text:
Guyana: The Ripple Effect · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

UPDATE:  Please see this post.
The far-ranging effects of the CL Financial failure have now reached Guyana.  One blogger has been assiduously following the latest developments…
One of Living Guyana's earliest posts centered around the “breaking news” that “the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry is in dire financial straits and has applied to the Bank of Guyana for a GY$1billion bailout.”  The blogger comments:
There may be much greater troubles below the surface.  The billion dollar question, experts say, is whether GBTI lost money in the aftermath of the Stanford or Clico collapse.
This further worsens the catastrophic financial situation beginning to hit Guyana in earnest following the global financial crisis of 2008.  This financial devastation will have calamitous knock on effects as more than GY$6billion of National Insurance Scheme money is tied up in Clico and this will certainly affect hundreds of thousands of persons across Guyana.
In another post, Living Guyana confirms that “the Commissioner of Insurance…is in the process of petitioning the Chief Justice…to take over control of Clico Guyana owing to the [company's] dire and grave financial standing following the Clico Bahamas liquidation.”  He continues:
Once the petition is granted, as it will be, Clico Guyana will come under the control of the government, meaning that Clico Guyana would have collapsed Wall Street/Trinidad style.
The domino effect of this can be catastrophic and it could be the beginning of a period of economic and financial disaster for Guyana with other companies going under and thousands of jobs being lost.
Not surprisingly, Living Guyana also posts reports of “a major run on CLICO”, even as a motion was reportedly filed to freeze the company's assets.  In a recent update, the blogger also says that there has been “an internal rush on Citizens Bank yesterday after news broke of the government takeover of Clico”:
Living Guyana understands that Citizens Bank has some 25% of assets invested in Clico Guyana and staff, worried about the future of their savings, were withdrawing en masse for most of yesterday afternoon. One highly placed source described the activities at the bank yesterday as ‘a mad scramble’.
As if this weren't enough, LG also claims to have been “reliably informed” that “CLICO recently sold its stake in the Berbice River Bridge to the New Building Society [NBS] for some G$250 Million.”  The blogger is also critical of the performance of CLICO Guyana CEO Gita Singh-Knight, and thinks that the country's President seemed “defeated and confused” at the press conference on the Clico Guyana takeover:
Stunningly President Bharrat Jagdeo admitted that CEO Gita Singh-Knight ignored local regulations and invested more than Clico should have overseas.
Finally, the blogger posts his impressions about the government's handling of the issue here.


text:
India: Environmental Scholars On a Very Cool Mission · Global Voices
Mohammad Azraq

About two weeks ago, I read in Tom Friedman's column in the New York Times about two young scholars from the U.S who were on a very impressive mission in India. Alexis Ringwald and Caroline Howe are touring the country in an electric/solar powered car to raise awareness about the dire climate situation in the massive subcontinent. They are encouraging the young and energetic to innovate cleaner, greener, and more sustainable sources of energy. I was very impressed with their work and decided to share their story here. Their online portal India climate Solutions includes a blog, videos, photos, information on climate in India, and a lot more:
The three Reva cars
In the launching of the tour, Caroline wrote:
To learn more about the journey and see an example of the very basic climate solutions’ films that we are encouraging youth to create about their own solutions, their own crazy ideas, and their own thoughts on climate change, please do watch our first Climate Solutions Video — our first interviews about electric cars and our very first Reva Road Trip. We were limited to 1.5 minutes to enter Google’s ReCharge IT conference with the theme of “Why I Want to Drive a Plug-In”, but think it’s another example of how video contests can inspire new films and what we are trying to do.
Alexis wrote:
It wasn’t until the 4th day that I realized the magnitude of what we were doing. On January 3, 2009, a group of passionate individuals launched on a Climate Solutions Road Tour, an epic month-long 3,500 km journey from Chennai to New Delhi, India to demonstrate that clean transportation solutions do exist and call upon automakers globally to build them.
On the 4th day of this adventure, January 7, I truly understood the seeds of revolution that we were planting on our “Drive to Change.”
Anna Da Costa, one of their project supporters, wrote:
One of the simplest and most effective climate solutions we have come across as we traverse the Indian sub-continent is solar water heating.
Here in Udaipur, a city of mirroring lakes and canals, age old palaces, ornamented and armoured gateways and sleepy walkways, we have found just one such example.
The way they work is incredibly simple; a simple heat collector (the panels you can see), made up of a heat conducting material, such as metal, holds the water in a position perpendicular to the sun in a series of small tubes which link directly to an insulated water tank where the hot water is stored. As the water is heated within the collector, it naturally moves through the system by convection maintaining a flow of water through the system, and as such keeping it evenly heated.
This is one of the cheapest and simplest ways to heat water in hot countries, and can provide up between 85-100% of hot water needs for a household. An average 50-gallon system also displaces the use of 11.1 barrels of oil per year when replacing an electrically heated system.
The president of India has recently received the climate team at her palace, and Alexis had this to say about it:
We had the incredible honor to be invited to meet President Patil, the honorable President of India, at her home at Rashtrapati Bhavan! She was thrilled to hear about our Climate Solutions Road Tour and was supportive of our efforts to take action on climate solutions. We hope that all Heads of State around the world recognize the young people in their countries who are making a difference on this issue!
(Image credit: India Climate Solutions)

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Mohammad Azraq


text:
Jamaica: Passion  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Jamaican diaspora blogger Geoffrey Phlip republishes text from a lecture he gave about the importance of pursuing your passions.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


text:
Japan: Alpha Blogger Awards 2008 (Part 2) · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Starting December 24th, the Alpha Blogger website called for people to nominate 1-3 blog entries written in 2008 that had affected them the most. Mid-term results were announced on January 16th, and voting was open until February 18th. The blog entries that received the most votes won the Alpha Blogger Award. Visitors of the site can read the nominations that the voters sent in by clicking on the “ABA” icon next to each winning entry. The website also has a list of URLs of people that blogged about the what and why of their nominations.
For more background information on the awards, read Japan: Looking back on 2008 from GV, which features translated comments from the organizer.
Without further ado, here's Part 2 of the winning blog entries. (Read Part 1 here.)
7) Looking back on Ichiro Ozawa's Speech and Behavior (小沢一郎氏の初当選からの言動を振り返る)
A list of quotes from Ichiro Ozawa by Rui Abiru, a veteran political reporter for Sankei Shimbun, who went through five scrapbooks from the archives of Sankei Shimbun that cover Ichiro Ozawa from when he was first elected at the age of 27.
Abiru starts with this gem from 1969:
「老齢化で動脈硬化の状態にある国会に若い世代の代表として新風を吹き込みたい。父（故小沢佐重喜氏）に負けない立派な政治家となり、支持者の期待に応えたい。７０年代の日本はわれわれヤングパワーの時代。それだけに責任の重大さを痛感します。若さと駆け引きのない清潔さを売りものに、ばりばりとやっていきたい」
to which he comments:
誰にでも若いときはあるのですよねえ。それにしてもヤングか。時代を感じます。
8) It's Heizo Takenaka's Privatization of the Postal Services that is “Fundamentally Wrong”> (「根本的に誤っている」のは竹中平蔵氏、の歪んだ「郵政民営化」)
Economic analyst Kazuhide Uekusa on the privatization of postal services, and why the company should be reviewed.
日本郵政は今回の「かんぽの宿」売却以外にも不動産売却を実施してきており、また、巨大不動産を開発する方針を示してもいる。日本郵政保有資産は紛れもない国民資産である。その貴重な国民資産が一部の特定勢力によって「私物化」＝「利権化」されている現実が浮かび上がっている。
このような重大問題が浮上するなかであればなおさら、「郵政民営化の見直し」は不可欠である。小泉元首相や竹中元郵政民営化担当相の慌てふためいて見える、激しい反応が、「郵政民営化」に対する疑念を拡大させている。
明確に認識しなければならない重要な事実は、「株式会社形態に移行した後は、日本郵政経営者の判断がすべてであり、所管官庁や政治家が監視することは「根本的に間違っている」との、現在の所管大臣に対する反論を全国紙に掲載して恥じないような人物が、「郵政民営化」を取り仕切ってきたという恐るべき現実である。
9) Toyota's Kanban System, Applied to Humans (【秋葉原無差別殺傷】人間までカンバン方式)
Blogger boiledema's thoughts on the Akihabara massacre on June 8th. Boiledema gives a personal take on the Toyota factory where
Tomohiro Kato worked, as well as the Japanese temp worker industry as a whole. This entry resonated with many in the Japanese blogosphere, and Global Voices answered the call from the Hatena community for this entry to be translated into English: Part One and Part Two.
10) The Story of how a 19 year old NEET Girl Cried with Joy when I Took Her to Kinokuniya (a major bookstore) in Sapporo (ニートの19歳女の子を札幌『紀伊国屋』に連れてったら感動して泣かれた話)
A blogger's visit with the younger sister of a friend, who hasn't left the sanctuary of her home for four years. The girl, who makes a living through Second Life, has a roomful of books ordered through Amazon. The blogger and the girl's family convince her to take a trip to Kinokunya, where she is astounded by the freedom of choice.
彼女は、ネットには全てがあると信じていた。だからこそ、外に出る必要性なども無いと感じていたのです。
ネットには、多くの人間が書評などを行っています。誰かが言ったから買う、とか、Amazonで人気だから買う、とか。そういう集合知によって発生する付加価値が、ネットにはほぼ必ず付いてきます。Googleから検索するという、たったそれだけの行為でも、検索順位と言う付加価値が付いて回ります。逆に本屋と言うのは、ほぼ全ての本が平等であり、どれを買うかは本人が調べ、考え、選び、そして購入に至ります。
本屋の面白さはここにあると私は思っています。だれもお勧めしないような本でも、自分が見て、ほしいと思う本はたくさんあるのです。彼女は帰りの車の中、この事に気が付いてもらえたようで、現実世界の1つの自立行為（本を誰に何も言われず買う行為）に、ある種の感動を覚えたと言ってくれました。
11) I E-mailed the Students That Were Attacking My Daughter by Name on the School Ura-Site (学校裏サイトで娘が実名で攻撃され、父としてメールを送ってみた。)
A series of posts by Kenjiro Yoshida about his experiences in dealing with school bullies that was attacking his high school daughter on an ura-site (back site), a school-wide behind-the-scenes BBS. In the past year or so, the phenomenon of ura-sites has come to light as the new hotbed for school bullying in Japan.They are especially hard to deal with because entries are anonymous and the existence of the BBS itself are often times kept a secret from parents and teachers.
Yoshida confronts the school bullies head on, saying:
自分の子供が不幸な境遇にあるのがわかりながらも無力であることほど辛いものはない。裏サイトで攻撃されている娘の父として何が出来るだろう。
Through persistence and knowledge about the workings of the Internet, Yoshida succeeds in stopping the bullying. Meanwhile, his daughter is calm and suggests that the situation is similar to co-workers sharing a drink after work and unloading about their boss and colleagues.
Yoshida concludes the series with:
今回の私の行ってきたことが必ずしも正解ではないだろうが、皆で一生懸命考えて、これらの困難と闘うことが重要だと思っている。今回、この体験を公開したことで、「学校裏サイト」での「いじめ」にあっている子供達に少しでも役立てれば幸いだ。
12) Wasao, the Hairy Dog that I Met in the Town of Squid (イカの町で出会ったモジャモジャ犬「わさお」)
A post on mereco's travel blog through the Tohoku region. Mereco
encounters a white Akita dog in a town whose main industry is squid, and decides to name him Wasao. Her photos and storybook-like writings earned much attention throughout the blogosphere, and Wasao was featured in several TV programs as well. (There's even a T-shirt.)

