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Prison Break, Moroccan Style · Global Voices
Lydia Beyoud

On Tuesday morning, 9 inmates and suspected terrorists escaped from a Moroccan jail.  Moroccan bloggers used every pun and reference from the American television show, Prison Break, to describe their shock and disbelief.
At Carpe Diem,  Manal writes in a post entitled “Prison Break à la Marocaine”:
Qu’est ce qui se passe au Maroc, ce matin j’ai lu que 9 terroristes se sont échappés de la prison de Kénitra !! NEUF !!! Aw, comment ça ?
La presse reporte que les prisonniers ont creusé un tunnel et que toutes les dispositions ont été prises pour les retrouver. Pourquoi ces dispositions n’ont pas été prises pour les empêcher d’échapper ??
Comment de nos jours, des prisonniers peuvent creuser un tunnel et s’évader ? ça me paraît vraiment surréaliste, alors je vous prie d’éclairer ma lanterne, ceux d’entre vous qui sont fans de Prison Break pourraient me donner des explications !!!
Ceci dit, il y’a beaucoup de choses à déduire de cet épisode !!! Je me rappelle quand j’étais interne à l’hôpital provincial de Kénitra, qu’on recevait des détenus quand ils tombaient malades, je garde encore l’image du convoi qui les accompagnait, 50 flics pour un prisonnier !
Alors comment, 9 prisonniers ont pu creuser un tunnel à l’intérieur de la prison et ont pris la fuite !!! Ce n’est pas un poisson d’Avril par hasard ?
What’s going on in Morocco, this morning I read that 9 terrorists escaped from the prison in Kenitra!! NINE!!! Come on, how could this happen?
The press is reporting that the prisoners dug a tunnel and that every action has been taken to find them. Why weren’t these actions taken to keep them from escaping??
How can prisoners, in this day and age, dig a tunnel and get away? This seems so unrealistic to me, so please fill me in, those of you who’re fans of Prison Break might give me some explanation!!!
That said, there’s a lot that can be deduced from this incident!!! I remember when I was an intern at the provincial hospital in Kenitra and we’d receive convicts when they got sick, I can still recall the image of the convoy that accompanied them, 50 cops for one prisoner!
So how could 9 prisoners dig a tunnel from inside the prison and take off!!! This wouldn’t happen to be an April Fool’s joke, would it?
In his post entitled “Kenitra Break!” Jamal Hafsi writes:
Difficile à imaginer ! Pourtant ils l’ont fait !… Vous aurez compris qu’il s’agit là des neuf takfiristes qui à l’aube de ce lundi ont faussé compagnie à leurs anges gardiens en réussissant leur évasion de la prison de Kenitra.
Une évasion qui, comme on doit se douter, a mis en alerte l’ensemble des services de sécurité du pays. A raison d’ailleurs ! Parce que laisser longtemps pavaner, dans la nature, des évadés de cet acabit n’est pour ainsi dire pas indiqué…
Je ne sais pas si c’est Michael Scofield, le héros de la série Prison Break, qui les a inspiré mais en tous les cas le coup qu’ils ont réussi ressemble beaucoup à ces évasions qui ne sont possibles qu’au cinéma. Et en fait de cinéma je commence à avoir quelque propension à penser que cette prison de Kenitra ressemble plus, depuis quelque temps, à un studio de tournage pour films d’évasion qu’à une prison.
La comparaison est évidement un tantinet osée, mais il est tout de même bizarre, et c’est le moins qu’on puisse dire, que neuf détenus, condamnés à de très lourdes de peines, qui plus est en rapport avec le terrorisme, aient réussi à prendre la tangente avec une facilité aussi insolente. Neuf d’un seul coup, ça en fait un peu trop quand même !
Hard to imagine ! And yet they did it !…You’ve surely understood that I’m talking about nine takfirists who parted company with their guardian angels this Monday morning at dawn, as they succeeded their escape from the Kenitra prison.
An escape that, as one must imagine, put the country’s entire security service on alert. And with reason, at that! Because letting some jailbird escapees of this stripe prance around in the wild like that is not recommended…
I don’t know if it was Michael Scofield, the hero of the television series Prison Break, who inspired them but in any case the coup they’ve pulled off resembles many of the escapes only possible in movies. Speaking of the movies, I’m beginning to have the proclivity of thinking that this prison in Kenitra has begun to resemble the film studios where escape films are shot more and more lately.
The comparison is obviously a little bit daring, but it’s still odd, and that’s the least you can say about nine prisoners, condemned to heavy sentences, which on top of that are related to terrorism, could manage to go on the lam with such insolent simplicity. Nine all at the same time, now that’s a few too many!
For more information, including facts regarding previous breakouts from this prison, check out an English-language blog by Adilski:
So far in the history of Moroccan jails , two types of prisoners have managed to evade — the Al-Qadea members and the drug dealers. The common denominators amongst the two is that they both belong to cash-rich powerful rings. The prison guards can be easily coerced because not only they are underpaid, but they also work in a very corrupt environment where only money and bribes rule. It's the culture of prisons in Morocco, just like it is the case with prisons in developing nations.

author: Lydia Beyoud


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Russia: The Future · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Eternal Remont writes about Vladimir Putin's future: “Indeed, this new order will more closely approximate the former Soviet model of federal governance, whereby the presidency is relegated to a symbolic office, one party dominates the legislature, and the party general secretary – in this case Putin – will exercise true state power.”

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Saudi Arabia: A Day at Ogair Beach · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Saudi Jeans spent the day at Ogair beach with his family and shares some pictures here.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Thailand: Green Bangkok · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The Bangkok bugle observes that “for a city that's hot and supposedly polluted Bangkok is pretty green.”

author: Mong Palatino


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Thailand: Lavish dinner for rural poor · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The Siam Sentinel is not surprised by how different groups have reacted to the “ill-conceived lavish dinner” which was given to benefit the rural poor of Thailand


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Trinidad & Tobago: Cricket Lovers · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

As a One Day International match comes to a nail-biting finish at the Queen's Park Oval in Trinidad, Discover TnT Blog explains why West Indians love cricket.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Turkmenistan: Unused Potential · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Maciula writes about the tourism in Turkmenistan as an unused — but potentially very important element of the Turkmen economy.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Ukraine: Yushchenko vs Tymoshenko? · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Foreign Notes writes and translates on “the battle” between president Yushchenko's secretariat and prime minister Tymoshenko.


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Uzbekistan: Yusuf Juma, a Martyr Poet · Global Voices
Tolkun

Today, in Uzbekistan, where free voices are being severely silenced, practically no one dares not even to promote, but just to express anti-governmental ideas. But this is not the case of dissident poet Yusuf Juma, as his poems are full of passion and concern about his country and martyr nation, interlaced with the calls for democracy and rule of law.
Yusuf Juma (Jumaev) was born in 1958 in Bukhara region of Uzbekistan. He started writing poems from his early ages at high school. His poetry was mainly focused on the vital problems of his community, like dismantling the aerodrome, which had been host for planes that sprayed fields with pesticides that harmed people’s health. Already at that time, Juma was pressurized by the Soviet government, and when it collapsed, Juma openly criticized the new authortires too, because former soviet-communist officials — apparatchiks — still remained in power.
The Andijon events made Yusuf Juma write a series of poems entitled “Andijon turkumidan” [From the Andijon collection – Uzbek]. Together with his sons and companions, Juma organized several rallies urging the government to release dissident poets and human rights activists from jail. From this time, Yusuf Juma and his family became a target for the National Security Agency (SNB).
He and his family members were several times accused of fabricated crimes. In July 25, 2007, his son Mashrab was imprisoned, and one month later he was released as his guilt was not proven. December 10, 2007, was the worst day in the Jumaevs’ life. Late at night, a group of Special Forces of Uzbekistan attacked Juma’s house. Although Juma and his family managed to escape then, a week later they were arrested by SNB and are reportedly tortured in custody.
As the state controlled media in Uzbekistan are certainly staying away from such topics, the critically-minded blogs in Uzbekistan often publish works of Yusuf Juma and articles about him. Blog Rizobek writes that Yusuf Juma is not a criminal, but a national hero. Therefore, it is not him that has to be brought to trial, but those who have put him in jail:
Not Yusuf Juma, but those who attacked him must be brought to trial. Not Yusuf Juma, but those who legitimized this persecution must be brought to trial. Not Yusuf Juma, but those who could not stand his free voice must be brought to trial. Not Yusuf Juma, but those, who mock democracy and back and benefit from autocracy must be brought to trial! [uzb]
News Agency UzNews.net is calling on its readers to support imprisoned Y.Juma by sending the letters of support to the presidential administration's press service:
Yusuf Juma’s courage does not surprise, but strikes us. Notwithstanding cruelty and treachery of the current regime — that bristled up with its police forces and armored troop-carriers against the whole world and its own nation — Yusuf Juma, who is originally from a remote area of Bukhara, is declaring his disagreement with it… [ru]
Muhiddin at neweurasia, who closely knows Yusuf Juma, published the poet's letter, where he wrote about the armed attack at his house and how his family escaped:
We ran barefoot. Only three of us could escape – my wife, me and my youngest son. Other two sons could not escape and stayed in the house surrounded by armed men. We hid behind the water cistern. Special squad soldiers went to my room and shooting there… We couldn't stand this sound anymore and we were really scared. We ran away through our neighbor’s ditch in the backyard…[uzb]
Opposition blog Turonzamin, which frequently publishes Yusuf Jumas works, recently declared that opposition parties and Uzbek dissidents abroad are promoting Juma for a Nobel Prize in Literature:
We are promoting Yusuf Juma as a candidate for the Nobel Prize with the help of Dr. Botir Norboi. He has sent a letter to the Nobel Prize committee, stating that Yusuf Juma is the best nominee. Juma is now in prison and faces tortures. He needs our help. The world must know about people like him [uzb].

author: Tolkun


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Vietnam: Twitter and power source · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Blogger noodlepie thinks that popular online tool twitter can help residents in locating the nearest power/wifi source since power cuts seem an everyday occurrence in Saigon and Hanoi.


