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After Years of Cultural Appropriation, Mayan Weavers Want Legal Protection for Their Heritage · Global Voices
Ariana Crisafulli

“The Guatemalan Maya have endured the theft and co-optation of their textiles for years, both from foreign corporations and domestic non-indigenous designers.” Photo taken at the Ut'z Bat'z collective by Julie Houde-Audet. Used with permission.
In 2011, Alejandra Barrillas, Guatemala’s entrant in the Miss Universe pageant, appeared on stage bedecked in what in the eyes of the rest of the world—and perhaps some Guatemalans as well—looked like perfectly appropriate Guatemalan indigenous attire. Guatemala’s indigenous Maya community, however, were outraged. As it turns out, the outfit worn by Barrillas on the direction of Guatemalan designer Giovanni Guzmán was a form of indigenous ceremonial clothing reserved exclusively for male elder leaders.
The Guatemalan Maya have endured the theft and co-optation of their textiles for years, both from foreign corporations and domestic non-indigenous designers. The community has a bone to pick, for instance, with designer Alida Boer, founder of Maria’s Bags, who uses Maya Indigenous designs without permission and sells her products online for upwards of US$600.
The Guatemalan government, meanwhile, has done little to protect the textiles and designs of their indigenous community; there is even a loophole in the country’s Intellectual Property Rights laws that excludes the intellectual property of the Maya. Yet this hasn’t stopped the government or the state tourism organization, Inguat, from using indigenous textiles and handicrafts to promote tourism. This behavior goes hand in hand with the overall neglect of the indigenous Guatemalans, who make up approximately 40 percent of the population but account for 80 percent of the country’s poor.
“They call for tourists to come to the country and they use us as bait. Our clothes, our culture, our work, but none of the money they make is returned to the Indigenous communities. This is what we’re denouncing with the patent.” Photo taken at the Ut'z Bat'z collective by Julie Houde-Audet. Used with permission.
Guatemala's Maya community also still live under the shadow of the Guatemalan Civil War that raged between 1960 and 1996 and massacred or disappeared 200,000 indigenous Mayas. Approximately 83 percent of the people killed during the war were Maya, and countless others were victims of human rights violations committed primarily by the Guatemalan government and the military. High-ranking members of the government at that time have since been accused of war crimes, including the former head of state, Efraín Ríos Montt, who was charged with genocide.
“They treat us like things and not like human beings,” says Angelina Aspuac, a weaver and spokesperson for the Women's Association for Development of Sacatepequez (AFEDES), “They call for tourists to come to the country and they use us as bait. Our clothes, our culture, our work, but none of the money they make is returned to the Indigenous communities. This is what we’re denouncing with the patent.”
“The Maya weavers argue that, as artists, their crafts should be recognized as intellectual property.” Photo taken at the Ut'z Bat'z collective by Julie Houde-Audet. Used with permission.
The patent Aspuac is referring to is the centerpiece of a campaign launched in May 2016 by Maya weavers in Guatemala to take back their cultural heritage. A group comprising 30 organizations from 18 linguistic communities in Guatemala and headed by AFEDES, have filed a legal action before the country’s Constitutional Court. The Maya weavers argue that, as artists, their crafts should be recognized as intellectual property. The action claims that it is unconstitutional to exclude Maya textile creations from protection under Guatemalan intellectual property laws.
The bill introduced to Congress would recognize what the weavers call “the collective intellectual property of indigenous peoples”, by reforming five legal articles that govern national industry and industrial property rights. It seeks to define intellectual property with regard to the right of Indigenous peoples to control their heritage, and to recognize indigenous nations as authors so that they would automatically benefit from existing intellectual property laws. Under such conditions, entities that benefit from the use or reproduction of Maya hand-woven goods would be required to pay royalties and give credit to the original artists.
“As of right now there are no such articles protecting the collectivity of creation, and our work is not being valued,” says Aspuac, “Rather, there has been an appropriation and a commodification of the culture and the designs.”
Aspuac says that royalties received as a result of the patent would be divided among the community. The community will designate representatives to negotiate on their behalf with companies seeking to use their designs, and manage the distribution of funds back into the community. Aspuac and other leading members of the movement want to see the money invested in social projects like weaving schools and education for women and children.
Photo taken at the Ut'z Bat'z collective by Julie Houde-Audet. Used with permission.
The hope is that with the patenting of their textiles and designs, the Maya community would have more autonomy and control over their heritage and culture, thus alleviating two of the major hardships the community faces: cultural appropriation and dispossession. Royalties received from the patent would also give the communities the chance to end a long-standing cycle of poverty.
The Maya Weavers are not alone in their struggle. In 2015, members of the Tlahuitoltepec community in Oaxaca, Mexico, accused French designer Isabel Marant of plagiarizing a 600-year-old Tlahuitoltepec design. In 2012, the Navajo Nation in the United States filed a lawsuit against Urban Outfitters for using their name in a number of products, including “Navajo hipster panties” and “Navajo print flask.” The prevalence of this kind of cultural appropriation and plagiarism led 189 delegates from indigenous communities from around the world to gather in Geneva in June 2017, and convene a special committee within the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to ban the appropriation of indigenous cultures around the world.
Perhaps most importantly for the Maya community, a patent would be an acknowledgement of the of the significance and value of their work. Maya textiles and clothing traditions, especially the huipil, a handwoven garment worn by Maya women, have a profound meaning to the weavers.
“You never make a huipil just because,” says Lucía, a Maya weaver in the Chichicastenango women’s cooperative Ut’z Bat’z. “They all have significance. For example, in Quiche, the designs have serpents, because they have curves like the curve of an M which also signifies the mountains where our ancestors were able to climb up and see their surroundings. The neck represents the sun, and the corners represent the four cardinal points.”
As Ambrocia Cuma, a Maya weaver and professor who teaches at Tulane University, puts it, “the huipiles for me are an identity. They are a trove of knowledge because they represent the everyday conversations of woman with nature.”

author: Ariana Crisafulli


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Ayotzinapa: It’s Been Three Years Since 43 Students Disappeared in Mexico · Global Voices
J. Tadeo

“In memory of Ayotzinapa” (Photograph of one of the missing students). Image shared on Flickr by user Lws & Clrk, used under CC BY-SA 2.0 license.
September 26 will mark three years since the violent events in Iguala, Mexico, a city in the southwestern state of Guerrero, led to the disappearance of 43 student teachers from the Escuela Normal Rural Raul Isidro Burgos in Ayotzinapa.
The Ayotzinapa case, as it's become commonly known, has gone cold. Due to the lack of advancements in the investigation, its relevance has waned in the public's eye. However, the fate of these students remains a mystery and cause for controversy.
The most accepted story claims that the students, riding in buses that they had commandeered to attend a protest, were taken into custody by local police. They were then handed over to a local criminal organization identified as Guerreros Unidos, or “Warriors United.”
The criminal group acted on the orders of Iguala’s mayor and his spouse, known as the “Imperial Couple” for their extravagance and abuse of power. The infamous couple was linked to the Party of the Democratic Revolution, one of the opposition parties to the current government in Mexico.
The official version, partially confirmed by experts from University of Innsbruck, Austria, states that the students were then killed and their corpses burned in a landfill in the town of Cocula, also in Guerrero. But this story has been disputed by public opinion and some experts who consider it infeasible that a fire or mass pyre in that location could have been strong enough to incinerate the remains of every single student.
Other skeptics claim that the students were last taken to a military camp, a version not entirely refuted by others unsatisfied with the official story, as Mexico’s government has denied access to army facilities.
The only known truth is that these 43 students have not reappeared and their families continue the demand hard evidence and explanations.
Over 100 people have been detained since November 2014 for their alleged involvement in the case, including the main leaders of Guerreros Unidos and the “Imperial Couple.” However, no one has been declared criminally responsible for what happened — that is, not a single sentence has been handed down, 36 months after it happened.
Journalist Arturo Angel profiled the investigation’s unfolding for independent news site Animal Político:
Más de 120 personas han sido detenidas durante la investigación tras la desaparición de los normalistas, pero de ellos solo 70 están acusados ante un juez de haber participado en estos hechos.
Sidronio Casarrubias, presunto líder del grupo criminal “Guerreros Unidos” al que se responsabiliza oficialmente de ser el autor de la desaparición de los normalistas, se encuentra entre los detenidos pero no ha sido consignado por el caso. La PGR informó que aún no reúne los elementos de prueba para hacerlo.
More than 120 people were arrested during the investigation after the student teachers’ disappearance, but among them only 70 are accused before a judge of having participated in said events. Sidronio Casarrubias, who is the alleged leader of the criminal group “Guerreros Unidos” and bears official responsibility for the students’ disappearance, is among the detainees but has not been recorded in the case. The PGR (Attorney General's Office) reported that it does not yet have the evidence to do so.
Since the disappearance, three people have acted as head of the Mexican Attorney General's Office, which is responsible for investigating the facts and presenting those responsible to the judiciary: Jesus Murillo Karam, Areli Gomez and now Raul Cervantes. All of them have undeniable links with the Institutional Revolutionary Party (from whose ranks arose the country's current president, Enrique Peña) and all three have been strongly questioned about the way in which the Ayotzinapa case has been handled.
Three years after the tragedy, few remain who honor the students’ memory and demand that they be returned alive and that the government be held accountable. Those who memorialize the tragedy have formed solidarity with families of the disappeared by sharing videos like this one, circulated on Twitter by the non-governmental organization Fundar. In it, one of the mothers of the victims says, “So that's how I handle it, thinking, waiting, and that's why I say this is the worst thing that can happen to a mother”:
#VivaMexicoPero es momento de escuchar las voces de dignidad y dolor de las víctimas, sobrevivientes y familiares del Caso #Ayotzinapapic.twitter.com/bEHtmQve3p
— Fundar (@FundarMexico) 15 de septiembre de 2017
#VivaMexicoPero (“#LongLiveMexicoBut”) it's time to listen to the dignified, anguished voices of the victims, survivors and relatives of the #Ayotzinapa Case
Jan Nimmo is another person who recalls the case, despite the slowness of the investigation:
Casi 3 años y todos los días sigo pensando en los estudiantes de Ayotzinapa #Mexico, sus familias y los 31,000 q nos faltan #Ayotzinapa3Añospic.twitter.com/dKiI7uXmvv
— Jan Nimmo (@NimmoJan) 11 de septiembre de 2017
Almost 3 years and every day I still think of the students of Ayotzinapa #Mexico, their families and the 31,000 who are missing #Ayotzinapa3Años (#Ayotzinapa3Years)
Journalist and filmmaker Epigmenio Ibarra also pays tribute to the students by posting a daily “class roster” on Twitter, in which he shares the name and photo of every single person missing:
41 MiguelÁngelH
42 MiguelÁngelM
43 Saul
AyotziVive#NiUnaMenosNiUnoMenos@jorgeramosnews@perezrevertepic.twitter.com/T0ailIj3Pn
— epigmenio ibarra (@epigmenioibarra) September 18, 2017
41 MiguelÁngelH
42 MiguelÁngelM
43 Saul
AyotziVive#NiUnaMenosNiUnoMenos (“NotOneLess”)
The Ayotzinapa case was one of the first difficulties faced by President Peña and his administration, but was soon followed by countless scandals of conflict of interest, negligence, abuse of power and political corruption involving him and his cohorts. Despite this, the political class is ready for the presidential succession of 2018 as if none of it ever happened.
On the other side, the person currently in charge of investigating the disappearances, Raul Cervantes, is instead focusing his energies toward gaining the still vacant General Prosecutor of the Republic seat, a position that would guarantee him nine years in power (the president will not be able remove him) and turn him into a virtually untouchable individual by granting him immunity to citizen charges. The aforementioned General Prosecutor of the Republic office will be an autonomous entity that will substitute the present Attorney General's office.
YA 3 AÑOS DE AYOTZINAPA Y NO HAY JUSTICIA Y ASI QUIEREN PONER A RAUL CERVANTES COMO FISCAL GRAL. NADA QUE
— mario hernandez (@licmahera) 3 de septiembre de 2017
3 YEARS OF AYOTZINAPA AND THERE IS STILL NO JUSTICE, SO THEY WANT TO PUT RAUL CERVANTES AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE REPUBLIC. NEVER
Global Voices will continue to follow the case as we have over the last three years, including personal stories about the Ayotzinapa students like Aldo Gutierrez's, who was not counted among the 43 but was seriously injured after being attacked by Iguala police and remains unconscious in a hospital in Mexico City.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: J. Tadeo