author: Tomomi Sasaki


text:
Japan: Bloggers on the Nakagawa affair · Global Voices
Chris Salzberg

Over a week has passed since now-infamous footage of Japan's former finance minister Shōichi Nakagawa stumbling through a 20 minute speech at the G7 meeting in Rome made world headlines and hit the top of YouTube charts. While Nakagawa at first blamed his performance on cold medicine, it was later revealed [ja]
by Rintaro Tamaki, director general of the Finance Ministry's International Bureau, that the former finance minister had been drinking wine with female news reporters prior to his appearance (although reportedly only having “tasted [the wine] with his lips”); later reports that Nakagawa had also misbehaved at a subsequent visit to the Vatican only added fuel to the fire.
Nakagawa's eventual resignation and replacement by Kaoru Yosano didn't stop the flood of commentary in blogs and forums. The game industry, meanwhile, jumped at the opportunity and developed a game for mobile phones in which users earn points by getting the minister to answer questions at the press conference in order to boost his approval rating.
Given that there are thousands of blog posts on the Nakagawa affair in the Japanese blogosphere, the best I'll be able to do here is to feature one small sample. One interesting view was expressed by blogger Naoto Yamamoto (山本直人), who sees Nakagawa's performance at the press conference as a chance to show the world that Japanese people are human. Yamamoto writes:
中川昭一は、もはや日本を代表する「グレート・コミュニケーター」と言ってもいいのではないだろうか。
彼の記者会見が問題なのは「飲酒疑惑」とか「しどろもどろ」とか、そういう水準のものではない。
ネタとしてあまりにも「面白すぎる」ということにある。
しかも、表情も言葉も動画的だ。そしてさらに凄いのは、国境を超えて「面白い」ということだ。
You Tubeでは”Japanese finance minister drunk at G-7”というわけで、他にも結構アップされている。
これは、「グローバルなコミュニケーション」で悩む、マーケターや広告関係者は見習わなくてはいけない。
「日本語だから通じない」という常識を、彼は覆している。とにかく、変なものは変だ。そして、あの眼の危なさ。眼の持つインパクトをあそこまで具現化したケースがあっただろうか。あの鬼気迫るというか幽体離脱したような眼の前では、オバマやヒラリーは「ハリウッド俳優が演じる政治家」にしか見えない。
そして、所作。あらぬ方向を探して、それをサポートしようとする白川総裁のキャラもあいまって、無声映画でも通用するような振る舞いだ。チャップリンやキートンも、こんな演技はできないだろう。
もしかしたら彼はこの記者会見のおかげで大臣の座を棒に振るかもしれない。だが、彼はそうして身を挺して、「グローバルなコミュニケーションのあり方」を私たちに教えてくれたのだ。
あの会見が元で石もて追われるように、政界の中央から去る可能性もある。でも、しばらくしたら「泣いた赤鬼」に出てくる、「青鬼」さんのような人だったことが分かる日かもしれない。
At as subjectively as possible, blogger Tamagawaboat expresses a similarly sympathetic view:
旧来の日本人は、
人間臭い失敗に対し「人間的な可愛らしさ」を憶えるほど
寛容であったはずだ。
日本人を「無表情で何を考えているか分からない」などといった
「エコノミック・アニマル」的ステレオタイプに嵌った外国の人が、
「日本人も俺たちと同じ人間なんだ」と安心できたのでは？
YouTubeの「中川昭一・Ｇ７」の動画への書き込みを読みながら、そう思った。
しいて言えば「日本の恥を晒した」と評するよりも
「身近で等身大の日本人」を
外国の人は感じていただけたのではないか。
海外のテレビ局のキャスターが中川の真似をしたのも
卑下を意図をしたものではなく、
「ひゃあー、人間臭くて面白れぇ～」と思ったからに他ならないのだ。
それを「日本の恥を晒した」などとヌカす日本人はよほどキンタマが小さい奴だ。
そうは思わないか？なあ、セニョール。
There were also many who criticized the way that Japanese media covered the G7 meeting. Blogger spherescape writes:
何より、G7の会議で、アメリカの保護政策に釘を刺して成果を挙げた中川昭一氏の実績は、ほとんど報道されていません。政治家はその政策と実行内容や成果によって評価されるもので、ハッキリ言って、酒好きかどうか、記者会見で眠くてしょうがなかったかなど、関係ありません。
居眠りが問題なら、仮病による海外要人との会談のキャンセルも同じように問題でしょう。小沢一郎民主党代表には、代表の座から降りていただかないといけませんね。
Finally, blogger anaguma wonders why nobody stopped Nakagawa from talking at the press conference given his state and his personal history of drinking:
まず、中川さんには前歴があった。
この時点で、リスクがある程度把握できたわけです。
（彼の政治家としての能力云々、とは別の次元ですよ）
つまり、この人は一種の病気なんだと。
じゃあどの程度の頻度で深酒をするのか？
どんな条件で何をどれくらい飲むと人前に出せないほど泥酔するのか？
ふるうのは暴言か、暴力か？そもそも、そんなに酒を飲む理由は？
こういった評価をもとに、対策を検討すべきだったのです。
少なくともこの人を大臣（しかも重要ポスト）に配置した以上、
政府は彼を守るべきだったと私は思います。

author: Chris Salzberg


text:
Kazakhstan: Lomography · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Ehot posts a collection of images taken in Almaty, Kazakhstan, with the legendary Lomo camera, which gave name to the whole trend in photo art called lomography.

author: Adil Nurmakov


text:
Kazakhstan: Rally of the opposition · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Zhanna writes a post about the rally staged by the leading Kazakhstani opposition party in Almaty.


text:
Korea: Economic downturn and which companies have the best chances for survival.  · Global Voices
Hyejin Kim

While all of us hope the economic downturn is over soon, it seems that it’s a long term battle. Companies are cutting employees or decreasing their business scope. A netizen shares his experience of working at a Japanese company. Different business operation styles are introduced.
일본회사에서 근무하고 있습니다. 대기업에서 근무하다가  7년전 일본종합상사로 직장을 옮겼읍니다.이 회사는(회사명은 밝히지 않겠읍니다.) 기계관련 유통회사로 일본에서 도쿄,오사카 증시에 상장도 되어 있으며  수많은 우량기업들의 산업제품을 전세계적으로 판매하고 있는 글로벌기업 입니다. 요즈음 신문이나 뉴스를 보면은 불경기로 인해 기업의 실적감소와 유지를 위해 구조조정을 한다는 얘기가 심심찮게 흘러 나오는 것을 볼수 있읍니다. 저 또한 대기업 근무때 IMF를 껶었던 터라 현재 기업의 흘러가는 상황이 눈에 선하게 들어 옵니다. 그 때는 아침에 출근하면 누가 구조조정 대상이니,누가 회사를 그만두니, 누가 관계사 전출 발령이 났느니…. 일이 손에 잡히지 않아 담배만 물고서 한숨을 쉬었읍니다.
오늘 이 글을 쓴 목적은 일본회사에 근무하면서 느낀 일본인의 신의에 대해 얘기하고자 합니다. 제가 7년전 이 회사에 입사시 적자가 누적되어 자본잠식이 된 상황하에서 일본으로 철수를 하느냐,마느냐 하는 딜레마에 빠져 있던 상황이었읍니다. 그래서 분위기도 상당히 침체되어 있었고, 기존 직원들은 월급이 인상된 적이 없이 마음은 콩밭에 간 상태에서 근무하고 있었읍니다.
처음에 입사하여 가장 힘든 점은 한국과 일본의 문화차이였읍니다. 가까운 나라이지만 문화차이는 엄청나서 서로가 이해하기 힘든 점이 너무나 많았읍니다. 그래서 일본 관련 서적도 보고 나름대로 공부를 하였지만 격차는 좁혀지지 않았읍니다. 그런 점으로 인해 회사를 그만 둘까 하는 생각도 많이 하였으며,주위에서 스카웃 제의도 오고 하였지만 지인의 소개로 입사하면서, 얼굴에 먹칠 하지 않겠다고 약속하였기에 끝장을 보자고 마음을 먹었읍니다.
7년이란 세월이 흐르면서 나름대로 스트레스를 받으며 열심히 노력하여 매년 흑자를 내었읍니다. 물론 같이 있는 직원들의 노고가 컸다고 생각하고 있읍니다. 그런데 한가지 놀란 점이 있다면 매년 흑자가 나도 이익금을 일본에 가져가지 않고 잉여금으로 적금을 들어서 보관하고 있다는 점입니다. 한국회사라면 경영주가  주주에게 배당를 한다던지 빚을 내어 공장을 짓던지,차를 큰차로 바꾼다던지………그렇게 이익잉여금을 남겨 둔 상황에서 현재의 위기를 껶다보니,일본본사에서는 걱정하지 말고 경제위기가 풀릴 때 까지 벌어둔 돈으로 생활하라고 합니다.
최근 환율상승으로 인해 수입업체는 전부 개점휴업 상태라고 알고 있읍니다. 다행히 저는 타업체에 비해서는 편안한 마음으로 지내고 있읍니다. 주위에 한참 잘 나갈때 벌어둔 돈을 물 쓰듯 펑펑 쓰며,은행 빚을 내며, 큰 소리 치면서 자신있다고 하시던 대한민국 사장님들 . 한번 본 받아야 될 점이 아닐까요.
참고로 저는 일본을 좋아하는 사람은 아닙니다.[…]단지, 한 가지 명확한 점은 일본인은 기본에 충실하다는 점 입니다.
For reference, I am not a person who likes Japan.[…] One clear thing is that Japanese are faithful to the basics.
Regarding this post, many netizens commented.
일본 교토식 기업운영…오늘 비즈니스 위크인가에서 읽었던 내용, 그대로이네요. 교토기업정서가 늘, 잘 나갈때,,늘 위기를 대비하여,,교토에는 오늘도 역사상 최대로 어려운 일본기업들이건만 , 교토시에는 구조조정이란 게 없답니다. 그간 벌어놓은 걸로만 직원들 월급줘도 2년은 거뜬히- 2년간 매출이 제로 라도-버틸수 있다..는 내용이었습니다. 회이팅입니다. 지금은 국경없는 다국적기업. 내가 일하는 곳이 바로 내가 애국(지구의 어느나라이건간에) 하는 장소죠.
지적한 대로 그들은 진정 기본에 충실합니다. 우리는 컴퓨터를 도입하면서 주산을 없애버린 것을 기억할 것입니다. 공업분야든 농업분야, 상업분야의 학교들 모두가 기초교육에 충실하다는 것을 우린 본받아야 합니다.
Due to historical background, some of them more sensitively respond.
난 친일파 척결에는 찬성하지만…일본인들의 기업가 정신…사무라이 정신은 반드시 본받아야 한다고 믿는 사람이다…
솔직히 일본이 싫지만 인정할껀 인정해야지..기본에 충실한건 맞다..본받을꺼도 있구..
그 회사는 괜찮네요… 그렇지만 일본회사라 해서 다 그런건 아니죠[…]
And another country:
정확하십니다. “기본에 충실하다.” 맞습니다. 이게 일본이죠. 근데 일본인들보다 더 무서운 나라가 있습니다. 바로 미국인들입니다. 이들은 기본에 충실하기 이전에 “본질에 충실하다.” 로 표현하고 싶습니다. 반면 한국은 빠른 성장을 해야했던 이유로 응용은 잘합니다. 지금처럼 모두가 힘들때야말로 경쟁적 성장의 화두는 잠시 접고, 멀리 내다보면서 우리도 기본과 본질에 충실해야할 좋은 기회인 것 같습니다.