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Zimbabwe: Blank Billboards · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Comrade Fatso writing about billboards in Zimbabwe: “The billboards are blank. Like the people’s faces. Everything seems to have stopped. Billboards that used to be megaphones for products now become the products of politics. They are littered around the city. Huge metallic creations that proclaim nothing. Empty. Apart from several dressed in makeshift ‘Vote Robert Mugabe’ banners. Holy underwear on an otherwise naked body.”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Zimbabwe: The opposition leader, Robert Mugabe! · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Hope blogs about the “opposition leader, Robert Mugabe”: “The opposition leader, Robert Mugabe, has a long history of using taxpayers’ money to prop up his regime. His election rallies and his birthday parties show seas of ‘happy’ faces, but the crowds are all swelled out by school children, vendors and anyone else who can be bribed or bludgeoned into attending.”


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Argentina: “New” Trains in Buenos Aires · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

TBA Me Mata [es] published a video on the “new trains” that have been bought from Spain as used trains and writes, “the tragic thing is that these trains – over there they are waste – they are in better condition than any of the traincars that we travel on a daily basis.”

author: Eduardo Avila


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Brazil: Bloggers united against WordPress ban · Global Voices
Paula Góes

The Brazilian blogosphere has not quite yet recovered from its last fright and there is already another threat on the way: a blanket ban on blogs hosted on WordPress.com after a judicial court passed an order to close down a specific blog. Gabriela Zabo [pt] explains why:
O motivo é uma decisão judicial expedida em março, que determina a proibição de acesso a um determinado blog, hospedado no WordPress. O nome do blog e o motivo do bloqueio não foram revelados. O problema é que, segundo a Abranet, para que a decisão seja cumprida, seria preciso bloquear todo o domínio wordpress.com (não é possível impedir acesso a um único blog, visto que o domínio inteiro divide o mesmo IP). Blogs baseados em WordPress, mas hospedados em outros endereços, não seriam afetados pelo bloqueio.
The reason is a court order issued in March which stipulates the prohibition of access to a particular blog, hosted on WordPress. The blog's name and the reason for the ban have not been disclosed. The problem is that, according to Abranet [Brazilian Association of Internet Service Providers], in order for this decision to be carried out, they would need to block the entire wordpress.com domain (it is not possible to prevent access to a single blog, since the entire domain shares the same IP). Blogs based on WordPress, but hosted under different addresses, would not be affected by the ban.
Judge Jorge Alberto Araujo [pt] gives a little of the supposed story's background, which he has called YouTubeGate:
O caso é o seguinte: uma menina muito burra se deixa filmar/fotografar pelo namorado fazendo sexo despudoradamente, briga com o namorado (que está na posse da gravação), não raro traindo-o com outro. e este, indignado publica no YouTube as cenas picantes e íntimas.
The case is as follows: a very silly girl lets her boyfriend film/photograph her shamelessly having sex, she fights with the said boyfriend (who has kept the records), betraying him with another guy. And he, disgusted, publishes the spicy and intimate scenes on YouTube.
As the criminal content in this case is still not clear, and considering that the offensive blog, according to what some bloggers and twitters have heard, has had all previous posts deleted [we decided not to publicize the URL as it shows the name of the offended person], it is very possible that the blanket ban will not ultimately happen. However, as many bloggers have pointed out, this all sounds scarily familiar to some bloggers, who have already seen an astoundingly similar decision enforced in the very same way in Brazil.
Deja vu
Back in January 2006, a Brazilian court ordered YouTube to close down its service in the country until it removed all video clips of a celebrity sex video featuring model and ex-wife of soccer player Ronaldo, Daniela Cicarelli, apparently having sexual intercourse on a beach posted on the popular video-sharing site. While YouTube was banned in the country for a few days, allegedly the second largest national user of the site, thousands of YouTube users and bloggers launched an e-mail protest against Cicarelli and suggested a boycott of her television program on Brazilian MTV. Loosing money and prestige, the model denied participation in the lawsuit and the law was reverted.
Considering the previous legal decision to ban blogs from the pre-election campaign debate, some bloggers did seriously contemplate the possibility of yet another blanket ban. Knowing too well that it is better to be safe than sorry, they decided to take preemptive action. WordPresser Celso Bessa reminds readers of the above mentioned event in an open letter to Matt Mullenweg and WordPress/Automattic staff, also detailing other mishaps that the Brazilian blogosphere has gone through in the last years. He cries for help:
For this reason, I ask you guys to help defend our rights in cases like this, if the court really tries to reach you:
1. By providing the Brazilian Court with a technical report and knowledge support about the best way to handle the blocking order of this specific blog, without compromising the access to wordpress.com
2. By providing the blog owner with enought time and ways to keep his/her right to defense, to keep his data, and use the tools to migrate his blog and show the world his/her opinion.
3. By providing the blogsphere, with the information about the blog address and content. In order to allow us to judge the case by ourselves and the opportunity to a) take a side and b) show the world that we are fighting for our right to balance the power
You’ve shown, several times, that you guys respect democracy, common sense and internet collective good.
Rodrigo Ghedin [pt] also sent an e-mail to WordPress and received an answer in a matter of hours. The blogger asks why those involved in this current controversy did not do the same in the first place and hopes for a sensible outcome:
É tão difícil enviar um e-mail para lá, e simplesmente solicitar a exclusão do blog? Casos extrajudiciais muito mais simples do que o que está gerando todo esse rebuliço são tratados com seriedade e profissionalismo. Tem algum blog hospedado no WordPress.com plagiando seu conteúdo? Basta mandar um e-mail embasado (com links servindo de prova), e pedir a exclusão. Dia desses algum orelhudo copiou o layout e as notícias do WinAjuda. Notifiquei o problema ao Mark, e hoje aquele exemplo de mau uso da ferramenta não existe mais. Espero que o bom senso vença no final das contas, e que o WordPress.com não fique fora do ar no Brasil em virtude de uma decisão judicial por um segundo sequer.
Is it so difficult to send an email to them, and simply request the blog to be deleted? Much more simple out of court settlements than the one causing all this fuss are treated with seriousness and professionalism. Is there any WordPress.com blog plagiarizing your content? You only need to send a sound email (with links as proof), and ask for its exclusion. Recently someone copied the layout and news pieces from WinAjuda. I informed Mark about the problem, and now that example of misuse of the tool no longer exists. I hope that common sense wins at the end of the day, and that WordPress.com does not get blocked for even a second in Brazil as a result of a court order.
Once bitten, twice shy
Considering that 90% of the Brazilian internet providers are affiliated to the Abranet, if the blanket ban comes true, nearly everyone in the country will loose access to the one million plus blogs hosted on the WordPress platform. Twice bitten Brazilian bloggers won't let this happen easily. As soon as the news broke, a ‘No to the Ban’ blog was set up, making available badges like the ones that illustrate this article. An Orkut community has been growing at fast pace.
Gustavo de Moraes from TampaBlog! [pt] points out that WordPress pages are the 27th most accessed from Brazil and says that it will not be easy to block them, as the Brazilian blogosphere has by now learned how to fight:
Não entendo de leis, porém, de blogs eu entendo e tenho certeza de que tal ação não será tão fácil quanto imaginam os homens da lei. Eu, pelo menos, já estou fazendo minha parte para informar à todos blogueiros sobre a ordem judicial e tentar abrir os olhos da justiça, o tamanho do estrago que causarão cumprindo esta lei. Se quiserem, passem a URL e motivo para o blog ser bloqueado que nós, blogueiros, iremos cuidar do indivíduo direitinho. Boicote nós sabemos fazer muito bem. Mas mesmo assim, não estranhe se um dia desses tentarem entrar no TampaBlog! e em outros Milhares de blogs e estes, estiverem fora do ar. Esta é a justiça brasileira… liberdade para corruptos, cadeiras de couros para presos ricos e boicote a blogueiros.
I don't understand much about law, however, I do understand blogging and I'm sure that such a lawsuit won't be as easy as the law people think. I am, at least, doing my bit to inform all the bloggers of the court order and try to open the eyes of justice, about the size of the damage that fulfilling this law would cause. If they like, they can share the blog URL and the reason for the ban, and we bloggers will take care of said person. We do know how to boycott very well. But even then, don't be surprised if one day you try to access the TampaBlog! and thousands of other blogs and find them inaccessible. This is Brazilian justice… Freedom to the corrupt, leather chairs for rich inmates and boycotts to bloggers.
Other bloggers mentioned recent decisions, such as the ban on games (Counter-Strike, everquest and more recently Bully), not to mention a threat to close Orkut, the much loved (by Brazilians) social networking site. Yuri Torres [pt] is not happy at all:
Explico: Desde que foi implementado a privacidade nas fotos dos álbuns, existem denúncias sobre pornografia infantil. O Ministério público afirma que se não tiver acesso a todos os álbuns, para verificar as denúncias, tirará o Orkut do ar. E tem mais: Além do Orkut, ainda vão bloquear o WordPress! Sim, o meu blog, e os outros 1 milhão de blogs brasileiros serão bloqueados, tudo por causa de um blog. Em vez de simplesmente solicitar o bloqueio ao WordPress desse determinado blog, que nem foi divulgado qual é, vão bloquear todos! ODIO DA JUSTIÇA BRASILEIRA! Esses dinossauso que fazem as leis, que não tem nenhuma noção de tecnologia, e que fazem essas leis ridículas (vide proibir Counter Strike).
I explain: since photo albums privacy was implemented, there have been complaints about child pornography. The Public Ministry says that if they don't get access to all albums, in order to verify the complaints, they will close Orkut down. There's more: in addition to this, besides Orkut they will also block WordPress! Yes, my blog and the some 1 million Brazilian's blogs will be blocked, all because of one blog. Instead of simply asking WordPress to block this particular blog, which has not been disclosed, they will block it all! I HATE BRAZILIAN JUSTICE! These dinosaurs who make the laws, who have no concept of technology, and who pass these ridiculous laws (such as the prohibition of Counter Strike).
Cyber censorship or cyber ignorance?
In his first blog post ever, Daniel de Magalhães [pt] was unfortunate enough to carry this bad news. He asks:
Estamos entrando na era da censura cibernética? Até quando ficaremos sem leis claras sobre a internet?
Are we entering the era of cyber censorship? Up to when will we have no clear laws on the Internet?
This bottom line is also stressed by Raquel Recuero [pt], who says that, again, such a decision shows how unprepared Brazilian judges are to deal with the issue of law on the Internet.
O Brasil não tem legislação específica para isso, portanto, trabalha com analogia de outras leis. O problema é que a maioria dos juízes, nascidos em uma época pré-Internet, acabam não tendo o preparo e o conhecimento técnico para lidar com uma nova sociedade em rede. Assim, as decisões com relação a esses elementos, que acabam gerando efeitos fabulosos e desmedidos na sociedade brasileira.
Brazil has no specific legislation for this, therefore, they work using other laws as analogy. The problem is that most judges, who were born in the pre-Internet era, are not prepared and in possession of technical knowledge to deal with a new wired society. Thus, their decisions related to these issues, which ultimately end up generating fabulous and far-fetched effects on Brazilian society.
In fact, in November 2006 a rather clumsy ‘Cybercrime Bill’ was solemnly announced. Authored by Senator Eduardo Azeredo, the original text had been proceeding through the Brazilian Congress for about 7 years with no public debate, and the suggested bill was unanimously rejected by the blogosphere for, among other reasons, requiring compulsory registration for Internet users that would allow tracking either by the provider or by a governmental body, and offending people's right to privacy. Nearly two years on, the project still has a long way to go before being approved or, hopefully, be amended accordingly [pt].
Meanwhile, as disclosed this week, Brazil is not one of the four Latin American and Caribbean economies in the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2007-2008 Global Information Technology Report top 50. Latin America has fallen to the bottom of the worldwide technological development ranking, while Brazil fell six positions to number 59, compared to the previous year’s number 53.
Not the only one
Brazil is not the first country to face such a problem. In August last year, Turkey faced a similar situation and WordPress has in fact been blocked and remains inaccessible in that country.