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Katsura Sunshine Brings the Japanese Art of Comic Storytelling to English-Language Audiences · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

Katsura Sunshine (桂 三輝 Katsura Sanshain). Screencap from YouTube video by NikkeiTV.
A Canadian comic and playwright is successfully taking on one of Japan's most popular traditional forms of entertainment with a goal of introducing it to the world.
Katsura “Sunshine” (桂 三輝, Katsura Sanshain) has mastered rakugo, Japan's “art of comic storytelling“. He's the only officially qualified non-Japanese rakugo professional in the world and gets the first part of his name from Katsura Bunshi VI, the “master” who taught him the ropes.
The second part of his stage name, 三輝, or “Sanshain”, is also a reference to his lineage, and is also intended to be a play on words to match his sunny disposition and cheerful blonde hair.
As a performance art, rakugo itself is deceptively simple. According to Katsura Sunshine:
A minimalistic performance art, Rakugo features a lone storyteller dressed in kimono, kneeling on a cushion, who, using only a fan and a hand towel for props, entertains the audience with a comic monologue followed by a traditional story.
While Katsurua Sunshine does perform in Japanese, he also has made an effort to translate the artform into English. Here is an example of rakugo, where Katsura Sunshine dissects the complexity of Japanese “polite language”, with perplexing results:
Originally from Toronto, Canada, Katsura (then named Gregory Robic) first arrived in Japan in 1999, intending to stay for only six months. Nine years later he was still in Japan, and decided to train as a rakugo storyteller. In recent years Katsura Sunshine has taken his show on the road, performing in front of international audiences.
Here's an example of his show:
In the same set, Katsura Sunshine tells the story of Jugemu (寿限無) a Japanese folktale and that is one of the most famous stories in rakugo, and a word that every Japanese student must memorize in elementary school:
At the moment Katsura Sunshine is based in Ise, a small city in rural Japan. He regularly performs around the world, and intends to at some point open an an off-Broadway show devoted to rakugo.
Katsura Sunshine's Rakugo performances can be found online on his YouTube channel, and on Timeline, a Japanese site focusing on news, technology and entertainment.

author: Nevin Thompson


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Puerto Rico, Trapped Between Colonialism and Hurricanes · Global Voices
Ana Portnoy

Puerto Rican graffiti. Photo by Flickr user Juan Cristóbal Zulueta. Used under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) license.
You came to Puerto Rico for the golden sand and sun—gold, you will recall, was also the basis of our first colonizers’ initial attraction. For the endless piña coladas and rum-spiked mysteries. For the colonial charm and quaint, humble lifestyle. Poverty looks so alluring in the Caribbean, what with the bright colors, crystal-clear waters and the backdrop of lush greens—besides, it’s only for a week. Your friends say it’s the hottest Spring Break spot; the newspapers say it’s a debt-ridden disaster; your parents say it’s dangerous and that the water is undrinkable; and the brochures say it’s a (tax) haven, an absolute paradise. So here you are, in your bathing suit and sarong, mojito in hand, ready to focus on your one task for the week: tanning.
But it turns out that the sun isn’t nailed onto the sky, and it doesn’t run on one-million 100-watt light bulbs that never fail. The tides rise and the swells are ferocious. Coconuts, palm trees and branches are potential projectiles. And a hurricane is heading straight for your worry-free fantasy.
So you try to catch a flight out of this paradise-turned-inferno, because a hurricane was not on your must-see itinerary. Instead, JetBlue takes you to a hurricane shelter in San Juan, a hot and humid coliseum, where your beach chair is replaced for a cot; your piña colada for a Walgreens water bottle; your dream for our reality.
The power was out in my house as I imagined the scenario above, which had taken place the day before, right before Irma’s arrival. The morning after Irma’s passing, there were more than a million households without power. Puerto Rico's Electric Power Authority (PREPA) predicted the outages would last two to four months, and almost 80,000 households had lost water service as well. Over 6,200 people were in shelters on the northeastern side of the island, and Puerto Rico’s agricultural industry had suffered $30.4 million in losses. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Governor Ricardo Rosselló were still evaluating infrastructural and residential damages. And now a powerful new storm was heading our way: María.
Puerto Rico is no stranger to crisis. Before Irma’s rampage through the archipelago, Puerto Rico was already in the midst of one of the most devastating financial and socio-political crises in its recent history, with an unaudited $74 billion debt under its belt, $49 billion in pension obligations, and several decades’ worth of illegal bond issuances and trading related to its status as an overly-advertised tax haven. Neoliberal policies, such as draconian budget cuts and extreme austerity measures, had already rendered life in Puerto Rico quite precarious. And the whole thing was being overseen and managed simultaneously by Governor Rosselló, an unelected and antidemocratic Fiscal Control Board, and judge Laura Taylor Swain, all of whom were going back and forth on the country’s fiscal management and debt restructuring processes.
But even as Hurricane Irma headed straight towards it, for many outside of the country, Puerto Rico is a mere blip on CNN’s news ticker, an enchanting US-owned island on a tourist brochure, that exotic place where the music video for “Despacito” was filmed, a pebble sinking between an ocean and a sea that have seen too much.
Puerto Rico has been a US colony (the US prefers the euphemistic designations of “commonwealth”, “unincorporated territory” and “free associated state”) for 119 years, a relationship that has trapped the country in a steep downward spiral. The current fiscal and socio-political crisis is only one of the side effects of this relationship.
Hurricane Irma’s passing underscored the damage done by the neoliberal austerity measures imposed by the Fiscal Control Board and the crimes committed by corporations taking advantage of Puerto Rico’s colonial status. For starters, as a result of the massive closure of public schools, only 329 schools across the island were available as hurricane shelters compared with the 372 available during Hurricane Bertha’s passing in 2014.
Puerto Rico’s infrastructure also finds itself in an advanced state of deterioration, including roads, bridges, the University of Puerto Rico and public service buildings, all of which were critically endangered during Irma’s passing. A good part of the country’s “essential infrastructure” is on the coast, making it vulnerable to flooding, high tides and storm surges, especially during hurricanes of Irma’s or Maria’s intensity.
It is notable that much of that infrastructure was built to benefit the tourist industry and mercantile trade with the US, and the US alone. Money invested in infrastructure tends to go towards revitalizing these “essentials”, not to repairing the potholed roads in our communities, remediating asbestos-filled buildings or replacing crumbling light poles at the mercy of hurricane winds. All of this is further proof of our colonial market dependency and the essentially colonial nature of the tourist industry, which caters particularly to Puerto Rico’s relationship with the US.
Even the disaster declaration signed by the US president authorizing FEMA assistance for Puerto Rico was second-rate, allowing only for search and rescue, public health and safety, and debris removal. It didn’t include rebuilding or even restoration of power, and with the current fiscal crisis and the Fiscal Control Board’s silence since Irma’s passing, rebuilding and restructuring will be a tough feat for Puerto Rico given the lack of available resources.
Carla Minet, from the Center for Investigative Journalism in Puerto Rico, comments on these issues as well:
The budget cuts, in an already weak economy, will probably make the storm’s social impact worse.
Minet added that a pre-Irma forecast by the policy director of the Center for a New Economy, Sergio M. Marxuach, predicts that the recently approved Fiscal Plan would result in another lost decade, continued population loss due to migration and lower birth rates, lower employment, less access to public education, pension cuts, worsening health outcomes, higher mortality and lower life expectancy, and, ultimately, higher rates of poverty and inequality. “Now add in the cataclysm of a monster hurricane that the plan never accounted for,” Minet added.
The Fiscal Control Board is likely to use Irma as an excuse to aggressively push the many policies it has in line, such as the privatization of Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority (PREPA). Nor would it be surprising if Governor Rosselló and the Fiscal Control Board used the occasion to dismantle and privatize the University of Puerto Rico, the only public higher education institution on the archipelago, as well as a number of other public institutions that are defenseless against the colonial rule of the Fiscal Control Board and its blatant neoliberal attacks.
Now, barely two weeks after Irma’s passing, we’ve just been hit by another hurricane, a category 4 monster: María. This, just as some households had recently gotten back their electricity supply, while others were still living in the dark; as the ground was still strewn with fallen trees and light posts waiting to take on second lives as projectiles; as many, both locals and refugees from neighboring Caribbean islands, were still recovering from the loss of their homes, their entire reality; as crisis and colonialism continue to hold hands.
And so, you’re sitting in your cot with your straw hat on, hundreds of locals scrambling around you with what’s left of their lives stuffed into a bag or a suitcase, wondering why JetBlue dropped you off here and high-tailed it; why the shelter is so understaffed; why the power went out even though it hasn’t started raining yet and not a gust of wind has blown; why CNN wasn’t covering Irma’s passing over Puerto Rico. “I’m here, send over an Embassy representative for me!” you yell in your mind as you stare at the screen of your almost-dead smartphone. Why, you wonder, has life been so unfair to you, ruining your longed-for vacation on the Island of Enchantment.
Your thoughts are interrupted as you spot a window, and you walk gloomily towards it, look through pigeon-christened glass, and watch as storm clouds gather and winds batter a US flag—oh, and a Puerto Rican one too.

