: [..] Film Festival of Colorado, en la categoría Best Short  Documentary (Mejor Cortometraje), así como en el San Francisco United  Film Festival, en la categoría Audience Award for Best Short Film  (Premio del Público al Mejor Documental).
Filmmaker Patricia Pérez's awarded documentary “Mistura, The Power of Food”, obtained new prizes in two international festivals in Colorado and San Francisco, United States: […] Colorado Film Festival, in the Best Short Documentary category, as well as San Francisco United Film Festival, in the category Audience Award for Best Short Film.
The blogger from Perú… a wonderful country!!! [es] elaborates on the meaning of Mistura:
La riqueza de nuestra gastronomía se sustenta en la historia y en la confluencia de particulares estilos culinarios e insumos de las diferentes regiones del Perú. A esto se suma en los últimos 5 siglos el  aporte de los sabores europeos, árabes, africanos, chinos, y japoneses. Los peruanos hemos decidido contarle al mundo lo orgullosos que nos sentimos de nuestra cocina. Pero, sobre todo, queremos compartir los  valores que marcan nuestro camino: tolerancia, respeto, compromiso con  el medio ambiente y responsabilidad social. Buscamos que la cocina no sea un fin, sino un medio y se convierta en un instrumento de desarrollo inclusivo, identidad cultural, desarrollo e integración social.
But not everything about Mistura is positive. Global Voices contributor Juan Arellano posted an interesting compendium about the festival on his personal blog, in a post titled “Mistura, eat delicioulsy but watch out for your pocket” [es]:
A pesar de su éxito, o quizás por exceso de éxito, el evento ha tenido críticas por diversos motivos, desde el costo de las entradas, el espacio donde se realiza, los problemas colaterales que ocasiona por la gran afluencia de gente y otros.
Mistura is here, and most likely it is here for good.

author: Gabriela García Calderón


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South Korea: Google Raided Over Alleged Antitrust Violations · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

Google's South Korea offices have been raided once again as the country's largest mobile search operators raised a claim that Google unfairly discouraged competition by limiting search engine options in Android handsets. The South Korean regulator accepted this argument and stormed Google's Seoul offices on September 6, 2011, reigniting numerous debates online about whether it was a fair decision and what motives lie behind such harsh action.
It is the third time Google Korea has been raided. The first raid was in August 2010, over a large amount of traffic information Google accidentally collected during its Google Street View project. The second raid came in May this year after the allegation that AdMob, Google's mobile advertising unit, had gathered personal location data without permission.
Image of Google and Naver Apps on phone, by Lee Yoo Eun (CC-BY-2.0)
This time, South Korea's two largest search engine companies, Naver(NHN Corp) and Daum Communications filed a complaint with the Korean Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) in April 2011 that the Android mobile phone operating system unfairly hinders competition by setting Google's search engine as the default option, making it difficult for users to switch to  different portals. They also argued that Google continues to discourage competitors by delaying OS  certification for phone manufacturers.
Even to Koreans who regularly visit the two local portals, the companies’ argument was widely seen as irrational, or even ungrateful. Kang Min-soo (@bombshots) tweeted [ko] that it is only natural for Google search to be pre-loaded on Android, and that Naver and Daum should be thankful they are even allowed onto the device:
구글압수수색 들어갔다고. 안드로이드에 구글기본탑재가 불공정거래? 윈도우에 IE 기본탑재는? iOS 검색기본이 구글인거는? 그나마 무료로 재워줬더니 주인보고 안방에서 나오라는 꼴.
J.S. Park (@unclecow) tweeted [ko]:
경쟁력없는 것도 부끄러운 일인터인데 법이 이러쿵 저러쿵 하는 걸 보니 안쓰러울뿐이다. 기분 나쁘면 네이버OS,다음OS만들어서 네이버폰,다음폰 만들어~ 너희들도 네이버폰이랑 다음폰 만들면 구글검색 이용 못하게 할꺼면서.
Many also accused the Korean regulator for being inconsistent in judging antitrust violations. Blogger 어설프군YB pointed out [ko] that while Naver enjoys dominant position in the search market despite numerous anti-trust allegations, Google who only has about a 15 percent market share was raided.
한국에서 독과점 형태로 모든 온라인 사업에 주도적 역할을 하고 있는 상황에서 […] 여러 면에서 산업 발전을 저해하는 정책을 펼치고 있습니다. 특히나 네이버는 검색시 자사 DB 즉, 네이버가 구축한 블로그, 카페등의 검색 비율을 높임으로 인해 70% 이상의 검색을 독점하고 있는데도 이와 관련해서는 조사를 진행하지 않고 구글에게 문제를 제기한다는 것자체게 어처구니 없는 접근이 아닐까 생각됩니다.
Worrying that these series of raids may chill freedom of speech online, activists railed against the government's decision. The international digital rights organization Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) in the United States even sent an open letter to the Korean Communications Standards Commission (see Jillian York's commentary). Several bloggers who tried to read between the lines, raised suspicions that this is a strategy of the government to ‘tame’ Google who has refused to follow certain local laws that may restrict online freedom of expression or undermine people's privacy.
Blogger ‘Photography is Power’ wrote [ko] about Google's ongoing conflict with the Korean government that has continued over several years:
수사할것이 있으면 해야죠. 그런데 이 구글 압수수색을 곱지 않게 보는 네티든들이 많습니다. […] 네이버나 다음입장에서는 국내 실정법을 따른 것 이겠지만  자사의 고객 정보를 경찰 영장 하나로 고객에게 당신 정보 경찰에 열람토록 하겠습니다 라는 통보도 없기 그냥 보여줍니다.[…] 2년전 4월  국내는 유튜브 실명제 도입으로 뜨거웠습니다.  동영상도 실명제를 통해서 올려야 한다는 것이죠. 한국법이 그러니  너희도 따르라고 압박을 했습니다. 그러자 구글코리아는 꼼수를 냅니다. 한국지역을 설정하면 업로드를 못하게 막아 놓았죠. 하지만  지역설정을 한국 이외로 하면 올릴 수 있습니다.[…] 구글코리아는 표현의 자유를 억압하는 실명제를 거부했습니다.
The blogger also noted that Google Korea seemed “lackluster” in recent months after a localization project failed to materialize and they lost a tight partnership with Daum. But he still expressed support for Google, describing it as “the only company that can break down the language barrier”. He suggested Google should streamline translation services in order to better survive in the hostile Korean online ecosystem.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Tanzania: Passenger Ferry Capsizes in Zanzibar · Global Voices
J. Nambiza Tungaraza