author: Paula Góes


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Costa Rica: A Woman President  · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Costa Rican president Oscar Arias said that he would do everything possible so that a woman is his successor as the leader of the nation.  Juan Carlos Hidalgo took his comment as Arias’ way of saying that he would like his Vice-President Laura Chinchilla to keep his party in office [es], and disguising it in the framework of equality of the sexes.


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El Salvador:  Blogging for Justice in a Little Girl’s Murder · Global Voices
Tim Muth

Bloggers in El Salvador have taken up the cause of justice in the nine year old murder case of Katya Miranda.    This young girl was murdered in 1999 in a crime of shocking depravity.
The facts of the case are recounted in a video interview of Katya's mother and available on YouTube.   Katya's mother left her two daughters at the home of her paternal grandfather along El Salvador's coast with a promise to pick them up in the morning.   Yet when morning came, nine-year-old Katya was dead — raped, beaten and murdered.  Despite the presence of members of her father's family and their employees at the home, nobody claimed to have seen or heard anything.  The father, grandfather and other male relatives are high-ranking officials in El Salvador's military and the National Civilian Police.
Many believe that the investigation of the crime was haphazard and incomplete, but eventually Katya's father, grandfather and two employees were charged with the crime in 2000.   However all the charges against them were subsequently dismissed in legal proceedings widely criticized by human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and the Human Rights Institute at the University of Central America in San Salvador.  The current attorney general has indicated no interest in reopening the case.
With the ninth anniversary of Katya's murder, Salvadoran bloggers are raising a call for justice to be done in this case.  The symbol of their campaign is the logo at the top of this post.
Carlos Abrego at Cosas Tan Pasajeras [es] urged readers  to participate in the organized campaign which includes signing an online petition, to take a photo of the campaign logo at locations across the world which will be added to a photo CD to be delivered to the attorney general, and to participate in a “Day of Roses” march to commemorate the little girl.
The blog Salvadoreños en el Mundo [es] carried a letter to Katya written by her mother to commemorate this anniversary.   Ixquic* [es], a single mother and human rights lawyer who has written about Katya's case many times, displayed a tiny angel made of seashells found on the beach where Katya's small body was found.
Ernesto Rivas-Gallont urged readers to sign the petition and expressed  the outrage of many [es], when he wrote:
¡Qué espanto! ¿Qué se puede decir de una sociedad donde existan individuos capaces de perpetrar crímenes de esta magnitud? El caso de Katya ha tomado relevancia por el cinismo de los asesinos y por su prominencia y por la prominencia de la institución a la cual pertenecen. Pero monstruos como ellos abundan en este país.
No es raro leer en nuestra prensa o escuchar en los noticieros, de padres que violan a sus hijas y, aunque no con la misma frecuencia, de padres que asesinan a sus hijos.
¿Cómo nos verán desde afuera? ¿Qué informarán los embajadores de países amigos a sus cancillerías?
What horror!   What can one say about a society where individuals exist capable of perpetrating crimes of this magnitude?  The case of Katya has taken relevance for the cynicism of the murderers and their prominence and for the prominence of the institution to which they belong.   But monsters like them abound in this country.
It is not rare to read in our press or to hear in the news, of fathers who rape their daughters and, although not with the same frequency, of fathers who murder their children.
How will they see us from outside?   What will the ambassadors of friendly countries report to their ministries?
Victor at Alta Hora de la Noche [es] wrote on his blog a personal reflection of his own fortune having a father and family who protected him during the years of El Salvador's civil war.  Katya's violation at the hands of male relatives demands justice:
Que se pida que se haga justicia va mas allá de cualquier discursito barato de que lo social va a ser prioritario de acá en adelante…. Antes de pensar en esas supuestas reformas hay que limpiar lo sucio que hay en los rincones de nuestra patria. Y que se omita hacer justicia en el caso de una niña violada y asesinada, asi como se omite hacer justicia con muchos otros casos de niñas y niños violentados física y sexualmente es una enorme mancha que va a seguir empañando nuestra sociedad y en especial a quienes hemos delegado la facultad de hacer valer la justicia.
To ask for justice is done goes beyond any cheap little talk that the social good will be a priority from here onwards… Before one thinks of reforms, one must clean up the filth in the corners of our country. And failing to do justice in the case of a girl raped and murdered, as there has been a failure of justice in many other cases of children physically and sexually abused is a huge stain that will continue tarnishing our society and especially those to whom we have delegated the authority to enforce justice.
The time for justice in Katya's case is fast expiring as the ten year statue of limitations expires in 2009.  To remind readers of the urgency, Salvadoran blogger Hunnapuh [es]added a countdown timer which counts down the time within which new legal proceedings must be taken.

author: Tim Muth


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Indonesia: Fried fish cracker · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Yohana's Culinary Journey relates how Indonesians love to eat any kind of crunchy fried fish cracker. The food item is called krupuk.


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Iran: A bomb explodes at mosque · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

A bomb exploded during prayers Saturday at a mosque in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz, killing at least eight people and wounding 66. Sayetanha,a blogger from Shiraz, says[Fa] there are many people who have been killed but the cleric of mosque did not get hurt.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Iran: Photos from bomb explosion · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Erfan from Shiraz has published several photos from bomb explosion at a mosque in southern Iranian city Shiraz where at least 8 people were killed. The blogger said he was afraid of showing his camera and he took all photos by his mobile.Iranian government announced that explosion was not caused by a bomb.


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Iran:Detained Students May Face Torture · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Sibiltala says[Fa] it seems that Iranian media outside Iran did not write about Human Rights Watch (HRW) recent report about four detained leftist students. HRW says “officials must investigate the reports of torture and punish anyone it finds responsible.”


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Iran:No Olympic Torch for us · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Razeno says[Fa] that 2008 Olympic Torch passes through many countries but not through Iran. The blogger adds even it passes through Pakistan where there is a lot of violence. Razeno is upset about isolated Iran in the world.


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Iran:Videobloggers in action · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

According to Iran Inside Out,a project of Rising Voices,veteran Iranian videobloggers will partner with the Tehran-based Young Cinema Society to identify aspiring young filmmakers and teach them the skills to both produce short videos.