author: Hyejin Kim


text:
Kyrgyzstan: Hard Time for the Opposition · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Elena writes a history of the persecution of the oppositional movements in Kyrgyzstan.


text:
Kyrgyzstan: Smoke Country  · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Elena published some information about smoking among the youth in Kyrgyzstan.


text:
Lebanon: Christopher Hitchens’ Beirut Scuffle Sparks Debate · Global Voices
Antoun Issa

Former leftist turned conservative writer Christopher Hitchens ran into trouble in Beirut last week when he attempted to deface a poster/memorial of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP), a Hezbollah ally.
Versions of the event claim a heavily intoxicated Hitchens shouted obscenities at the party, ultimately resulting in an altercation with several SSNP members nearby.
Hitchens claimed to have been beaten by SSNP members who “had come out of nowhere.”
The confrontation exploded onto the blogosphere – reaching as far as The Huffington Post – with many Lebanese bloggers disagreeing as to who should take the blame.
Initially, there was doubt as to whether or not the altercation actually occurred. The Angry Arab News Service reveals that Lebanese police sources and the SSNP both denied the fight took place:
According to a Lebanese police sources cited in Al-Akhbar, Hitchens was not attacked in Beirut. And the SSNP also denied the story and said that they had no posters in Beirut. If this story is made up it would not be a first: remember that Hitchens claimed to have interviewed Abu Nidal, when there is no evidence whatsoever for that interview.
However, Qifa Nabki who attended the Hitchens lecture at the American University of Beirut that night confirmed the incident took place, but the beating was not as severe as Hitchens originally claimed:
Curious to see Hitch with a black eye, I headed over to the lecture which was entitled: “Who are the Revolutionaries in the Middle East Today?” The auditorium was crowded when he showed up, sans signs of SSNP punishment. He launched his talk by explaining that his real topic would be “The Ironies of History,” and proceeded to wax philosophic about the dangers of moral equivalency, the evil of Hasan Nasrallah, the greatness of Bush, the incoherence of religion, the need for secular nationalist revolutionaries, the white man’s burden, etc. It was signature late Hitchens: an arch and pompous parody of himself.
Elbowing my way to the front of the crowd after the talk, I managed to ask him whether the rumor was true. Had he, in fact, been beaten up in Hamra by the secular nationalist revolutionaries of the SSNP? It was, Hitchens confirmed. “They broke my glasses, tried to break my finger. They roughed me up.”
News of the incident was met with criticism of both the SSNP and Hitchens. The Blacksmiths of Lebanon blasted the SSNP for the fight:
In a remarkable show of versatility, the SSNP (Syrian Socialist Nationalist Party, i.e. another outlet of Syrian “influence” in Lebanon) showed that not only could its thugs rough up local Beirut residents who rejoice over Syria's withdrawal from the capital and the country, but that they could also do it to foreigners who might be visiting the city and disapprove of their “swastika-like symbol” on posters plastered all over Hamra street.
Milder criticism of the SSNP comes from The Human Province, who writes:
The big news on the interweb from his trip is that he was beaten up by SSNP thugs for scribbling on their posters, as my friend Qifa confirmed with paparazzi flair after the lecture. I don’t really have much to say about that (in public), except that it’s shameful that the SSNP continues to run around beating people up with impunity.
Abu Muqawama condemned the SSNP's thuggery, but criticised Hitchens’ provocation:
This story has now been confirmed. Look, it's widely known that since the May 2008 events the SSNP guys have behaved like thugs in Hamra. But seriously, would you roll into East L.A. and start writing over gang signs? I mean, is that smart? C'mon, Brother Hitchens, we're rootin’ for you, but have a little walkin’ around sense. He was probably at De Prague. Where the wait staff is, like, 90% SSNP.
Following the confirmation of the fight, The Angry Arab News Service was scathing of Hitchens, and gave a full account of the incident:
I was just informed that the boring travel companion of Hitchens in Beirut, i.e., Michael Totten, confirms that Hitchens indeed tried to deface the SSNP's commemorative sign near Wimpy which notes the brave operation by Khalid `Alwan, a Beiruti young man, against Israeli terrorist soldiers who were sitting in the cafe defacing our capital. A small sign was mounted on the location of the brave operation.
Hitchens and his boring travel companion are making noises about the ideology of the SSNP and they have been referring to its “inverted” swastika. Now I have never been a fan of the SSNP and have been critical of its ideology, but the real Nazi party in Lebanon–for anybody who knows anything about Lebanon, which does not include Hitchens and Totten and that infamous Forbes writer who could not even get the date of March 14 right– is none other than the party that invited and hosted Hitchens in Beirut.
The right-wing Zionist apologists, Hitchens et al, were in Beirut at the invitation of the sleaziest political group imaginable: the so-called Now Lebanon media outfit (I call it Now Hariri), which is tied to Future (Hariri) media, which is tied to Quantum group which is tied to Lebanon Renaissance Foundation, which is tied to nepharious political projects in Lebanon with the stamp of Cheney-Bush-Hariri-House of Saud-Gemayyel.
The political coalition that hosted Hitchens in Lebanon include the Phalanges Party and Khoury's political affiliations are with the Lebanese Forces. So the closest to the Lebanese Nazis–the closest to the Nazis of the Arab world–are none other than the Phalanges and the Lebanese Forces, and one wonders if Hitchens heroic claims are true, why he was not seen defacing the crosses or the cedars of the true Lebanese Nazis.
In the Middle of the East also paints Hitchens as a supporter of Lebanon's March 14 coalition:
Also on this press junket was the by now utterly alzheimer-stricken Christopher Hitchens, who gave a lecture at the AUB last week where he managed to call feudal landlord and predictable weathervane Walid Jumblatt a ‘true revolutionary’ – the collective Lebanese audience nearly died laughing…
I recently read his 2007 book ‘god is not Great – how religion poisons everything’, which,  although it doesn’t contribute any new arguments or insights, is a highly enjoyable 300-page anti-religious rant annex atheist-manifesto. It is only marred by Hitchens’ irritating habit of  always trying to paint islam as just that little bit more irrational and destructive than christianity. And by every inane and wholly uninformed comment he makes to serve his neocon-allied March 14 paymasters in this country.
And in a lengthy rebuttal of Hitchens’ companion that evening, Michael Tottens, Nour at National Updates highlights the weakness of their arguments against the SSNP:
Michael Totten has a new entry here in which he tells his version of the “bravado” story of Christopher Hitchens being roughed up by members of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party after defacing one of their memorials. The story is filled with so many lies and distortions that I don't even know where to begin.
Michael Totten, Christopher Hitchens, and Jonathan Foreman, are three western neoconservative commentators and self-proclaimed intellectuals who can't read, speak, or understand Arabic, and who have never read any material on or by the SSNP, who nevertheless find themselves qualified enough to make judgments about the Party. It appears their entire display of arrogance was intended to make the claim that the SSNP is a Nazi tool of the Syrian regime employed in Lebanon to do the dirty work of Bashar al-Assad.
The most arrogant position by Totten and Co., however, is their justification of their own actions. That they went to another country and defaced a memorial there is treated as an act of heroism when in fact it was a criminal act of vandalism over which they would have been prosecuted in any other country. Had they done the same in the US they would have been arrested and at the very least fined for their offense. Had they committed vandalism in Singapore, they would have been caned.
Discussion of the incident is raging at The Huffington Post, with a comment left by AnthonyLee outraged at Hitchens’ complete disrespect for a foreign country by vandalising the SSNP poster/memorial:
For whatever reason the sight of the poster provoked offense or disagreement by Hitchens towards SSNP, in his capacity as visitor/guest, he acted recklessly and disrespectfully towards the sovereignty of the Lebanese People.
Emotions and sensitivities run deep with the citizens of Arab Nations, surrounding the perceived controlling “Western” ideologies and influences in the region. Our unwavering support of Israel's incursions into neighboring countries, breeds resentment and perhaps is an instigating factor in the Hitchens’ altercation.
HuffPo's/Forbes’ characterization of “Lebanese Thugs” having perpetrated the beating is unbalanced journalism. How about “Hitchens accosted and punished by Lebanese Vigilantes for vandalism” as a headline?

author: Antoun Issa


text:
Mexico: Criticizing Wasteful Government Spending · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

The Mexican federal government recently updated information about its expenses and its budgets on their transparency website called the Governmental Transparency and Access to Public Information Portal [es].  Information can be found for activities by many of the country's public institutions including the amount spent, as well as the respective date. Using this public information, many bloggers have identified expenses for questionable recreational activities that have cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of pesos.
Photo by Edwin Guerra and used under a Creative Commons license
In the blog Taller de Música Popular El Cántaro [es], the article “On what are they spending our tax money?” selects 10 “absurd” expenses with their respective links to the site.  For example, the Secretariat of Revenue and Public Credit spent money on a private family function [es] with the Circus Atayde Brothers [es] at a cost of 315,000 pesos (approximately 21,000 dollars)
This article has been very popular in the Mexican blogosphere and was selected to be republished on other sites that attract many more visitors.  For example, the article was posted on the group blog Hazme el Chingado Favor [es], where it received nearly 200 comments. The user Mmm (#39) comments on the post:
se supone que el portal de transparencia es precisamente para que se vea en que se gasta la lana, pero no dice que se debe hacer si estas inconforme osea que nomas nos aguantamos? porque no creo que los legisladores esten atentos a que comentamos para cambiarlo porque no nos gusta
It is assumed that the transparency portal will be used to see where the money is being spent, but it does not say what one should do if you are not in agreement with these expenses, but instead we must just put up with it? I don't think that the legislators are aware of what we are saying in order to change it because we don't like it.
On the published list, others on the Hazme blog continue to look for other expenses on the Transparency list (comment #102), such as this by the state-owned Mexican bank:
Que poca madre!, si solo me llevó unos minutos en el sitio para encontrar más pendejadas de mismo tipo, ejemplo: “ADQUISICION DE QUESO HOLANDES TIPO “BABY EDAM”, PARA INTEGRARLO A LA CANASTA NAVIDEÑA DE BANCOMEXT.” $151,200.00
Hay cosas que el dinero no puede comprar… para todo lo demás está.. Bancomext.
Shameless! It only takes a few minutes on the site to find more ridiculous things, for example: “ACQUISITION OF DUTCH “BABY EDAM” CHEESE FOR CHRISTMAS BASKETS FOR BANCOMEXT” $151,200 (pesos)
There are things that money cannot buy… for the rest there is Bancomext.
Another web campaign is using social media tools like blogs and Twitter to raise awareness of wasteful governmental spending. The blog Gasto Inútil [es] (Useless Expenses) has also been collecting examples of questionable expenses within the government. Its Twitter account @gastointuil interacts with other Mexican citizens to identify some of these examples.

