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Rwanda: The unresolved FDLR issue · Global Voices
Elia Varela Serra

Last January the conflict in North Kivu shifted once again with the arrest of CNDP rebel group leader Laurent Nkunda in Rwanda and the entry of the Rwandan national army (RDF) into the DR Congo to root out the FDLR rebel group in joint operations with the national Congolese army (FARDC). The joint offensive was hailed as a success and as a powerful symbol of a new spirit of collaboration between Congo and Rwanda. As Rebecca Feeley of the Enough Said blog explains, the Congolese Minister of Defense, Charles Mwando Nsimba, even went so far as to say that the FDLR threat had been “neutralized.”
Refugees International, a Washington based advocacy organization specialized on refugee issues, released a report in March on the situation in the Kivus. Their conclusions about the joint RDF-FARDC military operation against the FDLR were:
The attempted military solution to the FDLR appears far from having succeeded in crippling the rebel group, despite the recent disarmament of over 400 combatants by MONUC. Instead, the operations led to serious consequences for the Congolese in North and South Kivu, including significant new displacements.
The blog Stop the War in North Kivu commented on the report:
Not many organizations say publicly that the joint military operation has not been a success. I agree 100% with their analysis.
Refugees International also makes the point on the importance of dialogue as the only path for a durable solution to the FDLR presence in the DRC. Eurac expressed the same opinion a few weeks ago. Military solutions to political problems are, in most of the cases, a recipe for disaster.
The FDLR is a militia formed by the defeated Hutu refugees in the DR Congo, that allegedly counts among its ranks some members of the Interahamwe that carried out the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. According to the Wikipedia, during the 1998-2003 war it received extensive backing from the Congolese government who used the FDLR as a proxy force against the foreign armies operating in the country, in particular the Rwandan Patriotic Army and Rwanda-backed Rally for Congolese Democracy. Following several days of talks with Congolese government representatives held in Rome, in March 2005 the FDLR announced that they were abandoning their armed struggle and returning to Rwanda as a political party. However, the Rwandan government stated that any returning genocidaires would face justice, most probably through the gacaca court system.
Mattew Hugo of the blog Why won't they just go home questions Rwanda's position regarding the FDLR:
Historically, the Rwandan government has sought to implicate the entirety of the FDLR in the genocide. In 2004, the International Crisis Group estimated that the number of genocidaires amongst the rebels was roughly ten percent, with the vast majority having been small children in 1994. However in 2008, the Rwandan government provided the Congolese government with a list of suspected FDLR genocidaires containing 6,974 names, coincidentally the common estimate for the total number of rebels.
Stop the War in North Kivu quotes an article written by Nicolás Dorronsoro for the IECAH (Instituto de Estudios sobre Conflictos y Accion Humanitaria) [Es], that explains how political negotiation with the FDLR is taboo in Rwanda (translation from Spanish by Stop the War in North Kivu):
Desde que la ofensiva diplomática de los Estados Unidos y el Reino Unido propiciara el acercamiento entre la RDC y Ruanda, el único discurso con respecto al FDLR ha sido el del abandono inmediato de las armas y la completa derrota militar. Nadie osa hablar de la posibilidad de una negociación, por limitada que sea, con este grupo. Esto resulta sorprendente si tenemos en cuenta que el país al que los integrantes del FDLR aspiran a volver adolece de un extraordinario déficit democrático.
El pasado 19 de marzo, la experta norteamericana Ruth Wedgwood afirmaba ante el Comité de Derechos Humanos de Naciones Unidas que, a día de hoy, formar un partido político en Ruanda parece virtualmente imposible. Wedgwood hizo una reflexión interesante: recordó que las facciones hutu responsables del genocidio habían sido capaces de fomentar la masacre precisamente porque habían alimentado el miedo de que la población hutu sería oprimida y marginada. Lamentablemente, y con independencia de su indudable desarrollo económico, ese temido escenario se asemeja a la realidad actual de Ruanda, según muchos expertos. Filip Reyntjens, catedrático de la universidad de Amberes y uno de los mayores expertos en la región de los Grandes Lagos, afirmaba recientemente que no sólo las últimas elecciones locales ruandesas fueron manipuladas, sino incluso el informe mismo de los observadores electorales de la UE, que las consideró como válidas. Dado este déficit democrático, organizaciones como el European Network for Central Africa (EURAC), han abogado por una negociación política con el FDLR. Sin embargo, la cuestión continúa siendo tabú.
Last March 19th, the American human rights expert Ruth Wedgwood affirmed at the UN Human Rights Comittee that forming a political party in Rwanda today seems virtually impossible. Wedgwood made an interesting reflection: she reminded that hutu factions responsible for the genocide had been capable of fostering the massacre because they had nourished the fear of hutu population being oppressed and marginalized. Unfortunately, and leaving aside the economic sucess Rwanda is undoubtedly experiencing, that feared scenario seem to be similar to actual Rwanda, according to many experts. Filip Reyntjens, Professor in the University of Antwerp and one of the most respected scholars in the Great Lakes region, recently affirmed that not only the last local elections in Rwanda were manipulated, but even the report of the EU electoral observers itself, which considered them as valid. Given this democratic deficit, organizations like the European Network for Central Africa (EURAC), have advocated for a political negotiation with the FDLR. However, this issue continues to be a taboo.
Congolese diaspora blogger Colored Opinions, quoted a former Force Commander of MONUC (UN peacekeeping in the DRC) that was also advocating for a political solution to the FDLR problem:
Former MONUC Force Commander, General Patrick Cammaert, was interviewed recently on dutch tv concerning the war in Congo. He said: “The problems have to be solved politicallly. That is true also concerning the genocidal hutus. President Kagame is strongly (involved) in that. The president of Rwanda sees the genocide-hutus as a threat to his country, I don't agree with that, I don't think that those genocide-hutus represent a threat to his country at all […]”
A young FDLR combatant wishing to demobilize speaking with Amani from South Kivu (picture by Steve Hege)
Matthew Hugo, who has worked in the Great Lakes region for a few years, illustrates the taboo that the FDLR issue is in Rwanda and the difficulties of the return and reintegration programs of FDLR combattants, with the story of former FDLR General Seraphin Bizimungu, known as Amani Amahoro, that he followed first-hand:
I first met Gen. Amani while I was conducting research on Rwandan refugees in 2005. He was the widely celebrated leader of an internal mutiny within the FDLR. Just five months prior, the FDLR’s political leadership surprisingly declared that they would unilaterally disarm and return en masse to Rwanda.
[…]
Amani emerged with the support of the Congolese government, and promised to lead the return movement despite the lack of security guarantees. In a press conference, he accused the group’s leadership of sabotaging the historic opportunity to remove themselves from the military equation of the region. The pretext of the rebel threat is what permitted the Rwandan government to continue to wage a proxy war against the Congo according to him.
By all accounts, including the Rwandan government itself, Amani was not suspected of any participation in the genocide and was widely considered a political moderate. During an interview I had with him, he claimed that fighting non-violently for political opening from within Rwanda was the only path to truly sustainable peace for the region.
[…] in December [2005] Amani fulfilled his promise and returned to Rwanda with over 150 loyal soldiers, one of the largest groups of ex-combatants since the inception of the UN’s demobilization and repatriation program (DDRRR). […]
Following his departure, Gen. Amani was rapidly transformed into the poster child of the UN’s sensitization efforts to promote future desertion amongst the FDLR. He was featured prominently in numerous pamphlets distributed to rebels throughout remote mountains and jungles as the quintessential example of how warmly Rwanda welcomed its brethren who chose to return home.
[…]
So compelling was Amani’s message that when I began working with DDRRR, I frequently put FDLR combatants in touch with him directly by Satellite phone from isolated areas of the Congolese jungle. His personal testimony was often enough to put to rest their fears of reprisals and incarcerations in Rwanda which were widely shared amongst the young rebels. Amani always sounded quite eager to respond to these calls and he often reiterated to the FDLR that real political change could only be achieved from within Rwanda.
And so compelling was Amani's message that, according to Matthew Hugo, Amani was featured in numerous DDRRR pamphlets distributed to rebels throughout remote mountains and jungles “as the quintessential example of how warmly Rwanda welcomed its brethren who chose to return home” and became “the poster child of the UN’s sensitization efforts to promote future desertion amongst the FDLR”. However, and in spite of the good example Amani set, genocide charges were brought against him in late 2008 and he was then summoned before the traditional Gacaca courts conducted by village elders. On January 22nd,  two days after the Rwandan army began its joint military operations against the FDLR in the eastern Congo, the Gacaca elders condemned Amani to life in prison.
Matthew Hugo concludes his story expressing frustration at the seemingly permanent stalemate on the FDLR issue:
Thanks to this strategy of associating all political opposition with the genocide, the RPF’s Ugandan clique has managed to systematically tighten their stranglehold over power in Kigali. Not only did informal EU electoral observer reports suggest that they might have won as much as 98% of the vote in recent local elections, but even the U.S.’s legal expert on the UN Human Rights Committee stated that it is “virtually impossible to set up a political party in Rwanda“.
Nevertheless, despite resounding support for peace processes with the ruthless rebel groups in the region like the LRA and the FNL, the mere notion of political dialogue between Rwanda and the FDLR remains utterly inconceivable.
The blog Mo’dernity, Mo’problems recently commented on an article written by the director of Human Rights Watch on the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide:
In memory of the Rwanda genocide, Ken Roth keeps up the quality of Human Rights Watch Rwanda analysis after Allison Des Forge’s passing and writes:
[…] “The best way to prevent another genocide is to insist that Kagame stop manipulating the last one”.
As memories of the genocide turn 15, it seems like Rwanda is facing a tumultuous media anniversary. Recent coverage of the anniversary have attacked the ways in which the current Rwandan administration abuses the genocide as a form of political repression and a justification of warmongering.
le blog aboumashimango [Fr], a Rwandese diaspora blogger, calls for an end to civil and political rights violations in Rwanda :
Le génocide des Tutsi et massacres des Hutus démocrates (opposants politiques, défenseurs des droits de l'homme, journalistes… et populations civiles innocentes) de 1994 trouvent leur racines dans l'histoire politico-ethnique du pays, la fracture sociale, l'angoisse et la terreur, ainsi que la mauvaise gestion politique de la question ethnique. A cela s'ajoute l'absence de l'espace démocratique et de la culture des droits de l'homme.
[…] En ces moments où nous commémorons le 15ème anniversaire de Génocide des Tutsi et massacres des Hutus démocrates, j'appelle à la conscience de la Communauté internationale de faire preuve de courage pour mettre fin à des situations des violations flagrantes des droits civils et politiques que connaît le Rwanda, notamment le droit d'avoir une justice équitable…
[…] At this moment when we commemorate the 15th anniversary of the genocide against the Tutsi and the massacres of democrat Hutu, I appeal at the conscience of the international community to show the courage to put an end to the blatant situations of civil and political rights violations happening in Rwanda, especially the right to a fair trial…

author: Elia Varela Serra


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Saudi Arabia: First Women-only Fashion Show Held · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Writing at Mideast Youth, Ahmad Ghashmary reports on Saudi Arabia's first fashion show, which was held for women only – and where cameras were not allowed.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Saudi Arabia: Temporary Marriages or Prostitution? · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“Saudi's temporary marriages are prostitution,” charges American blogger Sand Gets in my Eyes, who lives in Saudi Arabia. Click the above link, for more on the debate.