author: Ana Portnoy


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Purple March Unites a Thousand Malaysian Women Against ‘Toxic Politics’ · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The purple march gathered almost a thousand women in Kuala Lumpur. Photo from the Facebook page of Wanita Bantah Politik Toksik
On September 10, 2017, about a thousand women from all walks of life gathered in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur to take a stand against what they called the rising tide of toxic politics in the country.
The women held a “purple walk” to denounce sexism, corruption, election fraud, racism, and violence against women. Speakers during the rally highlighted the low representation of women in politics, the failure of parliament to reform or repeal laws that discriminate against women such as the child marriage law, and online harassment of women.
Retired judge and diplomat Datuk Noor Farida Ariffin summarized the theme of the action:
We as the women of Malaysia are dismayed at the erosion of democracy in Malaysia, through acts of violence perpetrated at political events, media or online. As the authorities have failed to address the problem, we as the women of Malaysia are taking a stand against this harmful rise of toxic politics.
What is more worrying is when a woman’s dignity and well-being can be sacrificed for the sake of politics and propaganda.
The organizers of the action identified some examples of toxic politics in Malaysia. (“Rakyat” means people.)
Examples of ‘toxic politics’ in Malaysia. Photo from the Facebook page of Wanita Bantah Politik Toksik
The gathering also united various personalities who have been critical of the ruling party which has been in power since the 1950s. The incumbent prime minister is accused of pocketing more than 600 million US dollars through a state-owned investment firm. The corruption scandal has sparked widespread protests across the country. The political crisis it engendered also led to the curtailment of free speech after the government ordered the closure of several media outlets that have been reporting on the corruption issue.
“Wait A Minute Now,”, an independent news website, wrote about the political importance of the purple march:
It was quite a sight to behold. 1,000 people does not sound like a lot, but in Malaysia, where protesting is not looked upon kindly, it represents at least that many women who are brave and passionate enough to come out and make themselves heard. Women of all ages, colour, background, and sexual orientation waved placards and chanted slogans in hopes that the movement would be recognised as a call for change.
But columnist Boo Su-Lyn urged the organizers to acknowledge that the event is for the benefit of the political opposition:
There is nothing wrong with supporting the Opposition; civil society leaders should just make clear their objectives about a regime change, instead of pretending that they are independent and impartial activists fighting for the rights of all Malaysians.
Indeed, there were opposition leaders in the rally, but the majority of the participants were members of civil society organizations and ordinary women who support the advocacy.
The hashtag #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik (Women Against Toxic Politics) was used to promote the action and to unite Malaysians in resisting toxic politics.
Below are some photos during the September 10 march and the messages of solidarity by Malaysian Twitter users:
Sexism is often used to silence women from voicing out their issues. #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik pic.twitter.com/iFE1OyrCJz
— Azrul Mohd Khalib (@azrulmohdkhalib) September 7, 2017
You would be a fool to underestimate young women ? pic.twitter.com/AntlOK6zXI
— shark wasangka ✊? (@liy) September 10, 2017
We are here together for a purpose and with hopes for Malaysia to be free from toxic politics #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik pic.twitter.com/MqHHYEZ0FH
— Sisters in Islam (@SistersinIslam) September 10, 2017
Demand for non discrimination on any basis – including sexuality – is on the ground at today's march! #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik pic.twitter.com/LZQzqgtvvX
— jacsmk ✊? (@jhybe) September 10, 2017
if u wanna live in a better world/country, u needa first hv respect w ppl around u, especially women #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik
— hannah♡ (@heyitshannah171) September 7, 2017
We were at #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik in KL today and it was glorious ??✨ pic.twitter.com/QuoHq4UkW2
— WAMN Media ? (@WAMNmedia) September 10, 2017
As 50% of voters, women have the right to shape the national agenda. We reject toxic politics. #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik pic.twitter.com/d3vfXcIliU
— Wanita Ungu Malaysia (@wanitaungu) September 7, 2017
“Women, stand up!” #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik pic.twitter.com/furPk0qTXv
— Wanita Ungu Malaysia (@wanitaungu) September 10, 2017
“Stand up for yourselves, women!” – @violetteuzumaki @eternize_l #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik pic.twitter.com/cO0VqrwJyt
— Wanita Ungu Malaysia (@wanitaungu) September 10, 2017
At the #WanitaBantahPolitikToksik rally in KL today (Women Against Toxic Politics) pic.twitter.com/2GDB4h9krp
— Kate Ng (@etaKatetaKate) September 10, 2017

author: Mong Palatino


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Report Reveals a Company Linked to Paraguayan Minister Drives Deforestation in the Chaco Region · Global Voices
Kurtural

The charcoal that is exported to Europe is produced by harvesting white quebracho trees, a tree typical of the Chaco region. Photograph published in Kurtural courtesy of Earthsight and used with permission.
The following is an English-translation of a Spanish-language article by Jazmín Acuña, originally published by Kurtural.
The Chaco region, which stretches across parts of Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina, has the world's highest rate of deforestation, caused by logging for the production of charcoal and the expansion of grazing land for livestock.
One of the parties responsible for this situation is Bricapar, the largest exporter of charcoal in Paraguay. And it just so happens that the country's minister of public works and communications, Ramón Jiménez Gaona, owns a quarter of Bricapar's stock, according to the British NGO Earthsight.
Undercover investigators from the organization followed the trail of the company's products that are sold in European supermarkets as “sustainable”. But they found a different reality when they arrived at one of Bricapar's charcoal production centers in the department of Boquerón. There they found that the main profits of the company were generated from the indiscriminate harvesting of trees like the white quebracho.
The extensive investigation by Earthsight revealed a business plan that encourages a dramatic deforestation of the Chaco region. Trees are harvested for charcoal, which facilitates the land then being used to raise livestock. This scheme was explained in detail by the manager of the Bricapar production center, located in the town of Teniente Ochoa, where the company obtains the raw material, the wood, and houses its ovens to convert it into charcoal.
The land belongs to Paraguay's Institute of Social Welfare and has been leased to Irasa, a livestock company, since 2008. Irasa has a 20-year contract that allows them to exploit three parcels of 18 thousand hectares — of the 200,000 that belong to the social security organization — and has had permission from the National Forest Institute to harvest forests on the land since 2009. At the same time, the livestock company has maintained a contract with Bricapar since 2012 to cut trees that are then converted into charcoal.
Under this plan, which contributes to an unprecedented environmental crisis, Bricapar has become “the largest producer and exporter of charcoal in Paraguay,” in the words of Sebastián Gorostiaga, Bricapar's sales manager. Their products are sold in supermarkets in Germany, Spain, and England, according to statements by Guillermo Vega de Seoane, executive director of Ibecosol, an intermediate Spanish company responsible for distributing the Bricapar charcoal in the European market.
According to Earthsight's estimates, Bricapar was responsible for half of Parguay's exports of the product in the first half of 2017, and the sales resulted in profits of approximately a million dollars a month. This, at the same time that satellite images show that in the areas where Bricapar has its furnaces in Teniente Ochoa, about 10 football fields’ worth of land are deforested a day, representing a third of all of the logging done in the Chaco region daily to serve Europe's demands for charcoal. The deforestation in the region in general is such that on average seven trees per second are cut down, according to a report by Guyra Paraguay, a non-profit, non-governmental environmental advocate.
Thanks to Earthsight's findings, European supermarket chain Carrefour told The Guardian newspaper that it has launched its own investigation and decided to stop buying products from Ibecosol, an intermediary of Bricapar, in the meantime. Moreover, the German NGO Rainforest Rescue published a petition that has collected over 133,000 signatures demanding that European supermarkets like Aldi, Lidl and Carrefour take “immediate action” to “stop buying charcoal made from the destruction of Paraguay’s forests.”