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Kuwait: A Ridiculous Mixture of Hail, Rain, Wind and Dust · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Unusual for this time of the year, Kuwait was just hit by a ‘semi-tornado,’ which included “a ridiculous mixture of hail, rain, wind, dust, gusts” in the words of blogger Kuwaitism. Equipped with cells phones and digital cameras, the Kuwaiti blogopshere is full of stories reporting the unexpected weather which hit the country.
Kuwaitism even puts together this quick video, filmed with his mobile phone, which is available on YouTube:
Kuwaitism's post also features a number of photographs, clearly showing snow on the streets, as well as uprooted trees – one of them on the bonnet of a car. He explains the mayhem as follows:
There were many many more scenes like that which I couldnt take pictures of! I saw light posts on the ground, I saw scaffolding fallen from buildings onto the roads, I saw huge billboards plucked from the ground …
I really hope not many people were hurt, and thank God we have the law against the elections signs on the roads, otherwise it could have been even more disastrous!
Rampurple asks if there is a hurricane in Kuwait and says:
What just happened? One minute I’m surfing the net with my window open enjoying the breezy air and the next minute am running around the room flooded with water!!!
Mark, meanwhile, provides us with a detailed report on what happened. He writes:
Although my windows were all closed dust still managed to come into the house and now EVERYTHING has a layer of sand on it. I couldn’t see ANYTHING outside my window. When I first heard the wind I looked outside and I saw a cloud of sand literally sweep into my block like a huge wave, something I’ve only seen in movies. Within second visibility dropped down to like 10cm, I couldn’t see ANYTHING outside. That extremely powerful wind with dust continued for a couple of minutes before I started hearing a banging sound on my window. I stepped back thinking whatever was hitting my window was going to break it but then I noticed it was rain drops. In a few seconds it started raining really strong and the dust cleared up but then I noticed the rain was so powerful and in such large quantity that water started pouring into my apartment like a waterfall from the window sill. I quickly grabbed a ton of towels and started to do what I can to hold back the water.
He also set up an email account, calling on readers to send him pictures of the damages, which are now being posted here. Mark posts links videos of the storm here.
In keeping with tradition and naming hurricanes after females, Kuwaitism calls the hurricane Sibeecha, while Mark calls it Kuwaitina, following a tip from Susheeh.
Frankom (Ar) meanwhile wasn't in the capital Kuwait, in the chalets area, a popular resort. He predicts:
صحف الغد ستكون عناوينها كالتالي … تسونامي الكويت أو كاترينا كويتي
The headlines of tomorrow's newspapers would read: The Kuwaiti Tsunami or The Kuwaiti Katrina
According to AFP, one man was killed and several injured when the gale-force storm lashed the Emirate.


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Madagascar: Too much emphasis on the environment ?   · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

(photo via Harinjaka)
Madagascar is arguably most renowned for its unique biodiversity. However, the focus on the environment is sometimes resented by Malagasies who think it diverts attention away from the hardships of the Malagasy people.
One of the most famous Malagasy artists of all time, Rossy, wrote a famous song called “Resa-babakoto”  (translation: discussing the apes) which includes this verse (mg):
“Ny gidro sy ny ala, Tsara karakara
Andaniana drala, Amina miliara
[..] Rakoto ‘ty mijaly, tsisy mpitotaly
Ny zanany tomany, tsisy mpanontany”
The apes and the forest are well-taken care of.
One spends a lot of money, billions on them [..]
Rakoto (average Joe) is struggling, no one really cares.
His children are crying, no one would ask why.
(photo via foko-madagascar)
Despite Rossy’s artistic exaggerations, there is a real concern among Malagasies that protection of the environment comes at the expense of the local population.
Rossy is known for his political activism and his current music tour in Madagascar has been canceled by the government for reasons that are yet to be clarified (fr).  His view on the environment was probably not the reason for the sudden censorship but the current government has placed a strong emphasis on the environment as a major factor in sustainable development.
Windows on the New World of Sipakv points to a presentation given by President Ravalomanana on the importance of biodiversity, highlighting this odd quote:
“The famous German author Goethe already knew about the lemurs. The “Lemuren” play an important role at the end of Faust II. Mephisto calls them when Faust is dying.  So, it was our lemurs that buried your ‘Faust'”.
If you are slightly puzzled by that quote and unsure of its purpose, you are probably not the only one.
In addition to the president’s speech, two major piece of environment-related news had the Malagasy blogosphere talking last week:
A major study about protecting biodiversity was featured on the front page of Science, a prestigious scientific journal.  On my blog, Rakoto's Rants, I pointed out that although the main authors are from major US universities one of the collaborating institutes is based in Antananarivo and a Malagasy scientist is a collaborating author.
Also, one of this year's eight MacArthur Foundation “Creative and Effective Institutions” award grantees is the Tany Meva Foundation, an environmental organization in Madagascar. Jogany at The Purple Corner explains what the Tany Meva Foundation is about:
Tany Meva seeks to increase sustainable use of the environment, to educate and empower communities and to save the threatened forests. […]
(Their) mission is to sensitize and manage the financial resources so as to:
-promote the sustainable management of the environment in Madagascar
-contribute to the global challenges to this concern through the active engagement of the local communities.
Finally, Tomavana at Malagasy Miray questions the priorities and the authoritative nature of the current government:
Tandis que la famine et la malnutrition menacent plusieurs régions de l’île, rien ne semble ébranler le déroulement de la partie qui a commencé depuis un certain temps déjà
As famine and malnutrition threaten many regions of the island, nothing seems to stop the proceeding of the current game (participation in the Olympic games etc..) that seems to have already been set for a while.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Mozambique: The first established blogger in Tete · Global Voices
Daniel Duende

Carlos Serra, from Diários de um Sociólogo [Sociologists Diary, in Portuguese], introduces us to Muarramuasando[pt], written by Tomás Muarramuassa, who seems to be the first established blogger in the Mozambican region of Tete.

author: Daniel Duende


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Russia: Ramzan Kadyrov’s Motorcade · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The YouTube video below, of what is described to be a motorcade of Chechnya's president Ramzan Kadyrov, has been viewed over 100,000 times (plus, this clip has been re-posted by a number of other YouTube and RuTube users):
LJ user navalny – Aleksei Navalny, former deputy head of the Moscow branch of Yabloko party, “a democrat who's not too excited about liberals” – has tried to classify (RUS) the cars seen in the video. According to him, there are at least nine Porsche Cayenne vehicles, two BMW 5 Series, two Mercedes S-Class, and eight Lexus GX 470 (or Toyota 100 Land Cruiser). Additionally, there's this:
[…] Thirty more cars, half of which half are [Lada 110], and the other half is [a mix] of BMW 5 Series, [Mercedes G-Class], a few [Volga] cars, etc. […]
Having sorted out Kadyrov's cars, LJ user navalny continued:
[…] It's hard to calculate the motorcade's cost. Especially considering that Cayenne, for example, is the most frequently stolen expensive cars. As we know, they are mainly taken to the Caucasus. Very likely, some are taken there for the needs of the Hero of Russia [Ramzan Kadyrov].
But here's what's really interesting. Ninety-eight percent of the Chechen Republic's budget is made up of the federal budget funds.
[…]
This miraculous motorcade has been acquired and is maintained on our money.
Let's be realistic. A president of the Federation's subject cannot drive [Zhiguli], and yes, Kadyrov does need guards. Yes, he needs an expensive car, or else he won't be respected by the locals […].
But still, a motorcade consisting of more than 50 cars, of which ten are Cayennes – it's too much.
Helping observe the Chechen native traditions and customs is turning out to be a bit too expensive for other citizens of the Russian Federation.
LJ user sdobnoff posted a sarcastic comment:
The motorcade's cost is minimal!
In the past few weeks alone, 16 Porsche Cayenne cars have been stolen in Moscow.
LJ user bolshakov added one more item to LJ user navalny‘s list:
Right. When I was hospitalized this past summer, Kadyrov came to visit his nephew, I guess, at the Sklifosovsky Institute – there are also [Bentley]'s in the motorcade.
Back in July 2007, Timur Aliev – LJ user timur_aliev, a journalist and Ramzan Kadyrov's aide – wrote (RUS) about what had allegedly happened to the Chechen president's nephew:
The big celebration of Kadyrov's 100 days [as president], which was to take place tomorrow, has been canceled. They say it's because Ramzan's 12-year-old nephew is in an intensive care unit now – a dew days ago, he was in a car accident. He took [a Zhiguli car] from the adults and crashed in it. […]
Commenting on LJ user navalny‘s post now, Timur Aliev wrote:
What you see is most likely a collective motorcade of the cars belonging to the [presidential administration] and the government. The president usually rides in a 10-car motorcade, which includes the guards’ cars.