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Sri Lanka: Internet Strengthens Democracy · Global Voices
Rezwan

ICT for Peacebuilding (ICT4Peace) comments: “the Internet and web can and will be used for democracy and human progress and that more, not less, information in the hands of citizens strengthens democratic governance.”

author: Rezwan


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Trinidad & Tobago: Summit Thoughts  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

From Trinidad and Tobago, The Undisputed Truth claims that “even Fidel Castro thinks the Summit was too expensive”, while Barbados-based B.C. Pires is experiencing the “post-Summit blues”.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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UAE: Why are Iraqi Gays being Killed? · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Arab Lady, who blogs from the UAE, is angered with stories coming out of Iraq on the torture and murder of gays. “I’m not here to defend gays but I’m writing this post to express my disgust of those who appoint them selves as Gods on Earth to spread morality & cleanse people’s sins in the most cruel, inhumane, barbaric way,” she notes.  This post contains a photograph which is graphic in nature and which may not be suitable for all audiences.


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Australians divided by  Durban II boycott · Global Voices
Kevin Rennie

The decision by the Rudd government to boycott the United Nations Conference on Racism in Durban was a controversial one:
Australia remains undecided about whether it will attend a controversial United Nations conference, which begins in a fortnight.
There are fears the Durban Review Conference, to be held in Geneva from April 20-24, could become a repeat of the original South African event in 2001, which was marred by claims of anti-Semitism.
Govt not sure over UN Durban conference
The decision was only taken at the last minute:
AUSTRALIA will not take part in a controversial United Nations anti-racism conference in Geneva this week.
Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith said the Geneva meeting reaffirms the 2001 outcomes, singling out Israel and the Middle East.
“Regrettably, we cannot be confident that the review conference will not again be used as a platform to air offensive views, including anti-Semitic views,” Mr Smith said.
Australia to boycott UN anti-racism conference
Many Australian bloggers took the opposite view.
Duckpond argued:
Sometimes the truth needs to be told, and it can be unpleasant and discomforting. So was President Admadinejad doing that?
Ahmadinejad is not saying anything here in these extracts that is extraordinary. Anybody who even half follows events knows what he is saying is accurate. So why all the drama?
SPEAKING THE TRUTH
At group blog Larvatus Prodeo, Paul Norton explained his position on the Middle East:
I support Israel’s right to exist and a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict, and I am a critic of unbalanced, inflammatory and obsessive criticism of Israel. However, I am also critical of unbalanced, inflammatory and obsessive idealisation of Israel, of the kind that is rife in the polities of various Western countries including Australia and the United States.
He then addressed his concern about the boycotting countries:
One wonders how the countries participating in the Conference (including all of Africa, Russia, Asia (except for Israel), South and Central America and the Vatican) will interpret a boycott confined exclusively to the wealthy white men’s club. How might they respond to the fact that nations such as the US and Australia consider a purported slight on Israel’s good name to be of greater moment than many other issues on which agreement and cooperation is possible with countries of the global South and global East, and sufficient grounds to refuse to attend a forum to discuss such cooperation?
What if they held a conference on racism and all the whiteys stayed away?
Jason Soon, a supprter of the boycott,  began an open forum at catallaxyfiles:
… devoted solely to the recent UN talkfest which for once has made Kevin Rudd do the right thing and boycott. So fire away. A little fuel for the fire
here.
Open forum for UN lovers and haters
On the other hand Gary Sauer-Thompson at Public Opinion decried the Rudd government's lack of courage:
I wasn't surprised that Australia didn't have the courage to attend the UN conference on racism (known as the Durban review) and then debate the views of those it disagreed with, namely President Ahmadinejad's interpretation of Zionist history. They just stayed away, rather than making the arguments that need to be made against Ahmadinejad and his followers.
Zionism does need to be questioned because this form of nationalism rationalizes conquest and colonization as “redemption” of Jewish territory on behalf of the world’s Jews. It treats the Palestinians only as an obstacle and threat to its own purposes, not as people with the same rights as Jews and with legitimate claim to the land on which they were born.
at the UN
Dan Goldberg, national editor of the Australian Jewish News from 2002-2007, put the case against the Conference in the strongest terms at New Matilda.
The UN's conference against racism opened yesterday. But Dan Goldberg writes that the meeting is a sham which reminds him of some other low-points in the history of hate:
Remarkably, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was welcomed into the bosom of Europe at a conference intended to deal with racism. It's a perverse irony at best; an utter abomination at worst. And all this on April 20 — the anniversary of Hitler's birthday.
Unsurprisingly, the tyrant of Tehran launched his invective at the Jewish state, accusing it of being the “racist perpetrators of genocide”. The bulk of the Arab delegates applauded. The 23 representatives of the European Union walked out. On the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day, the United Nations, which has long been a bastion for Israel-bashing, hosted a dyed-in-the-wool Holocaust denier. Ahmadinejad didn't refer to the Holocaust by name, but left little doubt of his support for a second Holocaust against “the most cruel and repressive, racist regime in Palestine”.
Red-Letter Days For Racism
Author of the My Israel Question and The Blogging Revolution, Antony Loewenstein, is a well known and controversial  commentator on the Middle East and critic of Zionism.
As a Jew who writes extensively about Israel/Palestine, I have no desire for Iran to speak for me on human rights (and my recent book, The Blogging Revolution, details the woeful record of the Islamic Republic.) But the fierce resistence to even examine the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and its well documented recent abuses in Gaza is shameful. These are not actions of a civilised nation. It is the behaviour that we would condemn if done by a relatively unknown Third World nation, but Israel is seemingly untouchable.
Durban II, the how, why and who
A final word comes from the mass media. Tim Blair who blogs for Sydney’s Daily Telegraph made his opinion of Iran's President Ahmadinejad quite clear:
Civilisation declined to attend  the UN’s anti-Israel festival. Other representatives left once they realised what kind of atrocity they’d blundered into.
They can’t say they weren’t warned.
HATEFEST TURNS HATEFUL
The Middle East continues to divide Australians and the world.

author: Kevin Rennie


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Azerbaijan: Email correspondence with expelled student activist · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Thoughts on the Road says it has communicated with Parviz Azimov, a youth activist recently expelled from his university, via email. The blog says his former student intends to appeal and protest the decision to international bodies.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Bangladesh: Women Power · Global Voices
Rezwan

Pakistani blogger Marvi Sirmed visits Bangladesh and comments: “One thing that I could not miss in Dhaka was, women engaged with all aspects of life. Economic activity, intellectual discourse or arts, women are everywhere. Gender segregation practically does not exist. Music is a pet of every household.”


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Cuba, U.S.A.: What Next? · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“After a week in which President Obama announced new Cuba policy measures and discussed Cuba policy at the Trinidad summit,” The Cuban Triangle asks: “Where do things stand?”


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Ecuador: Animal Protection in Loja · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

The Ecuador Animal Protection was created in Loja to protect and defend animals from abuse and mistreatment writes Voces Lojanas [es].

author: Eduardo Avila


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Ecuador: Introducing the Presidential Candidates · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Inka Art [es] introduces the presidential candidates in the upcoming Ecuadorian elections.


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Guatemala: Collaborative Publishing of the Book TRANS 2.0 · Global Voices
Renata Avila

In celebration of World Book Day, Guatemalan author and blogger Julio Serrano [es] asked 50 of his friends and readers to publish different parts of his book TRANS 2.0 on their blogs.  This new publishing project brings together enthusiasts of literature from all over the world to participate in this open license initiative. The book's site [es], which still has a temporary design, contains links to all of the participating bloggers.
Serrano, who also directs another open book project called Libros Minimos [es], received collaboration from other well-known authors like Javier Payeras of El Intruso [es] and Denise P.P. of La Maleta [es].  Many of the bloggers included photographs or illustrations that they felt best complemented the text included on their sites.
Other fragments of the book can be found on blogs such as Notas Poco Rigurosas [es], which is hosting a poem called “The Center of America is a long asphalt road”, while Fe de Rata [es] shares with his readers “Marta Julia is the name of the Cascabel snake at the park” and is accompanied by a handmade drawing.  The blog Noticias para Dios [es] is hosting a poem about a taxicab and prefers to illustrate it using a photograph of a woman sleeping in a car.  Diario Paranoico [es] offers his space to publish “No, life is not this” adding music in the form of a Sui Generis video.
Photo from the public domain
Guatemalan bloggers, who participated in the project include  Utopía del Pensamiento [es], El Pepian [es], Brevediario [es], CinesobreTodo, Matilisguate [es], The Magical and Curious world of Lissy [es], La Filistea [es] and AcheAche [es].

author: Renata Avila


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India: India Bloggers Directory · Global Voices
Rezwan

Rajesh Lalwani informs that the first edition of the India Bloggers Directory, a pocket guide to Indian blogs, will be published soon. “The book will also have a select listing of Twitter users from India.”, he adds. If you are an Indian blogger, you can submit your details here.


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India: The Fake IPL Blogger · Global Voices
Rezwan

Arnab of Random Thoughts of a Demented Mind comments on the fake IPL blogger, who has created a lot more buzz in India than the original IPL (Indian Cricket Premier League) itself.


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Indian Elections ’09: Where The Shoe Pinches  · Global Voices
Aparna Ray

