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Armenia’s ‘Electric Yerevan’ Protests and the Mass Media · Global Voices
Julieta Avetisyan

Protesters at Electric Yerevan. Screenshot from YouTube video uploaded by Raymik.
Electric Yerevan, an extended protest against the rising cost of living in Armenia and perceived corruption in the country's electricity sector, was a huge event in a small country.
It trended on Twitter and fuelled thousands of Facebook posts during the two-week peak of protests in the Armenian capital last summer, forcing the government to back away from plans to increase the cost of energy bills paid by citizens.
Just recently, the worlds’ largest international multimedia news agency Reuters included Armenian photographer Vahram Baghdasaryan’s photo from Electric Yerevan in its 2015 Pictures of the Year.
Reuters Ranks Vahram Baghdasaryan's Photo from #ElectricYerevan in its 2015 Best Photos pic.twitter.com/HXxWqIlL55
— Stephane armenews (@Stephanearmenew) December 9, 2015
Not all media viewed Electric Yerevan the same way, however.
The Western media stressed Electric Yerevan's peaceful side, as protestors occupied themselves by playing chess, dancing national dances, and cleaning up after themselves.
Russian channels and online outlets, however, interpreted Electric Yerevan as a replay of the Ukrainian Maidan that ejected a broadly pro-Russian president and paved the way for an anti-Moscow government in Kiev.
There is nothing wrong with being “Maidan-like”: http://t.co/yHH1z1FhBn #ElectricYerevan pic.twitter.com/PfAntF0Qiz
— New Eastern Europe (@NewEastEurope) July 13, 2015
Russian mass media tended to allege Electric Yerevan was orchestrated from outside Armenia and powered by US propaganda.
The parallels were clear for Russian scribes.
Armenia's government had done the opposite of Ukraine and agreed to join the Kremlin-backed Eurasian Economic Union in 2013, effectively walking away from an association agreement with the European Union.
For a greedy West, Ukraine was not enough, they argued.
Participants in Electric Yerevan, in turn, tended to view Russian media's coverage of the event negatively.
At one point during the demonstrations there was a boy who was holding three balloons representing the colours of the Armenian flag: red, yellow (or apricot orange) and blue.
When the red balloon burst, only blue and yellow remained and Russian media homed in on the yellow-blue combination supposedly suggesting Ukrainian sympathies. This was a neat illustration of media bias and “seeing what you want to see”.
In fact, Electric Yerevan had no strong ties to any political party or leader.
It was a movement led mainly by young people and civic types. There were slogans like “Stop Corruption”, “No to the Price Hike”, “High Voltage”, but never “Revolution”.
“Mass media helped to disseminate the issues being raised. When it was necessary to get the word out media covered it without any hesitation,” recalls Vaghinak Shushanyan, one of the main activists of at Electric Yerevan. “Not always with the context we needed, but they were [constantly] publishing,” he told Global Voices.
Social media also played a very crucial role in organising people and bringing them to Baghramyan Avenue and the epicentre of the protests.
As most of the protestors were between the ages of 20 to 30, they were mostly informed about the event and gathered at Baghramyan thanks to the help of Facebook and Twitter.
But social media also appeared to play a parallel, contradictory role as a tool for government surveillance and provocation.
Of the traditional media that covered Electric Yerevan the Civilnet outlet sponsored by a local civil society group, and the US Congress funded-RFE/RL's Armenian service were by far the most influential.
RFE/RL was especially important, broadcasting the movement live to a swell of viewers that grew to almost 300,000, or the equivalent of a tenth of Armenia's 3.2 million population.
Therefore, while America probably did not plan Electric Yerevan as many Russian media outlets seemed to think, local journalists working for an American-financed outlet did much to spread the word.

author: Julieta Avetisyan


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Protesters Demand ‘Soiled’ Macedonian Constitutional Court Justices Resign · Global Voices
Filip Stojanovski

“Let's defend the Constitution from the Constitutional Court! Resignations!” Photo by Vancho Dzhambaski (CC BY-NC-SA), from the photo album “With Toilet Paper in front of Constitutional Court.”
Several hundred citizens of Macedonia protested in front of the Constitutional Court in Skopje on February 29, demanding that the justices who support an initiative to allow the pardon of high crimes, including election fraud, child molestation and terrorism resign from their post.
These crimes have been exempt from presidential pardon since 2009, but recently the court agreed to conduct hearings on possibly removing the restrictions against them.
The demonstration was part of a series organized by the civic platform Ajde! under the motto “Let's defend the Constitution from the Constitutional Court!” Unlike the previous protests, this one took place during work hours. The protesters chanted slogans such as “Resignations,” “No justice, no peace,” “Gangsters,” and “Party-owned state” as well as held banners that read “Servants of the criminals!” One of the loudest cries was “Soiled court!”, a play on words in the Macedonian language, since there is a vague similarity between the word “constitutional” and the word designating the state of being soiled with excrement.
pic.twitter.com/jLMD5SPvcT
— Ајде! | Hajde! (@ajde_hajde) February 29, 2016
Resignation!
The protesters have named and shamed the five justices out of nine who approved deliberation of the initiative, which comes at a time when top Macedonian officials are under investigation for allegedly rigging elections in 2013 to guarantee that the ruling VMRO-DPMNE party won. The five — Jovan Josifovski, Vladimir Stojanoski, Vangelina Markudova, Elena Gosheva and Nikola Ivanovski — reportedly have personal links to VMRO-DPMNE that protesters say influenced their vote to consider the proposed change to pardons. Some cases can languish months or years before the court even agrees to consider them. This time, it only took 19 days.
On social media, many others followed the example of Vlatko Vasilj, who tweeted an image with photos of the five.
Правдата е слепа, ама неправдата има лик. Не еден, пет лика! pic.twitter.com/91CrTAr7FA
— Влатко Васиљ (@VlatkoVasilj) February 24, 2016
Justice is blind, but injustice has a face. Not one, five of them!
European Union integration expert Andreja Stojkovski tweeted about the larger implications of the initiative.
Pardoning for #ElectoralFraud is killing #Democracy in its core! How soon will it abolish itself!? #ConstitutionalCourt #Macedonia
— Andreja Stojkovski (@andrejas_mkd) February 29, 2016
Though there were a lot of media workers at the scene filming the protest with dozens of cameras, few TV channels and newspapers gave coverage to the event. Protesters took to social media to create awareness instead. Some alleged that covert pro-government trolls were flooding Twitter timelines with Oscar-related retweets as a distraction, and called upon passive critics to join in the effort against the court.
Andreja Stojkovski tweeted his photo with Gjorgje Marijanovikj, a retired law professor and one of the harbingers of democracy in contemporary Macedonia, who also joined the protest.
Поради него се уште се гордеам на својата диплома. Денес го сретнав пред #УставенСуд, дошол да одржи предавање. pic.twitter.com/YWK1sDqLME
— Andreja Stojkovski (@andrejas_mkd) February 29, 2016
Because of him I am proud of my diploma. Today I met him in front of the Constitutional Court, he came to hold a lecture.
Полиција го чува уставниот суд од мирни граѓани. Напоменувам МИРНИ. ГРАЃАНИ. pic.twitter.com/lIvL0UTNuK
— В!Дана (@VidanaDeSign) February 29, 2016
Police protecting the Constitutional Court from peaceful citizens. I repeat PEACEFUL. CITIZENS.
Граѓани вршат притисок на судството со тоа што бараат судството да не амнестира криминалци?
Стварно страшен притисок е да почитуваш закон!
— Емилито (@EmilitoAtanez) February 29, 2016
Citizens excreting pressure upon judiciary by demanding the judiciary not to pardon criminals? Indeed, it's a terrible pressure to uphold the law!
#оставка #протестирам pic.twitter.com/cptSNRtyqZ
— Озрачен (@tode1514) February 29, 2016
Resignation! I protest!
Многу интересно ретвит глупи твитови во време на протест,за да се изгуби поента,ако бе *неутрални*,ако #протестирам pic.twitter.com/qm0niPfBL0
— Холи Голајтли (@KMiljovska) February 29, 2016
It's very interesting to retweet stupid tweets during a protest, to lose its point. Okay, you “neutral ones”, OK! I protest!
A small delegation of protesters delivered a letter with their demands to the court after being allowed to pass through the police cordon. Then some members of the crowd threw toilet paper rolls above the heads of the police, towards the court entrance.
Лета тоалетна хартија накај судот!
Народот скандира: “Усран суд, усран суд!” #Протестирам pic.twitter.com/mD199tz6IN
— Т-REX (@toVornottoV) February 29, 2016
Toilet paper flying towards the court!
The people shouting: “Soiled court, soiled court!”
Several protest participants held speeches, including human rights expert Žarko Trajanoski, journalist Petrit Saracini and number of activists from various parts of the country, such as Aleksandar Dojranliev from Gevgelija and Vladimir Hristovski from Veles.
Actress Simona Spirovska read the satirical poem “Ode to Emperor Nikolay” (referring to ex-Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, who recently resigned his post as part of a deal to end political crisis fueled in part by revelations that his government illegally wiretapped thousands of people) by the playwright Jugoslav Petrovski, ending with the anti-fascist slogan “No pasaran!” (“They shall not pass!”)
While the protesters mainly focused on a possible pardon for election fraud, civil society organizations from Macedonia have also raised the alarm over the other crimes that would be elegible for pardon. For instance, Dragi Zmijanac, the president of Megjashi, an NGO defending children's rights, stated that the decision to allow pardon for pedophiles and rapists is both “scandalous and absurd.”
After the protest, some of the participants reported that they'd been subjected to various forms of aggression by private security guards on scene contracted by the court. Others said they received ominous messages online. Vladimir Hristovski said after publishing video he took at the demonstration, he received a phone call from an unlisted number in which the caller threatened his and his mother's safety and a handwritten “last warning” message on his doorstep. He also said someone posted a call for his “extermination” in a buy-and-sell Facebook group with over 130,000 members.
“This is your last warning before receiving A RED CARD!” Note received by activist Vladimir Hristovski after the protest, written in the dialect of his hometown Veles.
Ajde! activists promise they will continue the protests until their demands are met. The next one is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, March 5.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Filip Stojanovski