author: Kurtural


text:
Despite Censorship, a Former Chinese Soldier Brags of His War Crimes Online · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Left: Zhang Jingyu. Right: Screenshot of his war crime narrative, first shared via WeChat.
A former Chinese solider boasted to a private chat group this week that during the Sino-Vietnamese War, he killed a Vietnamese woman and raped her teenage daughter.
Chinese authorities have been struggling to contain online outrage in response to the post of Zhang Jingyu, a self-described Maoist patriot, who told his story to a private group on the social media platform WeChat.
Zhang described how in 1979, at just 17 years old, he went into the village of Cao Bang in Vietnam in the midst of a crossfire, where he killed a woman and raped her teenage daughter in the ruin.
Zhang was caught by the head of the combat team and sentenced to one week in solitary confinement after he returned to China. After that, the army dismissed him, but recommended him to a college to study foreign languages.
The brief Sino-Vietnamese War was declared by former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in 1979 after Vietnam invaded Cambodia. The Chinese People's Liberation Army captured Cao Bang near the border area in less than two weeks, but did not enter the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi.
Deng claimed victory after one month of fighting, and the Chinese forces suffered great losses. In some Chinese oral history records, Vietnamese soldiers criticized the Chinese army of being crueler than US army, which had pulled out of Vietnam a few years earlier after nearly 20 years in the country. Some other English sources also accused the Chinese army of mass killings of Vietnamese civilians when retreating from Vietnam.
In Zhang's comments, he showed no remorse for his actions:
殺了她媽，奸了她十三四歲女兒，他們是全民皆兵，戰爭時期的越南人只有死人才是好人。
Killed her mother, raped her 13-14 year-old daughter. They were all soldiers. During the war, the only good Vietnamese people were the dead ones.
17.5歲我干了，你們敢干嗎？如果說你不敢，那我告訴你：你現在烈士崚園睡著呢，而我還活著。
I did it when I was 17.5 years old. Would you dare to do such a thing? If you did not have the courage, I tell you: you would be lying underneath the hero's tomb. But I'm still alive…
Despite efforts to censor the tale, Zhang's post has been screen-captured and since has gone viral on Chinese social media. Netizens have widely condemned his actions and called for authorities to investigate the case and clarify the historical facts.
Thus far, there has been no public information regarding an official investigation. But there has been ample censorship of online criticism and discussion about the incident.
Nearly all discussions of the post and associated events have either been censored or are too graphic for public re-distribution. Below is a typical censored comment:
不管张靖宇有没有强奸幼女，甚至不管他有没有当过兵，他的言论或行为都已对解放军造成极其恶劣的影响，如果他不受惩罚，将会有更多的张靖宇王靖宇以爱国贼的身份站出来，挑战人类的底线，到时候你莫说删贴，就是断网都没用。
Even if Zhang Jingyu's story is a fiction and he never raped the teenage girl or he hadn’t been a soldier at all, his narrative has an adverse effect on the People’s Liberation Army. If he is not punished, there will be more Zhang Jingyus or patriotic thugs who stand out to challenge the baseline of humanity. By then, nothing can be done [to undo the wrong]. Censorship or internet shutdowns won’t work.
Those who managed to climb over the Great Firewall left their comments on Twitter. Below is one:
·#杀死孩子母亲、强奸13岁少女，这在哪个国家都是重罪。可是，在共产党的中国、一名中国人民解放军战士，在犯下如此重罪时，却只受到脱去军装、禁闭一周的处罚。至今，他不仅不忏悔，反而在微博洋洋得意炫耀。请大家记住他的丑陋面貌，并请记住他的名字，他叫：张靖宇，网名：归云楼。
· pic.twitter.com/DscHFdADB5
— 付振川 (@FuZhenChuan) September 21, 2017
#Killing kid’s mother, raping a 13-year-old teenage, these are serious crimes in any country. But in CCP’s China, when a People’s Liberation Army soldier committed such serious crimes, the punishment was dismissed from the army and one week solitary confinement. Till now, he did not have any remorse and boasted about his crime. Please remember this ugly creature and remember his name: Zhang Jingyu. Screen name: Gui Yun Luo.
As all criticisms on Chinese social media platforms were censored, Chinese blogger Li Hanfan decided to praise Zhang for telling the truth about the Sino-Vietnamese War:
到目前为止，我们无从证实张靖宇所说的是否属实，依笔者看来，属实的成分应该较大。从逻辑上来讲，没人会无端污蔑自己犯下了如此重罪。
如果不是自污，那张靖宇就是在回顾历史、还原史实。这种行为难道不值得点赞吗？
Up till now, we had no evidence to prove if Zhang Jingyu was telling the truth. But in my opinion, it now seems more probably that he was telling the truth. Any logical person would not defame themselves with such a serious crime.
If it is not self-defamation, Zhang is reviewing history and retelling historical facts. This should be praised.
The blogger then argued:
我们现在要做的，特别是我们的政府和军队要做的，就是要查证张靖宇所说的是不是事实。如果经过调查张靖宇所说属实，那么…我们当然也必须正视历史，接下来我们的政府和军队要做的，就是为这种暴行向越南方面做出真诚道歉、实际赔偿，甚至把这个在战时向越南平民施暴的恶魔送上军事法庭。
当然，不排除另外一种可能，那就是张靖宇说的这些不是事实，他自始至终在胡说八道，他想用这种噱头让自己变成网红[…] 如果真是这样，那就更需要我们的政府和军队做出详尽的调查再向外界特别是向越南方面做出最具说服力的解释和说明。然后，再让这个抹黑我们伟大军队、污蔑我们可爱子弟兵的“造谣者”受到应有的惩罚！
What we, in particular our government and our army, need to do now is to investigate if Zhang Jingyu is telling the truth. If he is, then we have to take the history seriously. Our government and army should apologize sincerely to Vietnam and compensate for such serious crimes. We should even send this devil to military court.
Of course, it is also possible that Zhang Jingyu had made up the story, he just wanted to be famous…If this is really the case, our government and army should investigate thoroughly and explained the situation to Vietnam. Then punish the rumor creator who has defamed our admirable soldier.
The response to Zhang's comments underlines the imbalance that many Chinese netizens see in the state's approach to so-called “rumors” online. While some types of political content are subject to heavy censorship, others are not.
Earlier this month, officials released new regulations that hold people who run chatrooms and message groups — who are often just regular citizens — criminally liable for the circulation of rumors, scams and politically sensitive topics in such online groups. Many say the crackdown has targeted views that are critical of the Chinese government and party authorities. Yet speech that is framed as being patriotic — even when it is as inhumane and bellicose as Zhang's — is spared punishment.

author: Oiwan Lam


text:
‘Immigrants, We Get The Job Done’ Music Video Spotlights Injustice in the US and Beyond · Global Voices
Guest Contributor

Screenshot of the video “Immigrants, We Get the Job Done”.
This post was originally written by Marlena Fitzpatrick and published on Enclave. It is re-edited and re-published on Global Voices with Enclave's permission.
The end of June saw the release of a music video for the song “Immigrants, We Get The Job Done” from “The Hamilton Mixtape” album of songs from the Broadway musical “Hamilton,” based on the life of Alexander Hamilton, who played a prominent role in the founding of the United States in the late 18th century.
The critically acclaimed show, which is inspired by the biography written by Ron Chernow, gives the history a twist with music in various styles, from hip-hop and rhythm and blues to pop, and actors of a wide variety of backgrounds playing figures who were white. “Immigrants, we get the job done” is a lyric sung in the musical by Hamilton, who immigrated to the American colonies as a teenager, and the Marquis de Lafayette, a French aristocrat who fought in the American Revolutionary War.
The version of the song that appears on “The Hamilton Mixtape” features Somali-Canadian poet K’naan Warsame, Puerto Rican rapper and writer Residente, British Pakistani actor, rapper and activist Riz Ahmed, Mexican American hip-hop recording artist and actress Snow Tha Product, and American actor, rapper and singer Daveed Diggs. All of them are artists known in the United States for being vocal against racism and discrimination.
The song and video was produced by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also wrote the musical. It depicts an ignored working class who are living in the shadows and who are often victims of war crimes, police brutality, labor exploitation, anti-immigrant violence and senseless death. The timing of its release is especially significant, coming at a moment when the country is fiercely debating immigration law reform and hostility against minority groups has become more visible. Part of the lyrics read:
I been scoping ya dudes, ya’ll ain't been working like I do
I'll outwork you, it hurts you
You claim I’m stealing jobs though
Peter Piper claimed he picked them, he just underpaid Pablo
But there ain't a paper trail when you living in the shadows
We're America's ghost writers, the credit's only borrowed
In fact, Miranda has lent his support to the Immigrants: We Get the Job Done Coalition, convened by the Hispanic Federation. The coalition includes 12 partner organizations that work on the ground throughout the United States to provide life-changing services – legal representation, advocacy, and “know your rights” awareness campaigns, and much more – to immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers who come to us in search of the American Dream.

author: Guest Contributor


text:
Brazil’s Belo Monte Hydroelectric Plant License Is Suspended Again · Global Voices
ISA