When Muntadhar al-Zaidi hurled his shoes at the then US President George Bush, little did he know that his method of getting a point across would soon become viral across continents.
In India too, the trend seems to have caught on. For indeed, the humble footwear has become the preferred weapon of choice among a section of Indians who wish to voice their resentment and be heard over the din of political platitudes being mouthed by leaders in the face of the Assembly Elections.
First, Jarnail Singh (photo here), a journalist, hurled one of his sneakers at the Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram. He was upset at the CBI giving a clean chit to Jagdish Tytler, one of the key accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. Tytler had by then already been nominated as the Congress candidate from North-East Delhi, a step that had angered the Sikh community that had been waiting for over 25years for some kind of closure.
Rajeev Chandrashekhar wrote in his blog:
Jarnail Singh and his shoe have woken us all from our slumber and reminded us of the crimes committed 25 years ago, in our Nations Capital against the Sikh community – at a time when there was no Television coverage and media as we know it today – a crime for which in Chidambaram’s words “not enough people have been punished”.
The shoe missed it's mark, but the protest registered. It triggered off a larger expression of anti-Congress sentiments among the Sikh populace, a sentiment that soon gained momentum. Finally, the Congress bowed to public pressure and withdrew the candidatures of Tytler and another similarly accused, Sajjan Kumar, in an attempt to pacify the community's anger.
Sharique wrote about this fall-out in his blog:
Thanks to Muntadar al-Zaidi, the citizen of this world have a new way to vent out their anger. Even though it came very late for George Bush, it came at an appropriate time for the Congress. Jarnail Singh’s act of throwing his Reebok shoes and the subsequent protest from the sikh community has forced the Congress to pull back the candidature of Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar.
However, the shoe did not stop there. Soon shoe-throwing incidents became common fare. Politicians and electoral candidates such as Navin Jindal and BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate, L. K. Advani, each received their share of shoe-ing.
Subhasis C, wrote in his blog:
Zaidi has inspired a new generation of Indians and has taught them how simple and benign shoes can be used against the State power.
[…]
Bear in mind that Indian political class’ culture, integrity, commitment is on the wane and worst victims are the millions of countrymen. They have hardly any right to speak against existent discriminations, exploitations, repressions, corruptions and harassments. What can they do except hurling shoes? Recently Congress MP Naveen Jindal and BJP’s projected prime ministerial candidate LK Advani had the taste of same in election meetings. It is said more are on the cards and the politicians are getting nervous witnessing this latest expression of fury. It may be some of protesters are efficient in targeting. What will happen then? Is the Indian mass getting more conscious?
That the act of shoe-throwing had become a symbol of people's expression of frustration with their political leaders was also reflect by Youth ki Awaaz, which said:
At press conferences and political campaigns, throwing shoe has emerged as a sign of being aware yet neglected.
However, discussions also veered towards the rights and wrongs of the political system and also of the action itself.
Speak India Blog opined:
Had Jarnail Singh or another frustrated individual gone the wrong way a bullet would have been in the place of Shoe. Is the current government converting humane people like Jarnail into frustrated individuals who are ready to resort to violence ? I think more than the government it is the polluted politics.
The answers to justice may not lie in throwing shoes but lies in coherent action and action(or initiative) has been taken by Jarnail Singh. Right or Wrong is up to you to decide.
Youth ki Awaaz had this to say:
Flinging shoes at known and senior politicians is certainly unethical and must be dealt with seriously. Being against someone or protesting is not bad, but the way the protest is carried out must be kept in mind. One must never cross the limits. Their are a number of ways through which we can address a person, but certainly not by throwing a shoe.
This act must be done away with.
Politicians have now become wary of the very people they are supposed to be representatives/leaders of. Fearing a shoe-attack, they are taking preventive measures at their meetings and rallies. According to Kamla Bhatt:
Bewildered politicians are scrambling to find effective solutions to protect themselves. According to various reports Indian politicians are seeking security measure to help them from these flying weapons of mass destruction dubbed as Shoegate by Indian media.
Perhaps, it is a wake-up call that the masses are no longer willing to be passive and detached but wish to be heard loud and clear. However, as this tweeter message points out,
Sudeshp: What's up (with) the shoe throwing in India??? People if you are so dissatisfied go out and vote for the right candidate in the elections.7:52 PM Apr 10th from web.

author: Aparna Ray


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Jamaica: Read a Book · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Jamaican litblogger Geoffrey Philp recognizes World Book and Copyright Day.


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Jamaica: Wasn’t Me · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Girl With a Purpose learns that as investigations are launched into the security breach at the Jamaican airport which resulted in a (now resolved) hostage situation, “the persons in charge of security at the airport (MBJ Airports Limited) are telling us – it wasn't them…”


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Japan: Green deal · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Martin J Frid blogs about Japan environment minister's plan of a “green deal” to to boost the economy and the environment.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Japan: Place to visit in Tokyo · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Mari Kanazawa recommends a number of touristic sites to visit in Tokyo.


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Jordan: Beyond Stereotypes · Global Voices
Mohammad Azraq

Last Thursday, I attended an event organised by the Danish Embassy in Jordan and hosted at Al-Hussein Cultural Centre in Amman. The event creatively tackled the issue of stereotypes between Denmark and the Arab world. It featured a variety of activities such as a stand-up comedy gig by Danish-Egyptian comedian Omar Marzouk, who showed the audience clips from a Danish puppet film about Muslims, and an Egyptian film called The Danish Experiment. The event also featured Danish director Georg Larsen and Lebanese film maker Ahmad Ghosien, who showed clips from their film “an Arab come to Town“, which sheds the light on the lives of Arab immigrants in neighbourhoods of Copenhagen, and talked about their experience producing it. The event then concluded with a panel discussion that featured the Danish Ambassador to Jordan H.E. Thomas F. Lund-Sørensen, blogger Mariam Abu- Adas from 7iberdotCom, Larsen and Ghosien, journalist Adam Hannestad from the Danish newspaper Politiken, and Marzouk. The panelists engaged in a question and answer session with the audience, and the issues raised ranged between how to get past stereotypes and the future of the relationship between Denmark and the Arab and Muslim worlds.
Courtesy of 7iberdotCom
Ambassador  Lund-Sørensen announced the event on 7iberdotCom:
Beyond Stereotypes – as the event is called – will put spotlight on stereotypes.
I suppose most of us would like to be looked upon as individuals and not as belonging to one big bulk or group of individuals that can be put into a box defined by one culture, one nationality, one linguistic group and/or one religion. I also suppose that most of us have tried at one point or the other to be stereotyped into one of these boxes and felt that we did not belong there at all – although we did share some similarities with the others in that same box?
In many ways we are lucky. Globalisation, satellite TV and the internet has given us opportunities that the majority of the generation before us had not even imagined would be possible. Opportunities not only to watch – but also an opportunity to interact.
These media are very powerful tools when it comes to creating stereotypes, transmitting them – or breaking them down. On Thursday 16th we are inviting you to meet a stand-up comedian, a journalist, a blogger, two filmmakers and an actor who will put spotlight on media and stereotypes. I hope that you will join us in a constructive reflection and debate over perceived stereotypes and how the media can help breaking down stereotypes – not building them up. To get the debate going I challenge you to start blogging about your thoughts right here and now and then we will follow up on the 16th.
Following the event, the Ambassador wrote some thoughts about the evening on his personal blog:
Thank you very much for your participation in the “Beyond Stereotype” event last night. It got nicely crowded and a little bit to warm in the theatre. The feedback I got in the lounge afterwards was very positive.
I didn’t get the possibility to comment on a sceptical remark from the audience about the lack of Danish negative stereotypes on the net. I do not claim scientific value to my research but I actually didn’t manage to find some really negative Danish stereotypes through Wiki or Google (only in English). Maybe it is because we are just a very small population of 5.5 million (like Jordan) or simply not interesting enough as an ethnic group. Even searching for Scandinavian negative stereotypes didn’t yield much. Didn’t look for specific Jordanian stereotypes – but I guess it will be difficult as well. These three links were the best I could find for Danish stereotypes.
What are Danes like?    Yahoo Answers     Yahoo Answers 2
Where can you watch the full version of “An Arab comes to Town”? I was told that it will be released on DVD soon – in the meantime the Embassy together with the Royal Film Commission are planning an open-air screening at the Film Commission late May early June – probably in connection with a workshop with the participation of the Directors Georg Larsen and Ahmad Ghosien. We will announce the screening in the same way as we did with the “Beyond Stereotype” – through the Royal Film Commission and 7iber.com
He also encouraged Jordanians to continue discussing the topic on different forums:
The discussion can continue – either on this site, on 7iber.com or on some of the other bloggers site as on Roba’s which have drawn a large number of comments (some aggressive) on Arab stereotyping. Unfortunately I didn’t notice this until today
On the same day of the event, blogger Roba Al-Assi, posted a video clip of a song by Lebanese Pop singer Jad Shwery, in which he tackles stereotypes about Arabs in his own way:
Roba wrote:
This song is the funniest […] ever.
Really funny. Wonder if it manages to break stereotypes anywhere.
I love the disclaimer in the beginning “Every individual that has participated in the following video is an Arab.” Wow.
The post spurred an interesting debate about how one should or should not tackle these stereotypes. Here are a few of the comments that were left on the post:
tarik
April 16, 2009 @ 2:15 pm
Ummmm…. interesting? (and you know what I mean when I say interesting, Roba)
So in his (sad) attempt to remove labels off Arabs, this dude has actually used every stereotype in the book and applied them to Arabs?!
So the west will accept us more when they see that we do botox and drugs?
And if being an Arab is such a big deal, then why isn’t he singing this in Arabic?
It’s so sad it’s hilarious!
Revelation
April 16, 2009 @ 3:27 pm
Bloody rocks! love it…. he made a point that dude…. i know quite few who live like that :) …. as the Americans say “Good Job!”… now need to wait for the arab – metallica =)
Cheers for sharin…
Ne3mat
April 16, 2009 @ 7:06 pm
Cute! But how come the Iranians do not resort to having TV orgies to prove their worth to the world? This video is another proof of westernized Arabs retardation. Instead of making our point through democracy and science and technology and culture, we show the world we we can get naked on camera. We have a totally screwed up priorities. NO wonder Arab youth seem to look up more and more to Iran. and that scares […] Arab regimes. Don’t get me wrong, I am not against this video, but separate from the other tracks, it proves we are not just a bunch of fanatics, but the rest are simply sleazy when we are not running around yelling Allahu Akbar [God is Great]. I really miss substance and moderation, something we seem to be awfully lacking.
Hareega
April 16, 2009 @ 5:13 pm
it’s not going to breal the popular sterotype that whoever is named JAd Shwairi is mentally retarded.
But the clip is well-made, and will be well-received

author: Mohammad Azraq


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Kazakhstan: Cadres decide everything · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

“Cadres decide everything” – this expression of Josef Stalin is widely quoted by the Kazakhstanis when they discuss new appointments in the government, which usually doesn't feature much new faces, coming down to “reshuffling” of the old “deck”. Megakhuimyak notes [ru]:
[Russia's president] Medvedev replaces governors and creates his own cadres reserve of 1,000 individuals. In Kazakhstan the “bench of reservists” for the governorship is positions is as short as for a dozen of people. The general reserve for higher positions hardly amounts to 50 or even less. Although it is becessary to change people, and do it quickly…
Neruad comments on a substandard HR decision [ru]:
I wonder what was the reaction of the politicians in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Vatican and UN, when [president] Nazarbayev appointed ambassador to these countries and subjects of international law as the director of external intelligence agency.
Alim-atenbek writes about a humanitarian crisis that took place this winter in the industrial town of Stepnogorsk in the northern Kazakhstan – for nearly a week, people there had been cut out of heating, water supply and suffered repeated electricity blackouts [ru]:
It is a pity to read such things about the once prosperous town. Instead of investing in reconstruction of the obsolete infrastructure, we had been building glazing skyscrapers in [the new capital of Kazakhstan] Astana, which are now standing empty. Seemingly, after the funancial crisis, the infrastructure crisis is looming – and, eventually, the political one.
Slavasay is indgnant at arbitrary interpretation of the Olympic regulations by the Kazakhstani authorities. The Asian Games, which were to be held in [the former capital] Almaty in 2011, are being partially moved to Astana. The possibility of reduction of sports program – and even full move of the Games to Astana – is being considered [ru]:
Most likely, the decision has been already made, and the decision is, frankly speaking, is a silly one. It was Almaty who had won the right to host the Games – and the Kazakh authorities’ decision does not only question the adequacy of the government in the eyes of the global sports community, but also hurts the residents of Almaty. Personally I would be very upset and definitely won't go to Astana to see the competitions.
Also posted on neweurasia.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Kosovo, Ukraine, Russia: Social Media and Politics · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Blogging Balkanistan writes that Kosovo’s PM Hashim Thaci is planning to join Facebook and that “several leading opposition party candidates already have accounts.” Petro's Jotter explores the Ukrainian political Twitter-sphere, here and here. Siberian Light explains how to connect with Twitter users interested in Russia. Window on Eurasia believes that “the impact of the Internet and its various permutations, such as Facebook and Twitter, on the country is very much a matter of dispute”: “[…] the Internet tends to fragment populations by allowing individuals to get only information that reinforces their own ideas […].”

