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Indonesia: Charismatic Entrepreneur Charmed Jakarta Voters · Global Voices
Juke Carolina

Residents of Jakarta, Indonesia went to the polls to elect a new governor for the country's capital. In a surprising twist, voters supported Joko Widodo, an entrepreneur and mayor of central Java city of Solo. Joko Widodo or Jokowi will face incumbent Governor Fauzi Bowo in the second round of elections in September.
Jokowi made headlines by implementing key social reforms in the city he leads, earning him a spot in the 25 best mayors’ list of the 2012 World Mayor Prize, initiated by the City Mayor Foundation.
2012 Jakarta Gubernatorial Twitter infographic courtesy of Salingsilang.com and @enda
Blogger Anwari noted that for the first time in Indonesian electoral process, social media such as Facebook and Twitter have been used as effective campaigning tools as well as platforms for voters’ education:
lembaga-lembaga survei politik abai terhadap fakta pentingnya jejaring media sosial yang telah berfungsi sebagai medium pendidikan demokrasi. Padahal, melalui jejaring media sosial itulah aspirasi politik bukan saja bebas dihablurkan, tetapi juga disertai oleh pencuatan opini publik yang sangat tajam, bahkan melampaui ketajaman artikuasli opini di media-media massa konvensional. Dengan caranya sendiri, jejaring media sosial yang bergerak di dunia maya berfungsi sebagai saluran artikulasi demokrasi. Jujur harus dikatakan, bahwa efektivitas kampanye politik di dunia nyata kalah telak dibandingkan dengan gemuruh kampanye di dunia maya. […] Substansi pendidikan demokrasi itulah yang kemudian dituangkan sebagai suatu bentuk kesadaran ke dalam jejaring media sosial. Inilah sesungguhnya paradigma baru pendidikan demokrasi, yang sepenuhnya berbasis teknologi internet. Inilah sebenarnya cybercracy dalam wujudnya yang jelas dan konkret, serta bisa dituai hasilnya dengan segera.
Many Indonesian Facebook users observed the electoral process enthusiastically. Here are their opinions:
Mohammad Zahky Mubaroh: Seharusnya kita bersyukur bisa ada sosok seperti Foke, biar kita diperlihatkan bahwa Hati Nurani itu masih memegang andil di dalam sistem Demokrasi yang selama ini cenderung menghalalkan segala cara termasuk Money Politic…Simpan uangmu Foke untuk tabunganmu di hari tua….
Johannes Silentio: Tiba-tiba, untuk pertamakalinya saya bangga jadi warga DKI Jakarta. Hari ini kemenangan warga. Semoga putaran 2 tidak jadi kemenangan duit dan sentimen. Primordial!
Muhamad Zulkarnain Jamaluddin: Saya melihat indonesia lebih berobjektif dalam politik… Di lihat dalam kempen ini, sentimen tidak begitu dimainkan… Ini baru resume yang dikemukakan secara betul dalam *interview kerja* ahli politik…
Below is the Fauzi Bowo-Nachrowi Ramli (Foke-Nara) campaign ad which appeared in Jakarta cinemas:
Below is a short animation made by Jokowi-Ahok supporters:
Social media platforms such as Twitter indicated rising interest in democratic process throughout the electoral campaign period. The platform was not only used to cheer and jeer the candidates, but was also used to report quick count surveys, share analysis, hopes and even initial reports of vote buying.
The number of Golput (stands for Golongan Putih), the non voters, was still high. In East Jakarta, the number of non voters exceeded those who voted for the winning duo.
Blogger Ajinatha wrote on citizen media platform Kompasiana:
Golput itu merupakan suara kaum kelas menengah, maka kalangan ini jelas lebih cerdas dalam menentukan pilihan. […]
Memilih juru kampanye adalah hal yang juga penting, menempatkan orang-orang yang tidak disukai masyarakat akan menjadi kontraproduktif […]Diatas kertas memang seharusnya Foke_Nara bisa menang diputaran kedua, semua juga tahu dukungan bagi Foke_Nara baik dari segi finansial maupun moral cukuplah besar, tinggal saja bagaimana memenej dukungan ini menjadi sesuatu yang postif.
Following their defeat, Foke-Nara party claimed that its rivals endorsed vote buying [id]. Candidate Nachrowi and his entourage were photographed handing out “gratitude money” [id] to a  group of housewives during  the campaign. The incriminating photos were quickly uploaded into the internet.
Infographic on Jokowi-Foke Social Media influence, image courtesy of Salingsilang.com.
Some  non-voters posted their opinions on Facebook:
Rino Cahyo Nugroho : Sebetulnya gw mau golput di putaran ke 2, tp melihat pengalaman hari ini begitu amburadulnya ngurus KK dan KTP di kelurahan, mk emang bang Foke hrs direshufle…..
Lucky Ramandita: klo menurut LSI bhwa org yg golput saat ni dlm PILKADA mencapai 40% brrti para Capil itu hanya memperebutkan 60% suara.. itu brrti kuota trbesar adalah golput.. harusnya golput donk yg jd pemimpinya ya..(para golongan putih).. haha #ganti demokrasi…

author: Juke Carolina


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Iran: “If Bashar Gets Killed, the Iranian Regime Will Call Him a Martyr” · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.
Iranian bloggers reacted with humour to the Syrian rebels attack in Damascus and the bomb blast that killed three top security chiefs in the Syrian President Bashar Al Assad's regime.
Iran and Syria enjoy excellent relations and netizens have resorted to poking fun at how impacted the Iranian regime would be should Al Assad finds himself out of power, following the 16 month revolution raging in Syria.
Ensiloos writes [fa] with irony:
If Bashar gets killed, the Iranian regime will call him a martyr and change the name of a highway in Tehran in his name…In our history books, in schools, they will talk about Assad's oppressed family and in primary school they will add a lesson called “Assad's legend”.
Andishenovin adds [fa]:
After the victory of Bashar Assad's opposition, we should make us ready to struggle against Islamic Republic…The fall of Assad's regime in future can motivate and encourage Iranian opposition.
And Farda Iran Azad writes [fa]:
The fall of the Ba'athist regime in Syria happens when our country faces a huge political, economic and social crisis.[These two events] can and should lead us to a popular uprising….this time our freedom movement should not be limited to middle class [as it happened in 2009 protest movement].
Freedom Messanger imagines how Iranian Leader, Ali Khamenei's condolences letter for Bashar Al Assad would look like. The imaginary letter reads:
With this letter I send some weapons and revolutionary guards in order to avoid our dear ones become martyrs….rape and kill non-Alawite Syrians to remain in power like me.
This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Fred Petrossian


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Jordan: Women’s Rights Demonstrators Face Barrage of Criticism · Global Voices
Diana Aqra

On June 25, 2012 more than 200 people created a human chain in the streets of Amman to raise awareness for some of the most controversial women's rights issues in Jordan. They held signs protesting against issues such as harassment, crimes in the name of honor, the “rape-marriage” law, and citizenship discrimination.
The “human chain” of protesters – male and female, old and young – was seen to be a success by many, who felt that an outcry about the discrimination of women in Jordanian society was long overdue. However, the reaction by readers of news websites in the following days reflected how unprepared Jordan was for this type of protest.
A similar protest took place in Cairo some weeks later.
The following video by Loviniseasy was taken at the demonstration (and contains interviews in both English and Arabic):
These are some the slogans on signs held by protesters (translations and all images by Roba Al-Assi from the And Far Away blog, under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0):
What do you care what she’s wearing?
You’re killing us with your honor.
I am as strong as life.
Reactions from those who saw the protest were mixed. Many drivers laughed, heckled, or harassed the demonstrators. “Go home!” was a common call.
Some of those who saw or heard about the protest went online in the following days to discuss how disappointed and ashamed they were. Comments ranged from how they felt that the demonstration was a disgrace to Islam, to how they felt the dress of many of the protesters was unacceptable (as many of the women were unveiled).
Below are some of the comments posted on a story about the protest on Ammon News, a local news website.
Commenter “R” (June 25):
Commenter “مستغرب من هالاعتصام” [Surprised by this protest] (June 26):
Commenter “Roba” (June 26):
Commenter “مساكين” [Poor things] (June 27):
Commenter “أردني غترب” [Jordanian Expatriate] (June 25):

author: Diana Aqra


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Paraguay: From Forced Labor to Indigenous Leader · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

When Margarita Mbywangi was five years-old, she was taken from her parents and sold several times into forced domestic labor in the homes of the Paraguayan elite. This was a common occurrence in the Aché indigenous communities in Paraguay during the dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner (1954-1989). These practices were ways that landowners could remove the Aché from their ancestral lands and take over their lands. As a result of these kidnappings, many young Aché would find themselves far from their homes and far from their indigenous roots.
Mbywangi is currently taking part in the Rising Voices project Aché djawu (The Aché word) [es], and she recently wrote a short blog post [es] about her life:
Yo Mbywangi me contaron que nací en Kuetuvy en el año 1962, a los 5 años me robaron de mi madre en la época de la dictadura, crecí en una familia paraguaya hasta los 16 años, a la edad de 20 años volví con mi familia aché en la comunidad Chupapou en 1980. No encontré a mis padres, sólo encontré a mis hermanos.
Margarita Mbywangi
When Mbywangi finally returned home in the early 1980s, she became a nurse and also became a mother. She continues in the blog post:
En el 81 tuve mi primer hijo y dije, ahora sí tengo un compañero, en ese dia estuve completa. Pasé aquellos años criando mi hijo y atendiendo la salud de la gente de mi comunidad.
However, in the decades later she became more politically active in defense of indigenous rights. She was once a candidate for the Paraguayan Senate and was even placed in jail for her role in protests to defend natural reserves from illegal logging [es]. In 2008, Mbywangi received an invitation from the administration of former President Fernando Lugo to become the Cabinet Minister for Indigenous Affairs. She became the first member of an indigenous community to hold that position.
As part of the Rising Voices project, Mbywangi has begun to use the collective blog to share her experiences. She also has opened up a Twitter account (@MargaMbywangi), but is still becoming accustomed to updating it on a regular basis. In this video, she talks about the importance of sharing her story with other indigenous communities and the global audience at large.
She closes her blog post by explaining her name in the Aché tradition:
Me encanta que me llamen Mbywangi porque es el nombre que me puso mi mamá de sangre, y Margarita me puso mi segunda mamá aunque no fui reconocida por ellos como hija. Sólo tengo mi nombre y me siento feliz con los dos nombres que tengo.

author: Eduardo Avila


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Puerto Rico: Strong Support for Land and Agriculture · Global Voices
Ángel Carrión

