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Mexico: Chauvinism and Homophobia in Political Parties · Global Voices
Patricia Carolina Saucedo Añez

Arely Torres-Miranda, blogging for Mujeres construyendo (Women building), questions the misogyny and the chauvinism that exist within Mexican political parties, something they all have in common across the board: former representatives of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) who hire sexual services, videos that involve members of the National Action Party (PAN) in private parties, victims of gender- based violence, homophobia from members of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD).
Torres-Miranda explains that with all this chauvinism and homophobia, there are days when she would like to stop her fight for women's rights:
[…] en serio, hay días que quiero rendirme. ¿De qué van todas estas declaraciones? ¿Cómo llegan estas personas a puestos públicos dónde deberían de garantizar y cuidar los Derechos Humanos? Hace unos meses platicaba con un asesor del congreso del estado y le decía que me encantaría poder hacer una iniciativa de ley donde se cuidara que cualquier persona, hombre o mujer, que llegase a ocupar un puesto dentro del servicio público debería demostrar estudios certificados de género y Derechos Humanos…me dijo que no era posible, que eso sería discriminar y entonces, inmediatamente me convertiría en eso que tanto me quejo… ¿entonces, cómo nos cuidamos de esto?
[…] really, there are days when I want to give up. What are all those statements about? How do those people get a public position, with which they should guarantee and take care of human rights? Some months ago, I was talking to a Congress consultant, and I told him I'd like to start a bill where everybody who gets appointed as a public servant should be able to produce certified studies of gender and human rights. He told me that wasn't possible, that would be discrimination and then I immediately would become what I complain about. Then, how do we protect ourselves from this?
And she expresses her doubts in the best possible way: putting them into writing.
You can follow Arely Torres-Miranda on Twitter.

author: Patricia Carolina Saucedo Añez


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Tired of ‘Aggressive Mainstream Propaganda’? The Kremlin Is Launching a News Network Just for You · Global Voices
Tanya Lokot

Images mixed by Kevin Rothrock.
Russia's state-run Rossia Segodnya media holding has launched a new international multimedia project to “provide an alternative viewpoint on world events.” Sputnik International, which replaces the English-language RIA Novosti service, will incorporate several websites and radio stations, and plans to have news hubs in up to 30 cities by 2015.
Dmitry Kiselev, head of Rossia Segodnya, and host of Vesti Nedeli, known for his outrageous comments on current affairs and often called “Russia's propagandist-in-chief,” claimed Sputnik's launch was meant for people who are “tired of aggressive propaganda” and want a “different perspective.”
We will verify information, our information will be reliable. We will provide alternative interpretations that are, undoubtedly, in demand around the world. We think that the world is tired of the unipolar point of view… We believe that the basis of such a multicolored and multipolar world is international law, a world by rule.
Sputnik, the Russian world for “satellite,” is a great way to brand a Russian media product, as it “sounds familiar, warm, swift and romantic,” said Kiselev. He insisted that Sputnik does not intend to replace RIA Novosti in Russia, and that the new brand will only work outside the country. The takeover is already evident, though, as the RIA Novosti English website en.ria.ru now redirects to sputniknews.com.
Many journalists who previously followed the English-language @ria_novosti Twitter account were surprised to discover they are now subscribed to @SputnikInt instead, as it quietly took over the account, which has over 55,000 followers.
Ах вот оно чо, ну ладно тогда pic.twitter.com/LoI1oyBRw4
— Philipp Kireev (@mynameisphilipp) November 10, 2014
Oh, that's what it is, okay then.
If you look at the @SputnikInt account it has tweeted 60,000 times – but under an old name and all the old links are now broken
— Daniel Sandford (@BBCDanielS) November 10, 2014
Incidentally, the @ria_novosti name, which became vacant, was immediately occupied by someone else, and the account now looks set to become a parody one.
RuNet users and foreign observers have reacted with gusto to the new media brand, its plans and its new motto: “Telling the Untold.”
Is “Telling the Untold” even proper English? Nice start geniuses.
— Peter Leonard (@pete_leonard) November 10, 2014
I wonder how Tallinn Riga and Vilnius feel about being grouped in Kiselyov's “post-Soviet” vision of his news empire pic.twitter.com/KeqaRwathq
— Maria Antonova (@mashant) November 10, 2014
Теперь будет такая схема: РИА ссылается на Спутник, Спутник — на RT, а RT — на РИА. Цитируемость х3, ура
— Султанс (@sult) November 10, 2014
The scheme will be as follows now: RIA links to Sputnik, Sputnik quotes RT, and RT quotes RIA. Citations x3, hooray.
A few jibes also went Kiselev's way—he does, after all, have quite a reputation in the media circles and is also on the Western sanctions list along with other prominent Russian public figures.
“На презентации нового агентства Дмитрий Киселев выступил против идеологической пропаганды” Смешной анекдот, однако.
— velocity (@velocity100500) November 10, 2014
At the launch of his new agency, Dmitry Kiselev spoke against ideological propaganda. What a funny joke, yeah.
Би-би-си вдрогнуло – Киселев объявил о запуске Sputnik – радио и интернет-СМИ http://t.co/g8YuI9WFdr
— Russian Fox (@sergefox11) November 10, 2014
BBC shudders—Kiselev has announced the launch of Sputnik, a radio and Internet media.
Sputnik will be seen all over the world, unlike Kiselyov himself, who is barred from Europe and US by sanctions.
— Peter Leonard (@pete_leonard) November 10, 2014
It's unlikely that Sputnik's media output will be drastically different from anything RIA Novosti or Russia Today already produce, so it's safe to say its “alternative viewpoint” will probably stay within close orbit of the Kremlin's agenda.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Tanya Lokot


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At London Premiere, Demonstrators Say the Real ‘Hunger Games’ Is in Thailand · Global Voices
Khun Somchai

#DistrictThai demonstration in London, via the District Thai Facebook page.
A group of Thai citizens gathered outside London's Odeon Cinema in Leicester Square on Monday, November 10, as the theater hosted the international premiere of “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1,” to draw attention to the real-life threats to democracy, the freedom of expression, and the rule of law in Thailand.
The film is significant for many Thais. Indeed, opponents of Thailand's recent coup, which displaced the democratically-elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra, have even adopted the movie's famous three-finger salute. The gesture has become so popular that the country's military junta actually banned it, along with several other forms of political dissent. Hundreds of Thais recently used the salute at the cremation ceremony for former Deputy House Speaker Apiwan Wiriyachai, greeting Yingluck Shinawatra with the three fingers, when she arrived to pay her respects.
Many of the activists in London this week wore masks, for fear of reprisals against their friends and families still in Thailand.
The activists set up a Facebook page and a Twitter account to coordinate their efforts, using the hashtag #DistrictThai. “District” is a reference to the plot of “The Hunger Games,” where a centralized, authoritarian dictatorship rules different geographic areas (“districts”). Most of the districts are impoverished and enslaved to the “Capital.”
Activists’ social media accounts are maintained in Thai and in English, serving audiences both at home in Thailand and around the world. The group's Facebook page was popular, attracting more than 1,000 “likes” in a single weekend. The first message appeared on Friday, November 7:
The staff at London's Odeon Cinema noticed the #DistrictThai demonstration right away, tweeting:
#DistrictThai are in town and they look awesome. A for effort! #mockingjay pic.twitter.com/DlSlDokSgO
— ODEON (@ODEONCinemas) November 10, 2014

author: Khun Somchai


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‘Coup Today, Gone Tomorrow’ and Other Hilarious #FakeArabProverbs · Global Voices
Elia J. Ayoub

“When in Beirut, do as the Parisians do,” tweets Khaled Bey under #FakeArabProverbs. Photo by Charbel Torbey. Copyright Demotix
Reading about the Middle East can be upsetting or tiresome. To help alleviate your pain, Arab Twitter users have launched the satirical #FakeArabProverbs campaign.
Echoing the dark humor of the #PalestinianPickUpLines of last year, #FakeArabProverbs broadened its range to include lighter topics as well, such as marriage, food, family and the usual stereotypes associated with the Middle East and North Africa.
So sit back and enjoy. We hope that these pearls of Arabian ‘wisdom’ brighten your day.
Hend from ‘@LibyaLiberty‘ started it with the following tweet:
Such troubling times in the Middle East…now is the time to understand our world and find wisdom in the eternal words of #FakeArabProverbs
— Hend (@LibyaLiberty) November 10, 2014
The following is a hilarious selection of some of the best ones:
Fortune favors the bearded #FakeArabProverbs
— Faisal Khan (@fmkhan1) November 10, 2014
When in Beirut, do as the Parisians do. #FakeArabProverbs
— Khaled Bey (@KhaledBeydoun) November 10, 2014
The darkest hour is before the drone. #FakeArabProverbs
— Hend (@LibyaLiberty) November 10, 2014
The extremer the merrier #FakeArabProverbs
— Ang (@Angiegad) November 10, 2014
Two is marriage, three is also marriage that is nonetheless very difficult to explain to immigration officers. #FakeArabProverbs
— hannah draper (@draperha) November 10, 2014
When the going gets tough, the tough form a militia. #FakeArabProverbs
— Hend (@LibyaLiberty) November 10, 2014
Coup today. Gone tomorrow. #FakeArabProverbs
— Faizal Goga (@goga) November 10, 2014
Better late than on time. #fakeArabProverbs
— Karl Sharro (@KarlreMarks) November 10, 2014
Good things come to those who discover oil. #FakeArabProverbs.
— Ismail. (@IsmailSakalaki) November 10, 2014
If at first you don't succeed, blame a Zionist conspiracy. #FakeArabProverbs
— Hend (@LibyaLiberty) November 10, 2014
Shut up your mouse. #FakeArabProverbs
— Nader | نادر (@BonsaiSky) November 10, 2014
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a kebab lunch and a good nap. #fakeArabProverbs
— Karl Sharro (@KarlreMarks) November 10, 2014
Behind every great man there is anywhere from one to four great women. #FakeArabProverbs
— Hend (@LibyaLiberty) November 10, 2014
For more of these, just follow the hashtag #FakeArabProverbs.

author: Elia J. Ayoub


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Educating Girls Today, Empowering Women Tomorrow · Global Voices
Patricia Carolina Saucedo Añez

Marita Seara, who blogs for Voces Visibles (Visibles voices), invites us to reflect on the discrimination that affects girls and teenagers — access to education — and the need of educating our girls today so they can be the empowered women of the future.
Photo from the blog Voces Visibles, used with permission.
According to data backed up by Amenisty International, 41 million girls can't even access elementary education. Illiteracy, child marriage, teen pregnancy are part of a vicious cycle that especially affects our girls. Thus, Latina America isn't exempted from this global issue, mainly about teen pregnancy:
Venezuela ostenta el primer lugar en Suramérica y el tercer lugar en América Latina al ser el país con mayor cantidad de embarazos precoces. De cada 100 mujeres venezolanas que quedan embarazadas anualmente, 25 son adolescentes, de acuerdo al programa de Telemedicina de la Universidad Central de Venezuela.
Venezuela is top of the list in South America and third place in Latin America with the highest rate of early pregnancy. Out of 100 Venezuelan women that get pregnant each year, 25 are teenagers, according to Telemedicine program at the Central University of Venezuela.
Among the causes of teen pregnancy, it's worth mentioning that one-third of unwanted pregnancies are a result of not using protection, and half of the girls affected didn't receive proper sexual and reproductive education before getting pregnant.
So, education is the only way. By educating our girls today, we are empowering women of tomorrow, and therefore, their families and communities.
You can follow Marita Seara on Twitter.