author: Eduardo Avila


text:
Nepal: Load Shedding Woes · Global Voices
Rezwan

For a country where there is an average daily power cut of 14 hours it is hard to carry on with normal life. Bibek Paudel discusses the challenges Nepal is facing and who are responsible for this.

author: Rezwan


text:
Trinidad & Tobago: Living for Carnival  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

This Beach Called Life suspects that Trinidad Carnival may have a positive impact on longevity.


text:
Trinidad & Tobago, U.S.A.: Aggravation Nation · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Trinidadian blogger Now is Wow Too is finding the U.S.A. “an unfortunate source of aggravation”.


text:
Uganda: Fire destroys Owino Market · Global Voices
Rebekah Heacock

A massive fire gutted Kampala's Owino Market early Wednesday morning, seriously injuring five people and destroying thousands of stalls.  As many as 25,000 traders, mostly women, are estimated to have suffered losses.
Owino, also known as the Nakivubo Park Yard and St. Balikuddembe Market, is Kampala's largest market and has been at the center of several controversies involving leasing rights.  Recent plans to build a new bus terminal at the Nakivubo Stadium next door have sparked anger among vendors, who will lose their space if the development proceeds as planned.
Uganda's Daily Monitor is reporting that the fire started at a hole in the wall separating the market from the stadium, and many victims are accusing the bus company that wants to build the terminal of arson.  Some bloggers agree.
Phantom at Even Steven writes:
The Market got burnt. I am staying with arson because those who should know, albeit having said it in the throes of grief, maintain that someone burnt down their lives.  Listening to P. K. Bbosa in the evening while he hosted some traders, it came out that the Minister Matiya Kasaija and his counterpart Disaster Preparedness State Minister Musa Echeru had happened upon what should have been immediately bagged as critical evidence: a kavera (Ed.: plastic bag) and a little can that had previously obviously held petrol. That the Police did not take these items is really worrying.
Geria at Ariaka wonders if the fire department played a role, noting:
The head quarters of the fire fighting institution, the police fire brigade happens to be a stone’s throw away from the Nakivubo scene.  They arrived at the scene 90 minutes late according to press reports.
Tumwijuke at Ugandan Insomniac laments the loss of so many livelihoods, claiming, “Every tragedy is an opportunity for change, but this is Uganda.  Our learning curve is L-shaped.”  She accuses the many politicians who spent Wednesday at the market of political posturing:
That there should be a National Day for the Caning of All Politicians.  I spent much of yesterday afternoon at Owino Market.  Within the space of about three hours, I counted 17 local and national politicians who visited the market to ‘show their sympathy’ to the vendors.  Opposition leaders blamed the government for not investing in the safety of the people.  Cabinet ministers made unrealistic promises of compensation.  Members of Parliament said enough was enough and it was time for the people to demand more for their taxes.  None of them mentioned he obvious: that the vendors were sitting on a time bomb, that the politicians all knew it and that they chose to do absolutely nothing.
Spartakuss also criticizes Ugandan politicians who “have the audacity to howl empty promises while hurling insults at government.”  He writes:
I shopped there growing up [no i didn't stop, i just haven't bought clothes in a long time] and i was told by the guy who sold me shirts that the suits they unwrapped which were good were actually sold to the upmarket stores to go for upwards of UGX 1 million (Ed.: approximately $500)! Now this population is caught without an out. they have taken loans, borrowed, buried their life savings into this. 25,000 lives changed by one action. What of all their dependents, families, their children at campus? This is tantamount to terrorism!
…
In the end, these are the people who work and toil and sweat and eat the sewerage that runs through their workplace are the ones who pay for everything that the politicians enjoy and covet. They are the ones who vote, the ones who take loans, who send their kids to school, who buy all that investor -produced sugar and tea! who bloody buy airtime! They are the reason that most of these banks exist! These are the reason there is a tax base in Kampala! They support this city and almost this country on their shoulders! on nothing but those lean shoulders.

author: Rebekah Heacock


text:
Uruguay: Key Findings in Report on OLPC in Villa Cardal · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

OLPC News summarizes the key findings of a report that analyzed the pilot program of the One Laptop Per Child in Villa Cardal, Uruguay.


text:
Armenia: 1 March Anniversary · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Dispatches from Armenia comments on tomorrow's first anniversary of the post-election clashes which left eight opposition supporters and two policemen dead. The blog calls the incident a slaughter at the hands of the authorities.

author: Onnik Krikorian


text:
Armenia: No dollars in Yerevan · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Life in the Armenian Diaspora reports that panicked citizens have been converting their local currency so frantically that there are now no dollars to be found at exchanges in the Armenian capital, Yerevan. The blog blames the artificial manipulation of the Armenian dram to benefit government-linked importers.


text:
Azerbaijan: Popular website back — minus forum · Global Voices
Simon Maghakyan

After several days of closure, the popular semi-independent Azerbaijani news and discussion website, Day.az, is back. However, raising additional questions about its brief disappearance, the site's forum — known for its open and somewhat democratic discussion — is not.
The day after Day.az was closed, user Zaur at Web Designers Blog commented on the importance of the forum.
Скорее всего это связанно с референдумом который намечается на 18 Марта, какое совпадение, ровно через месяц! … блокирование ресурса в котором могло отразится массовое недовольство граждан(пользователей портала) Азербайджана с …референдумом…
Writing for the Amnesty International USA Blog before Day.az reopened on February 26, I also noted some of the forum’s controversial moves.
One of the most popular online portals in the entire former Soviet Union, the Russian-language forum at Day.az has had thousands of active users. One of the hottest sections of the forum has been “Armenia and Azerbaijan.”
In November 2004, as a Russian-language Armenian forum user reported at the time, the administration of the Day.az forum promoted its first Armenian moderator, Arthur, giving him the privilege to delete/edit offensive and/or unrelated content from discussions.
The appointment was indeed unprecedented, as the Russian-language announcement from the Day.az forum administrator explained […]
Another, more recent, controversial move at the forum has been the creation of a private section where users with over 500 posts could discuss and post adult content.
[…]
Considering the various messages left on the site's front page following its disappearance, many of which contradicted earlier notices saying the whole project was closed, readers such as Arzu at Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines are still confused.
- If there were plans to sell the portal form the very beginning then why it wasn't explained or announced when the website first shut down and even before it was going to shut down? The editors could have continued working while the management changed hands?
– Why was it all kept in dark and on the website it said it was closed for technical reasons? Does changing management of the website has technical sides to it?
I don't know the answers but maybe soon it will become clear?
For now, if many were sure the site would no longer be the same when it was announced that site would reappear, Global Voices Online's Ali S. Novruzov comments on his earlier Frontline Club post that the absence of the forum is the most noticeable change.
Day.az reopened today, but its famous forum has been divorced from it and moved to 600min.az, a former sister site of former day.az. […]
But while some wonder if the forum might have been one of the reasons for Day.az's disappearance, many questions about its initial disappearance still remain unanswered.

author: Simon Maghakyan


text:
Azerbaijan: Sumgait · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

The Armenian Observer posts video from 21 years ago showing rioters in Sumgait during an anti-Armenian pogrom which left 26 ethnic Armenians and 6 Azeris dead.


text:
DRC: Police raise revenue, but whom are they keeping safe? · Global Voices
Jennifer Brea

In the DRC, Cedric Kalonji questions the Inspector General of the South Kivu police who, in a recent radio interview, pledged that the police were committed to raising revenue through security taxes or fees for the issue of public documents.   Kalonji writes: “While killings, lootings, rapes and murders, which are spoken of almost with a smile in South Kivu, have become trivial, I am tempted to ask what is really the role of the police.  Generating revenue for the coffers of the state or protecting people and their property?”

