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Indian activists oppose oil refinery project citing environmental concerns, as protests flare up · Global Voices
Vishal Yashoda Manve

Oil Refinery. Patrick Hendry via Unsplash (CC BY-SA 2.0)
In March 2019, following large protests from farmers and environmental activists, the Indian government moved a planned $44 billion ‘green’ oil refinery project out of the ecologically sensitive Nanar region in Ratnagiri on the Konkan coast. Recently, calls from pro-refinery supporters to bring the project back to Ratnagiri have stoked fears among activists and farmers that the project will be reinstated in the area, causing damage to the environment and affecting livelihoods.
The joint venture between Saudi Arabian oil companies, Aramco and Adnoc, and Indian companies, Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation, and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation was originally relocated following protests from locals and activists who were critical of India's continued investment in fossil fuels. The project was moved to Raigad, 100 kilometers from India's financial capital, Mumbai, as the government announced acquiring 40 villages to kick-start the project.
On 28 July 2019, pro-refinery group Konkan Vikas Samiti (KVS) held a rally demanding that the project be reinstated in Ratnagiri, citing the economic opportunities it would bring to local communities.
A counter-protest was then held in response by an anti-refinery group to prevent the project. Activists claim India's land acquisition acts were misused to get lands for the project from farmers. For Satyajit Chavan, convenor of Konkan Refinery Virodhi Sangharsh Samiti, the umbrella body leading the protests, reviving the oil refinery project would spell trouble for the region:
We are being careful and alert to avoid resurrection of the project in Ratnagiri's Nanar as it will destroy farmlands, mango orchards and pose a threat to the wildlife in the region. Investors in the region, who have vested interests are trying to revive the project and have politicized the issue despite the government canceling and relocating it under a gazette notification. This is dangerous.
Ratnagiri's Nanar is known for rocky terrains and creeks that act as a breeding ground for various marine species. The region is also a prominent agricultural area, and thousands of farmers rely on mango orchards and fishing for their survival. Locals fear the region's biodiversity and their livelihoods would be affected by pollution emanating from the refinery project.
The project is estimated to require around 16,000 acres of land, leaving many local activists to question its claim to be a ‘green’ refinery and a requirement for an emerging economy like India.
“Despite moving the project location from Nanar to Raigad because of environmental impact, would it not create the same problem in Raigad as well?” Social activist Ulka Mahajan asked.
“The governing party shifted the location but how can they bring it elsewhere and are people of Raigad dispensable? All these issues cannot be questioned in isolation and the government needs to answer if we really need the project and do a cost-benefit analysis.”
While experts say the project, with an estimated output of 1.2 million barrels per day, could offer India steady fuel supplies, others are questioning the pollution it has the potential to generate in Maharashtra's Raigad district. Questions about its impact on fishing hamlets and mango orchids have also been raised.
Prashant Jade, a farmer from Ratnagiri informed Global Voices:
Protests were instigated by groups affiliated with the government to prevent the project from moving out of Nanar. I don’t want this project to come here as Konkan is an eco-sensitive zone with diversity. We don’t follow pollution control norms in India as stringent as in Europe. The project is called green refinery but we know it will be polluting the local environment.
India's land acquisition laws were manipulated, added Ulka Mahajan. India's land acquisition laws mandated consent from at least 70 percent of the affected owners and also required a social impact test. Passed by the parliament in 2013, the law also quadrupled four-fold compensation for rural land, including farmland.
The 2013 central land acquisition faced four ordinances and they could not pass the bill in the parliament. Despite that, they are using the Land Acquisition Act in the name of large scale projects. We don't know who will benefit since the law for the first time had helped weak and voiceless citizens raise their voices regarding their land.
There was some democratic space that gave a platform to voice concerns after social assessment surveys were conducted. This provision has been done away with in an amendment in the state laws. This is against the wishes of farmers and local communities, opines Mahajan.
India is an oil-dependant economy and over 80 percent of its demands are met from imports from the Middle East,  including Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Analysts say the Iran sanctions and lack of crude from Venezuela have hit the Indian economy, resulting in a slowdown of growth figures.
In 2015, India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a new alliance of nations on a large-scale expansion of solar energy use and said fossil fuels put the planet in peril. While India is trying to diversify and increase its investments into solar and wind energy, projects involving fossil fuels have continued to rise and receive investments unabated. According to Modi:
Solar technology is evolving, costs are coming down and grid connectivity is improving. The dream of universal access to clean energy is becoming more real. This will be the foundation of the new economy of the new century.
As India continues to invest locally in dirty fuels, activists and experts are left to question the government's promises to the global community on climate change.
A local environmental activist who worked with the government, on the condition of anonymity, said the project will put over 50,000 trucks between India's financial capital Mumbai and the Western state of Goa for transport purposes, thereby increasing vehicular pollution and affecting local ecosystems.
For Mahajan, projects like these are short-sighted:
At the international level, they commit a lot about tackling climate change and focusing on renewables but here, they focus on export-driven trade and GDP and we have environmental losses and loss of livelihood. But will they achieve anything in the near future?
Vishal is a Climate Tracker South Asia Hub fellow.

author: Vishal Yashoda Manve


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#MeToo catches on in Pakistan’s entertainment industry · Global Voices
Anushe Noor

#MeToo graphic by Gipuzkoako Foru Aldundia via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)
A year after actress Meesha Shafi took to Twitter to accuse Ali Zafar of sexual misconduct, the Pakistani entertainment industry is once again rocked by controversy. This time, actor and musician Mohsin Abbas Haider stands accused of domestic violence and is awaiting trial. In the midst of the global #MeToo movement, when calls to believe women's stories are taking center stage, netizens have been quick to rally around Haider's accuser.
On July 20, 2019, Haider's wife, Fatima Sohail, accused him of beating her in a post on her Facebook page. The post included pictures of her face with prominent injuries.
On 26th Nov 2018, I caught my husband cheating. When I confronted him, instead of being embarrassed he started Beating me. I was pregnant at that time!
He pulled me from hair, dragged me on floor, kicked me several times, punched me on face & threw me on the wall.
This was later followed by an official first information report (FIR), which included claims that Haider had been “beating, abusing, and assaulting” Sohail since the beginning of their marriage.  While he is on interim bail until August 16, many celebrities have been supporting his wife and also coming out as witnesses to the domestic abuse she faced. Actor and TV Host, Dua Malik, claimed to be an eye witness to Haider‘s abusive behavior for three years. She posted a statement through a story posted on her official Instagram account:
Screenshot from Malik's Instagram. Image via geo.tv
Actor Mirza Gohar Rasheed also shared his testimony as a second-hand witness through his tweets;
The injustice that took place with #FatimaSohail, I was a second hand witness to it in 2018 when my friend took #Fatima to the hospital after she had been beaten up by #MohsinAbbasHaider Through her I got to know the whole Story. Fatima is like a sister to me (1/3)
— Mirza Gohar Rasheed (@GoharRsd) July 21, 2019
SHE, wanted to save her marriage and ensure the health of her baby so we respected that and kept quite but now since she is out with the truth her self (more power to you #fatima) (2/3) #justiceforfatima
— Mirza Gohar Rasheed (@GoharRsd) July 21, 2019
I wanted to say that men like these are a threat to the society I don’t see him just as a spineless, pathetic sick human being , I see him as a danger. She needs justice and he needs HELP. #justiceforfatima (3/3)
— Mirza Gohar Rasheed (@GoharRsd) July 21, 2019
Haider has denied all allegations through a press conference where he claimed that Sohail was retaliating against him because he wanted to remarry which, according to him, was his legal and religious right. He claimed that the pictures attached in her post were from her falling down the stairs in 2018:
If she was getting beaten up by me for four years, why are there no medical reports?
He also added:
Why do we always play the woman card? Not every wailing woman can be right; why can't men be wronged? Go see the social experiments white people do, when a man and woman fight on the street, and the woman slaps the guy, no one bats an eye, people laugh and make videos. But if a man shoves a woman, people stop and start fighting with him.
Many people were infuriated by his statements, taking to social media to voice their anger:
You get sexually harassed and people will not take your word for it and will ask for proof. You get beaten black and blue and have photographic evidence and people will say there is another side to the story. You can never win as a woman. #MohsinAbbasHaider
— Zarmina (@ZarminaMTarar) July 22, 2019
Several called for #JusticeforFatima. Dua Aamir tweeted:
I urge the people especially those in authority to not overlook the abuse #FatimaSohail went through. If this brave woman who shared her story with millions does not get justice, we as a community would have disgraced ourselves and normalised domestic violence. #MohsinAbbasHaider
— Duaa (@Duaa_e_aamir) July 22, 2019
Haider was fired from his post as a host from a prominent TV channel a day after the FIR was filed. Some people stood in his support, asking to keep personal and professional lives separate:
I believe that your Personal life should be kept away from your Professional Life. Duniya News should not fire #MohsinAbbasHaider from MazaqRaat because only god knows the truth.
— Fatima A (@fatimaazizzz) July 28, 2019
While the matter is in court, Haider continues to prove his innocence and undermine his wife's side of the story. On July 26, he posted a video of controversial entertainer Waqar Zaka, in which he claimed to receive calls from individuals from a prominent production house claiming that Sohail had an affair with someone “whom he would not name” while being married to Haider. Zaka not only failed to present any proof of his claim but also said that he was no judge of who is right or wrong.
Pakistan is a country where domestic violence is a serious issue; however, it is not something openly talked about. After the #MeToo movement began, Pakistani women have started to speak up about this taboo topic.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Anushe Noor


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Netizen Report: Journalists are under fire from Cambodia to Cuba — and beyond · Global Voices
Ellery Roberts Biddle, Netizen Report Team