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Russian Parents Can Now Get Text Message Alerts if Their Kids Search for ISIS Online · Global Voices
Tanya Lokot

Parents in Russia can now set up alerts to monitor whether their kids do something suspicious online. (Image by Lars Plougmann on Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.)
A text message alert system called “Guardian Angel” will soon be available to parents in Russia concerned about what their children are seeing—and seeking—on the Internet.
The Russian Center for the Study of Legitimacy and Political Protest is reportedly working on the new alert mechanism. The software is allegedly able to analyze teenagers’ activity on social networks and warn parents that their children might be exhibiting an interest in extremist themes and groups like ISIS, an organization that Russia has banned as terrorist.
Head of the research center, Yevgeny Venediktov, told Russian news daily Izvestiya that he envisioned both parents and teachers subscribing to the “Guardian Angel”‘s text message alerts, so that any deviant behavior “could be addressed both at home and within the school environment.”
В школе с такими детьми смогут сразу начать работать психологи, социальные работники. А информация, которую разместит ребёнок у себя на стене в соцсети, будет оперативно удалена.
At school, psychologists and social workers could immediately start working with such children. And the information that a child publishes on their social media “wall” would be promptly deleted.
Venediktov alleges that the software will be triggered by content such as textual posts, images, and video “containing radical material,” indicating the child's interest in extremism. Triggers could include images of the ISIS flag, videos portraying ISIS members, as well as certain terms or turns of phrase “common for ISIS adherents or recruiters” that teenagers might use in comments or posts. Such marker words or phrases will be added to the system's database manually.
The researchers plan to test run the “Guardian Angel” software in Russia's Novgorod region first. In the fall of 2015, a school student from Novgorod region was charged with online extremism. The 17-year-old posted a video (allegedly of soldiers and civilians being executed by extremist militants in Iraq) on his social network page and now faces criminal charges in accordance with Article 280 of the Russian criminal code. Charges of calls to extremism on mass media or online in Russia can result in sentences of up to five years in prison.
Head of the parent council in one of Great Novgorod's local schools said he was ready to try out the experimental system.
У меня сын в 8-м классе, хочу обезопасить его от негативного воздействия интернета. Хотя вообще я сыну доверяю, захожу к нему на страничку в соцсети редко — раз в две недели. Но мне хотелось бы, чтобы в интернете было меньше негативных вещей, в том числе материалов, пропагандирующих ИГИЛ.
My son is in eighth grade,  I'd like to protect him from the Internet's negative influence. Generally I trust my son, and only visit his social media page about once every two weeks. But I'd like it if there were fewer negative things online, including content that promotes ISIS.
The sort of “early warning” approach suggested by Russia's “Guardian Angel” has also been attempted in UK schools, some of which have test-driven “anti-radicalization” software that allows teachers to flag concerning images used by students and analyzes online speech against a glossary of trigger words related to Jihadism and extremism. However, some experts have warned that pressuring schools to surveil students is not an effective way to stop radicalisation, and instead risks alienating young people from Muslim communities and other minority groups.

author: Tanya Lokot


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What Awaits Confiscated Narco Fortunes? A Look at Police Work in Mexico, Colombia, and the US · Global Voices
Connectas

Photo: Susana González / Bloomberg / Getty Images. Used with permission.
Mayra Rocha of Univisión, USA, conducted the original version of this report, which was also published by CONNECTAS. Global Voices is republishing it here, translated into English, as part of a content-sharing agreement.
Can you imagine getting to the point where you don't know how much money you have? This is what the Colombian leader of the Cali cartel, Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela, confessed to his partner of eight years. That detail offers just a glimpse into the scope of the illegal drug trade, which is a booming multinational industry.
In 2011, Forbes magazine placed Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán among the richest men in the world, ranking him the second wealthiest in Mexico, with an estimated fortune of $1 billion. Today, he's estimated to be worth even more. At the time of his arrest in 1995, the fortune of Rodríguez Orejuela, main ex-leader of the Cali cartel, exceeded $1 billion, according to the Colombian prosecutor general. Pablo Escobar, the leader of the Medellín cartel, had an estimated net worth of between $9 billion and $15 billion.
But what happens to those fortunes when drug traffickers are arrested? In the United States, it depends on who makes the seizure. In the first instance, the money and assets seized go to a prosecutor who determines whether there is sufficient evidence for the case to go to court. Once the illegality of the money is established and the victims of the crime are compensated, the Justice Department, operating under a law regulating the “equitable distribution of funds,” parcels out the remaining money to the police departments that were involved in the investigation.
In a report released by the Platform for Latin American Journalism CONNECTAS, detective Rodolfo Rodríguez of the Los Angeles Police Department said:
Por ley, 65 por ciento va al departamento que confiscó, 35 por ciento se divide entre el estado y los fiscales, para continuar operaciones antidroga.
By law, 65 percent goes to the department that performed the confiscation, and 35 percent is divided between the state and prosecutors to continue anti-drug operations.
Between 2001 and 2014, according to an investigation by the Washington Post with statistics from the Department of Justice, the LAPD received $18.4 million under this program, the NYPD made $27 million, and the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department earned $24.3 million. According to the report, the money is used to buy equipment, technology, and also fund training and operations to continue the fight against drug trafficking.In the event that goods are seized as a result of a federal operation in which entities such as the FBI or the DEA participated, the money ends up in the custody of the Treasury and Justice Departments and the goods and properties are resold at auction.
Such was the case of the Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar's mansion in Miami Beach, which a Florida couple purchased more than 20 years ago for less than a million dollars (a price well below market value for a mansion overlooking the ocean).
In Mexico, whether it's houses, horses, or race cars, unclaimed property ends up at auction. According to Alonso Carriles, the director of Management Service and Property Disposal (a unit in Mexico's Ministry of Finance), the Attorney General's Office secures and guards all goods received, until criminal proceedings get underway against the property's owners. Officials sometimes have as much as $330 million under lock and key.
According to criminal attorney Gabriel Regino, buildings, land, hotels, and homes are auctioned off, but he stresses that the houses are the most difficult to sell, given the complications that could come from owning a home previously occupied by a drug dealer or their family. For this reason, the Mexican government has opted to rent these buildings to nonprofit organizations.
In Colombia, once the goods are seized, a window of time is opened for the accused to defend their property. If it is proven that the assets were acquired illegally, the Attorney General yields them to an asset administrator of the Victims Reparation and Combat Against Organized Crime Fund. It was to this organization that many of the goods that once belonged to Pablo Escobar and other leaders of the Medellín and Cali cartels were given. For this reason, the son of Pablo Escobar has publicly stated that neither he nor his family were left with the money or other goods that resulted from drug trafficking. Everything remained in government hands. According to the son's statements, he inherited from his father only a watch.

author: Connectas


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Graphic Artists Launch Online Poster Campaign to ‘Free the Media’ in Malaysia · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Image from Grupa
An activist group of graphic artists in Malaysia has launched an online poster campaign to demand media freedom after the government ordered the closure of several websites and blogs that have been reporting about a corruption scandal involving the prime minister.
Grafik Rebel Untuk Protes & Aktivisme (Grupa) said the campaign aims to inspire the public to support the work of independent journalists:
We feel that the time has come for Malaysians to demand for media and internet freedom in light of the latest assault on freedom of speech in Malaysia. It is thanks to such tactics many journalists from independent portals face a tough time when covering ruling party lawmakers and the reporters from the mainstream media are often dubbed government lapdogs.
Since January, the Malaysian government has blocked three news websites and three socio-political blogs. It blocked the Medium and Asia Sentinel news websites for carrying a report originally published by Sarawak Report about the corruption scandal involving Prime Minister Najib Razak. The Sarawak Report was banned in Malaysia in 2015. Two weeks ago, The Malaysia Insider was blocked for allegedly posting an ‘unverified’ information regarding the corruption case of Najib.
Najib is accused of receiving more than 600 million US dollars from a state-run investment firm. Najib denies this and claims that the money in his banks was a political donation from a royal family in the Middle East. The issue sparked massive protests in Malaysia and some of Najib’s allies even called for his resignation.
Activists and opposition leaders believe the suspension of some newspapers and the blocking of websites are part of the government’s attempt to hide information about the corruption case.
Even social media users are targeted by authorities. The blogs OutSyed The Box, Din Turtle and Minaq Jingo Fotopages were blocked for being critical of the government. The Malaysian Communications And Multimedia Commission (MCMC) threatened Internet users who are sharing satirical clown memes of Najib. Interestingly, it was also Grupa which popularized the clown memes after police warned an activist artist that the latter is being monitored for tweeting a clown image of Najib.
Grupa’s campaign against censorship promotes the hashtags #freethemedia and #bebasmedia (free the media).
Below are some of the posters uploaded on Grupa’s Facebook and Twitter pages:
Grupa asserts that the media should not simply broadcast government propaganda, especially those coming from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). Image from Grupa
Image from Grupa
Image from Grupa
Image from Grupa
Whoever controls the media, controls the mind #BebasMedia #FreeTheMedia pic.twitter.com/zTkJcjLraM
— GRUPA (@grafikrebel) February 29, 2016
Activists are calling for the review of the law passed in 1998 which gives broad powers to the Malaysian Communications And Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to censor and block news portals. Image from Grupa
Image from Grupa
Image from Grupa
Image from Grupa
Image from Grupa

author: Mong Palatino


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Hugo Chávez’s Fictional Transgender Sister Is Breaking Down Walls in Venezuela · Global Voices
Laura Vidal

