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Philippines: Calls for Peace in Mindanao · Global Voices
Karlo Mongaya

Renewed fighting between government troops and secessionist Moro rebels in the southern Philippine regions of Mindanao has led to more calls for peace from various quarters.
President Noynoy Aquino launched an “All-Out Justice” military campaign authorizing the bombing of Moro communities suspected to be rebel hideouts.
This came after the Al-Barka Basila Incident or the killing of 19 Philippine Army soldiers in firefights with the rebel fighters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Between the Lines digs into the circumstances surrounding the infamous Al-Barka Basilan incident.
Protest calling for peace in Mindanao
The hostilities has resulted in the fleeing of more than 20,000 villagers and fears of human rights abuses by rampaging government forces:
The initial findings – THE INVESTIGATION IS STILL GOING ON – as reported in the command conference with the President and the AFP’s (Armed Forces of the Philippines) top brass last Friday, was that the soldiers who died shouldn’t have been sent there in the first place. They died because they were sent there unprepared and without planning, so much so that they were practically sent there to die.
But even before this fiasco, peace negotiations with Moro rebels have not made much headway. Blogger Vencer Crisostomo attributes this to the Aquino government's lack of “a sincere plan yo genuinely address the roots of the armed conflict”:
The government peace panels under OPAPP (peace adviser) have wasted an opportunity to sign a peace agreement and have sabotaged the peace process with the NDFP (National Democratic Front) and MILF by employing a flawed framework among others, by arrogantly refusing to honor previous agreements and agreed upon processess, and utilizing the peace processes as a military psy-war arm.
Reese's my random thoughts… observes that President Aquino's “all-out justice” is really no different from “all-out war”:
PNoy authorized the AFP to bomb MILF camps in Zamboanga Sibugay and to undertake intensified ground operations in Basilan and Lanao del Norte in order the flush out the supposed perpetrators of the Basilan and following other attacks attributed to alleged bandits/”rogue” MILF commanders.
Is “all-out justice” means displacement and violations of the rights of 16,000 civilians? Which prior to the Basilan incident there were already 125,000 evacuees in Mindanao because of continuous military operations?
Thoughts from an Insomniac is against the declaration of an all-out war in Mindanao:
To end the peace talks and declare an all-out war against the MILF would mean the waging of a campaign which would not only be based in Basilan, but would also cover areas as far as Lanao del Norte, Sarangani and Davao del Sur…
The blood-thirsty public in the Capital may find it easy to raise their fists in the air and shout “avenge the soldiers.” And they can confidently do these things because their homes are far from the reaches of the MILF's mujaheedin. But how about the people of Mindanao?
Broadcaster Julius Mariveles laments the war mongering prevalent among some sectors in the mass media:
I can only hope that station owners and managers can be more conscientious in arming broadcasters with the necessary tools and skills for them to competently report and dissect issues such as this that are of great national importance.
Failing to do so would only lead to the dumbing down of an audience and justify an all-out war that will be disastrous to the people of Mindanao.
But the most tragic part is the fact that some broadcast journalists who, consciously or unconsciously, support an all-out war in Mindanao have conveniently forgotten the sufferings wrought on the civilian populace in Negros island by the Total War Policy of former President Corazon Aquino.
Raissa Robles calculates the cost of war in Mindanao by recalling former President Joseph Estrada's “all-out war” against the MILF in the year 2000:
During Estrada’s two and a half-year presidency, 471 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels and 222 government soldiers were killed.
We can presume that most of the fatalities occurred during the 2000 All-Out War.
In addition, during the same period, the MILF claimed 92 rebels were injured while the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) reported 270 injured – or 431 injured from both sides of the conflict.
Veteran journalist Carlos Conde writes of the plight of Moro refugees displaced by decades of fighting in Mindanao:
To say that Unsay and his fellow villagers are used to a life of constant displacement is inaccurate. “We are forced to lead this kind of life,” he said. He pointed out that even though they can afford to build concrete houses, many villagers built huts made of grass and bamboo because these “would be burned anyway.”
Dr. Carol Araullo sums up the historical roots of the armed conflict between the Moros and government forces in Mindanao:
There is an ongoing war between the Philippine government and the MILF over the historic demands of the Bangsamoro for the right to self-determination and to their ancestral domain. These inalienable rights of the Moro people have been denied them by the Spanish and American colonialists then by what they call the Manila government post-independence, thus bringing about their marginalization and oppression as a people for centuries up to the present.