View of the Urban Collective Resettlement (RUC) Jatobá, in Altamira, Brazil. Photo: Aaron Vincent Elkaim/ISA, published with permission.
This article by Isabel Harari was originally published on the website of the Instituto Socioambiental (ISA) with whom Global Voices has a content-sharing partnership.
The Belo Monte Dam in Brazil's northern Pará state was granted an operation permit two years ago and is in the final stages of construction. Yet, the hydroelectric plant continues to face accusations of violations of socio-environmental rights.
On Wednesday 13 September, the regional court in Brazil suspended its Licence of Installation (LI) due to the poor housing conditions in settlements built for hundreds of families displaced by Belo Monte.
Criticism of housing irregularities began in 2012 when Norte Energia, the franchisee of Belo Monte, promised brickwork houses of three different sizes, according to family size. However, all the families were resettled in houses of the same size and in concrete. Long distances between the new housing and places of work and study, along with poor conditions such as holes and cracks in the walls, are daily realities regularly criticized by public bodies.
The suspension freezes all work related to hydroelectric plant installation, slated to operate at its full potential by 2019. Norte Energia refuses to recognize the legal power of the decision and stated in a communique that “such a decision does not have an effect since it refers to the LI.”
On Friday 22 September, the same regional court authorized the use of police force if Norte Energia does not comply with the decision and continues its installation work.
Environmental activist Helena Palmquist, based in Pará state, commented on tensions around the decision in a series of tweets:
A Norte Energia e o governo brasileiro sempre disseram que Belo Monte seria a salvação dos comedores de minhoca do Xingu.
— helenapalm (@helenapalm) September 14, 2017
Norte Energia and the Brazilian government have always said that Belo Monte would save the worm-eaters of Xingu [the river where Belo Monte was built].
Sempre propagandearam que as pessoas viveriam nas melhores casas com o melhor saneamento do país.
— helenapalm (@helenapalm) September 14, 2017
They have always flaunted that people would live in the best houses, with the best sanitaiton of the country.
Nada disso aconteceu e a empresa ainda tenta sustentar na Justiça que a umidade da Amazônia é uma surpresa. O saneamento nunca ficou pronto.
— helenapalm (@helenapalm) September 14, 2017
None of that happened and the company even tries to defend itself in court claiming that the Amazon's humidity was unexpected
E agora, a usina quase pronta, essas pessoas tem que se conformar com a devastação de suas vidas como um fato consumado.
— helenapalm (@helenapalm) September 14, 2017
And now, with the plant almost ready, those people have to accept the devastation of their lives as an accomplished fact
Parar Belo Monte é pouco. Muito pouco.
— helenapalm (@helenapalm) September 14, 2017
To stop Belo Monte is minimal. Really minimal.
Norte Energia has held an operation license since November 2015, which completely replaced the terms of the installation license. This license carries new conditions which haven't been fulfilled and therefore confirms the environmental irregularities of the enterprise. The plant faces four other judicial decisions that could also order the suspension of its operating license.
As of April 2017, a regional court suspended the company’s activities until Altamira's sewage system was improved, yet none have been made. This historic decision was the first time a regional court overturned a security suspension, which had previously allowed the company to continue working without monitoring the fulfillment of its conditions.
While the license of operation remains annulled and the suspension of the installation license has legal validity, none of these decisions have been effectively implemented. Completion of the installation is projected for 2019 with the placement of the last turbine.
Norte Energia continues producing and selling energy, defying all judicial decisions in place.

author: ISA


text:
Clapping Back Against Online Xenophobia, Trinidad & Tobago Citizens Continue to Help Hurricane-Ravaged Dominica · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

An MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 22 (HSC-22), attached to the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1), performs humanitarian aid operations on the embattled island of Dominica following the landfall of Hurricane Maria. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Michael Molina/Released)170924-N-VK310-0009. Via the Official U.S. Navy Flickr Page, CC BY 2.0
In the wake of the devastation left by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, Trinidad and Tobago, along with its neighbours across the archipelago, have banded together under the #OneCaribbean hashtag, sending supplies and other relief to the islands most adversely affected and creating a sense of community.
But solidarity isn't the only thing that the disaster has inspired. After Trinidad and Tobago's prime minister, Dr. Keith Rowley, offered accommodation to Dominican hurricane victims whose homes had been destroyed, saying immigration restrictions would be waived for a period of six months, xenophobic comments began to spring up on social media.
With government critics questioning whether the country should be opened up in a period of economic recession, some of the backlash has been perceived as political partisanship. Many netizens were taken aback at the level of hatefulness and wasted no time in calling it out.
Leslie-Ann Boiselle posted this status update on Facebook:
A public status update by Facebook user Leslie-Ann Boiselle, who said, “Seeing such putrid hatred, insensitivity and downright callousness aimed at those who are in dire need is so disappointing.”
And Patricia Worrell added:
I have NO political bias in favour of any party right now. I watch all with cynicism, and listen to the utterances of each with a ton of salt.
Nonetheless, the comments about PM Rowley's response to the Dominica situation on one political party's page are stomach turning!
And no intervention by any person in a leadership position in that party to suggest that the hatred expressed on that page, and directed against a suffering people in the name of politics is wrong?
Nah! I think people may have reached an all-time low there!
The blog Politics868 likened the reaction to the United States’ reluctance to welcome European Jews on the eve of World War II. Compared with other countries’ responses to recent migrant crises, it argued, “a mere 2000 Dominicans is nothing to get bothered over”.
Attorney Ria Mohammed-Davidson wrote in to blog Wired868, saying:
The visceral responses which this decision has provoked betray an unfortunate lack of awareness of the full panoply of rights contained in the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, particularly the right to free movement under Article 45. This right was further concretised in the 2007 Heads of Government decision which granted to all CARICOM [Caribbean Community] nationals an automatic, six-month stay upon arrival in any Member State.
Facebook user Rhoda Bharath added:
Since the 1770s Trinidad and Tobago, whether as a colony or Independent nation has allowed immigrants through co ordinated programmes.
We have had political refugees.
Labour/economic refugees.
People fleeing religious persecution, wars, poverty.
Post Independendence we continue to have immigrants and refugees for one reason or another of all nationalities.
Immigrants have always been an integral part of our development as a society.
The PM has offered 6 months of safe refuge to our neighbours….and the xenophobia and prejudice I am seeing blows my mind.
Keep rationalising hate and ignorance!
#HurricaneMaria
#TrumpTrinidad
However, Facebook user Dave Williams remembered a time that one former leader of a PNM government — the current ruling party in Trinidad and Tobago — had been less than charitable to Haiti, another of its Caribbean neighbours.
Keith Francis issued an apology on behalf of his countrymen:
Dear Dominica,
On behalf of all of the right-thinking Trinbagonians among us, I apologise for our having here persons who are less charitable and more ungracious in your time of trouble. They do not represent the majority of us. We are collectively better than what you have been made to observe.
You are welcome here, and we will do what we can to help you even as we face challenging times ourselves.
#kthxbye #SeeYouSoon #BeCaribbeanStrong
Luv,
The Me
CC: Antigua, Venezuela, St. Lucia, Grenada, Haiti, and everyone else that small-minded and dirt-hearted Trinbagonians have offended in the past.
Such a myopic stance also struck other Facebook users as ironic, especially considering that Trinidad and Tobago's national anthem includes the lines, “Side by side we stand, islands of the blue Caribbean Sea”. Originally intended to be the anthem for the failed West Indies Federation, the piece was adapted for Trinidad and Tobago when it became independent in 1962.
Keston K. Perry, writing at Wired868, suggested, however, that the response — while lacking “empathy and consideration” — could also be interpreted as a symptom of “a deeper sense of disenfranchisement that some Trinbagonians may be feeling at the moment”.
He bashed both sides of the political divide, arguing that “the reactionary xenophobia appears to share common strands—perhaps from a feeling of loss of power and control over their material, political and economic circumstances”, and dismissing the view that the reaction was rooted in racism:
While the rhetoric from government ministers has been that the burden of adjustment is being evenly distributed, for many regular citizens and families who have to hustle to survive, that is simply not the case. It is, therefore, possible that the irrational and xenophobic reactions to the PM’s invitation to fellow CARICOM nationals may well be other attitudes in disguise.
The regrettable insensitivity towards Dominicans has to be seen in the wider context of heightened economic insecurity, an instinct by some for self-preservation or the expression of the little power that access to social media affords the have-nots.
Leadership is certainly manifested by showing some compassion to and solidarity with our Dominican brothers and sisters, by offering them some respite and hospitality even for a short period of time. In the wider scheme of things, however, leadership must also take cognisance of the fact that the current economic policy agenda—which favours business interests—has not, even in the best of circumstances, really served the people of this two-island nation.
Still, many netizens were having none of it. The hashtag #IStandWithDominica started being used on several social media platforms. Journalist Soyini Grey commented on Facebook:
FYI an environmental refugee isn't a criminal, or criminally-prone. And they may not want to relocate permanently.
Also, immigrants can be good for your economy.
Think, people. Think
Nicole Philip Greene advised:
Pay no attention to the noisemakers and fearmongerers. Do not let them dishearten, confuse or divide you.
There are A LOT of Trinis working quietly doing what they know is right for our neighbours. Giving of time, effort and supplies.
And not just because we know ‘There but for the grace of God…’ but because we still have a heart. We still know what is right.
?? ?? #Hope #BeCaribbeanStrong #IStandWithDominica ?? ??
Stories being shared on social media pages supported this — for every negative comment, there seemed to be many more accounts of generosity, heroism, and assistance.
Relief efforts in Dominica coordinated today by Ministry of National Security Divisons, Caribbean Airlines Ltd and NGOs. pic.twitter.com/X8okqs6OmH
— M. National Security (@ttnatsecurity) September 25, 2017
TTDF rescues family in Dominica. They were living in a car in the middle if nowhere since the hurricane. pic.twitter.com/c8cxrNjQ4j
— M. National Security (@ttnatsecurity) September 23, 2017
Several netizens expressed a desire to host Dominicans in their homes, and more than 100 regional performers got together for the “One Island” concert, held in Trindad's capital city on September 24, 2017, which was the 41st anniversary of Republic Day. The proceeds of the concert go towards hurricane relief efforts in the region, and scores of Trinidad and Tobago-based churches, schools, charitable and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) continue to send containers with supplies and other relief materials to the citizens of Dominica.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


text:
The Unsung Heroes of the 2017 Floods in Mumbai, India · Global Voices
VideoVolunteers