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Southeast Asia: Rising price of rice · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Rice is the staple food in Southeast Asia and in many parts of the world. Asia 2008 notes how rice is valued in Indochina:
“In Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, saying ‘eat rice’ means more than just ‘eat rice’. In Thailand it just means ‘eat’ (kin khao). Asking ‘have you eaten rice today?’ is a way of saying ‘how are you?’ In Vietnamese it is polite to say ‘please eat rice’ (mơi ăn cơm) before every meal – even if the meal is noodles. You can even get rice-flavored ice-cream here. It's not bad.”
Bruneians believe that rice is not just a food that fulfills hunger. Elders remind the children to finish their meal to the last grain of rice because if not, the rice would cry. Philippine scholar Michael Tan writes the importance of rice in Filipino culture. Lovely Laos quotes a colonial ruler who once said: “The Vietnamese plant rice, the Cambodians watch it grow and the Lao listen to it grow.”
Rice is also a very strategic commodity. Rice shortages can cause panic and unrest in many countries. Many people in Southeast Asia are worried over reports that rice is getting more expensive and supplies are dwindling. Southeast Asian governments are assuring their constituents that prices will stabilize soon and there will be no shortages in the local markets.
Singapore Short Stories sums up the reasons why rice is expensive today:
1) Higher fuel costs, with crude soaring above US $100 a barrel and threatening to stay that way, have been a major factor in the crisis, making fertilizer more expensive and increasing transport costs.
2) In Southeast Asia, disease, pests and an unparalleled 45-day cold snap that extended from China to Vietnam in January and February have also hurt harvests. Flooding in the Philippines and Vietnam has added to the growing crisis.
3) Medium-grade rice exported from Thailand, the world’s biggest rice exporter, reached $760 a metric ton, up from $360 a ton at the end of last year.
Precious Kingdoms links to an article which cites the effects of rising rice prices in Asia:
33% Rise since January in price paid by Philippines for rice from Vietnam
3 billion People worldwide who rely on rice as a staple food
40% Rise in rice price in Thailand this year
19.2% Rise in consumer prices in Vietnam last month, against March 2007
8.4% Rise in food prices in the Philippines last month, compared with March 2007
854 million Number of people worldwide who are “food insecure”
1 billion People globally who survive on less than $1 a day, defined as “absolute poverty”
The Philippines is the world’s top rice importer. Arnold Padilla explains the rice situation in the Philippines today:
“Tight supply and high prices will hurt the poor most. The rich have extra money to buy a big volume of rice, even at unusually high prices, that could meet their families’ need for a couple of months. For most families, however, they buy rice to meet a day’s need, or in many cases, a meal’s need. (Aside from those who could not afford a meal at all.)”
Indonesia First quotes a government minister who asserted that the rice price in Indonesia is slightly lower than in the world market. Humbahas writes that the government would no longer conduct rice import this year because with last year’s rice procurement drive, Indonesia now has more than one million tons in stock.
Manjaku Sayang points out how expensive rice will hurt the poor:
“So what does this mean for us, the people having fried rice for lunch? For the wealthy and middle class consumers, rice and wheat price increases are a pricier inconvenience that they can and will have to bear with. But if prices go higher, it will be a disaster for the poor, who spend most of their disposable income on food.”
Exegesis is disappointed with the rice policies of the Indonesian government. Cafe Salemba is frustrated too:
“Some months ago, when the domestic rice price was high –due to shortage–, and the international price low, we didn't want to import because, some said, it would hurt the rice farmers, even though when majority net consumers would love to have lower imported rice price. Now, when the domestic price is low –due to harvest season–, and the international price high, we don't want to export because, some says, it would be good to have large domestic reserve to protect the rice consumers, even though at the cost of, well, the rice farmers who may gain for that high international price. So which one is which –defending the rice farmers or consumers? I am scratching my head.”
Simply Jean observes that Singaporeans have started on a buying spree on all rice available in the market. nightorchid's garden thinks the biggest winners of this situation are the rice millers and packers since all they have to do is hold on to their rice and wait for the price to rise. blabbering blob of blogging blogger reminds us that the backup rice supply is not going to become a mechanism to keep prices down since the blogger believes rice is still gonna become more expensive.
in passing – malaysian has a message to fellow Malaysians:
“When news that there are shortages of rice in some countries in this part of the world, we in Malaysia began to fear of rice shortage as well. To allay that fear the authority has assured consumers that there are ample stocks of rice in this country. So folks do takes it easy and continue to enjoy this wonderful grain that we call Rice.”
Tangents has a proposal on how to strengthen rice subsidies in Malaysia:
“With savings resulting from the above abolishing of subsidies for sugar and cooking oil, as well as longer term savings on health costs, etc, the government may be able to continue supporting subsidies for staple food items such as rice and flour. Rice especially is worthy of subsidies both for strategically ensuring supply security locally and to support farmers that remain on the poverty line.”
Tonyhiicon blogs about the initial reactions of Malaysians over reports of a global rice shortage:
“It instantly cast a chill over the market, sending consumers at large to a state of fret. Coupled with the price talk was a widespread scare of a possible scarcity of supplies in the market. This imbalance position is definitely going to exert pressure on pricing. Fortunately rice is a controlled item in Malaysia.”
Words from Malaysia says it is healthy to reduce consumption of rice:
“For strategic and health reasons, let us keep to a minimum our rice intake. Rice may be great for our taste buds, but not for our body. Rice and other grains like wheat and corn are actually worse than sugar. Rice is chemically no different from sugar. When digested, it becomes sugar. One bowl of cooked rice is the caloric equivalent of 10 teaspoons of sugar. It does not matter whether the rice is white, brown or organic. Brown rice is richer in fiber, has some B vitamins and minerals, but one bowl of it is still the caloric equal of 10 teaspoons of sugar.”
Straight Talk has an advice for the government:
* Promote better management of internal resources to avoid wastage and non-performance and channel extra resources to the poor to mitigate the increase in cost of living;
* Encourage local food production and upstream activities e.g. poultry, vegetable, fruits and rice cultivation;
* Create a committee to look into issues faced by a new class of urban poor;
* Review the current subsidy system to ensure our scarce funds are used for more appropriate functions; and
* Create a contingency plan in the case of acute rice shortage
MangoZeen reports that in Cambodia the rice crisis has lead to suspension of exports as speculators gamble on the increasing demand for the food staple. The Mirror reports that the opposition is taking advantage of the rice situation by conducting demagogy. KI Media quotes Cambodian leader Hun Sen:
“Hun Sen said that the price of rice should jump in 2000-2001 when there was a major flood in Cambodia, but the price of rice during that time was stable. Regarding the current rice price soaring, it is due to the fact that Cambodian rice is the cheapest in the region, and even Malaysia and The Philippines is considering buying rice from Cambodia also. Furthermore, Thailand and Vietnam are both currently buying rice from Cambodia. Hun Sen added: ‘Is Cambodia short of rice yet? Because there are dishonest people who are instigating rumors about rice shortage in the market.”
Brunei Lifestyle is happy that the current stock for the nation’s needs is more than sufficient and that the price has not changed since the government is subsidizing the price. Liyana Tassim appeals to the public to save the environment.
Vietnam Business Finance reports that the price of Vietnamese rice is higher than Thai rice.
Magnoy Samsara warns that rice bandits are scaring Thailand. Burma News notes that despite the drastic price increase, observers say there is no immediate fear of a rice crisis, as most of the rice consumed in Myanmar is produced domestically.
Chao-Vietnam explains why Vietnam has imposed a ban on rice exports:
“Vietnam has extended a ban on rice sales until June to help stabilize domestic food prices as it tries to tame double-digit inflation…A cold spell that damaged part of agricultural crops in northern Vietnam early this year and double-digit inflation rocking the country's small economy have prompted Hanoi to halt its grain exports.”
Thailand Crisis praises a public official for explaining the factors which made rice more expensive:
“Accusing the people who hoard and speculate… it’s easy… It can pay on a political level. But it’s of course not enough to explain the current situation (much more complex). Talking about world market prices, demand, population growth and pressures on lands this is new. And courageous.”


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Thailand: BBC reporter charged with Lèse Majesté · Global Voices
Arthit Suriyawongkul

Thai police officer filed a criminal complaint seeking to have British journalist, Jonathan Head, of British Broadcasting Corporation charged for insulting Thailand's king

author: Arthit Suriyawongkul


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Thailand: YouTube self-censored lese majeste protest clip · Global Voices
Arthit Suriyawongkul

Self-censorship on YouTube is working well – silently. Yesterday, a FACT signer reported one of the silently banned clips, which can be viewed everywhere in the world, except Thailand.
Since agreement with Thailand's Ministry of Information and Communication Technology last year, YouTube's management agreed to block any video clips deemed offensive to Thai people or those that violate Thai law. In other words, YouTube will do the censorship by themselves, so that the site will not be blocked again by the Ministry.
When users from Thailand try to access the reported link, http://youtube.com/watch?v=70m1ncXQjXA , they will find this message:
This video is not available in your country.
It is a lèse majesté law protest clip, which contains few caricature of the King images and Thailand flag, the royal anthem is played as a background music, and between those images, the clip runs the following messages in black over yellow background:
King Bhumibol Adulyadej of is a dictator.
He sends anyone who speaks against him to prison – for up to 15 years.
F**k the king of Thailand – long live free speech!
Article 112 of the Thai Criminal Code stipulates the penalty for a lèse majesté offence as 3-15 years’ imprisonment.
source: Freedom Against Censorship Thailand


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Vietnam: Street food · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Miss Adventure in Vietnam samples the street food of Vietnam


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Zimbabwe: Mugabe’s rebel government · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Robb discusses Mugabe's decision not to attend SADC meeting: “So when Zambian President Mwanawasa called for an emergency meeting of SADC in Lusaka today, Mugabe couldn't be bothered to attend. Instead he is sending his Foreign Minister. (Is he the Foreign Minister? Given that Mugabe is not the President, and his party do not have control of the Parliament – the appointment of Ministers falls to Morgan Tsvangirai – so any attendance by Mugabe's rebel ‘government’ must not be recognised, and therefore, cannot represent that country or her people…)”


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Zimbabwe: Questioning Mbeki’s power · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Hope is totally disappointed by the South African President, Thabo Mbeki: “Mbeki, after going to Harare to see Mugabe, says today that there is “no crisis”…I cannot believe I am so upset – again – because whenever I know Thabo Mbeki is about to meet to discuss anything to do with the Zimbabwean crisis, I steel myself for extreme disappointment. He never fails to deliver, so why do I stupidly, even when I expect it, feel dumbfounded when it comes?!”


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Zizou from Djerba translates the Dalai Lama in Seattle · Global Voices
Jennifer Brea

zizou from Djerba has volunteered to do live Arabic translation of the Dalai Lama's  “compassion conference” in Seattle this week.

author: Jennifer Brea


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Georgia: NATO MAP Rejected · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

TOL Georgia comments on the country's failure to be accepted into the Membership Action Plan (MAP) by NATO at its recent summit in Bucharest. Citing the example of Albania, the blog is pessimistic about Georgia's chances of entering the alliance in the near future especially given a lack of progress in terms of democratization in the former Soviet republic.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Armenia: Arthouse Cinema · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Unzipped: Gay Armenia commends the National Art Gallery in Armenia for establishing the best and perhaps only arthouse cinema in the country's capital, Yerevan. In particular, the blog notes that some films being screened are still banned in other countries.