Photo: Chavela Frías Facebook group.
Despite her immense popularity on social networks, little is known about Chavela Frías, the fictional transsexual sister of the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Frías. The character was made out of an action figure of the former president—a toy that was popular among Chávez’s followers more than a decade ago. The Chávez doll was launched to compete with “traditional” action figures from American comics and, according to some media outlets, held its own during the Christmas of 2005.
However, ten years since its release, the former president's figurine has taken on a new persona through the work of an anonymous artist whose popularity in Venezuela has exploded. The artist poses Chavela in different tailored outfits, appearing in photos with friends, and en route to various international destinations. Chavela Frías has social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. In her biography, she says:
Nací en Sabaneta el 28 de Julio de 1954. Soy trasexual y gemela de mi hermano Hugo Chavez Frias.
I was born in Sabaneta on July 28, 1954. I'm transexual and Hugo Chávez Frías’ twin.
Photo: Chavela Frías’ Facebook album “My Vacations.”
The unusual art project has attracted many followers and comments, and invited more than a few pieces of analysis. Not everyone is a fan. Some media outlets who sympathized with Chávez during his time in office made made their discontent known:
Ahora a la derecha, al sector menos creativo de la derecha, le ha dado por abrir una cuenta en la red social Facebook para burlarse nada más y nada menos que de nuestro querido Comandante Hugo Chávez Frías.
El usuario en cuestión lleva por nombre “Chavela Frías”, la supuesta hermana transexual de Chávez. La imagen de perfil utilizada para distinguir el sitio es un muñeco travestido del referido líder revolucionario. Fotos verdaderamente grotescas, protagonizadas por este peculiar personaje, pueden observarse en las distintas publicaciones y álbumes. El autor o autora, cobardemente, permanece en el anonimato.
The Right—the least creative right-wing sector—has opened a Facebook account to make fun of nothing more and nothing less than our beloved Commander Hugo Chávez Frías.
The user in question is called “Chavela Frías,” the alleged transsexual sister of Chávez. The profile image used to distinguish the site is a transvestite doll of said revolutionary leader. Truly grotesque pictures featuring this peculiar character can be seen in the various posts and albums. The cowardly author remains anonymous.
Photo: Chavela Frías’ Facebook album “All for the Crown.” (The album name refers to the popular beauty pageant, Miss Venezuela, which has been a socio-cultural symbol of the country for decades.)
Others online think the doll art is actually something quite special. On Chavela Frías’ wall, one Facebook user wrote:
Más allá de todo, creo que el tema de la muy divina Chavela Frias […] va mas allá de un simple insulto, una mofa o una expresión de odio. Todo el sistema propagandístico erigió un ídolo, un icono en torno a un hombre. Tanto que incluso se comercializó un muñeco de acción del supuesto “héroe”. El problema de la creación de iconos, es que son fácilmente desmontables; he allí Chavela como ente disruptivo que permite la transmutación de forma, el desmontaje de un icono a través de la creación de un icono superpuesto y artificial, basado en la antítesis del primero, en la transfiguración de un viril muñeco de acción que alaba la masculinidad y el machocentrismo paternalista venezolano a una muñeca transexual, cosmopolita, delicada, liberada y autónoma.
Above all of this, I think that the issue of the very divine Chavela Frías […] goes beyond simple insults, mockery, or hate speech. The entire propaganda system erected an idol—an icon around a man. So much so that they even produced an action figure of the supposed “hero.” The problem of creating icons is that they are easily removable; that’s where Chavela comes in as a disruptive entity that challenges the structure, and permits the removal of an icon through the creation of a superimposed and artificial icon, based on the antithesis of the former through the transfiguration of a virile action figure that embodies masculinity and the quintessential patronizing Venezuelan machismo into a transsexual, cosmopolitan, delicate, liberated, and independent doll.
Photo: Chavela Frías’ public Facebook profile.
Now on Chavela Frías’ profile, not only are photographs of trips or luxury outfits shared, but Chavela Frías also shares campaigns of interest to the transgender community, or thoughts on the political division of Venezuela:
Los venezolanos estamos confundidos, atemorizados, desarraigados, resentidos y desorientados. Nos cuesta discernir lo real de lo imaginario, lo verdadero de lo falso. Nos sentimos como en un “reality show”, donde no sabemos que parte es “reality” y que parte es “show”. Vivimos en una novela cotidiana, donde todos somos “extras” en un guion dirigido por pocos e improvisado a diario de manera demagógica e irresponsable.
Ya no somos “los venezolanos” que otrora trabajábamos unidos por nuestro país.
Venezuelans are confused, frightened, uprooted, resentful, and disoriented. It’s hard for us to discern what’s real from what’s imaginary, what is true from what is false. We feel like we’re in a “reality show” where we don’t know which part is “reality” and which part is the “show.” We're living in a daily novella where we are all “extras” in a script without a director, improvising every day recklessly and irresponsibly.
We are no longer “the Venezuelans” who once worked together for our country.
The popularization of Chavela’s character coincides with various regional advances in attitudes about the rights and representations of the transgender community. As in many other countries, transgender people and the rest of the LGBT community in Venezuela are subject to abuse by social and police groups. Despite this these obstacles, Chavela continues traveling and sharing photographs. With that, the character challenges the construction of an idol who set Venezuela apart politically from the rest of the world in the early 21st century.

author: Laura Vidal


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Netizen Report: Facebook VP Arrested in Brazil for Refusing to Give Police WhatsApp Data · Global Voices
Advox

By Flickr user Jan Persiel. Uploaded on September 22, 2013. CC BY-SA 2.0
Global Voices Advocacy's Netizen Report offers an international snapshot of challenges, victories, and emerging trends in Internet rights around the world.
Facebook’s vice president for Latin America, Diego Dzodan, was arrested by Brazilian police for refusing to give WhatsApp data to law enforcement for a criminal investigation into drug trafficking. The move is an escalation in an ongoing battle between the company and Brazilian authorities. WhatsApp was suspended by a judge in Brazil for48 hours in December over a similar refusal to hand over user data in a criminal case. As of March 2, Dzodan was set to be released following a statement by a higher judge who called the extreme measure of imprisonment “hurried.”
Meanwhile, Bolivian President Evo Morales proposed regulating social networks, because he believes “misinformation spread on them can topple governments.” Claiming social media debates influenced voters’ decisions on a recent referendum on whether he can seek re-election by amending the constitution, Morales said social networks “are wasting the values of new generations.”
And the Cyberspace Administration of China ordered Sina and Tencent to shut down the accounts of real estate tycoon Ren Zhiqiang, accusing Ren of “illegal messages with negative impact.” Many believe Ren is being punished for a comment he made questioning Chinese President Xi Jinping’s position that state-affiliated media should serve the Communist Party. Following the move, 580 more social media accountswere shut down by the CAC, including those of several celebrity bloggers, for “misleading the public” or “violating regulations.”
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg told a group of students during a town hall in Berlin that the company needs to improve its measures to crack down on hate speech against migrants. The company has come under criticism by the German Ministry of Justice for its failure to police racist and anti-immigration posts as effectively as it does sexual imagery. Zuckerberg said there was “not a place for this kind of content on Facebook” and that German law and culture had led to a change in its approach to hate speech.
Researchers at the Citizen Lab found that thousands of apps that run code produced by Chinese Internet company Baidu are collecting and transferring users’ personal data to the company, much of it in an insecure way. Citizen Lab director Ron Deibertcalled it “either shoddy design or it’s surveillance by design.”
Hong Kongers have quickly adapted to Facebook’s new “reactions” features, using the “angry” emoji to flood the Facebook page of their Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying. Within hours of publishing a post, C.Y. Leung’s page was flooded with more than 54,000 angry emojis. The case reveals the limitations of only having a “like” function on the site. Until now, CY Leung’s page only featured likes and positive comments, but with the new emoticons, which can't be moderated by page owners, the negative nature of his fame has been unveiled, according to the Hong Kong Free Press.
Sarah Myers West

author: Advox


text:
No Country for Bhutan’s Fatherless Children · Global Voices
Rezwan

A mother and her child in Bhutan. Photo: Steve Evans / Flickr. CC 2.0. Edited by Kevin Rothrock.
The Himalayan nation of Bhutan, with a population of about 750,000 people, is known for the phrase “gross national happiness”—a slogan coined in 1972 to represent the country's commitment to that serves Buddhist spiritual values instead of Western material development. Bhutan's strict citizenship laws, however, aren't doing much to boost happiness these days, as thousands of Bhutanese children abandoned by their fathers have been rendered stateless according to Bhutanese laws.
The country's Constitution says:
A person, both of whose parents are citizens of Bhutan, shall be a natural born citizen of Bhutan.
Making matters especially difficult, children whose fathers are unknown or children with one parent who is not a citizen cannot get registered in the national census. It is not possible in Bhutan to apply for government services, own property, or obtain a passport for travel abroad if you don't have citizenship papers.
Vishal Arora, a journalist, writer, and filmmaker, based in New Delhi, has published a documentary on the issue, as part of a campaign called Media Project:
Abandoned by their fathers, these children are brought up by their mothers, who endure financial hardships to raise them and yet fail to ensure a good future for them.
For, Bhutan requires the legal identity of a child’s father before granting him or her citizenship rights.
These mothers and their fatherless children are paying the price for growing alcoholism and the misuse of the age-old tradition of nightly dating, called “Night Hunting,” the two key reasons behind the high incidence of unprotected premarital sex.
The fate of these fatherless children is uncertain because of delays in Bhutan's registration process when a mother is unable to identify her child's father. Abortion is illegal in Bhutan, except in cases of rape, incest, mental health risks, or threats to the mother's life. As a result, many women resort illegal abortions or cross the border into India to terminate a pregnancy.
Blogger Passu says:
I find more compassion in abortion; killing a cell for the sake of a woman’s life, and liberating both the mother and the child from depth of mistake. Abortion is not an ice cream that everybody would enjoy if made free, it is but the only option left when everything seems wrong. No woman will go for abortion for pleasure.
Yeshey Dorji writes in his blog:
Centuries of societal indoctrination has numbed our mind into believing that a child born out of the wedlock is, without contest, fathered by the husband of the woman bearing the child. This belief is so deep rooted in our consciousness that to suggest otherwise is anathema. But if you were to contemplate this matter a little deeper, you will realize that this is a fallacy of gargantuan proportions. The truth is that no one, but a mother alone may testify to the veracity of the fact. For all you know, the child could have been secretly fathered by someone from Timbuktu.
This brings us to the realization that where the Bhutaneseness of a child is needed to be established, nothing can be as authoritative and genuine and genetically pure as that of the Bhutanese mother who bore the child. Since there is room for duplicity, I think it is erroneous to set the criteria that the father of the child ought to be a Bhutanese for the child to qualify as a Bhutanese.
Sonam Ongmo writes in her blog:
Apart from having to deal with the cowardly men who have made them pregnant, and leave both woman and child in limbo, the least she should have to deal with is the government doing this too. Why should a woman have to prove who the father is in oder to avail citizenship for her child? What if the woman was raped? And even if she wasn't, what prevents her or her child from being a citizen? It is inhumane to put a woman through this!
It is the Nation's responsibility; the government's responsibility to ensure citizens, especially women, this right and to make it as easy as they can for them to avail this right.
Yeshey Dorji writes:
A benevolent law should not encourage gender bias and unequal treatment. We have always been a matriarchal society and thus, it is not in our character to treat our women as if they were second class citizens. Our laws should give them the same dignity, right and freedom as those that are accorded our men.
It remains to be seen whether the Bhutanese government will reform its rules and regulations, or if women can look forward to more of the same hardships they face now.