Screenshot from YouTube video via Video Volunteers featuring a migrant worker clearing drains in Mumbai, India.
This post was written by Madhura Chakraborty and originally appeared on Video Volunteers, an award-winning international community media organization based in India. An edited version is published below as part of a content-sharing agreement with Global Voices.
Thousands of migrant workers are employed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), India's wealthiest civic body, for the pre-monsoon cleanup every year. The cleanup requires the labor of migrant workers who often work illegally in inhumane conditions, most evidenced during the recent Mumbai floods.
On August 29, monsoon downpours caused havoc in Mumbai, collapsing transport systems in the megacity of over 18 million residents. Nearly two dozen people were killed when a building collapsed after roads were turned into rivers in India’s financial capital.
The floods in Mumbai receded within a day, thanks to the efforts of migrant sanitation workers employed by the BMC.
Due to the lack of proper drainage systems, poor hygiene like open defecation is practiced in India, cleaned mostly by manual scavenging (cleaning human waste by hand) primarily by the lowest caste Dalits.
After decades of campaigning to improve sanitation systems, in 2013 Indian lawmakers passed the Prohibition of Employment of Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, criminalizing the practice of employing individuals to clean, carry, dispose of, or handle human excreta manually from dry latrines, open drains, or pits and sewers without protective gear or other cleaning equipment.
However, BMC workers continue to clean manually, without any protective gear.
Amol Lalzare, Video Volunteers Community Correspondent and auto-rickshaw driver from Mumbai, reports:
They don’t touch us because our hands and feet are dirty. They say we stink. They yell at us, hit us, ask us to go away.
Nana Kale recounts how he is treated after cleaning the sewers of Mumbai before monsoons struck. He traveled nearly 500 kilometers with his wife and two-year-old daughter to work in the city-wide cleanup to prevent floods in Mumbai.
Employed by contractors under the BMC, Kale enters Mumbai's sewers without gas masks, protective gloves, shoes or suit. He picks up plastic and solid refuse with his hands and de-silts the drain using a spade and his bare hands. His wife helps him while their daughter plays around in the putrid black water, inhaling the noxious fumes of methane, ammonia and other gases.
She [my daughter] had once fallen inside the gutter. The contractor was right there, but he didn’t do anything. He asked us to keep her away. Where will this child go? says Kale.
In December 2016 the Bombay High Court ruled in favor of contractual sanitation workers under the BMC:
Residents of the city have a fundamental right to a clean environment…But in a welfare state, cleanliness for one class of citizens cannot be achieved by engaging in ‘slavery’ of the others.
The BMC is India’s richest civic body with a budget exceeding 25,000 crore Indian Rupees (3.8 blllion US dollars), causing concerned citizens to wonder why it can't take better care of those who perform this essential job for the city. Activists posit that the BMC treats the lives of these sanitation workers as dispensable because they are Dalits or the lowest caste of society.
According to BMC's own data, 1386 conservancy workers have died since 2009. Ninety conservancy workers have already died this year. Research reveals a critically low life expectancy of just 52 years for those who do this type of work.
Abdul Shaikh, a sub-contractor employed for the clean-up, eloquently explained:
“Modiji talks about Swachh Bharat. But I want to ask this government, is the cleanliness of the streets the only important thing? What about the people who do this work?”
The Swachh Bharat Campaign or the ‘Clean India Campaign,’ championed by Prime Minister Modi, has collected over 90 billion Indian Rupees since October 2016 through a tax introduced to fund its initiatives. And yet, the plight of sewer workers remains unchanged.
Mumbaikars have expressed outrage against the BMC over lives lost in the flood and much is being said about the ‘spirit of Mumbai’. But as Mumbaikars congratulate each other over social media about a generosity of spirit, imagine 12-year-old Anil submerged waist deep in the sewers all day, cleaning up after everyone.
It's not just the noxious gases and putrefying sludge killing migrant workers, it’s the apathy of Mumbaikars who turn their faces away from this human tragedy.

author: VideoVolunteers


text:
#WhereIsMySchool? Parents Fight for Proper Education for Children with Disabilities in Bosnia · Global Voices
Tijana Cvjetićanin

“Where is my school?” billboard in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Photo courtesy of #WhereIsMySchool campaign, used with permission.
In Sarajevo, a group of parents is campaigning for adequate preschool education for children with cognitive disabilities. If their #GdjeJeMojaSkola? (“Where is my school?”) effort succeeds, it will be the first of its kind in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The ethnic divisions in Bosnia and Herzegovina's highly decentralized educational system have long been in the public eye. Meanwhile, little attention has been paid by either decision makers or the general public to a different kind of discrimination, equally pervasive across ethnic and administrative lines: that of children with disabilities, specifically those with developmental disorders.
“Inclusive education” is declaratively accepted as a concept, but has never materialized in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s public education systems, all of them stretched between insufficient resources and political instrumentalization.
Formal education for children with cognitive disabilities starts at first grade (age 7) in one of the country's specialized schools. Very few are enrolled in kindergartens; even for those who are, it means little more than having a day-care service while their parents are at work. Altogether, the system offers little or no prospect for attending a regular school or learning skills needed to lead an independent life.
For a small number of children in Sarajevo, those prospects changed seven years ago, when a new organization, “Education for all” (EDUS), started offering early intervention, preschool and school programs for children with developmental disorders. Kids as young as 18 months could complete a full cycle of professional help: a period of observation to assess their level of development; a learning program based on their specific needs to develop their social and cognitive skills; and continuous progress monitoring, serving as basis for program updates and adjustments.
The method, based on behavioral analysis, has consistently been showing better results than classic schooling in children with cognitive disabilities. If started at an early age, it can even help prevent the development of some risk-factors, significantly improving the ability of the child to learn and socialize. It is also the only one with confirmed positive results in children with autism.
Word about the program in Sarajevo started to spread, and some parents even packed up and moved from other places to be able to enroll their children. Sanela Lindsay, EDUS secretary general and a mother of 15-year-old Haris, who has autism, explains:
More and more parents of the new generation refuse to accept the social stigma that comes with developmental difficulties, and reject the misguided notion that they have to carry all the weight themselves. Once they realize they need help, they quickly learn where to find it. They want the best for their children and the results of these programs speak for themselves: so far, 35 have successfully entered regular schools.
The number of applications soon grew to the point where it surpassed the organization's capacities. EDUS reached out to the cantonal authorities for institutional support to expand, desiring a space to accommodate all the children on the waiting list, and adequate staffing to maintain the same quality of work.
A temporary solution was found in 2015, in the arrangement made with the Ministry of Education of Canton Sarajevo, which allowed 26 children aged 4-7 to attend the preschool programs in the facilities of the Mjedenica Institute for Special Education, who co-financed the salaries for the new EDUS-trained educators.
A space for another 33 was provided in the elementary school Vladislav Skarić, contracted by Mjedenica. Additional 35 school-age children were enrolled in Mjedenica, and 22 children under 4 attended early intervention in Vladislav Skarić.
This still wasn’t enough to cover everyone on the waiting list. In the spring of 2016, the cantonal prime minister, Elmedin Konaković, and minister of education Elvir Kazazović, visited EDUS and promised to find a sustainable solution within the public education system. More than a year has passed and, instead of a solution, the parents received disheartening news: Mjedenica announced that it lacks resources to renew the contract. The cooperation would be discontinued, leaving the parents to their own devices.
The council of parents and EDUS representatives spent the summer of 2017 trying to negotiate a solution with the cantonal ministry. A municipality in Sarajevo offered an empty school building, but the ministry never did the paperwork to register it as a preschool institution. Two days before the school started, the minister was still vacationing, unresponsive to all attempts of contact. Watching the only support they had slipping away, the parents started to grow desperate.
On Facebook, parents started using the hashtag #GdjeJeMojaSkola (Where is my school?) posting photos of their children with explanations about their situation to draw public attention.
“You child is 18 months old and you suddenly notice that he’s different from others,” says Aida Ajanović, whose 4-year-old son Vedad is also on the autistic spectrum.
He’s not learning any new words, doesn’t respond when you call his name. You go to the neuro-pediatrician, he goes through a series of exams and you learn that he has “developmental delays”. And that’s it. You’re stuck there, because nobody knows what to do with such a small child. EDUS was the only one who offered the much needed assistance.
Vedad started attending their early intervention program 2,5 years ago. He is now talking and knows how to express his basic needs. For us, this is an invaluable progress. Equally, each day he misses out on his education – especially at this age, critical for his development – is an irreplaceable loss.
Vedad's family marking Autism Awareness Day by wearing blue. Photo published with their permission.
Aida and her husband, along with the other parents, refused to succumb to despair and started to organize. They wrote letters to the cantonal government, requesting that their children’s right to an education be respected. They pushed for another meeting, but the minister didn’t show up. They called the media to document it and begun to tell their stories. An advertising company offered them free billboard space.
Their campaign, #GdjeJeMojaSkola? (“Where is my school?”), took to the web and to the streets, informing the residents of Sarajevo that more than a hundred children are at risk of losing the support essential for their growth. In the first week of the 2017 school year, the education of children with developmental disabilities in Bosnia and Herzegovina became a prominent topic for the first time.
They soon saw the first results of the public pressure they built. After weeks of silence, the cantonal government allowed Mjedenica to renew the contract with 14 educators. The institute’s director offered a two-shifts schedule to compensate for the still insufficient staff. The minister of education announced that he’ll make the necessary arrangements to accept the school building offered by municipality Novo Sarajevo.
There is, of course, still a long way to go. The temporary solutions are yet to materialize. But even when they do, the parents won’t stop at that. They want the institutional void to be filled permanently, by making preschool education mandatory for children with developmental disabilities and improving the further school education.
They also want to see it done in a way that has proven to work for them, providing their children with the opportunity to thrive like all others. If they succeed in their efforts, it could be a first step to systematically advance the lives of children with developmental disabilities in the whole country.