A newsstand advertising The Citizen, an independent newspaper in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. Photo by Adam Jones via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
The Advox Netizen Report offers an international snapshot of challenges, victories, and emerging trends in technology and human rights around the world. This report covers news and events from July 20 – August 9, 2019.
Journalists working online across the globe face legal threats all too often. While state authorities will sometimes press charges against journalists in direct response to their work, other times they will pursue a criminal case or accusation against a journalist without explicit reference to the person’s reporting, accusing them of crimes like tax evasion. Here are a few recent examples from Cuba to Cambodia and beyond.
On July 25, trial proceedings began for two Cambodian journalists who were arrested in 2017 and charged with espionage. Uon Chhin and Yeang Sothearin had worked for the US government-funded Radio Free Asia (RFA), which left the country shortly before the arrests, due to rising pressure against media outlets in Cambodia. The two were held in detention for nine months until they were released on bail and placed under a travel ban.
Much evidence brought forth by the state in the journalists’ trial has come from Uon Chhin's computers and phones, which authorities confiscated when making their arrest. Prosecutors have focused on evidence that both journalists continued sending information and videos to RFA, despite no longer formally working for the media organization.
A reporter and photographer for Periodismo de Barrio, a web-based independent media outlet in Havana, and media partner of Global Voices, were detained by police in Holguín province who claimed to be investigating a nearby robbery. The two journalists were taken to a nearby police station, where they were not asked about the robbery, but instead were interrogated about their media work. The police confiscated the journalists’ laptops and cameras and erased several of their files.
The journalists later reported that the officers told them that they did not have permission to work as journalists in the province and that their work was “giving ammunition to the enemy.” They threatened the photographer, who is a student at the University of Havana, with expulsion.
The case is one among various instances in which independent media workers in Cuba have faced questions or threats from police regarding their accreditation to practice journalism. Web-based media outlets in Cuba are facing new levels of pressure from the state since early July, when a decree was issued that prohibits Cuban citizens from running websites hosted outside of the country. Nearly all locally-run media sites and blogs use foreign hosting services, as Cuba’s only local hosting service (provided by the state) does not allow publications that constitute “news media.”
The government of Bulgaria issued a European investigation order against Atanas Tchobanov, the editor-in-chief of Bivol Bulgaria, an investigative news website. The order connects Tchobanov with a computer crime investigation, about which he says he has no knowledge.
Over the past year Bivol Bulgaria has published several reports of corruption and one of its reports deals with the acquisition of a posh villa by the prosecutor general at half price. On August 1, the chief of the anti-corruption body of Bulgaria resigned following Bivol’s investigative report.
On July 29, police forcibly removed journalist Erick Kabendera from his home in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and took him into police custody. Police say Kabendera had failed to obey a summons to investigate the status of his Tanzanian citizenship.
By August 5, authorities had changed course and instead decided to charge Kabendera with money laundering, tax evasion, and criminal racketeering. Kabendera has been critical of President John Magufuli’s administration and often speaks out in favor of press freedom. He has reported on Tanzania’s divisive politics for international and local media such as The Guardian,  African Arguments and The East African.
High-profile feminist scholar Stella Nyanzi was found guilty of cyber harassment for a poem she wrote criticizing Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni in 2018. On August  2, a Kampala court sentenced Nyanzi to 18 months in prison for cyber harassment, under the Computer Misuse Act. Nyanzi, known for using “radical rudeness” as a form of political protest, has been awaiting trial in prison for nine months after publishing her poem, which makes several graphic references to Museveni's deceased mother's vagina.
YouTube locally censored or “geoblocked” three videos made by popular game vlogger Kimi Hime in response to a removal request filed by Indonesia’s Ministry of IT. The Ministry claims the videos violate the Information and Electronic Transactions Act (UU ITE), which critics have described as a tool for censorship, and YouTube, which is owned by Google, appears to have geo-blocked the videos as a result. The company says it typically requires governments to present a court order before it will locally block content, but in this case the order of the Ministry appears to have done the job.
As part of its democratic reforms, Ethiopia’s relatively new government stopped blocking websites from Ethiopian diaspora opposition groups and ended politically-motivated content filtering that had been imposed for years. But in the absence of developed local media institutions, Facebook has become the primary portal for news and information for Ethiopian internet users. “For every political development, a fresh set of broadcasts appears,” writes media studies scholar Endalk Chala.
Formerly fringe Ethiopian social media figures have benefited from Ethiopia’s new opening. They are mostly diaspora-based monologuists broadcasting from their living rooms, complaining vigorously about the Ethiopian government, and attacking each other. Facebook is their headquarters…
Many of these content creators share inaccurate and blatantly false reporting. They run Facebook pages populated by people who share similar political views, hardening political differences by creating echo chambers, information-cascade and filter bubble effects among Ethiopia’s diverse ethnolinguistic groups.
Legal protections for free speech and internet companies’ abilities to moderate user activity are in focus this week in the US, following multiple mass shootings that were announced by perpetrators on the web platform 8chan.
The website, a forum heavily associated with hateful activism and child pornography, has been floundering since August 4, when the DDoS protection service CloudFlare spontaneously decided to terminate service for 8chan, leaving it vulnerable to attack. This move, and the broader challenge of responding to violent speech under a free speech regime as far-reaching as that of the US, has been the subject of heated discussion among experts and lawmakers.
VICE’s Motherboard blog reported that at least 200 police departments in the US are working with Amazon to promote its surveillance hardware and neighborhood watch app, Ring. The Ring app allows police to easily request and collate video footage from residents’ doorbell cameras. Residents must give their permission before police can obtain video, but police have no obligation to seek or present a warrant when asking for camera footage.
Under some of these partnerships, police who encourage local residents to buy and install Ring doorbell cameras (small, cloud-based surveillance cameras that affix to the front door or doorbell of a person’s residence) are given discounts on Ring products. One such agreement, made with a police department in the state of Florida, was discontinued after the Motherboard story went public.
Digital Safety Kit – Committee to Protect Journalists
Big Data, Not Big Brother: New Data Protection Laws and the Implications for Independent Media Around the World – Ayden Férdeline, Center for International Media Assistance
Afef Abrougui, Endalk Chala, Nwachukwu Egbunike, Mohamed ElGohary, Rosebell Kagumire, Leila Nachawati, Juke Carolina Rumuat and Taisa Sganzerla contributed research for this report.


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Nigerian activist arrested for calling for a nationwide #RevolutionNow protest movement · Global Voices
Nwachukwu Egbunike

Screenshot of Omoyele Sowore from this YouTube video “Nigeria needs revolution, not war”
On August 3, the Department of State Services (DSS), a unit of Nigeria’s State Security Service, arrested human rights activist Omoyele Sowore in his residence in Ikeja, Lagos. Prior to his arrest, Sowore was calling for a “#RevolutionNow”, a nation-wide protest against bad governance. Security agents stormed Sowore’s home around 1:30 a.m. and arrested him “after a bit of altercation” according to an eye witness, who spoke to the Abuja-based online newspaper Premium Times.
Sowore, the publisher of the investigative online newspaper Sahara Reporters, was one of the presidential candidates in the 2019 Nigerian elections held on February 23 this year. Sowore got about 33,000 votes, trailing a distant 10th place to the winner and incumbent president, Muhammadu Buhari, who garnered 15 million votes.
He was detained under Section 27(1) of the Terrorism Act 2011 which grants the DSS the right to detain anyone planning to “commit an act of violence”. If charged and convicted, he could risk life imprisonment, fine or both.
In a July 18 interview with Reuben Abati and Tundun Abiola of Arise News channel, Sowore said that “Nigeria needs revolution, not war.” He explained that he started this campaign because “the government has failed. Nigeria has failed as a state and until we take that necessary big step – not next level – Nigeria will not attain its potentials.” Therefore, he is “mobilizing people around Nigeria to come and do it one time.”
Consequently, on July 27, Sowore and the Coalition for Revolution (CORE) movement he started, declared their intention to hold nationwide protests on August 5, 2019:
There are currently more than a dozen armed conflicts going on around the country with deadly consequences and massive displacements of people. These confirm the reality that Nigerian is tending more towards a FAILED STATE where barbarism reigns supreme… the Coalition for Revolution, would be leading a nationally coordinated protest movement. We have the right to be in a rage and to protest.
The #RevolutionNow protest was still held on August 5 despite Sowore’s arrest and detention. The protests took place in four states – Lagos, Osun, Ondo and Cross River – and in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
Live at National stadium,Lagos…Venue of planned #revolutionnow protest pic.twitter.com/DQC3jWwYC3
— tunde pratt (@tundepratt) August 5, 2019
However, soldiers and the police forcefully dispersed protesters in Lagos with gunshots and teargas canisters. A journalist covering the protest was also manhandled by the police.
Buhari can't confront Fulani herdsmen but he can put out soldiers with strange assault rifles on Lagos streets to confront peaceful protesters. #RevolutionNow pic.twitter.com/0mWJEvVAzG
— Revolutionary Oracle (@AbdulMahmud01) August 5, 2019
DSS spokesperson Peter Afunanya said that Sowore was arrested because his call for revolution could result in a “forceful takeover of government”:
Someone is calling for revolution in Nigeria, we must understand the meaning of revolution. Primarily, it means a revolt, it means insurrection, it means insurgency, it means forceful takeover of government and we are operating democratic system in Nigeria.
Similarly, presidential spokesman Shehu Garba said in a statement that there is a “difference between a peaceful call to protest and incitement for a revolution.” The government further stated that “the ballot box is the only constitutional means of changing government and a president in Nigeria. The days of coups and revolutions are over.”
Nigerians, however, disagreed. Online, a number of activists maintained that a call for “revolution” was not treasonable and pointed out that leaders of the ruling party have themselves previously called for revolution.
In 2011, President Muhammadu Buhari called for a revolution, when he encouraged Nigerians to learn from the Egyptian Arab Spring protesters. At that time, Buhari even lead a protest against then-incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.
This was buhari and co staging protest against the Jonathan Administration, but he the tyrant is scared of a peaceful protest… They arrested Sowore, your clueless administration is only giving him more power and popularity… .#FreeSowore pic.twitter.com/fiTwJA81Wv
— Adewale Anthony Ademuyiwa (@adewale_dara) August 3, 2019
Similarly, Bola Tinubu National Leader of the ruling All Progressive Congress also called for a revolution in 2014.
Tinubu Calls For a Revolution – @MobilePunch September 30, 2014
History is a very stubborn thing pic.twitter.com/HiqaWWzUXC
— Igala High Chief (@I_Am_Ilemona) August 6, 2019
Dissent and the rights to protest and assembly are key to enabling citizens’ democratic participation. In addition, the term ”revolution” has previously been used by activists and politicians in Nigeria to express their frustration with governance and mobilise protesters and popular support for their causes.
Online, several activists and writers came to Sowore's defence and supported his right to dissent.
Ghanaian professor of economics, George Ayittey, maintains that “arresting critics” has never solved Africa’s problems:
If arresting critics solves problems Africa should be the most highly developed continent in world. But it is not and the coconuts don’t see it. Matter of fact dissidents and critics are useful assets in society. In challenging status quo they invent/create new products/solutions https://t.co/TtnfjVyzUR
— George Ayittey (@ayittey) August 5, 2019
But “Sowore has not stoned anybody; he has not wielded a knife,” retorted human rights activist Chidi Odinkalu:
Democracy doesn't run like this. You run a democracy based on disagreement & dialogue. Sowore has not stoned anybody; he has not wielded a knife. He doesn't carry a gun. He's killed nobody. He just wants to do a demonstration. Let the man go. U don't have to agree with him. pic.twitter.com/zo7rqCKvyy
— Chidi Odinkalu (@ChidiOdinkalu) August 4, 2019
Nigerian human rights lawyer Femi Falana dared the government to show him which “section of the Nigerian Constitution that finds Sowore guilty of treason”:
Femi Falana is asking the Nigerian government to tell him the section of the Nigerian Constitution that finds Sowore guilty of treason. He also has a sub for someone we all know. #RevolutionNow #FreeSowore
pic.twitter.com/GZ4qsmyERb
— Gimba Kakanda (@gimbakakanda) August 6, 2019
However, the most scathing condemnation to Sowore’s arrest came from professor Wole Soyinka, the winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature. Soyinka described the arrest as a sad déjà vu of his experience under Nigeria’s late military dictator, Sani Abacha:
Beyond the word ‘revolution’, another much misused and misunderstood word, nothing that Sowore has uttered, written, or advocated suggests that he is embarking on, or urging the public to engage in a forceful overthrow of government. I therefore find the reasons given by the Inspector-General, for the arrest and detention of this young ex-presidential candidate totally contrived and untenable, unsupported by any shred of evidence. His arrest is a travesty and violation of the fundamental rights of citizens to congregate and make public their concerns. This is all so sadly déjà vu. How often must we go through this wearisome cycle? We underwent identical cynical contrivances under the late, unlamented Sani Abacha. And yet again, even a faceless cabal under yet another civilian regime refused to be left out of the insensate play of power.
On August 8, an Abuja court granted an application to keep Sowore in “custody for only 45 days” for Nigeria’s security service to “conclude its investigation.”