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Georgian LGBT Organisation Requests ‘Hate Crime’ Label for Brutal Murder · Global Voices
Joseph A. Smith

Discourse about LGBT rights in Georgia is frequently heated. Wikipedia image.
In a statement released today on their website, Georgian LGBT rights group Identoba have called on the authorities to investigate the alleged murder of a transgender woman as a hate crime. Police discovered the body of 25 year-old salon worker, Beqa B. (known to friends as Sabi), in a burnt-out apartment in central Tbilisi on Monday night and are investigating the case as one of ‘pre-meditated murder’.
The statement from Identoba, an organisation on the forefront of LGBT activism in Georgia, reads:
In our opinion, the police are almost always trying not to qualify homophobic-motivated crimes as such and an investigation of classic premeditated murder, hooliganism or some other article is used to make it seem that the offender committed the offence in aggravated circumstances, so as not to bear the burden [of the crime]. Therefore, ‘Identoba’ calls on the Ministry of Internal Affairs not to publicize details of the victim's personal life, including name and other identifying marks, but at the same time, since the crime emerged in the public interest, we request that they announce clearly whether the case bears signs of being a hate crime.
Although there are frequent cases of violence against transgender people, not only in Georgia but also in the [rest of the] world, which are often fatal, in Georgia the qualifications bestowed on hate crimes remains an insurmountable problem. However, the media are generally not interested in the fact that the crime itself is horrific, but are notorious for their interest instead in the alleged victim's orientation and gender identity. This has been corroborated by dozens of media representatives’ questions [directed to us] about the victim's sexual orientation, in which they only ask for confirmation [that the victim was LGBT]. We appeal to media outlets not to make the tragedy and controversy a tabloid story. Every human life is precious regardless of the person's sexual orientation or gender identity.
While there is no hate crime legislation in Georgia, Article 53 of the Georgian Criminal Code permits judges to increase sentences based on aggravating circumstances. Public hostility towards LGBT issues and individuals in Georgia is fairly widespread, however. Earlier in 2014, the adoption of anti-discrimination legislation was protested by conservative and religious groups, who held that outlawing discrimination based on sexual orientation was tantamount to ‘propagandising homosexuality’. In May 2013, an anti-homophobia rally in central Tbilisi was violently disrupted by thousands of counter-protesters led by Orthodox clergy. In the aftermath, the city saw a spike in homophobic violence. A survey conducted later in the year revealed that 50% of Georgians believe violence against LGBT individuals is justified.
Georgian tabloid news site Ambebi.ge has already published a story about the private life of Beqa B., which, according to the head of Identoba, Irakli Vacharadze, could impact negatively on the investigation into the case. Speaking to Global Voices by telephone, Vacharadze, said:
There is a twisted logic in Georgian media. The police should be interested in someone's gender identity or sexual orientation because it will have an implication for the qualification of the case …. Georgian media should care about human lives, right? But they never care about this …. all of them are asking this unbelievable question “Can you confirm that this person was LGBT?”…. they just want to confirm that this person belong to this category or group. And this is all that matters ….
The news of Sabi's alleged murder has been met with concern by some social media users, but has provoked sarcasm and derision from others. One user commented:”How can you kill someone – regardless of who they are?”
adamini rogor unda mokla vinc ar unda is ikos http://t.co/1Leo5iCWPs
— zaza lemonjaria (@zazalemonjaria) November 11, 2014
But echoing a trend towards viewing crimes against LGBT groups ambivalently, another Twitter user was somewhat less sensitive, asking: “Who fell down [ie died], a man or a woman?”
ეს რა კაცი წაგვექცა თუ ქალი… http://t.co/Q1WQBCRGdM — Bacho Tsomaia (@btsomaia) November 11, 2014

author: Joseph A. Smith


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Many Hospitals in Guinea Closing Because of Ebola Virus · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

Conakry General Hospital via Koaci used with permission.
Guinea medical personnel are fearful following the death of 28 of their number and the hospitalization of 50 additional staff since September 17. Compounding this situation, the lack of protective equipment is so serious that medical gloves are being sold on the black market. Highlighting the atmosphere among care personnel, Amadou Tham Camara wrote  the following on Guinea News:
Déjà traumatisé par la mort de six collègues au mois d’avril dernier, le  personnel soignant de l’hôpital sino guinéen de Kipé est dorénavant dans une sinécure paranoïaque : les médecins refusent de soigner. Et tous les jours, ils maudissent le17 mars, ce jour où ils ont reçu ce patient venu de Dabola qui a contaminé neuf de leurs collègues.
Dans les autres grands hôpitaux nationaux de Conakry, des services entiers ne sont plus ouverts à cause des nouveaux cas d’Ebola détectés. Ainsi, depuis deux semaines, le service de réanimation de l’hôpital Ignace Deen est fermé. Le service gynécologique du même hôpital est barricadé  pour les mêmes raisons. De même la maternité de l’hôpital Donka, la plus grande du pays, ne fonctionne plus.
Dans ce pandémonium, le paludisme qui reste le premier problème de santé publique en Guinée, avec plus de 30% des consultations, et la première cause de décès en milieu hospitalier(14%), selon l’OMS, a encore de beaux jours pour améliorer ses chiffres macabres. Tout ceci, à cause du silence feutré provoqué par le tintamarre assourdissant  autour d’Ebola.
Malaria remains Guinea's major public health problem being responsible for over 30% of consultations and the primary cause of death in hospitals according to the WHO. All this pandemonium ensures these macabre statistics have had ample opportunity to worsen. A deadening silence caused by the deafening panic about Ebola.

author: Abdoulaye Bah


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Myanmar’s Child Refugees Share Their Stories Through Visual Art · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Thanks to visual-storytelling workshops, a group of child refugees from Myanmar (Burma) is now able to narrate the experience of fleeing their war-torn home. The illustrations generated in these seminars serve as powerful teaching aids in understanding how civil war and ethnic conflict have ravaged the country for the past several decades.
With help from family and friends, American author Erika Berg conducts these workshops for two reasons: promoting peace in Myanmar and providing therapy to traumatized refugees. Her seminars have produced more than 200 paintings, which will soon be compiled in a book, titled “Forced to Flee: Visual Stories by Refugee Youth from Burma.” Berg is hoping to publish the book using Kickstarter funding.
There are more than 120,000 refugees living today in camps along the Thailand-Myanmar border. Meanwhile, over 100,000 ethnic Kachin and Shan still live in camps for internally displaced persons. A military dictatorship has ruled Myanmar since 1962. In recent years, however, the country witnessed political reforms that brought elections, the release of some political prisoners, and the establishment of a military-backed civilian government.
The roots of the ethnic conflict remain unresolved, however, fueling what is still the world’s longest-running civil war. There are several peace efforts now underway to promote national reconciliation, but local wars continue across the country. Elections next year will be crucial for the fragile peace process.
In the meantime, hundreds of thousands of villagers are still trapped in refugee camps, and the intermittent clashes between the army and the rebels displace more people still.
A visual representation of Myanmar. The country has more than 100 ethnic groups.
In her volunteer work, Berg learned that “every refugee has a haunting, humbling, and inspiring story to share.” In an interview with the Burma Study Center, she explains:
Refugee youth who participate in the visual storytelling workshops quickly realize that they aren’t simply victims. They are survivors and witnesses whose life stories deserve—and need—to be heard.
Berg says the book she's compiling can help spread awareness about peace advocacy in Myanmar:
‘Forced to Flee’ illustrates that the emotions conveyed and evoked by a single narrative image can tell a story of a thousand words, open hearts and build bridges of understanding. In this book, refugee youth harness the power of narrative art to personalize human rights issues and promote a just and inclusive peace in Burma.
Drawn into their inner worlds, we gain a child’s eye-view of what it’s like to be forced to flee one’s homeland and live in exile, haunted – and empowered – by traumas of the past.
A young refugee during a visual storytelling workshop.
Below are some illustrations made by the young refugees:
The child refugee who painted this says he felt “as if he was being watched by Burma’s then military junta,” even after leaving the country.
Cathy Malchiodi, an art therapist, affirms the importance of the book project:
“The visual story was painted by an undocumented Chin migrant boy in a textile factory […]. [it is a] picture of the boy's dream (which came true).”
It honors the visual narratives of youth, tells their stories of injustice and atrocity, and offers us a window into possibilities for reparation and redemption for these young survivors. Most of all, it reminds us how children’s art provides a compelling, personal and often profound worldview their life experiences as well as another way of knowing their truths.
Naw K'nyaw Paw of the ethnic Karen Women's Organization wrote that the book “captures the struggles, portrayed by refugee youth who experience them daily.” Poet May Ng also speaks praise:
Never before have I seen such an intense and credible portrait of the journey of refugees from Burma. This is a magnificent work, larger than Burma’s democracy movement and the inter-ethnic conflict. Its message is universal.
Adults like to read stories to children, but there are times when we should listen to what children have to say, particularly when it concerns their feelings and experiences in war. The visual art created by Myanmar's youngest refugees is one of these opportunities to let the kids do the talking.

author: Mong Palatino


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Police Say He Helped Steal $5 Billion, But Russia’s Opposition Wants to Save Alexander Belov · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