author: Tijana Cvjetićanin


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Malaysia Detained Turkish Scholar Mustafa Akyol for ‘Unauthorized Teaching’ of Religion · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Screenshot of video interview of Turkish journalist Mustafa Akyol before he left Malaysia. Source: YouTube video by Free Malaysia Today
Turkish journalist and scholar Mustafa Akyol was detained for 18 hours by Malaysia’s Federal Territory Islamic Affairs Department (JAWI) for allegedly teaching religion without getting authorization from the government.
Akyol is a prominent journalist and scholar who has written several books about Islam. Akyol arrived in Malaysia on September 22, 2017 to give a series of lectures about Islam, democracy, and human rights organized by the Islamic Renaissance Front.
After delivering his first lecture, JAWI personnel approached him and warned him that he was violating Malaysia’s law against teaching religion without securing a permit from authorities. To avoid further legal trouble, Akyol’s second talk and other book signing events were cancelled by the organizers.
However, upon attempting to leave the country, Akyol was stopped by immigration officers at Kuala Lumpur airport and was transferred to the JAWI office for questioning. Akyol apologized to JAWI officials, stating that he was not aware of the law which he allegedly violated.
In an interview after his release, Akyol said that he never claimed to be an Islamic preacher and that his lecture was given in an academic setting:
I didn’t think that what I was doing was teaching religion because I didn’t speak as an imam or a mufti and I didn’t speak to a religious community. I spoke at an academic conference and I referred to different views on apostasy as someone who has researched the literature on this topic in the Muslim world.
He also described JAWI as Malaysia’s ‘religious police’:
Instead of a religious police, you should have a religious council that gives advice and guidance. If you use force to make people more religious or make them understand religion the way you understand it, then you are bringing more harm than benefit to the religion.
In an opinion piece published in The New York Times, Akyol reflected on his detention in Malaysia:
By policing religion, the authorities are not really protecting it. They are only enfeebling their societies, raising hypocrites and causing many people to lose their faith in or respect for Islam.
Akyol said Turkish officials helped in securing his release. He posted this tweet before he left Malaysia:
Goodbye #Malaysia… ✈
I still like you and your kind, gentle, warm people.
I just hope you will consider being a bit more free.
— Mustafa Akyol (@AkyolinEnglish) September 26, 2017
Akyol’s detention was criticized by human rights groups which expressed alarm over rising intolerance in the country and the power of hardline Islamic leaders in the government. Malaysia has a Muslim-majority population and its government claims to promote a moderate view of Islam.
SUHAKAM, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia, described Akyol’s detention as a ‘blemish’ on the reputation of Malaysia as a moderate nation:
Such extreme action in our multi-religious, multiracial and moderate Malaysia in our view is repressive, undemocratic and intended to be intimidating. There is no question that this must be stopped by the Government and such actions that reflect hostility, narrow-mindedness and intolerance of civil, intellectual and religious discourse should not be committed again.
G25, a group of former senior public officials and diplomats, also issued a statement expressing outrage over the ‘mistreatment’ of Akyol:
…the misguided and overzealous JAWI officials chose to arrest this well-known peaceful, moderate, and democratic advocate of Islam and kept him in detention for [18 hours] without proper sleep, which tantamounts to gross mistreatment, if not torture.
Eric Paulsen from the Lawyers for Liberty denounced the decision of the JAWI as an assault on democracy and freedom of speech:
This is a most serious assault on democracy and freedom of speech as even now foreign intellectuals who have had some measure of protection are not immune from being targeted by the authorities.
The government must be reminded that disagreement, criticism and condemnation are part and parcel of democracy, and they cannot just arrest those whom they disagree with. Having independent thought and speaking up is not a crime.
Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia, a coalition of non-governmental organizations, warned that Akyol’s arrest could undermine academic freedom:
Do universities and research institutions now need to seek clearance from state religious authorities before having any Muslim speakers on topics involving religion?
Akyol is free now, but Malaysian Muslim academics and intellectuals are not free to speak on religion and comparative religion even in universities.
Watch Akyol’s video interview by Free Malaysia Today before he left Malaysia:


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Nigeria’s Youth Are Rallying for the ‘Not Too Young to Run’ Bill · Global Voices
Eta Uso

“We believe in the idealism, in the strength of young people” – Moses Siasia during the #NotTooYoungToRun March. Screenshot from an Oak TV report.
Nigerian law sets minimum age requirements for certain government positions. For example, presidents cannot be younger than 40 years old, and members of the House of Representatives must be at least 30.
Many of the country's youth view these limits as unfair. Citizens who are 18 years or older are eligible to cast a ballot in elections, so the thinking goes, “If we can vote, then we can be voted for.”
Enter the Not Too Young To Run bill, which is gaining momentum as it makes its way through Nigeria's legislative process.
Sponsored by Tony Nwulu and Abdul-Aziz Murtala Nyako, members of Nigeria's House of Representatives and the Senate respectively, the draft law seeks to alter Sections 65, 106, 131, and 177 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It would reduce the age qualification for the office of the president from 40 years to 35 years; governor from 35 to 30; House of Representatives from 30 to 25; and State House of Assembly from 30 to 25.
The bill would also mainstream independent candidacy into Nigeria’s electoral process.
It was originally introduced on June 7, 2016, and so far has passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, and received the endorsement of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
But for it to become law, 24 State Houses of Assembly will need to vote in favour. State-level advocacy has since begun across the country, and youth are optimistic about the bill's prospects.
Activism has accompanied the bill throughout the process. For instance, on July 16, 2017, a report from online news agency Sahara Reporters alleged a plot within the House of Representatives to scuttle the Not Too Young To Run Bill.
Pursuing Its Self-Serving Agenda, National Assembly Kills ‘Not Too Young To Run’ Bill | Sahara Reporters https://t.co/y6JyKNc1bc
— Sahara Reporters (@SaharaReporters) July 16, 2017
The response from supporters of the bill was swift, with messages flooding social media and marches organized:
Time to save the #NotTooYoungToRun and our right to run for office. Get ready as we visit National Assembly to make our demand. pic.twitter.com/0kmdY5JOMi
— #NotTooYoungToRun (@YIAGA) July 20, 2017
I will join other citizens tomorrow as we march to the National Assembly to urge them to pass #NotTooYoungToRun We march for the votes pic.twitter.com/DwykqstT5c
— #NotTooYoungToRun (@DSamsonItodo) July 24, 2017
The world is WATCHING The 8th National Assembly. Vote ‘Yes’ to remove age barrier as it would reduce inequality #NotTooYoungToRun #AJStream pic.twitter.com/VnWeETjDyc
— Hamzy! ?? (@HamzyCODE) July 26, 2017
The fight to save the #NotTooYoungToRun bill must be all encompassing. Including the youth who currently work for the legislators….
— James (@Dajan32) July 19, 2017
Save the Not Too Young To Run Bill.#NotTooYoungToRun.
— Njoku Emma (@eldernjokuemma) July 19, 2017
March for #NotTooYoungToRun happening NOW.#AbujaToTheWorld
National day: happening now at unity fountain#AbujaNigeria #Nigeria pic.twitter.com/ArVt5TALj6
— Amplified Radio (@AmplifiedR) July 25, 2017
@Gidi_Traffic #NotTooYoungToRun Protesters have marched from Unity Fountain to National Assembly, Abuja,demanding reduction in age limit pic.twitter.com/IVCTkgmE24
— AustynZOGS (@Austynzogs) July 25, 2017
#Video: FULL VIDEO: How #NotTooYoungToRun coalition shutdown National Assemblyhttps://t.co/MDWmyG3X8o
— Oak TV (@OakTVOnline) August 1, 2017
The protests received lots of support from youth and civil society organizations. This resulted in a response from the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Yogara, who reaffirmed his support for youth inclusion in politics:
The young people should be informed that we made a promise and we will keep to our promise, by God’s grace.
As the bill begins to be considered by the State Assemblies, the mobilization around #NotTooYoungToRun is showing no signs of letting up.

author: Eta Uso


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Peru’s Clever Social Media Campaign Raises Awareness About Human Trafficking · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón Orbe

“Ladies wanted, they must be young and good looking. We pay 1,500-2,000 Soles per week. Nice treatment.” lmage from Peruvian Ministry of Internal Affairs Twitter account, widely shared online.
The Peruvian Ministry of Internal Affairs honored National Prevention of Human Trafficking Day on September 23 with the launch of a campaign titled “Que no te encuentren” (Don't let them find you), aiming to counter human trafficking in Peru.
The concept involved the creation of a ‘fake’ job offer similar to baits used by criminal organizations to seduce young people. This youth-targeted strategy trended heavily on social networks and a statement from the Ministry of Interior explains:
La iniciativa […hizo uso de] avisos de trabajo en diversos diarios, así como afiches pegados en puntos públicos de [diversos] distritos de [Lima].
Durante cuatro días, 1.000 ciudadanos preguntaron sobre las ofertas laborales a través de mensajes de WhatsApp y llamadas telefónicas. Los avisos fueron publicados sin más información que “Se busca señorita” y “Se busca joven”, y con los montos de pago de entre S/1.500 y S/2.000.
Se convocó a 30 personas, [para ser entrevistadas] en un local que fungía de agencia de empleos […]. Policías mujeres vestidas de civil se hicieron pasar por entrevistadoras y les propusieron a los jóvenes viajar sin avisar a sus padres y dejando su DNI [documento nacional de identidad].
Veinticinco de ellos aceptaron la propuesta.
The initiative […used] job postings on diverse newspapers, as well as posters placed in public spots in [different] districts in [Lima].
For four days, a thousand individuals inquired about the job offers through WhatsApp mesages and phone calls. The adverts were posted with no other information than “Ladies Wanted” and “Young Men Wanted,” and the amounts of the payments, between S/1.500 and S/2.000.
Thirty individuals were convened, [to be interviewed] at an establishment that acted as a work agency […]. Plain-clothed female police officers impersonated job interviewers and proposed the young candidates to travel without warning their parents and giving away their ID cards.
Twenty five of them accepted the proposal.
In Peru, the minimum wage is 850 Soles per month or a little over 260 USD whereas this ‘fake’ job offered between 1,200-2,000 Soles (370-610 USD). It was indeed appealing especially to young people living in populous areas where the job adverts were posted. Many young people responded innocently in search of work.
Once the alleged job interview was over, the officers let the candidates know it was all part of a campaign “No dejes que te encuentren” (Don't let them find you), to demonstrate how traffickers capture their victims.
On the campaign's Facebook page, the ministry shared the video of staged job interviews and a shorter version was posted on YouTube:
Watch out! They are looking for you. Don't let them find you.
The hashtag #QueNoTeEncuentren [Don't let them find you] tracked a wide range of reactions to the clever campaign on Twitter:
Si este aviso te resulta interesante, entonces te invitamos a ver el siguiente video: https://t.co/ebBqquWrOw #QueNoTeEncuentren pic.twitter.com/nukP2zIorZ
— Mininter Perú (@MininterPeru) 22 de septiembre de 2017
If you find this advert appealing, then we invite you to watch this video.
#QueNoTeEncuentren
Un poco de sensatez porfavor, no caer ante anuncios engañosos, prevenir la trata de personas también está en nosotros. https://t.co/teHDWM8gCO
— Mayra Elizabeth (@mayra_bj) 22 de septiembre de 2017
Don't let them find you.
People, have some good judgement, please. Don't fall for deceitful ads. Preventing human trafficking depends on us, too.
#QueNoTeEncuentren me alegro mucho que por fin se esté tomando interés en el tema. En zonas de minería informal y narcotráfico es muy común.
— Karen Walls (@KarenWalls_17) 22 de septiembre de 2017
Don't let them find you. I'm glad that finally some interest is being taken about this issue. In areas of informal mining and drug trafficking, this is very common.
#DíaInternacionalContraLaTrata #QueNoTeEncuentren https://t.co/kOvWsqg28i
— Selene Benavente G. (@BenaventeSelene) 22 de septiembre de 2017
National Prevention Human Trafficking Day, don't let them find you.
Human-trafficking figures are discouraging. According to 2015 reports, less than three out of 100 prosecuted individuals are actually sentenced for human-trafficking and 60% of victims are minors. An article written by journalist Grecia Delta accounts for young people's harrowing stories of human trafficking, revealing the ways in which victims were tricked and later ‘rescued’ by the system.
The process of recovery from human-trafficking is long and hard, and as seen in youth testimonies, it often comes with mistreatment and discrimination.