author: Nwachukwu Egbunike


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Remembering the ’88 uprising’ for democracy in Myanmar · Global Voices
The Irrawaddy

A commemoration of the 31st anniversary of the ’88 pro-democracy popular uprising in downtown Yangon was organized on 8 August 2019 and joined by former student leaders who were involved in the movement, Yangon regional government officials and members of the public to honor those who lost their lives during the crackdown on the protests. Photo and caption by Aung Kyaw Htet / The Irrawaddy
This article by Wei Yan Aung is from The Irrawaddy, an independent news website in Myanmar, and is republished on Global Voices as part of a content-sharing agreement. This provides a brief historical overview of Myanmar's transition from junta rule and the continuing struggle for democracy.
On 8 August 1988, citizens in Myanmar took to the streets to topple dictator Ne Win’s oppressive socialist regime which had ruled the country with an iron fist since 1962.
Despite the collapse of the regime, the movement—known as “the ’88 uprising”—led to a bloody coup by the military.
General Ne Win's regime demonetized the 25, 35, and 75 kyat notes without warning or compensation in 1987 and perpetrated a brutal clampdown on pro-democracy student movements in March and June of 1988 — events which were the final straw for the people of Myanmar.
President U Sein Lwin, a Ne Win henchman who had played a continuous part in suppressing peaceful demonstrations since the military regime staged a coup in 1962, declared a curfew and ordered a violent crackdown on protesters. Government newspapers said over 300 died but independent sources estimated that the actual figure was ten times that.
The military, at the instruction of Ne Win, seized power again through a coup before holding general elections in 1990, but the military did not transfer power to the election winner, the National League for Democracy (NLD). Myanmar again fell under military rule for the next 20 years, during which it designed a constitution in its own favor.
General elections were held again in 2010, but the military retained its full grip through its proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party. The NLD, which was born out of the ‘88 pro-democracy uprising, won the general elections in 2015 and became the ruling party. However, the NLD still finds it difficult to remove the military from politics.

author: The Irrawaddy


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Talking trash: Lebanese citizens continue to mobilize to solve the garbage crisis · Global Voices
Rabiya Jaffery

Photo courtesy of Waste Management Coalition: used with permission.
Lebanon has a major garbage problem but a solution remains elusive after environmental activists protested against the government's plan to build incinerators, citing environmental and health risks.
The government then decided to postpone building incinerators made during talks held within the municipal council in Beirut, the capital, in July 2019 —nearly four years after people first took to the streets in protests.
In an interview with Global Voices, Sally Khourry, an environmental activist and political science student based in Beirut, says:
Lebanon does not currently have the technological capacity to safely dispose the harmful emissions created by incinerators nor can we expect authorities to enforce any laws or legal framework that would be needed to be set up to control incinerators.
The is the most recent in the government’s series of failures to solve the country’s waste crisis, which began in 1997, when they established Naameh, a landfill near a village in south Lebanon, — as a temporary dumping site. However, the government postponed its closure for nearly two decades until 2015, when activists forcefully shut down the site.
In an interview with Global Voices, Samar Khalil, an activist and an environment and chemical safety officer at American University of Beirut, says:
Naameh landfill which was supposed to last for [less than] 10 years, reached full capacity several years earlier and they kept expanding it till 2015 without taking any initiative to improve waste sorting and composting. People living in its vicinity eventually decided that they don't want to accept the expansion of the Naameh landfill anymore and they closed the roads leading to the site.
But the government, notorious for corruption and mismanagement in public sectors, failed to provide an alternative. For years, the government has disposed and burnt garbage anywhere and everywhere — including on city streets.
Soon after Naameh’s closure in 2015, a movement called “You Stink” (tul‘it rihetkun in Arabic) began by mobilizing activists — particularly youth — on social media and it quickly gathered hundreds of thousands of supporters, both online and on the streets.
Rise Above – Lebanon's Political Garbage https://t.co/HWQYUqeari via @YouTube #youStink @SalamTammam #كلن_يعني_كلن #طلعت_ريحتكم
— طلعت ريحتكم YouStink (@YouStinkLeb) March 7, 2016
Demonstrations spread countrywide with protesters demanding a sustainable solution to a situation deemed a “national health crisis” by Human Rights Watch. Protesters also called for government reforms to curb widespread corruption that continues to disrupt public services.
Photo courtesy of Waste Management Coalition: used with permission.
“[In October 2018], an integrated solid waste management law was enacted by the parliament and the Ministry of Environment was given six months to develop a strategy,” adds Khalil. “Till now the strategy has not been completed or approved by the council of ministers.”
But, despite a lack of a solution in sight, Khalil and Khourry, among many other activists, are actually relieved that the government decided to halt on the incinerator plan.
“We don’t think incinerators are a good solution for Lebanon,” Khalil said.
Khalil works for Waste Management Coalition (WMC), a group of civil society organizations and environmental activists that have been actively working on stopping the implementation of incineration projects through “awareness-raising, open debates with the mayor, campaigns, lobbying with political parties and other stakeholders”.
Hazardous materials are burned in incinerators that can lead to harmful emissions that must be disposed of properly.
WMC, among several other environmental NGOs in Lebanon in recent years, is working on raising awareness about and pushing for changes that enable a more circular economy — one that prioritizes waste minimization, reuse and recycling.
“Garbage is a huge problem in Lebanon, especially on beaches,” explained Peter, our local expert in Lebanon.
The young people, which included student and Syrian refugees who live in the area, gave up their weekend to collect bags of rubbish because they want change. pic.twitter.com/f26hlODII8
— CAFOD (@CAFOD) July 17, 2019
The group is currently reviewing the integrated solid waste management law and pushing for a complete amendment of it.
“WMC was established because Lebanon lacks a vision and strategy on sustainable waste management,” Khalil said. “This is due to authorities’ recurring failures to find comprehensive, sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions in this sector.”
We’re living with so much disconnect in Lebanon.
While beirut & suburbs are on the brink of a waste crisis, North Lebanon has already been swept for the past 3 months with overflowing garbage stacked across all dumpsters.@fady_jreissati @saadhariri
— Jinane AZ (@jinaneAZ) July 4, 2019
Several youth-led environmental NGOs in Lebanon are trying to fill the gap left by inadequate waste management and disposal systems in the country.
Recycle Lebanon works on advocacy for waste minimization and community involvement, including the establishment of an open data source where people can access countrywide green initiatives. Another NGO collects glass waste and brings it to a small town in southern Lebanon where glassblowers use it as part of a long-held tradition in the area.
Talk about #entrepreneurs solving real problems: this Beirut-based startup called @CompostBaladi came into being following the waste management crisis in the city in 2017, and is today a social enterprise competing in @MITEFarab's #ASC2019. All the best, guys! #MITEFArab pic.twitter.com/JMVO1xU7bg
— Aby Sam Thomas (@thisisaby) March 29, 2019
Khourry notes the role of youth in the movement:
People have been protesting and mobilizing on the failure of the waste sector for years now and even though policy-wise, a substantial change is yet to be reached, the youth have definitely become mobilized. Not only are we demanding changes, we are actively taking part in the political process and challenging the corrupt political elite.”
@CityOfBeirut
#Lebanon #Beirut #Pollution #Garbage #Rouche
Keep your city clean, what a shame! Garbage here and there with no presence from the municipality. pic.twitter.com/0PWULizC7h
— Ahmad M. Karkouti (@AhmadMKarkouti) June 29, 2019
During Lebanon’s last elections, several environmental activists ran for parliamentary elections and a recent initiative is now working to unify all the various environmental NGOs, groups, and independent activists under one coalition, Khalil tells Global Voices.
“The government is listening to what we are saying but not taking our comments and feedback seriously because they have their agendas,” Khalil says. “We are delaying their bad decisions but more efforts and pressure is needed.”