At least 198 people died and 590 people rescued after a ferry capsized in Zanzibar. The ferry, MV Spice, was carrying more than 700 passengers from Zanzibar to Pemba island.
Twitter users including those on the ground in Zanzibar have been updating information about the disaster using the hashtag #ZanzibarBoatAccident.
Soud Hyder from Al Jazeera Kiswahili and Seth Kibet, a crisis mapper and software developer, have set up Ushahidi-based platform for tracking real-time information about the accident. Citizens can submit reports by sending a tweet with the hashtag/s #ZanzibarBoatAccident or #Zanzibar or #Pemba or by filling a form. Ushahidi is an open source project which allows users to crowdsource information.
Amidst confusion about the number of the victims, @ZittoKabwe in Zanzibar updated his follower about the number of casualties:
@zittokabwe: I have just spoken with Zanzibar 1st VP. Rescued stand at 590 and deaths 198 #ZanzibarBoatAccident
@zittokabwe: #ZanzibarBoatAccident amazing! 546 people rescued now. Official – Presindet's Office, just spoke to the PS
Witnessing the events on the ground @Arabinizer wrote:
Photo of MV Spice by Flickr user sheyneg released under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
@arabinizer: 16 hours later is when the POLice Helicopter arrived? How slow can it get? #ZanzibarBoatAccident #zanzibar
@arabinizer: Seeing choppers still hovering above,HOPing for more survivors ,#zanzibar #ZanzibarBoatAccident
@arabinizer: @mollymhunter we were there witnessing the Events,The Boat capsized about 10 nautical miles from NUNGwi Town #ZanzibarBoatAccident #zanzibar
@arabinizer: Thousands are swarming in, Tanzania is in a state of Mourning, Flags Half mast, (maisara,znz) #zanzibar #ZanzibarBoatAccident
@arabinizer: Rushing to the outdated Zanzibar main hospital to Tally up the lost souls #tanzania #ZanzibarBoatAccident
@arabinizer: Identifying DEad Bodies,Very Graphic scenes,Can't Hold myself #Zanzibar #ZanzibarBoatAccident
As Television stations in mainland Tanzania took a while to offer updates, some Tweeter users expressed their disappointment:
@mnyune: Much respect for the coverage #zbc so ashamed #TBC #channel 10 #ITV on #ZanzibarBoatAccident
@O_the1: TBC IS a disgrace, INstead of morning with the Rest of Tanzanians they are playing Silly music. #ZanzibarBoatAccident #zanzibar #Tanzania
While @shurufu tweeted live coverage from Zanzibar Broadcasting Corporation:
Friends, relatives and concerned citizens in Zanzibar standing in shock. Photo courtesy of @Tanganyikan.
@shurufu: On ZBC, they are counting the dead. Unconfirmed but the no. appears to be 118 dead and counting #Zanzibarboataccident
@shurufu: On ZBC (TVZ), a man has just identified a dead relative. Harrowing #Zanzibarboataccident
Earlier when the tragedy was unfolding, @jenny_hauser curatedtweets and photos related to the accident.
From early Saturday morning, some tweeps were mourning the dead and others praising the rescuers:
@amirajammy: Its so sad..what happened in zanzibar. My prayers with them wallahi! #zanzibarboataccident
@zeanonymouspoet: #ZanzibarBoatAccident its death and funeral in every hall..stone town is crying now leaders are lying…
@zittokabwe: Fishermen in Nungwi village played heroic role in rescuing fellow Tanzanians. Sacks of wheatflower onboard we used #ZanzibarBoatAccident
In 1996, MV Bukoba, a Lake Victoria ferry that carried passengers and cargo between the Tanzanian ports of Bukoba and Mwanza, sank. Up to 1000 passengers drowned.

author: J. Nambiza Tungaraza


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Ukraine, Russia: “A New Stage in the Gas War” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

David Marples of Current Politics in Ukraine analyzes the current stage of the Russian-Ukrainian “gas war.”

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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United States: Latino Perspectives on the Anniversary of 9/11  · Global Voices
Robert Valencia