author: Gabriela García Calderón Orbe


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A 20 Billion Dollar Trade Agreement Between China and Guinea Raises Concerns · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

Meeting between President Xi Jinping and the Guinean delegation, via CGTN Africa.
Leaders of BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) gathered in Xiamen, China as the five rising emerging economies for the ninth annual summit held from 3-5 September 2017. Alongside this conference, Ibrahim Kassory Fofana, Guinean Minister of State in charge of public-private partnerships, announced a framework trade agreement between China and Guinea.
This 20 billion dollar agreement will finance significant infrastructure projects over a 20 year period from 2017 until 2036. The deal constitutes an agreement through which Chinese investment will be repaid in exchange for allowing Chinese companies to undertake mining projects in Guinea, raising concerns among Guineans about its terms.
The Office of the President in Guinea has published a press release in an attempt to clarify the terms of the agreement; however, as noted by Diallo Boubacar on the site Africaguinee.com, details have not yet been made known. Several opposition leaders, including François Bourouno voiced their concern:
L’accord de financement (20 milliards de dollars Us) signé mardi dernier entre la Guinée et la Chine suscite des interrogations ! Alors qu’il prévoit notamment des financements pour la construction d’infrastructures contre des ressources minières couvrant une période de 20 ans, dans les rangs de l’opposition on s’interroge.
“On apprend que c’est un accord mixte qui contient des prêts et des dons. Mais on ne sait ce qui représente des prêts, quelles sont les conditionnalités, le taux et les modalités de remboursement ainsi que tous les éléments de contrepartie. Les dons non plus,  on ne sait pas la définition qu’on leur donne. Il y a autant d’interrogations comme ça”
The trade deal (worth 20 billion USD) signed last Tuesday between Guinea and China has raised some concerns. Although it is anticipated that this deal will, for the most part, finance infrastructure projects in exchange for mining resources over a 20 year period, we, in the opposition party, have our doubts.
“We understand it is a mixed agreement, consisting of loans and gifts. However what we don't know is what the loans will entail, such as the repayment rates, the terms and conditions, as well as the compensation details. Nor do we know how the gifts will be defined. As such, there are many questions we need to ask.”
In 2016, the mining sector accounted for 98.97% of Guinea's exports (compared to 84.12% in 2015). Trains carrying ore can comprise up to 120 cars, emitting an infernal noise as well as dust clouds stretching from the extraction site all the way to the port.
Nevertheless, Guineans hope this sector will bring improvements to their living conditions, unlike the farming sector, which has been almost totally neglected. While Guinea has vast agricultural potential due to its varied climate and many rivers, the country is known as a “geological scandal” due to the disparity between the wealth of untapped resources and the poverty of its citizens.
Guinean blogger Jeanne Fofana from kababachir.com has raised doubts regarding additional debt representing more than 50% of the national debt, which already constitutes 48% of the gross domestic product (GDP). She concludes:
Les Guinéens veulent une amélioration substantielle de leurs conditions de vie. Avancer des milliards USD et vanter les mérites d’Alpha Condé frise tout bonnement de la démagogie : « On parle de ces montants, le Guinéen reste sceptique et il a raison ! Parce que cela ne se traduit pas dans l’amélioration de son quotidien. La seule manière de traduire cela dans l’amélioration de sa vie, est qu’il ait du travail. » Les Guinéens se sentent floués.
Guineans want to see a marked improvement in their living conditions. Simply providing billions of dollars and extolling the virtues of Alpha Condé [The Guinean President], quite frankly, borders on populism: “when talking about these kinds of amounts of money, the average Guinean remains sceptical, and with good cause! Because for them, this does not translate to an improvement in their daily life. The only way to convert this into bettering their lives is by providing employment.” Guineans are feeling deceived.
In an article by Radio France Internationale, RFI, Amadou Bah from the non-governmental organization (N.G.O.) Action Mine Guinée expresses his concerns:
Mais aucune précision n’est faite sur la quantité de ressources attribuée…
Est-ce que ça ne va décourager les autres investisseurs des autres multinationales qui veulent avoir des concessions en Guinée ? Est-ce que ça ne serait pas de gré à gré ? Est-ce que la valeur des infrastructures va refléter la valeur du minerai qui sera exporté ? Pour le moment, nous restons suspendus aux lèvres du gouvernement qui a négocié cela, sans beaucoup donner de détails.
However there has not been, as of yet, any clarification as to the quantity of the resources allocated.
Will this not just discourage investors from other multinationals from seeking concessions in Guinea? Will this be by mutual agreement? Will the value of the infrastructure be equal to that of the minerals to be exported? At the moment, we are hanging on the government's every word as they negotiate this without providing many details.
Guinean citizens have taken to Facebook to voice their doubts. The first bauxite exploitation in Guinea took place in 1937, but Guineans are still amongst the poorest in West Africa. Siradiou Paraya Bah, a resident of Conakry  joins the debate by posting on the wall of influential Guinean blogger Sidikiba Keita to ask what lessons can be learned from the past:
Peut-on avoir connaissance du contenu exact de ces accords de financement Chine-Guinée?
Quel bilan faire des décennies d'exploitation de la bauxite en Guinée?
Quelles leçons pourra-t-on en tirer?
Can we know exactly what these trade agreements between China and Guinea entail?
What can we learn from previous decades of bauxite exploitation in Guinea?
What lessons can we take away from this?
What concerns Demba Thez Mara, a Guinan netizen in Boké, is the need to process the minerals before exportation:
Je souhaiterais qu'on installe des usines minéralurgique et métallurgique pour la transformation de nos produits bruits sur place. En matière d'enrichissement de l'Al2O3 [l'alumine], la Chine a la meilleure technologies d'enrichissement par flottation donc pour un développement en matière de mines il faut transformation sur place et pour ce il faut aussi une production énergétique suffisante.
I would like to see us put in place metallurgical and ore dressing plants so that we can process our unrefined products on site. In terms of the enrichment of AI203 (aluminium), China has the best flotation technologies; therefore in order to better develop our mines, we need on site processing, which will also require sufficient energy production.
Law enforcement officers have clashed with protesters at the centre of the main bauxite extraction site in Boké, Guinea in response to the adverse environmental impact of extraction and lack of economic benefits, particularly in terms of employment. Against this backdrop, blogger Sidikiba Keita responds to active Guinean Facebook user Ibrahim Ghussein's message and warns Guineans:
1. Let's not delude ourselves. SMB [Société Minière de Boké, in English: Boké Mining Company]'s current operations are on a small scale compared to what we are expecting, as this should increase tenfold, from 30,000 tons/day (t/d) to 300,000 tons/day. The Chinese have a very clear agenda: an all-out reduction in production costs, from extraction to FOB delivery. The EITI [Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative]'s latest report confirms that the Guinean government expects an average return of $4/t of bauxite, whereas CBG [Cie de Bauxites de Guinée] pay more than double that amount, due to their environmental protection measures. The stripping and blasting phases already create a barely manageable pollution issue. On top of this, the transportation phase will undoubtedly be via lorry, as it is currently.
2. In any case, in light of the traumatic experiences endured by the population who live near to the SMB site, this is simply unsustainable, unless the local population are to be moved out in droves.
In terms of the environmental impact, Tidiane Sylla highlights the potential consequences of over-exporting, which risks flooding the market and causing the price to fall:
Exporting large quantities of bauxite could cause the price to fall on the international market. In the Boké, Boffa and Télimélé regions, more than ten companies are involved in bauxite production. We need to diversify and innovate so as not to saturate the market.
A lack of public trust around national mining deals emanates from unfair contracts signed by Guinean Mining Minster Mamoudou Thiam during his term in 2009-10. Thiam has been in prison in the United States (U.S.) since December 2016 after U.S. courts found him guilty of laundering 8.5 million dollars in backhanders.

author: Abdoulaye Bah