author: Rabiya Jaffery


text:
The breathtaking beauty of the Caribbean showcased on Instagram · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

View of Soufriere, Dominica, from the vantage point of Scott's Head beach on the south-western tip of the island. Photo by janinephoto, used with permission.
The Caribbean is one of the most beautiful travel destinations in the world — and although the region is often viewed as a monolith (sun, sea, sand) by outsiders, each territory, right across the archipelago, boasts unique landscapes, flora and fauna, festivals and culture.
With the effects of the climate crisis posing threats to the whole world (and quite specifically, island nations), it becomes even more important for the Caribbean to link tourism, which is important to many regional economies, with environmental awareness.
The Instagram account of MEP Caribbean Publishers, the publishing house that produces Caribbean Beat — as well as other travel-focused publications like Discover Trinidad and Tobago — have been doing a good job of highlighting the beauty of the region in an effort to promote responsible, sustainable tourism.
Their IG feed often features amazing (and little known) spots that will take your breath away…
Port Elizabeth, #Bequia. Photo by Wilfred Dederer. Read & see more in the 25th anniversary edition of Caribbean Beat magazine! #svg #caribbean #caribbeanbeat #caribbeanbeatmagazine
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Commissioned by the Stollmeyer family and designed in a style said to be based on a wing of Balmoral Castle. It was original named Killarney, and remained the property of the Stollmeyer family until the 1970s. It eventually found its way to government ownership in 1979. Photo by Caristock, as published in Discover Trinidad & Tobago (discovertnt.com) #trinidad #trinidadandtobago #travel #guide #mobilemag #Caribbean #travelguide #builtheritage #heritage #castles #stollmeyerscastle #stollmeyer #killarney #queensparksavannah #magnificentseven #nationalheritage #ttunseen #ilivewhereyouvacation #discovertnt
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A mosaic of greens and blues seen from high above, Barbuda’s Codrington Lagoon is a natural gem, home to mangrove forests and seabird colonies. Photo: André Phillip in our #25thanniversary issue of #caribbeanbeat #mangrove #barbuda #codringtonlagoon #seabird #antiguabarbuda #aerialphotography #travelguide #destinationguide #ilivewhereyouvacation #travelphotography #magazine #inflightmagazine #caribbeanbeat #caribbeanbeatmagazine
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Rough dirt roads cross the sparsely populated landscape of the #Pakaraimas. The spectacular Pakaraima Mountains, near Guyana’s border with Brazil and Venezuela, are a landscape of dramatic table-top mountains, rolling valleys, and remote villages. It’s not an easy part of the world for outsiders to visit. But the annual Pakaraima Mountain Safari attracts visitors hungry for adventure. Photo by Nikhil Ramkarran, as published in Caribbean Beat. #magazine #inflight #airlines #travel #publishing #caribbean #caribbeanbeat #guyana #25thanniversary @iflycaribbean #PakaraimaMountains #PakaraimaMountainSafari #Adventure #safari #caribbeanbeatmagazine
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In 1954, when Iris Bannochie began planting a six-acre garden on family property near Bathsheba, no one could have guessed it would become one of the Caribbean’s horticultural treasures. Named for the heroine of Ancient Greek myth, and now owned by the National Trust of Barbados, Andromeda Gardens is a lush retreat perched on a hillside above the island’s dramatic east coast, with a collection of over six hundred tropical plants. Photo © Andre Donawa Photography #caribbeanbeatmagazine #caribbeanbeat #barbados #islandlife #caribbeanlife #aroundtheworldpix #instatravel #wishyouwerehere #botanicalgardens
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In what was once a Capuchin pilgrimage church of the same name in Siparia — a town settled by the first Spanish colonists — stands a dark-skinned statue of the Virgin Mary as La Divina Pastora (the Divine Shepherdess). But this is not her only name, and Catholics are not the only ones who celebrate her. She is the Black Madonna. Siparee or Supari Mai (mother of Siparia). Kali. Durga. Lakshmi. The Patron Saint of Siparia. The Miracle Mother. Many miracles have been attributed to her by ardent devotees. For her feast day (the third Sunday after Easter), the “Miracle Mother” is decorated by Catholics with flowers, dressed in white, and processed through the streets, followed by celebrations open to all. On the Thursday night (Holy or Maundy Thursday) and Good Friday before Easter, Hindu pilgrims visit the church with acts of devotion — offerings of oil, rice, jewellery, rice, flowers, and the giving of alms to the needy — and recognising her most of all as “mother”. Dr Noor Kumar Mahabir has observed that in recent times, a Kali-Mai Hindu poojari has occupied the church grounds, who collects donations from worshippers to perform jharying, or protecting the celebrant from illness or calamity. As such, Holy Thursday and Good Friday mark the start of weeks of veneration by both Hindus and Catholics, celebrating the festivals of Siparee Mai and La Divina Pastora. Globally, this unique cross-cultural celebration makes Trinidad one of the only countries in the world with active veneration of Black Madonna/Virgin statues. Have a blessed and beautiful day and weekend! Photo: Ariann Thompson/MEP Publishers #discovertnt #festivals #siparia #capuchin #sipareemai #suparimai #ladivinapastora #thedivineshepherdess #hindu #romancatholic #catholic #goodfriday #maundythursday #holythursday #blackmadonna #blackvirgin #veneration #madonnamurti #multicultural #ttunseen #trinidad #trinidadandtobago
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Each Easter in Tobago, the village of Buccoo hosts the Family Day and Goat & Crab Races. The animals hurtle down a special 110m (160ft) track to the finish line, hustled on by barefoot “jockeys” who sprint behind their charges, holding the colourfully attired goats on long ropes, and the crabs on short strings. The showdown happens each Easter Monday and Tuesday at Mt Pleasant, as well as Buccoo (the main location). There’s a repeat later in the year at the Heritage Festival. Alpines, Toggenburgs and Saanens are the types of goats raced each year. To prepare for the events, they are given special diets (oats, vitamins, pigeon peas for iron) and months of training; stamina is built by taking the goats swimming. Photo: Edison Boodoosingh, as published in Discover Trinidad & Tobago. @visittobago @gotrinbago #discovertnt #trinidadandtobago #tobago #travel #guide #Caribbean #travelguide #animalonearth #animal_beauty #nature_brilliance #ilivewhereyouvacation #easter #traditions #eastermonday #eastertuesday #goatracing #crabracing #goats #crabs #islandlife #festivals #familyday #buccoo #mtpleasant #Alpines #Toggenburgs #Saanens
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Green parrots in flight. Photo by Chris Anderson, as published in Discover Trinidad & Tobago (discovertnt.com) #trinidad #trinidadandtobago #travel #guide #mobilemag #Caribbean #travelphotography #travelguide #wildlifetrinidad #naturelovers #wildlife #wildlifephotography #wild_animalsgram #animalonearth #wildlifeaddicts #birds #birdwatching #animal_beauty #nature_brilliance #trinidadbiodiversity #ttunseen #ilivewhereyouvacation @gotrinbago #discovertnt
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If you've never been turtle-watching, the season is now in full swing. It is a truly humbling and inspiring experience. Here, a giant leatherback turtle makes its way to the sea from Grande Riviere beach at dawn. Photo: Stephen Jay Photography, as published in Discover Trinidad & Tobago magazine #trinidad #trinidadandtobago #travel #guide #mobilemag #Caribbean #travelphotography #travelguide #wildlifetrinidad #naturelovers #wildlife #wildlifephotography #wild_animalsgram #animalonearth #wildlifeaddicts #animal_beauty #nature_brilliance #trinidadbiodiversity #leatherbacks #leatherbackturtles #turtles #endangeredspecies #beaches #ttunseen #ilivewhereyouvacation @gotrinbago #discovertnt
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A leisurely drift down the picturesque White River is a standard in the itineraries of most visitors to Ocho Rios on Jamaica’s north coast — and you’ll understand exactly why, after you’ve floated through bamboo groves and perhaps taken a bracing dip, encouraged by your chatty guide. Photo © LBSIMMS Photography/Shutterstock.com #wishyouwerehere #caribbeanbeatmagazine #caribbeanbeat #islandlife #Caribbean #ilivewhereyouvacation #caribbeanlife #instatravel #naturegram #igtravel #landscape_captures #ig_landscape #global_hotshotz #photooftheday #jamaica #ochorios #instago #exploremore #beautifulplaces #travelgram
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Ireng River, Guyana: the smooth, dark waters of the Ireng flow from the Pakaraima Mountains down through the great savannahs of Guyana and Brazil, forming the boundary between the two countries. Eventually it joins Brazil’s Rio Branco, which in turn flows into the Rio Negro, one of the main tributaries of the Amazon. Photo © Pete Oxford #caribbeanbeat #caribbeanbeatmagazine #wishyouwerehere #caribbean #caribbeanlife #islandlife #nature_brilliance #naturelovers #ecoadventure #adventure #guyana #amazonriver #irengriver #riobanco #brazil #pakaraima #pakaraimamountains
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On Trinidad’s east coast, Tabateau Point protects Balandra Bay from the swells of the Atlantic, creating an anchorage for small fishing boats and a sheltered beach popular on weekends but often nearly deserted on weekdays. Photo © Caristock.com #discovertnt #caribbeanbeat #caribbeanbeatmagazine #wishyouwerehere #dronesdaily #balandra #saltlife #islandlife #dronefly #dronelife #beach #beachday #trinidad #trinidadandtobago #Caribbean #travelphotography #ilivewhereyouvacation #beaches #eastcoast #beachvibe #visitTrinidad #seascape #dronephoto #dronephotography #dronestagram #aerialphotography #caribbeanlife #aroundtheworldpix #instatravel #dronefly #ttunseen
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author: Janine Mendes-Franco


text:
Tokyo Interlopers provides a glimpse of life in Japan from a foreign perspective · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