This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices 9/11 Retrospective.
The year 2011 is an unforgettable year in regards to the 9/11 attacks. The death of Osama Bin Laden in the beginning of May, the announcement of President Obama to withdraw troop from Afghanistan for the third trimester of 2012, the advancement of the reconstruction of the World Trade Center, and particularly because it marks the 10th anniversary of the attempts in New York and Washington that changed the course of history.
Latinos (the name used by many Latin American and Caribbean people to identify themselves in the US) in the United States have honoured the victims, as there were so many of them affected as well. The radio station WNYC started a series of interviews on the “9/11 generation” which includes Latino families, and Univisión is airing a week [es] of transmissions dedicated to the 10th anniversary. And while the media remembers victims and historical days, what can be found on the Latino blogosphere are posts on the famous conspiration theories. For example, bloggers Julio Plaza, Josué Belda and Pedro Gimeno explain in a series of articles for the 11-S [es] blog the possible causes that led to the fall of the towers.
Una de las creencias más comunes ligadas a las teorías conspirativas sobre el 11-S, si no la más, es que se emplearon explosivos para ayudar a que las Torres cayeran. Dejando aparte el edificio 7 del WTC, cuya caída merece un análisis separado, vamos a dar un pequeño repaso histórico a estas afirmaciones y a analizar su mérito.
The blog “Movimiento Anti-NWO” (Anti-NWO Movement) makes mention of  [es] one song that uses an allegory of the September 11th attacks called “Pero no lo contó la TV” (But the TV didn't say anything) which summarises, in 10 paragraphs, the alleged scheming of the U.S. government behind the attacks:
Más allá de que pueda gustar musicalmente o no, resulta admirable la capacidad de síntesis y la frescura con la que este video toca el tema de la mentada conspiración del 11 de septiembre del 2001, el día en que muchos despertaron a la conciencia forzadamente, ante la artera manifestación de un grupo élite que controla el planeta como si fuera un rebaño de ovejas —con una mezcla de brujería y lobotomía.
Jesús Silva-Herzog Márquez‘ [es] blog cites the British/American writer Christopher Hitchens, who in his work on Slate has defended the United Staes and its authorities for its life-saving heroism:
Pero la lección de aquella mañana [del 11 de septiembre] fue para él [Hitchens] que tampoco debía olvidarse lo obvio. Para Hitchens, los atentados terroristas significaron dos novedades. Por primera vez apareció respaldando a las “fuerzas del orden,” del lado de soldados y policías y defendiendo con vehemencia a su país adoptivo.
Finally, Mexican journalist León Krauze in his blog [es] mentions that one of the evils that often followed the commemoration of September 11 is the relativisation of evil:
En un afán torpe de corrección política, la sociedad moderna ha tendido  con alarmante frecuencia a olvidar que el mal —o alguna vertiente del  mal— no permite matiz alguno: se gesta como un intento de dañar al  prójimo de la manera más cruel, y relativizarlo es, inevitablemente,  difuminarlo, minimizarlo.
On Twitter, it was the Latin American media that mentioned the September 11 commemorations most prolifically. CNN México (@CNNMex) replayed an interview of George W. Bush by National Geographic:
Si te lo perdiste: George W. Bush habla por primera vez de los ataques terroristas del 11 de septiembre http://cnn.mx/n000RWH
El Universal de México (@El_Universal_Mx) released an edition about September 11 for all it's followers:
Siga nuestro especial a 10 años del 11 de septiembre, testimonios, galerías y videos http://bit.ly/qz4ReC
The NY Latino newspaper (@eldiariony) opened a series of tweets and articles on 9/11 with the following question:
¿Quién se hizo rico tras los atentadosdeSeptiembre11? #s11latinobit.ly/nji92e
Ude Picart (@UdePicart) seems to display incertitude in face of the approaching date:
Qué será de este 11 de Septiembre?
A reporter who calls herself DwllC (@DwllC) affirms that the U.S. government remains alert for possible reprisals during the commemoration:
Emite Estados Unidos alerta mundial por posibles atentados, en vísperas del 11 de Septiembre.
The secretary of external relations of Mexico, Patricia Espinosa (@PEspinosaC) compiled a summary of the bilateral relations between her country and the United States on the eve of 9/11:
Les comparto unas breves reflexiones sobre la relación México-EUA a una década de los atentados del 11deseptiembre: bit.ly/qrsAbM.
According to a conspiracy theory shared by Mario Lopez (@MariofLopez) there is an internet page that promises new revelations about events:
115 mentiras sobre los atentados del 11septiembre- voltairenet.org/115-mentiras-s… a lo menos 6 de los supuestos secuestradores aéreos están vivos
Various publications from the United States also commemorated the anniversary in special editions, for example New York Magazine and it's “Encyclopedia of 9/11,” the New York Times features visual arts inspired by 9/11, and Foreign Affairs magazine published a “Did you know?” series of essays related to what 9/11 means at the global level. The  Washington Post shares a human interest perspective of nine families seeking normality after the attack on the Pentagon. Among all this, a wide range of television programs have honoured the memory of those involved in the events of that tragic day.
This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices 9/11 Retrospective.

author: Robert Valencia


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USA: Amnesty Campaign to Save Death Row Inmate Troy Davis · Global Voices
Solana Larsen

Amnesty International has launched an online campaign to save death row inmate Troy Davis in Georgia, USA from execution. Nearly 20 years since his conviction, the case against him “has fallen apart” says Amnesty. See online petition, videos, a recorded phone call with Davis, and more.


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Africans in Guangzhou: Opportunities & Discrimination · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Fauna from ChinaSMACK translated a local news feature about the life of Africans in Guangzhou. There are about 200,000 Africans living in the Southern China city.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Bangladesh: The Maritime Arbitration With Myanmar · Global Voices
Rezwan

The New Horizon posts updates on the ongoing maritime arbitration of Bangladesh with Myanmar at the International Tribunal For The Law Of The Sea.


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Barbados: Pirating Scandal via Wikileaks  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Barbados Free Press draws attention to another Wikileaks cable which suggests that two years prior to a police sergeant being “arrested and charged with taking bribes to allow a counterfeit DVD ‘pirate’ to operate, a US Embassy cable lamented the fact that he and the Barbados Police were unsuccessful in stopping the blatant copying of intellectual property like movie and music DVDs.”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Caribbean: Remembering 9/11 · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Regional and diaspora bloggers shared their thoughts yesterday on the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.


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Cuba: Rotilla Festival Canceled · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

Journalist, blogger and GV author Elaine Díaz has written a series on the controversial cancelation of the electronic music festival Rotilla [es].

author: Firuzeh Shokooh Valle


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Haiti: Waste Management by Troops  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

mediahacker looks at the issue of UN troops and waste management in Haiti, asking, tongue firmly in cheek, “Does this only become a big deal if it causes an outbreak of deadly disease?  Or is living with swarms of mosquitoes and an overpowering stench in the area an acceptable level of suffering for Haitians?  They’re resilient people, after all.”


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Iran: “Prince of Persia” launched his own blog · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Reza Pahlavi, the older son of the late Shah of Iran, launched a blog in Persian. He says he wants to be in touch with the Iranian young generation. He named his blog:” a word with you”.


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Iran: The flamingos return to Lake Urmia · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Nama Jafari has published a 70's film showing the flamingos in Lake Urmia (Rezayieh). There were several demonstrations in recent weeks to save this dying lake. The blogger says that this lake 30 years ago was a tourist attraction and now a dying one.


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Japan: Anti-nuclear power demonstration on 911 · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Buddhika Weerasinghe has posted photos of the anti-nuclear power demonstration held in central Tokyo on September 11th. Several thousand people joined the demo, as can be seen in this video footage [ja] and 12 people were arrested. See also the official site [ja] for the demonstration.

author: Tomomi Sasaki


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Japan: Most rational, least traditional country? · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Hashi at Tofugu blogs about the World Values Survey results that show that Japan is “one of the most rational, least ‘traditional’ countries out there” and tops the list of countries as having the strongest secular-rational values.


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Kenya: “One of Africa’s Biggest Slums is My Home” · Global Voices
Solana Larsen

On the ActionAid blog Bollocks to Poverty, citizen journalist and Activista blogger Collins Odhiambo explains what it's like to come from one of Africa's largest slums, Kibera in Nairobi, Kenya. “Just because I’m from Kibera doesn’t mean I’m lesser,” he writes.