[All links lead to Spanish language pages, except when otherwise noted.]
Dozens of people gathered in front of La Fortaleza [the governor's mansion] in San Juan on July 11 to demonstrate in support of the lands of the Agricultural Research Station, which belongs to the College of Agricultural Science of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR), as part of the Mayagüez campus. The demonstration, organized by the Coalition in Support of Research Stations and Agricultural Reserves (CODERA) and the Agricultural Rescue Front (FRA), was demanding that the governor, Luis Fortuño, veto the recently approved bill that orders the UPR to transfer, at no cost, around 50 acres of the Agricultural Research Station to the municipality of Gurabo, where it is located.
The lands that the UPR are ordered to transfer to the municipality of Gurabo are considered among the best agricultural lands of Puerto Rico. The first organic farm to be established in the country and certified by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is on the land, where much research is currently being done on the best methods of cultivation and prevention of plagues. In exchange for granting land to the municipality of Gurabo, unsuitable land located in floodplains would be transferred to the Agricultural Research Station. The mayor of Gurabo, Víctor M. Díaz, wants to use the lands of the research station for several infrastructure projects, among them a hospital, a public housing project, and a school.
The demonstration took place in Old San Juan in front of La Fortaleza, the executive mansion of Puerto Rico. Photo by Christopher Torres Lugo. Courtesy of UPR Students Reporting. Used with permission.
United behind the demands of CODERA were various civic organizations, such as the Sierra Club, the General Council of Students of the Río Piedras Campus, and the recently formed Worker's People Party.
Currently, very little of the food that is consumed in Puerto Rico is also produced in the country. More than 85% of the food is imported, which means that the island is in a position of almost total dependence for its food supply. Along with this, it must be added that between 2002 and 2005 Puerto Rico lost 20% of its already scarce agricultural lands. Some experts, like the agriculturist Ián Pagán Roig, have warned of the implications for the country:
Los precios de alimentos han alcanzado picos históricos en los últimos 2 años. Tan reciente como en abril, el Banco Mundial reportó un aumento de 8% de los precios de los alimentos. La crisis alimentaria mundial está causando hambre y estragos en el planeta. Tan solo en la región Sahel en África alrededor de 17 millones de personas están sufriendo de hambruna a causa de la crisis alimentaria desencadenada por los altos precios de los alimentos y el cambio climático, según informa el Banco Mundial. Este panorama pone en especial peligro a Puerto Rico de sufrir de los estragos de la crisis alimentaria si no actuamos y defendemos las tierras agrícolas que quedan y potenciamos la agricultura local. La posibilidad de sufrir hambre en Puerto Rico es real y más probable de lo que todos creemos cuando dependemos de más de un 85% de importaciones del extranjero para nuestro sustento alimentario. No estamos en posición de perder ni una cuerda más de terreno agrícola. Cada espacio protegido para la agricultura representa la seguridad de un plato de comida para nuestro pueblo y las futuras generaciones.
In order to raise awareness about the importance of the lands of the Agricultural Research Station, the Facebook group UPR Students Reporting organized a trip last year to the research station. The magazine Diálogo Digital posted a video of the trip on YouTube:
CODERA and the FRA have started an intensive campaign to prevent the governor from signing into law the land exchange, urging citizens to express their disapproval of the exchange by calling La Fortaleza, sending messages to the Twitter account of the governor, and signing a petition on change.org.

author: Ángel Carrión


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Singapore: Law Society Faces Criticism From Online Community · Global Voices
Kirsten Han

Singapore's Law Society is in hot water on social media platforms after allegations were made that they had attempted to prevent human rights lawyer Madasamy Ravi from continuing to fight his cases in court.
On July 16, 2012, opposition politician Kenneth Jeyaretnam – who was in court with Mr Ravi and his client Mdm Vellama – tweeted:
@KenJeyaretnam: Law Society attempting to have M. Ravi declared unfit to practise law and sectioned under the Mental Health Act.
He later followed it up by posting a copy of a letter Mr Ravi's psychiatrist had written to the Law Society. The post has since been removed, but has been picked up by other online outlets such as The Online Citizen.
Mr Ravi had been in court that morning for an open court hearing on the discretionary powers of the Prime Minister in calling a by-election. Mr Wong Siew Hong, who is on the council of the Law Society, then appeared in court, wanting to address the judge. Lawyer Jeannette Chong-Aruldoss describes what she saw:
I sat in the public gallery, which was packed. Reporters were also present.  The Hearing started with M Ravi going first. The Judge asked M Ravi some probing legal questions.  M Ravi understood the Judge's questions, and replied them in a manner which the Judge seemed satisfied with.  The exchange between M Ravi and the Judge was pleasant, courteous and mutually respectful.
If M Ravi is under any mental illness, it was not apparent to me that morning. Justice Pillai did not look like he found M Ravi to be anything but mentally normal. When M Ravi had finished speaking, it was the Attorney-General lawyer's (whom I shall call “AG”) turn.
Andrew Loh and Richard Wan later interviewed Mr Ravi, who said that the letter was “ridiculous”. It was also pointed out that the letter had been dated the day of the hearing, when the doctor had actually seen Mr Ravi two days prior:
Mr Ravi has worked on numerous high-profile cases in Singapore. He is an advocate for the abolishment of the death penalty and has represented several death row inmates. Recently, he has also been representing Ms Vellama Marie Muthu in her application for the Supreme Court to determine the discretionary powers of the Prime Minister in calling for a by-election, as well as Mr Kenneth Jeyaretnam in his application to stop the government from pledging US$4 billion to the International Monetary Fund.
The Law Society later issued a statement clarifying that they had not made an application to prevent Mr Ravi from appearing in court, as reported in Temasek Review Emeritus.
The news of the psychiatrist's letter has led to much speculation and criticism online, as Singaporeans raise suspicions of efforts to silence or discredit a vocal lawyer.
Hendra Lee: They are finding excuses to prevent him from practising. If I rem correctly, M Ravi pleaded guilty and was fined several times for causing trouble at the mosque and hindu temple and South Bridge Rd. But that doesn't mean he is not a brilliant lawyer.
Luo Han: This is wanton victimization of the lone lawyer in Singapore who is brave enough to tell the State when laws are unjust or manifestly oppressive against the ordinary Singaporean. I know M.Ravi personally. He is the champion of the man or woman with no voice, of the marginalized and the disadvantaged. If the Law Society succeeds in this attempt to strip M.Ravi of his livelihood, it will be a sad day for the voiceless Singaporeans who have NO recourse or are unable to afford legal assistance especially in criminal matters. It will also be a sad day for the Law Society because it will lose its standing of respectability and any claim to a non-partisan reputation will be flushed down the toilet bowl.
Many also called out the psychiatrist, Dr Calvin Fones, for breaching doctor-patient confidentiality in writing to the Law Society without his patient's knowledge or consent.
Betty Teo: Why would a psychiatrist write to the law society about his patient in the first place, unless he is ordered to do so?
Balaji Narashimhan: I am hoping this leter is not true because if it is, this I absolutely disgusting. A flagrant and completely unethical breach of a doctor and patient's confidentiality. How can any person be safe with this doctor knowing that if he feels like it he can wantonly diagnose a person without a one to one interview or a thoroug review of his medical history with a mental illness or a relapse? He should be reported to the Singapore medical association and have his licence suspended. Bipolar people are NOT crazy and simply having bipolar disorder does not mean you're unfit for working.
On July 18, 2012, the Law Society released a statement dismissing suspicions of a conspiracy and saying that Mr Wong Siew Hong had been acting of his own volition:
LSS believes that it is important that the public has confidence in LSS as an independent professional body which has always balanced the interests of the public and individual lawyers. Unsubstantiated criticism of LSS is unfair to its volunteers, and does the public a grave disservice. Any suggestion of a conspiracy involving the LSS is untrue and irresponsible.
Some bloggers have found the Law Society's statement unsatisfactory. Ng E-Jay questions whether Mr Wong had really been acting “on his own”. Bertha Henson feels that the Law Society should take care of its own operations before censuring others:
What kind of outfit is the LawSoc running when one  of its own can go running  to the courts armed with a letter to the LawSoc? Was the “representative” Wong Siew Hong really so silly as not to even keep any of the  LawSoc bosses informed that he was going to do so? Surely, there are procedures in place in the LawSoc before any lawyer can go running to the courts or come up with a statement on behalf of the LawSoc? So, I say Mr Wong Meng Meng: Go shoot your own messenger.

author: Kirsten Han


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Spain: Deputy Apologizes for Insult · Global Voices
Chris Moya

Due to the outcry produced by parliamentarian Andrea Fabra's declarations, she had to publicly retract [es] (PDF) and present a written apology after having declared “¡qué se jodan!” (“Fuck them!”) when President Mariano Rajoy announced the harshest social cuts in the history of Spanish democracy. The letter is an apology to the House of Representatives and to the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Labour Party), but not to the people.

author: Chris Moya


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Sri Lanka: The Disappearing Dogs Of Colombo City · Global Voices
Rezwan

Since 2010 the Colombo City Corporation has been removing stray dogs from the streets of Colombo and whereabouts of them are unknown. People are worried about the fate of the canines, reports Canging Perspectives blog.

author: Rezwan


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United States: Spanish TV Series on Pablo Escobar Breaks Ratings Record · Global Voices
Robert Valencia