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Kuwait: Blackberry Lunches, Arab Sex Talk and Election Responsibility Plea · Global Voices
Amer Al-Hilal

From the censorship of video games to discussions about Kuwait's upcoming parliamentary elections on May 16, the Kuwaiti blogosphere offers a mixed bag this week.
Kuwait's Ministry of Information’s censorship is also extending to video games now, according to Mark’s Ministry of Video Games post from 248.am:
“I just found out that there are three people (2 guys 1 girl) at the ministry who’s job is to test video games all day. They play every game that needs to be brought into Kuwait to make sure they don’t contain anything illegal like nudity”.
The upcoming May 16 Kuwaiti elections are on everyone's mind as well, and Aggz The Agressor makes an impassioned plea for collective responsibility in a post entitled “A Vote For Responsibility” at Hilaliya:
Vote wisely. It's not just about improving government services; it's ensuring that these services continue to survive after the economy shrinks from complete oil dependence in sixty or seventy years time; according to recent estimates (some reports claim a maximum of forty years). I have a 2 year old daughter, by the time she's a mother, her children will face Kuwait's hardest economic situation ever-a country without oil to fuel the state's expenditures and services. In other words, what I as a parent decide today will affect my grandchildren's future wellbeing. By selecting the right MP, we as voters set the standards for a better future, it's not about voting for someone who would be able to help me grab a government-built house quicker than the rest, or someone who would be able to process my papers with his influence or some other short-term personal gain.
Moving on to technology with Z District’s Marzouq; in a post entitled ‘The Blackberry Lunch’ talks about how efficient and addictive the Blackberry’s BBM chat service and how archaic SMS’s are compared to it.
“BBM group chat – this is damn addicting and you can notice others who are addicted to it. The one time Zains’ blackberry service went down, I was really really annoyed that I had to use sms to communicate with people, it felt so archaic and slow in comparison with BBM which gives you answer right away, and it so damn satisfying. I even get annoyed with those that don’t answer right away or are too slow to type. I think that BBM is an excellent feature, but sometimes you just have to put it down and enjoy what ever you are doing.”
Eshda3wa in a post called ‘Sex Talk’ criticizes Arab women for talking openly about sex in public places or amongst each other.
“I'm sure all of you noticed, Arab women love talking about sex. Once you’re married, or they deem you old enough, there are no boundaries to what they say in front of you. I HATE that. Sometimes even women you barely know will start talking about their sex life and all I wanna say is what the freaky deaky F is wrong with you. For example, a few days ago while at work, I was having my morning coffee and talking with one of the nurses about laser eye surgery. I always wear my glasses. She wears contacts, and apparently is blind as a bat without them. Then she goes on to say she has to wear them even during sex. Because if she can’t see her husband she can never be satisfied, and it takes her way too long to reach a climax. MY GOD WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE. Did i need to know that? Did I?”
Lastly, LOFT965 talks about Arab feminism and how it features “a correlation between a culture’s treatment of women and its own brand of linguistics” but that it was time now to be more politically correct and remove gender specific words from our language.
LOFT965 also posts the following video from ‘The Hariri Foundation‘ concerning the ‘Women Empowerment Program':
“This has prevailed on for way too far and even as the Arabic language is one of the most eloquent languages in the world there seems to be no way around using gender non-specific words. It’s time we removed gender from the vocabulary. That’s the only way to progress. You know, gender is an illusion”.

author: Amer Al-Hilal


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Lebanon: Pervert Online  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Lebanese blogger +961 takes issue with a photographer's work on photography site flickr and shares his views in this post.


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Maldives: The Benefits Of Not Joining ILO · Global Voices
Rezwan

Abdullah Waheed explains why Maldives did not join ILO all these years.


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Mexico: Zona Maco Art Fair · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Zona Maco is Mexico City's annual art fair begins this week and Daniel Hernandez of Intersections has options for the various activities taking place.


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Moldova: If Voronin Had A Twitter · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

If Vladimir Voronin, Moldova's president, had a Twitter account… – by Cezar Maroti: “[…] Change Moldova @Voronin I'm glad u read my tweet. Why don't you see that people don't want you? You should retire now, before you cause more damage! […]”


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Nicaragua: Protesting Flor de Caña Rum For Poor Working Conditions · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Groups are protesting the Pellas company, which produces the Flor de Caña rum in Nicaragua because of the health problems reported by its workers said to have been caused by the pesticides used. Barricada [es] posts videos of some of these protest and speeches by some of the movement's leaders.


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Russia: Kadyrov’s “Victories” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Window on Eurasia comments on the end of counter-terrorism operation in Chechnya and writes that no Chechens will be drafted into the Russian army this year.


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Russia, Turkey: Circassian Diaspora · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Window on Eurasia writes about the Circassian diaspora in Turkey and Russo-Turkish relations.


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South Africa: ANC might lose two thirds majority · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Will ANC lose its two thirds majority in South Africa? : South Africans are headings to the polls this wednesday, in elections that the ruling African National Congress is expected to win in a landslide. Polls indicate that the ANC might lose its two-thirds parliamentary majority.

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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South Africa: Traumatic voting experience · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Read Khaya's traumatic voting experience in South Africa: I walk into the voting station and a surge of emotion overcomes me, maybe it’s adrenaline or my mind is beginning to realise what I’m about to do, I don’t know, I’m not a shrink.


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Sri Lanka: An Appeal To The International Community · Global Voices
Rezwan

Indi.ca criticizes the international media coverage of the civil war in Sri Lanka: “the ‘International Community’ and international media are far too quick to offer solutions without looking at the situation.” The blogger opines that “the best thing the international community could do is call on the LTTE to surrender and lay down it’s arms.”


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Trinidad & Tobago: Film on Calypso Rose  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

de cooler : soca news blogs about a new documentary on the life of legendary Trinbagonian singer, Calypso Rose.


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Trinidad & Tobago: Solo Signature  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Trinidadian blogger B.C. Pires says the real reason that the signing ceremony for the recently-concluded Summit of the Americas was important “was to justify the scandalous costs of the Chinese-built Great House…a pity our Big Cheese signed alone; makes that whole firetrucking International Important Monkeys In Jackets Liming Spot seem like a complete waste of time and money”; The Undisputed Truth adds: “I told you so Trinidad.”


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Barbados: Waiting on the Verdict · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

AfriKa CRY BLOOD is very interested in the outcome of the inquest into the death of Barbadian I’Akobi Maloney – the verdict will be given today.


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Belarus: LiveJournal Blogosphere · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Andrei Khrapavitski writes about the Belarusian LiveJournal blogosphere: “Do you know that the Belarusian population of Livejournal is bigger than that of a mid-sized regional town? Oh, yeah, there are MANY of us out there. And we do like to argue. Flipping through my Livejournal friends’ feed is so much akin to following news from the trenches.”


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Bolivia: Popular Sayings in Aymara Language · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Nancy Condori of El Chairo [es] provides examples of popular sayings in the Aymara language.


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China: Plurk is blocked · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Erick Schonfeld from Techcrunch reported that plurk has been blocked in China. The question followed is will twitter be the next in the ban list?


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Cuba: Female Political Prisoner Released  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense reports that “perhaps the best known female political prisoner in Cuba” has been released.


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Guyana: Minor Charged  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Guyanese bloggers Imran Khan and Live in Guyana take notice of a case in which a minor allegedly stabbed and killed her “stepfather”.


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Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago: Summit Summary  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

GuyToons, a Guyanese cartoon blog, posts a series of funnies on the recently-concluded Summit of the Americas, while Trinbago Forever waits to see what benefits will be derived from the Summit and Mauvais Langue adds: “Instead of wasteful spending, use the money wisely and spend it to fight crime.”


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India elections’09: Does it really matter whom we vote for? · Global Voices
Aparna Ray

Ruchi Gupta at Bourgeois Inspirations wonders, if, in the day and age of coalition politics it really matters which party one votes for. According to her: “Our political parties are differentiated by their marketing and vote-garnering strategies, and not their development policies.”


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India: Why Recycle When You Can Precycle? · Global Voices
Rezwan

India Climate Solution blog presents a new idea: “They have coined a word ‘Precycle’ to promote simple lifestyle based on refusal to buy any time that you can do without. Why buy a packaged grocery and then throw away the packaging material while you could perhaps go in for unpacked fresh ones?”


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Indian Elections 2009: Reading The Digital Tea Leaves on ‘Who Will Win?’ · Global Voices
Kamla Bhatt