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Madagascar: The Lemur King Swan Song · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Erik Patel's documentary of the Sifaka in the rain forest of Madagascar describes how this particular species of lemurs is now on the brink of extinction. Patel explains that the Sifaka's habitat has been destroyed by illegal logging of rosewood trees in the Marojejy Park.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Philippines: The President’s Zero Love Life · Global Voices
Karlo Mongaya

The bachelor Philippines President Noynoy Aquino's comparison of his love life to a soft drink in a five-day state visit to China not only drew laughter but also criticism online.
“May nagtanong ho kasi sa akin, sabi niya, ‘kamusta love life mo?’ Eh ang sabi ko po sa kanya, parang Coca-Cola. Noong araw, ‘regular.’ Naging ‘light.’ Ngayon, ‘zero,'” said the president.
The president has been reported in the media to be dating several women since his break up with his girlfriend Soledad Shalani last year. His state visit was intended to draw Chinese investments to the Philippines.
The President’ comment immediately drew amusement and speculation on who the president would fall for next.
If he’s love life is ZERO now, the question is, who is next? And when will his countrymen witness a grand wedding at the Palace?
But some are not very amused with these comments. Not Offline blogs about why the bachelor president's lovelife has become a national issue.
I remember him being pissed off of the media breaching his privacy borders about his lovelife that the media shouldn’t bother with it. Then the next day, he goes on to talk about it himself.
Zero for Human Rights
Human rights advocates meanwhile compared the president's zero love life to a lackluster commitment to uphold human rights:
The Mokong Perspective longs for the day when there will be no more human rights violations in the country.
Sana someday when asked “Kamusta human rights violations sa inyo?” Pinoys would say “parang Coca-Cola. Nung araw regular, naging light, ngayon zero.”
International and local human rights groups have noted that the Aquino administration has done little to curb human rights violations and to dismantle private armies by regional warlords.
A Philippine-based human rights advocacy alliance has documented 48 extrajudicial killings, 5 enforced disappearances, 29 torture cases, 151 illegal arrests and 3,010 victims of forcible evacuation from rural villages.
Zero for State Universities and Colleges
Not to be outdone, students protesting drastic budget cuts for State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) have also joined the fray, this time comparing Aquino's zero love life with his decreasing spending for public schools.
The capital outlay is used for the construction of new facilities and acquisition of new equipment. Fifty schools will have budget cuts of as much as P569.8 million in the proposed 2012 national budget. The cuts have been blamed for the Philippine universities’ fall in ranking among top world universities.
September 16 has been set as Blog Action Day for Education. Filipino students are gearing for a September 21-23 nationwide campus strikes against budget cuts for education and social services.

author: Karlo Mongaya


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Puerto Rico: Remembering 9/11 · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

Anayra Santory [es], Carmen Rabell [es], and Huáscar Robles Carrasquillo write about 9/11 from different perspectives for various online publications.


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Russia: Connecting Neighbors, Saving Lives · Global Voices
Ashley Cleek

In the summer of 2010, when peat fires spread across Russia, choking and suffocating villages, Internet activists got organized. While the Russian government response was slow and piecemeal, bloggers responded by quickly launching the site Russian-Fires [ru], which allowed Internet users in small towns to relay information about where fires were still burning and what supplies were needed.
The site was immensely popular, at one point experiencing upto 17,000 unique visitors a day.
When the crisis was over, the bloggers behind the project – Anastasia Severina, Alexey Sidorenko, Lev Zvyagintsev, Valery Ilyichev, and Gregory Asmolov – noticed that the website was still buzzing with activity. Users continued to send messages about other problems and needs in their towns.
“People saw that it was an effective platform for sending help when and where it was needed,” says Severina.
Website "Virtual Alarm" maps alerts for help and need, and then coordinates locals to respond.
Connecting people in new ways
Inspired by the success of Russian-Fires [ru], the bloggers developed a new site – Rynda.org (Virtual Alarm) – which currently consists of three maps: a “General Map”, a “Fire Map”, and a “Blood Donation” map.
The locations of people who have sent requests are indicated in red, while offers to help are in green. Severina says they have tried to make the site as simple as possible, so that people, “who have no idea how to operate a computer can go to the page and see two buttons: ‘I need help’ or ‘I want to help.’”
The site team in Moscow does not physically transport or receive goods. Instead, Virtual Alarm connects people who live in the same city, with those who have what they need.
“Let’s say a mother needs supplies, like clothing for her children. It makes no sense to send clothes from an NGO in Moscow to Vladivostok,” Severina explains. Instead, alerts for help or need are marked on a map, and people registered as willing to help are notified of new requests via email.
After about two weeks, they follow up on any outstanding alerts to make sure someone has responded to the call for help.
Mapping blood donors
The newest map on Virtual Alarm charts blood donation and blood banks throughout Russia. The map marks donation centers, and also connects those who need blood donations with donors of the same blood type nearby. Registered users can also leave comments about their experience donating blood, which Severina hopes will help show people how easy and necessary it is to donate blood at least once a year.
An image from Russian ministry of health site encouraging citizens to donate blood.
According to 2010 statistics [ru], only 13 out of every 1,000 people in Russia donate blood every year, in comparison with rates 3-4 times as high in Europe and the United States. The Russian Ministry of Health and Social Development say they need to reach a rate of at least 25 out of 1,000 people [ru] in order for hospitals and clinics to function adequately.
The ministry has recently launched a hotline number and website called “I'm a donor” (Yadonor.ru) to inform the public and make blood donation easier.
In the near future, Rynda hopes to partner with local businesses in order to offer registered users small rewards – like discounts or movies tickets – as a thank you for volunteering.
As far as the future uses of the map, Severina says, “If, God forbid, something should happen, and some new crisis should arise, we would make a new map and connect people.”

author: Ashley Cleek


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Saudi Arabia: Human Rights Activist on Trial  · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