Last week Telemundo premiered a new series “Escobar: The Evil Patron” [es] about the Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar, produced by the Colombian network Caracol. During its first days, the series rated an average of 2.2 million viewers between the ages of 18 and 49 becoming the second most watched production in the history of the second largest Spanish-speaking TV network in the United States.
In the producers’ opinion, “The Evil Patron” is one of many productions based on Pablo Escobar which are close to reality. The story tells us about his childhood, teenage years, his fast promotion from smuggler to drug lord, his gut hatred for the state, among other details. The script re-enacts the high profile assassination of the neoliberal presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán; the murder of the Justice Minister, Rodrigo Lara Bonilla; and the attack on the newspaper El Espectador (The Expectator) [es] with a car-bomb in which its General Manager died; among other crimes against humanity.
Pablo Escobar comes back to life, this time in a soap opera. Picture by Pablo Manriquez/Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0)
The series has sparked lots of comments, in favor and against, on social networks. In a press release, Telemundo said that its Twitter account registered close to 5.8 million comments, while on Facebook they tracked 1 million. Even though it has proven to be an overwhelming success in Colombia and the US, many are not happy with the story, like Leonel Buelvas, who commented on his blog [es]:
Mucho de qué hablar está dando la telenovela ‘Escobar, el patrón del mal’. Me incluyo dentro de los que hablan sobre ella. Y seré sincero y directo: no me gusta… El formato de telenovela no se presta para contar una ‘verdadera historia”’de Pablo Escobar. Si la intención es “mostrar lo que pasó”, se debió haber producido un documental, incluso uno dramatizado. Pero en una televisión privada, dónde el rating prima, y el espacio comercial se valoriza y se vende a buen precio, no interesa mucho que le queda al televidente, sino el margen de ganancia.
There's a lot of buzz around the soap opera “Escobar, the Evil Patron.” I include myself in the group who's talking about it. And I'll be honest and straight-forward: I don't like it… The soap opera format does not allow telling the “true story” about Pablo Escobar. If the intention is to show “what happened,” they should have produced a documentary, even if it was a drama documentary. But in private television, where ratings rule, the commercial space is valued and sold well, there's not much left for the viewer other than the profit margin.
On the other hand, Mario Mantilla Barajas‘s [es] blog states that even making it into a documentary would not bring it closer to reality, and calls TV viewers to inform themselves on this painful matter:
Aún, si fuera un documental tampoco es la ‘verdad revelada’, sino un punto de vista, por eso insisto en que el televidente debe estar informado, leer periódicos, libros, charlar sobre esos temas y con argumentos valorar lo que ve, diferente a juzgar como lo hacen ciertos autodenominados críticos que se quedan enredados en la forma y sentencian con palabras vacías como: ‘bueno o malo’ el producto, porque le gusta o no tal o cual interpretación,  porque el personaje real se ponía el saco de tal manera, o si la voz es igual o no al real, o si los créditos les parecen feos y no van al fondo de los temas.
Even if it was a documentary, it wouldn't be the “truth revealed” but just a point of view. That's why I insist TV viewers should be informed, read papers, books, talk about these issues and value what they see with arguments, all which is different than what some self-proclaimed critics do, who get entangled with the form and declare with empty words: a “good or bad” product, because they like or dislike an interpretation, because the real person used his jacket in a certain way, or because the voice resembles the real one, or if the credits look ugly; and they don't dig deeper into the subject.
Also, Juanita Riveros [es] says that the story does not bring anything different to what is known and criticizes the screenwriter, Juan Camilo Ferrand, for his lack of accuracy, particularly with the names of the characters:
Ferrand habla de la construcción del personaje: ‘De lo que movía a este hombre, el alma de este hombre’, y de explicar el auge del narcotráfico. Es decir, nos vende la idea de un personaje profundo, y de una serie que ofrecerá muchos elementos al espectador, no solo sobre la reciente historia de Colombia, sino sobre un drama con pasiones humanas. Vamos, que ya nos sabemos esa historia. Ojalá sea cierta tanta belleza. Eso si, opino que es una gran tontería cambiar los nombres menos el del protagonista: Si van a ser fieles a la historia patria, no se pongan a medias tintas.
Ferrand talks about building the characters; ‘What moved this man, the soul of this man,’ and tries to explain drug trafficking boom. That is, he is selling us the idea of a profound character, and of a series that will offer many elements to the viewer, not only about Colombia's recent history, but also about the drama of human passions. Come on, we already know that story. Hopefully, all that beauty is true. Also, I think it is very foolish to change all the names except the one of the leading man: If they are going to stay true to the country's history, they can't go halfway.
The series has been so successful that Telemundo opened a Twitter account @PatronDelMalTV and created the hashtag #PabloEscobar. The account offers small reviews of what people say about the drug lord:
#SabiasQue #PabloEscobar construyo un sistema de túneles para huir de la policía?
Finally, some users like Ronald Revelo (@Ronald_Revelo) [es] reply to such comments:
@Ronald_Revelo: ‘Si va a hacer algo, hagalo bien echo [sic], para que no lo pillen’ pablo escobar el patron del mal

author: Robert Valencia


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Video: Internet Society Discusses International Freedom of Speech and Censorship · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

Will the technologies of anonymization win out over new digital monitoring tools? And will new wireless data technologies foster democracy–or lead to more effective tracking and surveillance?
Six activists from Syria, India, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Venezuela and Azerbaijan aimed to answer these questions at a panel discussion hosted by Georgetown University's Communication, Culture and Technology Program on 25 June, 2012 Washington DC. The event, named CENSORSHIP 2020: The Future of Freedom Online was presented by the Internet Society – Washington DC Chapter (ISOC-DC):
The Arab Spring demonstrated how Internet technologies such as Twitter, blogs, and Facebook could be used to mobilize protesters, publicize corruption and human rights violations, and connect activists and emigres. But in Iran , Syria , and elsewhere, we have seen repressive governments use the Internet to identify and track dissidents, to spread disinformation, and defame political opponents.
The 6 activists were chosen as the 2012 Internet Freedom Fellows by the Mission of the United States in Geneva. The archived video of the talk includes the talk of all 6 speakers: Dlshad Othman from Syria, Pranesh Prakash from India, Koundjoro Gabriel Kambou from Burkina Faso, Global Voices Collaborator Sopheap Chak from Cambodia, Andres Azpurua from Venezuela and Emin Milli from Azerbaijan.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Afghanistan as Seen by a Photographer · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

Kazakh photographer Oskar Shalmanov shares photos from his recent trip to Afghanistan. The photos come with insightful comments [in Russian] about the war-torn country and its past. The images can be seen here, here, and here.

author: Alexander Sodiqov


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Afghanistan: Women Continue Suffering Violence and Abuse · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

On The Peace Cycle, Omid Bidar writes about a 16-year-old Afghan girl who was raped and murdered by a local strongman in the country's Bamyan Province. “We have forgotten many such stories… [We] will add this [one] to the forgotten list too,” suggests the blogger bitterly. According to one estimate, there were about 1,000 cases of violence against women, including 52 murders, in the past four months in Afghanistan.


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Argentina: Falklands Olympics Video Sparks Controversy · Global Voices
Laura Schneider

This post is part of our Special Coverage London Olympics 2012
Over and above the event's athletic importance, competing in the London 2012 Olympics for Argentina also has political connotations due to the memory of those killed in the Falklands War. April 2, 2012 marked the 30th anniversary of the landing of Argentine troops in the Falkland Islands, known as the Malvinas in Argentina. With the imminent start of the 2012 Olympic Games, the Office of the Argentinian President released a video tribute via their YouTube channel [es]:
The video, which was made by the Office of the Argentine Presidency [es] and filmed in the islands, shows an Argentinian athlete training for the London Olympics in the Falkland Islands, a British Overseas Territory. The final sentence sparked the controversy: “To compete on English soil, we train on Argentine soil.” The protagonist of the video is Fernando Zylberberg, a player of the Argentina Hockey Team, who will not actually be participating in the 2012 Olympics.
The reaction by the Olympic Committee was immediate. The website SSQH [es] posted the reaction:
“Los Juegos Olímpicos no deben ser un foro para tratar temas políticos, y el COI lamenta cualquier uso de la plataforma de los Juegos para esos fines”, señaló la entidad en un comunicado enviado a la agencias de noticias AP. “Estamos en contacto con el (Comité Olímpico) Argentino… y en varias ocasiones nos han asegurado que el comité olímpico nacional no tratará de usar los Juegos como una plataforma política, y respetará la Carta Olímpica”, agregó el COI.
The Olympic Games should not be a forum to discuss political issues, and the IOC regrets any use of the platform of the Games for those purposes,” [the Olympic Committee] said in a statement to the AP news agency. “We are in contact with the Argentine (Olympic Committee)  … who have repeatedly assured us that the National Olympic Committee will not try to use the Games as a political platform, and will respect the Olympic Charter,” the IOC added.
The blog Sopitas [es] also commented on the controversy:
A 30 años de la guerra entre Argentina y Gran Bretaña por estas islas, y ante la proximidad de los Juegos Olímpicos, este spot parece una provocación que ya está causando polémica.
Ian Hansen, legislador de las Malvinas dijo estar decepcionado por este video, el cual “intenta politizar los Juegos Olímpicos en servicio de las ambiciones territoriales argentinas”.
30 years after the war between Argentina and Britain over these islands, and so close to the start of the Olympics, this ad looks like a provocation that is already causing controversy.
Ian Hansen, Falklands legislator, said he was disappointed by this video, which “attempts to politicize the Olympic Games in the service of the Argentine territorial ambitions.”
Penguin News, a newspaper from the Falkland Islands, considered the video disrespectful:
Sadly, this illustrates the disrespect the Argentine authorities have for our home and our people.  Unsurprisingly, at no stage does the video feature any Falkland Islanders – a clear reflection of Argentina's policy, which is to pretend that the people of the Falkland Islands do not exist.
However, as the comments [es] show on YouTube, for many Argentinians the video has served to reinforce their position that the Falkland Islands belong to Argentina.
This post is part of our Special Coverage London Olympics 2012
This post was sub-edited by Jane Ellis.

author: Laura Schneider


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Armenia-Georgia: Typography Without Borders? · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Behance features a typographic project to write the Georgian word for hello phonetically in an Armenian script stylized in such a way that it resembles Georgian. Although some letters in the Armenian and Georgian alphabets can resemble each other depending on the fonts and case or styles used, they are otherwise usually visually distinct, although some argue that this is also by design.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Azerbaijan: Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center On Fire · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Reports have come in that the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center in Baku, Azerbaijan, is on fire. The building, named after the oil-rich republics's former president and father of its current head of state, Ilham Aliyev, was opened in May 2012 and was designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid. RFE/RL puts the cost of the center at $250 million.
With billions of petro-dollars fueling a construction boom on an unprecedented scale in Azerbaijan, the modern building was featured by Extreme Engineering, a Discovery Channel Documentary series. News spread via online media sites, Twitter and Facebook. Helicopters are reportedly involved in attempts to extinguish the fire.
@LvIsmylv: Heyder Aliyev center yanır pic.twitter.com/pNOEAAQ6
@sakitoglu: Heydar Aliyev Center is burning! #Baku #Azerbaijan pic.twitter.com/ZoKag7Kd
Video was also uploaded to YouTube:
@nhacizade: Bakü'de yanan (http://bit.ly/NmuGHS) HA Kültür Merkezi inanılmaz güzel bir binaydı, üç hafta önce çektiğim hali: http://twitpic.com/a9m35m


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China: Ai Weiwei’s Tax Evasion Case · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

In April last year, prominent artist Ai Weiwei was detained by the Beijing authority without giving any reason and eventually state-run media said that he was under investigation for tax evasion, bigamy and ‘spreading porn. In June 2011, Ai was asked to pay 12 million yuan ($1.85 million) in back taxes and fines and his lawyer decided to file a review for the tax evasion charge. Today, the court ruled that it would not over-rule the fine. The case's detail is documented in “The Fake Case“.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Colombia: Locals Demand End to Cauca Conflict · Global Voices
Lully