author: Jennifer Brea


text:
Hong Kong: Budget report: university students on sale! · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Financial Secretary of Hong Kong John Tsang made the budget speech for the fiscal year 2009-2010 at the Legislative Council on 25 of February. This is the first budget report after Hong Kong felt the pain from the downturn of global financial crisis. Unlike other areas, our government's finance remains strong. It is estimated that the government will still have a surplus of 18 billion HK dollars (2.32 billion USD) in 2008-2009, and will only have a 3.99 billion HK dollars (500 million USD) deficit (equivalent to 2.4% local GDP) in coming fiscal year. It is expected that the government is equipped to fight the crisis better than others, but when the budget came out, many criticize the government for being a miser in its spending, especially in time when people need real help, and that our financial secretary's salary is higher than the US president Obama.
A miser's budget
Brian Fong pointed out that when compared with Singapore, Hong Kong government is not spending enough to deal with the crisis:
赤字預算規模僅為399億、佔本地生產總值2.4%，相對於香港面對的嚴峻形勢，救巿力度明顯不足，與競爭對手新加坡相比(赤字預算佔生產總值的6%)，更加顯得政府欠缺魄力；同時，政府明顯未有善用儲備，預算案估計下年度的儲備仍然高達4,481億港元、相當於18個月政府開支，明顯高於政府自己定下「儲備應相等於12個月開支」的準則，反映政府並未有效運用手頭上的子彈來振興經濟、挽救衰退。
While Brain Fong looks into the budget from a macro and accountant perspective, other concern more about its actual implication on people's livelihood. It seems that the “sweets” that given out taste sour or even bitter to many:
Cheong from Citizen radio pointed out that the so-called HKD 6,000 (USD800) tax rebate is a trick:
曾俊華表示，以六千大元為上限退稅，但看看細節，原來要年薪九十萬才會退足六千大元稅，假如你只有二十萬年薪，即一般約一萬多元上下月薪，你只可以退到四百六十元稅，而且不是以支票退稅，而是在下個稅季中扣減，擺明當香港人老襯
University student on sale at HKD4000!
As the unemployment problem is getting worse, preserving job is considered the most crucial task. John Tsang decides to put the university fresh graduate on sale with a subsidy plan. However, many people worry that the policy will distort the job market as it allows corporates to pay university graduates as low as HKD 4,000 (a bit more than US500), in which HKD 2,000 is government subsidy. Ping Sim is very frustrated about this:
這一個應屆大學畢業生實習職位津貼計劃，本身來得並不突然，因為當局早於一星期前便已開始「放風」了。不過，包括筆者在內的普羅大眾，當時的著眼點主要只是認為偏坦應屆大學畢業生，並對其他待業人士不公平。筆者也曾因此撰寫了一篇《單保應屆大學畢業生就業做法不公》力陳反對理據。相信當時大部份人都不會想像到，原來這個津貼計劃並非「優待」應屆大學畢業生，因為其月薪竟然只有四千元（企業與政府各出二千），低於就業市場上絕大部份的職位薪酬。筆者原先還以為，企業需要以不低於市價（以現時市況應該也有七八千）聘請，然後政府津貼其中二千，企業仍須付出不少於五六千。殊不知政府是否怕企業不願意響應，竟然只要求企業每月付出二千（比外籍家庭傭工的最低工資還要低），便可聘用大學生，很明顯就是偏坦企業，讓它們享用高學歷的超廉價勞工。
Facebook: Hong Kong Financial Secretary deserves HKD4000/month only!
In the facebook, several groups have been set up to protest against the policy. The most popular one is Hong Kong Financial Secretary deserves HKD4000/month only!
The group recruited more than 2000 members in the past 3 days. And its statement said:
Since Financial Secretary can't get his job done(the reasons as below)
We are now hoped that he should have a internship on how to be a good Financial Secretary and receive $4000 subsidy monthly, until he knows how to get his job done.
1.Can't realize the difficulty of the people
e.g: Government has little method to help the middle class, because government expected they can help themsleve,for example, they can get money by mortgaging their house or using their own saving.
2.Contradiction
e.g:He refuses to reduce his salary and said that it is a “show” only. However, the government officers always do their “show in the street.
3.Making lose-lose situation
(Subsidize the internship for university graduate,employer can employ the degree holder with very cheap salary.Also, the competition edge for non-degree holder will be lowered. Both degree and non-degree holder lose.)
4.Suspicion of Conflict of Interest
(Both liquor and cigarette are harmful, yet he increase the cigarette tax by 50% and eliminate the liquor tax. He loves red wine and it is reasonable that it is Conflict of Interest)
5. (Advertise on TV to collect the opinion of Governemtn Budget, yet the outcome disappoint everyone.
6.Bias
(Chinese opera receive huge amount of subsidy from government, other art /culture field doesn't.)
7.Nonsense
(He said that jobless White-collar worker shouldn't expected to work as White-collar job. He don't realize that if they do blue-collar job, the problem is just shift to blue collar worker.)
8.Double standard
(Someone asked him why would he receive the salary higher than US President Obama (He:3.8m/yr Obama:3.1m/yr), he explained that it is a different issue and unable to be compared.
However, when he explain why the salary of graduate internship is worth $4k, he said that his first internship in US has no salary, he use the pocket money from his mother. Hence the graduate can get $4k is already better than him)
There are more than 100 wall posts in the group, most are frustrated comments, like this one (with my translation note on Chinese term):
This is another ” 8萬5″ (translation note: 85 thousand refers to the housing market policy of the former Chief Executive Tung Chi-wah, which distorted the market during the last financial crisis after 1997)…… Another time the government wrongly price the society's asset, another time we are suffered as 負資產! (translation note: negative-equity)…. Obviously not only the local university students/ graduates suffer, the overseas ones (You too! you no longer worth as much as before. The norm changed), the sub-degree holders, the grassroots, the cleaners and guards working downstairs, and every manpower in HK too (the norm changed right, we've got price-cut, you've got price-cut too), EXCEPT THOSE WORKING FOR THE GOVERNMENT APPARENTLY…. because the government never has a sense of how things outside 政府合處 (translation note: central government office building) is doing! They never put themselves as the ruling ones and never thought they have so much influence on how the marketer's perception! If they think they got no influence to the society, why the hell we pay tax and let them in the ruling chair! DOWN DOWN 4-TSANGS!
Smokers are even more outraged as the cigarette tax has increased by 50%. Kahui complains:
D煙稅一加就加五成，現在基層打工仔搵工又難，
有份工又驚冇得撈，想食支煙減下壓，但係個仆街政府就加稅，重重甘加稅，
食都冇得食，想唔窗口當門口都唔得！
自己啲高官飲既紅酒稅又唔加！
月薪幾十皮，自己飲酒又可以省幾皮，
你哋玩Q哂佢啦仆街！
幫助大學生每人二千，
重話唔會有公司藉此炒人，
你話呀？你點知唔會有公司咁做呀？
炒咗係咪你請番佢哋先？
Among the political parties in the Legislative council, probably only the League of Social Democrats could show the grassroots’ frustration by interrupting John Tsang from reading his report (see the youtube here):
However, their action has been criticized by the government, pro-establishment politicians and the pan-democratic alliance. Dadazim, a journalist comments that LSD can attract grassroots support more than the pan-dem's “rationalists”, even though it is a sign of despair towards local politics:
LSD的定位像樂擅的獨立樂隊，從來不需討好大多數。關心香港政治的人，一直看著這個政府能力之低下、表現之硬膠、態度之囂張，如何理性？投票給 LSD的選民並不盲目，只是看清楚了大局的無力，社民連越受支持，越反映民間無力。民主黨理性務實講道理講了十數載，有甚麼結果。合作是死、叛逆是死。朱門出來的達官貴人，哪看到路有凍死骨？
看LSD三子兜口兜面爆曾俊華，雖行禮如儀，卻也增添一點娛樂性。基層從來自求多福，對不知貧苦的高官從來沒有期望。看著曾俊華被爆到一臉面懵，你不能否認不少基層很愛看。
Seeing the three LSD guys scold at John Tsang, it is rather entertaining. The grassroots can only depend on themselves, they seldom have expectation on the government high ranking officials. You can't deny that many grassroots would love to see John Tsang's stunned expression.

author: Oiwan Lam


text:
Iran: A village where smoking is a sin · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Potin has publsihed several photos of an Iranain village, Makhoonik, in South Khorasan Province where smoking is considered as a sin and villagers has another name for TV:Satan!

author: Fred Petrossian


text:
Israel: Battling Cancer · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Daughter of Cancer from Israel describes the suffering her 56-year-old mother is going through battling brain cancer.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


text:
Martinique and Guadeloupe: Vocabulary of the general strike · Global Voices
Jennifer Brea

le blog de [moi] [Fr] discusses how a new vocabulary has entered into the creoles of Guadeloupe and Martinique since the beginning of the general strike: “What was really surprising (and for me, I admit, a little unsettling) was to see how in interviews, men and woman on the street would, without difficulty, answer [questions] with expressions being used by the national media!”


text:
Paraguay: Why Do Fellow Citizens Leave the Country? · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

“Why do Paraguayans leave our country?” writes Jasy Moroti on Somos Paraguayos [es] and lists some of the reasons including not being given opportunities, sometimes based on the personal interests by some.


text:
Shiv Sena’s Orkut Campaign: The Limits to Freedom of Expression in an Intolerant India · Global Voices
Gaurav Mishra