author: Rezwan


text:
The Newest Strategy for Saving Bees Is Really, Really Old · Global Voices
Ensia

Photo by Flickr user Danny Perez Photography. CC-BY-NC-SA 2.0
This post by Christina Selby was originally published on Ensia.com, a magazine that highlights international environmental solutions in action, and is republished here as part of a content-sharing agreement.
In northwestern India, the Himalaya Mountains rise sharply out of pine and cedar forests. The foothills of the Kullu Valley are blanketed with apple trees beginning to bloom. It’s a cool spring morning, and Lihat Ram, a farmer in Nashala village, shows me a small opening in a log hive propped against his house. Stout black-and-yellow native honeybees — Apis cerana — fly in and out.
For centuries beehives have been part of the architecture of mountain homes here, built into the thick outside walls. Traditionally wild colonies of bees found the hive themselves, or farmers brought a log with a hive in it from the surrounding forest so the inhabitants could set up shop in the village and produce honey for their human caretakers.
But in recent years those wild colonies have become increasingly rare in this valley, where 90 percent of farmers are small landholders. Modern agriculture has replaced natural forests and the diverse crops of subsistence farms almost exclusively with a single apple variety: royal delicious, favored at the market. Producing this high-demand fruit has improved economic conditions for farmers in the Kullu Valley. But it also has contributed to an untenable environment for pollinators. Similar to other situations around the world, a mix of monocropping, climate change, diseases, changes in land practices, pesticide use, deforestation, loss of habitat and an exploding human population that’s taxing the valley’s natural resources has caused native honeybee populations to decline. With the decline, orchard harvests have dropped by as much as 50 percent.
To close the pollination gap, farmers who could afford it started to hire beekeepers from the neighboring warmer state of Punjabi to bring managed hives of European honeybees — Apis mellifera — to the valley during the apple bloom season. “The problem with this is that poor farmers are now paying for an ecosystem service that the native honeybee previously provided for free,” says Pradeep Mehta, research and program manager for Earthwatch Institute in India. Not only that, but the introduction of nonnative honeybees can bring with it disease and competition for nectar sources, reducing some populations of native bees even further and robbing ecosystems of important biodiversity.
Now, however, scientists are enlisting nature to turn that around in this remote corner of the world. The Himalayan Ecosystems Research Project — a collaboration among scientists, Nashala villagers and international volunteers like me brought in by Earthwatch — is studying pollination in this area and applying what’s learned at the farm level. Last year, the group began restoring traditional pollinator services with trainings and stocking new hives with native Asian honeybees, as well as introducing modified practices, such as using an extractor to harvest honey rather than crushing hives, that boost the bees’ ability to thrive under their modern circumstances.
To feed the Asian honeybees throughout the growing season, Nashala village farmers have started to diversify their farms again. Garlic, onion, cauliflower and wildflower varieties that pollinators have shown a preference for in field research now grow under the apple trees — after the trees bloom. The distributed flowering strategy keeps the bees focused on pollinating apples during their short bloom season while still providing a variety of nectar sources that help keep them going during the rest of the growing season.
Worldwide, cultivation of — and collaboration with — native bees through traditional beekeeping is fast becoming collateral damage of modernization. Industrial agriculture employs only a handful of pollinator species to sustain it, mostly uber-efficient honeybees and bumblebees that are toted from one farm to the next to provide pollination when and where needed.
“Nonnative honeybees are like Walmart, native bees are like mom-and-pop stores. When you want that one specialty item, if you can’t get it at Walmart, you are out of luck when the mom-and-pop stores go out of business.”
Moving nonnative managed colonies has proven risky, though: Nonnative species can spread disease to native ones, reducing native bee populations. This in turn can make the entire pollination system less resilient. As Karen Wright, a native-bee scientist at the University of New Mexico, puts it, “Nonnative honeybees are like Walmart, native bees are like mom-and-pop stores. When you want that one specialty item, if you can’t get it at Walmart, you are out of luck when the mom-and-pop stores go out of business.”
Now, though, there’s a revival underway — an awakening to the value of native-bee-nurturing subsistence practices around the world. As in the Kullu Valley, farmers are starting to recognize local pollinators as valuable partners in their enterprises and once again actively cultivate bees. By restoring beekeeping, farmers increase the numbers of local bees available not only to pollinate their crops but also to reclaim their role as an integral part of surrounding habitats.
“Reviving these practices will help in pollinator conservation and also help in sustaining agriculture in the region,” says Mehta.
Residents of the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico have reared stingless bees for a thousand years, according to cultural records. Traditionally, Mayan beekeepers collected the bees, which they call xunan kab (royal lady), from the forest by cutting down trees and bringing the hive home in a portion of the trunk. The small amount of honey produced, one to two liters (0.3 to 0.5 gallons) per year, was used for medicinal purposes, and the queens had a role in ceremonial practices.
Mayan elders used to pass on their beekeeping knowledge to an interested relative. As modernity has swept through the culture, the practice has gone out of fashion. “Kids aren’t interested in traditional things,” says David Roubik of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Since the 1980s, Roubik, along with University of Arizona entomologist Stephen Buchmann and Rogel Villanueva-Gutiérrez, a research scientist at El Colegio de la Frontera Sur in Mexico, has been studying Mayan beekeeping and native stingless bees of the genus Melipona in the Zona Maya, a government-designated region in the Yucatan where Mayans maintain a traditional lifestyle. New beekeepers are mostly interested in making money, and for that they turn to a commercial bee, a hybrid of European and African honeybees that cranks out 100 pounds (40 to 50 kilograms) of honey per colony per year.
What’s being lost is the native bees’ important role in the local ecosystem. “Stingless bees preferentially visit and pollinate the canopy of native forest trees, unlike the introduced honeybees — Apis mellifera — that tend to pollinate introduced weedy plants at ground level,” says Buchmann. “These bees are vitally important to conserving native trees and other plants in the Zona Maya.”
On the eastern side of the Yucatan Peninsula, where large swaths of native forests are still intact, scientists interested in restoring that function are working with Mayan farmers to revive traditional beekeeping. The researchers’ long-term studies of bee populations and surveys of beekeepers in remote Mayan villages showed that the practice is no longer being passed down through families. To help preserve a tradition they saw as essential to preventing local extinction of these stingless bees Buchmann, Roubik, Villanueva-Gutiérrez and other colleagues from the University of Yucatan started annual workshops to train a new generation of beekeepers.
“We train and work with Mayan technicians to give courses and workshops on how to manage and protect the Melipona bee. We supply colonies to people that are just starting and build bee houses, called meliponaries, which have all the characteristics of the traditional Mayan meliponaries,” says Villanueva-Gutiérrez. Buchmann, Roubik and Villanueva-Gutiérrez have also published a stingless beekeeping guide in Spanish and Mayan and a video on Mayan beekeeping. The hope is that skilled beekeepers will increase the number of colonies by dividing them.
“We make people aware of the importance of bees for the conservation of the forest, and also the importance of the forest for the existence of bees.”
Traditionally men tended the bees in Mayan villages, but women’s beekeeping collectives have sprung up from these new efforts. The bee’s docile nature makes it an appealing addition to a backyard family farm. The honey’s renowned medicinal value and appealing packaging helps it to fetch more money per liter on the market than honey from commercial bees. For some mothers, it’s enough to pay for their child’s education.
The workshops help beekeepers recognize that honey is only part of the benefit. “We make people aware of the importance of bees for the conservation of the forest, and also the importance of the forest for the existence of bees,” says Villanueva-Gutiérrez.
In this way, stingless bees are helping sustain Mayan beekeepers with the sale of honey, and the Mayan beekeepers are helping sustain not only stingless bees but also the ecological integrity of the Yucatán Peninsula.
In Tanzania, traditional practices have focused on harvesting wild honey rather than keeping managed hives, says Noah Mpunga, a zoologist with the Wildlife Conservation Society. Farmers search the forest for hives, then ignite bunches of grass to smoke the aggressive African honeybees out of their hives before they harvest the honey. Sometimes fires drip onto the ground and set forests ablaze, destroying habitat and the hives.
A new Elephants and Bees Project, brainchild of biologist Lucy King, aims to support smallholder farmers with income from honey sales and reduce human-elephant conflicts by putting the belligerent nature of African honeybees to good use.
Using traditional log hives or modern top-bar hives, which allow farmers to harvest honey without damaging the colony, the project helps set up beehive fences around smallholder farms. Migrating elephants eyeing fresh, green vegetation on small farms run into wires connecting hives, mobilizing the bees. Just the sound of the bees buzzing puts the elephants on the run.
Smallholder farmers benefit not only from the protection from elephants afforded their crops, but also from the added pollination services the bees provide as well as from harvesting the abundant honey. Local biodiversity benefits, too: The program encourages beekeepers to create and protect foraging sources for the native bees by planting wildflowers among their crops and conserving nearby native forests.
Research shows that proactive conservation strategies such as this can maintain the favorable conditions and populations of native bees throughout Africa, and the practice is spreading to other locations where elephants are a problem.
Back in India, I follow Lihat Ram through the narrow paths of Nashala village. A few wall and log hives buzz with active Asian honeybee colonies. We pass women in colorful clothing planting vegetable crops in their yards. Out in the orchards, wildflowers are beginning to bloom under the apple trees. Honeybees, native solitary bees, flies and butterflies flit about pollinating apple blossoms.
Whether it’s tasting a new apple variety from the Kullu Valley, using Royal Lady honey as skin lotion in the Zona Maya, watching African elephants make a beeline for the hills or something else somewhere else, native pollinators have much to offer humans and local ecosystems alike. Including traditional beekeeping practices in bee conservation efforts may be exactly what we need to keep our agriculture systems, forests and farmers thriving.
Editor’s note: Christina Selby participated in the Earthwatch volunteer program in India last April and produced this feature as a participant in the Ensia Mentor Program. Her mentor for the project was Hillary Rosner.
Christina Selby is a freelance science and environmental writer based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She writes about conservation science, biodiversity, pollinators, and sustainable development. Her work has appeared in Lowestoft Chronicle, Green Money Journal, Mother Earth Living and elsewhere. She tweets from @christinaselby.