Alexander Belov's incarceration has become a rallying point for some in the Russian opposition. Images edited by Kevin Rothrock.
There’s a rumor going around that the Russian authorities are planning to torture—maybe even drive to suicide—one of the country’s most prominent nationalists, Alexander Belov. Torturing Mr. Belov, whose real surname is Potkin, won’t be hard: he’s currently sitting in a Moscow jail cell, awaiting trial for the launder and embezzlement of roughly five billion dollars.
Belov’s role in such a fantastic theft remains something of a mystery, but Russian police felt they had enough evidence to charge him with breaking criminal codes 174 and 159, which could send him to prison for seven years and ten years, respectively.
How could a Russian nationalist—the former leader of the now-banned “Movement Against Illegal Immigration” (DPNI)—possibly help steal five billion dollars? Belov’s accusers say he was working for Mukhtar Ablyazov, the Kazakh oligarch who’s often compared to Boris Berezovsky and Mikhail Khodorkovsky. According to prosecutors, Ablyazov hired Belov in 2011 to study and foment nationalist unrest in Kazakhstan, with the aim of weakening President Nazarbaev’s regime. Over time, Ablyazov, who’s now in French custody and in danger of being extradited to Russia, supposedly placed more trust in Belov, eventually tasking him with managing his entire financial empire.
Belov was first arrested on October 15 and placed under house arrest on October 17. Five days later, however, prosecutors added fraud charges that prompted a judge to relocate Belov’s pretrial detention to a state prison. According to the arresting officers, Belov’s behavior during the search of his apartment was peculiar. Police say he refused to tell them where his passport was, tried to escape through the window (injuring his back in the process), and even ate a supposedly incriminating document, to keep it out of the authorities’ hands.
Concerns about Belov’s physical safety in pretrial detention spiked this week, after his brother, Vladimir Basmanov, wrote on LiveJournal about a supposed plan by the Federal Security Service (FSB) to torture Belov in prison:
Александра планируется поместить в камеру, так называемую, «пресс-хату», где на него будет оказано психологическое и физическое давление, со стороны подконтрольных администрации тюрьмы уголовников, вплоть до инсценирования самоубийства. Это будет сделано в ближайшие несколько суток, если Александр не даст «нужные» показания следствию, на себя и других участников политической оппозиции России, а также – откажется работать на ФСБ.
They’re planning to put Alexander in a cell—the so-called “sweat box”—where he’ll face psychological and physical pressure from other inmates under the control of the prison administration, up to an imitation of suicide. This will be done in the next few days, if Alexander doesn’t hand over the “required” evidence to investigators, incriminating himself and other participants in Russia’s political opposition, or if he refuses to work for the FSB.
Basmanov is organizing a demonstration on November 12, outside the jailhouse where Belov now sits, to support his brother and oppose “extrajudicial execution.”
Several prominent Russian oppositionists have endorsed the rally, republishing Basmanov’s LJ post. Alexey Navalny, who is currently under house arrest, has collaborated with Belov in the past. Navalny called on readers to help him now:
ФСБ УГРОЖАЕТ УБИТЬ АЛЕКСАНДРА БЕЛОВА В СИЗО. Нужна ваша помощь http://t.co/sIPNIN9YZ2
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) November 11, 2014
The FSB threatens to kill Alexander Belov in pretrial detention. He needs your help.
Vladimir Milov, another Russian oppositionist with nationalist leanings, made a similar appeal, tweeting:
Смотрите какая жесть с Беловым творится. Не сомневаюсь что на него ФСБшники давят http://t.co/TlYmA86y4Y
— Vladimir Milov (@v_milov) November 11, 2014
Just look at the craziness happening with Belov. I don’t doubt that the FSB is putting the screws to him.
Mark Feygin, one of Pussy Riot’s former lawyers, says the alleged plot against Belov reminds him of how prison authorities treated Ilya Goryachev, one of Feygin’s former clients. (Goryachev, who attempted suicide earlier this year, claims he has been tortured in prison.)
Собственно, с моим подзащитным Горячевым была та же схема, что и с Беловым: предупреждение/пресс-хата/мойка http://t.co/rDtyW2JRue Почитайте
— Mark Feygin (@mark_feygin) November 11, 2014
In fact, with Belov, it’s the same as with my client, Goryachev: a warning, the sweat box, then the razor blade.
Duma deputy Ilya Ponomarev, the only man in Russia’s parliament to vote against the annexation of Crimea, also threw his support behind the rally for Belov, tweeting:
Белов мне не друг, но истина дороже. Надо помочь! 12го в 12-00 митинг у СИЗО-5 “Водник” http://t.co/Mbu5dWV4LM
— Ilya Ponomarev (@iponomarev) November 11, 2014
Belov’s no friend of mine, but the truth is worth more. We have to help him! [November] 12 at noon, rally outside detention center 5, “Vodnik.”
Despite the show of public support, things don’t look good for Belov, whose relationship with the police wasn’t always so bad. In 2006, for instance, he even attended a banquet at the Kremlin to celebrate “Police Day,” where he reportedly bragged about his contacts among Russia’s senior counterintelligence officers. Eight years later, confined to a jail cell at “Vodnik,” he’s got far less to brag about.

author: Kevin Rothrock


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Prison in Bahrain: A Tale of Torture · Global Voices
Mohamed Hassan

Daih, Bahrain. 28th February 2014 — In front of the mourning rally banners with Jaafar Aldurazi's picture. — Bahraini security forces fired tear gas and stun grenades on protesters after funeral of Jaafar Aldurazi. who died in custody allegedly due to medical neglect and torture in prison. Copyright: Demotix
He was shouting as he was being beaten. Prisoners could hear his screams. The autopsy showed a disfigured face, a fractured skull, broken ribs, and an exploded kidney. Meet Hasan Alshaikh, 36 years old, who died as a result of torture in a prison in Bahrain. He had served more than half his sentence.
On November 6, 2014 the Bahrain Ministry of Interior tweeted that a prisoner had died in prison:
An inmate, 36, at the Directorate of Reformation and Rehabilitation who is convicted in a drug case died. Concerned bodies notified
— Ministry of Interior (@moi_bahrain) November 6, 2014
For more specification it was stated that it was not a natural death
Criminal suspicions over the death of inmate http://t.co/cXaSB9YR4H
— Ministry of Interior (@moi_bahrain) November 6, 2014
Hasan Alshaikh joins a list of at least five other prisoners who have died due to torture in Bahrain since 2011, and I share with him something that is unfortunately common in my country—we were both victims of torture.
On the night of July 30, 2013, I went to sleep thinking of trivial things such as what I would do on the weekend, and whether I should continue with my piano lessons. Little did I know that such decisions would soon be out of my hands.
At dawn on July 31, I was grabbed from my bed and taken to the Central Intelligence directorate (CID), where I was tortured for five days.
Having worked with human rights organizations for a few years I had read many testimonies regarding torture in Bahrain, so I was more prepared than most others for what would come. Not that it made much difference, but at least it helped me keep some degree of sanity. During the days I was kept in detention I was handcuffed and blindfolded but I still had the knowledge and my instinct was to keep doing what I was trained to do.
I started collecting information. I was kept in a makeshift cell about six-by-six. The structure of the room suggested that it has recently been subdivided. The plywood walls didn't reach the ceiling. There weren’t a large number of rooms, but they tried to give you the illusion that the place was larger than it was by walking you in circles around the place.
I started doing things like counting the number of doors I heard being shut when the guards did their routine search to make sure nobody was sleeping or sitting down (we were forced to remain standing the whole time). This indicated that there weren't many rooms in the place. This was significant, because it meant any building could be turned into a torture chamber and that the traditional mechanisms to keep track of detention facilities were ineffective.
Remaining handcuffed with your hands behind your back for a long period drains your strength. After a while your circulation stops and your limbs become numb. We were allowed to go to the bathroom once every shift, so we would take the opportunity even if we weren't in need of the toilet, as it was the only chance to have our handcuffs removed.
I learned to slide my hands beneath my feet (our hands are handcuffed behind our backs)  and relax the blindfold a bit, so when I was taken to the bathroom I was able to examine the place. I started noticing how orders were passed between the officers and guards. From speaking to the inmates I was with later on and getting their testimonies, I learned that if you had a green Post-it on your door you were not allowed to sit or sleep; a yellow Post-it meant you were allowed to sleep at night; no Post-it on the door of your cell meant you were allowed to sit. This was significant because it showed that there was a hierarchy and a system in place. These weren’t unilateral decisions.
During my torture sessions I was told what I should say to the public prosecutor. They told me the questions I would be asked and the answers I should give. The fact that I was asked exactly the same questions by the public prosecutor as my torturers said, convinced me that the level of co-ordination we used to suspect did in fact exist in Bahrain.
I was warned that if I complained to the public prosecutor about being tortured I would be tortured even more. Had my lawyer not tweeted about it, I would have expected that to happen. Many other inmates had experienced this, as they were questioned by the public prosecutor without a lawyer present.
When I was later transferred to the detention centre, I met many who would recognize and trust me. A 16-year-old fellow detainee saw that I was allowed a notebook and looked at me with envy. As hard as a simple thing like a notebook was to come by in a place like that, I couldn't deprive him. I gave him the notebook and he surprised me when he started his own project, making and distributing a form to the inmates, asking them to write down their stories and describe how they were tortured.
The “torture note”, as I used to call it, was more than words on paper—it was the manifestation of evil. It was agony reading those stories of people from so many different backgrounds, age groups and parts of the country. That notebook was the shame of my nation and proof of the structural failure of a country. It strengthened my conviction that torture in Bahrain is a matter that goes far beyond our imagination.
The death of a new inmate in prison was not a surprise. It was only a matter of time before someone proved too weak to withstand the practices of Bahrain's prisons, and add to that the lack of medical care, the deteriorating conditions in our overcrowded prisons and the tendency for violence to escalate.
The torture that led to the death of Hasan Alshaikh was committed by three members of the prison staff. Three, meaning it was a group decision: none of the three staff members thought it wrong to beat inmates, which points to a general environment of acceptance of torture. One of Hassan Alshaikh’s torturers was the lecturer in charge of rehabilitation of drug abusers. How was he selected for such a position is an indication of another structural failure in the system.
Eight other prison staff came forward to testify as witnesses to the torture and killing of Alshaikh. Why none of them came forward to stop the crime while it was happening is further evidence of the atmosphere of tolerance of torture. Other inmates could only sit and listen to him scream to death.
Hasan Alshaikh will not be the last victim of torture in Bahrain, especially not as long as western allies continue to praise the “reforms” made by the Bahraini government. The level of insult I feel every time I read comments about “reforms” from allies like the UK is far worse than the injuries I sustained in prison, and it's not making my frequent nightmares any better.
On behalf of Hasan and 80 other inmates whose stories I have read, I would like to ask you a favour: please tweet or write to Mr. Philip Hammond, Foreign Secretary at Foreign & Commonwealth Office, and ask him kindly to stop insulting us.