Image courtesy Tokyo Interlopers. Used with permission.
Describing itself as “a compendium of stories, snapshots of foreigners and mixed-race people in Japan,” Tokyo Interlopers focuses on immigrant workers, trainees, international students, expats, visitors and others who live in Japan's capital city.
Founded by Isaac “Tac” Aquino, Tokyo Interlopers regular publishes short profiles and interviews of people from a variety of backgrounds are regularly published on the Tokyo Interlopers website, and are then shared with over 10,000 followers on Facebook, and on Instagram and Twitter. Shorter, self-contained profiles are also shared on social media as well:
“I work the night shift at a convenience store. I show up for work at 10 pm then clock out in the morning at 6 am. But because they can't hire young Japanese people, lately there are more foreigners like myself doing this kind of job in Japan. Not gonna lie, it's tough.“ pic.twitter.com/gwJ7iUKxfu
— Tokyo Interlopers (@tokyointerloper) June 9, 2019
Foreign residents continue to transform Tokyo into a multicultural, multi-ethnic city. It's estimated that people from more than 180 countries reside in the Tokyo metropolitan region, and that one in eight residents of Shinjuku, large ward in central Tokyo, are foreign nationals. Some of their stories are happy, while other interviewees share some of the challenges they experience as they reside in Japan.
“I'm a refugee from Sri Lanka. I can't tell you why I'm here but I've been in Japan for more than two years now. 私はスリランカから来たの難民です。詳しい事は言えないが、日本には2年以上住んでいます。 pic.twitter.com/lu3FZfIHCr
— Tokyo Interlopers (@tokyointerloper) August 5, 2019
Tokyo Interlopers also pays special attention to the stories of Japanese women who must deal with challenging working environments or grueling commutes.
“…in Japan, a lot of people work until almost midnight every day. That’s just the culture, especially in a male-dominated workplace with mostly engineers. And this is why a lot of Japanese women quit their jobs after giving birth.” https://t.co/BtaWEFsm57 pic.twitter.com/VNf1GhYr2x
— Tokyo Interlopers (@tokyointerloper) August 9, 2019
The full archive of Tokyo Interlopers profiles provides a fascinating glimpse of life in the Japanese metropolis from a foreign perspective. If you live in Tokyo, you can also share your own story via the Tokyo Interlopers contact page.

author: Nevin Thompson


text:
UAE frees activist Osama al-Najjar after 5 years in detention · Global Voices
Afef Abrougui

Osama Al-Najjar remained in detention, despite completing his jail sentence. Photo Credit: activist's Twitter account
Authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have freed activist and political prisoner Osama al-Najjar after detaining him for more than five years.
Al-Najjar, who was arrested in March 2014, served a three-year jail sentence for posting tweets denouncing torture in UAE prisons. Despite completing his sentence, he remained in arbitrary detention for more than two years, before he was released on August 8, rights groups said.
Thrilled to learn of the release of 3 prisoners of conscience earlier today: #OsamaAlNajjar, Badr Al-Bahri and Othman Al-Shehi.
We hope that #UAE authorities will release other prisoners of concience still detained arbitrarily.@ICFUAE @MENA_Rights @BillLaw49 @Nader_SM pic.twitter.com/6cZ7qwd30R
— ICJHR-GENEVA (@ICJaHR) August 8, 2019
In November 2014, the state security chamber of the federal Supreme Court, whose verdicts cannot be appealed, sentenced Osama to three years in jail under the country's cybercrime law on a number of charges that include “instigating hatred” against the state and “designing and running a website [with] satirical and defaming ideas and information”. He was convicted over tweets denouncing his father's torture in prison and calling for his father's release and other prisoners of conscience in the Emirates.
Osama's father, Hussain al-Najjar, is one of 94 Emirati activists who were prosecuted en masse in 2013 for calling for political reform in the Emirates on charges related to “harming state security”. He is currently serving 11 years in prison.
Osama was due to be released on 17 March 2017, but at the request of public prosecution, the court deemed him a ”threat” to national security and kept him in administrative detention at the infamous al-Razeen prison in Abu Dhabi, where prisoners, including political detainees, are subjected to ill-treatment and torture.
”Two other detainees, Badr al-Bahri and Othman al-Shehi, whose initial sentences expired in April 2017 and July 2018 respectively, have also been freed”, the International Campaign for Freedom in the UAE (ICFUAE) said in a statement.
Al-Bahri and al-Shehi were arrested over their links to al-Islah, which was a legally registered Islamist political movement in the UAE before it was banned by authorities in 2014.
Many political prisoners remain in detention in the UAE, despite repeated calls from human rights groups for their release.
We welcome the release of Osama Al Najjar, Badr Al Bahri & Othman Al Shehi, who were detained arbitrarily in the #UAE.
We call for the unconditional release of all peaceful critics & human rights defenders, including Ahmed Mansoor, Nasser Bin Ghaith, and lawyer Mohamed Al Roken. https://t.co/R81NDN86sX
— MENA Rights Group | منَا لحقوق الإنسان (@MENA_Rights) August 8, 2019
Prominent human rights defender Ahmed Mansoor is currently serving a ten-year jail sentence over comments he posted online. Prior to his arrest in March 2017, he campaigned online on behalf of jailed activists in the UAE, including Osama al-Najjar. Academic Nasser Bin Ghaith is also serving a ten-year jail sentence over tweets critical of the UAE authorities.

author: Afef Abrougui


text:
Who turned off Moscow’s internet during recent protests? · Global Voices
Maxim Edwards