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Armenia: Opposition Boycott Eurovision · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

The Armenian Observer reports that the politicization of the Eurovision Song Contest is continuing with the opposition in Armenia considering a boycott of the music competition and Armenia's entry, Sirusho. The young singer has been linked to the outgoing president's family and campaigned for his successor, Serge Sargsyan, in the February presidential election. However, the blog asks if what Armenia could gain from supporting Sirusho outweighs the domestic political considerations.


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Armenia: Revolution? · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

A new blog, Armenian Politics, has an interesting first post on the post-election protests  staged by supporters of former president, Levon Ter-Petrossian. It asks has the “revolution” failed, or is it merely a work in progress?


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Bahrain: Policeman’s death divides bloggers · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

Earlier this week a Bahraini policeman, Majid Asghar Ali, 27, was killed after a patrol car was attacked and set on fire near a village called Karzakan. Bahrain's bloggers have been quick to comment.
SoulSearch is in shock:
What happened last night? What provoked a gang of 30 to 40 hooligans to do what they did last night? What's happening to Bahrain? When folks just want to get a good night's sleep to be able to go to work the next day and earn an honest living?
Does violence solve anything?
Majid Asghar Ali from the Police Force is dead. And for what? Does this help Bahrain in any way? Does this violence serve any cause?
It was a total shock to read the papers this morning. I almost choked on my coffee and sandwich!
God help us. Where are we going?
Peace people. You don't want to turn into another Lebanon. Trust me.
Peace for Bahrain.
So is Naz:
I am angry. Angry, shocked, Stunned that any kind of person find this kind of behaviour acceptable, or even worse, justifiable!
What is wrong with people?
Now I consider myself quite politically illiterate, and I’m happy to admit it, but surely there are better ways to make a point than throwing tantrums like 6 year olds? ways other than burning, hurting, sabotaging? better than violence?
Is it just me that wants home to remain home? To be able to see a happy future for my country and countrymen (and women)?
Butterfly remembers the death of a demonstrator, Ali Jassim Makki, in December, and blames both deaths on sectarianism:
Manama Republic compares the lives of the demonstrators in Karzakan to the policeman, who came originally from Balochistan:
However, not all Bahrainis are convinced by the official story of Majid Asghar Ali's death. Ebtihal Salman has her doubts:
Haythoo, a political activist, also expresses his disbelief at the government's story:
And in another post he says:
But Mahmood is fed up of the conspiracy theorists:
Who benefits from violence? … And the thing that beggars belief is that we find people condoning this activity or are in complete and utter denial. Putting “their side” on a pedestal and who can do no wrong whatsoever; while on the other hand, they blame the government for all ills without recognising a single positive aspect of its creation. Yes, we do have problems, but the line must be drawn in our own psyche to ensure that we actually do recognise wrong when we see it, regardless of who perpetrates it. And we should also drop those continuous conspiracy theories which some use to justify wrongs. In this particular instance; can anyone come up with a valid scenario in which we see elements in our government would actually sponsor people to throw Molotov cocktails on their own occupied police vehicles and sacrifice a human life while putting others in jeopardy simply to score a point? What insanity is this? […] Enough is enough. On both sides. We want to live with a semblance of harmony for goodness’ sake. These vandalism and criminal acts are not helping one little bit. Everybody, even who are called the opposition should come out and unambiguously condemn these criminal acts.

author: Ayesha Saldanha


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Blogger of the Week: Victor Kaonga  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Today's Blogger of the Week series takes us to the heart of Africa, where we catch up with our Malawian blogger Victor Kaonga, who talks to us about his journey with blogging, the media and technology scene in Malawi and his special relationship with God.
A radio journalist, 35-year-old Victor, who blogs in English, is currently working towards obtaining a Masters degree in Global Journalism, from Orebro University, Sweden, which he hopes to complete by the summer. Once back home, he aims to coach his colleagues, where together they will embark on a fascinating journey of learning how to communicate with people and the world at large, using modern technology, in a country which had its first television station opened in 1999.
Following is our interview with Victor, who left his home in August 2006, started blogging the following month and joined Global Voices Online in January 2007 to amplify the “untold stories of Malawi to the global community.”
When did you start blogging and why?
In September 2006. I was looking forward to blogging having heard about it the year before at a Highway Conference in South Africa. At that time, I did not know how until I came to Sweden for the course, when one of the former course mates taught us about blogging and how to do it.
I have been blogging for several reasons: One to share information about and on Malawi. I thought I am a privileged person being a journalist in Malawi who can say something on the Internet especially through blogs. Two, I really wanted to tell my own stories in a way that I had never thought of before hoping to expand my social networks.  Three, I just wanted to grow and learn more about this Information Highway by ‘being in it.’ Fourthly, I come from a background where I have always admired participating in global issues and I thought the blogosphere was the perfect place for me to start from.
Being a career journalist, how different is blogging from journalism?
I have lots of freedom to express myself, put things into both global and personal perspective in ways I cannot in a normal media outlet. Blogging gives me space also to mix text, images and sounds sometimes, which is not possible in radio alone where I am used and where I started working in August 1999. In my career as a journalist, I have mostly been in broadcasting hence blogging is a way of making putting words into sentences on ‘paper.’ Otherwise, I am mostly a voice person.
How many languages do you speak?
I speak four fluently and can use them all on air also and I am able to hear a few others, which I cannot speak.
I am fluent in English, Tumbuka, Lambya and Chichewa – the last three are all Malawian languages spoken also in parts of Zambia and Tanzania.
How many Malawian bloggers are there? And do they all blog in English?
There are about 60 known to me and all of them blog in English except for two, who blog in Chichewa and Lambya.
Amazing! Why is that? Are they all in Malawi or abroad?
Many bloggers find it tough to blog in their mother tongue as we have grown up using English for instruction in school – but I also think that many have not been that patriotic!! We tend to look down on our own languages but that seems to be changing now. Our political background also has had some influence in Malawi. We were taught that an educated speaks or writes in English. For now, I would say that most of the bloggers are in the diaspora,  where it is much easier as they have better Internet access and a few are in Malawi – with not so regular access but one I would describe as considerable access! The ones blogging in Malawi mostly access Internet at places of work or cafes as extremely few people ever access Internet from their homes. In fact, the number is almost negligible.
Do blogs have a big following of readers?
By readers in the diaspora, yes, but not at home, due to limited access to the Internet as as well as lack of awareness. Many people who have the potential do not know what blogs are but my personal observation is that the number of readers and bloggers is picking up now.
Do you expect that to change soon?
Already it is changing I think, as there is growing Internet access according to people that work with ISPs in Malawi. There is also a popular Malawian online paper, which once in a while features stories from Malawis blogs.
What are the main issues effecting your blogosphere?
There is a whole range largely on politics especially the elections coming up in 2009. We also have lifestyle issues, and a mixture on socio-economic challenges. On a few occasions we have Information and Communications Technology (ICT) stories.
How would you like to see the Internet and blogging utilised in Malawi? Would you like to see bloggers spread say health awareness? Or be an outlet for news mainstream media doesn't cover?
Mostly, it would be important if blogging could be used as lobby tool. If several bloggers make noise, the authorities wake up and respond. The issue is that the authorities in Malawi (in my view) are scared of many things published online. As such, if there is some pressure on them on a particular issue, they tend to respond and attend to the problem at hand. So the blogging can be on anything of concern to Malawi and it will work as long as the bloggers are consistent and write with facts.
Is the media in Malawi free? Do you have censorship issues?
There is considerable amount of freedom in Malawi. Censorship is there but I would say mostly, it is self-censorship, having come from a background of 30 years of dictatorial rule until 1994. But the biggest challenge in my view in Malawi is political influence on and in the media and not necessarily censorship per se. There is both public and private media and I think private media is doing a very commendable job.
Victor, you have a foot in both worlds. One is Radio – which reaches to people and doesn't need technology and the other is really hi-tech considering that not many people even know what blogs are. Which one is more gratifying for you as a journalist and why?
Interesting question! Radio is more gratifying to me for many reasons. With radio, I am able to impact or reach more people. In Malawi, radio is still the main mass medium, contributing about 70 per cent of the media. Ambition wise I wanted to be on radio right from I was eight, in primary school! Having said this, I enjoy writing and find it fulfilling as it gives me a written record that I can turn to later on. But also writing is enriching me as I hear or get feedback from those who have read the posts. So indeed I am between two worlds but I believe I serve two ‘audiences.’ I have learnt that if you have an idea, share it in writing, and not just on radio alone! So now with blogging, I have that opportunity to balance those interests and audiences.
Why did you only work for radio then? Why not TV or newspapers?
When I was in primary school, I only knew of radio, no newspaper – of course there was one but dad never bought it. And there was no TV. Television only came to Malawi in 1999. And I am that kind of person who grew up in a very rural area where all we had was radio to connect us to the world.
You come from a country where there are people who are suffering from famine – and with the high incidence of AIDS – can you envision a way to use technology, specifically online tools, to help them?
Yes. I have always thought that such people in any situation can share their experiences, diarise them and share what keeps them on or what inspires them. In fact I have mentioned to several people to jot down and share their life stories, in a kind of a online journal and as long as it is a personal story, someone will find it exciting. So people going through any problems of health, such as with AIDS in Malawi, market vendors in town, small entrepreneurs and young girls cantell their stories online but I know the challenge for most of them is knowledge and fear of the Internet!
Fear of the Internet?
To begin with some people feel challenged by the computer. So when you start talking about writing something for online consumption, you are scaring them further and that is why some people fear the Internet. We have very few people who are well exposed to the ICTs. Of course, there is a lot of interest but this is only by younger people but not those categories whom you would want to target immediately. We have majority of secondary schools that do not computers at all.
So when are graduates first exposed to computers and the Internet? And who has access to them?
These days the computers are becoming more available but still limited to the urban schools. Most secondary students before say 1990 saw computers at the university or in colleges only.
So they saw computers before TV?
Yes, that was the case in Malawi. People saw computers before TV. We could hear of TV in neighbouring Zambia and Tanzania but not in Malawi itself. Of course there were video screens but then they could just are movies and those who had screens were elites! Also note that I think our society is an oral one mostly. So some people are not keen to write down things.
How are people taking on to TV? Was it seen as a positive development? And do you only have a state channel or are there now private stations?
We only have one state channel. There was attempt for a private one but it was suspended, so I am told. Otherwise, people welcomed it only to be disappointed by politicians who are using it for their ends. But being the only TV station, many people are glued to it and are proud to watch a relative, friend or Victor in the box.
What did you cover when you were a radio journalist?
A whole range issues, mostly Christian lifestyle, since I work with a gospel radio station but my work has also been around youth issues and news and then the last four years, I have spent relatively more time in managing the programming and developing programmes and projects.
What do you hope to achieve when you return with your degree home?
When I return, I want to mostly be available for coaching as I think that is most of our work lies. We have a wonderful team in Malawi of media people there and normally they admire those with further qualifications, so coaching in general programming yes, but also I want to spend time help out in ICTs coverage as well if possible mobilise ourselves for internet journalism. By that I mean to promote use of the Internet for journalism in which case blogging too.. We have a tremendous lack of even basic skills in Malawi, among journalists especially.
What are your hopes for Malawi and its people?
I am just hoping that Malawians would have better health systems and facilities and then they can grow into knowing about the world as well as contribute to global conversations.
Talk to me about your family, whom I understand are back home in Malawi? What are your hopes for them?
I have three daughters. My first born is Nayumo, who is almost six, my second is Sayiwe, four, and the third is Angana, who is 18 months old. All these names are in my mother tongue Lambya.  I hope that they grow into women who fear God, and are responsible. Most of all that they will respect their mother Thembi at all times. I miss them as I am way from home Malawi. But I look forward to returning to them this June.
My most memorable blogging experience also revolves around my family. On Valentine's Day, I wrote about how I met my wife. I was scared to blog about it yet I wanted to. This was the second Valentine's Day I was far away from my wife so I really wanted to do something special for her. The best I thought was to write about her and tell the ‘world’. I got and still do get comments from people. Some younger ladies laugh and are thankful I shared the story. They say they have learnt one or two things. Younger men have said they are encouraged theirs is on the way…..
And what is your relationship with God?
I grew up in a family where parents were Christians and all of us as children were taught to obey and fear God. In secondary school I made a personal decision to be a Christian much as I had grown up with that background. I was encouraged by many Christians I met in Secondary school to be a committed Christian. The same encouragement was available at the University of Malawi -the only one then and then finally in 1998 I joined campus organisation where were worked amongst university students. Then in 1999 I started working with a Christian organisation where I still belong to date – Trans World Radio. Something worth mentioning is that I am one of the 11 children in our family! But our parents encouraged us to fear God. Of course we have failed many times but ….whenever we failed, God picked us up.
Being a Malawian abroad, what are the stereotypes you face? Do people you come across know about your country?
Many many say they have never heard about Malawi, some ask if it is in Sudan or South Africa. It can also be implied that some people think I am an asylum seeker. I can tell this from their statements or actions, basically those are the main ones. Otherwise, I find lots of nice people and I have had to learn to adjust.
As a media person, do you feel you have a role to play to spread more awareness about Malawi and its people?
Part of my adjusting is based on the fact I am a journalist who has a role to inform them about my country and myself. I also take myself as diplomat. As much as I can, I feel that as a journalist, I am duty bound to share information about Malawi. I would live like a Malawian if they can allow me. And that makes me a very happy person.
Thank you Victor for your time and insights!
Zikomo, Ndagha (thanks)