This Saturday 10 September, 2011, Saudi human rights activist Waleed Abu Alkhair (@abualkhair) faced the national court in Jeddah for “insulting judiciary”. Saudi tweeps discussed the case of Abu Alkhair using the hashtags #abualkhair and #wAbuAlkhair to show support and criticize the way authorities function against activists, or on the other hand, to describe Abu Alkhair as a “foreign agent” who's betraying the Saudi kingdom with his connections.
It was revealed, later on, that the Saudi activist wasn't only facing the charge of insulting judiciary, but also for demanding constitutional monarchy and other charges that the judge has refused to give a copy of to Abu Alkhair. In the following tweets, the activist tweets the charges he's facing and what happened in the first session of his trial:
Picture of Saudi Activist Waleed Abu Alkhair taken from the blog of Abdulrahman Fares
قابلت مساعد القاضي وقرأ علي التهم وهي كالتالي الإساءة للقضاء وللعاملين فيه والتواصل مع جهات أجنبية
من التهم المطالبة بالملكية الدستورية والمشاركة في قنوات إعلامية لتشويه سمعة البلاد
ايضا من التهم تحريض زوجتي سمر بدوي على السلطات, القاضي رفض إعطائي نسخة من لائحة الاتهام
وأيضا رفض تحديد موعد للجلسة القادمة, أخبرني بأنهم سوف يتصلون بي لموعد الجلسة القادمة
القضية منظورة لدى القاضي عبدالمجيد الشويهي والمدعي العام لم يحضر وانا راجع بيتنا خخخ
نسيت أن أضيف أن من ضمن التهم: تأليب الرأي العام ضد النظام العام للبلد
Saudi tweep Mansour johny (@Alasbani1) wrote a critical note in the shadow of this trial:
في السعوديه فط تحاكم بسبب اراءك .. كانك أقترفت جريمة ضد أحدهم
Another Saudi tweep (@MyyVoicee) wrote about this in relation to freedom of speech:
نعرف جميعا ان محاكمه ابو الخير هي محاكمه مزروه هدفها قمع الحريات
Mosfer Alwadee (@MosferAlwadee) tweeted sarcastically about the trial:
المطالبه بالاصلاح الدستوري جناية والدعوة لاصلاح القضاء اهانه والدفاع عن حقوق الناس تاليب ضد الدولة،مالذي بقي من المضحكات?
Co-Founder & President of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association, Mohammad Al-Qahtani (@MFQahtani), linked the trial to oppression:
@MFQahtani: #abualkhair‘s court trial exposes #saudi judiciary as deeply selective and highly politicized! Has court become another tool of repression?
Saudi nicknamed tweep (@Saamaa2) however, stood in the other camp against Abu Alkhair:
@Saamaa2: Rediculous how puppets like #abualkhair #wAbuAlkhair have no one to defend them except puppets like them &orgs lacking integrity.
Abdulaziz (@abumjd) referred to Abu Alkhair as a “foreign agent”:
عندما يهاجم القضاء من أجل عميل فابتسم أنت في السعودية
Another nicknamed Saudi (@SAHER1010) wrote:
وليد ابوالخير..يعتقد ان كونه “عميل” في منظمة “هيومن رايتس”سيوفر له غطاء “عالمياً”عند محاكمته…مايمديك العب غيرها

author: Mona Kareem


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Shenzhen population statistics, 1979 – 2011 · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Mary Ann O'Donnell created a chart of Shenzhen population statistics from 1979-2011, showing the dual citizenship structure – those who enjoy full citizen rights though household registration system and those who do not – in the city.


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Trinidad & Tobago: Sylvia Hunt’s Legacy  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Even as a young child I was attracted to her warm, charismatic persona and soothing voice. She had a way of making every dish seem undaunting, approachable, and effortless. Unfortunately no reruns of her shows appear, nor do any substantial photos or citations exist online. A shameful gap in our indigenous media and culinary heritage”: TriniGourmet.com blogs about Sylvia Hunt, “the Julia Child of Trinidad.”


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U.S. Virgin Islands: Tropical Storm Maria Loses Strength  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

U.S. Virgin Islands bloggers report that Tropical Storm Maria, the center of which was projected to pass over St. John early Sunday morning, thankfully lost momentum.


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UK: Vasily Grossman’s “Life and Fate” on BBC Radio 4 · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Sarah J. Young writes about BBC Radio 4's “adaptation of Vasily Grossman’s vast and still under-appreciated novel Life and Fate” (the first episode is scheduled to be aired on Sept. 18).


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Ukraine: Crimean Tatar Language on Twitter · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Hirano Takaci (@hiranotakaci), a Lviv-based photographer and teacher of the Japanese language, has recently launched a Twitter bot – @ukr_crh – that posts Ukrainian words/phrases and their Crimean Tatar (Qırımca) translations. “The thing is, I've been searching but haven't found any Ukrainian-language books about the Crimean Tatar language,” he explained [uk] on Twitter. “People would like to learn, but it is hard to find. And this is sad.”


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Ukraine: Homemade ‘Samohon’ (Moonshine) · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

For The Pickle Project, Andrea Wenglowsky documents the process of making samohon – moonshine – at the apartment of her friend's grandmother in Kyiv.


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Ukraine: Update on Tymoshenko’s Trial · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Foreign Notes posts an update on Yulia Tymoshenko's trial, which has been halted for two weeks.


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Argentina: Seven Die and Hundreds Injured After Bus and Trains Collide · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Seven people died and more than 100 were injured when a bus and two trains crashed in Flores, Buenos Aires on Tuesday morning, September 13. Twitter users in Argentina are using the hashtag #Flores to report on the accident and share reactions.

author: Silvia Viñas


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Barbados: Perception of Corruption  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Keltruth Corp. takes issue with a Transparency International report claiming “Barbados is less corrupt than the UK or the US”.  The blogger “holds the opinion that corruption in Barbados is at a similar abysmal level to the other countries in the region, like Trinidad and Jamaica. However the situation in Barbados is different, as corruption is seldom if ever investigated.”


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Cambodia: Video of Flooding in Siem Reap · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

SoutheastAsiaTravel has uploaded a video of the recent flooding in the Old Market Area in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

author: Mong Palatino


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China: 8 Ways That Sina Weibo Will Shut You Up · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Steven Millward translated Chinese tech-blogger Jason Ng's summary of Sina Weibo's censorship principles at Penn Olson.