author: Mohamed Hassan


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The Poetry and Brief Life of a Foxconn Worker · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Foxconn, a Taiwanese company and Apple company's subcontractor in China, has been criticized for its labour management policy, which has resulted in high number of workplace suicides. Nao, a pro-grassroots group, translated poems of Xu Lizhi, a Foxconn worker who committed suicide on 30 September 2014, at the age of 24, in Shenzhen, China. Below is one of the poems:
《谶言一种》
“A Kind of Prophecy”
村里的老人都说
Village elders say
我跟我爷爷年轻时很像
I resemble my grandfather in his youth
刚开始我不以为然
I didn’t recognize it
后来经他们一再提起
But listening to them time and again
我就深信不疑了
Won me over
我跟我爷爷
My grandfather and I share
不仅外貌越看越像
Facial expressions
就连脾性和爱好
Temperaments, hobbies
也像同一个娘胎里出来的
Almost as if we came from the same womb
比如我爷爷外号竹竿
They nicknamed him “bamboo pole”
我外号衣架
And me, “clothes hanger”
我爷爷经常忍气吞声
He often swallowed his feelings
我经常唯唯诺诺
I'm often obsequious
我爷爷喜欢猜谜
He liked guessing riddles
我喜欢预言
I like premonitions
1943年秋，鬼子进
In the autumn of 1943, the Japanese devils invaded
我爷爷被活活烧死
and burned my grandfather alive
享年23岁
at the age of 23.
我今年23岁
This year I turn 23.
– 18 June 2013

author: Oiwan Lam


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They Vote So You Don’t Have To: Lebanon’s Parliament Extends Its Own Term in Office · Global Voices
Nada

On the Streets in Lebanon, September 16, 2013, photo by Georgie Pauwels. CC 2.0.
The Lebanese parliament recently voted to prolong its own term. Again. This time, politicians added another two and a half years to their time in office. This is the second postponement of new parliamentary elections, in effect doubling the initial mandate from voters. Only two MPs opposed the extension, and another 31 boycotted the session altogether. Ninety-five MPs supported the initiative, which some are calling unconstitutional.
The move by parliament could be a serious, dangerous even, setback for Lebanon. As Human Rights Watch explains on its website, postponing the elections clearly contravenes international human rights obligations:
The proposed extension bill, for the second postponement since the legislature took office in June 2009, would contravene Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Lebanon ratified in 1972. Article 25 stipulates that every citizen shall have the right and opportunity to vote and be elected in genuine periodic elections.
“There is never a convenient time to hold elections, particularly in Lebanon, but this country has held elections in difficult circumstances in the past, including 2005 and 2009,” said Nadim Houry, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The failure of politicians to reach an agreement on a new election law or to nominate a new president does not justify suspending the right of Lebanese citizens to vote.”
Angelina Eichhorst, head of the European Union Delegation to Lebanon, tweeted:
Asking what cld ve been done differently over past period 2 avoid a parliamentary #extension, a sad day in #Lebanon‘s constitutional history
— Angelina Eichhorst (@aneichhorst) November 5, 2014
“We are only left with memories of what was once a civil right: voting,” wrote journalist Nadine Mazloum in a blog post, titled “8 Things to Do to Parliament.” The list brainstorms “how we can better utilize parliament, given how totally inept it is,” and includes suggestions like “acting workshops” for the MPs who couldn't find it in themselves to resign and “paleontology” to study Lebanon's “extinct” political scene.
Many ordinary Lebanese citizens have responded to the parliament's vote with anger and exasperation. In Beirut, one group even blocked the road to the parliament building, throwing tomatoes at lawmakers and carrying signs that read “No to the Extension!” Many also yelled at the MPs, calling them “thieves”.
Carine Torbey, the BBC's Beirut correspondent tweeted a photo of protesters attempting to block the roads as the politicians were on their way to Parliament.
Protesters blocking the roads to stop #MPs from voting to extend the term of the #Parliament for 2nd time #Lebanon pic.twitter.com/hBQKd6DaPx
— CTorbey كارين طربيه (@carinetorbey) November 5, 2014
Vodka maker Stolichnaya even took the opportunity to promote itself at the expense of Lebanon's self-perpetuating parliamentarians, writing on Facebook that even “hangovers don't last this long”:
“Hangovers don't last this long,” jokes a local Lebanese vodka maker

author: Nada


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Forget Ice Water, Take the Indigenous Language Challenge Instead · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Screenshots of some of the participant videos from the Indigenous Language Challenge
Love it or hate it, the online buzz surrounding the Ice Bucket Challenge earlier this year brought more awareness to the disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Participants filmed themselves dumping cold water on their heads and challenging another person to do the same or donate money toward research for a cure.
Now a similar concept aimed at awareness for indigenous languages is making its way around the internet. In the Indigenous Language Challenge, the one who accepts the challenge must record a video speaking an indigenous language and tap someone else to do the same. The outcome has been a wide range of people around the world who are producing videos, some for the first time, as a way to proudly share their language online and encouraging more to do the same.
A Facebook group was created to collect links to the videos, where people could share their motivations and connect with others taking part in the Challenge. Many chose to upload their videos directly to Facebook where one can hear North American languages like Kwak'wala and Lakota, as well as the Miriwoong language from Australia, for example.
Efforts to pinpoint the origin of this challenge are ongoing, but according to the group administrator, one of the first participants was James Gensaw, speaking words in the Yurok language.
Who are some of the participants? And why is this activity so important? Colleen Fitzgerald, Director of the Native American Languages Lab at The University of Texas at Arlington, shares her thoughts on her blog post at the Huffington Post:
Many of these videos come from adults who are second language learners. For many years, government-run boarding schools in both the U.S. and Canada took children from Native families. This had an immense effect on Native language acquisition. Children lost priceless years of daily home environments with parents and grandparents communicating to them in their language. Home is where children's language development thrives and grows, and where children acquire the many different speech forms that express the human experience. What gets lost? So much, from the everyday language of instructions, telling jokes, or a recipe, to the ritual language of prayers, ceremonial speeches, or sharing stories of the ancestors.
Here are two examples of participants in this Challenge, who uploaded their videos to YouTube. Jackelyn Seitcher speaking in the Nuu-chah-nulth language shares words after accepting the challenge.
Monica Peters takes the opportunity for the challenge to show the translations of works in Kanienkeha. She then goes onto challenge members of the “Keeping the Kanienkeha Language Strong” Facebook group, community leaders and teachers, and students that are just starting out to speak the language.
There are other videos collected on the blog News From Native California.
Konwennenhon Marion Delaronde also posted her video in the group speaking Kanien'keha (Mohawk). After being challenged by Kehte Deer, she enthusiastically took part and shared her reflections after uploading her video:
Already I think I heard all the languages from different nations. I have to tell you all that all your languages are so beautiful. Always speak your own languages if you can. It’s hopeful. I want to encourage all of you to continue to learn, continue to teach other and to really put your life into it, speaking. I’m so happy that I can speak Mohawk. I’m not fluent, a lot is still missing, but I want to thank everyone who has recorded themselves for this challenge, because you inspired me.

author: Eduardo Avila


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ICT Access and Rural Women Empowerment · Global Voices
Patricia Carolina Saucedo Añez

Marita Seara Fernández, who blogs on Mujeres construyendo (Women building), calls for the empowerment of rural woman and explains that according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) 58 million women in Latin America and the Caribbean live in rural areas and 4 and a half million are farmers.
Photo from the blog Mujeres Construyendo, used with permission.
Meanwhile, Seara Fernández claims that although starvation has been reduced, it hasn't been so among women, where it has increased. FAO representative for the region Raúl Benítez stresses the need to empower women in economics and politics, which requires the educational gap and access to farming resources to be diminished. The solution is to stimulate rural women's empowerment:
Esta premisa debe estar considerada a la hora de diseñar leyes y programas determinados. Deben capacitarlas, enseñarlas a sacar provecho de sus recursos y de lo que aprenden. No solo esto, se debe reducir las brechas educacionales y tecnológicas.
This premise must be taken into account when designing laws and programs. They should train women, teach them to make the most out of their resources and what they learn. Not only this, educational and technoloigcal gaps must be reduced.
Thus, the efforts made by Soledad Venegas in Oxaca, México, aimed at empowering rural women throught the access to ICTs, represent an example, that allow access to knowledge about production mechanisms, business and commercial exchange and similar experiencies.
You can follow Marita Seara Fernández on Twitter.


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Reasearch, Implementation and Impact, Is What Universities Investigate Useful? · Global Voices
Iñaki García

A comment about whether the population values the researches carried out from the universities, triggers member of academic community César Viloria to shed a light about this on his blog.
About research, we have to know it's divided in two branches: basic research and applied research. The former increases or creates knowledge as well as develops and modificies what already exists. On the other hand, applied research focuses in the application and usefulness of these knowledges on the population. We can also find differences about times, the former has long term results and the latter shows medium term results.
You might be thinking now, what about all those formulas with impossible numbers? The blog has also an answer to this question:
Encontramos una gran cantidad de elementos en estos artículos que pueden dificultar la lectura si lo que queremos saber es “de qué trata” pero servirían de gran ayuda si somos investigadores relacionados con el tema y queremos saber el “cómo lo hicieron”. Sin embargo, generalmente en la introducción y las conclusiones de estos textos es posible comprender una idea general del “para qué sirve”.
We find several elements in these items that can make difficult its reading, if we want to know “what is it about”, but they will be very useful if we are researches involved with the topic and what we want to know is “how they did it”. Usually, however, on the introduction and conclusions of these texts, it's possible to understand a general idea of “what is this for”.
For further information, Uninorte has launched a program called Science within reach, to make us feel part of the scientific community.
You can folow César Viloria Núñez on Twitter.

author: Iñaki García


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Too Many Under Trial Detainees in India’s Jails · Global Voices
Rezwan

Overflowing water from a septic tank has poured into a Rail Police (G.R.P.) Lockup at Burdwan Rail Station. People kept in the lockup are finding it very difficult to stay there. Image by Sanjoy Carmaker. Copyright Demotix (18/10/2013)
Indian alternative news portal Beyond Headlines sheds light on the darker side of India's judiciary. In India, of all people detained in lockups and state prisons there are more people under trial than convicts.
Because of the slow process of the judiciary process, thousands of people suspected or accused of a crime end up waiting for trial for years in cramped prison cells which lack electricity, food and other necessities. About 250,000 men and women in India are currently in jail without having been proven guilty. Their fate or innocence is bound by the course of their trials.
And who and where are all these detainees? These tweets explain:
From my colleague @srirams91, here's India's undertrial map pic.twitter.com/Q0oo0oTBwT
— Rukmini S (@rukmini_shrini) October 30, 2014
Can You Imagine Being Jailed For Years As An Undertrial? The Story Of This Man Will Shock You! http://t.co/Ov42FEbJdc @YouthKiAwaaz #436A
— Amnesty India (@AIIndia) September 23, 2014
Freeing the detainees awaiting trial is also not a good option, as Sudhir Krishnaswamy and Shishir Bail write in the Hindu: “Without substantive reforms to the investigation and trial process, early release of undertrials may further aggravate the pathologically low rates of conviction and incarceration in the Indian criminal justice system.”