author: Ensia


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Human Rights Activist and Indigenous Leader Berta Cáceres Is Assassinated in Honduras · Global Voices
Renata Avila

Berta Caceres in interview with the media outlet Venas Abiertas. Image: Youtube.
After years of environmental activism and fighting for indigenous communities, human rights champion Berta Caceres was assassinated in Honduras on March 3, as reported by SOAWatch:
At approximately midnight last night, the General Coordinator of COPINH, Berta Caceres was assassinated in her hometown of La Esperanza, Intibuca. At least two individuals broke down the door of the house where Berta was staying for the evening in the Residencial La Líbano, shot and killed her.
World-renowned for her activism, Caceres won the the Goldman Environmental Prize last year for successfully stopping the construction of a major river dam. With the honor came a stream of death threats, as noted by the press release that accompanied her award:
What [hasn’t] stopped are death threats to Cáceres. Her murder would not surprise her colleagues, who keep a eulogy—but hope to never have to use it. Despite these risks, she maintains a public presence in order to continue her work. In a country with some of the highest murder rates in the world, Cáceres hopes the victory in Agua Zarca will bring hope to activists fighting irresponsible development in Honduras and throughout Latin America.
The organization “Witness for Peace” summarized what forces Caceres went up against, when she opposed the dam:
Following the US-backed coup in Honduras in 2009, the floodgates for selling off Honduran land and natural resources to transnational and national corporations blew open. For example, the coup government granted 47 hydroelectric dam concessions with a single law, without consulting the communities that would be directly impacted and thereby violated international conventions including the International Labor Organization’s (ILO) convention 169 that requires the Honduran state to defend indigenous land and natural resources and prevent their forced displacement.
In just the past few days, Caceres’ organization, COPINHHONDURAS, spoke out against repression aim at indigenous communities, sharing evidence of the dispossession of the Lenca community:
Cronología de un despojo: Arrebatan tierras a más comunidades lencas hondureñas https://t.co/DhNhk5pINC pic.twitter.com/MO4X26n7DW
— Giorgio Trucchi (@nicaraguaymas) February 26, 2016
A chronology of dispossession: lands are being grabbed from more Honduran Lenca communities
The UN Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Rights has also highlighted the abuses against the Lenca community and its struggle for a better environment. During her recent visit to Honduras, she stated:
In the course of the visit and my examination of the situation of indigenous peoples, I observed the critical situation faced by them regarding their rights on their lands and natural resources, violence, impunity and corruption, access to justice and lack of adequate social services including in education and health.
Honduras, which is plagued with endemic corruption, has a horrendous record when it comes to the murder of environmental activists and women. Organizations from all over the world are urging the Honduran government to take immediate steps to address the issues to which Caceres devoted her life. Activists are also appealing to other countries to put pressure on Honduran officials, who just launched the Honduran Commission Against Impunity.
There are hopes that the commission could be an opportunity for the government to prove its political will. For now, all that's clear in the aftermath of Caceres’ murder is the nation's desperate need for some mechanism to help stem the tide of violence, corruption, and impunity.

author: Renata Avila


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Demolition or Not, Trinidad & Tobago’s Historical Mansion ‘Mille Fleurs’ Needs a Lot of Work · Global Voices
Atiba Rogers

Mille Fleurs @ Port of Spain, Trinidad. Photo by Li Tsin Soon, used under a CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 license.
After years of neglect, Mille Fleurs (French for “a thousand flowers”), also known as Prada House, might soon come crumbling down. This once-elegant Trinidad mansion is the third in a stretch of properties crafted in an array of eclectic architectural styles and built during the colonial period. Known as the Magnificent Seven, these grand residences border the western side of the Queen's Park Savannah in the capital, Port of Spain, and are a great attraction for locals and visitors alike.
Mille Fleurs, however, is in such a disastrous state — with rotting floors and a temporary galvanised roof — that it may very well be unsalvageable. Other historical buildings in urgent need of restoration in the country are the President’s House, Red House (the former seat of Parliament), Whitehall (traditionally used as the Office of the Prime Minister) and Stollmeyer’s Castle, which will collectively cost the government hundreds of millions of dollars, according to a recent report.
Since 2013, the previous People's Partnership administration promised to restore Mille Fleurs after citizens inquired about the dilapidated state of the early French Renaissance-esque abode. At the time, the Cabinet approved TT $700,000 (about US $110,000) for “emergency stabilization” of the building, according to former Minister of National Diversity and Social Integration, Clifton De Coteau. There was even an expected completion date of March 2015. Instead, Mille Fleurs was left to deteriorate further.
Journalist Judy Raymond, upon learning of the possibility that the home may be demolished, tweeted:
Tragic. Inexcusable. Why did so many govts wait so long? https://t.co/rS8EqFbqQg
— Judy Raymond (@heyjudeTT) February 18, 2016
According to a newspaper report, “project managers for the building said it may need to be completely reconstructed.” But Citizens for Conservation Trinidad and Tobago, an organisation that lobbies for the protection and preservation of the many aspects Trinidad and Tobago's architectural heritage, stated otherwise in an update posted on its Facebook page:
I wish to correct a statement made recently that Mille Fleurs may have to be demolished. The statement is extremely misguiding as Mille Fleurs’ demolition has never been discussed, neither is it considered warranted. The main structure is generally sound, but there may be parts of it that will need to be re-built.
Renowned builder George Brown constructed Mille Fleurs in 1904. It changed hands a meagre two or three times until, in 1979, the government purchased the property for approximately TT $1,000,000 (approximately US $154,000 by the current exchange rate). The building has not been occupied or renovated for over 20 years and a decision still hasn't been made on whether or not it will be demolished.
Despite the country going through a recession since late last year, Planning Minister Camille Robinson-Regis said that “the government was prepared to spend money to fix the historical properties” and criticised the former administration for neglecting their duty in this regard. However, some Facebook users found it unusual that the government has the money to fund this project. Chris Arshad Hosein left a comment asking:
I thought they say the treasury empty and that's why they can't utilize the Children's Hospitals or give laptops or scholarships? How they finding money to do all this? It's either they're lying about the treasury being empty or their priorities are way WAY off.
Colin Providence countered:
what a sad state of affairs. Here it is we have a brand new hospital that we cannot occupy and our historic buildings are left to dilapidate. So focused was the last gove[r]nment on buying our favour that they neglected our legacy.

author: Atiba Rogers


text:
Jamaicans Exhale as Opposition Wins Elections By Unprecedented Slim Majority · Global Voices
Emma Lewis