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China: Now With America’s Attention Back · Global Voices
John Kennedy

This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices 9/11 Retrospective.
Looking back [zh] at ten years of post-9/11, Chinese novelist, political commentator and former US resident, Yang Hengjun (also a former young nationalist type) writes: “America* lost China as its enemy #1, and I lost America as mine; but now that the United States is back, where should she and China stand?”
反恐之战让美国的元气大伤，但也让更多的人比以往任何时候都更认识到这样一个道理：民主、自由、人权本身就是威力无穷的武器，用任何伤害这些理念的方式来维护、推销这些理念的做法都是本末倒置、得不偿失的。美国等西方国家曾经打败比本拉登与萨达姆强大百倍的苏联东欧集团，可他们后来谁也不好意思使用“打败”一词居功自傲，为什么？因为苏联、东欧是被自由、民主与人权这些普世价值理念打败的，美国人并没发射一枪一炮。如果还有人不相信，完全可以看一下美国人倾注了巨大金钱与心血的伊拉克，然后对照一下突尼斯、埃及，还有利比亚，美国对后面几个国家都保持了相当的距离，可并没有能够延缓这些国家呼唤民主、自由与公正、公平的革命爆发。
Anyone who still doesn't believe that need only look at the vast amounts of money and sweat the Americans are pumping into Iraq, and compare that to the relative distance the US has recently kept from countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and even Libya, and that yet it still could not offset the explosion of revolutionary calls for democracy, freedom and fair treatment in these countries.
十年了，美国再一次消灭了主要的敌人，而中国也崛起了一半，中美两国再一次来到了十字路口。怎么办？主导中美关系的三大要素是经济、政治与安全。所谓安全，就是美国在全球的军事主导地位，以及中国在亚洲的军事崛起两者是否能够和平共处；所谓政治，对于美国来说，就是“自由、民主”的价值理念。靠着这个理念，美国成为世界第一强国，所向披靡，弄得凡是与这个理念作对的国家纷纷垮台，至今还没有止住。美国会不会故伎重演，最后使用一次致命武器，终结地球上不民主制度的历史？
So-called politics, as far as the United States is concerned, refers to values and concepts like freedom and democracy; with these, America has become the strongest country in the world and remains uncontested, with every nation so far to try going against these concepts ending up in ruin. Will America keep playing this game until one day it uses some fatal weapon, wiping all nondemocratic systems off the face of the earth in one shot?
Yang Hengjun, 12/28/2008
就我所知，美国内部确实有这样一波人，而且，能量不小，至于他们是否能掌权并成为主流，取决于经济关系是否牢靠，以及军事安全是否会出现大的冲突。我早就有一个结论，就中美经济关系，以及中国不断增长的综合国力，美国绝不会轻易对中国下手，而如果中国内部发生变化，美国也绝不会缩手。有国内学者同我争论说，即便中国出现问题，因为经贸关系以及中国强大得军事力量，美国也不能怎么样吧。这些专家高估了中美经贸关系对美国长远利益的影响，说实话，中美经贸关系只不过对某届总统候选人有直接的影响而已——所以，奥巴马要寻求连任前，拜登会来拜山，希望中国能够使用人民币让美国稳定。至于军事实力，你大概忘记了，我曾经是超级军事迷？
At the same time, if China undergoes some sort of transition at its core, nor will the US hold back. Some mainland scholars have argued with me on this, saying that even if trouble does emerge in China, between the trade relationship between the two countries and China's military strength, there isn't much that the US could do in any event. These experts, however, overestimate the longterm beneficial impact of the trade relationship between China and the US to the US. To be honest, the only people directly affected by the US and China's trade relationship are the current round of presidential candidates.
This is why, before he seeks to get reelected, Obama sent Biden to come cozy up to China, in the hope that China will leverage the Renminbi to keep the US stable. As for military strength, I used to be a super military geek, or did you forget?
说到这里，不应该回避站在十字路口上的中国。无论从刚刚出台的《中国的和平发展道路》白皮书，还是我们领导人出访时对世界各国所做的承诺，中国一直在向国际社会反复呼吁，会在国际交往中追求民主，致力各成员国之间的平等，力主求同存异、包容不同与鼓励多元……。问题是，有几个国家相信北京了？
为什么？因为你在国际社会上力主的这些价值理念，首先应该用在自己的国民身上。你对自己的国民都做不到民主、平等、求同存异、尊重个体的权利，人家又如何相信你在国际上能够做到？你要和平发展，要在国际间营造和平与和谐，人家看一眼你所说的“和谐”，能不怀疑你强大后，会像对待自己的国民一样，让世界各国都如此“和谐”？
Because why would they? If you're going to make the case for values and notions like this among the international community, you need to start practicing them yourself, first. If you can't even give your own citizens democracy, equality, mutual acceptance or respect for their individual rights, how are you going to be able to do so at an international level? If you want to rise peacefully, to foster peace and harmony between different states, the second people get a glimpse of what you mean by “harmony”, why wouldn't suspect that the minute you gain strength, that you'd treat them the same way you do your own people, and try and make the world just as “harmonious” as things are in your country?
在我看来，中国的问题不在于外交，不在于中美关系，不在于军事安全，而在于内政，在于我们选择的道路与制度，能否保障公民享有宪法里规定的各项自由权利，能否保障公民真正享受当家作主的民主权利。
*United States of America
This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices 9/11 Retrospective.

author: John Kennedy


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Cuba: House Agents  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Iván García blogs about ‘house agents’: “Those who — under the table — dedicate themselves to transmit trades, purchases, or sales of houses in Cuba. A business where there isn’t anyone to tell the tale.”


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Cuba: Repressive Action  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Bloggers chronicle the latest wave of repression in Cuba, here, here and here.


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Denmark: Turkish Flag on Right-Wing Candidate’s “Sharia-Land” Ad · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Amila Bosnae re-posts a parliamentary election campaign ad of “a candidate for the xenophobic (and powerful) Danish People’s Party” and explains: “The caption on top reads ‘Sharia-land or Sjælland?’ – Sjælland is Zealand, the big island in the eastern part of Denmark with the capital Copenhagen. For some reason they chose to put the Turkish flag on the entire island… because we all know that they have sharia law in Turkey.”