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Puerto Rico: Media Coverage of Women’s Basketball Gold Medal · Global Voices
César Santiago

Puerto Rico's Women's National Basketball Team earned its first medal ever [es] in the Pan American Games held recently in Guadalajara, Mexico, after beating Mexico 85-67 in the gold medal match. Blogger and sports journalist Rafael Díaz Torres wrote a noteworthy article in the blog Comentario Deportivo Boricua [es] in which he offers an interesting critique on the mainstream media coverage of this historic event. The moment of the women's team victory is captured in this youtube video posted by user theliontree:
In his post, Rafael states that we must rethink how we think of women athletes in the Island:
Estas 12 mujeres son parte de la bandera deportiva boricua y sus triunfos son tan valiosos como los obtenidos por la versión masculina de la selección nacional de baloncesto. Su victoria debe motivarnos lo suficientemente como para continuar trabajando en favor de derrumbar las barreras deportivas de género. Esa medalla de oro también nos obliga a repensar las formas en que interpretamos, analizamos y cubrimos el deporte femenino.
He remarks on the differences between how the men and women's teams are referred to:
Tenemos la mala de costumbre de utilizar selectivamente la etiqueta de “femenino” para referirnos a los equipos de baloncesto de mujeres. No se hace lo mismo con la versión masculina. Tal forma de expresarnos es injusta ya que al describir a los hombres como “Equipo Nacional” y a las mujeres como “Equipo Nacional Femenino”, damos a entender que el baloncesto es un campo masculino en donde siempre se parte de la premisa de que van a participar solamente varones.
He also criticizes the fact that in the press many women athletes are portrayed as sexy celebrities:
Ser selectivo e incluir fotos de atletas altamente sugestivas y provocadoras (i.e. Fotos de El Nuevo Día sobre Yarleen Santiago en voleibol de playa) debe ser inaceptable en el 2011 y el futuro deportivo inmediato.
Ultimately, he says, women athletes must be celebrated as much as men athletes are:
La emoción que desbordamos por nuestros atletas masculinos debe ser replicada para las mujeres deportistas, quienes con mayores vicisitudes que los hombres, salen al terreno de juego o competencia a representarnos con el mismo amor y tesón.
Raúl Feliciano Ortiz, from Revista Cruce [es] also wrote an article on the subject in which he comments on the coverage of the women's basketball team compared with the men's team.
Y si pensamos en que este equipo logró una hazaña similar a la de la Selección masculina en el 2004 al ganarle, por primera vez, a un equipo de Estados Unidos, vemos que la disparidad en cobertura es abismal. Cuando los hombres le ganaron al Team USA en el 2004, se le dedicaron múltiples noticias, segmentos especiales y hasta posters en la parte de adentro de los periódicos a un equipo que ni siquiera consiguió llegar a las semifinales del torneo olímpico. Las mujeres tuvieron que ganar oro para lograr una cobertura similar y, aun así, me parece que tampoco ha sido igual.
In the end, he wishes that this may only be the first of many medals for the women's team:
Espero que la historia de esa medalla no sea solamente que fue la primera, sino que fue parte de un cambio de visión de mundo en nuestro entorno puertorriqueño. Hay algunos buenos indicios; esperemos que no sea una simple moda. ¡Enhorabuena!

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: César Santiago


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Puerto Rico: Money Bags · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

As police report seizing in excess of $3 million so far this year, Dondequiera says: “All of this money was, without doubt, made from or destined for illegal trafficking. It could have been drugs, but since the black market is so robust in Puerto Rico, it could have been for nearly anything.”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Russia: Bike Lane Parking at Moscow State University · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Village links [ru] to a new Tumblr blog [ru] that posts photos of cars parked in the bike lane at the Moscow State University (MGU) campus. The anonymous blogger introduces [ru] the blog – itsagoddamnbikelane.tumblr.com – this way: “I work at MGU's chemistry department, and I'm proud that a bike lane has been created in front of it. Not everyone shares my joy. Here you will see who exactly does not share it.”

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Russia: “Enough Feeding the Caucasus!” and Debate on Nationalism · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

A Good Treaty writes about the “Enough Feeding the Caucasus!” rally, which took place in Moscow last week, and the ongoing debate on nationalism. In Russia's Far East, the blogger notes, “[…] Enough feeding Moscow! […] and […] Enough paying tribute to Moscow! […] are far timelier slogans for the locals, where as much as 84% of Russia’s oil and gas deposits are located.”


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Russia: Gazeta.ru, Popular Semi-Independent Portal Launches English Version · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

Gazeta.ru, a popular news portal that often publishes quite critical news and op-eds, launches its English version.

author: Alexey Sidorenko


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Russia: Measuring Radiation with a Smartphone · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Profy reports that on Russian scientists’ plans to “manufacture a device that will enable iOS, Android and Windows 7 mobile devices to measure radiation and inform the user of normal or elevated levels.”