author: Rezwan


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New Book Tells the Story of Ukraine’s Euromaidan Protests in Facebook Posts · Global Voices
Tanya Lokot

A new Ukrainian book tells the story of Euromaidan in hundreds of Facebook posts. Photo from Facebook.
Social media played a key role in the Euromaidan protests that erupted in Ukraine last fall. Millions of updates were posted by Ukrainians on Facebook and Twitter, thousands of photos and videos uploaded to Instagram and YouTube. This means that a large slice of the protests’ history is preserved only online.
A new book, made up entirely of over 700 Facebook posts, chronicles the events from November 2013 to June 2014 as they were recorded and told by Ukrainian Facebook users. The title of the book, “Phantom Pain #maidan,” recognizes the fleeting nature of memories of the groundbreaking transformations that occurred during and after the unrest, and remembers the loss of those who died during the violent phase of the protests. The book's authors, both Euromaidan activists, Anastasiia Savytska and Andrey Myrhorodskiy, say the idea initially was to do a photo album with some text from Facebook posts, but then the social media content simply took over. Anastasiia says she spent two months deciding which posts to include.
Можна сказати, що відтепер ми маємо матеріальне втіленні революції, яка сталася у Facebook. Що стосується відгуків читачів, то люди у більшості випадків кажуть, що поки не можуть прочитати книгу – надто живими і болючими є спогади.
You could say that we now have a material representation of the revolution which took place on Facebook. As for the readers’ feedback, people are mostly saying they can't read the book yet—the memories are too raw and painful.
Only 3,000 copies of the book have been printed, but it seems to be in demand. Some readers have been commenting on their feelings after getting their hands on the ‘paper Facebook of Euromaidan'—most of the comments are on Facebook, of course. User Victoria Arbuzova-Powell thought the book was valuable because it was a collective creation.
Написанная не одним автором, а всеми. Всеми теми, кто делал историю. Написанная не после, а во время. […] Эту книгу можно разобрать на цитаты.
It's written not by one author, but by everyone. Everyone who made history. It's written not after, but during. […] This book is quote upon quote.
Reader Sergey Gnidets confessed it was an emotional affair to re-read some of the posts.
Отримав. Читаю ці сторінки і мурашки по шкірі. Нахлинули спогади тих подій.
I got the book. I'm reading these pages and I get goosebumps. Overcome with memories of those events.
“Phantom Pain #maidan” only captures a curated glimpse of the ocean of social media traces that Euromaidan has left behind, but as a tangible artifact, it might serve as yet another reminder that those events were very real, and the people who posted those words and shared those thoughts are real as well—something many of us forget as the protests in Ukraine become just another media story.


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Protests as Macedonia’s Government Gives a Polluting Factory in Tetovo Another Break  · Global Voices
Bardhyl Jashari

Citizens protesting in Tetovo on Friday, November 7, 2014. Photo from Facebook by Amir Selimi, used with permission.
Hundreds of residents in northwestern Macedonia protested against their government's decision to extend yet another deadline for the Jugohrom steel factory to install anti-pollution filters at their seven furnaces in Tetovo, the country's most polluted city.
There have been several extensions of this deadline through the years. The last one was in April 2014 when the plant was granted a 6-month period to undertake necessary measures to reduce pollution. But the deadline passed and the factory took no steps to comply with environmental standards. Tetovo residents, who protested earlier when similar promises were broken, took to the streets again on Friday, November 7, 2014.
Jugohrom is identified by experts as a major air polluter in the Pollog region in northwest Macedonia. The region includes two major cities Tetovo and Gostivar, which have more than 300,000 residents. Pollution in this region is extremely high and it becomes worse in the winter when heating season begins.
The situation is alarming because the density of air pollution in the region, specifically particulate matter PM10, which the World Health Organization (WHO) says is a harmful air pollutant linked to excessive premature mortality, is currently 8 times higher than permitted limits. In  winter, the density of PM10 in the air can surpass the permitted limit by more than ten times. The WHO says exposure to high levels of this type of air pollution drastically increases the risk of respiratory infections, heart disease, stroke, and cancer.
Arianit Xhaferi from Eco Guerilla, the organization that organized the protest under the slogans “Don’t Be Silent, Raise Your Voice” and “We want fresh air!” in Tetovo stated:
This is just the beginning; we will protest again and will earnestly seek for fresh air. We cannot stop our breath, but they can stop the factory with a push of a button. We will not give up because our demands are legitimate.
Protesters emphasized that they do not want the factory to close for the factory's 1200 workers, but they resolutely want the factory to install filters and undertake all necessary measures to reduce pollution.
Albert Ziberi, a health enthusiast from Tetovo, tweeted:
Da se razbereme, celta e STAVANJE NA FILTRI a ne zatvoranje na rabotni mesta!!! #jugohrom #tetovo #skopje #Macedonia https://t.co/bcxINFOLni
— Albert Ziberi (@albertziberi) November 4, 2014
Let's make this clear, the goal is to install filters not to end jobs!
Many Macedonians are revolted by the government’s attitude and carelessness, narrowing down the health of thousands of citizens to a bureaucracy and deadlines extensions. Global Voices author Filip Stojanovski responded to questions from regional and international bloggers and media on Twitter, explaining the protests:
The Government of #Macedonia repeatedly extends the deadline for putting filters on factories polluting #Tetovo area. @Balkanist @bjasari
— Filip Stojanovski (@razvigor) November 7, 2014
The portal Portalb.mk is covering pollution issues in Macedonia closely and is continuously providing coverage of the protests against air pollution in Tetovo. In an article entitled “Will the Macedonian Government shorten the life of its citizens” [al, mk] provided a history of the pollution problem along with a list of unfulfilled promises made by the government and the repeated deadline extensions that have been granted for installing filters in polluting factories.
The protests also received notable international attention, the Los Angeles Times published a photo from the protests in Tetovo.
A video was also created by protesters and shared on social networks calling for concrete action by depicting the future of Tetovo, if the current rate of air pollution continues.

author: Bardhyl Jashari


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Japan’s Internet Runs on Cats and Dogs · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

It's said that the Internet runs on cats. Japan is no different, although cute dogs can quickly become the subject of massively popular memes too.
One of the most popular omoshiro neta (cool internet memes) in Japan at the moment is a dog with an unusual coat:
変わった毛色のハスキーだとずっと思っていたこのわんこ、ヤクーチアン・ライカ（yakutian laika）と言う犬種らしい。惚れた pic.twitter.com/MT8htG0shV
— ルゥ (@LoupGarou12) November 11, 2014
While I thought for the longest time this was a Husky with an unusual markings, it turns out this doggy is actually a breed called a Yakutian Laika. I think I'm in love!
In just two days, @LoupGarou12's post about the Yakutian Laika has been re-tweeted 8,500 times and has been marked as a favorite 12,000 times on Twitter.
Another popular Twitter meme is this cat:
ねこめりこんでた pic.twitter.com/nYB7XyNmOc
— ( ‿i‿) お尻 (@OshiriT) November 10, 2014
Cat being sucked face-first into car.
So far the image has been re-tweeted 26,000 times since the beginning of the week and has 36,000 favorites.
Meanwhile, this cat has also become Internet-famous in Japan:
想像以上にかなり近いぞ pic.twitter.com/o26yVy6PnW
— 松永 (@mntk129) November 5, 2014
Looks more similar than I had ever imagined.
Dogs that behave like cats are also popular on the Japanese internet.
2年間ネコと暮らし猫みたいな仕草をするハスキー(｀･ω･´)可愛いにゃりわんにゃんにゃり(p`･ω･´) q pic.twitter.com/uUSgdERgKN
— ネコ社(nekosha) (@caracalnyanko) November 5, 2014
For two years our Husky has acted just like a cat. (｀･ω･´) Too cute! (p`･ω･´) q

author: Nevin Thompson


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Does the Kremlin Help Its Enemies? · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

Alexey Navalny as a Kremlin soup kitchen guest. Images edited by Kevin Rothrock.
There are certain news outlets in Russia you don’t expect to publish stories accusing the government of funding Vladimir Putin’s enemies, but that is exactly what happened last week, when LifeNews released a story, titled “The Kremlin Secretly Finances Navalny.” The article claims the wife of Navalny’s close associate earned 100 million rubles (more than $2 million) in state procurement contracts, in the two years before Navalny’s 2013 Moscow mayoral campaign.
LifeNews pulled the story from its website shortly after publication. The author, Anastasia Kashevarova, the political desk chief at Izvestia (another subsidiary of News Media, which also owns LifeNews), immediately wrote on Facebook that she “was apparently fired” from her job. “It’s because of that jerkoff Navalny,” she complained, in a post that attracted 131 mostly unsupportive, often scathing comments.
Many of Kashevarova’s readers thought it ridiculous that she blamed Navalny for her evident dismissal, rather than the higher-ups at News Media or the officials in the Kremlin, who allegedly phoned LifeNews to demand that the story be removed. Kashevarova had more to say, however. “Screw these bureaucrats in the Kremlin,” she wrote a few hours later. “Naturally, they’re going to deny everything, so the project they’ve spent so much money on won’t die.”
It turns out Kashevarova will keep her job at Izvestia, and LifeNews even restored her article to its website later in the day. A few days after that, Duma Deputy Evgeny Fedorov formally appealed to Russia’s Attorney General and the federal Investigative Committee, demanding an investigation of the allegations presented in Kashevarova’s piece. “That some high-placed officials are financing Navalny and the opposition is obvious,” Fedorov told Izvestia, after submitting his request.
Kashevarova has said repeatedly that her article contains “100% proof” that the Kremlin funds Navalny’s political activities, but the text itself hardly lives up to this claim. In fact, the article makes just one weak effort to show that Navalny actually benefited in any way from the procurement contracts: it quotes Dmitri Gorobtsov, a Duma deputy who sits on an anti-corruption committee, who says conspiratorially—and without any evidence—that Russian taxpayers are funding a whole slew of oppositionists, including Navalny.
Is Gorobtsov’s speculation the “100% proof” Kashevarova wrote about earlier? Whatever the case, she seems optimistic that investigators will uncover more evidence of Navalny’s secret government funding. When that happens, she writes on Facebook, Russian police will be faced with a question: “cover it up and end up accomplices or blow the roof off the whole thing.”
Anastasia Kashevarova, political desk chief at Izvestia. Photo from Facebook.
Is it strange that a journalist at one of Russia’s most pro-Kremlin newspapers speaks this way? Political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya addressed this question in a recent column for Slon.ru, where she concluded that Kashevarova’s article is most likely part of the eternal war raging within the Russian elite for Vladimir Putin’s attention and trust. According to Stanovaya, the LifeNews piece tried to send Putin a message that read something like, “Tsar, the boyars have gotten out of hand and it’s time to sweep out the ‘sixth column!’” (The “six column” phrase, incidentally, is a favorite of controversial political scientist Alexander Dugin, who uses the term to identify officials within the Russian government working secretly to undermine the country.)
The public is left wondering, however, if there’s any truth to the claim that the government funneled money to Navalny’s political efforts. Absent any evidence that the procurement money ever reached Navalny, there is still the 2013 Moscow mayoral election, when Sergei Sobyanin, Moscow’s mayor, and Vyacheslav Volodin, Putin’s first deputy chief of staff, reportedly intervened on Navalny’s behalf, to keep him in the race and out of prison.
Episodes like this suggest it’s not entirely insane to think some people in the government are helping Navalny—that Russia’s opposition, just like its “independent media,” will always require some kind of support from the country’s powerful.