Introduction: Freedom of Expression in the Indian Blogosphere
The Indian blogosphere is abuzz with discussions on freedom of expression after the Supreme Court refused to throw out Shiv Sena's defamation case against 19 year old computer science student Ajith D (TOI).
However, the Indian blogosphere's reactions to the controversy are mostly based on reports on the incident in Indian media and the quality of this reporting has been very mediocre, with few details and little background information. As a result, bloggers are reacting to incomplete information. As a result, bloggers are reacting to incomplete information.
So, before I do a roundup of the Indian blogosphere's reactions to the story and share my own views, let me first present the basic facts.
Shiv Sena's Tradition of Violent Protests
Let's start with Shiv Sena itself. Shiv Sena is a far right political party in Maharashtra that built a strong base amongst the Marathi community in the sixties based on its militant ideology that Maharashtra belonged to the Marathi community and migrants from other Indian states should be thrown out. Starting from the mid-seventies, the Shiv Sena shifted its focus to a strong pro-Hindutva (and anti-Muslim) ideology, a shift that solidified in the mid nineties, when it became an integral part of right wing alliance led by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Shiv Sena has often been accused of being involved in coordinated political violence against against non-Marathis and non-Hindus. It is widely acknowledged that Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackery, who is revered amongst its supporters, has been instrumental in inciting such violence on many occasions. The Shiv Sena also has a long and well-documented history of violent protests against journalists, writers and artists who speak against its extremist ideologies (see BBC 1, BBC 2, BBC 3, BBC 4, NYT 1, NYT 2, NYT 3, NYT 4, Guardian 1, Guardian 2).
It's important that we look at Shiv Sena's ire against Orkut in the context of its long history of ideological intolerance and violent protests.
Shiv Sena's Unholy Nexus With Orkut
The story started in November 2006, when Shiv Sena activists stumbled across an anti-Shivaji community on Orkut. Shivaji is a 16th century Maratha warrior, who is revered by the Marathi community. Pune police asked cyber cafe owners to block the anti-Shivaji community after violence by Shiv Sena. A public interest litigation was also filed in Bombay High Court to ban Orkut for hosting the anti-Shivaji community (TOI 1, TOI 2, Rediff 1, Rediff 2, NDTV, Financial Express).
In January 2007, the Maharashtra government requested the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), a Delhi-based regulatory body under the Ministry of Information and Technology, to remove the offensive content. According to Indian law, the CERT is responsible for investigating requests to block websites from notified officers of the Union government or the state governments. If it finds the website objectionable, it communicate its decision to the licensing and regulations cell of the department of telecommunications for passing the order to the internet service providers to block the website (Indian Express, Live Mint).
The Shiv Sena also asked its supporters to flag these communities on Orkut, so that they could be banned (Orkut discussion thread 1, Orkut discussion thread 2). This resulted in a flagging war on Orkut, where users who were part of pro-Sena and anti-Sena communities flagged each other's communities. For a short while, many pro-Sena and anti-Sena communities were banned by Google, but many of them were quickly reinstated (Orkut discussion thread).
The Shiv Sena also sent letters to Google and internet service providers in India to block these communities and even met up with Google officials, along with Maharashtra government and Mumbai police officials.
In January 2007, Google decided to cooperate with the Mumbai police and instituted an informal arrangement called the Priority Reporting Tool which enabled Mumbai police to directly report objectionable content to Google and also ask it for details of IP addresses and service providers. Based on the recommendation of Mumbai Police, Google deleted communities against Shivaji, Bal Thackeray and dalit leader B R Ambedkar (TOI, IHT, Indian Express).
However, even as Google banned some communities that contained defamatory content, it initially refused to ban several other communities that were against Shiv Sena's leaders or ideologies. As a result, Abhijit Phanse, the president of Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena, the student wing of Shiv Sena, took matters in his own hands and led a violent campaign against Orkut.
In May 2007, the Sena sent letters to internet cafes threatening attacks against their establishments, if they didn't stop their customers from accessing these Orkut communities. In June 2006, it followed up on its threats by ransacking several internet cafes in Mumbai and physically abusing cafe owners and customers. The Mumbai police also instructed internet cafe owners in Mumbai and Thane to prohibit their customers from accessing Orkut. As a result, cyber cafes in Mumbai registered a drop in traffic and were forced to put up notices asking their customers not to visit Orkut.
The Sena even announced that it was developing a special software that internet service providers could install to block any message containing certain words and phrases such as “I hate” or “I despise”.
These incidents were widely documented in Indian media (see Reuters 1, Rediff 1, Rediff 2, IBN Live, NDTV, Indian Express 1, Indian Express 2, Indian Express 3, Indian Express 4, Indian Express 5, Economic Times, Business Standard 1, Business Standard 2, TOI) and debated in the Indian blogosphere and Orkut community (The Hindu). It's especially worthwhile to see two opinion pieces by Amit Varma in LiveMint and Sevathi Ninan in The Hindu criticizing these trends.
The news stories don't give details about CERT's decision on banning Orkut, or the final settlement between Shiv Sena and Orkut, but several anti-Shiv Sena communities have been banned since then.
The Mumbai and Pune police have also put their arrangement with Google to good use since then.
In September/ October 2007, the Pune police arrested four Bangalore based software engineers — 25 year old Lakshmana Kailash, 23 year old Manjunath Betegowda, 23 year old Harish Shetty and 22 year old Kiran Reddy — for posting an obscene profile of Shivaji on Orkut, in which he was shown clad in female innerwear (Economic Times, TOI). It was later found that the arrest of Lakshmana Kailash, who was detained for 50 days, was based on wrong IP addresses provided by Bharti Airtel (TOI 1, TOI 2, TOI 3, The Hindu, Rediff). Lakshmana then sued Airtel, Maharashtra government and Mumbai police and demanded Rs 20 crore in damages (IBN Live, TOI). The status of his case isn't clear from the news reports.
In August 2008, the Mumbai Police arrested Ghaziabad based computer engineer Adarsh Sinha for posting death threats against Bal Thackeray using a fake email identity in the name of Faizab Farooqi. They also arrested Mumbai resident Suresh Shetty, a moderator of this community. (TOI)
Shiv Sena's Case Against Ajith D
Ajith D, a 19 year computer science student from Kerala, started a community called ‘I Hate Shiv Sena’ on Orkut. One of the anonymous commentators on the website posted a death threat to Bal Thackeray. It seems from news reports the Mumbai police has charged Ajith for both criminal intimidation and hurting religious sentiments.
Mumbai police tracked Ajith's Orkut and GMail accounts for a week to ascertain his address and sent a team to his hometown in Cherthala, in August 2008, to nab him. However, television channels flashed news of their arrival, helping Ajith to escape and the police team could only confiscate the hard disk of his computer. The team also said that they were observing the Orkut postings and Internet activities of around 50 other members of the community (Hindu).
Subsequently, Ajith got anticipatory bail from Kerala High Court and moved the Supreme Court through counsel Jogy Scaria seeking quashing of the criminal complaint based on the ground that he hadn't posted the death threat and the community itself wasn't defamatory. The Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justice P Sathasivam, however, refused to protect him and said: “if someone files a criminal action on the basis of the content, then you will have to face the case. You have to go before the court and explain your conduct.” (TOI, The Guardian, The Hindu).
Roundup of Blog Discussions on the Ajith D Case
As I mentioned above, several bloggers have reacted strongly to the Supreme Court judgment, often based on partial information (CXOToday).
Lawyer Lawrence Liang at Kafila writes a detailed post on whether a defamation case should be settled under civil law or criminal law and delineates a history of defamation cases against Indian bloggers. He also makes a pertinent point in the Ajith D case –
When organizations like the Shiv Sena and the Sri Ram Sene start using defamation laws, it smacks of chutzpah to me. The definition of Chutzpah is a person who kills his parents, and then claims clemency on the grounds that he is an orphan. What other way can we describe the bizarre situation of the violence prone macho men, who suddenly run around screaming about the violation of their legal rights and the slurring of their reputation?
Patrix thinks that the Indian legal system is biased against freedom of speech –
As you see, anything under the sun can be categorized as an restriction to your freedom of speech. If I say something innocuous and that leads to couple of weirdos smashing shop windows in the town, all it does to get me into trouble is the weirdos saying that my words made them do it. My freedom of speech will be curtailed under “public order” or “incitement to an offense” restrictions. Shouldn’t actions be punished instead of words?
Marshall Kirkpatrick at RWW thinks that the Supreme Court judgement has repercussions for bloggers in all democratic societies –
It's a good idea for us as individual web users to remember that even as new internet technology sets so much information and so many voices free, even in a celebrated democracy – online freedom may be one repressive legal ruling away from being put at serious risk. No matter where you might live – do you trust that your local judiciary would understand the issues in a case like this? We don't.
Nikhil Moro from Civic & Citizen Journalism Interest Group thinks that freedom of expression lost a case in India –
Historically India's courts have accorded a high place for expression in the hierarchy of freedoms, but as Mr. Ajit's unfortunate affair shows, social media activists should expect the state to use a myriad of laws other than libel.
Sanjukta thinks that the Supreme Court decision is good for Indian blogging –
This would help clean up a lot of #@%$ that goes around the blogsphere, will help us become more responsible and mature writers thereby establishing credibility for bloggers’ opinion and most importantly it would kill the terrible habit of writing all kinds of indecent, uncivilized, abusive things anonymously in the comments thread. This would also compel the blog owner or community discussion board owner to keep the discussion clean and abuse free. It will enforce the dicipline of self regulation on bloggers, isn’t that a great thing to achieve.
2s at Mutiny warns against a simplistic discussion on freedom of expression –
The laws of the land must find better ways to control what is being written or said in a public forum than restricting and threatening bloggers with action. Bloggers in India must together call for what I think is a more mature approach and law towards dealing with public defamatory comments on the internet. Bloggers are, after all, not “public” figures like political leaders are and to judge both by the same yardstick might not necessarily be the best method. Besides, is this restricted to just blog posts? What about comments on these posts? What about tweets?
Pramit Singh believes that the SC judgment shouldn't scare bloggers in India –
Some might think the days of free-for-all Orkut groups are over. Others will say they are in fear of treading against people with might – the politicians, big business, virtually anyone with an army of lawyers, who, in this case are trying to put fear of appearing in courts for God knows how many times and thus choosing to ‘write wisely’.
However, I have faith in our Justice system. Bloggers are not going to face a million lawsuits in India.
Dhananjay Nene thinks that the Supreme Court's judgment isn't a conclusive blow to bloggers’ rights –
One important aspect which is perhaps easy to lose sight of in this debate is that the Supreme Court did not weigh in on the guilt or lack of it in this case, but on the fact that the person could not shy away from the responsibility to face the charges in a court.
Lawyer Praveen Dalal also says that we should not read too much in the Supreme Court's judgment –
With the Constitutional Protections on the side of Bloggers there must be very strong reasons to book a person for Defamation or disturbing Religious Harmony. The case is before the lower court that is also a fact finding authority. It is only after the lower court comes to a conclusion that we can proceed either to convict or acquit the accused Blogger. The Supreme Court of India did not found reasons to “Quash” the criminal proceeding against the accused and in the absence of the complete facts of the case as well as the copy of the judgment, it is very difficult to judge the correctness or incorrectness of the same. However, in all probability the accused would be either acquitted or released after admonition.
In an email reproduced in Vijay Mohanty‘s post, senior blogger-journalist Prem Panicker also thinks that the Supreme Court verdict is no big deal –
The SC only said that it cannot, suo moto, quash a criminal prosecution.
It did not say the case is well-founded — that is for the court to decide on the basis of existing law.
Conclusion: The Limits to Freedom of Expression in an Intolerant India
As for me, I see the Ajith D case as part of a larger trend, which operates at many levels.
At the very least, we should see this case as part of Mumbai and Pune police's crusade against inflammatory Orkut communities. Sixteen Orkut users have been arrested in the last two years on charges of criminal intimidation and hurting religious sentiments (Indian Express), and one of them spent 50 days in police custody based on a mistake in identifying an IP address! It's a serious crusade that will only become more intense in the foreseeable future and it raises several important questions.
To begin with, do we really want to defend a blogger, or a community owner, or a commentator, who has posted death threats against a common citizen or a public figure, or allowed these comments to be posted and then refused to remove them?
Going beyond that, should the Indian legal system apply the same standards for defamation for a common citizen and a public figure, especially a public figure as controversial as Bal Thackeray?
How can we allow a political party like Shiv Sena, which has set unprecedented standards in inflammatory religious speech (and violent action to back it up), to complain about blog posts or community comments hurting religious sentiments?
And, finally, given Google's willingness to short-circuit the Indian legal system and share Orkut and GMail personal data with Mumbai and Pune police, how comfortable should we feel in building our entire online presence on Google's services?
At another level, we should see this case as part of a trend, in India and  in democratic countries internationally, where traditional institutions are fighting back against the internet and trying to limit its freedoms.
Barkha Dutt and NDTV threatening to sue blogger Chetan Kunte for defamation is a part of this trend. Shri Ram Sena beating up women in a Mangalore pub and then threatening to sue the organizers of the Pink Chaddi Campaign is a part of this trend. US senators refusing to believe that child predators aren't a big threat on the internet is part of this trend. US, UK, Australian and Indian governments introducing tough censorship and cyber crime laws are also a part of this trend.
All these actions, individually and collectively, curtail our personal and public freedoms and also our ability to fight for these freedoms. By threatening to sue a blogger NDTV has curtailed Indian media's ability to question violations of freedom of speech in India. Similarly, by closing down the internet in their own countries, US, UK, Australia and India have curtailed their ability to question violations of freedom of speech in Iran or China.
So, what happens in the case of Ajith D is important in itself, but it is also important as part of what's happening with the internet itself. It's critical that we force ourselves to open our eyes and see the bigger picture before it's too late.
Cross-posted on Gauravonomics, my blog on social media and social change.

author: Gaurav Mishra


text:
The Greatest Street Party on Earth: The Brazilian Carnival · Global Voices
Paula Góes

A week ago today, Brazilians were waking up to enjoy the country's most celebrated annual festival: the Carnival, or rather, the  biggest extravaganza on Earth that draws millions of people onto the streets of the many cities all over the country. It is one of many European imports that having mixed Native, African and European elements, have found their own flavor, colours and fame  in Brazil.
Nevermind the worldwide economic crisis, or Brazil's own everyday crises – it is carnival as usual. The numbers for domestic and international tourism were above expectations and higher than last year's, following the trend for yearly growth. It was expected that 719,000 international tourists would visit Rio de Janeiro alone (last year, there were 705,000). And with the dollar on a high, many of the Brazilians who would normally spend their holidays abroad decided to have a carnival at home, traveling within the country.
During Carnival, people dress up, indulge themselves or just take the always welcomed opportunity of time off to recharge batteries. The country grinds to a halt during the celebration, and many say the new year only begins after carnival. It is impossible not to laugh at people's creativity when it comes to making costumes with a pinch of irreverence, sense of humour and an eye for local and international current affairs. Here are some of the best photos licensed under Creative Commons posted on Flickr.
“First” day, Saturday, 21st
Not enough room to swing an umbrella! In Recife, Carnival starts officially with Galo da Madrugada, Brazil's biggest carnival “bloco”, figuring in the The Guinness Book of World Records as the biggest carnival parade in the world. Photo by Felipe Ferreira (FF).
The condom man in Recife, photo by carlosoliveirareis. During Carnival, authorities give out millions of condoms, but still, a baby boom is always expected nine months after.
Another very elaborated costume: an ironing lady in the streets of Recife, in photo by carlosoliveirareis.
Revelers at São Paulo's Sambodromo. Photo by André Cherri.
Forgiveness Sunday, 22nd
Rodrigo Soldon has a shot at the Mona Lisa, enjoying herself at Rio Canival.
Cordão do Boitatá, Rio de Janeiro. Photo by by Luciano Joaquim
For those who can not spend much time away from social network sites, here is the Orkut costume. Rio de Janeiro. Photo by URBefotos.
Fidel Castro also visited Olinda for Carnival.  Photo by Ádria de Souza/Pref.Olinda. Among other politicians, Barack Obama was also spotted in many parts of the country, but unfortunately, the lucky papparrazzi did not upload their pictures under a Creative Commons license.
Clean Monday, 23rd
The Iraqi journalist, Bush and the flying shoe enjoyed themselves in Olinda. You know the background. Photo by Ádria de Souza/Pref.Olinda
A kiss from actress Paola Oliveira, the drum queen of Grande Rio Samba School, one among 30 schools to compete in the Samba School Parade. Photo by dubiella.
The winning school in Rio de Janeiro was Salgueiro. Photo by  ane aguirre.
Shrove Tuesday, 24th
Venice? No, Olinda!  Photo by Ádria de Souza/Pref.Olinda
Jumping non stop in São Paulo. Photo by Cristiano Caniche.
No pancake day in Brazil, the last day of Carnival is melancholy – early hours, Rio de Janeiro.  Photo by Ana Pinta, to which a flickr user commented: “pretty much like Rio de Janeiro scenery”.
Ash Wednesday, 25th
A wishful thinker in Olinda counts down to next year's party holding a sign that says “Calm down, there are only 353 days left”. Photo by Ádria de Souza/Pref.Olinda
This year's carnival has now officially come to an end, and although the celebration usually goes on for another unofficial week of Carnival “hangover” parties, 2009 may now begin.