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Russia: Navalny’s Leaked Emails · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

A Good Treaty writes about the leaked emails of anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny (RuNet Echo's text on this scandal is here).


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Russia: Orphanage for Disabled Children Promo Clip Featuring U.N.K.L.E. Soundtrack · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

Dmitry Markov, photographer and a civil activist, presents “Volunteers,” a promo clip for the Orphanage for Disabled Children “Rostok.” Dmitry writes [ru] that he had first published a video using U.N.K.L.E.'s (British trip-hop music band) “Restless” track and only then asked for permission. He was both amazed and surprised to receive the band's consent to use the recording.


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Russia: Pavlovo Environmental Catastrophe · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

At OpenDemocracy.net, Roman Yushkov writes about the 1997 ecological disaster in Pavlovo, a village in the oil-rich Perm region, and the local residents’ long fight to get LUKOIL and the local authorities to resettle the village.


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South Korea: Anti-FTA Protesters Hit with Water Cannons · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

A series of protests against Free Trade Agreement with the United States have continued for near a week in South Korean capital, Seoul.  Twitter user @hoongkildong [ko] is among many Twitterers live-tweeting various rallies and he  posted this photo of riot police firing water cannons at protesters.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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South Korea: One out of Eight Pro-NK Sites Operated by Kids · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

Police report revealed people caught for publishing pro-North Korean photos and postings were elementary and middle school students eager to increase traffic  to their websites, ‘Korea and the World’ wrote a commentary on the issue.


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Trinidad & Tobago: Anya Win!  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

An amusing video skit of typical Trinidadian reactions to Anya Ayoung-Chee winning Season 9 of Project Runway, by Kay See Talks.


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Trinidad & Tobago: Towards Civic Journalism · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“I think it’s time to move away from the low standards of citizen journalism to a higher standard of civic journalism”: Gerard Best explains.


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Turkmenistan: Hack heaven · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Neweurasia’s Annasoltan explores the rise of hacking in the Turkmen segment of the world wide web and its particularly Turkmen flavor.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Video: A Day in the Life of a Blind Person · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

Tommy Edison has been blind since birth, and through YouTube videos  he shows us how he deals with certain activities that present challenges to him such as using paper money, ATMs, DVD players and crossing streets. He is also a movie critic and his humorous reviews provide us with a glimpse in how the visually impaired enjoy life.
In his latest video, he shows us how he crosses busy streets: in one case, there's an audible signal that lets him know when it is safe to cross, and in the other case, he has to  figure out traffic patterns through sound, and then attempt to cross in what he describes as a scary experience:
Mr. Edison is also a film critic. He focuses on the characters, dialogues, music and storytelling, and through his telling, he gives us a new perspective on how a blind person perceives such a visual medium. In this video review, there are parts where the screen goes black while the audio continues which really helps the viewer understand how movies play out for the blind. This next video is his spoiler free review of X-Men: First Class.
Tommy Edison usually goes to the movie theater for the films he reviews, but he also watches DVDs at home. However, setting up a DVD player that was sold to him as accessible proves to be a bit more complicated than he thought. Although the DVD player instructions come in a multiplicity of languages, they don't include Braille  so learning to use his new equipment is more than a bit challenging.
This next video shows how, even though technology gets adapted for people with disabilities, efforts fall short of the mark as in the next example of ATM use. If just the technology aspect weren't hard enough, Tommy also has to deal with people's perceptions, as they lose patience because he takes longer to get his money from an automated teller machine designed for people who can see:
And once Tommy has the money in his hand? Things don't get any easier since using paper money requires a whole lot of organization and trust so that people  actually give him the right amount of change since in the US, there is no way for the blind to tell bills apart:
Mr. Edison isn't alone on his endeavor: Ben Churchill produces and directs his videos, and the team is on several social networks interacting with followers:  for example, people have suggested movies for the Blind Film Critic to watch by leaving a  comment on his page.  He is also on different social networks.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Bahamas: Fear of Crime or Denying Kids a Good Time?  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Womanish Words has a message – albeit a late one – for “all you people who say you don't like Halloween so that you can relieve yourselves of the responsibility of contributing to a fun, safe, community, holiday event for children – I say to you: you are the reason Nassau is a scary place to live. You contribute to the darkness.”


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Barbados: No Love for Culture  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Barbados Underground says explains why he thinks that “we are a people devoid of any need to connect to our culture.”