For more than 20 years the municipality of  Toribío in Cauca [es] has put up with hundreds of battles brought about by the Guerrilla, paramilitary groups [es], and the government's forces. The indigenous people from the area have cried out unsuccessfully to the government and other armed groups for a cease fire. Cauca is a militarily strategic area, because it is a corridor between the Andes, the southern part of the country and the Pacific Ocean. This conflict has provoked the inhabitants of Toribio to move to calmer areas, as the blog Proclama (Proclame) [es] demonstrates in images.
Nevertheless, a group of indigenous people have decided to expel these armed groups from their territory.
As we reported previously, on July 9 the Association of Indigenous Councils of Cauca (ACIN) published a letter [es] directed at the armed groups, demanding that “armed groups and legal and illegal armies”” abandon their territory.
After serious clashes [es] and the visit of President Juan Manual Santos to Toribío for a cabinet meeting, on July 15 ACIN again published another  letter [es] on their web page.  his time, in the letter addressed to Timoleón Jiménez, Comander of the FARC [es] (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia), the Association reaffirms their request that armed group abandon their region, stating their desire for peace and warning that their actions are not a declaration of war.
Likewise, the indigenous people have asked President Santos for more investment in social issues and the discontinuation of the presence of the military.
The indigenous people maintain that they seek protection in the international humanitarian rights, since they argue that it is necessary that the sides in question locate themselves in sites where they do not put the life and integrity [es] of the indigenous people at risk. They have circulated another letter from the ACIN on Facebook [es] titled “Constitutional and legal foundation for the recovery of indigenous territory in Cauca”, which highlights some of the indigenous people's arguments:
a. El gobierno no puede ocupar propiedades inmuebles […]
b. La expropiación de los resguardos indígenas y tierras comunales étnicas está prohibida por la Constitución […]
c. El gobierno tiene obligación de realizar una consulta previa para buscar el consentimiento previo, libre e informado en caso de operaciones militares […]
d. La militarización de los territorios indígenas no es mejora en la seguridad de los pueblos indígenas […]
a. The government cannot occupy private real estate […]
b. The expropriation of the indigenous reserves and ethnic communal lands is prohibited by the Constitution […]
c. The government has the obligation to carry out a prior consultation to seek prior, free and informed consent in the case of military operations […]
d. The militarization of the indigenous territories is not an improvement in the security of the indigenous people […]
After the first confrontations and the lack of solutions, the indigenous people resolved to give the government an ultimatum so that its troops would vacate the region at midnight on July 17.
Removal of the government troops in Toribio.
Having met the deadline [es] declared by the indigenous people for the removal of the military forces, indigenous people from the north of Cauca arrived at the military base located on El Berlin mountain in Toribio, to demand the departure of a group of 100 military soldiers.
The news media reports that the soldiers did not object, since they had the order to not attack anyone nor respond to any aggression from the indigenous people.  In the early morning of Wednesday July 18, however, the police ESMAD (Mobile anti-riot squadron) removed the indigenous people form the military base on El Berlin mountain.
In turn, the indigenous have detained 30 soldiers [es], who will not be freed until the death of one indigenous person has been cleared up.
Nelson Armesto Echavez, on the page Patio Bonito Al Día, speaks of the image [es] that the government has created linking the indigenous people's actions with the FARC:
El Gobierno Nacional ha buscado deslegitimar la acción digna y el derecho que tienen los indígenas a no ser involucrados en un conflicto, vendiendo a la opinión pública que la acción heroica es producto de una manipulación de las FARC, lo que ha sido desmentido por los jefes de esos resguardos, quienes han sido claros en pedir a las Fuerzas Militares como a la guerrilla misma, que abandonen sus territorios.
The Pluricultural Organization of Indigenous Peoples of Colombia (OPIC), a group of indigenous people whose creation was driven [es] by the ex-president Alvaro Uribe during his government, has also claimed that the indigenous protest of Cauca has been infiltrated by the guerilla. Semana [es] reported that this accusation did not sit well among the indigenous leaders of Cauca:
El portavoz indígena dijo además que esa afirmación era falsa y que ellos no están coordinando acciones conjuntas con las FARC, sino que por el contrario ellos les han desmantelado retenes y les exigen de igual manera que abandonen su territorio.
The conflict [es] between the Indigenous Guard of Cuaca and the guerrilleros of the zone is not new [es]. In these past weeks, the Indigenous Guard has confronted the guerrillas several times [es], managing to expel them [es] from various districts in Toribio.
Reactions and citizen reports
Some local blogs, such as Popayancity [es], repost the general information that the traditional media transmits. Other international media outlets such as Servindi [es] give a much more detailed account of recent events. Meanwhile, some Colombians show themselves against [es] and others in favor [es] of the indigenous people.
On Twitter various words and hashtags have become local trending topics, such as FFMM (“Military Forces”), Farc, #ApoyoAlasFFMMEnelcauca (“I support the military forces in el Cauca”) Cauca, #CaucaResiste (“Cauca Resists”), ESMAD and Ejército (“Military”).
Many people on Twitter continue to comment from various perspectives.
Former presidential candidate Antonio Navarro (@navarrowolff) [es] speaks of the various positions among the indigenous people:
@navarrowolff: En el norte del Cauca hay indígenas que apoyan el gobierno, otros que apoyan a las Farc y otros, la mayoría, que están contra ambos.
Journalist Daniel Coronell @DCoronell) [es] warns of the opportunist way that the politicians are treating the topic:
@DCoronell: Lo de hoy en el Cauca fue grave, pero no fue una masacre de militares. Hay gente tratando de sacarle provecho político a la situación.
Nicolás Umaña Jimeno (@NicolasUmana) [es] disagrees with the indigenous attitude towards the military forces:
@NicolasUmana: Respeto a los indígenas mucho. Pero no veo que derecho tienen para maltratar y humillar a los soldados colombianos.
As far as he is concerned, Julián Román (@JulianRoman) [es] doubts those who say the indigenous people are guerrilleros:
@JulianRoman: Toda la “gente de bien” que anda diciendo que los indígenas de Toribio son guerrilleros, no saben ni donde queda Toribio.
The Colombian government has reiterated [es] that it is open for dialogue but that neither the military nor the ESMAD (mobile riot squadrons) will abandon the zone.

author: Lully


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Indonesia: “Jokowi vs Foke” in Jakarta Governor Election Run-Off · Global Voices
Agung Harsya

Joko Widodo won the first round of the Jakarta, Indonesia governor election ahead of incumbent Fauzi Bowo by up to nine percent. Joko is a popular figure who built his reputation as a mayor of Solo, a city in Central Java province. During his term, the city turned more green, friendly, and humanly. The election is now  becoming “Jokowi vs Foke” showdown, as both figures are popularly called.
The election day was marred by some problems such as intimidation, illegal presence of campaign attributes, substandard logistics, and allegations of money politics.
Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo. Photo by Henrikus Suparjono from Wikimedia
Twitter's time line during that day was dominated by election information. Netizens actively sharedtheir opinions on the candidate they voted. After election day, discussions continued because it's almost certain Jakartans will have a run-off with Joko and Fauzi as two candidates left. It is almost clear that most of netizens are irritated by the way Fauzi's governing the city. Not a few times that Fauzi chose not to attend public debates. And Fauzi is the first person to blame for every problems in Jakarta, such as traffic, flood, shopping malls proliferation, and ugliness of mass transportation system.
@arisshaquilla Jokowi will make a thousand times (better) governor than Fauzi Bowo. Because we don't need an arrogant leader #justsaying
@arisharp Most or all eliminated candidates will throw support behind Joko Widodo in second round of voting, so Fauzi Bowo looks to be a goner
A blogger, Ismail Solichin [id], posted:
Jakarta sepertinya sudah memutuskan pilihan. Fauzi Bowo (FB) sudah tidak bisa lagi “dijual” kembali pada putaran kedua nanti. Hanya mukjizat yang bisa memulangkan Joko Widodo ke Solo…
…Bahasa batin masyarakat sudah tidak bisa dibendung lagi, mereka menghendaki kepemimpinan baru yang menghendaki Jakarta lebih memperhatikan kepentingan rakyat ketimbang kepentingan korporat yang disimbolkan dengan kehadiran mal-mal dan mini market-mini market  yang terbukti melindas dan meminggirkan para pedagang kecil dan tradisional…
…Tentu bukan hanya persoalan pasar tradisional saja, juga persoalan kemacetan, banjir, penataan perumahan dan lingkungan serta seabreg masalah lainnya.
Jakarta has already made a decision. Fauzi Bowo can't be “sold” anymore in the run-off. Only miracle can bring Joko Widodo back to Solo…
…People aspiration can't be held back anymore, they want new leadership who will govern Jakarta, who is more concerned about the people rather than corporate interests, which is symbolized by a myriad of shopping malls and modern mini markets that are crushing out local markets and small traditional merchants…
…Certainly it's not just about markets, but also traffic, flood, residential area, and environment and many more problems.
Leading candidate Jokowi Widodo
In welcoming run-off soonish, people admit receiving black campaign to vilify Joko. The messages spread anonymously through Blackberry messenger mentioning about religion and ethnic issue, which actually  occurredbefore election day. Such primordial issue is a push/pull factor for Indonesians to vote.
A netizen, Joel Picard [id], said:
@sociotalker 5 tahun lalu Foke menendang isu SARA dg slogannya “jakarta utk semua”. Sekarang SARA jadi kawan akrab Foke demi kekuasaan.
Another netizen, Ahmad Fawzy, asks for candidates to act like gentlemen and not use such black campaign for run-off.
@bedahplastik Jokowi + Foke = JOKE. They both should just prepare for next round, no need to be whining & complaining like 2 kids fighting over candy bar.
Run-off election is scheduled on September 20.

author: Agung Harsya


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Israel: Media Learn About Shootings 8 Hours Later · Global Voices
Rayna St.

@activestills, “a collective of Israeli, International and Palestinian photographers, united by a conviction that photography is a vehicle for social change”, says on Twitter this morning: “Israeli police informed media about the shooting incident against refugees only 8 hours after it happened”, pointing to a few images from the shooting. The target was Eritrean refugees and the shooting is reported to have happened in the Shapira neighbourhood in south Tel Aviv. It is not clear what provoked the attack or why the media were informed 8 hours later.

author: Rayna St.