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See Rio de Janeiro’s Favelas Through the Lens of Young Residents’ Pinhole Cameras · Global Voices
Fabiano Post

Santa Tereza, neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. Photo by Juliana de Oliveira, published with permission.
A can with a little hole and some duck tape. It sounds simple, but that's where the paradox resides. To photograph with a digital camera in auto mode, all you need to do is click. But a pinhole, the mother of all analog cameras, requires much more than that: a good dose of patience and concentration, for a start, but also an understanding of the basic principle of photography, which is controlling light. After that, some imagination, inspiration and encouragement will do the rest.
At least that is what the “Mão na Lata” (Hand on can) project is about. It consists of distributing pinhole cameras to teenagers from 12 to 18 years old in Complexo da Maré, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro comprising of 16 favelas where about 130,000 people live. From the crafting of the cameras, made with powdered milk cans, to the developing of the negatives, everything is done by the participants themselves, who are asked to document their community's daily life in black and white.
Mão na Lata, which was founded by photographer Tatiana Altberg, has offered craft photography and literature workshops to young people from the community in partnership with NGO Redes da Maré (Maré Networks) since 2003. In 2012, Altberg gained support from state oil company Petrobrás, through the Brazilian Rouanet Law (which encourages companies to finance cultural projects), to develop the project “From craft to digital”, in which students learned the basics of digital photography in addition to pinhole photography. The project also encouraged students to photograph places mentioned in the books of Machado de Assis, a Brazilian writer who lived in Rio de Janeiro in the 19th century and was one of the most important names in national literature.
The initiative resulted in the book “Cada Dia Meu Pensamento é Diferente” (Each day my thought is different), a compilation of the teenagers’ work, released by NAU publishing house in 2013.
Ramos, near Complexo da Maré. Photo by Yasmin Lopes, published with permission.
Passeio Público, downtown Rio de Janeiro. Foto by Rafael Oliveira, published with permission.
In the book, Eliana Souza Silva, director of Redes da Maré, writes about the project:
Essa obra coletiva caracteriza-se por articular qualidade artística e impacto político. Afirma que os moradores da Maré criam e se (re)inventam todos os dias, como quaisquer cidadãos da polis. A iniciativa é parte do projeto maior da Redes da Maré, instituição que aposta em iniciativas que criem/estimulem experiências estéticas como parte fundamental da vida humana, numa região importante da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, a Maré. […] Tudo isso, reconhecendo esse processo como um direito que se negou historicamente a uma parcela da sociedade brasileira”
This collective work brings together artistic quality and political impact. It affirms that the inhabitants of the Maré neighborhood create and reinvent themselves everyday, like any other citizen from the polis. The initiative is part of a larger project from Redes da Maré, an institution who bets on initiatives that create/stimulate aesthetic experiences as a fundamental part of human life in an important region from Rio de Janeiro, the Maré. […] All this acknowledging this process as a right that has been historically denied to a certain part of the Brazilian population.
Miolo street in Nova Holanda, Complexo da Maré. Photo by Géssica Nunes, published with permission.
Lapa Arches, downtown Rio de Janeiro. Photo by Nicole Cristina da Silva, published with permission.
Altberg and Luiza Leite, professor of literature who collaborated with the book's edition, explain what inspired them to choose the book's title:
O título do livro é um fragmento de um dos textos produzidos por um dos alunos do projeto. Queríamos um título capaz de ressaltar a qualidade cambiante do pensamento reflexivo, conquistado pelos alunos após um prolongado processo de criação.
The book's title is an excerpt of an essay written by one of the students. We wanted a title that could express the changing quality of the reflective thought, something that was achieved by the students after a long process of creation.
Rua do Rosário, Centro. Photo by Jonas Willami Ferreira, published with permission.
Livramento Hill, Gamboa. Photo by Larisse Paiva, published with permission.
The author of said essay is Jonas Willami, 17, who said this in the book's launch party:
Me deu mais paixão pela fotografia. Foi uma sensação muito boa, de ver a felicidade de todos aqui no lançamento, pois não é apenas um projeto, somos uma família. E a frase se encaixa perfeitamente no eixo da história que se passa o livro.
It gave me more passion for photography. It was a great sensation, to see everyone's happiness here in the launch party, because this is not just a project, we are a family. And the sentence fits perfectly with the book's story.
Sargento Silva Nunes st., Nova Holanda, Complexo da Maré. Photo by Augusto Araújo, published with permission.
Itamaraty Palace, downtown Rio de Janeiro. Photo by Lucas Eduardo Mercês da Costa, published with permission.
Altberg has also produced a documentary about the project (in Portuguese, no subtitles):
In the book, Ana Maria Mauad, associate professor at the History Department of Federal Fluminense University, reflects on the symbolism and timeless character of the images:
O mundo que conhecemos com essas imagens atravessa os tempos, reunindo passado e presente – os Rios de Machado, do conflito, da pacificação, da vida das pessoas comuns nas suas fascinantes excepcionalidades.
The world we get to know with those images traverses time, uniting past and present – the “Rio de Janeiros” of Machado de Assis, of the conflict, of the pacification, of the life of common people in their fascinating exceptionalities.

author: Fabiano Post


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The Gambia: Blogger Arrested, then Freed As Online Outrage Escalates · Global Voices
Demba Kandeh

Independent media reported on Nov. 8, 2014 that the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) had detained Sait Matty Jaw, a blogger, social activist and an advocate for women’s and girls’ rights. The man was released on Nov. 12, 2014 without charge.
A history lecturer at the University of The Gambia, Jaw was reportedly picked up on the University’s Brikama campus on Nov. 5, 2014. The NIA is notorious for torturing suspects and imposing prolonged detentions without trial.
Gambian authorities neither confirmed nor denied arresting Jaw, who returned from Baku, Azerbaijan recently after attending the Global Youth Forum on youth policies around the world.
Sait Matty Jaw, from Facebook support page.
Under the constitution of the Republic of The Gambia, a person cannot be detained for more than 72 hours without being brought before a court. The law also requires that detainees be informed of the reasons for their arrest within three hours of their arrest. Jaw’s arrest comes at a time when the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Christof Heyns, and Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment, Juan Méndez are visiting the country for the first time at government’s invitation.
Human rights organisations heavily criticised the country’s poor human rights record in the recently concluded universal periodic review in Geneva, Switzerland.
Free Sait Matty Jaw, a Facebook page created on Nov. 8 received more than 250 likes within two hours of its creation. Students, friends and fellow activists in The Gambia and abroad have flooded the page with expressions of outrage over his arrest. Isatou Jeng, a women’s and girls’ rights activist said:
I know how much he loves the Gambia and his passion to make the world a better place for all. #FreeSaitMattyJaw The Gambia needs him!!
Aisha Dabo, an exile Gambian journalist who created the Free Sait Matty Jaw page, wrote:
I call on Gambian authorities to free Sait Matty. I dont think there is any need to detain him if he is just helping NIA with their investigation #FreeSait . it is unfortunate that this youth who is contributing a lot to the country's development is detained as UN special rapporteurs on torture and executions are visiting the country…..the message It's the State's obligation to make sure citizens rights are upheld #freeSait no matter the alleged crime they have committed.
Ousman JC Darboe, a Gambian Facebook user, appealed to the country’s Youth Council leaders and youth group activists to rise against the arrest and detention:
My fellow Gambian youths activists, the leadership of Gambia youth council. are we going to became more powerless that we cannot even talk about the arrest of our iconic, inspiring youth leader who serve almost every youth platform in Gambia. Are we going to allow the culture of silence to overcome us for not to talk about the injustice and unlawful detention of Sait Matty Jaw. My fellow youths, we all need to remember that the only way to fight powerless and culture of silence is to gain a greater consciousnesses. Am I going to ask about our consciousnesses? I urge the Gambia youth council and all the youth activist group to send a clear message to the authority responsible for his arrest and detention for immediate release. Free Sait Matty Jaw
Family sources confirmed that Jaw was released just a week after his arrest and was issued no charges. In response, Omar Sambou, president of the University of The Gambia Students Union wrote on their Facebook page:
Alhamdulila, As said earlier, the Union and in constant consultation with the Administration and the Family of our beloved brother Sait Matty Jaw has been on the dialog. Sait is back home. I humbly thank you all for your understanding and patience. For those that have been insulting me based on your feelings i still beg for your forgiveness and never mean to hurt anyone. Thanks for your concerns. Lets all remember that for the Gambia our homeland, we strive and work and pray that all may live in unity, freedom and peace each day.
Sam Phatey, a Gambian social justice activist rejoiced over the release of Jaw and called for more efforts toward securing freedom for all political detainees and prisoners:
Confirmed! Sait Matty Jaw has been released now according to a close family source! FREE AT LAST! FREE AT LAST!! Sait Matty Jaw is FREE AT LAST!!! #HopeIsYou The fight continues – Free Momodou Sabally, Free Amadou Sanneh, Free Alhaji and Ebou, Free All Political Prisoners.
Sait Matty was arrested alongside two others (an unnamed Ghanian and Nigerian). It is not clear whether the two have also been released.

author: Demba Kandeh


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Venezuela: E-Commerce Bill Would Give Authorities New Avenue for Online Censorship · Global Voices
Marianne Diaz