United Nations and UNDP representatives meet with the Jamaican Government and Diplomatic Corps at the Office of the Prime Minister, Jamaica House, Kingston, in 2011 — Andrew Holness (in dark suit and red tie, middle, front row) was, at the time, Prime Minister Designate. Photo by UNDP Jamaica, used under a CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 license.
After an intensely fought campaign, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) regained power in the Caribbean island nation in its 2016 general elections on February 25, wiping away a deficit of 21 seats in the 2011 elections and eking out an extraordinary one-seat victory.
On the morning of Tuesday, March 1, the Electoral Commission of Jamaica (ECJ) posted on Facebook:
Final Counting of Ballots for General Election 2016
[…]
The conclusion of the count for the constituency of St. Thomas Western on Monday, February 29 marked the final counting of ballots in all 63 constituencies for the 2016 General Election. Of the 63 seats contested, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) holds the majority with 32 and the Peoples National Party (PNP) the remaining 31.
Local observer mission Citizens’ Action for Free and Fair Elections (CAFFE) tweeted a graph posted on the Gleaner newspaper's diGJamaica site:
Election Turnout by Percentage: 1962-2016 via @diGJamaicahttps://t.co/EzmaYAkoIy pic.twitter.com/LaMOgpE7bV
— CAFFE Jamaica (@CAFFEJa) February 27, 2016
Jamaicans on social media succumbed to a fit of nerves, as the final count for Jamaica's general elections continued through last weekend. Climate change researcher Ayesha Constable urged:
Ja cannot afford any more civil unrest than we have already been having- let's not speak it into being #postelection2016 #speakpeace
— Ayesha Constable (@EshaSensei) February 28, 2016
On Monday morning, the Jamaica Gleaner tweeted:
JUST IN: Jamaica Defence Force issues “special call out” of all reserves for one week starting Monday. Story coming up.
— Jamaica Gleaner (@JamaicaGleaner) February 29, 2016
However, there have been no reports of unrest since the election results were announced.
There was some confusion and discussion on voting procedures (especially the marking of the ballot) as counting continued over the weekend, with unfounded rumors and speculation rising to a crescendo. In the midst of this, private sector leader Chris Zacca pointed out on Twitter:
Please all be factual and calm at this time see the facts below. The EOJ are the only ones who can state the facts https://t.co/9NrxXH3JQ6
— Chris Zacca (@chriszacca) February 28, 2016
As soon as the election results were confirmed, commentators and observers were quick to conduct post mortems on the People's National Party (PNP) loss and the factors behind it.
Newspaper columnist and social media commentator Michael Abrahams shared his observations, while regular Twitter user Kelly Katharin Ogilvie McIntosh blogged as a member of the so-called #ArticulateMinority:
I am eagerly anticipating the elector analysis that will be published in a few weeks as promised by the Electoral Office of Jamaica. I could be wrong, but I think that the record low voter turn out would have been worse had it not been for the youth vote and the #articulateminority. I think that naturally larger base of PNP supporters, unable to vote for the PNP in the face of their display of arrogance, opted to stay home, as they would rather die than vote for the JLP. My assumptions only. We'll see once the data is published.
The defeat of the PNP in this particular election signals a change that will forever shift the paradigm that defines politicking in Jamaica. And it's for the better methinks. It is a little harder to bamboozle the electorate, Guys. We have information. We spread information. WE determine what is important. WE tell you what we want to discuss. IGNORE US AT YOUR PERIL!
My own 20 year old daughter voted for the first time, and so did many of her friends. I scrolled her Twitter timeline with keen interest and many ‘Ohhhhhhs’ realising that our very own millennials had strong views about the PNP, JLP and voting.
A well-known PNP supporter and regular Twitter user wrote passionately on errors made during the campaign, concluding:
Right now Jamaica’s elite are already cackling with delight and rejoicing over the fact that they won’t have to rub shoulders with so many hurry come ups made rich by the PNP government. The party needs to get back to [late Prime Minister] Michael Manley’s principles and stop kissing up to people who will only smile in our faces and laugh behind our backs. We need some introspection as a party.
Looking ahead, energetic discussion continues in traditional and social media on the way forward for the new administration. Suggestions, recommendations, wishes and hopes abound, with the overall consensus being that the government of newly elected Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who was was sworn in March 3, must seek to do things differently to ensure the Jamaican public's trust.
Water management official Geoff Marshall tweeted:
@AndrewHolnessJM your administration needs to truly focus on environmental management. The JLP isn't known for this, and it needs to change.
— Geoff Marshall (@geoffmarsh) February 27, 2016
While influential broadcaster Emily Shields asked her Twitter followers (AH refers to Prime Minister designate Andrew Holness):
#ThingsAHmustDo #ThingsAHshouldNotDo #ThingsAHshouldDo
Your thoughts tweeps?
— Emily Shields (@emilymshields) February 27, 2016
Responses to her tweet ranged from the need for greater accountability and transparency to urgings to cut corruption and government waste and encourage economic growth and sustainable development. Shields herself emphasized the need for better communication — via social media — by all government members.
Governance issues were of particular concern. Media personality Dahlia Harris tweeted on a controversial issue:
I wonder if Mas Andrew going be the one to stop the witch hunt of public servants based on political leanings. #grownupgovernance
— Dahlia Harris (@DahliaHarris) March 1, 2016
Food journalist Jacqui Sinclair echoed many Jamaicans’ desire for the government to put the people first, but also advocated for greater citizen participation:
Jamaica first. Instead of whining about problems, make positive contributions and speak blessings on the country versus doom and gloom.
— Jacqui Sinclair (@JuicyChefFood) March 1, 2016
Last week, Holness himself sensed the impact of the JLP's social media campaign. He has been active on both Twitter and Facebook, with an Instagram feed and YouTube channel tab on his Facebook page. He tweeted just after the election:
To all my followers. I firmly believe we were able to change the national conversation via social media. Be proud. But don't be complacent!
— Andrew Holness (@AndrewHolnessJM) February 26, 2016
His administration has also used Twitter and Facebook to highlight preparations by the incoming government. Jamaicans will be keen to see if their social media efforts continue once the dust of political change settles.

author: Emma Lewis


text:
Live Twitter Chat Draws Attention to Lesotho’s Worst Drought in Recent History · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

A farmer showing a drought affected field in Lesotho. Photo used with permission from Send a Cow.
Send a Cow, a UK-based international development charity, organized a live Twitter chat, #askLesotho, on February 24, 2016, to discuss Lesotho‘s worst drought in recent history and the relative lack of media attention.
Lesotho, a landlocked kingdom completely surrounded by South Africa, declared a state of emergency last month. According local UN officials, as many as one in three Basotho may require food aid until next year.
World Food Programme's country director Mary Njoroge says the drought has forced people to adopt negative coping mechanisms, which include selling assets and even theft. The country experienced a downpour recently, leading to what experts call ‘green drought’. The rain deceptively greened Lesotho's valley where fields have no crops or vegetables.
The drought is caused by the El Niño weather pattern, which has left more than 100 million people in southern Africa, Asia and Latin America without food.
Over the hour-long Twitter chat, Send a Cow Lesotho’s country director Manthethe Monethi answered questions from various individuals and organisations.
There were some challenges as Manthethe experienced an electricity shortage and was forced to change location shortly before the chat took place and a slow Internet connection in Lesotho meant responses were delayed.
The importance of vegetable growth was a key issue in the conversation. Unlike maize, which usually takes five months from planting to harvest, vegetables grow very quickly.
Lumela ‘M'e Manthethe! If we help you to provide vegetable seeds for families now, when will they be ready to eat? #asklesotho
— Dolen Cymru (@DolenCymru) February 24, 2016
@DolenCymru #askLesotho Lumela ‘M'e! Vegetables are ready to eat within 5 weeks of planting
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016
The same user, Dolen Cymru. a non-profit linking Wales and Lesotho, asked about makeshift dams:
@SendaCowLesotho @DolenCymru #askLesotho Since more rains are predicted soon are the #SaCL beneficiaries already preparing “makeshift” dams?
— Lerato Ato Mokone (@AtoMokone) February 24, 2016
@AtoMokone @DolenCymru #askLesotho SACL supports farmers with skills to make ponds,dams,diversion furrows & roof water harvesting techniques
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 25, 2016
Jim Ackerman challenged Send a Cow by asking:
Is an organisation that uses livestock to support communities the best placed to help when there are food and water shortages? #askLesotho
— Jim Ackermann (@jamnam1982) February 24, 2016
@jamnam1982 #askLesotho Livestock production is equally affected because it depends on rangelands and water
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016
Joey Brownbill wanted to know if Send a Cow operates like the World Food Programme:
Are you providing food aid like @WFP? #asklesotho
— Joey Brownbill (@joeybrownbill) February 24, 2016
@joeybrownbill @WFP #askLesotho We do not provide food aid, we provide training and agricultural inputs
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016
He then wanted to know if that solution is practical:
@SendaCowLesotho @WFP but how will that help people now? #askLesotho
— Joey Brownbill (@joeybrownbill) February 24, 2016
@joeybrownbill @WFP #askLesotho Vegetable production cycle is short- 5 weeks, and availability is sustained through preservation techniques
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016
Help Age South Africa sent the following question:
#askLesotho Q from HelpAge SA: Is the current humanitarian response age and gender inclusive?
— Send a Cow (@SendaCow) February 24, 2016
@SendaCow #askLesotho The response is age and gender inclusive, targeting the most vulnerable, ie,elderly,OVCs,people with disabilities, etc
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016
Another user questioned the severity of the crisis, asking whether it was a ‘‘once-in-a-lifetime’’ or ‘‘once in a few years’’ crisis:
@MrsMoulogo @SendaCow #askLesotho I'd be interested to know how bad is the emergency in context-once in a lifetime, or once every few years?
— Waterloo Foundation (@Waterloo_TWF) February 24, 2016
@Waterloo_TWF @MrsMoulogo @SendaCow #askLesotho Lesotho is currently experiencing one of its worst draught in 30 years
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016
@Waterloo_TWF @SendaCowLesotho 1) The problem is getting worse, so we must tackle it with long-term solution, not just food aid. Families
— Send a Cow (@SendaCow) February 24, 2016
A Twitter user based in Wales, Cathy Moulogo, wanted to know the benefits of recent downpour:
Hi @SendaCow are the current rains making any improvement to the drought situation? #asklesotho
— Cathy Moulogo (@MrsMoulogo) February 24, 2016
@MrsMoulogo @SendaCow #askLesotho The current rains are going to make some improvement, esp on vegetable production & livestock
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016
She then wanted to know what can be done to alleviate hunger:
@SendaCowLesotho @SendaCow that's great news! Will there still be widespread hunger? What can we do about it? #asklesotho
— Cathy Moulogo (@MrsMoulogo) February 24, 2016
@MrsMoulogo @SendaCow #askLesotho We need to intensify vegetable production for consumption and income,and fodder production for livestock
— Manthethe Monethi (@SendaCowLesotho) February 24, 2016

author: Ndesanjo Macha


text:
Macedonians Attempt to Exorcise the Phantom Voters Haunting Their Country · Global Voices
Goran Rizaov