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Mali: What is The ECOWAS Waiting for ?   · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Francis Laloupo wonders whether the ECOWAS has a clear  purpose in the resolution [fr] of the crisis in Northern Mali. Laloupo argues that while the ECOWAS has maintained for the past 4 months that they strive to re-establish the unity of the Malian territory,  they have yet to draw a coherent strategy to stop the islamist groups from taking control of the region.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Mauritania: A Rich Culture of Games, Dance and Music · Global Voices
أحمد جدو

Mauritania lies at the point where Arab and African cultures meet; it is the link between the countries of North and West Africa. This has given it a special character, with its wonderful ethnic diversity reflected in its unique culture. This is evident in Mauritania's rich tradition of games, dances and music, encapsulating the marriage between Arab and African cultures. In this post we will show you some examples.
The game of “Anigur”
The game of “Anigur” or “pin play” is one of the best-known traditional Mauritanian games, which simulates a duel with swords, but using sticks. There are no victims; the game ends with no winners or losers, as the point is solely to entertain. While the “competitors” duel, women play drums and ululate to encourage them.
Usually the game is set up between two competitors with sticks, but one may duel with two or three according to his experience and strength. The “Anigur” player is considered to be an important person that people flock to invite to special occasions, although he does not earn money from this.
This game is also part of Mauritanian wedding celebrations and official ceremonies; it's a part of the people's psyche and takes an important place amongst popular Mauritanian games.
The following video shows two men playing “Anigur”, while women around them clap to encourage them:
Dancing to the “Nifara”
The “nifara” – the Mauritanian flute – is a musical instrument close to people's hearts; dancing to it is popular amongst young Mauritanians. The dancers use their skills to match its melodies, and dance expressively in a theatrical style. As the enthusiasm in the audience grows, they ululate and clap.
In this video you can see some young Mauritanians dancing to nifara tunes:
Dimi Mint Abba
Finally we come to the legend of Mauritanian music, Dimi Mint Abba; in the following video she sings a traditional song accompanied by the beautiful instrument, the “ardin” [similar to the “kora”].
Dimi was a traditional Mauritanian singer, who was born in the Tagant Region and rose to fame in the 1970s. Her voice was able to transcend the borders of her country to reach the rest of Africa and some Arab countries. It was a source of enjoyment for millions of Mauritanians for decades.
She began her career at the beginning of the 1970s, and represented her country in an Arab singing competition in Tunis in 1976.
Dimi Mint Abba died on June 4, 2011, and the news was a thunderbolt for Mauritanians. There was an outpouring of grief all over the country.

author: أحمد جدو


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Mongolia: Documenting Wild Snow Leopard Cubs · Global Voices
I-fan Lin

Snow leopards are rare and very elusive. A team of scientists from the Snow Leopard Trust has been conducting a long term study on the big cats and recently followed two female snow leopards, Anu and Lasya, and visited their dens in Mongolia’s South Gobi after they gave birth to their cubs.
Orjan and his colleagues, Sumbee Tomorsukh of Mongolia, Mattia Colombo of Italy, and Dr. Carol Esson of Australia (a licensed veterinarian) report their observations in their blog:
On June 21st, 2012, our field team made a remarkable visit to the den sites of Anu and Lasya. These two females are part of our long-term ecological study and wear GPS tracking collars that help us identify their movements. With this data, we can learn critical information about snow leopard range, habitat and prey needs. This allows us to better understand snow leopards and the threats they face, and make the most of our resources to protect these endangered cats.
In May, Anu and Lasya began to restrict their daily movements to smaller and smaller areas, which the team interpreted as a signal that both were preparing to give birth. Traveling through steep and rocky mountain outcroppings, the team followed VHF signals transmitted by the collars and finally located the dens.
The scientists also uploaded a short video of the two cute cubs to YouTube:
They promise to update their observations and answer any audience questions in the comments section:
Thank you all so much for leaving comments, and asking about the mother's reaction to the smell of humans is very important. After we went to the sites, we have been tracking the mom's locations via GPS and both have returned to their dens and are actively taking care of their cubs, so no worries there. :)

author: I-fan Lin


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Myanmar’s Unique Naming System · Global Voices
Chan Myae Khine

Whenever a Myanmar national reveals that he or she does not have a surname, foreigners usually wonder why. Myanmar might be one of the very few countries in the world where at least 90 percent of its population do not have a surname or family name. The members of the same family can have completely different names and the number of words in each name can vary greatly.
WhatIsMyanmar writes about the unique naming practice in Myanmar:
But for us, Myanmar, last name is just a word in stories written in English. Believe it or not! We don’t have family name at all. And it’s apparently no space for another box beside the column of Name in any form to fill up IN MYANMAR.
A sugarcane juice seller from Myanmar. Photo from Flickr page of Michael Foley used under CC License
And explains how people from Myanmar usually fill out forms which ask for both first name and last name:
But whenever we try to fill up the online forms, we have no choice except filling the family name space as they make it mandatory. And, what do we fill? For me, I put first two words of my name as first name and last word as last name. So random? Well, at that point, you may wanna know how many words are there in each name? My wise answer is “it depends”. Yes, it totally depends of how creative the parents or whoever give the names are.
Twobmad mentioned how it is difficult to deal with Myanmar names in foreign communities:
I always got confused when it comes to filling the name such as first, middle and last name. The same thing happens, after living in a foreign country, friends who would like to know how they would call me. They are confused as well. Because when they will me by name first name, it is not either the way I have been called in my family as well as in my previous community. They would use my first name to call me but I would feel strange if I have been called by the name which I never heard before.
Ba Kaung blogged about the naming practice in Myanmar which includes astrological beliefs as well:
A few years later, after witnessing different cultural practices around the world, I realized that the Burmese custom of naming is fairly unique. It symbolizes the combination of the particular virtue for a person and astrological calculation of the day of the week that the person was born based on Burmese lunar calendar year.
He also covered the designation in Myanmar language which is important to its people but sometimes confuses foreigners such as “U” (pronounced as Oo) in “U Thant“. In addition, people with one-word names usually face difficulties defining the family name as the first word such as “U”, “Ma”, “Daw” and so on, which are not their names technically:
Expression of respect is also a matter of utmost importance to address the name of Myanmar people. One can be addressed with an appropriate honorific salutation before the given name depends on the level of age, degree of relationship, and gender. It will be considered impolite way of calling someone’s name in a direct manner of speaking.
To address younger ones and peers before their names,
“Ko” is used as a masculine form.
“Ma” is used as a feminine and formal form.
“Maung” is used as a masculine formal form.
To address elder ones before their names,
“U” or “Oo” is used as a masculine and formal form.
“Daw” is used as a feminine and formal form.
Since there is no family name for Myanmar nationals, women do not need to change any part of their name even after they get married, Dharana writes:
My third project has been to learn how to correctly pronounce my colleagues’ names. Burmese names depend on which day of the week a person was born  and they don’t have a family name component. This means women get to keep their entire given name even after marriage– something my female colleagues seem to take quite some pride in!
On the other hand, some ethnicities in Myanmar , descendants of India and Christians follow the pratice of having a family name. Lionslayer writes that few people in Myanmar have surnames:
Some people likes to take their father’s name using British naming system. Aung San Suu Kyi is daughter of Aung San and Hayma Nay Win is daughter of Nay Win. Yet you may rarely see those kinds. Burmese people tends to name their new born babies according to astrology rather than naming after someone. Some of ethnics in Myanmar do have family names. And some Muslims and Christians also name after their fathers or grandfathers
He concluded that the Myanmar government should set up a family record registration as it is difficult to trace one's family tree:
There is a downside of not having a family name. It’s very difficult to trace someone’s ancestors for more than 5 generations. It’s not a big problem if Myanmar has a family registry office. I hope the government set up such a record and inquiry service. Anyway, We are not alone on Earth without family names. I just learned that there are some more Asian ethnics without family names too.

author: Chan Myae Khine


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Pakistan: Polio Vaccination Ban Affects 240,000 Children · Global Voices
Kumail Ahmed

Close to a quarter million innocent children are at risk of catching the crippling disease, due to a recent ban on polio inoculation by the Taliban in Pakistan's FATA (Federally Administrated Tribal Areas) region.
Pakistan Taliban chief Hafiz Gul Bahadur has banned polio vaccination in protest against US espionage and drone attacks in Waziristan, FATA.
Pakistan is one of three countries left in the world, where polio is endemic. The latest anti-polio campaign launched by the government of Pakistan targets 35 million children under the age of five. With the recent ban, the health of 160,000 children from South Waziristan, and 80,000 children from North Waziristan hangs in the balance.
The Pakistan Taliban are suspicious this anti-polio campaign is as actual a cover for espionage. In May 2011, a fake anti-hepatitis immunisation campaign was launched by the US through a Pakistani physician Dr. Afridi  in Abbotabad, Pakistan, which led to the eventual capture of Osama bin Laden.
In a handout distributed by Mullah Nazir, a spokesman of Pakistan Taliban, he condemned the immunisation campaign because “infidel forces are using media, education and development as a tool to gag Muslims.”
In a jirga (tribal meeting) held by 200 Pashtun leaders on 18 July 2012, the ban was supported as a protest against US drone attacks. The chief of Turikhel tribe, Malak Mamoor Khan said drones are more dangerous than the polio virus, because a ‘child rarely dies of polio while hundreds of children have died due to drones.’
A health worker administers the polio-vaccine drops to a child during a three-day anti-polio campaign in Chaman. Image by Owais Aslam Ali. Copyright Demotix
Another development that has been a major blow to the Pakistan polio eradication campaign was the recent attack on a World Health Organization doctor from Ghana, who was inoculating children in the outskirts of Karachi, a southern port city of Pakistan. Two gunmen fired at his vehicle, as he was leaving a heavily ethnic Pashtun slum (where some of the inhabitants have fled violence from Pakistan's north-west and FATA region). He was severely injured, but survived. It was not clear whether the doctor's attack in Karachi, has any connection with the tribal and Taliban decree banning polio vaccinations in the FATA areas.
Apart from this, local newspaper report that a polio vaccination team was beaten up in the capital Islamabad, and bullets were fired at a team in Jacobabad, Sindh. In another development reported from Muzaffargarh, a district in Punjab, a local cleric declared the polio campaign to be anti-Islam and anti-Pakistan.
Mirza aptly comments on such attitude from the clergy:
“Instead of declaring Jihad against illiteracy, hunger and disease it is ironic that the mullah are declaring jihad against vaccination. Yet again police could not arrest the mullah, what is new? No mullah is ever punished for their wrongdoings and abuse of religion. No mullah is going to issue fatwa against him.”
An anti-polio drive in the country makes many speechless. Ian Fairley comments on a post:
A health worker administers the polio-vaccine drops to a child during a three-day anti-polio campaign in Chaman. Image by Owais Aslam Ali. Copyright Demotix
“Here we go again, grown men exercising their power over the women and chilren, brutality at its worst because they do it in the name of religion, put these hero's in front of proper men and they use the children as a shield to hide behind”
Some tweets consider extremist ideology to be an existential threat to Pakistan. Ali Abbas Zaidi tweets:
Drones or no drones, Taliban ideology will shut down girl schools, kill, ban polio vaccinations, enforce & impose their version of Islam
—  Ali Abbas Zaidi @Ali_Abbas_Zaidi July 19, 2012
Salman tweets:
Taliban is in the business of blowing up limbs, don't expect them to understand the life long disability caused by polio. #Pakistan
— salman (@salman2979) July 19, 2012
Aly writes:
Don't understand the Taliban's polio ban strategy. Are they trying to guilt trip the Americans by putting thousands of children at risk?
— Aly (@Repatriated) July 19, 2012
On the other hand, UNICEF has hired Pakistan's star crickter Shahid Afridi in a fight against polio. Shahid Afridi is an ethnic Pashtun and has a large fan base amongst the community. He has joined Rotary's “This Close” campaign to support the fight against polio. Recently, Asifa Bhutto Zaradri, Pakistan's polio ambassador and the daughter of Pakistan's president, has also joined this campaign.
Eradication of polio endemic requires a joint collaboration between the government and the people. The clergy, commoners, and civil society must be taken on board and convinced about how important polio vaccination is for Pakistan's future.
Afridi vs Polio tweets:
If you want to see #Pakistan among #PolioFreeCountries then you have to take interest in #polio. Today #Pakistan needs our help.
— Afridi vs Polio (@AfridivsPolio) July 19, 2012
According to statistics collected by the National Institute of Health Pakistan (NIHP) in 2009, 2010, and 2011 there were 116, 144, and 173 reported cases of polio respectively.