author: Paula Góes


text:
USA: Activists Incensed after Fatal Shooting by Police · Global Voices
Bernardo Parrella

Several people recorded mobile phone videos of a police officer  shooting and killing a young man named Oscar Grant on a subway BART train station in Oakland, California, around 2 am on January 1, 2009. Grant was shot lying face down on the ground in the Fruitvale station platform, after BART transport police intervened in a scuffle inside a crowded train car, with people returning home after New Year's Eve celebrations. Citizen videos and blogs have been central in the ensuing campaigns for justice.
The case received notoriety thanks to the videos shot by other people on trains from different angles. They were posted online immediately and also aired on television. Here is one of the clips available on YouTube (warning: strong images):
The officer who pulled the trigger, Johannes Mehserle, has since resigned from the police force, and is now awaiting trial for murder. Without making any public statement, initially he fled and was arrested in neighboring state Nevada; later an anonymous donor posted his bail (for US $3 million). Mehserle claims he intended to fire his Taser stun gun, not his pistol. Meanwhile, the family of Oscar Grant is preparing a $25 million wrongful death case.
While some sources found some similarities with the 1991 Rodney King case, this story is still deeply affecting the black community at large, well beyond the San Francisco Bay Area, particularly within citizen media and cyber-activist communities. The resulting movement is providing firsthand information and widespread mobilization aimed at obtaining justice for the family and raising public awareness on racism.
After street protests (with some violent episodes), one local initiative, “Caravan for Justice”, organized dozens of cars and buses to travel to the California State Capitol in Sacramento on February 23 to lobby legislators for justice. A channel solely devoted to this initiative is active on YouTube, including the following video with caravan member Pastor Zachary Carey:
More than 2,000 photos taken at rallies and other events are available on Flickr, along with scores of comments. Under a photo of a young man handcuffed in the back of a police car during an Oakland rally, a commenter noted:
The police in SF and Oakland do nothing to reduce violent crime. Law abiding citizens live in fear because the police are inept and incompetent. The murder of an innocent 22 year old male by the BART police is just another example of how inept the police around here are…
Writing on 4WardEver Newsvine, a group blog supporting multiple campaigns for justice, writer and death-row inmate Mumia Abu-Jamal said:
Oscar Grant is you—and you are him, because you know in the pit of your stomach that it could’ve been you, and the same thing could’ve happened.  You know this. And what’s worse is this: you pay for this every time you pay taxes, and you endorse this every time you vote for politicians who sell out in a heartbeat.
You pay for your killers to kill you, in the name of a bogus, twisted law, and then pay for the State that defends him.  Something is terribly wrong here—and it’s the system itself.  Until that is changed, nothing is changed, for we’ll be out here again (in the streets)—chanting a different name.
The Justice for Oscar Grant Committee website promptly started gathering and distributing video, photo and other updates about this case. Their official statement links the “execution-style” killing to “the system’s brutality and terror against Black people, youth and people of color.” A commentator said:
I’m from England and have just watched the brutal murder of Oscar Grant on youtube. Where is the justice in the world? In this day in age, after all that our people have been through over hundreds of years at the hands of such evil racist people….we still are faced with the prospects of not coming home through to police brutality. What is justice when those responsible for upholding the law are the same ones breaking it by taking away lifes based on colour, perception and ignorance.
My thoughts,prayers and condolences are set over seas in abundance to the friends and family of Oscar Grant.
VisionAries published more photos and slideshows of January protest rallies in Oakland, while the Sustainable Business Alliance blog asked people to sign a letter in support of “Assembly member Tom Ammiano and State Senator Leland Yee's efforts to create a civilian oversight board and help build the progressive movement for justice in California.”
Addressing the larger issue of police brutality and community awareness, blogger Crocus pointed out:
The truth is that people/community’s just don’t trust law enforcement institutions anymore and it spans the breadth of the society. People are so suspicious of officers intent and with good reason. We can no longer tolerate police brutality and injustice but unlawful behavior on the part of the law has become so routine that we tend to blank it out and carry on with the boredom of everyday life under the spectacle but “if not passion and action then my dear you are already dead”. Community autonomy is the only way to raise awareness on these issues, but as the process of participation in matters that affect our community’s are being destroyed every waking hour, it becomes near impossible to act collectively. Individual autonomy is a step in the right direction but collective awareness is collective power!
However it is fair to say that over the last couple of decade’s racial awareness and cohesion has vastly improved and thus transformed the landscape of interaction for the greater good. But the police, council’s and the Government still struggle with racism to some degree! It’s not how people interact these days but how intuitions treat people.
Finally, while announcing the March for Justice, to take place in Hayward, California on February 27 (the date would have been Grant's 23rd birthday), Grant's fiancée Sophina Mesa called for justice without further violence:
My desire is to see true justice served for Oscar and our family. I don't want another person to go through what Oscar, his friends, his family, and many other people are enduring at this time. Please join me, mine and Oscar's daughter Tatiana, and our family at the march on Friday.

author: Bernardo Parrella


text:
Video: Community Radios Fill the Information Gap · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

In a highly globalized and  digitalized world,  sometimes we may forget that in many regions of the world,  not even electricity is available, and the possibility of using internet as an alternative information source is still a distant dream. It is in locations like Guatemala, Chad and India that community radio rises as the alternative for native communities to speak about their concerns, hear news and stories, receive information and all this in their native languages.
radio by http://www.flickr.com/photos/roycostello/
In Guatemala, Proyecto Suri [es] has been giving a community radio workshop to the CUC, the Peasant Unity Committee [es], so they can train different members of indigenous communities in the techniques to produce radio shows geared specifically to their needs of information. In a country where there are 54 living languages [en], there are places where Spanish, the official language in Guatemala, is not spoken, or when it is, it is spoken as a second language. Proyecto Suri writes about how community radios have assisted in keeping these languages alive:
Desde 1997 que el Concejo lucha por el derecho de las comunidades indígenas de comunicarse en su propios idiomas y a traves de sus propios medios de comunicación. Es por esto que en Guatemala las radios comunitarias cumplen uno de los roles mas importantes para lograr la recuperación de nuestras culturas originarias.
The following video [es] was uploaded by ProyectoSuri and explains the work of CUC and their efforts in community radio.
In Chad, Internews [en] is living up to their mission by creating a series of community radio stations in refugee camps from scratch: from building the stations, the radio towers and training internally displaced Chadians and Sudanese journalists to produce informational programming on topics such as women's issues, humanitarian relief as well as news relevant to the interests of those who now call the refugee camps their home. The following video [en] shows us how the community radios have improved the quality of life for those who produce it as well as the audience:
In India, Our Voice (Namma Dhwani) is the organization who has jumped over hurdles and discovered how to make sure that their community radio reaches the desired populations.  Following, a bit about the  Namma Dhwani community radio:
In total, eight community workers run the Namma Dhwani audio production centre. They regularly produce and “narrowcast” programmes on a range of issues from organic farming, to rain water harvesting, HIV/AIDS, drip irrigation, and many other local development issues. (“Narrowcast” is a term coined by the producers to indicate the fact that they have, as yet, been denied the right “broadcast” their own programmes). In the absence of this right, the workers have designed a process where audio cassettes are played to relevant community groups at various village centres.
Every Tuesday evening for about an hour, the Namma Dhwani programme is transmitted over a loudspeaker as part of the village santhe/mandi (market) place just outside the production centre. Information about goods being sold and crop prices are included in the “narrowcasts”, along with social messages and even birthday greetings.
Their video, also produced by them, shows us how the programming is selected and how the community is benefiting from this effort:

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


text:
Africa: Blogging And Walking With God · Global Voices
Paula Odhiambo

It has been a while, but as with most things, blogging did not wait for life to catch up with it – it can be said that blogging helped to keep many sane as they weather the storms that life brings them. Through struggles and fears and laughter and tears, African women have continued to tell their stories and to share their walk with God. 2008 was a year of growth for many. It follows, then, that 2009 will be a year of maturity.
Chichi, who is Surviving on Grace, shares a valid lesson learned from a bruise on her light skin:
…why are we so adamant, so stubborn some times to go to Jesus for help. Why do we tend to feel on other occassions that he just can't understand where we are, and what we are facing, or even allowing guilt to make us feel we do not deserve to go to him and cry out “I HAVE MESSED UP. HELP ME!”
When we cry out for help, the Lord perfects that which concerns us, as Gomer will confidently tell you. She learns a lesson in time management while she is unwell at home and cannot make it to work. She longs for her bed but realizes that she has been doing way more sleeping than her pastor recommends:
I need to fix up sharpish tho cos I have really begun to notice that lately I sleep wayyy too much..Im talking at least 8 hrs a night or else my body aint happy. This is bad for someone as young as me. My Pastor is always going on about how a Christian should only sleep roughly 5hrs every nite- evrything else is counterproductive….
Rita asks us twelve questions every woman should ask while preparing for her king, and then gives her reasons for asking them:
Beloved, I am not giving you a checklist or a guide. I am simply saying 2 things:
1. As you prepare for your king, you need to look beyond the physical and satisfying your current wants. Imagine 3 years with him.
2. For the guys, I am sure you want a “queen” but you have to start preparing for her. She probably has her checklist.
She probably does! But while she waits, she should learn how to manage her time, and when it gets too hard, she should not be ashamed to cry out for help.

author: Paula Odhiambo


text:
Bolivia: Finding New Leaders · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Erika Pinto of Alkolica [es] asks, “why is it so hard to find new leaders in Bolivia?” and analyzes some of the potential opposition candidates who may run in the upcoming presidential elections in December 2009.


text:
Bolivia: Health Official Demonstrates Lack of Knowledge About HIV/AIDS · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

The blogger at A Pesar de Ser Abogado [es] writes about the the fired public health official in Sucre, Bolivia, who demonstrated his lack of knowledge about HIV and AIDS during a media interview, including saying that one can contract the virus through the use of a public telephone.


text:
Ecuador: BarCamp in Quito in March · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

BarCamp Quito [es] is scheduled for March 21 writes Gabby Corsalas [es].


text:
Global: Hijablogging In Vogue · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