Photo by “We Deserve Better”. CC-BY.
Dozens of people stuck in the restroom, dozens more at a dinner table for four, 20 people sitting on a sofa. These scenes were part of a protest performance called “Macedonia provides housing” organized by the citizen initiative “We deserve better” in Skopje on February 15.
Its purpose was to bring to life how the government allegedly committed fraud to ensure the ruling right-wing VMRO-DPMNE won in elections of recent years. According to the current interior minister, his predecessor issued thousands of identity cards to ethnic Macedonians from neighboring Albania who then voted for VMRO-DPMNE. Many of those phantom voters were issued IDs listing the same address in the center of Skopje, and as a result up to 50 people were registered in a flat of 40 square meters.
The participants of the protest performance — called “Macedonia provides housing”, a parody of the government's campaign “Macedonia provides employment” — didn't hold back their criticism. They said the alleged electoral misdeeds insult the people's common sense and “trample on the feelings and dignity of the ethnic Macedonian's from Albania.”
For the citizen initiative “We deserve better,” this is just one more argument for not allowing early elections in Macedonia to be held until the Voters’ Registry is thoroughly cross-checked and cleaned up and all the necessary reforms are completed to ensure fair and free elections.
Photo by “We Deserve Better”. CC-BY.
At the end of the performance, the 50 residents of the flat “all together, hand in hand, went to vote”.
The “We deserve better” initiative prepared a short video juxtaposing footage of the performance with leaked recordings in which former Minister of Interior Gordana Jankuloska herself says how the election results were forged.
While the opposition, independent media and domestic election observers, such as NGO Civil, offered evidence of this type of fraud during the 2014 elections, the ruling party-controlled judiciary did not act upon the complaints. International observers did not push the matter further.
Further proof of electoral fraud was disclosed with the “political bombs” that the opposition published in early 2015. The leader of the opposition, Zoran Zaev, publicly revealed a select portion of the more than one million illegally wiretapped conversations of over 20,000 people in Macedonia.
In one of the leaked conversations, which were recorded by the Secret Service under the control of the then-prime minister's cousin, the then Minister of Interior Jankuloska talks to another member of the ruling party about manufacturing ID cards for phantom voters. Local VMRO-DPMNE officials had to supply addresses to “house” the fake voters:
ГЈ: Тие им се испечатени, луѓево си ги имаат. Има една ризична работа, ама таа ја знаевме ние и затоа инсистиравме да дадат повеќе адреси Комитетиве. Како што знаеш, имаме по 50 души у стан од 40 квадрати. Е сега, тоа е.
Jankuloska: They [ID cards] are printed, people already have them. There’s one tricky thing, but we knew about it and that’s why I insisted the committees give us more addresses. As you know, we have 50 people in an apartment of only 40 square meters. It is what it is.
The newly formed Special Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation, code-named Titanic, into the matter, looking into the claims of criminal conspiracy, electoral violations, violations of the freedom to vote, bribery and destruction of election materials against Jankuloska and former Minister of Transport and Communications Mile Janakieski, among others.
Special Prosecutor Katica Janeva said at the press conference announcing the investigation:
– Правдата ќе победи и покрај тешкотиите и заканите кои доаѓаат од одредни политички партии и конструираните кривични пријави против мене и моите соработници. Ме охрабрува поддршката од меѓународната заедница, а поддршка добивам и од правната струка. Ќе отворам постапки за 10 кривични предмети од областа на изборите, човековите права и слободи – рече Јанева на почетокот на прес-конференцијата.
Justice will prevail despite the difficulties and threats from certain political parties and constructed criminal charges against me and my associates. It has been encouraging to know the International Community support me, and the support also from the legal practice. We will be opening 10 criminal cases concerning elections, and human rights violations.
On March 3, the State Election Commission (SEC) published a new version of the web app that enables users to confirm their status in the Voters’ Registry. The application had been shut down for several weeks, due to security issues.
After the SEC reopened the application, citizens are able to check not only if they are within the registry, but to search according to name and address. Many immediately started identifying phantom voters that were listed as living at their own addresses or addresses of their friends. Some also discovered “dead souls” — relatives and acquaintances who had passed away years ago but still exist in the registry.
Според https://t.co/aZ0uNGmDGN на Максим Горки бр.11 влез 1, стан 2, живеат 66 души @grof_Zarkoff pic.twitter.com/hFa5F1ZWtX
— твитерко (@tweeterkoski) March 3, 2016
According to the Voters’ Registry, 66 persons live in one apartment on Maxim Gorki street, number 1/2 [in Skopje]
On Twitter, these civic efforts coalesced around the hashtag “All from the List” (#СеПоСписок), which in Macedonian is part of a phrase that's also associated with cursing.
While some raised privacy issues with the Voters’ Registry being open like this, for many the public interest in discovering criminal activity outweighed the risks. Citizens browsing through the lists used screenshots to document their findings.
Запознај ги комшиите-Нова кампања на граѓаните на Македонија #СеПоСписок
— Gina (@ginalynx) March 4, 2016
Get to know your neighbors — a new campaign by the citizens of Macedonia.
Just 2 min scrolling found a dead voter, she has been dead for 2 years… :)#Macedonia #сеПоСписок pic.twitter.com/trsqKHfndj
— Kaltrina Selimi (@TrinaSelimi) March 4, 2016
Од #СеПоСписок сфаќаме зошто не може да се вкрстат податоците. Сите контрадикторности на терен ќе може да се проверат малтене со попис.
— Dimitar (@DimeS10cent) March 4, 2016
Now you see why the institutions can't cross-reference the data. To solve all contradictions we need an effort at the level of a census.
These citizen actions received coverage by independent media and positive feedback by citizens.
засегнати граѓани за една вечер во #ИзбирачкиСписок #СеПоСписок направија увид како тоа народот одлучувал 10 години
— Girl With Mousy Hair (@kalakurnica) March 4, 2016
In one evening, the concerned citizens from “All from the List” provided insight into how the people decided during the last 10 years.
While the SEC encourages citizens to report any irregularities found in the Voters’ Registry, they do not provide an online mechanism for doing so yet. Citizens need to “submit proof” in person at the SEC offices. An easy-to-use online reporting option is crucial if the government wants to capitalize on the volunteer efforts of citizens combing the lists.

author: Goran Rizaov


text:
One Gambian Journalist’s Story of Persecution · Global Voices
Demba Kandeh

Gambian journalist Alaghie Jobe fled to neighbouring Senegal after being persecuted by his country's government. The Gambia has one of the worst human rights records in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Between 2013 and 2014 Gambian journalist Alhagie Jobe spent 18 months in detention, including one month in solitary confinement at The Gambia’s National Intelligence Agency (NIA). During his time in solitary, he was subjected to brutal interrogation. He was blindfolded, beaten, burned with cigarettes and suffocated. The NIA, notorious for illegal interrogation measures, handed Jobe over to state prosecutors, who slapped him with various charges, including sedition and incitement. At his first court appearance at the Kanifing Magistrates Court in March 2013, Alhagie was visibly pale and weak.
Alhagie’s arrest was connected to an article he allegedly falsified regarding a soldier who reportedly refused to participate in the execution of nine prison inmates in The Gambia in August 2012. The article was never published, but the damning piece was somehow obtained by the NIA, leading to Alaghie’s arrest.
Alaghie recalled how hard he’d worked on the article. “We got credible sources, facts and even interviewed the soldier himself directly from the US where he was seeking refuge after defying authority to take part in what he called an ‘ungodly and cruel’ execution,” he said. At the time of his arrest, Alaghie was deputy editor-in-chief of the pro-government newspaper, Daily Observer.
In May 2013, barely three months after the start of the trial, Alaghie’s case was transferred to the Special Criminal Court under the High Court of The Gambia, where he was prosecuted by the director of public prosecution. By that time the charges had been upgraded to seditious intention, seditious publication, possession of seditious publication, false information, making preparations to act with seditious intent, and reckless and negligent actions.
“The Gambia and Senegal are neighbours,” he said. “We have seen people sent back from Senegal to Gambia to face persecution. It is totally unsafe to live in Senegal when The Gambia is a stone’s throw and I know the government is doing all it can to make sure I am sent back home.”
On September 3, 2014, after an exhausting court battle, Alaghie was acquitted and discharged by the Court, cleared of all charges. To his relief and his family’s joy, he returned home, after spending exactly one year and six months in prison. But that freedom was shortlived. Alaghie had hardly taken his the first breaths of freedom when the director of public prosecution filed an appeal against his acquittal.
“Just a month after my release, which was a big blow to the government, the attorney general and Ministry of Justice, through the office of the director of public prosecution, filed an appeal at the Gambia Court of Appeal, insisting that I should not have walked away free, that I should and MUST go to jail,” Alaghie said.
After seeking legal advice he fled quickly to neighbouring Senegal, where he currently lives, along with his wife. “I left The Gambia for Senegal for safety, because if I were to stay in The Gambia I would have continued to face persecution,” Alaghie noted. As he had already endured 18 months in prison, he believed the state simply wanted to persecute him.
The Gambia is almost entirely surrounded by Senegal. Public domain.
Persecution of journalists and rights activists in The Gambia is pervasive. The government of President Yahya Jammeh has shown little or no respect for fundamental human rights in this tiny West African state. Since Jammeh took power in a bloodless coup in 1994, arbitrary arrests and detentions have increased, and security forces continue to harass and mistreat detainees, prisoners, opposition members, journalists, and ordinary civilians with impunity. The country is rated among the worst on the continent in terms of human rights violations, second only to Ethiopia and to war- and conflict-ravaged zones. Disappearances and mysterious killings have become increasingly common.
Human Rights Watch, among other rights groups, has documented numerous examples of mistreatment of journalists, opposition members and human rights activists. Security services and guerilla groups use off-book methods such intimidation, violence, arson attacks, forced disappearance, disappearance without trace and murder against people who speak out against those in power.
“Since Jammeh took power in a bloodless coup in 1994, arbitrary arrests and detentions have increased, and security forces continue to harass and mistreat detainees, prisoners, opposition members, journalists, and ordinary civilians with impunity.”
Human rights groups and local media reports have also documented the disappearance of over one hundred individuals, including former government employees. In 2005, Deyda Hydara, a prominent journalist, was gunned down; his murder remains unsolved. A year later, journalist Chief Ebrima Manneh, a close colleague of Alaghie’s, disappeared without a trace after being picked up by personnel from the notorious NIA. In December 2015, the European Union cancelled over 10 million euros in aid to The Gambia, citing human rights violations.
Alhagie worked for the Daily Observer newspaper from 2001 until his arrest in February 2013. He carried out several special assignments and represented the newspaper locally and internationally.
Even in Senegal, Alaghie Jobe lives in a constant state of fear. Relations between The Gambia and Senegal are not cosy. President Yahya Jammeh accuses Senegal of harbouring enemies and activists fleeing prosecution from his government. Senegal usually denies these allegations, but in 2015 it expelled a French-Gambian activist who has openly called for the overthrow of Jammeh. Activists also say that Gambian government operatives sometimes pursue escapees into Senegal. Since 2012 government operatives been implicated in the death of two prominent Gambian opposition activists in Senegal.
Alaghie is appealing for support to relocate out of Senegal. “The Gambia and Senegal are neighbours,” he said. “We have seen people sent back from Senegal to Gambia to face persecution. It is totally unsafe to live in Senegal when The Gambia is a stone’s throw and I know the government is doing all it can to make sure I am sent back home.”
Jobe has also appealed to UN and other human right bodies, media organisations, journalists and individuals concerned with promoting press freedom, freedom of expression and media rights to come to his aid.
“I have gone through different forms of torture,” he said. “Cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment, physical and psychological abuse and injury during my detention, and I cannot go through it again.”