author: Kumail Ahmed


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Pre-Olympics 2012: What’s Buzzing · Global Voices
Richard Wanjohi

This post is part of our special coverage London 2012 Olympics.
With the 2012 London Olympics drawing closer, activities relating to the Games are heightening every day. From countries participating in the Games to their athletes preparing to score their best, the world's online audience is coming alive and getting ready for this extravaganza.
To start off, the blog The Rolling Maul gives interesting trivia about the Olympics here:
Today it sounds unreal, but there was a time, many decades ago, when there was a prevailing ethos amongst the aristocracy that it would be un-gentlemanly and unfair towards other participants to actually practice or train for an event. In fact, it was considered tantamount to cheating!
This post also captures how gender parity has evolved in the games:
The only Olympic sport where both genders compete together is the equestrian disciplines. With the addition of women’s boxing to the 2012 OG (Olympic Games), female athletes will now be able to compete in all the same sports as their male counterparts
Women participated for the first time at the 1900 Paris Games. Image courtesy of earthandroid.wordpress.com
Talking of women, The Source has a post dedicated to Women in Sport:
For the first time, the 2012 United States Olympic team will have more women than men: there are 269 women and 261 men on the team. And for your information, the oldest American athlete is a woman – equestrian rider Karen O’ Connor at 54 – and the youngest is 15 year old swimmer Katie Ledecky (another female.)
Still sticking with women athletes, Muslim Women in Sports blog, which acts as a ‘repository of collected materials about Muslim women involvement in physical activities,’ has great images taken by fashion magazine Vanity Fair of Muslim women coming to the Olympics:
The blog collates posts and articles from mainstream media and curates them for an easy read. It has quite a number of posts on Muslim women and the Olympics.
Macro-man Blog takes a satirical look at the Olympics and links them with political and social issues affecting major economies across the world in a post titled “the 2012 Financial Olympics“:
As London prepares for the Greatest Show on Earth, Team Macro Man have been giving their some thought to their own favourites for the 2012 Financial Olympics. Sailing – It’s going to be tough with so many competitors sailing so close to the wind this year. Barclays opted to do their own rigging, having allegedly refused the advice of their BoE (Bank of Engladn) advisors. However the sudden suicides of the team captain and cabin boy have left an opening for Iran’s HSBC crea. With more storms forecast this year, we expect many of the field to be capsized. Team US-JPM have already spent billions on repairs having hit a whale.
MercySisters remind us of the human issues that rear their head, this one being on human trafficking and the Olympics:
Although the stories and statistics around human trafficking for sexual and worker exploitation around sporting events is difficult, we now know these events offer an opportunity to raise the issue, educate large groups of workers and customers and develop new networks around the issue [..] As this year’s Olympics approach, Mercy Investment Services has joined our partners at the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) and our European partners at the Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility to call upon London-area hotels and Olympic sponsors and suppliers to take a public stand and ensure their business operations are trafficking and slavery free
Fellowship of Mind raises the issue of Israeli athletes gunned down during the 1972 Munich Games. They call for a boycott as detailed below:
During the crisis, King Hussein of Jordan was the only leader of an Arab country to publicly denounce the Olympic attack, calling it a “savage crime against civilization… perpetrated by sick minds.” Forty years later and not one of the Arab countries participating in the Games will offer one minute of silence for the horrendous murders?  Speaks volumes to the true beliefs of these countries and their “religion of peace.
JoshuaPundit also raises the issue of a boycott but gets some interesting rebuttals in the comments section his blog:
So I'll be boycotting the Olympics this year, in thought, word, and deed and I urge you to do likewise. I won't watch the coverage, buy any of the merchandise or follow the games in any way. They are unworthy of attention by anyone who still values what the Olympic spirit is supposedly about. The one thing I will be doing is letting the suits at NBC and any company advertising themselves as Olympic sponsors know why. That will be my moment of silence, my tribute. Call it one man's call for simple decency. I hope you'll join me.
Finally, Earth Android gives Android users leads to the best apps to have to follow up-to-the-minute updates during the Olympics:
Countdown of the biggest event of the year to be held in London from 27 July to 12 August 2012 has started. But I think most of you who are busy with their work life want to get latest updates and news of the event. So here we are going to tell you about the applications Android has launched for its users to get every news feed of the event.
This post is part of our special coverage London 2012 Olympics.

author: Richard Wanjohi


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Russia: Yaroslavl Court Bans LiveJournal · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

Earlier this week, a Yaroslavl court responded to a request from local law enforcement and ordered Internet provider Netis Telekom to shut off access to a handful of websites, including Russia's most popular blogging platform, LiveJournal.
According to Alexey Kukin of the Yaroslavl Prosecutor's Office, a monitoring sweep earlier this year turned up a neo-nazi blog hosted on LJ, access to which violates Russian federal laws against extremism. That same blog, “pat-index,” has also appeared on the Justice Ministry's “list of extremist materials” [ru] since October 2009, when a Bashkortostani court officially labeled it “extremist.” (The blog itself has not been updated since March 2008.)
Netis Telekom, with roughly 6,000 subscribers in Yaroslavl, has cut off access to the popular blogging platform LiveJournal. Photo by author.
Responding to criticisms of censorship, Kukin told [ru] reporters that Netis Telekom over-fulfilled the court order, arguing that the authorities only demanded the filtration of the specific blog and not the LiveJournal portal in its entirety:
Это было бы бредом говорить, что мы требовали закрытия всего сайта www.livejournal.com. Речь шла о закрытии конкретно этой страницы. И в решении суда говорится о том же.
In the actual text of the court order, however, Netis Telekom is clearly instructed to block access to both “pat-index.livejournal.com” and the IP address “208.93.0.128.”
The latter category, it so happens, encompasses the LiveJournal portal in its entirety. In a July 18 blog post [ru], LJ's chief in Russia, Ilya Dronov, explained the technical aspects of IP filtration:
Что касается технической стороны вопроса, то тут провайдер действительно может блокировать только весь ЖЖ, а не отдельный дневник […].
Acknowledging the technical obstacles [en] to blocking a specific user of a shared hosting server, Kukin implied [ru] that Netis Telekom interpreted the Yaroslavl court order too narrowly:
Ответчик, видимо, по техническим причинам перекрыл доступ ко всему ЖЖ. IP-адрес в исковом заявлении был указан общий для всего ЖЖ, но провайдер в ходе разбирательства почему-то не уточнил адрес конкретной запрещённой страницы. В любом случае, я думаю вопрос с доступом к ЖЖ в ближайшее время будет решён.
How Netis Telekom is meant to have “refined” its IP filtration, however, remains unclear. The URL named in the court order (“pat-index.livejournal.com”) resolves to the precise IP address also listed by the court (“208.93.0.128″). That IP address is registered [en] to livejournal.com in San Francisco, just like any other blog hosted on the site.
Equally unclear is when Netis Telekom was supposed to raise this issue, and why the Prosecutor's Office endorsed the IP address ban, if it understood in advance (as Kukin suggests was the case) that filtering “208.93.0.128” would lead to LJ's complete closure.
Screenshot of blocked access to pat-index.livejournal.com, 19 July 2012, photo by Ilya Rassadin, used with permission.
Anton Nosik, popular blogger and Media Director for SUP Media (which owns LiveJournal), blames [ru] the Yaroslavl incident on Russian officials’ failure to understand the repercussions of their own orders:
Проблема заключается в технической безграмотности и незнании предметной области. Решение выносится людьми, которые не в состоянии оценить его природу и последствия. Эту проблему могло бы решить повышение технической грамотности судебных работников и прокуроров, но к этому нет никаких стимулов. Потому что наши судьи и прокурорские работники — это все менты, которые не прошли бы переаттестацию.
On his own LiveJournal, Nosik argued [ru] that Russian law enforcement are already acting in the spirit of the Internet ‘blacklist’ law, passed last week in the Duma (analyzed on RuNet Echo here). Andrey Malgin, another popular blogger with anti-Kremlin overtones, also tied the case to a wider crackdown on the freedom of speech online, arguing [ru] that IP blocking is likely to grow with the aid of bot networks intentionally spreading extremist or pornographic materials. If one unvisited corner of a popular hosting service can be flooded with illegal data, another court order like Yaroslavl's (to block that host's entire IP address) would presumably be very likely elsewhere in Russia.
In remarks on July 19, Minister of Communications and Mass Media Nikolai Nikiforov addressed the issue, saying [ru] that typically only major telecoms have the equipment necessary to perform URL filtering (specifically targeting a single LJ blog, instead of the entire domain). LiveJournal's Dronov argues that the simplest way to address such problems is to work directly with the hosting servers (in this case, with LJ itself).
He points to their Abuse Prevention Team and cites a specific internal term of service (against hate speech [en]) that offers grounds for disabling the neo-nazi blog at the center of the scandal. (The LJ blog in question, it should be noted, is still accessible, however.) Federal monitoring agency Roskomnadzor has preferred to operate in this style, and reached out to dozens of domain hosts internationally in just the first half of 2012 [ru] with requests [ru] to disable individual sites that violate privacy laws (including [ru] LiveJournal and YouTube).
Though emotions are running hot in the aftermath of the Internet ‘blacklist’ law and a series of other recent politicized legislative initiatives, not everyone seems to be worried about a domino effect of tyranny. Ilya Rassadin, the Yaroslavl programmer who leaked the photograph of the court order's text (and an active critic of the LJ ban), refuted the notion that this is the fallout of the RuNet ‘blacklist’ law.
When a Twitter user informed him that Anton Nosik had made that connection, Rassadin responded [ru] plainly, “The court's decision is not related to the [recently] approved law.” For the time being, however, most of LiveJournal's Russian language users (estimated at five million people) would likely disagree.