Election commentary in Marine Drive, Mumbai. Image by Dannybirchall and used under a Creative Commons License
Now that the 15th general elections are underway in India, the big question in every body’s mind is who is going to win? Will one party take it all or will there be no clear winner, which means a coalition government or a political patchwork quilt at the center?
To form the next government, either one party or a coalition of parties must prove they hold a majority in the Lok Sabha (Lower House) of the Indian Parliament. There are 543 seats to the Lok Sabha with thousands of candidates fighting to win the seat from literally over a thousand different political parties. Here is a snapshot of the number of seats in some of the key states. The  Northern state of Uttar Pradesh has the largest number of seats: 80. Andhra Pradesh and Bihar are next with 42 and 40 seats, while Tamil Nadu has 39 seats, Gujarat has 26 seats, Orissa has 21 seats and Kerala has 20 seats.
The results of the elections are expected to be announced by May 16th and a new government will be formed by June 2nd, 2009. Prior to the elections it seemed that the race would be between the ruling Congress Party and it coalition and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that was ousted in the 2004 general elections. However, psephologists, analysts, observers and digital tea readers have been left scratching their heads with some recent developments. Oh, and let us not forget the astrologers.
Prior to the start of the election this was the broad thinking about the outcome: that either the Congress or the BJP will win the elections with support from various regional parties including the Third Front (yes, yes, I know the Third Front, esp the Communist elements have repeatedly said they will not go with Congress or BJP. But, never say never in politics and that is why the phrase politics makes strange bedfellows). The thinking was that the chances of a Third Front victory was a remote possibility with perhaps Mayawati as the candidate for Prime Minister. But, it seems that broad thinking on the election outcome will have to be tweaked. Analysts and various media reports say at this point it is anybody’s guess which party or parties are going to win and form a new coalition government. I guess one thing is certain: it will be a coalition government, but will be the mix of parties is still an unknown element.
Here are some reasons why analysts are revising or hedging their bets on the outcome of this general election in India.
The rise of regional parties: It appears that neither the Congress (and it allies) nor the BJP (and its allies) will win with a clear majority. There are over 1000 parties contesting the general elections in India, and a handful of these regional parties will play a key role in the formation of the next new government in early June. For the past 20 years the trend has been some sort of a coalition government at the center. The interesting trend to note is the the number of coalition partners required to form the government at the center has grown in number (increasing fragmentation) over the years and that clearly underscores the rise and importance of regional political parties.
Since the 1980s there has been a steady proliferation of regional parties in India, and they have come to play a key role at the Federal level. Along with the rise of the regional parties there was also devolvement of power from the center to the state governments. Mrs. Indira Gandhi was perhaps the last Prime Minister of India who wielded an iron fist when it came to center-state relationships. (Note: approx 40-45 percent of India’s current population was born after the brutal assassination of Mrs. Gandhi in 1984)
In the 2004 general elections in India there were no clear winners and the Congress hastily cobbled together an unwieldy coalition of different parties, including the Left party left by comrade Prakash Karat of Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI (M).
And in this general elections the musical chairs and constantly shifting alliances between various regional parties means that many of the key regional parties are hedging their bets and want to play it by ear. Take the case of Orissa’s Chief Minister Navin Patnaik. According to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ):
“the Biju Janata Dal, broke off an 11-year partnership with the BJP, contesting the state’s 21 seats on its own for the first time since Mr. Patnaik created the party in 1998…(he) has signaled that while he’s open to other options, he won’t throw his support behind either Congress or the BJP.”
Or, take the case of Andhra Pradesh as WSJ points out, “where the Congress alliance with the local parties collapsed and it went to the polls alone in this Southern State that has 42 seats.”
The 2 states to watch out will be Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh (also Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka) BJP’s Narendra Modi has been Gujarat’s Chief Minister since 2001 and has a fairly stronghold there because of the economic development of the state. BJP’s LK Advani is contesting from Gujarat. Voters generally vote with their pocket book and that just be the case in Gujarat in this election although there could be an erosion in BJP’s influence in the state. For instance, Mallika Sarabhai is running against LK Advani in Gujarat and her campaign style and the issues that is raising is vastly different from Modi/Advani platform. She is targeting the youth and women voters, two important voting blocs in this election.
The second state to watch out for is Uttar Pradesh, which is a battle ground state with all the major and regional parties duking it out. Mayawati of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) made a triumphant return as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 2007 by her skillful social and political engineering. Mayawati harbors strong ambitions to become the next Prime Minister of India and has flirted with the newly formed Third Front without having officially joined them.
BSP’s main opposition is Mulayam Singh’s Samajwadi Party that counts Bollywood actors Jaya Bachchan and Sanjay Dutt as its supporters. Singh is part of a loose conglomeration of regional political parties called The Fourth Front that includes the South Indian-actor turned politician Chiranjeevi from Andhra Pradesh. Then there is the Congress Party’s quest to regain the state that is spearheaded by Rahul Gandhi. Uttar Pradesh has been the traditional stomping ground for the Gandhi family starting with Allahabad and then Amethi. And finally there is the BJP, which has a fair degree of hold in the state but all that may have been eroded by the Varun Gandhi episode in Pilibhit.
In both Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh religion and caste play a strong role in the political arena.
Political Campaign 2.0 – Image by Flickr user baxiabhishek and used under a Creative Commons License
The rise of independents: In this year’s general elections there is an interesting new trend: the rise of the independent candidates who are fighting the elections. There is Meera Sanyal who is fighting from South Mumbai, Captain CK Gopinath from South Bangalore and Mallika Sarabhai from Gandhinagar in Gujarat. Both Sanyal and Capt Gopinath have a strong business background and are fighting the election on local issues. Sanyal is the head of ABN Amro, while Capt Gopinath was a co-founder of Deccan Airlines, a no-frills aviation company that was acquired by Vijay Mallaya’s Kingfisher. Both candidates are using a combination of old and new media to reach out to their voter base and appear to have succeeded in mobilizing their voter base. It will be interesting to see the outcome for both these elections. The more interesting thing to watch out for is whether more independent candidates will contest the election at a future date. Could it be that middle-class professionals, who have traditionally stayed away from politics might finally step in and start contesting the elections?
Youth and Women Voters: One of the fascinating thing about this general election in India is the various ways in which you slice and dice the numbers. There are over 714 million voters with about 25 percent of them under the age of 35 year. Roughly half the voters are women. The two blocs to watch out for is the youth and women voters. How will they vote? Will they vote based on issues or pocketbook? Do they have enduring party loyalties like some of the older voters might have? How these two groups vote might yield interesting result.
I don’t think many of the political leaders have a crystal clear idea of what might appeal to the younger generation, who grew up in a very different economic, political and social framework. This is a generation that has a strong sense of the culture of information technology. This will perhaps be the first election where the beginnings of what makes the next generation of voters tick emerges. India is one of the youngest countries in the world where 60 percent of the population is under the age of 35 years and they are the ones who are going to shape the future of the country.
There are lots of other variables that could influence the outcome of this general elections in India. Yes, while it seems that there may be no clear winner in this election it is also important to remember that there is almost a month left before the elections conclude. And a lot could happen in a month.
Who will win in this Indian election is the $64 billion question. Could comrade Prakash Karat become the next PM? Or, will it be LK Advani? Is it conceivable that Mayawati might become the default PM? Or, could Manmohan Singh make a comeback? Or, is there a political dark horse lurking in the background?
What is important is that India needs a stable and secular government at the center, especially given the recent developments in Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan. Moving forward what India needs is a government that will focus on stability and economic growth and this is something that many savvy Indian voters are acutely aware of and hopefully each one of them realizes that their vote can make a difference.

author: Kamla Bhatt


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Iran: Ahmadinejad and his speech  · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Kamangir analysed [fa] President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's speech in Sharyar in south western part of Tehran province.The blogger says only eight percent of Ahmadinejad's speech was about Sharyar and 60 percent about talked about Islamic government and morality.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Iran: Israeli Oranges surprised people  · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Several news sites and blogs reported that Israeli oranges in Tehran's shops made many people surprised. Ilna, a semi official news agency, reported [fa] the Iranian authorities will stop the distribution of these oranges.


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Japan: Petition for Tsuyoshi Kusanagi · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Blogger akinori-i is asking people to sign an online petition that calls for tolerance from the media and the government for SMAP member Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, following his arrest for drunken nudity.

author: Tomomi Sasaki


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Korea: Things that might surprise you in North America · Global Voices
Hyejin Kim