Hijablogging: Just another global trend taking the blogosphere by storm.  All around the world, women who opt to wear hijab (the Islamic head covering) are also opting to blog about their experiences, as well as veiled fashion, lifestyle, experience, and the political and religious issues surrounding it.
The Hijablog is leading the movement.  Based in Norway, the woman behind the blog writes about everything from political issues (such as the recent debate surrounding hijab-clad women joining the Norwegian police force) to Islamic wedding fashion in Malaysia.  In one recent post, the blogger profiled Indonesian designer of Islamic fashion Itang Yunasz:
Itang Yunasz is a designer that used to create revealing gowns but then dissappeared for some years, to return with a comeback collection designed for veiled women. His designs were featured on the latest Islamic Fashion Festival.
Muslima Maria is a Canadian blog which greets readers with the sentence: “Welcome to my hijab journey…”  From her most recent post, it's clear that the decision to wear hijab, which she made nearly eight months ago, has indeed been a journey.  She writes:
I don't know if this is the case for all women, but i think I discovered the core issue for why hijab is hard for most women – myself included. When you put on hijab you have no where to hide. You can't hide what you feel about yourself, all the things you dislike about yourself, all the character you feel you lack because you spend 25 years building a life revolved around beauty rather than building your character. You feel ugly, even though every woman I have seen looks better in hijab, your own feelings about your body, your face, your self esteem is laid bare before you. this is the challange a woman has when she decides to take on hijab. She has the challange of living in the world and not hiding behind her looks, her make up her hair, her clothes. There is nothing to distract the world from her character, from the words she says, the thoughts she expresses….and that is what is truely scary. It is scary to go from a world where you bat your eyes, toss your hair, and flash a smile and gain automatic acceptance, to a world where people are actually paying attention to what you say and how you say it. Its easy to hide all the things you think bad about yourself behind fashion, make up, jewlery, and hair styling. when you were hijab, you have to face yourself, your low self esteem, your poor body image, your feelings about your lack of character or how you think you are not interesting now that you don't use sexuality to attract attention. When you wear hijab you face your own demons inside – thats the hardest part.
New Jersey (U.S.) blogger Is There Food On My Niqaab? ponders the concept of hijab salons in this recent post:
I'm telling you, pretty soon you'll see HIJAB SALONS everywhere. A sister can go and have a hijab stylist come and wrap their hijab for them if they have a wedding or aqeeqah to go to, if they aren't practiced in tying a hijab in a fancy manner. Heck, you'll probably be able to go there and rent a hijab with a perfectly matching hijab pin! You can wear it out and then return it to the salon where it will be thoroughly washed and waiting for the next customer.
Sisters will sit in the back, waiting… flipping through magazines with hijab styles, doggy earing pages that they may consider for their look. They'll bring their outfit in a separate bag to have the hijab, underscarf, and pin properly matched with it. The hijab stylist will examine their facial structure and complexion and then go to work, forming huge ruffles, buns, and arrangements with the hijab, tying and draping it in every way possible. Maybe they'll need special hijab spray to make it stay in place and not flop! Perhaps there will also be a beautician as well to help with makeup and they'll offer a niqaab for you to wear out since you'd be dolled up.
I can see it now… hmm…
By the way, if ANY of you jack my idea and open up a hijab salon I WILL come after you for 50% … at least! Hmph!
HijabiStyle is a blog which captures the myriad styles of hijab, as well as a variety of different women's perspectives on wearing it.  This video was recently posted on the blog:
In addition to the three mentioned above, there are a number of other hijab-clad bloggers: Hijab Style, Hijabee, and Hijabi Couture are only a sampling of the others.

author: Jillian C. York


text:
Guyana: Police Looking for Blogger  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Following one Guyana blogger's reporting of alleged economic fallout over the CL Financial failure, mainstream media are reporting that Guyana police are looking for the person (or people) behind the now-defunct blog Living Guyana because of “a false report that a commercial bank in the South American nation had requested a $5 million bailout to avert a collapse.”
Fellow bloggers have had a lot to say.  Guyana 360 predicts that the blog will probably “resurface under another name”, and claims that the police became involved after they “received a complaint from the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI) concerning an article that appeared on a website livingguyana.blogspot.com and which carried a letter with erroneous statements about the said Bank.”  The post continues:
Further investigations have revealed that these articles are erroneous and intended to cause confusion and disruption to the lives of citizens of Guyana and other stakeholders of these banking institutions.
The Force considers these acts to be erroneous, wicked and intended to cause public mischief. In the circumstances, an investigation has been launched to verify who is hosting this website and to pursue any other information or intelligence which surfaces during the investigation.
International and local agencies have been contacted for assistance in this investigation, and if it is determined that the law has been broken, anonymity does not exonerate anyone from the consequences that follow.
Guyana 911 is extremely critical about Living Guyana, calling the blog a “play-play news agency”, but also making the point that the “panic” is not as widespread as is believed:
[President] Jagdeo has convinced himself that the public has been put into panic and now police and shit are involved.
Look Jagdeo … nobody has panicked.
Meanwhile, Guyana Music Arts calls the situation “so sad”, and Live in Guyana (not to be confused with the blogger in question) republishes the statement that Living Guyana posted before the blog was removed:
Critic's note: Living Guyana has already published a statement on this. We have accepted that the story is false. 100% INCORRECT. We were relayed information by someone who was duped by a wicked person whose aim was to use this blog to create mischief. Living Guyana apologises wholeheartedly to those inconvenienced.
But the retraction doesn't get the blogger of the hook, according to Live in Guyana:
Any part of the world you'll be crucified for spreading fear, panic and public [mischief] on such sensitive issues. The Global financial crisis is extremely serious and is not for anyone to mess around by sending panic waves through the society.
The blogger goes on to republish a statement by the government:
The Government of Guyana wishes to denounce comments carried on a blog and repeated by Evening News last evening stating that GBTI has applied to the Bank of Guyana for a G$1 billion bailout, along with comments carried on a blog regarding Citizens Bank.
Government has noted that Evening News has since retracted its comments and apologised for its actions, and it is hoped that other media houses and citizens will act responsibly in these matters.
The Government further wishes to condemn in the harshest possible manner what appears to be a coordinated attempt to cast aspersions on the strength of our financial system.  As has been reiterated by the Central Bank, Guyana’s financial system continues to be stable and the financial institutions operating in Guyana remain well-managed and financially sound.
Diaspora blogger Signifyin’ Guyana, however, does not seem to be entirely convinced:
CLICO clients are still worried about their policies, and there appears to be a lot of silence around the state of affairs over there.  Stabroek News couldn't get a comment from the Insurance Commissioner, Maria van Beek in response to customers’ complaints about their policies and their concerns about an economic downturn.
And as the Government of Guyana seems intent on sending this message about financial stability, there appears to be more lack of confidence about their handling of money–this time from Canada.  In an effort to make its international assisstance “more focused, more effective, and more accountable,” the Canadian government (in a statement on Monday) recently dropped Guyana from its list of aid recipients.  A condition President Jagdeo claimed to be unaware of two days ago.
Now given these internal and external concerns about Guyana's money dealings and management, one wonders who this emphatic talk about a stable state of financial affairs by the Government of Guyana is meant to pacify?
Signifyin’ Guyana also sees a silver lining in the fact that the police are involved:
This is definitely an indication that bloggers in Guyana are being taken seriously, and as a result should behave like any responsible media and check sources carefully and so forth.  To their credit, they did the right thing and retracted the stories once they discovered they were false.
But she also admits there is a negative side:
Living Guyana (as I said somewhere on this blog last year) has become a largely credible place for giving us the stories other media in Guyana seem reluctant to carry.  So this investigation, which for the moment has quieted their voices over there, seems to me an attempt to keep the fallout stories from this financial crisis out of view.  This investigation is rather suspicious to me.  Highly suspicious.
Finally, she writes a post “in protest and in hope”:
Whether they were forced to do it, or opted to shut down to protect the identities of the bloggers, I, and some of the readers of this blog who have been emailing me with questions all day, am very concerned about the disappearance of Living Guyana, Guyana's most widely-read blog, whose authors have been the most critical of Government and media operations in Guyana.
Although I agree bloggers should adhere to the same code of ethics and standards for verifying sources of their stories as any credible media, I also believe that in order to fight corruption and the possibilities of retribution, one must rely on anonymous whistle blowers, and take risks with the stories they tell.  Living Guyana fought corruption bravely and honourably, and it seems as if they paid the price for the fight.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


text:
Japan: Why do Japanese work so hard? · Global Voices
Chris Salzberg

Japanese blogger id:eliya, who is doing economics research abroad, writes that he is often asked by colleagues why Japanese work so hard [ja]. Referring to economics professor Masami Nomura's book, “Employment Instability” (雇用不安) [ja], he explains that Japanese work hard basically because the penalty for being fired from your job is very high: Japanese corporations, for example, are unlikely to hire a worker who has already been fired from another job mid-career.

author: Chris Salzberg


text:
Mexico: Factory Workers Gather to Discuss Crisis in Tijuana · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

The network of workers of factories in Tijuana, Mexico gather the first Saturday of every month to discuss the current crisis in this industry, which includes layoffs and plant closing writes Radikando [es].

author: Eduardo Avila


text:
Pakistan: The Power Game · Global Voices
Rezwan

Ahsan at Five Rupees comments on the power game in Pakistan politics: “The sidelining of Amin Fahim and Aitzaz Ahsan, the continued allergy to an Iftikhar Chaudhry-led Supreme Court, the choice of Salman Taseer to play spoiler in Punjab — these are all instances (among many) of Asif Zardari being concerned first and foremost with solidifying and extending his control of both the PPP and the country at large.”

author: Rezwan


text:
Taiwan environmentalists clash with police over old camphor tree · Global Voices
I-fan Lin

David reported that a Green Party candidate, Calvin Wen (溫炳原), spent 26 hours in a camphor tree on the site of the Old Songshan Tobacco Factory (松山菸廠) in Taipei to protest and prevent its removal because of a new sports stadium. His photos reporting the Green Party protest are at flickr.

author: I-fan Lin


text:
Uganda: The Literary Blogren · Global Voices
Rebekah Heacock

Uganda's bloggers are increasingly using their blogs as forums for literary expression, and online poems, short stories and multi-part novellas are becoming increasingly popular.
Carsozy is one of the blogren's most prolific creative writers.  His series, The Devil's Bonfire, is the story of Simon Katende, a young Kampalan who leaves the city to visit his grandfather and gets mixed up in things he doesn't understand:
He was halfway to the bar when he saw her, his entire body froze and his mouth opened in shock, the glass slipped from his fingers and fell to the ground.
It was her the girl from the forest, she was wearing the same skirt and blouse he had seen her in, only this time she was clean and wearing white trainers. He eyes sparkled in the disco lights, they were the same pretty eyes that had stared back at him in terror just a few hours back in the forest.
She smiled and waved at him playfully.
Each installment of Carsozy's story (there are eight currently, and a new “season” is scheduled to start next month) is commented on widely by eager readers:
Everyone at work has been reading ‘the devil's bonfire’ aloud from my PC
— Mudamuli
U know this could be a book.  Actually, lucky us, we get o read the manuscript before u publish on hard paper back. Yay.  Seriously, nice read Caz.
— Miss Cheri
Jon Gosier, an American living and working in Uganda, is also blogging a novel.  Muxtionary, currently in its second chapter, is African science fiction.  Jon introduced it as follows:
I gave myself three rules for writing this story…
The reason for the last being that most literary works about Africa look back at what’s been, what went wrong, who caused what. The historians of African are literally writing the past for the continent and subsequently the rest of the world. In my opinion, there’s not enough dreamers. I want people to come here and let their minds wander about the possibilities of what could be. It’s my personal philosophy that if Africans don’t look ahead to what is potentially in store, they may find themselves in much more dire times in the future.
For those who prefer their literature in short form, Gay Uganda frequently posts poetry inspired by his daily life:
He is
a fast talker-
where I
with silence
an armor I
clothe myself;
he litters the air
with flak,
decoys,
noise-
and lo, behold
he’s past my defenses
deep,
down into
my fastnesses,
holding his own-
I cannot not
be in love
with him.

author: Rebekah Heacock