Protesters in central Moscow, 27 July 2019. Photo (c): Christina Hebel. Used with permission.
The situation in Moscow remains tense after renewed protests; thousands have taken to the Russian capital’s streets and squares in recent months to oppose the electoral commission’s refusal to register opposition candidates for local elections this September. The latest demonstration on 3 August saw over 1,000 people detained and police violence towards demonstrators. Over the following week, the Russian authorities launched a money laundering case against opposition politician Alexey Navalny and froze bank accounts associated with his Anti-Corruption Foundation (workplace of several of the most prominent opposition candidates.) The kid gloves are off, if they were ever on to begin with.
There are many indications that this crackdown has reached cyberspace.
Several people present in central Moscow on 3 August and on 27 July stated that they had encountered difficulties getting online, complaining that mobile internet was either extremely poor quality or completely unavailable. As similar stories mounted, it became clear that this wasn’t a glitch, but an attempt by the authorities to get part of the capital offline for the duration of the protests.
The move irritated one Muscovite who preferred an afternoon at home rather than at a protest:
Ростелеком конечно отлично придумали, давайте в дождливые выходные снизим скорость интернета, спасибо, теперь я не смогу ни поиграть ни посмотреть видик. Спасибо ростелеком pic.twitter.com/Q4V7BMouHq
— Тетя Зина (@naotvage) August 3, 2019
“Rostelekom came up with a great idea; let’s reduce internet speed on a rainy weekend. Thanks guys, now I can neither play nor watch videos.”
Mikhail Klimarev, an expert on digital rights who works for the Internet Protection Society NGO, stated on 5 August that he was sure the move was the result of an order from above; two of the city’s four largest mobile service providers on 3 August were switched to GSM-only functions, allowing calls and text messages but not internet access. The Internet Protection Society’s interactive map of base stations affected by the internet blackout shows an area of about 13 square kilometres affected in central Moscow. This northern area of central Moscow was where the protest on 3 August was held.
One blogger found that wifi networks in the area had also been switched off:
Забежал в Шоколадницу выпить кофе, думал, что там есть интернет, но официантка сказала, что полицейские потребовали отличить интернет во всех кафе на сутки pic.twitter.com/2yjwRT3H9v
— Денис Стяжкин (@styazshkin) August 3, 2019
“I ran into Shokoladnitsa [a popular Russian café chain] for a coffee; I thought that there’d be internet there, but the waitress said that the police had demanded the internet to be turned off in all cafes for the day.”
From 1 p.m., an hour before the scheduled start of the protest in Moscow, users started reporting internet shortages in this area of Moscow. NetBlocks, an NGO monitoring digital governance, found “anomalous” disruptions in internet connectivity via Rostelekom, Russia’s largest internet and telephone service provider, in a pattern it identified as generally consistent with a deliberate shutdown.
Comments from Russia’s internet and telephone service providers raise even more questions. On 6 August, Megafon, a mobile service provider, told Radio Svoboda, RFE/RL’s Russian-language service, that connectivity problems were the result of large amounts of people than usual using the network (Megafon gave the same explanation to independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta when it reported on similar connectivity problems during protests on 27 July.)
Klimarev told Radio Svoboda in response that Megafon’s explanation was unfeasible given that in other parts of the city, where the local administration had put on a large kebab festival on the same day as the protests, there were no problems with connectivity despite the large number of attendees. It is also important to mention that the networks’ explanations are at odds with accounts from the authorities, given that the Russian police continue to insist that only 1,500 people attended the protest on 3 August (independent estimates put the number of protesters at three times that.)
Commentators on the “blackout” frequently seem surprised at the relative ease of forcing a section of the city offline; not a difficult task, given that service providers in Russia cannot afford not to comply with such requests. In fact, while mobile networks are obliged to provide users with the services they pay for, including mobile internet access, Russia’s law enforcement agencies do have legal remit to override these concerns. These powers can be found in Articles 11 and 12 in Russia’s law on states of emergency, as well as in article 64 of Russia’s federal law on communication. The latter states that if mobile networks receive a letter from law enforcement agencies demanding that they cut their services in the names of “operational activities” or public security, they are obliged to comply.
The content of these letters are generally not public. However, on 6 August the BBC’s Russian service reported that it had obtained a copy of a letter sent to employees of a call centre for one of Moscow’s largest mobile networks. “Dear colleagues, in the Presnensky and Basmanny districts of central Moscow, some of the base stations have been disabled at the request of law enforcement agencies,” the letter read. It then went on to give detailed instructions about how to respond to customers‘ complaints and enquiries, instructing employees to simply say that there “had been no difficulties in providing services on the company’s part.”
While this is the first time a state-imposed internet blackout has been observed in Moscow, it is not the first in Russia. That dubious distinction goes to Ingushetia, a republic in Russia’s North Caucasus region. Since October 2018, Ingush have held protests against a decision to transfer some of the republic’s land to neighbouring Chechnya. Attendees of the first protests in October also found that three major mobile services providers had closed down their internet access for two weeks; renewed reports of this surfaced during protests in March this year. Nevertheless, 2G mobile internet remained accessible in Ingushetia, though its slowness would have precluded the widespread use of social media for protest participants to communicate with each other.
The Russian journalist and digital security expert Andrey Soldatov recently called the Ingush case a “test case” for future internet blocks across Russia:
The shutdown of the mobile Internet, first tried during last Fall protests in Ingushetia, now is testing in Moscow. #soveregnInternet https://t.co/HWM33GCYOH
— Andrei Soldatov (@AndreiSoldatov) August 3, 2019
But some of Ingushetia’s protesters are fighting against their role as test subjects for future internet blackouts. Murad Khabziyev was one of several protesters in Ingushetia’s capital of Magas who attempted to take the authorities to court over the blackout in early October. While Khabziyev’s case was ultimately dismissed, it did provide an insight into the bureaucracy of such internet shutdowns. Aslan Kokoyev, the local head of Roskomnadzor, Russia’s state communications watchdog, argued in November 2018 that the shutdown had been perfectly legal as the three large service providers involved had received a letter from “a law enforcement agency” as mandated by Russia’s law on communications.
On 3 August, the Russian human rights defending NGO Agora announced that it would demand an official investigation into the removal of internet access in Moscow on 3 August. They may have to hurry up; in November, Russia’s controversial “sovereign internet” bill will enter into force. That could make it even easier for the authorities to turn off the internet at the flick of a switch.
Further protests are the horizon in the Russian capital; if the authorities believe their strategy has worked, mysterious internet outages could repeat themselves. And time will tell if the unconnected remain as undeterred.

author: Maxim Edwards


text:
How the frontline anti-extradition protesters’ toolkit has evolved over Hong Kong’s long summer · Global Voices
Hong Kong Free Press

Photo: May James.
This post was originally written by Kris Cheng and published on Hong Kong Free Press on 9 of August 2019. It is republished on Global Voices under a content partnership agreement.
The tools, equipment, clothing and communication methods used by Hong Kong’s anti-extradition law protesters have captured headlines around the world.
Protesters have often hit the streets in “full gear,” donning black clothes, goggles, gas masks and helmets, among other items. They are able to form makeshift barricades within minutes, pass on messages within seconds, and have come up with new ways to put out tear gas grenades.
Ip Kwok-him, a member of the Executive Council and a National People’s Congress delegate, said on August 8 that he did not believe protesters could acquire their equipment, or form their tactics easily by themselves, insisting that “foreign forces” must be involved. He said:
I have never seen such organised [protests].This is not something common young people can do.
But is the gear used by protesters especially expensive or difficult to obtain?
The basics
Of all tools, the most important one is likely to be the protesters’ mobile phones. It helps them to gain real-time information from apps like Facebook, Telegram messenger, and the Reddit-like forum LIHKG.
There are hundreds of pages, channels and forum threads that inform protesters about the situation at sites, updated by the minute, by other protesters or residents who live nearby. There is also a specialised scout channel to report the latest police movements.
However, much of the last-minute, on-the-fly decision making is often made by protesters present on the ground, owing to the sheer size of some of the Telegram groups.
Kris Cheng / HKPF
Black clothing
The all-black look is considered better for protesters as it helps to hide their identities. Protesters have been widely sharing information online on how to buy simple black clothing items for under HK$100 or approximately US$14 dollars.
Local residents who support the protests also donate clothes of other colours for protesters to change into, when they leave the protest sites.
On Saturday night, some protesters changed their clothes to shirts made available by others at Yau Ma Tei MTR Station to avoid identification. They also left using single-ride tickets to avoid being tracked through their Octopus card.
In full: https://t.co/kmLJLFCnSX pic.twitter.com/XBD8exfo3s
— Hong Kong Free Press (@HongKongFP) August 3, 2019
Eye masks or swimming goggles, face masks or respirators
Face masks and goggles were often used by protesters to protect themselves from pepper spray, before the recent protests rocked the city.
Tear gas canisters were used on one evening during the 2014 pro-democracy Umbrella Movement protests, but was not used again until the June 12 demonstration this year. Protesters were mostly still using masks such as the N95 model. Since then, protesters have sought better protection, such as respirators from the US brand 3M.
There have also been full manuals posted online comparing the effectiveness of different respirators and filters, with some activists now switching to full-face gas masks.
Photo: Todd R. Darling/HKFP.
Umbrellas
Umbrellas were mostly used in 2014 to shield protesters from pepper spray. But their use has evolved with the appearance of more projectiles, including rubber bullets and sponge grenades.
Now, umbrellas are used to cover protesters’ identities, when removing railings or setting fire. Protesters shout “it’s raining!” as a sign to tell others to come and cover people with umbrellas.
They have also been used to obscure CCTV cameras, as well as to block train doors as protesters try to bring MTR (the public transport provider) services to a halt.
Photo: May James/HKFP.
Cable ties
Protesters usually form a triangular block barricade by tying the railings together with cable ties. They are then shifted to the frontlines. Cable ties were also once used to subdue a suspect accused of attacking protesters in Yau Ma Tei.
Photo: May James/HKFP.
Helmets
A symbol of the protests are the hardhats used by protesters – usually simple yellow or white construction helmets.
Since the Hong Kong police started to use more dangerous crowd control tools such as rubber bullets and sponge grenades, protesters have tried to upgrade their helmets to tougher ones, such as those from cycling or mountaineering brands.
Photo: Isaac Yee/HKFP.
Plastic wrap, detachable sleeves
Protesters developed a temporary measure to cover their arms with plastic wrap to, at first, defend against pepper spray, and later to guard against tear gas. Some have used other means to protect their skin such as wearing detachable sleeves used for hiking.
Plastic wrap has also been utilised to creating barricades to slow down police advances. In recent weeks, cling film has been unrolled between lamp posts across roads.
Photo: May James/HKFP.
Gloves
Many activists wear gloves to deal with sharp objects and heavy items such as when they move barricades.
Recently, gloves have been necessary for those seeking to throw tear gas canisters back at the police lines. Protesters are also able to guard against depositing fingerprints by covering their hands.
Photo: May James/HKFP.
Shields and protectors
Protesters have used cardboard, wood or parts of suitcases to act as shields. Some have made makeshift shields using ironing boards or swimming floats.
A couple of activists have wielded “Captain America” style shields, though it is unlikely to provide the protective power seen in the movies. A minority of protesters have also used full, reinforced arm protection, knee and elbow pads. Gear designed for motocross, ice hockey or American football has also been spotted.
An ironing board shied. Photo: May James/HKFP.
Water bottles, cones, metal bowls
Protesters have also been coming up with new and efficient ways to put out tear gas canisters. In June, the method was simply to use water to douse them.
In July, protesters started to form voluntary “firefighting teams” to cover tear gas canisters with traffic cones, and then pour water in. Recently, the latest method is to use a metal bowl to cover the canisters and put them out by cutting off the air supply. Wok lids have been spotted on the frontlines for this very purpose.
Protesters douse a tear gas submunition with water. Photo: Holmes Chan/HKFP.
Laser pointers and sling shots
Protesters have often used laser pointers to block, annoy and distract police officers on the frontlines.
Police arrested a student leader after he purchased ten laser pointers this week. He was held on suspicion of possessing offensive weapons before he was unconditionally released. Police claim that “laser guns” can damage officers’ eyes and cameras.
But police also use laser pointers aimed at protesters, as well as strobe lights. Some officers have taken to wearing tape on their helmets in an apparent effort to guard against lasers.
On more than one occasion, sling shots have been spotted on the frontlines of protests, sometimes used to smash the windows of police stations.
Photo: May James/HKFP.
Communication and logistics
Protesters have hand signals for items to be passed to the front quickly. They form human chains to maximise efficiency.
Some small groups of protesters have also started to use walkie-talkies to communicate, as the phone network does not work well in crowded situations.
Meanwhile, some activists have taken inspiration from the message banners waved at them by police, and have created banners of their own bearing instructions such as: “forward”, “stop” and other messages.
Protests in Hong Kong reflect certain characteristics of the city in that they are compact, well connected and make use of a flourishing free internet. Protesters themselves are often highly educated, with university students and professionals across different sectors taking part.
The campaign to crowdfund HK$5 million for a G20 meeting global ad campaign within one day was carried out in public through LIHKG forum posts. Its successful execution demonstrates the capacity of the movement to act on its own.
Photo: May James/HKFP.
Amid rumours of foreign interference, the Hong Kong government may have underestimated how successful its own education system is. It has taught students and graduates to seek useful information and take direct action.