A netizen shows an interesting post about 22 things that  surprise you while you travel America. It is fun to see how things are natural in a place could be  observed as interesting by others.
1. 하이웨이 차선
￼위 사진의 차선의 힌선과 흰선이 연결되는 중간을 자세히 보시면(빨강 화살표) 볼록한 징 같은것이 박혀있죠..[…] 첨에..전 이거 뭐야~ 싶었는데…현지인 왈 “그거 졸음 운전할때 정말 좋아요… 차선을 밟으면…다다다다다다다…소리가 나니까..잠이 확깨죠.”그 말 듣고보니…놀라왔습니다. 비용도 많이 드는 작업이라고 하는데, 자동차 문화 선진국답단 생각이 많이 들더군요.
2. 한국산 차
공항에서 내려..렌트하고 이동할때, 맨처음 방문한 방문자라면, 고속도로를 달리면서 종종 눈에보이는 한국차들에 깜짝 놀라고, 그렇게 반가울 수가 없습니다. 제경우는 10년도 넘었지만.. 요즘에는 더 많이 보이겠지요? 하지만…대부분 일본차들이 점령을 하고 있습니다. 요즘 미국 자동차 업계가 타격이니 만큼, 판도는 어케되었는지 모르겠지만, 여전히 일본차가 압도적일겁니다.
3. 쌍둥이 오토바이
[…]한차선 안에서, 옆에 나란하게 붙어 달리는경우는 상당히 놀랄법한 모습입니다.
4. 모터싸이클 그룹 – 히피?
ㅎㅎ…모터사이클 그룹들을 간혹 장거리 여행을 하다보면..만나게 됩니다. 왠지..영화속에서 섬찟햇던 이미지들이 겹쳐져서.. 일순간 놀래고, 긴장을 하지만.. 그렇게 위험하거나 그렇진 않더군요.[…]
5. 히치 하이킹
이 나라는…차가 없으면 기본적인 생활을 못합니다. 그래서 그런지는 몰라도…고속도로에 가끔…국도에는 꽤 자주..히치하이커들이 눈에 띕니다. 간혹 정차하고 있으면.. 다가와서 문을 쿵쿵 치기도 하죠. 전 첨에 깜짝놀래서 안열어줬습니다..ㅋㅋ 실제 첨 겪으면..좀 당혹스럽기도 합니다.
현지 친구들에게 물어보면… “잘 안태웠다” 라고 말해주는 사람들이 의외로 많습니다. 이것도 한국에서는 거의 볼수 없는 장면같습니다.
6. 곰과 노루
요즘 포스트들을 통해..로드킬 포스트를 종종 보게됩니다. 한번은 포스트를 보던중…지나가는 동물을 그냥 치고 가야한다..아니다..조심을 더 해야한다..갑론을박하더군요.갑작스런 출현에서 사고가 날경우라면..핸들 함부러 꺾다가..자기가 위험해질 수도 있지만.. 천천히 주의운전하는게 맞겠죠. 미국의 경우…동물출현이 빈번한곳에는..동물 출현 표지판이 보입니다. 저도 킹스캐년 가는동안 노루를 본적 있는데…놀라서, 눈을 의심할 정도로 큰 놈이더군요..
현지인들이 말하길…”속도안줄이고 그냥 달리다가…노루나 곰이랑 부딪히면…차가 반파날 정도”라고 합니다. 애초에 저런 표시보이면..좀 신경쓰고 달려야지..안그러면..렌트카 박살낼수 있습니다.
7. 구름만 끼면 헤드라이트
위의 사진은 어느정도 비가온 모습입니다.위의 경우처럼…약간만 비가와도…이친구들은 모든차들이 거의 약속이라도 한듯 라이트를 다 켭니다. 뿐만아니라, 비는 안오는데, 구름속에 해가 들어가서 약간 어두워 지면…동시에 불들을 켭니다. 처음에 이 모습보고…전쟁났나? 싶어서 놀랜 기억이 있습니다.
8. 휴대폰
핸드폰 전자파의 위험성이 경고된 이후로, 요즘은 TV에서도 종종 확인되는 모습입니다. 사진처럼 받을때는 귀에서 멀리 떼고…. 말할때는 핸폰을 보면서 말하죠. 좌우간 얘네들은 건강에 뭐가 해가된다 싶으면..놀라울 정도로 철저합니다.[…]
9. 키스하는 여인
저는 비교적 얌전하다고 하는 캘리포니아 에서도 이와 유사한 모습을 자주 목격했습니다. 미수다인가? 거기서…외국여자애들이 한국에 오면.. 우리나라 여자들끼리 화장실 같이가고, 손잡고 다니고..팔짱끼고 다니는 사람들이 너무 많아서 깜짝 놀란다고 하지요. 하지만..우리네는 문화자체가 프랜쉽이니까..걍 넘어갑니다만..미국에서 아주 지척에서 이런모습 보면..조금..~움찔합니다.[…]
10. 술안주
대충 알려진 사실이죠..그런데 막상 술한잔 하러 가서..안주 없으면..놀라지 않을수가 없습니다. ㅋㅋ안주가 없어서 그런것은 아니겠지만..얘네들은..평일 거의 술약속 안하고 땡하고 끝나면 다들 고고~집입니다.
11. 여자 담배
[…]우리나라도 여자분들 담배피는거..요즘 별로 뭐라 안합니다만,하지만,..회사 정문앞이나..사람많은 곳에서 대놓고 담배피는 씩씩한 분들이 아직은 많지 않죠.
12. 금요일 저녁 자율 회사파티
이건 놀랍기도 했고…부럽기도 했던 내용인데.. 금요일 저녁..즉 주말시작 저녁에..회사에서 다과 파티를 항상합니다. 안하는 회사도 있겠지만… 좀 크다 싶은 회사들은 어김없이 다 합니다.한주일 열심히 일했으니 드시고 놀다 가세요…뭐 이런개념으로 준비를 하는데.. 음식물들 내용이…맥주를 비롯해서…술집에서는 안나오는 수많은 안주들이 깜짝 놀랄만큼, 위의 사진들처럼 제공됩니다.대신 얘네들은…회식문화가 없죠..ㅋㅋ
13. 바람만 불면 가죽코트
캘리포니아는…건조하고..1년열두달..날씨가 상당히 좋고..같은 4계절이 있는 여타의 나라에 비해 훨 따뜻한 곳인데, 간혹…계절과 관계없이..약간 온도가 내려갈 경우가 좀 있습니다.봄이건 여름이건…갑자기 좀 바람불고 추워지면..
약속이라도 한듯이..가죽코트, 가죽잠바를 입고들 다닙니다..ㅋㅋ 그러면서..”so cold..” 왜치면서..덜덜덜 떨어요..ㅋㅋ 계절에 맞지않는 옷이라 깜짝 놀랍기도 하지만…ㅋㅋㅋ 무지 엄살이죠..처음봤을때..상당히 이상하게 느껴졌던 모습으로 기억됩니다.
14. 침뱉고 무단횡단
흔히 미국인들이 교통질서, 준법정신 투철하다고 알게모르게 홍보가 되서..다들 그런것 같지만..ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
한번..길거리에 신호등 기둘리는데..멀쩡한 어떤넘이 침을 삑 하고고 뱉더니…껌 질겅질겅 몇번씹다가..투..하고 또 뱉어 버립니다.그러더니…길 좌우 살피고…빨강불인데..걍 건너더군요..ㅋㅋㅋㅋ[…]
15. 마트에서 장볼때 칼로리 계산
마트에서 자주보는 모습입니다.[…]와…물론 다는 아니겠지만.. 깜짝 놀랬었는데, 먹는거 살때는 무조건 칼로리를 확인하고… 칼로리를 메모한 다음…준비해놨던 계산기로..뭔가를 막 합산합니다. 일일 권장 칼로리가 넘치는지 확인해 보는 거겠지요..[…]
16. 한모금?
우리나라는 생수통옆에..위 그림에서 맨 왼쪽의 종이접이 컵을 아직도 많이 사용합니다. 미국은 소주잔 만한 종이컵 또는 플라스틱컵이 비치되어 있더군요..(가운데 그림) 맨 오른쪽 그림의 우리나라 일반 종이컵보다 좀 작지만..ㅋㅋ “이게 무슨 한모금이야??? 걍 물컵이지~!” 하면서..처음보고 상당히 웃었던 기억이 납니다.
17. 킹사이즈!
한국의 버거킹 같은 곳에서 킹사이즈 세트메뉴 시키면… 뭐..저도 한등치 하기때문에..딱 맞습니다. 하지만..미국에서는 같은 킹사이즈 인데도…위 사진만큼 차이가 났던것으로 기억나네요.. 단 한번도 햄버거를 남겨본적 없었는데..
먹다보면..도저히 못먹고 남기면서….으..놀라게 되죠. 그리고…피자도 마찬가지입니다.
18. 슈팅클럽
미국 친구들이 의례..한국 친구를 한번정도 데려가는 곳이라고 합니다. 총 맘껏 쏘는 곳인데…저는 첨에..shooting 하러 가겠냐고 묻길레…오락실 슈팅게임 하러 가자는줄 알았었습니다. ㅎㅎ 알고보니..실제 총으로 과녁에 맘껏 쏠수 있는 스트레스 해소장이더군요.[…]
19. 큰 집, 그리고 적은 가구
미국에 거주하는 교포들이나, 미국인들 집에 종종 놀러갈때마다 느끼는 것이지만..놀랄만큼, 정말 집들이 크고 넓습니다.
집의 크고 작음은 상대적이겠지만… 일단 수용된 인원에 비해 평수는 상당히 넓은것이 사실이고, 특히, 2층집이 많았으며, 2층이 아니면…집들이 다 옆으로 넓게 퍼져 있습니다.[…]또한, 그 큰집에…소위말하는 가재도구는 거의 없습니다. 그냥..벽이 대부분을 차지하고… 수납장만 덜렁있는등… 텅텅빈 느낌을 많이 받았습니다. 상당히 낯선 풍경이라 깜짝놀래지요. 특히…이정도 되는 집의 가격들이..한국에 비해 턱없이 쌉니다. 가격들으면..깜짝놀라죠..
24. 가슴 노출에 대한 문화차이
한국과 다르게, 미국과 유럽 일부국가의 경우, 가슴 노출에 대한 여성분들의 인식과 문화차이가 상당히 큰 것에 놀랍니다. 여러가지 관점들이 존재하겠지만, 미국은 수치, 창피보다는 신체의 일부 또는 자기표현 및 자랑에 더 무게를 두며,이 부분만 국한해 놓고 본다면, 한국보다 훨씬 개방적인 사고방식이 강합니다. 그렇다고 미국의 성문화가 완전히 개방적이냐…하고 단정지으면 낭패보기 쉽상입니다. 절대비교는 어렵지만, 보수적인 가정의 경우를 비교해 본다면, 한국보다 더 보수적인 곳도 상당히 많습니다.
25. 헐렁한 옷차림, 화장안한 얼굴들, 주근깨투성이 피부, […]
의복의 경우, 정장 차림한 사람들이 많이 안보입니다. (월가는 다르겠죠..) 남자들은 거의 셔츠나 티셔츠… 청바지나 헐렁한 면바지.. 여자분들도 평범한 일상복 차림을 하고 회사에 다닙니다.
특히 화장도 안하는것에 깜짝 놀랍니다.[…]
26. 출퇴근길이 멀어지면, 직장을 옮긴다?
미국인과 대화중에 놀랬던 내용입니다.”집을 이사했는데.. 이사갈 집이 회사와 너무 멀어져서…회사를 옮길 생각을 한다”는 내용입니다.[…]우리나라는 이사를 아무리 다니더라도.. 잘 다니던 회사를 옮길 생각은 절대로 안하죠..ㅋㅋ오죽하면 주말부부라는 것까지 나오겠습니까 만은.

author: Hyejin Kim


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Kosovo: The Language Issue · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Unforgiving Minute writes about “the language issue” in Kosovo.


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Nepal: A Failed Coup? · Global Voices
Rezwan

The conflict started last year when the politicians in Nepal started debating the integration of the former Maoist guerrillas, popularly known as People’s Liberation Army (PLA) into the country’s national army (NA). It was predicted then that the process could affect the structure and stability of the national army.
Dr. Divas at ABC reported in January 2009 about a conflict between Defense Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa Badal and the national army Chief Rookmangud Katwal :
Badal and Katwal are at loggerheads over whether the NA should continue with fresh inductions to fulfill the vacant posts in the army. While Badal accuses the Army of trying to control a democratically elected government by refusing its directives, Katwal sounds defiance against the Maoists tactic of keeping the National Army under the Party’s control.
Katwal finds the Maoists ungrateful toward the NA in general and the Maoists find Katwal a major impediment against implementing their agenda. Since then the situation has degraded. Dr. Divas updates on April 23rd on the same post:
Prachanda supported a decision by the defense ministry two days ago to seek clarification from General Katawal over allegations that he ignored government orders on recruitment and the sacking of eight senior army generals.
Neil's Nepal warned of consequences:
The Army has been blatantly violating the principle of civilian control. [..] Not only this, the major opposition party is supporting the army in it’s continual violation, and the Maoists are probably not at the hight of popularity. Now that the Maoists are calling the army chief in for a “clarification,” something that could be a preliminary stage of sacking him, all traditional indicators would be pointing to an army coup. This is a particularly serious concern in light of the fact that the last army coup was a mere four years ago.
But the blogger also provided logic why the coup would not happen:
The PLA is still sitting out in cantonments, it still has it’s arms, and it’s still loyal to the Maoist chain of command. The army chief knows that if he uses some pretext to sack the elected government, he won’t just have to deal with an extremely organized street protest/urban uprising (from a party that is now entrenched in urban areas and highly militant). He’ll immediately have to pit his troops (who may not be so willing) against an 18,000 strong, highly motivated, guerrilla force.
United We Blog! for a Democratic Nepal informs today that some “Generals of Nepal Army had made plans of (a) ’soft coup’ to tackle Maoist’s plan to dismiss the Chief of the Army Staff General Rookmangud Katwal.”  Dr. Divas also updates that General Katwal was for executing something within statute, a “Bangladesh-inspired President’s Rule backed by India Government”.
A detailed report has been published in eKantipur.com. It shows that Maoists were planning to integrate all 19,000 former guerrillas (PLA) in the National Army and several PLA commanders would get higher positions.
United We Blog! also posted the army's response strongly refuting the reports as “imaginary and illusionary.”
Neil's Nepal points to the Maoists’ advantage:
The Maoists have found their way around this inconvenient fact by forming their own army (through great difficulty) and breaking the governments monopoly on the use of force. Hence, they don’t have the loyalty of the army (at least not the leadership), but they probably aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

author: Rezwan


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Pakistan: An Open Letter To The President · Global Voices
Rezwan

Pakistani blog Deadpan Thoughts posts an open letter to the President of Pakistan on the recent SWAT Taliban deal: “My Dear President, Kindly review your decision – think for the stability of Pakistan in the long run and revoke this deal which is bound to fail – show some courage and force our Army of the so-called Marshall Race to go into SWAT and stop these barbarians, Talibans who close girl’s schools, murder innocents and flog girls!”


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Poland: “Spider-Bart Climbs the Warsaw Marriott” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Polandian posts a picture of the man climbing the Marriott Hotel in Warsaw “a la Alain Robert in 1999 – no ropes, no help”: “Thankfully, Bart did not flop his way down and reached the top safely where he was arrested and taken away.”


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Puerto Rico: Indigenous Summit  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

The Voice of the Taino People Online says that a delegation of Caribbean Indigenous Peoples is speaking out on climate change at the Indigenous Peoples Global Summit.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Russia: Counter-Terrorist Operation in Chechnya is Over · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

A discussion of the end of the counter-terrorist operation in Chechnya – at Sean's Russia Blog.


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Russia: Internet Market · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Svetlana Gladkova of Profy writes this about internet market in Russia: “… the most irritating trend here is how clones of various successful US projects turn into market leaders here while the original products ignore the market entirely and only enter it when it is already too late.”


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Russia: Weekly News and New Blogs · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Siberian Light re-introduces Russian Weekly News section – and continues to promote blogs that focus on Russia and other former Soviet states: a review of The Russian Store Blog (“The History of Pisanki” is one of the recent posts there) and a roundup of blogs of British ambassadors to Belarus and Latvia, and the press secretary at the British Embassy in Moscow.