author: Kevin Rothrock


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South Africa: #HowMandelaSoldUsOut · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

An open letter to Nelson Mandela published on News24 has prompted mixed reactions online. The letter, written by a person using the name Youngster, argues that Mandela sold out black South Africans during a series of negotiations that ended the Apartheid system.
The letter begins:
Dear Former President Nelson Mandela,
I understand that you had meetings between 1985-1990 with P. W. Botha to have a negotiated settlement. Revered late ANC President, Oliver Reginald Tambo, referring to your meetings with the colonial-apartheid regime in the crucial 1980s, said “Prisoners can’t negotiate their freedom”.
I have read that according to aged ANC veterans, Tambo seemed disturbed about senior members of the leadership including you, who could have compromised the organisation. He seemed to question whom to trust. This, according to those veterans, eventually led to Tambo’s first stroke.
In 1990 before you were released from prison you assured your supporters that the nationalisation of mines, banks and minerals were on the cards. That belief had formed the core doctrine of the ANC and was enshrined in a document known as The Freedom Charter.
“The national wealth of our country, the heritage of South Africans, shall be restored to the people; the mineral wealth beneath the soil; the banks and monopoly industries shall be transferred to the ownership of the people as a whole; all other industries and trade shall be controlled to assist the well-being of the people,” the charter states.
It later emerged that you and other ANC leaders were busily creatively re-interpreting the “Freedom Charter’s” commitment to nationalisation in order to comfort the monopoly white capitalists.
A potrait of Nelson Mandela, the first democratically elected president of South Africa. Photo relesead under Creative Commons (CC BY 2.0) by Flickr user Abode of Chaos.
To support his argument, the author points out three failed key areas during the negotiations: failed transfer of power during negotiations, failed economic negotiations and state ownership of the Reserve Bank and failed rainbow-nation coated myth.
The letter concludes:
The current state
The unemployment crisis is also defined along racial lines due to the fact that in the third quarter of 2010, 29.80% of blacks were officially unemployed, compared with 22.30% of coloureds, 8.60% of Asians and only 5.10% of whites. About 12 million of the population lives on less than R2.50 per day, whilst 16 million South Africans receive social grants.
In terms of racial distribution of per capita income, African and coloured income levels in 2008 were still only 13% and 22% respectively of white per capita income, compared to 10.9% and 19.3% in 1993. The income gap for Indians has narrowed, with Indian per capita income in 2008 standing at 60% of those of whites as against 42% in 1993.
In 1995, median per capita expenditure among Africans was R333 a month compared to whites at R3 443 a month. In 2008, median expenditure per capita for Africans was R454 a month compared to whites at R5 668 a month. Source: [Leibbrandt, M. et al. (2010), “Trends in South African Income Distribution and Poverty since the Fall of Apartheid”]
Fiery debate ensued immediately after the letter went online. The hashtag #HowMandelaSoldUsOut has been trending on Twitter.
Voices opposing the letter:
@AnneLeonardPta: @AdrianaStuijt #HowMandelaSoldUsOut Just the really dumb people don't see what he and De Klerk had done for RSA [Republic of South Africa].
@KINGLEKWENE: #HowMandelaSoldUsOut truth hurts, even Winnie Mandela once talked about this in USA.
@mattstroucken: Interesting responses to #HowMandelaSoldUsOut. If you're going to write a letter like that, at least have the balls to put your name to it.
@TheRealSyfo: SA should stop having the sense of being owed something.Tata is but one guy.WHAT have U done for U?#HowMandelaSoldUsOut 4 complacent brats
@CroWill: #HowMandelaSoldUsOut < – can sum1 plz explain this to me , last time I checked Mandela was a hero!! #ilovemandela
@pvanheus: #HowMandelaSoldUsOut ignores the role that entrepeurship and work discipline (not redistribution) played in ANC discourse since the 1940s
@TheRealSyfo: SA black youths tendency to be automatic victims.give me a job,u sold me out,u are racist.Mandela played his part.#HowMandelaSoldUsOut?
@IR_Rusten: its the state of our political “system” that sold us out #howmandelasoldusout
@zandernwn: #howmandelasoldusout See this is why I refuse to read columnists on news24… Its absolute rubish – the columns and their comments!
@st3lz: Why is #HowMandelaSoldUsOut a trend?
@icebrk: im heart broken of the fact that #HowMandelaSoldUsOut is still trending..
Voices in support of Youngster's argument and conclusion:
@MichaelMacklin1: Is #HowMandelaSoldUsOut really so worthless as to be worth dismissing? I don't think so. Deeply uncomfortable but not valueless
@Youngster_Cam: @News24 Thank you for the platform for us as South Africans to have a serious debate about the “Demi-God” Mandela. #HowMandelaSoldUsOut
@Mohmoe: Smbdy paints an elder wif his p*** (freedom of speech) sum1 else writes his opinion abt a hero (lunatic, ungrateful) #HowMandelaSoldUsOut
*Note: The tweep above is referring to a painting by South African artist Brett Murray depicting South African president's genitals.
Sydelle Willow Smith links to the story on her Facebook page and says:
yoh yoh yoh. somebody finally had the balls to say it.
Farah Hernandez Martinez simply says:
FINALLY.
Jonathan Bane comments on Sydelle's Facebook page:
The people played the pivotal role, Mandela – and the ANC generally – rode on their backs, then signed agreements and implemented economic policies that would ultimately ensure the unaltered dominance of apartheid-era white capital..not to mention invading a neighbouring country to quash a pro-democratic uprising, taking bribes from dictators etc.
Leaving a comment on news24, proudlysa says:
Youngster – You are MY NEW HERO – You have taken up courage and stated the FACTS as they are and that has left a bitter sour taste in many people's mouths due to the fact that many whites and unfortunately a hand full of blacks are in denial about the status we are in.
The letter came out as Mandela and the whole world was celebrating his 94th birthday.

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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South Korea: Mega Corporation Lotte Faces Nationwide Boycott · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

In South Korea, over two million small business owners have called for a nationwide boycott of products made by conglomerate Lotte Group starting July 16, 2012. This unprecedentedly large scale collective action, which was sparked by the corporation's discriminatory credit card policy, has spread like wildfire via social media.
Civic groups representing small business owners have released a statement [ko] accusing Lotte of repeated denial of their requests to remove its discriminative policy on credit card charges, which have been imposed unfairly on small retailers, and to follow the government's guidelines on protecting local livelihood.
Image of Lotte Mart, by Flickr User Diatherman (CC-BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Numerous South Korean users have expressed strong support for small retailers, owners of local restaurants, bars and ‘mom-and-pop’ (independent family owned) stores, and their uphill battle to protect their faltering livelihoods. One media even calls it [ko] a true fight of the 99 percent versus the top 1 percent.
In the Twittersphere, net users have encouraged each other to join the move by blacklisting Lotte's drinks, beverage and confectionary. @doax tweeted [ko]:
200만 자영업자가 생존권을 위해 ‘롯데'와의 전쟁을 선포했습니다. 처음처럼, 아사히 맥주, 스카치블루등을 주점에서 팔지 않기로 했고 아이시스, 펩시, 칠성, 실론티, 2%등은 동네 슈퍼에서 팔지 않기로 했다고. 저도 롯데 불매에 들어갑니다. 널리RT
@ilpyungdad calls the clash an all-out war [ko]:
200만 자영업자 롯데그룹 및 대형유통사와 전면전 돌입 […] ‘먹는물’ 아닌 ‘인공전기분해 알칼리수'로 불법제조한 소주 처음처럼 불매, 불매!
Just like other parts of the world, a handful of retail giants such as Lotte have dominated major sales channels in South Korea, and using their market clout have played unfair games with their small, powerless rivals. Twitter user @fdgag, explains [ko] why among many other corporations, Lotte is hated by so many:
유독 롯데가 ‘미운털'이 박힌 데는 이유가 있다. 롯데그룹은 대형마트 의무휴업 준수, 신용카드 수수료 체계 개편 등에 대한 요구를 모두 거부[…]
@seojuho rightly pointed out [ko]:
롯데의 골목상권 소탐대실…제품 불매운동 부메랑 http://durl.me/2t8u8i  오늘부터 중소상인들과의 공생을 거부하는 롯데제품 불매운동에 들어가는군요^^
Twitter influencer and journalist @welovehani revealed [ko] Lotte's business tactics in launching their new stores by minimizing the local community's backlash:
자영업자들이 롯데 불매에 들어갔습니다.환영합니다. 대학로 롯데슈퍼. 피자집으로 위장했다가 기습개점했고, 롯데슈퍼 원효점은 초밥집으로 위장했다기 기습개점했습니다. 파렴치한 영업으로 골목상권 다 죽이는 롯데입니다.
@otb_pax added [ko]:
서민 상권을 맘대로 침범한 롯데. 그야말로 도둑집단!” […] 유통,제과,음료,주류,면세점등 롯데가 싹쓸이. 의무휴일,카드수수료등 마찰. 확산 규모가 갈수록 커질듯.
@robandchace blamed Lotte [ko] for its lack of innovation when compared with other corporations who have been blamed on similar grounds:
롯데는 말이지 무늬만 대기업일뿐 삼성 엘지 현대 스크를 보고 무슨 생각을 할까 그 대기업들은 획신적인걸 개발하느라 밤낮을 개발에 집중할때 롯데는 어떻게하면 내국인들 피빨아 먹을까 이 생각만 하겠지?? 외화벌이 좀 해라 지역사회에 공헌 좀 하고.
Image of Lotte World, Image by Flickr User â˜ºYoshiâ˜ (CC-BY 2.0)
Blogger 봄비 explained [ko] another reason why the corporation has been criticized over the years.
국민의 여론과는 반대되는 정부를 내 편 만들기 일인자 롯데. […] 촛불 시위 한창 할 때, 롯데 우유에서 수입 소고기 사업을 하겠다며 제 2 롯데월드 건축 문제와 함계 정부와 거래를 했지[…] 뒤에서 정부 가지고 로비해서는 다 자기편으로 끌여들어 경쟁사들과 선의의 경쟁을 하지 않는 롯데라는 거야.
Lotte claims to have played by the rules, although local media reports begs differ.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Syria: Videos Document a Sharply Escalating Conflict · Global Voices
Hisham Almiraat