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Egypt: Turkey’s Response to Kurds Questioned as Erdogan Speaks in Cairo · Global Voices
Ruwayda Mustafah

Billboards in Cairo to welcome Erdogan by AymanM from yfrog on Twitter
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's speech about the Palestinian bid for a statehood at the Arab League was translated online live by members of social networking sites, namely Twitter, for those who did not speak Arabic or Turkish. The response to his speech which was filled with more cliches than substance was diverse, from those who believed Turkey's stance was justifiable, to those who were dismayed at the level of hypocrisy shown by Turkey towards Kurds struggling for autonomy.
Here are some of the sound bytes from Erdogan's speech:
@RawyaRageh #Erdogan: #Israel must respect human rights, act like any other state to end its isolation #Turkey #ArabLeague
@MahirZeynalov Turkish PM Erdogan: Let the flag of Palestinian state to be the symbol of peace in the Middle East.
@MahirZeynalov Turkish PM Erdogan: Recognition of Palestinian state is the only right path, it is not a choice but an obligation.
@MahirZeynalov Turkish PM Erdogan: Every state must pay for their terror acts, referring to Israel.
Tweeps were quick to point out the treatment of Kurds in Turkey, and recent events while Erdogan was giving a speech. Here is a selection of reactions:
@Hevallo #Erdogan: If Palestine with a population of 4 million deserve a state, how about Kurds with a population of 40 million? #ArabLeague #Egypt
@khaledfahmy Turkey killings trigger Kurdish protest….Let Erdogan watch this video:
@fatmaemam that what will happen if you are Kurdish & decided to celebrate your culture in #Turkey http://bit.ly/nKaMVF #kurdishrights
@fatmaemam Turkey is a ultra nationalist state where cultural minorities like the Kurds are harshly suppressed #turkey #erdogan
@MiranHosny For the life of me I cannot fathom why someone w/ such strong ideas on Israel could order his own Human Rights violations on #Kurds #Erdogan
@norashalaby #ArabLeague is one of the most useless organizations that still exist for some reason
@M_Magdeldin #Arableague is malfunctioned, It reminds me of the dictatorships in the arab world with no hope to fix from within, It should be dissolved.
@AbirKopty Maybe #Erdogan & others didn't get yet that the new generation of Arabs is not naive. We know that behind nice words there are interests.
@Remziya While #Erdogan tramps thru the Arab World denouncing #Israel #Kurds continue 2 b slaughtered n #Turkey! Hypocrisy at it's finest.

author: Ruwayda Mustafah


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Guatemala: 2011 General Elections in Antigua · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Rudy Girón at AntiguaDailyPhoto posts a photo slide show of “the election process in La Antigua Guatemala”. Rudy also describes the voting process, reporting that Sunday's elections in Antigua “progressed in a calm and quiet family atmosphere. It almost felt like a civic party.”


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Honduras: Radio Journalist Killed · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

“Thursday [September 8] a reporter for Radio Uno in San Pedro was murdered […] The reporter, Medardo Flores, was part of the finance section of the Frente Amplio de Resistencia Popular (FARP), the political wing of the Frente Nacional de Resistencia Popular (FNRP) [National Popular Resistance Front] […] Porfirio Lobo Sosa has ordered an investigation of these killings, but denies any government involvement”: Honduras Culture and Politics reports, adding that “since June 28, 2009 16 journalists have been murdered in Honduras.”


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Hungary: Fall 2011 Legislative Season · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Contrarian Hungarian reviews the most important items on the Hungarian parliament's legislative agenda of Fall 2011.


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Hungary: “The Constitution’s Table” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Contrarian Hungarian writes about a new regulation that requires “every municipal council in Hungary [to] set up a table to display the country’s newly enacted constitution”: “The table must be covered by glass, and the constitution on the table must be opened on page 28 […].  Next to the table, a chair must be set. […]” Marietta Le of Remainder of Budapest reports several sightings of mock “Constitution's Tables” around Budapest.


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Indonesia: Protest of Mining Workers · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Multibrand writes about the planned strike of Indonesian workers of PT Freeport, a mining company that produces the world's largest supply of Gold and Copper. The workers are demanding the compliance of the management's pledge to adjust wages.


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Iran: Opposition leader and “News of a Kidnapping”  · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Cafe 35 blog writes Mir Hussein Mousavi, one of opposition leaders who has been under house for seven months, told to his daughters ” if you want to know my situation, read Gabriel García Márquez‘s ” News of a Kidnapping.”

author: Fred Petrossian


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Iran: The” Crane” was cleared of charges · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Greencity reports that Akbar Amini, the man who climbed atop a crane in a show of protest on 14th of February, was cleared of charges. Akbar’s cell mate says Akbar is known as the “Crane” among other prisoners


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Japan: Pass rates for bar exams at all time low · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Marcelo de Alcantara from the Japanese Law Blog has translated a news article with 2011 statistics about the revised bar examinations.


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Korea: WikiLeaks Reveals More on South Korean Policy, Rather than North Korean Realities · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

Leon V. Sigal from 38 North site posted an interesting analysis on the WikiLeaks cable traffic between Seoul and  Washington. The author stressed that the cables shed less light on North Korea than they  do on South Korea’s policy toward the North.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Lebanon: Empowering Migrant Workers With Language · Global Voices
Thalia Rahme

A community of enthusiastic young people in Beirut, The Migrant Workers Task Force, are working to support foreign domestic workers in Lebanon whose living and working conditions are often desperately unfair.
The volunteer group has only been active since January 2011, but already they have managed to attract the attention of both local and international media for their innovative approach to changing the perceptions of both workers and employers. Among their main achievements are the free language courses they offer to workers learning Arabic, English, or French every Sunday.
In Lebanon, approximately one domestic worker a week dies under murky circumstances (often described as “suicide”). Eighty percent of domestic migrant workers are not allowed to leave their employer's house at all. Their plight and rights are almost universally ignored.
Initially the task force consisted of only Alex, Lioba, Farah, Ali, and Janie and a few other members, but recently the group has been expanding. According to Janie Shen, 24, one of the co-founders (the only foreigner one who is actually still in Lebanon) the idea for the Migrant Workers Task Force was born after newcomers to Lebanon, like herself and Alex, were shocked by the conditions of migrant workers in the country – for instance, the degrading uniforms, general mistreatment, having passports confiscated, food rationed, and only one day a week off or none at all.
In this video Janie explains more about what the Migrant Workers Task force is about:
Migrant Workers Task Force have no office or official organization, but have been meeting regularly at Zico House in Hamra and will soon relocate some of their activities to Migrant House in Nabaa. Everyone involved in the project is a volunteer, and they rely on small fundraising events to cover their costs.
'You see a poor man, but he is a source of wealth' Anti-racism ad by Migrant Workers Task Force
Part of the success of the group is due to their talented use of social media for communication. All news and announcements are published on their blog, and they manage a group and several pages on Facebook. They also share images and videos on Flickr and a Youtube.
Among their memorable campaigns are, their anti-racism posters for International Worker's Day (featuring three language class students), a series of interviews with migrants about their conditions, and some short satirical films in response to an official campaign showing Lebanon as a paradise for tourists.
They have also hosted local migrant celebrations, like a Nepalese New Year celebration, and have helped sell African and Asian food and other migrant products.
Language classes
On Sundays workers from Nepal, Philippines, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Sudan assemble to learn languages with volunteer teachers who wish to help. They began as informal gatherings, but are now developing into more structured language lessons.
Here is a video from the languages lessons one Sunday and some testimonies of students and teachers. One teacher says, “I am offering my skills in English to let them speak for their rights.”
The language classes have become an important venue for community building. One student interviewed in the video below is Rahel Zegeye, a migrant worker from Ethiopia, who over two years put all of her earnings towards making a feature film about the experience of domestic workers in Lebanon.
In less than a year, Migrant Workers Task Force has mobilized more volunteers and goodwill than many other more established organizations. Via language and communication, they have helped migrant domestic workers in Lebanon facing a very local problem gain highly deserved international attention.