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South African Elections ’09: There is only one story to be told · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Following the national and provincial elections on Wednesday in South Africa, grubstreet believes that there is only one story to be told: the election results and how the online media is responding.
In this post we are going to look at reactions from the web about the 2009 elections in South Africa starting with Hottest Gossip's facts about the election and the voting process:
TWO-TIER ELECTION
* Voters will be voting in national and provincial elections. Voting is under a proportional system where parties submit lists of candidates to fill 400 seats in the National Assembly, and for provincial parliaments in South Africa’s nine provinces.
* Parties will fill 200 of the National Assembly seats according to the national vote and another 200 seats in line with provincial support.
* Twenty-six parties will contest the election for the National Assembly and 11 parties will contest the ballot for the National Assembly and for all nine provincial legislatures.
* Parties have nominated 9,289 candidates for the national and provincial election, 61.6 percent of them male and 38.4 percent female.
2004 ELECTION RESULTS
* The ANC won 69.69 percent of the vote in the previous election held in 2004. The Democratic Alliance polled 12.37 percent of the vote, the Inkatha Freedom Party 6.97 percent and the United Democratic Movement 2.28 percent.
* Voter turnout in South African elections has been traditionally high. Turnout in 2004 was 76.73 percent.
VOTERS
* South Africa’s Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) says 23.18 million people are registered to vote.
* In the previous election in 2004, there were 20.67 million registered voters.
One thing you need to know from Grubstreet:
There’s only one story today: the election results and how the online media is responding. Everybody’s got the story that by 8.30am this morning, the ANC had 63.7% (2 078 352 votes) – with the largest total of votes coming from the Eastern Cape (503 730) — the DA 19.5% (636,637 votes) and Cope only 7.7% (251 200 votes).
Most of the parties’ Facebook pages are silent and the IEC’s website is not loading, possibly because of the the number of hits on it.
It’s hard to beat the immediacy of TV and radio on this one but News24 seems to have the best online package of the big online media houses, with a cool little map of SA showing the results as they come in (the Western Cape is going to the DA, the rest are sticking with the ANC). Click here to go there.
My favourite story of the past two days, however, goes to the Daily Dispatch, which ran a reader competition of people’s memories of the 1994 election. I actually got a lump in my thoa


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Sri Lanka: The Pros And Cons Of International Attention · Global Voices
Angilee Shah

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) are holding on to just a sliver of land in the north of Sri Lanka, but the United Nations is estimating that 50,000 people are still trapped in the war zone. As fighting surges in the final throes, concerns for civilians is growing and calls for international attention and understanding abound on the Internet and in the streets of cities around the world, such as London, Berlin and Paris. Should we help the Tamils? is now a burning question in Canada.
A Call For Intervention – Tamil protests in Ottawa. Image by Mikey G Ottawa and used under a Creative Commons License
But many bloggers are questioning the information people abroad are getting about the island's long war. The international media reports have been inadequate or inaccurate, while the Sri Lankan government is blocking access of journalists to the north where civilians are in danger.
Prominent Sri Lankan blogger and Sunday Leader columnist Indi Samarajiva of indi.ca calls for the LTTE to release the civilians they are holding and offers a critique of international reporting on the war:
Frankly, I think the ‘International Community’ and international media are far too quick to offer solutions without looking at the situation. And they are, frankly, largely impotent and irrelevant. Note that Al Jazeera is doing real reporting. They have an actual guy on the ground in Palmudai, the anchors ask real questions and so they report that the LTTE is firing on people and holding them hostage.
The other media seems to be like, ‘We don’t understand so, just, er, stop’. Seriously, on CNN I often see the anchor being like ‘I don’t know what’s going on’ and the reporter being like ‘Yeah me neither’ and I’m like, ‘congratulations on publicly sucking at your jobs’. But Al Jazeera does well.
Serendipity adds to the critique, calling out the media for dropping in on the Sri Lanka story too late:
Once again we have been reminded in Sri Lanka of the world of sound bites. The sudden intensity with which the world media have closed in on the last stages of the LTTE is an indication of the short-lived nature of much of journalism, which is in a business to sell or draw an audience in the case of TV. Their intentions therefore are more about sensationalism as opposed to genuine concern for the news they are reporting.
Jeremy Page, South Asia correspondent for The Times in London, offers some explanation why the international media has been hamstrung in its coverage of Sri Lanka. He was turned back at the airport in Colombo after trying to enter on a tourist visa. After being taken into a side room, he was held overnight and then sent out of the country:
A message flashed up on his screen: “DO NOT ALLOW TO ENTER THE COUNTRY.” With that, my passport was confiscated, I was escorted to a detention room, locked up for the night, and deported the next day. I can’t say that I was surprised, though it was my first deportation in 12 years of reporting from China, the former Soviet Union and South Asia.
Despite multiple applications, I’ve been denied a journalist’s visa for Sri Lanka since August. For almost two years, the Sri Lankan Government has prevented most independent reporters from getting anywhere near the military campaign against the Tamil Tigers. So I was trying to enter as a tourist to write about the 150,000 civilians that the UN estimates are trapped in a no-fire zone with the remnants of the Tigers. The only other countries that I can think of where foreign journalists have to pose as tourists are Zimbabwe, Turkmenistan and North Korea.
Still, Andrew Stroehlin writes on Alertnet that just because journalists do not have direct access to the warzone, they do have access to information:
Just because journalists are not allowed into the Sri Lankan conflict zone doesn't mean we don't know what's going on there. We have satellite imagery showing large concentrations of people caught in the fighting, and we have information from reliable sources on the ground. Recent reports that significant numbers of civilians have escaped have not changed the overall figures: independent sources on the ground continue to report 100,000 people or more remain trapped, exhausted, with limited access to food and medicines, and many under fire.
On the Committee to Protect Journalists blog, Asia Program Director Bob Dietz highlights both lack of access and lack of coverage of the war. He posted the comments he made to a U.S. Congressional hearing on Sri Lanka. In his preamble he wrote:
When asked about the lack of access, I told the Lantos Commission yesterday that I still have a question hanging in my head from a meeting with some Sri Lankan students in Ottawa in March. They had made the trip from Toronto to interview me about media issues. One questioned why there is so little international coverage of the fighting in Sri Lanka. “Why,” she asked, “aren't Anderson Cooper and the rest of them standing as close as they can get to the war, just like they did when journalists weren't allowed to enter Gaza?”
I didn't have a good answer for her then, and to tell you the truth, I still don't have a good answer. The two sides are indeed keeping the press out of the conflict zone, but news media worldwide could do more to report what they can and to highlight the restrictions. This is a major human catastrophe taking place in the heart of the Indian Ocean, and it is going virtually unreported save for official statements from both sides to the conflict. That's a sure recipe for misinformation.
The New York Times blog The Lede has been weighing in on journalists’ access in Sri Lanka as well. Robert Mackey's post “Is the World Ignoring Sri Lanka’s Srebrenica?” drew, as of this writing, 398 comments. Many comments call for greater international attention, but also decry the comparison between Sri Lanka and 1995 genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Mackey writes:
A video report from Channel 4 News in London on Thursday (embedded below), showing scores of civilian victims killed last week in the crossfire between Sri Lanka’s government and the rebel Tamil Tigers (officially known as t is clear that the L.T.T.E.), in a part of the country off-limits to journalists, is difficult to watch. The images are as disturbing as those that filled television screens during the conflicts in Bosnia in the 1990s but, as Channel 4’s Lindsey Hilsum points out in her report, this bloody war, now possibly in its last throes, has been taking place largely out of sight of the international media.
As in the final months of the war in Bosnia, the failure of the combatants to refrain from shelling encircled, densely-populated civilian pockets is producing shocking results. Channel 4’s Alex Thomson wrote on Thursday in an email newsletter, “You have to ask: is Sri Lanka becoming another Srebrenica?”
Commenter DJ critiques the comparison:
As a photographer who has shot the war in Sri Lanka, I find it frightening that you associate the situation there with Srebrenica. The war in Sri Lanka is horrific and there is plenty of blame to go around for both sides. The tens of thousands of civilians held by the Tigers and shelled by the government are innocent victims. But Srebrenica was genocide planned and executed by Bosnian Serbs to murder innocent Bosnian muslims. They were lined up and shot, a la the Eisengruppen. The Sri Lankan government has no desire to murder the Tamil civilians trapped on the beaches of Mullaitivu. It has a reckless disregard for their lives. This is bad. But it is not the same, not even close.
Mackey updated his post the next day to clarify that the comparison was using Srebrenica as “a symbol of a massive failure of the international community to protect civilians in a war zone” and not as “shorthand for the horrific massacre that took place there after the enclave fell.”
Darini Rajasingham Senanayake makes observations about international attention to conflict zones in his Groundviews review of a biography of Dharmaratnam Sivaram (know by his pen name Taraki), a prominent Sri Lankan journalist who was murdered in 2005. Mark Whitaker’s Learning Politics from Sivaram: The Life and Death of a Revolutionary Tamil Journalist (Pluto Press, 2006), Senanayake says, is a good lesson for those who fly into warzones:
A corrective to dominant representations of conflict zones, and dedicated to: “Sri Lankan journalists who like Sivaram risked their lives everyday or have already lost them to keep the stories coming”, this book should be mandatory reading for international development and peace building consultants who fly into conflict-torn countries confident of the superiority and objectivity of their international “tool-kits” of and for knowledge production and the concomitant “lack of local capacity”, imagining conflict affected countries as peopled by noble savages, victims and brutes in need of aid and psycho-social interventions aside from a thin layer of ‘civil society’- a founding and funding myth of the international aid industry.

author: Angilee Shah


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Taiwan: Fights in the Legislature · Global Voices
David Reid

Taiwan's Legislative Yuan was once again in the spotlight as another fight broke out between politicians from opposing parties. Letters from Taiwan looks at reasons why Taiwanese politicians resort to fighting.

author: David Reid


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Ukraine: Bulgakov Museum’s Blog · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Uncataloged Museum links to “one of Kyiv's first museum blogs”: Mikhail Bulgakov Museum (UKR).


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Ukraine: Chernobyl – Michael Forster Rothbart’s Photos; Mohamed Makhzangi’s Book · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Uncataloged Museum reports on the opening of Michael Forster Rothbart‘s Chernobyl photo exhibit in Kyiv. Bint Battuta in Bahrain reviews Mohamed Makhzangi's Memories of a Meltdown; the book's author, an Egyptian, happened to be on a post-doctoral medical fellowship in the Soviet Union in 1986: “The first section of Memories of a Meltdown, the largest part of the book, consists of scenes that Makhzangi describes as ‘investigative literary reportage; stories that celebrate the reality of lived moments’, as he watched and experienced the response to the disaster in Kiev.”


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Ukraine: Chernobyl Photo Exhibit · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The 23rd anniversary of the Chernobyl catastrophe is in two days, and Chernobyl and Eastern Europe Blog posts a press release for Michael Forster Rothbart‘s photo exhibit that opens in Kyiv today – “Inside Chernobyl: life goes on.”


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Ukraine, U.K.: Kyiv Mayor’s Pic in Daily Mirror Pedophiles Story · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Ukrainiana reports that a picture of Kyiv mayor Leonid Chernovetsky was used to illustrate a Daily Mirror story on polygraph tests for pedophiles.


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Afghanistan: The Tricycle Theater hosts Afghan actors · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Colla writes that the London’s Tricycle Theatre organised one of the most comprehensive and challenging arts festivals ever mounted on the subject of Afghanistan.