Venezuelan VEF. Picture by Jorge Andrés Paparoni via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)
A new draft bill on e-commerce would grant new powers to CONATEL (Venezuela's National Telecommunications Commission) to block websites found in breach of the regulatory restrictions it stipulates.
The bill creates a series of new obligations for any individual or company who conducts business by electronic means, including the obligation to “deliver an electronic invoice” which shall comply with the formalities established by the SENIAT (the national tax authority), and “implement the use of electronic certificates” issued by a service provider of Electronic Certification accredited by the Superintendent of Electronic Certification Services. It requires that all e-commerce transactions passing through Venezuelan territory to be made in Bolivares (VEF), the national currency. For a country which is now in its eleventh year of a rigid foreign exchange control, the bill carries many ramifications for economic and online rights:
Article 60. Conatel may administratively, based on a conclusive report by National Superintendency for the Defense of Socio-Economic Rights, proceed to block foreign or national web sites providing goods or services in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, when they do not meet the requirements of this Act, without prejudice to other administrative, civil and criminal penalties under the law and the current legal system.
Venezuelans are only allowed to perform a maximum of USD $300 worth of electronic transactions in foreign currency per year. The new law would place yet another restriction on economic and online freedoms within the country.
This particular bill is part of the so-called “economic war” that intends to fight “unfair pricing” of products, launched by the government in response to scarcity and inflation figures that soared to 63% this year according to official data from Venezuela's Central Bank. With goods like medicine and hygiene products often difficult to find in the traditional market, electronic commerce has been a lifeline for Venezuelans, allowing them to purchase products that are either unavailable or astronomically expensive. The new bill would allow authorities to block websites that attempt to sell goods by electronic means.
The shelves in many stores have been empty throughout the year. Picture by S Figueroa via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Since the passing in 2010 of the Law of Social Responsibility for Radio, Television and Electronic Media, CONATEL has retained the legal authority to block websites that don't comply with a series of requirements regarding content. Last year, over 300 websites that provided information on the black market for foreign currency were blocked pursuant to an order given by President Nicolas Maduro. This year, that power has also been used to block news websites found to be in breach of the law, mobile-friendly communication products such as Zello, and circumvention tools like TunnelBear.

author: Marianne Diaz


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Bodies Found in Southwest Mexico Aren’t Those of Missing Ayotzinapa Students · Global Voices
Mary Aviles

Portraits of missing Mexican students with carnations in a symbolic act in front of the Mexican Embassy in Bogota, Colombia on Nov. 7. Photo from Agencia Prensa Rural's Flickr account. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Remains found in a garbage dump in Cerro Viejo, La Parota and Cocula in the Mexican state of Guerrero are not those of the 43 missing students from the Raúl Isidro Burgos Rural Teachers’ College of Ayotzinapa, Argentinian forensic experts working on the case have announced.
News network TeleSur Mexico issued a special report on the news:
Video: Restos hallados no son de alumnos de Ayotzinapa: forenses argentinos http://t.co/h76gARadRR #We'reAllAyotzinapa
— teleSUR México (@teleSUR_Mexico) November 12, 2014
Video: Remains found are not from Ayotzinapa's students: Argentinian forensic specialists http://tlsur.net/1xhkKpi #AyotzinapaSomosTodos
Since the first weeks of October, the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team (EAAF, in Spanish) has been investigating the illegal mass graves located in the municipalities of Iguala and Colula in the south of Mexico at the request of the victims’ families. There, six people were killed, 25 wounded and 43 disappeared on September 26 in an assault by Iguala’s police forces and the criminal group Guerreros Unidos.
The EAAF underlined in a press release announcing their results:
Cabe señalar que sobre la totalidad de restos recuperados en este sitio, 28 de ellos fueron recuperados inicialmente por la PGJ (Fiscalía General) de Guerrero de cinco fosas y los dos restantes por la PGR (Procuraduría General de la República) de una sexta fosa
It is important to point out that out of the total number of remains found in this place, 28 were recovered initially from five graves by Guerrero’s PGJ (the district attorney’s office), and the remaining two by the PGR (the attorney general's office) from a sixth grave.
According to Mexico’s attorney general Jesús Murillo Karam, the students were killed, their bodies burned, and their ashes thrown into the San Juan river, close to the garbage dump in Colula. These statements were mainly based on confessions, causing disbelief, anger and indignation among family members and Mexicans because they were issued without any kind of certainty — the bodies have not been found.
The day of their disappearance, the Ayutzinapa students were going to raise funds for their activities. This meant asking for donations on central streets, entering a few stores and even cutting across a main avenue, according to the Spanish journal El País. Last year in June, the students blamed Iguala’s mayor José Luis Abarca Velázquez for the murder and torture of rural leader Arturo Hernández Cardona and attacked the city council building.
Authorities have identified Abarca and his wife, María de los Ángeles Pineda, as the ones who ordered the violence against the students, and were captured November 4.
Meanwhile, the students remain missing, as Tatosky tweeted:
los forenses argentinos dicen que los restos en basural no son de los estudiantes de #ayotzinapa…… dónde están los #43? #SOSMexico
— Tatosky (@TatodelTw) November 11, 2014
Argentinian forensic experts say that the remains from the garbage dump are not the #Ayotzinapa students… Where are the #43?
And new questions have arisen. Theater company Tepito Arte Acá from Mexico City asked on Twitter:
El equipo forense argentino señala que los restos en las fosas no son de los normalistas… ¿Quiénes son? http://t.co/vkpVkjOMCU
— Tepito Arte Acá (@TepitoArteAca) November 12, 2014
The forensic team points out that the remains in the mass graves are not from the students… Who are they?
Finding these mass graves has only intensified the pain among Mexican people:
@ramz_z13 excavar en mi suelo guerrerense es un acto forense. Es dolorosa la situación, vivo en tixtla donde está la normal de ayotzinapa.
— Juan Francisco (@carrera099) November 8, 2014
Exacavating the soil in my Guerrero is a forensic act. This situation is painful, I live in Tixtla, where the Ayotzinapa University is.
The EAAF explained in their statement that the Bode Technology Group in the United States provided the genetic testing on these remains. The Mexican general attorney’s office will send a different set of remains from a mass grave discovered in a ravine and the Cocula river to the University of Innsbruck in Austria for identification.
Follow our in-depth coverage: Bring Back Mexico's Missing #Ayotzinapa Students

author: Mary Aviles


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Infographic: 5 Facts About Sri Lanka’s Tamil Community in the North · Global Voices
Rezwan

The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), a civil society think tank in Sri Lanka, has recently conducted a top line survey on “Democracy in post-war Sri Lanka 2014“. The results show that difference of opinion on the reconciliation still exists between the Tamil and the Sinhalese people after the Sri Lankan civil war.
The findings from the survey with regard to the Tamil community is very significant. Their key issues are poverty and unemployment and they feel deprived having very little say about the affairs of the country. Here is an infographic depicting their plights:
Infographic courtesy of Centre For Policy Alternatives


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Japanese Police in Full Riot Gear Raid Kyoto University Dormitory · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

Screenshot of news coverage of the Kyoto University police raid via YouTube user TV Yahoo.
Dozens of riot police officers clad in helmets, shields and protective gear supported plainclothes detectives as they searched a Kyoto University dormitory for evidence on November 13 after three students allegedly obstructed officers during a protest in Tokyo.
The three had been arrested earlier in the month and were accused of using violence against riot police on the sidelines of a labor rally in Tokyo on November 2. The raid on the Kyoto University dormitory presumably was intended to gather evidence against them.
スターウォーズの突撃隊みたいですね。警察国家は、とにかくイヤです。 @Darkpbs77: @uminohana @tart_k これなら、立憲主義の国家ではなく、おっしゃる通り、ゴロツキ（やくざ）の殴り込みに等しい行為だと思います。 pic.twitter.com/3LxlgPzkZn
— Thoton News Headline (@Thoton) November 13, 2014
The police look just like the stormtroopers from Star Wars. It's disgusting that we're living in a police state like this. @Darkpbs77: @uminohana @tart_k From here on in we're no longer a constitutional democracy, but like you have said, we're going to be seeing more raids and so on conducted by these thugs.
The raid on the Kyoto dormitory received coverage in the Japanese media, including on this popular morning current affairs program (the clip also includes some historical background on student radicals in Japan, including violent demonstrations against the development of Narita Airport in the mid-80's). The segment is titled “Breaking news: police search Kyoto University's Kumaya Dormitory”:
Riot police are often brought in to provide crowd control during demonstrations in Japan. However, generally speaking Japan's universities have largely been free from radical politics for at least 30 years, so the raid on the Kyoto dormitory is unusual.
The raid is part of an ongoing conflict between far-left Marxist group Kakukyōdō (usually known as Chūkaku-ha) and police. This far-left radical student group rose to prominence in Japan in the late 1960s, 70s and 80s, when student protesters clashed with Japanese police, torching universities and disrupting major construction projects.
Twenty years of a faltering economy plus the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011 and the ascendancy of Japan's hawkish right wing in recent years have breathed new life into Japan's protest movement. For example, take a look at this tweet from June 14, 2014:
RT @Thoton: #Japan: Anti-government demonstrations held in #Tokyo, #Kyoto 解釈改憲に募る危機感　安倍政権に抗議.. http://t.co/s7xJuJdrx1 pic.twitter.com/tvGlmoa1P9
— えりこ☆No war 愛ある世界へ。 (@yoriyori3) June 14, 2014
RT @Thoton: #Japan: Anti-government demonstrations held in #Tokyo, #Kyoto protesting against the Abe government's proposed changes to the constitution
Two of the students arrested were Kyoto University students, and the third has a possible connection to unofficial student group Bunka Renmei, which has clashed with Hosei University for six years. Hosei authorities and a group of students are locked in a poisonous struggle that has turned that campus into something resembling a low-security prison.
The police search of the dormitory occurred nine days after students caught a plainclothes officer entering a Kyoto University dormitory without permission in order to monitor a rally held at the university in protest against the arrests.
Kyoto University is one of Japan's leading universities, and is home to elite researchers, scientists, and a long line of Nobel Prize winners. Faculty and students at the national university located in the heart of Kyoto do have a reputation for feistiness and independence.
As well, student dormitories and student life at Japanese universities can often be chaotic and anarchic.
Another Kyoto University dormitory that was first built in 1913 still houses student squatters for the ultra low price of ¥2,500 (about US$21) a month.
While the raid has generated a lot of interest in traditional and social media, at the end of the day the students at Kyoto University are finding a way to cope:
Kyoto University students stand up to the riot police in traditional Japanese forms of protest: pic.twitter.com/3FjAN3zf5P (via @ttcoshs518)
— Nippon.com (@nippon_en) November 14, 2014


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Not Even Tajikistan’s All-Powerful President Can Stop Forced Military Recruitment · Global Voices
Censored Voice