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Catalonia: From Arab Spring To Islamic Autumn  · Global Voices
Norbert Bousigue

Pepe Nieto from SODEPAU, a Catalan international aid organization, published a post entitled: “From the Arab Spring to the Islamic Autumn” [cat]. Nieco forecasts that political Islam will be the great benefactor of the recent events unfolding in the Arab world, after the elections in Tunisia and the statements from the new Libyan leaders. He adds that media should not be surprised by the turn of event given that similar outcomes took place in Algeria, Palestine and Turkey, where repressions never succeeded in stifling Islamic movements.

author: Norbert Bousigue


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Cuba: Bloggers Discuss the Internet “Offline” on Radio Martí · Global Voices
Ellery Roberts Biddle

On September 22, 2011, Radio Martí host Karen Caballero moderated a conversation between City University of New York (CUNY) anthropologist and blogger Ted Henken, several Cuban bloggers including Yoani Sánchez and Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo, and Henken’s students.
This was a unique event for Radio Martí. Funding and oversight for the station come from the Broadcasting Board of Governors, a United States federal agency devoted to broadcasting radio and television in countries where media outlets independent of the state are either scarce or heavily censored. Much of Radio Martí programming is explicitly anti-Castro and supportive of US policy towards Cuba; the station is seen by many as a symbol of the political gridlock that has defined US-Cuba policy for decades.
But this particular program focused on a group of Cubans who do not define themselves as dissidents or advocate for the downfall of the Cuban government: bloggers. The participants discussed the increasing visibility of bloggers and social media in Cuba, and the unique ways that new media is used on the island, where Internet and mobile phone penetration rates are extremely low.
Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo, photographer of the blog Boring Home Utopics, described the Internet “offline” that young, media-savvy Cubans have formed:
Es muy bajo el nivel de conectividad en Cuba… Pero sin embargo hay mecanismo alternativos. Este es Internet “offline,” el Internet sin Internet…circulan las columnas por [el sistema de] los correos electrónicos internos que tiene cuba…Circulan los blogs offline como [en] discos, en CDs, memorias flash, DVD, y entonces de mano a mano esta información pasa…
Sánchez described her “Blogger Academy,” where she teaches friends and acquaintances how to use new media tools that are very new to most Cubans. She described “Saquen el máximo potencial de su móvil” [Get the most out of your mobile phone], a workshop where she teaches participants how to post photos, video, and tweets via SMS.
One of Henken’s students asked Sánchez about her goals as a blogger.
Who do you want your message to reach? The United States, Europe, Asia, or other Cubans? And why spread your message through the Internet when it's very hard to get Internet access in Cuba?
[M]i lector preferido sería el vecino al lado…pero Internet no fue una decisión. Internet era la única posibilidad. […] Llegamos a la conclusión de que nunca nos iban a dar un minuto en la radio, un minuto en la television, ni siquiera unas líneas en la prensa nacional. Entonces tuvimos que usar el Internet como el unico camino ahora mismo de expresión cívica.
Indeed, the Internet is far from “perfect” as a venue for expression and information exchange. For many Cubans, the Internet is still an unknown place, and the very concept of a blog or a Twitter account is difficult to understand. But for Cubans who are able to get online, as well as those who participate in the Internet “offline,” blogs and social networks have opened a space for communication and expression that is completely independent of the state. This is a novel and very powerful thing, and while its social effects may be small and gradual, some bloggers believe that things are beginning to change because of technology on the island.
Cuban poet and author Antonio José Ponte, who also participated in the conversation, supported this idea.
[C]ada vez se hace más visible la informacion—la gente tienen menos temor en informarse ahora. Todo eso se va eliminando a través de nuevos modos de comunicación.
* While this radio program allowed listeners to learn about the unique position of new media in Cuba, the broadcast itself represented a rare encounter within the broader landscape of Cuba-focused media. The second post in this series will feature an interview with Ted Henken, who describes his experience working with Radio Martí, a station which is funded by the US government.
* Photo used for thumbnail by Phil Guest, republished under CC Licence BY-SA 2.0.