author: Hong Kong Free Press


text:
Cambodia reduces number of public holidays to attract jobs, but activists are concerned it could undermine democracy · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

An event celebrating the International Human Rights Day on December 10, 2015 at Freedom Park in Phnom Penh. For many years, the annual event has gathered individuals and groups calling for greater human rights protection in Cambodia. Photo from Facebook page of Cambodian Center for Human Rights.
Responding to the clamor of the business sector, the Cambodian government issued a decree reducing the country’s public holidays from 28 to 22. Authorities said this decision will boost the country’s competitiveness but some groups are worried that this might undermine public commemorations of important historical events.
The six holidays that will be removed in 2020 are the National Day of Remembrance (formerly the National Day of Hatred, commemorating the Khmer Rouge communist regime) on May 20, International Children’s Day on June 1, Paris Peace Agreements Day on October 23, International Human Rights Day on December 10, and two of the three days celebrating the king’s birthday.
The Paris Peace Agreements Day commemorates the end of war in Cambodia in 1991 and marks the country’s transition to democracy. It laid the framework for the building of a modern democratic state and reflected the unity of major political parties to pursue peaceful political reforms.
Ek Tha, spokesperson for the Council of Ministers, explained that the decree is a response to the petition of domestic and foreign employers to cut the public holidays.
It is because the government wants the Kingdom to be competitive and attract national and international investments…It’s so they [citizens] can contribute to the building and development of Cambodia in order for it to be more prosperous.
But Pav Sina, president of the Collective Union of Movement of Workers, appealed for reconsideration since the reduced holidays would affect the benefits received by workers
Unionists are holding a discussion with each other to find a way on how to request the government to reconsider with their decision to cut public holidays because workers will lose their benefits.
Cambodia is one of few countries which celebrates Human Rights Day as a public holiday. The decision to remove it from the list of holidays is seen by some as a symbolic reversal of the country’s commitment to implement democratic reforms.
The Cambodian government is accused of silencing dissent by banning and dissolving the main opposition party, the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP). The government also filed tax and licensing charges against some media outlets which human rights groups described as arbitrary and politically-motivated. In response, authorities linked the opposition and some civil society groups with foreign powers which are allegedly ‘conspiring’ to destabilize the government.
While civil society groups acknowledge the goal of rationalizing the number of holidays, they expressed concern that it could negatively affect public understanding of events that laid the foundations of the country’s democracy.
Cambodian Centre for Human Rights executive director Chak Sopheap said that removing some of the holidays will be a “lost opportunity for ending conflicting opinions” on controversial events.
Overall, no matter how the days are set, may the spirit of respect for and protection of human rights, as well as the necessity for national reconciliation and national independence, be on the agenda for all of us to develop the country sustainably and in peace.
Soeung Sen Karona, spokesperson for the human rights group Adhoc, said that the decree is another indication of the government’s attack on democracy.
Omitting the Paris Peace Agreement and Human Rights days from the public-holiday list reflects that the government is unwilling to promote democracy any longer.
Some civil society groups suggested that some holidays can be merged instead of outrightly removing them. Government officials assured them that these will still be commemorated and the public are still enjoined to organize activities in celebration of these historical events.

author: Mong Palatino


text:
A Brazilian journalist uses deepfake to make political satire · Global Voices
Fernanda Canofre

Bolsonaro's complaints about Congress having more power than him in certain decisions, and his self-comparison to the Queen of England, inspired one of Sartori's videos. Image: Twitter/Screenshot
In May 2019, a video showing Brazil's far-right president Jair Bolsonaro dressed up as Chapulin Colorado — a character from a 1970s Mexican TV show that is hugely popular in Brazil — went viral. In the video, Bolsonaro misquotes his own campaign slogan.
Obviously, the video was satire — Bolsonaro never dressed up as Chapulin Colorado. It was all the work of journalist and digital media editor Bruno Sartori, who used deepfake techniques to combine a clip of Chapulín with another of Bolsonaro speaking in a ceremony in Dallas, United States. Days before, the Brazilian president had been awarded “personality of the year” by the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce and, at his acceptance speech, in an apparent attempt to adapt his campaign motto to appease his hosts, he awkwardly said “Brazil and the United States above everything. Brazil above all” (the actual slogan is “Brazil above everything, God above all”).
Sartori tweeted then:
Criticavam os discursos aleatórios de Dilma e elegeram o BOLSONARO? pic.twitter.com/jzJpPXXKYk
— Bruno Sartori (@brunnosarttori) May 18, 2019
People criticised Dilma's random speeches and then voted for BOLSONARO?
Deepfake is a machine-learning technique used to alter video content. Once a computer “learns” how a person’s facial expressions work, it's then able to replicate it onto someone else's body, usually with frightening accuracy. The term “deepfake” is used to refer to both the technique and the videos produced with it.
Bolsonaro's faux-pas inspired the 30-year-old to make the joke, as he told Global Voices via WhatsApp:
Cheguei em casa e vi que o Bolsonaro tinha errado o próprio slogan de campanha e vi semelhança com o Chapolin colorado. Falei: vamos ver como é que fica. Coloquei a voz do Bolsonaro em cima, como era um timing muito certo, tinha acabado de acontecer, o pessoal gostou e foi na casa de 2 milhões de visualizações de um dia para o outro
I got home, saw that Bolsonaro had mistaken his own slogan and saw similarities with Chapulín. I said: let’s see how that would look like. So, I added Bolsonaro’s voice over it, and since the timing was perfect, and [the Bolsonaro slip] had just happened, people liked it and the video had two million views in one day.
Sartori began producing satirical videos using deepfake in 2018. He usually faked his own face, and his videos would generally receive between 10,000 and 15,000 likes on private Facebook groups, along with thousands of comments, he says.
His first video featuring Brazil's president had Bolsonaro's face added to an orange fruit — the word “orange,” in Brazilian Portuguese, is an expression related to corruption schemes. The president eldest son and senator, Flávio Bolsonaro had been investigated for allegedly using laranjas in a money-laundering operation.
The deepfakes were just the latest step in Sartori's career as satirical video editor, he tells GV. He began editing videos 15 years ago, drawing on Windows’ Paintbrush, frame by frame, and then animating them on MovieMaker. After he bought a camera, he started to shoot videos too.
One of his inspirations back then was Brazilian cartoonist Maurício Ricardo, who did animations about subjects such as politics and the reality show Big Brother. Back then, Sartori used to create satirical videos commenting on issues about his hometown Unaí, in the state of Minas Gerais. The city has 75,000 inhabitants and is 970 km away from São Paulo.
When asked why the current president is his most recurring target, he explains:
Como ele e a família dele é que estão no governo, mais perdidos que cego em tiroteio, eles me dão piadas prontas todos os dias. Foi muito fácil fazer piada pronta com eles.
Não é uma preferência por ser o Bolsonaro, é mais pelo cargo.
Since he and his family are in the government now, and complete clueless, they provide me with ready-made jokes everyday. It’s really easy to create jokes with them.
It’s not a preference for Bolsonaro as a person, it's more because of the position he is in.
He says his videos are rooted in context and none is made by chance. Another one shows the president’s second son, Carlos Bolsonaro, a city councillor in Rio de Janeiro and his father’s close advisor, embodying a peacock costume. That is a reference to the “mysterious peacock,” the name of a rightwing conspiracy theory that claims that US journalist Glenn Greenwald paid Russian hackers to invade Brazilian authorities’ Telegram accounts.
Many news outlets have reported that Carlos is responsible for managing Bolsonaro's social media profiles. Some claim he was responsible for the infamous golden shower post during Carnival.
The tweet below references the popular show Game of Thrones as well as a handful of Brazilian recent news and memes.
Saúdem a Princesa Pavão, da casa do fuzis, a primeira de sua plumagem, herdeira das minas de nióbio, rainha das Fake News, guardião do berrante e encantadora de gado, Grã duquesa da lua, criada com leite de ornitorrinco da amazônia em mamadeira de piroca. #PavaoMisterioso pic.twitter.com/a3QvSPs3dO
— Bruno Sartori (@brunnosarttori) July 7, 2019
All hail the Peacock Princess, from House of Rifle, the first of her plumage, heir to the niobium mines, queen of fake news, guardian of the hornet and cattle enchantress, moon's great duchess, raised with Amazon's platypus milk served in a penis-shaped baby-bottle #MisteriousPeacock
It takes up to four days to produce some of the videos. Sartori says he uses open source libraries, tutorials and friends’ tips for doing the videos, and works with programs such as Adobe Premiere and Photoshop. Recently, he has also began a crowdfunding campaign to buy a better computer.
Bolsonaro:
Querem me deixar como rainha da Inglaterra?
Eu:
Deus salve a rainha! pic.twitter.com/dxbgoOzAIX
— Bruno Sartori (@brunnosarttori) June 22, 2019
[When Bolsonaro complained about National Congress having more power than him] Bolsonaro: Do they want to leave me like the Queen of England?
Me: God save the Queen!
As the deepfakes went viral, so did the threats against the author, as he says:
Ameaça tem para caramba. Já roubaram emails, tentaram acessar a minha conta, de países como Holanda, Tailândia. Tenho os números de IP, mas pouco pode ser feito. No meu celular, salvavam contatos e um deles dizia: Bruno Sartori foi adicionado em um caixão. Por DM, aparecem perfis fakes. Eu acredito que é natural do processo. Há uma base de seguidores fanáticos do Bolsonaro.
There were a lot of threats. They stole emails, tried to access my account from countries like the Netherlands, Thailand. I have the IP numbers, but there isn’t much I can do. On my cellphone, they’ve created new contacts and one of them said: Bruno Sartori was added to a coffin. On my DMs, fake profiles come up. I think it's natural. There are plenty of fanatics who follow Bolsonaro.
Sartori is not concerned about being sued either, and says that that would be wrong and hypocritical for a government that advocates against “political correctness.” One of his latest creations shows Bolsonaro singing a children’s song, according to him, a satirical commentary on the “childish manner” that the president governs.
2018: “Bolsonaro vai governar para botar o Brasil nos eixos”
2019: Bolsonaro governando:
ps. Ajude na vaquinha pra gente comprar um super PC e fazer vídeos assim 2x mais rápido: https://t.co/8BMb6EQlmM pic.twitter.com/AlL9NLv0zG
— Bruno Sartori (@brunnosarttori) July 17, 2019
2018: Bolsonaro's government will fix Brazil
2019: Bolsonaro actually governing:
Help with our crowdfunding to buy a super PC and create videos like this twice as faster
Spotting deep fakes is an ongoing challenge for algorithms, but, when asked whether he is concerned about how the technology may be used to harm others, not only for fun, Sartori says:
Há riscos com deepfake, e minha maior preocupação é com a pornografia. Quando isso se popularizar de verdade, acho que vai ser muito usado para revenge porn. É o que vai ser mais nocivo.
É uma tecnologia promissora. São vídeos que a pessoa consegue observar que tem algo mais. Não é feito para forjar uma realidade, mas com humor, de forma crítica, uma determinada situação.
There are risks with deepfakes, and my greatest concern is with pornography. When [this technology] becomes truly popular, I think it will be often used in revenge porn. It will be the most harmful.
It’s a promising technology. These are videos that people can observe that there is something else there. They are not made to forge a reality, but a certain situation, with humour and in a critical way.