Demotix image. 20th year of Independence – Tajikistan
15 March 2013 by Theodore Kaye.
The traditional season of forced recruitment into Tajikistan's military is well underway, despite President Emomali Rahmon ordering a stop to the practice earlier in the year. As draftees try to avoid two years in the country's underfunded, under-heated barracks, stories of violent kidnappings are just as common as they were last year.
Since Tajikistan's military is always short of conscripts, members of the military commissariat use an illegal recruitment practice known to the public as “oblava”. Typically, oblava involves the abduction of men between the ages of 18 and 27. Drafts occur every autumn.
Stories of oblava are legend. RFE/RL's Tajik service Ozodi reported earlier this month that as a result of a severe beating by recruitment officers, Saidali Hakberdiev, 24, did not come to his senses for two days. According to the victim's father, Mirzoali Hakberdiev, an inhabitant of Panjakent city in northern Tajikistan, military officers grabbed his son from his family house without any prior notice on November 4, and proceeded to beat Hakberdiev inside a military vehicle heading downtown. As a result, Hakberdiev fainted, suffering serious injuries to his eardrums and temporarily losing the ability to speak.
In October, Ozodi published another story about an illegal recruitment drive at the Medical College of Kurghonteppa. Ardasher, one of the students of the college told Ozodi that students locked the doors of a classroom from the inside and some students even jumped out of the windows, but recruitment officers waited for hours and eventually entered the classroom.
Public reaction to these events has focused on the fact oblava appears to be continuing against the will of Tajikistan's strongman president, Emomali Rahmon. Bandai Khudo, an Ozodi reader writes:
Бовар кунед хар гохе, ки чунин амалётхои гайриконуниро мебинам, ва мешунавам хеле норохат мешава. Охир ин “облаваро” худди “президенти” кишвар рузи 16.02.2014, http://www.ozodi.org/audio/26436255.html расман манъ карда буд. Оё суханхои президент хам ба ин гурухи “облава” кунон таъсир намекунад, ё ин боз фармон аз “болост”?
Believe me, I get sad whenever I see or hear about such illegal actions. On February 16, 2014, the “president” himself officially banned the practice of “oblava.” Do the words of the president not affect the “oblava” squads, or do those squads have a separate order from the “top”?
Suggestions of duplicity seem justified. After all, Tajik officials frequently tell the media that websites which have been shut down have not been shut down, and police regularly detain halloween participants despite the fact that no formal ban on the holiday has been implemented. Many Tajiks complain that citizens with elite connections are never considered for the draft.
Gharib, a commenter on Ozodi, complains about rule of law in Tajikistan:
Рости хеле таасуф мехурам чаро дар ватани мо хукуки инсон мисли хукуки чорво шдааст Приздент ваъда дода буд дигар бо рохи зуровари ва ”облава”чавононро ба хизмати харби чалб намекнан аммо ун харфхо дар когаз монду халос боз хамон облава ва зуровари чаро чавонон ба рассия ва дигар чойхо мегурезан ва ба дигар ватани бегона хизмат мекнан))))))))
I am really sorry that human rights are valued similarly to the rights of livestock in our motherland. The President promised there would be no “oblava” anymore, but these words have remained on paper. “Oblava” and violence in the military is one of the main reason our youth flees to Russia and other countries to work.
However, some readers of Ozodi's articles on the topic believe serving in the military is the obligation of every Tajik man. Mayramoy calls on all Tajik men to join the army. She writes:
Эй чавонони хона шеру майдонгариб! То кай аз паси парда гап мезанед! 2 фарзанди ман дар сафи куввахои мусаллах хизмат карда бо сари баланд баргаштаанд. Шумо то ин чо нишаста мардумро игво андохтан аз мухочират омада, худатон адои хизмат кунед. Шукри тинчиву осудаги, шукри сериву пури кунед! … Агар хамаи шумо худатон ихтиёри ба хизмат равед ин гапу калочахо хам намешавад! Кани хисси ватандустиву мардонагии Шумо?
Hey you cowards! How long are you going to talk behind the curtain?! My two sons served the military and came back home with their heads held high. Instead of draft-dodging or migrating you should serve the military. Appreciate the peace and solidarity we have! If you would voluntarily join the army, there would be nothing to talk about! Where is your feeling of patriotism and bravery?
However, Ardash argues that the demands for bravery and patriotism do not apply to the sons of highly-placed officials:
Набераи шоханшохи Англия дар Афгонистон хизматро ба чо овард. Хол он ки дар он чо чанг идома дорад. Мемуранд чиновникхои давлат фарзандошона хизмат равон кунанд. То ки камтар вазъияти хизмат хуб шавад. Максад ин ки назорат аз пайи хизмат пурзур мешавад. Холу ахволи баъзе сарбозхоя мебини гиряаат меояд. Ё аскархо дар хонаи ким кадом командири бесавод кор мекунанд, ё ки дар казармахо аскархои навомада мавриди тахкиру куштор (аз тарафи дембилхо) карор мегиранд. Дар ин мавридхо командирони калбакии казармахо тамоман кордор нестанд. Боз мегуям агар фарзандхои чиновникхо ба хизмат даъват нашаванд вазъият дар артиш 100 сол хам бех намешавад.
A grandson of Queen Elizabeth II served in Afghanistan, even though there was a war. Why don't our officials send their children to the military? Then perhaps the conditions in the army would improve…When I see some of the soldiers, I want to cry. They are either working at a dumb commander's house, or they are being beaten and abused in the barracks. Commanders do not even interfere in these cases. I repeat that unless the children of officials are recruited, the conditions in the army will not improve in the next 100 years.
References to oblava have also found a way into popular culture. Here one of Tajikistan's politicised rappers spits on the topic of forced conscription:
Дар институт чанг шудем, гуфтан дафш кунен рава. Як мох хонада хорафтам яке даромад облава. Дара махкам кардам, либосои бибима пушидум : ‘биёен бачачоно.’ дара кушодам. Куртаву изори бибим, очкихош дар гарданум: ‘наберaи ма Москвадай.’ Гуфтан ‘момачон натарс хит кардем кору борта, бор кунен да мошин бикаш куртаву изорта.’ Фахмидам ки хит кардан, ударшапа сар кадум, через тиреза гурехтум. Дар рах давидестум ай акибум сур кадан. Хамаш сад фоиз буд барои чи ихо хит кадан. Ха гуфтум ранги бибим да рум хол намондам, худма нигох мекунум да сарум румол намондам… Изорум да нуги пом чорпоха давидестум. Як инуш да сарум зад, да часть хизмат кадестум.
I was expelled from the university for fighting. I spent a month at home, and then one day the ‘oblava’ squad came for me. I closed the door, put on my grandma's dress and said: “Come in, my dears.” I opened the door in her national costume and glasses. “My grandson is in Moscow,” I said. And they said: ‘Dear grandma, we will not fall for your tricks. Get him into the car. Take off his clothes.” I threw a punch at one of them, and jumped out of the nearest window. I was running and they were chasing me. How had they noticed? Perhaps I had forgotten to wear my grandma's birthmark. And her headscarf… Suddenly I was crawling. They had caught up with me. One of them beat me over the head, and I soon found myself serving in the military.

author: Censored Voice


text:
Online Campaign to Support Russian LGBT Teens Is Charged with ‘Gay Propaganda’ · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

Violence and arrests take over LGBT rally. St. Petersburg, October 12, 201, photo by Roma Yandolin. Demotix.
This week, Russian authorities dealt what may be the greatest blow to LGBT rights advocates since Vladimir Putin signed into law the infamous ban on “gay propaganda in the vicinity of minors.”
On November 7, three police officers visited the home of Elena Klimova, the head of “Children-404,” a Russian online community that reaches out with supportive messages to LGBT youth around the world. Similar to the American “It Gets Better” campaign, the group spreads its message on social networks Vkontakte, Facebook, and YouTube. Children-404 derives its name from the common “page not found” error message that sometimes appears when a website is inaccessible. The group appeals to youths who feel similarly lost and outcast.
As of this week, Children-404 has piqued the interests of the Russian police, who asked Klimova, among other things, if the group publishes photographs of naked children—it does not.
Three days after the police visit, Klimova received a message informing her that Roscomnadzor, Russia’s Federal Communications Commission equivalent, has determined that Children-404 violates Russia’s “gay propaganda” ban. She is expected to appear at a Roscomnadzor office on November 18 to find out what legal penalties she will face—under Russian law, as an organization, Children-404 could be fined more than $20,000. Klimova says she fears, in the worst possible scenario, that authorities might pursue additional charges against her, in order to put her in prison.
Police launched the case against Children-404 in part because of a complaint by Anna Levchenko, leader of a project—once praised by Vladimir Putin—that claims to fight sexual violence against minors. In practice, however, the group appears to function as a cover for persecuting those who reach out to gay youths. In late October, Levchenko formally asked Russia’s Attorney General to investigate Children-404’s Vkontakte page for violations of the country's “gay propaganda” ban.
According to a letter from Levchenko, her group not only cataloged the supposed crimes occurring at Children-404, but it even approached some of its underage LGBT participants to interrogate them about why they identify as gay. In an online radio appearance earlier this month on Russia’s “Popular-Patriotic Channel,” Levchenko also accused Children-404 of trying to undermine the Orthodox Church, reciting a few examples of gay youths struggling with the “sin” of homosexuality and the supposedly anti-religious advice they received from Children-404 community members.
Lena Klimova, Facebook.
Writing on LiveJournal, Children-404 founder Klimova implies she will challenge Roscomnadzor’s ruling in court, but doesn’t show much optimism about the chances of overturning the decision. She concludes her LJ post on a note of desperation, saying,
ЧТО ТЕПЕРЬ ДЕЛАТЬ? Жить дальше. Имеет ли смысл (как это делают наши оппоненты) завалить Роскомнадзор письмами о том, что наш проект полезный, важный, нужный и вам / кому-то помог? Я не знаю. Имеет ли смысл создавать петиции и выходить на акции? Я не знаю. В конечном счёте каждый человек делает то, что сам считает нужным, и да будет так.
WHAT TO DO NOW? Life goes on. Is there any point in writing letters to Roscomnadzor (as our opponents love to do) saying that our project is useful, important, needed, and helpful to people? I don’t know. Is there any point in starting a petition or staging a protest? I don’t know. In the end, everybody does what they think is necessary, and that’s how it’ll be.
It is hard to underestimate the chilling effect the crackdown on Children-404 might have. The LGBT community is one of the least respected, most maligned groups in Russian society. Targeting Children-404 will undoubtedly discourage many LGBT youths in Russia from seeking support during adolescence, when they often need it most.
The attack on Children-404 might even deprive some young people of help that could prevent them from harming themselves. Ironically, Roscomnadzor is supposed to protect children from Internet trends associated with suicide. The war on gays, it seems, trumps that mission.