text:
Bolivia: Anniversary of Cultural Center Sartañani · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

The Cultural Center of Sartañani announces the history and events for the anniversary of its founding in 1983 in the city of Oruro, Bolivia.


text:
Bolivia: Homeless Children in El Alto · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Santos Huanca of El Poder de la Palabra [es] writes about the plight of some mistreated and homeless children in the city of El Alto, Bolivia.


text:
China: Fallout from the Free Tibet protests · Global Voices
John Kennedy

April 15 update:
Harassment of Wang Qianyuan has gone off-line, and in fact precedes this post by several weeks. Also, a friend of Wang's at Duke University has written in directly:
I am a friend of the girl's and I was at the protest. The fenqing are going insane. I am meeting with Duke's president this afternoon, and it looks like the FBI will become involved. Her parent's apartment in Qingdao was attacked with rocks, and they are in hiding (I have confirmed this in direct communication with her mother). This all started on the Duke Chinese Students and Scholars Association website. They started posting “TIBET WAS, IS AND ALWAYS WILL BE CHINA'S” messages a month ago.
[…]
Because all the information about her and her parent's addresses and calls to do violence were posted on the Duke list, it is being considered criminal incitement to violence. What a mess. The saddest thing is that she's a sweet naive kid, and she did nothing but cross over to “enemy lines” and talk to her Tibetan dorm mate, and try to initiate some kind of dialogue…
————
Original post:
While China was subject to ritual humiliation this past week as the Olympic torch was relayed, ignoring the seemingly obvious, through Europe and North America, nationalism quickly boiled over and anyone hoping for an objective discussion on Tibet, even one of the most well-known journalists in the country, is now a race traitor.
So if this week's Free Tibet protests were successful, does that make the silencing of many liberal voices within China acceptable collateral damage?
The human flesh search engines, helped no doubt by the ‘wu mao dang’ have gone into serious overdrive; one mainland Chinese woman now studying at Duke University was seen by other overseas Chinese students participating in a Free Tibet protest. What was possibly for her just an attempt to bridge some sort of discussion has led to torrents of horrid abuse and at least one lengthy human flesh search engine witch hunt, on popular forum website Tianya, which began on April 10:
作者：Bejing_2008_ 提交日期：2008-4-10 17:01:00
在SF的奥运火炬接力顺利完成的同时,全美各地华人华侨留学生也都给予了北京奥运最热烈的支持,然而在今天的DUKE大学留学生的支持奥运反对藏独的集会游行中,青岛2中毕业的王同学竟然与藏独支持分子同流合污,毅然抛弃事实,站在藏独分子的一边,宣扬西藏人权问题,赤裸裸打着free tibet的旗号,实在给中国人民丢脸,在场的几百留学生都目睹了其罪恶行径.王千源–如果说某些美国人算作无知,那你呢?你这样的崇洋媚外的嘴脸是要永远被中国人民所不耻!
http://www.mitbbs.com/article_t/Carolinas/31158646.html
At the same time that the Olympic torch relay was smoothly completed in San Francisco, ethnic Chinese and Chinese overseas students from different places all across America gave the Beijing Olympics their strongest support, and as overseas students at Duke University gathered today for a protest to support the Olympics and oppose Tibetan independence, Qingdao #2 Middle School graduate classmate Wang actually mired herself in with those supporters of Tibetan independence, completely abandoning the truth, and stood on the side of the Free Tibetters, trumpeting Tibetan human rights issues, baldly calling for a free Tibet, effectively embarrassing the Chinese people, with her evil sins witnessed personally by several hundred overseas students at the scene. Wang Qianyuan: if those Americans are just acting out of ignorance, then what about you? That foreign toady face of yours will always be a shameless one to the Chinese people!
http://www.mitbbs.com/article_t/Carolinas/31158646.html
Following that intro are now eleven pages of comments:
作者：zeng_1985　回复日期：2008-4-10　17:59:19
虽然没看到图,但听说有这种人就愤慨!
作者：shhbf　回复日期：2008-4-10　18:06:33
应该全文转。
这个家伙，估计是被利益冲昏了头。不晓得他父母亲戚是不是也都转移出国了，也不想想自己的所作所为会影响多少人。
This guy, he must be dizzy with confusion. I don't know if his parents and relatives have all emigrated too, but hasn't he thought about just how many people will be affected by his actions?
作者：小杨不不　回复日期：2008-4-10　18:09:04
上图 啊！
作者：iambic　回复日期：2008-4-10　18:10:25
没什么说的，直接无视了。以后都别让这条狗接近至5米以内
作者：超级实验台　回复日期：2008-4-10　18:14:00
什么情况？
楼主飞了？
淘点证据出来啊–我去磨刀
作者：iambic　回复日期：2008-4-10　18:17:18
那个啥，驻美使馆黑名单别忘了再加一个
作者：药罐子里的椰子　回复日期：2008-4-10　18:24:07
他可以去死了。不知廉耻的家伙。
作者：zlyuki　回复日期：2008-4-10　18:25:50
这个要顶
作者：蓝色秋裤　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:04:11
顶
作者：同样的故事　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:13:48
天哪
青岛2中的
太丢人了
就地处决吧
作者：超级实验台　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:27:48
她？
作者：推倒推倒　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:37:56
上去把～
我就是要当网络暴民～
好好整整这样的人～～
I always wanted to be a net-thug~
I'll set her nice and straight~
作者：ntpilgrim　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:40:27
真的吗，一定要弄清楚。
作者：艹头　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:43:31
不会吧，楼主要拿出证据说话。
作者：超级实验台　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:46:33
楼主人呢？！
作者：durand　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:46:39
通报国安局、中国大使馆、当地政府
作者：二狗和三胖　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:48:31
拜托，别挟私报复啊，网民不都是瞎子啊
作者：lightscriteria　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:51:30
一辈子嫁不出去！！！
作者：飘青　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:52:31
不是吧!!真是青岛的吗?这下厉害找到根,哈哈还是天涯的 搜索引擎厉害啊!!哈哈!!强强!!不知道他家里人知道不,孩子在外面没人管了,会迷路的!
作者：wangxiaowenly　回复日期：2008-4-10　19:59:29
以后可能只有嫁给喇嘛的份了~
作者：xuxuming123　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:06:10
看来也只有婊子喜欢喇嘛了,希望不是她.
作者：lawyerhuyue　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:11:27
召唤人肉引擎！！
作者：lint金帛　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:15:33
是不是给洋鬼子日多了？怎么出了这样的垃圾
作者：hyngng　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:16:00
总会有些人头脑不清醒的
作者：yqh1001　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:18:41
关键要有证据！
不冤枉一个好人，但也绝对不放过一个坏人！
作者：sevenqiqi　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:22:45
消息确实可靠么？长的还算乖的嘴脸哎。。。
作者：wuhanlsx　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:24:22