author: Fernanda Canofre


text:
Withheld in Turkey: How the government exploits removal requests to silence critical and independent voices · Global Voices
Arzu Geybullayeva

On August 4, the Ankara Criminal Court of Peace issued an order to withhold access to four Twitter accounts in Turkey. The order affects the accounts of Oya Ersoy, member of the left-wing HDP party (People's Democratic Party) ; Turkish music band Grup Yorum, and two accounts related to the Gezi Park protest movement; Taksim Gezi Parki and Gezi Savunmasi.
Cartoon by Khalid Albaih [CC BY-NC-SA 2.0].
Ersoy, whose account is certified, is a lawyer and politician. In 2018 she was elected as a parliament member representing the opposition People's Democratic Party (HDP).
Grup Yorum is a veteran Turkish folk band known for their political songs since 1987. “Yorum” means “to comment” and many of the band's songs look at the problems in the country and channel criticism in lyrics of their songs. For years, their concerts have faced bans and censorship in the country. Most recently, the band's July concert was banned in the Turkish province of Hatay, and 12 people were detained for singing their songs on the day of the concert. In February 2018, six of its members were declared terrorists. Two of them fled the country for France.
The Taksim Gezi Parki account was set up at the onset of Gezi Park protests, while Gezi Savunmasi tracks court proceedings of protesters and activists arrested during the Gezi Park protests. The 2013 protests first started as an environmental protest movement against the planned demolition of Gezi Park in Istanbul, before turning into a nationwide anti-government uprising bringing together hundreds of thousands of protesters.
At the time of publication, Twitter was yet to comply with the decision, and all four accounts were still accessible in Turkey. The basis for the court's decision was the protection of national security and public order, in accordance with Law No. 5651 on the Regulation of Publications on the Internet.
These four accounts are among hundreds—if not thousands— of Twitter accounts targeted by the Turkish government using the platform’s ‘’Country Withheld Content” tool (CWC). In 2010, Twitter unveiled the tool which allows it to censor content on a country by country basis. At that time, Twitter may not have completely envisaged how its tool could be abused by a number of increasingly authoritarian countries where social media platforms have been targeted by the authorities in the face of growing crackdown and censorship, most notably Turkey.
In fact, one of the Turkish government’s tactics to silence users on the internet and deny them their rights to access and impart information, is submitting requests to Twitter and other platforms to withhold content deemed in violation of its local laws. When platforms refuse to comply, they could be blocked, a risk commercial platforms may not be willing to undertake in a market with nearly 60 million internet users.
For example, in 2013, during the popular Gezi Park protests during which protesters and activists used Twitter and other social media platforms to report on the demonstrations while traditional Turkish broadcasters didn't over it, the then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan described the platform as a “scourge“.
In March 2014, the Turkish government blocked the platform for spreading audio recordings that appeared to implicate Erdoğan’s inner circle in a corruption investigation. The government said the platform did not respond to court rulings to remove some links. At a local election rally at that time, Erdoğan said that he had a court order and vowed to ‘’eradicate Twitter’’.
While the Twitter ban has since been lifted, the Turkish government has continued to exploit Twitter’s country-withheld content tool to silence users on the platform.
Removal requests received by Facebook and Google
In 2018, Facebook restricted access to more than 2,300 items in Turkey at the request of the authorities. These restrictions took place on Facebook and Instagram and affected items like posts, comments, and accounts and media that were deemed in violation of local laws such as Law No. 5651 which ”covers a range of offenses including personal rights violations, personal privacy, defamation of Ataturk”.
Google received a total of 10,379 removal requests and 57,851 total items named for removal since 2009 over a number of violations related to national security, privacy, ”obscenity/nudity” and defamation. Between the second half of 2009 and the end of 2017, Google restricted access to 19,423 of the items on its different services including Youtube, Google Search and Blogger.
According to the most recent Twitter transparency report, covering the second half of 2018, Turkey submitted more than 5,000 requests for content removal, more than any other country. One of the most disturbing conclusions of the report is that Turkey, together with Russia, are the top two countries when it comes to the volume of global requests, leading with a total of 74 percent of the total removal requests made to Twitter.
The Turkish government is adopting the same tactic with other platforms including Facebook, Youtube, WordPress and even the free online encyclopedia Wikipedia.
In fact, access to all versions of Wikipedia has been blocked by the Turkish government since 2017 for refusing to take down entries containing accusations against the Turkish government of supporting terrorist groups in Syria. At that time, the government accused Wikipedia of ‘’running a smear campaign against Turkey’’, and blocked it using Law No. 5651 or the Internet Act of 2007.
The Turkish government repeatedly refers to domestic legislation such as Law No.5651 and others to request platforms to carry out censorship on their behalf, and to block them when they do not comply.
In fact, under Law No.5651, hosting companies are required to take down illegal or infringing content once served with a notice from the authorities. However, what counts as illegal content in Turkey includes speech that is protected under international human rights standards. For example, law No. 5651 prohibits the defamation of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Turkish Republic. Article 301 of the Penal Code contains provisions prohibiting the “denigration of the Turkish nation” and state institutions such as the parliament and the government. Article 299 of the same code prohibits insults against the President.
In addition, the list of government and judicial institutions with power vested in them to request blocking through court order or directly is extensive. These include the criminal judgeships of peace who have the power to order the removal of content and the closure of websites under No. 5651 and law No. 5846 on Intellectual and Artistic Works. Other bodies such as the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA), which the telecommunications industry regulator, the Access Providers Union  established in February 2014 and the Information Technologies and Communication Board can issue administrative censorship decisions under certain circumstances.
The implications of these platforms’ compliance with government requests is detrimental to freedom of expression and press freedom.
In January 2018, Buzzfeed published a story documenting Twitter accounts that were blocked in certain countries, chief among them Turkey. According to the authors, the Turkish government ”have led Twitter to block hundreds of users for what appear to be political reasons.”
During the second half of 2018, Twitter identified 253 accounts of verified journalists and news outlets that were the subject of 146 legal removal demands. In response to the demands, the company said that it withheld three tweets and one account in Turkey for violating local anti-terrorism laws.
Ahmet Sabanci, a freelance journalist, told Global Voices in an interview that companies like Twitter comply with domestic court decisions because they “do not want to anger the Turkish government. The same compliance goes for Russia and other countries”. Sabanci added that although an account holder can protest the decision of the platform, ”it happens so often and the chances of winning the case are so slim that people keep opening new accounts”.
Throughout the second half of 2018, Twitter filed legal objections for court orders from Turkey that specifically involved journalists or news outlets, but none of these objections prevailed. In fact, between  2014 and 2017 only 3 percent of the objections filed by Twitter were accepted by Turkish courts.
While the Buzzfeed data set offers a glimpse into the accounts impacted by the Turkish government’s use of the CWC tool, it remains unclear just how many of the withheld accounts belong to the representatives of the Turkish civil society and human rights defenders. In fact, Twitter and other platforms do not publish the list of accounts they withhold for violating local laws.
In its 2012 blog post announcing the CWC tool, Twitter said that ”one of [its] core values as a company is to defend and respect each user’s voice”. ”We try to keep content up wherever and whenever we can, and we will be transparent with users when we can’t. The Tweets must continue to flow”, the company added.
But it remains to be seen whether this statement holds true today, when countless countries, including Turkey, keep resorting to national laws to silence online critical voices inside the country on a regular basis.
”Twitter, Facebook, [and] Google…are responsible to their shareholders primarily, I don't consider them as guardians of free speech”, Efe Kerem Sözeri, a Turkish researcher based in the Netherlands, said back in 2018. ”But the imbalance in the tools they offer to users versus governments make them complicit in the authoritarian rulers’ crackdown against the opposition”, he added.
Originally intended to keep the tweets flowing, Twitter's CWC tool—and similar tools provided by other platforms— seem to have actually contributed to the silencing of critical voices in Turkey.

author: Arzu Geybullayeva