author: Thalia Rahme


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Morocco: Multiple Arrests Against Activists · Global Voices
Hisham Almiraat

This page is part of our special coverage Morocco Protests 2011.
There has been a sudden surge in arrests among pro-democracy activists and online campaigners in Morocco in recent days. Three have occurred in the past week alone. Little has been reported in the press and it took bloggers to report on the arrests for the traditional media in Morocco to pick up on the stories.
The anti-corruption campaigner
The first arrest occurred on Monday when authorities in the northern city of Fnidaq apprehended blogger and anti-corruption campaigner Mohamed Douas. Mohamed is the founder of a community news website called Fnidaq Online.
The arrest, according to his friends and supporters, might be related to a Facebook group, Wikileaks Fnidaq, Mohamed founded and where he published documents allegedly exposing corruption within the local administration. Mohamed was accused of drug trafficking but a group of bloggers and online activists say the accusation is baseless.
Hamid Salim writing on Young Immigrants says the judicial process is biased and politically motivated. He writes [ar]:
التهمة ملفقة والملف مفبرك، مرجحا أن يكون السبب الحقيقي لاعتقال المدون محمد دواس في هذا الوقت بالذات، هو مناهضته للفساد وكشف تورط عدد من المسؤولين في المنطقة في قضايا فساد ومخدرات.
A group of supporters gathered in front of the courthouse where Mohamed appeared before a judge on Thursday. In the following video (by Reporters sans limites) [ar] bloggers and activists express support for M. Douas. They describe the proceedings as unfair:
The rapper
Free Moad – picture posted on Moad's support page on Facebook
Another activist, rapper Moad Belghouat, alias Haked (Arabic for The Vindictive or The Outraged) was arrested on Friday on charges of assaulting a pro-regime demonstrator. Moad is a an active member of the Moroccan pro-democracy youth movement known as February 20.
Words of support for Moad abound on Twitter and Facebook. Blogger Ghassan Wail writes:
The 20th february movement is a protest movement in the spirit of the “Arab spring” and has been fighting for more democracy, liberty, dignity and social justice over the last seven months. Haked is one of the artists highly involved in this movement. His lyrics are famous for being outspoken and critical about the Moroccan regime. He criticizes corruption, clientelism, the oligarchy of a few families in Morocco and the monarchy's excessive wealth.
Free Moad Haked.
Moad's support group counts over a thousand members on Facebook.
On Sunday activists marched in solidarity with Moad Haked wearing T-shirts bearing the phrase “Free Haked or arrest us all.”
Free Haked – Picture from support group on Facebook
Moad supporters released the following video [ar] showing people holding a sign calling for the release of the rapper:
The poet
On Saturday, poet and political satirist Younes Belmalha, a.k.a Inkicharia, was reportedly detained. He is known for his humorous and irreverent videos mostly critical of the regime. Shortly after the news of the arrest, netizens reported that Younes’ YouTube channel was being emptied of its video content. It is not clear at this point what Younes has been arrested for nor whether the deletion of the videos was the result of a third party intervention.
Following is a video [ar] of Younes reciting one of his poems. He deplores nepotism and corruption in the Moroccan society. The video is hosted by M20FevBel on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqiCM497WuQ&feature=player_embedded
Younes was reportedly released on Sunday. No details have emerged as to why he was apprehended.
Has anything really changed?
These arrests come only two months after the country adopted a supposedly democratic constitution, described by its advocates as one that would guarantee greater freedom of expression. Blogger Don Aminos wonders [fr]:
La question que je me pose aujourd'hui, à l'heure où tous les tyrans tombent les uns après les autres, quel résultat attendent les autorités de ces arrestations arbitraires ? La peur a basculé de camp. Vouloir intimider les manifestants me parait suicidaire puisque cela ne fait que renforcer la crédibilité du mouvement et cristalliser la haine des citoyens contre le régime. Mais est-ce que le roi est informé de ces arrestations arbitraires qui vont à l'encontre de ses intérêts? Est si oui, quelle est sa réaction ou sa position sur la question ? Lui qui nous a habitué à des beaux discours soporifiques sur la place de la jeunesse dans la société et les efforts qui vont être entrepris en sa faveur.
This page is part of our special coverage Morocco Protests 2011.

author: Hisham Almiraat


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North Korea: Inside the House of Upper-class North Koreans · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

A net user ID:CheeseNoodle posted photos of a North Korean house in South Korean citizen journalist website, Wiki Tree. The house, which belongs to upper-class people, is equipped with a flat-screen TV, electric devices and just like any other households, portraits of Kim Jong-il and Kim Il-sung in one corner.


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Philippines: Verified Twitter Accounts of Government Agencies · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

As of this writing, the list of verified twitter accounts of government agencies in the Philippines monitors 22 departments.


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Thailand: Voluntary Minimum Wage Increase? · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

According to several online reports cited by Bangkok Pundit, the Thailand government can't force private companies to implement a minimum wage increase. The wage hike is one of the election campaign promises of the new government


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Trinidad & Tobago: Hair & Now  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Struck by a report in which a detained man's hair was shaved by soldiers, Attillah Springer says: “This shouldn’t be the story that gets you the most vexed out of the whole state of emergency farce…it's just hair.  That is why Samson was destroyed when Delilah cut his. It’s just hair. That’s why soldiers think they have a right to cut it. It’s just freedom.”