请通知中国海关，如发现她，立刻弊了她，如果她还有家人，请找到她的家人，把这种无耻的子女打死了，免得害了中国人。
作者：红枫焱　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:27:37
为她的父母感到悲哀，本来可以引以为傲的孩子成了卖国贼——不知道她想没想过自己的父母在国内会如何抬不起头来
人在做，天在看啊
作者：ericxulove　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:33:28
光说也没什么证据啊,贴出照片来才行啊……
大家冷静,别太过激,没凭没据的,就这么乱喊话也不对~
说不定她是被对她一直有偏见的某些人给利用了,胡乱诽谤,任由网友辱骂她来解气???
作者：同样的故事　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:36:25
十有八九是真的，
是DUKE的留学生在MITBBS上发的
有代理可以上去看看
作者：溢佳颐佳　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:38:24
如果真是这样
就在她家所有亲戚的门口贴上“汉奸”两个字
以后对她家亲戚的称呼就是汉奸
I'm going to put the words “race traitor” up on all her relatives’ doors
Then her whole family will be called race traitors
作者：红枫焱　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:42:51
哪位用代理的兄弟姐妹把那个帖子截图发过来好了
作者：红枫焱　回复日期：2008-4-10　20:56:14
只有头像没有动作比较麻烦啊，这样不能证明她卖国啊，有没有拍到他宣传或者散发传单甚至举旗的镜头？
作者：天天坠涯　回复日期：2008-4-10　21:11:34
她是不是打入敌人内部去了？？？
作者：巨鸡鸡　回复日期：2008-4-10　21:31:28
让我日了她
作者：clover710　回复日期：2008-4-10　21:33:59
汉奸！
卖国贼！
天理难容！
迟早全家遭天谴！
作者：四级士官　回复日期：2008-4-10　21:35:20
贱妇汉奸，民族败类！
作者：ggf7522　回复日期：2008-4-10　21:40:29
不知道她的父母在不在中国，不知道她的父母现在还是不是中国人，如果还是中国人的话明天就应该找个粪坑跳下去淹死得了。
作者：我爱瓷器瓷器　回复日期：2008-4-10　22:19:56
强烈呼吁大家先冷静！！！！
一定先要搞清楚事实，再来批评。如果不是汉奸，平白挂了这个最最可耻的名字,那可是天大的不白之冤哪!
就算这人真的这么无耻，大家鄙视她就是了，混绿卡嘛~，中国人这高贵的名号她也不配，我们欢送这样的人入籍美国还来不及呢。
Say she really is so shameless, then everyone can despise her, let her go for a green card for all we care, she won't be able to live up to the honorable name of a Chinese person, and we aren't able to send people like her off to get American citizenship fast enough.
作者：ccyanlove　回复日期：2008-4-10　22:22:13
如果是真的，啥也别说了，直接把她灭掉。
作者：zxmm123456789　回复日期：2008-4-10　22:27:52
好样的王同学，可惜我在大陆只能精神支持你，
作者：凌小呆子　回复日期：2008-4-10　22:27:58
支持什么关你屁事啊！
作者：xiaohuafox　回复日期：2008-4-10　22:30:48
mit上的确有这个帖子！！
人名没错！
作者：陈先进　回复日期：2008-4-10　22:51:19
楼主不是个东西
证据呢？
作者：不倒霉会死星人　回复日期：2008-4-10　23:13:25
报国安成不???有没有足够的证据啊????
The slander, vituperative and death threats continue in blasts, punctuated by the occasional call for proof of her “crime,” until it finally starts to appear toward the end of page two:
Followed shortly after by someone claiming to have been at the Duke U protest that day:
作者：antizangdu　回复日期：2008-4-11　6:10:18
我当时就在现场, 中国学生集会在杜克西校区举行, 总共有400人左右. 藏独本科生们从东校区沿着campus drive 一直跑到西校区, 在这个过程中, 一直有警察护送. 大概有十几个中国学生,学者,穿了”我的中国心”以及”北京奥运”的tshirt,护了一面很大的国旗, 一直跑在藏独的前面一两米处. 他们到了杜克西校区以后, 首先绕场跑了一周, 然后跑上了杜克大学大教堂的台阶上.在这段时间里, 我们一直有红旗围着他们,并问他们有没有去过西藏, 有没有去过中国, 其中大部分藏独都不吭声, 有一个美国小伙说他去过四个月….由于他们事先reserve了教堂前的位置,从晚上7点半到9点, 在他们上了教堂的阶梯以后, 中国学生和学者都在离最下一节台阶两米左右, 国旗在最前面的地方大家一起高唱国歌. 所有在国旗外面的人都是藏独的人. 学校校报的记者在他们身后拍照 照片相当的误导,而且已经刊登在今天校报的头条.
照片..网上的照片太小 http://media.collegepublisher.com/media/paper884/stills/rv87o3x3.jpg
这个小丫头就在包围圈的中间, 作出了这样的手势, 后面就有藏独的人在拍照 就是以下这张照片
http://www.mitbbs.com/article2/SanFrancisco/31322350_240.jpg
拍照的人就是楼上(雪印轻盈)那张大照片,最右边那面国旗边上蹲下照相的哪个人
小丫头真是为了出名,连自己的国家都卖了.
我不会贴照片,大家帮个忙 把照片贴上, 留个证据
让中国人闭嘴?
The photo: the one online is too small: http://media.collegepublisher.com/media/paper884/stills/rv87o3x3.jpg
That little girl just stood in the middle, making this post, and the Free Tibetters behind her kept taking pictures, like this one:
http://www.mitbbs.com/article2/SanFrancisco/31322350_240.jpg
That girl, just to get some attention, was even willing to betray her country
I can't post photos, can everyone help me? Post the photos, show the proof.
Make us Chinese shut up?
Shortly after that comment, someone posted a link to a video from the Duke protest and counter-protest:
作者：心台几点　回复日期：2008-4-11　8:03:07
大家都看视频
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4J6nfyb-3k
5：16开始有王千源,很明显她是站在绝大多数的中国学生的对立面的
视频里有一段讲的挺清楚地
7:05的时候，几个同学围着她，质问她为什么打藏 独 旗 ，为什么不打五星红旗
7：27 她狡辩说香港也有旗
——————–
人肉!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
Wang Qianyuan comes out at 5:16, and she's clearly standing opposite the vast majority of the Chinese students.
There's one spot in the video that's quite clear
At 7:05, a few classmates surround her, asking why she's calling for Tibetan independence, and not waving the red five-star flag
At 7:27 she retorts by saying that Hong Kong has a flag too.
Flesh engines!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The video above is first posted on page two; the first of several guesses at Wang's US phone number is posted early on page three, and other Chinese Duke students appear to join in there, at which point there's a brief history debate, then after the majority of the language only becomes more violent from there until the end of the thread, which as of posting continues to grow.
Wang's national identity card number and parent's address and phone number back in China are posted on page six, around which time links to even larger spin-off threads begin to appear on the Tianya thread.

author: John Kennedy


text:
China: Hu Jia and National Security System · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

I have translated an article written by Ip Iam Chong on the arrest of Hu Jia and the national security system in China at interlocals.net.

author: Oiwan Lam


text:
China: Zeng Jinyan examines evidence used against Hu Jia · Global Voices
John Kennedy

At Global Voices Advocacy is a translation of Zeng Jinyan's recent letter in which she questions the evidence used in court earlier this month to convict her husband to 3.5 years in prison for his blogging activities.


text:
Egypt: Wet Bathroom Floors · Global Voices
Tarek Amr

Kim, an Indian living in Egypt, notices a lot of similarities between the Indian and Egyptian ways of life. She writes: “A couple of my friends Americans/Europeans who have married Egyptians have mentioned a couple of times that they cannot fathom how bathroom floors in Egypt are always wet. As an Indian, I find a lot of similarities in the Egyptian way of life, this water on the bathroom floor is one of them.”

author: Tarek Amr


text:
Iran:Sio-se Pole of Esfahan in photos · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Reza Ghaderi has published several photos of Sio-se Pole of Esfahan (Isfahan) in Iran. Sio-se Pole is also called the Bridge of 33 Arches.


text:
Iran: Women playing Baseball · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Thanks to Maryam Majd,photographer and blogger, we can discover Iranian women playing Baseball in Iran. Watch the photos here.