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.
An attack on Wednesday in the Syrian capital Damascus, killed President Bashar Al Assad's key security aides, marking an important escalation in the 16-month-old conflict between the Syrian regime and opposition forces. On Thursday, activists reported continuous fighting in neighborhoods encircling the capital Damascus. The same day, Russia and China vetoed a United Nations Security Council's resolution that would have sanctioned the Syrian government for failing to implement an international peace plan.
News from Syria set social media ablaze. Videos uploaded by activists on YouTube allowed viewers to follow key stages of a sharply escalating conflict.
Shortly after the Damascus bombing, reports of mortar shelling and air bombing of neighborhoods throughout the city started coming in. Some of them were caught on video, like the following one posted by msyria91:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzPk0GAdR7k&feature=player_embedded
Later on Wednesday activists reported that the Syrian military deployed tanks in Damascus. Helicopters hovered over head as the first mourners started venturing into the streets, as captured by the following video, posted by marrywayne:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_ykGov2OLs&feature=player_embedded
marrywayne also posted the following video, purportedly showing villagers celebrating the killing of Bashar al-Assad's inner circle strongmen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObKfPoFcZYQ&feature=player_embedded
Unverified news of mass murders in Damascus perpetrated by Assad's henchmen, the shabiha, surfaced later in the day on social media. Graphic videos (the link leads to a video that is graphic in nature — viewer discretion is advised) showing the purported victims soon appeared on YouTube.
Other videos, like the following, posted by Moviestrailersclips, shows the aftermath of the shelling of Midan neighborhood in Damascus by government forces:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3jyU0AerCs&feature=player_embedded
Mortar shelling of the Midan neighborhoods and heavy gunfire continued overnight as shown in the following video posted by MidanRevolution:
On Thursday, opposition activist reported continued fighting in the southern district of Damascus. Soon news of food shortages emerged. The following video, posted by jamalworkmail claims to show residents of Damascus queuing up for bread:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTat7DLCL24&feature=player_embedded
Later on Thursday, the situation seemed to evolve quickly. One video posted by libyanproud, claims to show opposition forces controlling one crossing gate on the Syrian-Iraqi border:
The news was later confirmed by an Iraqi official who told AFP on Thursday that Syrian rebels took control of all border crossings between Iraq and Syria.
This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

author: Hisham Almiraat


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Tajikistan: Stories of Female Migrant Workers · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

On Blogiston.tj, Shakhlo posts [tj] short stories about the lives of Tajik women working in Russia. Most of these stories focus on the problems that female migrant workers typically go through to help their families back in Tajikistan make ends meet.

author: Alexander Sodiqov


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Togo: Keeping an Eye on a Budding Political Crisis · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Paul Martial warns that despite very little international coverage, the recent events in Togo suggest that profound changes are underway [fr].  Martial argues that the Eyadema administration is fragilized by both the emerging social crisis and internal tensions within the governing body. A new prime minister, Mr Ahoomey-Zunu, has been named today [fr].


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Turkmenistan’s Homegrown Hip-Hop · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

Khan on NewEurasia.net writes about Turkmenistan's homegrown hip-hop. Although the country's two most popular rappers spend more time in Turkey than at home, they have many fans in Turkmenistan.


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Venezuela, Japan: Two Japanese Performers Master the Venezuelan Harp · Global Voices
Laura Vidal

This post, written in collaboration with Tomomi Sasaki, is part of a series on music as a bridge between Venezuela and Japan. Read the first post here.
The harp is one of the key instruments in Venezuelan music from the plains. Created in the west of the country and then taken to Colombia in the mid-20th century, the Venezuelan harp has 32 or 33 strings of different bores and it has no pedals. According to Gelimar Sanchez de Guerrero in Llanorecords [es], the origins of the harp are not clear due to a lack of historical documents.
Nevertheless, the harp has been one of the bases of Venezuelan folklore music since the beginning of the country's history; years later, the interest for this instrument and its music has expanded beyond the continent, arriving to Japan.
Among the Japanese musicians interested in traditional Venezuelan music, Yoko Yoshizawa and Mika Agematsu stand out in the interpretation of the Venezuelan harp.
Yoko Yoshizawa, one the first Japanese harpists specialized in Venezuelan music, is said to be the “musical godmother” of the Estudiantina Komaba. Members of the Komaba's Facebook group and other fans in Japan and Venezuela have shared and commented on many YouTube videos of Yoshizawa's performances.
In this video, Yoshizawa plays a Quirpa, a traditional rhythm from the Venezuelan plains:
The blog Diary Note [jp] reports on Yoko Yoshizawa's concert.
日本で唯一のベネズエラ音楽を演奏するアルパ（ハープ）奏者である吉澤陽子を、ベネズエラ愛好家たちが囲む出し物。南青山・プラッサオンゼ、出演者／グループの数も多かったが、お店はフル・ハウス。クアトロやマラカスなんかが活躍し、伸びやかな歌が入ったりも。同国の一番知られる曲は「コーヒー・ルンバ」のようだが、前のめりに進んで行って、リズムが余りそうなところイン・タイムで終わるみたいな感覚を持つ曲が多いなあ、なんても、見てて思う。
José Francisco Romero [es] calls Mika Agematsu “La japonesa llanera” or the “Japanese girl from the plains”, as she excels in playing the rhythms from that part of the country. In this video, Agematsu plays the song “Moliendo Café” (Grounding coffee) a melancholic love song traditionally played in Venezuela, which was, according to Wikipedia, a hit in Japan during the 60's

author: Laura Vidal


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MENA: Welcoming Ramadan · Global Voices
Tarek Amr

Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar has just begun. It is a time when Muslims fast from dawn to sunset, try to get closer to God and celebrate their blessings.
Around the world, Muslims have been trying to capture the spirit of the month with photographs, sharing them on different social media websites.
Berita Harian (@bharianmy) shared a photograph of crescent observation in Malaysia
The Islamic calendar, is based on the moon and months are not based on astronomical calculations. This means that Ramadan can either be 29 or 30 days, and the beginning of each month is determined by observing the newly born crescent in the evening sky. Each Islamic state holds its own monthly observation of the new moon, and that's why Ramadan does not usually start the same day in all Muslim countries.
Ingrid Mattson (@IngridMattson) tweeted:
“Ramadan facts: different methods of determining the start of the lunar month mean that some Muslims begin fasting one day, others, the next”.
Sometimes even politics play part in determining the month's beginning.
While fasting in Ramadan Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, and sex from dawn until sunset.
A map published on Faculty of Science Fans Facebook page showing the different fasting hours across the globe. Facebook users commented with envy towards the Muslims in Argentina who are going to fast for 9 and a half hours only, and they were sympathetic with those in Denmark.
Ramadan Lanterns shared by Omar Shoeb
The tradition of Ramadan Lanterns (Fanous Ramadan) is also vibrant in some parts of the world. It  started centuries ago in Egypt during the Fatimid era, when the Caliph Al-Muizz Lideenillah was greeted by people holding lanterns to celebrate his accession, which coincided with Ramadan. Lanterns have now become a symbol of Ramadan and are hanged in public squares, and across city streets, along with decorations and lights to add to the festivities of the month. In Egypt,  lanterns nowadays are either locally made or imported from China.
Nadia Kady shared a photograph of her new Fanoos, while Laila El Shafie tweeted:
“Its very hard to picture Ramadan without gramma buying me a lantern. May her soul rest in peace, Its my first Ramadan without her”.
Nada Rostom, on the other hand, shared her thought about the imported lanterns, their new shapes, compared to the traditional ones. She writes:
Fanoos sponge bob ! They totally ruined the original fanoos ! I love the ne7as one with candle (or bulb 3shan mat7ere2sh)
Bahraini Patriot shared old photo of the cannon being fired in Lulu Roundabout in Bahrain
Another symbol of Ramadan in some parts of the Arab world is gun fire. In the past, guns were fired at dawn and when the sun set to tell people when to start and when to stop their fast. Now we have different calendars and even mobile applications that tell us the exact timings, yet the tradition is still alive, and the gun or cannon is seen a lot in Ramadan greeting cards along with lanterns and crescents.
Maged Saleh – who is apparently hungry now – tweeted wishing they fire the gun earlier by mistake.
Once the sun sets, guns or cannons are fired, people start eating and drinking, and since the meal comes right after fasting it makes a lot of sense for it to be called breakfast, or Iftar in Arabic. Relatives and friends are invited to each others homes and many try new and different recipes. Netizens share photos of different dishes:
Salma Hegab, from Egypt, shared photo of Qatayef being made. This kind of pastry is being baked in pastries, people then buy them, stuff them with creme or nuts, fry them, then coat them with syrup.
Mohamed Ahnin shared a photograph of his latest breakfast before Ramadan. Serkan Balbal shared picture of Turkish food. Rym Rymma posted photos from other Egyptian desserts. And also others from France and from Bosnia:
Emina Aganovic from Bosnia posted a photo of Halava, a kind of dessert
All these photos of food, while people are hungry, made Kae Kurd publish this warning to Instagram users.
After breakfast, many in the Arab world turn on the TV and Ramadan soap opera time begins. But in Syria, things are a bit different this year.
Meshal Alnami posted this photo from Syria that says: “Follow us everyday in Ramadan, the Bringing Bashar Down series”
And in Bahrain, ZuzuBH tweeted [Ar] wondering about the relatives of Bahrain's martyrs, ‘what will be their feelings in Ramadan this year without their family members who are no longer here?’
Finally, Ramadan this year will coincide with the Summer Olympic Games in London, so blogger Turkish Mommy posted the following analogy between the two events. Her Ramadan 2012 flyer reads:
The event of the summer, uniting the world; No medals for the fastest rewards for those who fast one team; 2 + participants.

author: Tarek Amr


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Yemen: Yemen Through Our Lenses Exhibition · Global Voices
Global Voices MENA

Yemeni journalist and blogger Afrah Nasser is using social media to raise funds to stage a photography exhibition in Stockholm, Sweden.
Her plan is to purchase high quality photographs from Yemeni photographers, whose work has captured important moments in Yemen's contemporary history, rent an exhibition hall in Stockholm, and feature those pictures.
Afrah wrote on her Facebook page about the exhibition, which she has entitled: “Yemen Through Our Lenses.”
On her fund-raising effort, she writes:
“This is a project I'm working on for Yemen's photography art. It's a photography exhibition about Yemen by Yemeni photographers here in Stockholm. I'm using a crowd-funding website to collect the funds. Basically, it's YOU who can make this happen. No small donation is overlooked. 5 euros can make a big difference. Please support the exhibition and Yemeni photographers.”
Take a look at this video made by the brave blogger and her donation project file at Ulule.
The idea is to raise funds to stage an exhibition to raise awareness about Yemen and support emerging Yemeni photographers. Afrah calls on viewers to help her make this exhibition a reality.
Afrah continues:
I think this project is so important because it would highlight aspects on Yemen by Yemeni photographers who usually don't get the chance to spread their message internationally as they wish like to do. Plus, since Yemen is going through tough times, this could be one of the ways to support it.

author: Global Voices MENA