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Armenia: Obama recognizes Genocide… kinda · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

The Stiletto comments on yesterday's statement by US President Barack Obama on the 94th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The blog rounds up different reactions to the statement and also examines what this means for the president nearly 100 days into office.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Brazil: Judges quarrel live on TV and scandalize the country · Global Voices
Paula Góes

The live broadcast of a fight between two judges of the Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) has scandalized Brazilians. Chief Justice  Gilmar Mendes and judge Joaquim Barbosa quarreled on Wednesday 22, during a trial on the possible unconstitutionality of a law establishing changes to civil registries. The heated row happened in front of an audience of thousands watching TV Justiça, and, soon after the images hit the Internet. As of now, the debate remains hot on the blogosphere.
Barbosa accused Mendes of “destroying the credibility of the judicial system”. He also challenged Mendes to talk to the man on the street, to measure his low level of popularity. Mendes, in turn, accused Barbosa of “not having morals enough to give anyone a lesson”. The video of the bickering is here [pt]. Marisinha, who watched it live, left a comment on the Opus Luri blog [pt] saying she thought the quarrel was innapropriate:
Terrível incidente. Se Gilmar está destruindo a Justiça.. Barbosa está colaborando para jogá-la no ridículo.
After the incident, the court session was suspended and Barbosa left. Mendes met with all justices except two (apart from Barbosa, one judge was on holiday). In the end, they issued a statement [pt] expressing their “confidence and respect” for Mendes. The president has since denied there is a crisis within the court.
Marco Bahé from Acerto de Contas [pt] blog says that the society needs to react, and he is sure the majority of the population sides with Joaquim Barbosa. The blog has launched an online petition [pt] in his support, so far signed by over 2,000 people.
“As palavras do ministro do Supremo Tribunal Federal Joaquim Barbosa, ontem, dão esperanças ao povo brasileiro. Enfim, um homem sério no Judiciário se pronuncia contra a aberração ética, moral e jurídica que é o senhor Gilmar “Dantas” Mendes. (…)
Gilmar conseguiu arrancar, ainda ontem, a assinatura de apoio de oito dos 11 ministros do STF. Foi uma carta curta que diz o seguinte: “Os ministros do Supremo Tribunal Federal que subscrevem esta nota, reunidos após a sessão plenária de 22 de abril de 2009, reafirmam a confiança e o respeito ao senhor ministro Gilmar Mendes na sua atuação institucional como presidente do Supremo, lamentando o episódio ocorrido nesta data.””
Gilmar did manage, yesterday, to gather signatures of support from eight of the eleven STF judges. It was a short letter that reads: “The judges of the Brazilian Supreme Court signed below, after the plenary session on 22 April 2009, are reassured in the confidence and respect for Mr Gilmar Mendes in his institutional role as President of the Supreme Court, while regretting the incident happened on this date.”
With eight signatures, the note seemed an unconditional display of the house's support. However, Blog do Melo [pt] points out a comment left on the Blog do Azenha, where  Mário de Oliveira brought up a new piece of information so far ignored by the main newspapers: six of those eight ministers work for the Instituto Brasiliense de Direito Público – IDP, a private university owned by Gilmar Mendes:
“Entre os professores desse instituto estão os senhores Eros Roberto Grau, Marco Aurélio Mendes de Faria Mello, Carlos Ayres Britto, Carlos Alberto Menezes Direito e a senhora Cármen Lúcia Antunes Rocha (cinco Ministros do Supremo). Ou seja, alguns dos Ministros do Supremo também são funcionários, empregados, prestadores de serviço ou contratados, seja lá como possa ser definida legalmente, a relação deles com o IDP do Presidente do Supremo. Também está na relação o Ministro Nelson Jobim.
Será que não estariam ética e moralmente impedidos de se manifestarem acerca do entrevero Joaquim Barbosa X Gilmar Mendes? Nesse caso, não há conflito de interesses já que de alguma maneira os citados têm relação com Presidente do Supremo que envolve remuneração?”
Unhappy with the note written by the judges, Tandai Ayan [pt] blogged her own manifesto:
“Se os oito ministros do STF emitiram nota de apoio ao Min. Gilmar Mendes, Presidente do STF eu, Tandai Ayan, brasileira, eleitora apta em meu município, contribuinte regular dos impostos, dentre estes os que pagam os salários dos eminentes Ministros do STF, quero aqui, MANIFESTAR MEU APOIO, de público, ao MINISTRO JOAQUIM BARBOSA, não somente pelo episódio ocorrido, mas, sobretudo, por traduzir a insatisfação do Povo Brasileiro neste contexto atual do Poder Judiciário, e particularmente de minha pessoa, como cidadã que sou, na defesa dos princípios constitucionais e na moralidade do Poder Judiciário.”
There were some voices for Gilmar Mendes too. Among them, Adrualdo Catão [pt] believes Gilmar Mendes is a fine judge doing his job who was the victim of a live broadcast assault:
“O Ministro Barbosa precisa pensar um pouco na responsabilidade de sua missão. Sair por aí atirando pedras, simplesmente porque discorda da tese dos outros não é algo próprio de um membro do STF. Muito menos repercutir acusações abstratas de blogueiros e revistas. Se tem algo contra Mendes, que prove.”
Eduardo Graeff [pt] believes that the quarrel raised a fundamental issue for the country: the clash between modernization and conservativism of the justice system in Brazil. He says Gilmar Mendes might be seen  as a nuisance by some, but he is an encouragement to others, like himself:
“Os conservadores reclamam do ativismo do presidente do STF. Esse pecado é na verdade a grande virtude de Gilmar Mendes. Ele comprou a briga pela modernização da Justiça. Pisou no acelerador das mudanças possibilitadas pela Constituição de 1988 e começadas por Nelson Jobim e Ellen Gracie. Botou o dedo nas feridas do corporativismo, do laxismo, do populismo judicial.”
Reactions to the media reactions
Gilmar Mendes has always enjoyed media respect, despite controvertial decisions that have caused considerable anger in legal circles, and, in turn, have badly damaged his popularity. Luis Nassif [pt] collates the media reactions to the row, and says that it is high time the mainstream media caught up:
“A resistência da mídia em manter os olhos fechados a essa postura horrorosa de Gilmar Mendes cobrou um preço altíssimo, no descrédito dos jornalões. Já escrevi algumas vezes que jamais vi um divórcio igual entre a linha dos jornais e o pensamento do leitor.”
Luiz Carlos Azenha lists the facts the media should be reflecting about instead of focusing  on Barbosa's “bad temper”. He says the media is there to disinform, confuse – not to explain. He concludes:
“Ora, para explicar os motivos por trás do bate-boca entre Gilmar Mendes e Joaquim Barbosa, a mídia seria obrigada a fazer o que não fez até agora: informar. Por isso, tanto ela quanto Gilmar Mendes vão mudar de assunto rapidinho.”
On Twitter, @candidanobre shows the divide between traditional and social medias:
gilmar mendes dominando a grande mídia e o #joaquimbarbosaday movimentando por aqui. Por estas, ainda tenho esperança na rede.
Reactions online and the #joaquimbarbosaday
For many net citizens judge Joaquim Barbosa has given voice to what many Brazilians think about Gilmar Mendes, and social networks are pulsing with reactions. Many new communities have opened up on the popular Orkut, some of them even puting Joaquim Barbosa's name forward for president in the 2010 elections. A new blog – I am a fan of judge Joaquim Pereira – was created. But the more engaging reactions were on the twittersphere, with many people changing avatars to show support for Barbosa. It was #joaquimbarbosaday:
Twitter Brazilians [pt] blog explains how it all started: @direitodopovo twittered in the morning having a picture of Joaquim Barbosa as his avatar and the hashtag #joaquimbarbosaday.
“A campanha, criada por @direitodopovo, rendeu mais de 400 mensagens e a participação de 50 tuiteiros, uma média de 8 mensagens por usuário.”
Antonio Arles [pt] says that the web has proved one more time that it is an important vehicle for the exercise of citizenship:
“Através do Twitter fizemos um “twitasso” (manifestação virtual) para apoiar o Ministro Joaquim Barbosa, que ontem (22)  falou o que estava entalado na garganta de grande parte do povo brasileiro para o ministro Gilmar Mendes. O ministro Gilmar Mendes, presidente do STF, vem desmoralizando a Justiça com seus arroubos autoritários e suas “ligação perigosas” com bandidos julgados e condenados.”
Healthy row
Despite huge media and audience criticism of the Supreme Court Judges’ row, and even of the fact that it was broadcast live on TV, some judges believe this is the way forward:  Marcos Alencar [pt] wishes every court session in the country were broadcast live in a bid to increase transparency:
Quase todos os dias, sabemos de histórias envolvendo discussões acirradas e desrespeitosas entre Juízes e advogados, que se esvaem diante da falta de provas. Com a filmagem, isso seria coibido e teríamos como apurar quem provocou os desrespeitou quem.
Imagine se essa sessão do STF não tivesse sido filmada, divulgada ao vivo na TV Justiça? Certamente ficaria apenas no disse-me-disse, muito diferente de todo o espetáculo televisivo.
Tenho certeza que filmadas as audiências o respeito entre os Magistrados e advogados reinariam, continuaria a haver confronto, mas dentro de uma linha de respeito.
Imagine if this session at the STF had not been recorded, broadcast live on TV? It would surely end up on the grapevine, very different to the TV show.
I am sure that, if the court sessions were taped, there would be more respect between judges and barristers, there would still be confrontations, but with more respect.
Judge Jorge Alberto Araujo [pt] believes that heated debates are generally positive:
“É muito bom que tenhamos um certo embate na nossa Corte Superior. Dá uma sensação de que as decisões não são de bastidores e que os magistrados de primeiro grau, e por conseguinte o Poder Judiciário como um todo, têm, por exemplo nas pessoas dos ministros Joaquim Barbosa e Marco Aurélio, seus atentos defensores, havendo aquele importante contrapeso que impede que a Justiça, nas palavras do próprio Ministro Joaquim Barbosa, seja destruída.”

author: Paula Góes


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Cambodia: Doubts over the Khmer Rouge Tribunal · Global Voices
Chhunny Chhean

The Khmer Rouge Tribunal is now weeks into its first trial with the prosecution of Kaing Guek Eav, known as Duch, for crimes against humanity and war crimes.  But as the trial continues, many wonder how effective the Tribunal will be in achieving national reconciliation, one of the goals of the project.  Two major problems are allegations of corruption related to Tribunal funds and the limited number of indictments.
The corruption charges against the Cambodian government concern misuse of Tribunal funds, which were mostly donated by other countries.  News reports are available here and here as well as an interview with the lawyer defending Nuon Chea, one of the defendants awaiting trial, posted at CAAI News Media.
Another issue for the Tribunal is that so few of the Khmer Rouge members will be put on trial.  The scope of indictments is limited to the senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge.
KI Media posted a piece by retired professor A. Gaffar Peang-Meth from the University of Guam, in which he writes:
The trouble is, the trial of a mere five Khmer Rouge leaders for the death of about two million people in 1975-1979 is far from adequate to bring justice and national reconciliation to Cambodians, to begin healing and promote peacebuilding in the country.
Sopheap Chak does not believe the Khmer Rouge Tribunal will bring justice, in part, because:
The foreign countries that supported the Khmer Rouge, or acted as the main catalyst for the emergence of this cruel regime, will not be brought to court. The tribunal’s regulations indicate clearly that only individuals who committed crimes will be tried.
Chak also does not believe the Tribunal will be able to reconcile the country:
For Cambodian society, real reconciliation will be found only when trust returns between individuals; when they can smile at and trust each other again. Thus, a national dialogue or truth commission should be set up so that people, especially the victims, can fully participate to address their suffering and their needs.

author: Chhunny Chhean