author: Demba Kandeh


text:
The Japanese Opposition’s Mascot Has Reason to Fear for His Job · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

Captions, left to right: Logo change (for new party)? Merger aftermath: Minshu-kun in danger of layoff. What fate awaits him? “I just want to know!” How will he avoid being restructured?? Screencap from ANN official YouTube channel.
The proposal to merge two opposition parties in Japan could spell the end of Minshu-kun, the quirky mascot of the “Minshuto” (民主と), or the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which serves as Japan's largest opposition party in the Diet.
Despite being the public face of Japan's largest opposition party, Minshu-kun has tended to adopt a quirky and quite unique online persona:
ちょっとタクシーで移動しますね！ pic.twitter.com/pPgjFJvvPe
— 民主くん@民主党公認 (@minshu_kun) February 26, 2016
Just getting a ride in a cab!
While Minshu-kun's sex is “undetermined” (性別不明, seibetsu fumei), a male honorific suffix, kun (君), is part of its name. Minshu-kun. The mascot also uses boku, (僕) a male personal pronoun.
Minshu-kun was originally created to connect with youth following the decision in 2009 to lower Japan's voting age to 18.
The lowered voting age will go into effect in upcoming 2016 summer elections, and Minshu-kun spends much of his time visiting schools, encouraging youth to vote.
民主くん企画で3月23日(水)に女子中高生イベントをやりますよ～♪
ナウでヤングな街・原宿竹下通りで！
詳細はこちらで随時お知らせいたします！ pic.twitter.com/dO12qGOvmA
— 民主くん@民主党公認 (@minshu_kun) February 29, 2016
On March 23 (Wednesday) Minshu-kun is scheduled to appear at an event for female middle and high school students ～♪
Right now I'm hanging out on young, hip and happening Takeshita Dori in Harajuku!
Check back here for more details!
While the DPJ remains unpopular with just about every demographic in Japan, to a certain extent Minshu-kun has managed to appeal to a younger demographic.
For example, Minshu-kun re-tweeted:
民主党は嫌いだけど民主くんは嫌いになれないww https://t.co/0fpoUd8LZ0
— モヒモヒ大将@ワサラー団一軍 (@gnrjip) March 1, 2016
I dislike the DPJ but I wouldn't necessarily say I particularly dislike Minshu-kun.
The mascot gets his globular shape from the Democratic Party's logo, a rising sun accompanied by its reflection in the sea.
That sun, in fact, may be setting on the Democratic Party and Minshu-kun.
This summer Japan will hold elections for both the upper and lower houses of its bicameral national Diet.
The DPJ formed Japan's previous government before being toppled from power by Abe Shinzo and the Liberal Democratic Party in 2012.
In opposition, the party has experienced infighting and lacklustre public support, and faces potential oblivion in the summer 2016 elections.
The DPJ is planning to merge with Isshin no To (維新の党, the Japan Innovation Party), the second-largest opposition party in Japan's Diet by number of seats. The two parties will formally discuss the merger on March 27.
While there has been talk of the DPJ simply absorbing the much smaller Isshin no To, it's likely an entirely new party, with new branding will emerge before the summer elections.
If this happens, there are fears Minshu-kun, with his bold DPJ branding, will be “restructured” (リソトラ) or laid off, even after escaping the great Japanese mascot cull of 2014.
Back in February Minshu-kun's potential fate was noticed by RaMu, a “VIPPER” (2chan personality) and performance artist who is known for her amusing Vines, among other things.
今病院に来てるんだけど、待合室のテレビに私が出てきてめっちゃ焦ったよね\(´ω` )/
民主くん、リストラなの…？ pic.twitter.com/BUlxC1RvGj
— RaMu教祖【KissBeeZERO】 (@dpandaramu) February 26, 2016
I'm in the hospital waiting room and I'm totally floored… I'm on TV \(´ω` )/
…Minshu-kun is getting laid off?
Minshu-kun replied, displaying some of his odd sense of humor:
リストラ？ボクも分からないんです！
ちなみに今ボクも痛風の薬をもらいに病院に来ています。
偶然とはいえ運命的なものを感じます。 https://t.co/3VM1K01mnZ
— 民主くん@民主党公認 (@minshu_kun) February 26, 2016
Me, laid off? I don't have any idea of what's going on either!
By the way, I'm on my way to the hospital to get some medicine for this gout I have. It's no coincidence, it feels like fate (you and I will be at the hospital at the same time).
Some DPJ members appeared to be on the defensive about the decision to retire the mascot. Kuroiwa Takahiro tweeted:
今日は党本部で週刊誌等複数のマスコミからの取材対応。テーマは民主・維新合流、党名変更により「民主くん『失業危機へ』」。キャラとして公認した「民主党青年委員会」の委員長として「民主くん」の思いを代弁しました。 pic.twitter.com/WOMhUoHYFC
— 黒岩 たかひろ (@wEPb4v9hHFQb5yp) March 2, 2016
Today at party HQ we held a presser with the weekly tabloids and a number of media outlets. Although the theme of the discussion was supposed to be about the merger between the DPJ and Isshin no To, conversation quickly turned to whether or not Minshu-kun the mascot will get laid off.
I would say that I did recommend (in 2009) that Minshu-kun become the (public face) of the youth wing of the DPJ.
However, it seems Minshu-kun's days are indeed numbered.
In a recent interview, Okada Katsuya, current leader of the DPJ, said that Minshu-kun may be headed for the unemployment office.
党のマークも当然、変わる。民主くんがシェイプアップして新しいマークに似せるという話もあるが、なかなか難しいかなという感じだ。一説には、もう一回、非公認キャラクターとして生き残るという道もあるようだが、私はやっぱり、ハローワークを紹介して、ちゃんと職業訓練のための手当てもして、新たな働く場を見つけて欲しいなと思っている。
It's a no-brainer the party logo is going to change. While we could somehow “shape up” Minshu-kun so it's reflects the new branding, I get the feeling it's going to be pretty hard to do.
While he might live on as an unauthorized mascot, I think a better idea is to take him down to Hello Work [the Japanese government's network of employment centers], get him some retraining and introduce him to a new workplace.

author: Nevin Thompson


text:
There’s a Prison in Russia Making Viral YouTube Videos · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

Image: USFIN.OMSK / YouTube
When you think of Russian prisons, you don’t typically imagine musical flashmobs or amatuer filmmaking, but that’s precisely what’s on tap at the Number 7 state penitentiary in Omsk, where the prison’s particularly inventive deputy director, Andrei Zyuzko, is teaming up with inmates to produce viral YouTube videos.
One of the prison’s first hits on YouTube was a flashmob on May 9, 2015, in honor of Victory Day, when Russia celebrates the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany. In that video, which now has more than 9,000 views online, hundreds of inmates march in perfect formation, stopping to spell the words “70 [years] victory.”
The following month, the prison joined millions of Russians in remembering Viktor Tsoi, one of the USSR’s most beloved rock musicians, on what would have been his 53rd birthday. Prisoners again marched in formation, this time spelling the words “Tsoi lives.” A band made up of inmates also performs one of Tsoi’s songs. At one point in the video, everyone in formation kneels, revealing all the band members. Later, the inmates stand again, hiding the musicians behind the crowd. It’s a nice little piece of choreographing. This video got more than 3,500 hits.
The prison’s biggest success to date is a four-minute video styled after “Yeralash,” a Russian comedy TV show for children. (The sketch itself resembles something out of an old Benny Hill episode.) The Omsk penitentiary’s short movie features a prisoner stealthily attacking his fellow inmates with snowballs, until his three victims find him and exact retribution. By the time their revenge is complete, he is literally encased inside a snowman. This work of art has more than 241,100 views on YouTube.
Such popularity seems to have been a source of confidence, as the prison’s latest offering, released on March 2, 2016, is a 17-minute short film about three prisoners unearthing a magic genie inside a teapot, who grants them each one wish. The first two men request food (one gets meat dumplings and the other wishes for some sushi), while the third inmate performs a rap song, asking for a yacht and a pretty girl.
Andrei Zyuzko, who supervises the prison’s educational work with inmates, is the brains behind all these filmmaking endeavors, though the prisoners themselves have begun playing a more active role in the conceptual design process. (According to the prison’s press office, Zyuzko only helped write the script for the movie about the genie, with most of the work coming from the inmates who starred in the video.)
If the penitentiary’s own press releases are to be believed, Zyuzko may have achieved something quite wonderful in Omsk, engaging men languishing behind bars and motivating them to work together creatively. (They’re also learning potentially valuable filmmaking and video editing skills, should their “talent” for screenwriting prove unprofitable.)

author: Kevin Rothrock