author: Ellery Roberts Biddle


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Cuba: Diaspora Discusses New Real Estate Law  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Bloggers, primarily from the Cuban diaspora, are having a field day with news of a new law that will allow Cubans to actually buy and sell real estate legitimately.  While this significant reform has the potential to open up a whole new world to Cubans, who may now leave property to relatives in their wills, many feel that there are still too many restrictions and more importantly, that there are more pressing issues.
El Yuma publishes the official PDF document of the new law, accompanied by this sardonic comment:
Let the games begin!
Laritza Diversent does the same, but reserves comment.
Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter, however, does not hold back, beginning his post by saying:
Without human rights the ‘right’ to buy and sell property is a right to expropriate the poor.
The post continues:
Newsrooms around the world are reporting with great excitement that Cubans will be able for the first time in half a century to buy and sell property. It is being hailed as an expansion of economic freedom. The reality is much more somber. Human rights are non-existent in Cuba. There is a powerful elite known as the nomenklatura that has the power, in practice, to do whatever it wants regardless of the “law.” Property rights are human rights. Human rights are non-existent in Cuba.
The blogger goes on to say:
In reality, property can be taken from one owner and given to another with greater political influence. What has until now been a de facto practice for decades will be given a legal veneer in order to give the rich, powerful and politically connected…in Cuba the right to plunder the island.
Meanwhile, the level of violence against human rights defenders is increasing.
Confirming this claim is Pedazos de La Isla, who publishes first-hand accounts from dissidents who were recently arrested.
Against the backdrop of ongoing arrests like these, Uncommon Sense calls the whole thing a “scam”, saying:
The headlines were buzzing…with reports that the Castro dictatorship was about to start letting Cubans buy and sell property, most of which was stolen by the dictatorship some 50 years ago.
But I had a hard time giving a damn, much less taking the news seriously because I knew that there were again Cubans being beaten, threatened, harassed, arrested, etc. because of their political opposition to the regime. Allowing real estate deals just seems like another way for the regime to hold onto power, and to earn more cash for itself, without changing the fundamental nature of its rule.
He continues:
Whatever the exact numbers [of politically motivated arrests], they reflect the reality of Cuba today much more than a ‘new law’ allowing Cubans to buy property stolen from them with money they don't have.
Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter has the last word, acknowledging that while “changes are taking place in Cuba…it is going from bad to worse”:
Without the rule of law, respect for human rights and escalating violence against nonviolent activists things are bound to get a lot worse.


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Cuba: Sports Showdown at PanAm Games · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Iván García will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Cuban athletes at the upcoming Pan American games, saying that Cuba will have to perform at its very best – especially when it comes to beating Brazil.


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Egypt: Men Should Wear the Veil!  · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.
With Islamists rising in post-revolution Egypt, fear of religious oppression is growing among youth, minorities, and women. Recently, a group of Egyptian women started a Facebook page in Arabic called “Echoing Screams” pointing out sexism in their society and the oppression that might be coming with the expected arrival of Islamists in power. The group has also started an event “Wearing Hijab in solidarity with women” [ar] that had the following description:
The group posted several pictures of men wearing Hijab in the event page, one of which was taken from the campaign that Iranians launched online two years ago in support of a male student who was arrested for dressing up as a woman to escape Tehran, as authorities claimed. Tunisian netizens have also taken part in this event and have commented with laughter on the event's wall, leaving sarcastic comments against the Ennahda party, which won a majority in Tunisia's constituent elections last month, and its head Rached Ghannouchi.
Abdelhadi Ben Seghir commented [fr] on the event with criticism to Ghannouchi:
je suis pour le droit des frérots de porter le hijab.solidarité avec ghanoucha qui préfère le tchadri
Ines Ben Hamida was not optimistic about the event in her comment [fr]:
Les hommes est ce que vous pouvez mettre le voile pour nous je défie que vous seriez minorité minimine malheureusement :(
Facebook user Emad Basta wrote in disagreement on the event's wall:
I cannot agree to this, women should not cover up either, women are not a disgrace they are as equal in rights to any man if not even needing more rights as they are the ones responsible for the reproduction of the human race they are the queens of our world.
People calling for women to cover up are discriminatory and bigoted and should be persecuted, if women were a disgrace, then why were they created this way, this cover up issue is some men's idea of control. A women’s hair is not 3awra, it is beauty, people who want women to cover, are basically unable to control their sexual needs and should be prosecuted as menace to societies.
An Egyptian user called لا للرجعية والتطرف (no to backwardness and extremism) wrote [ar] he was against abusing religion in the name of politics:
Another Egyptian Amre El-Abyad  wrote a comment about the role the Arab Spring should play in empowering women:
Arab Spring should not be about toppling dictators. Democracy starts at the mind level. We have to topple the taboos that are holding back our innovative potentials: patriarchy, misplaced religiosity and sexual obsessions. Hijab is an ancient Semitic custom- experienced at one time by so many cultures. Although it had seemed to be on its way of vanishing in the 20th century, it persisted and has gained wide currency all over the Arab world in our present time. Clearly, an indicator of our dire need to take the revolution up the cultural and mind levels.
The only male to have posted his picture was Magdy Abdelraheem saying he is showing solidarity:
Sa Neb went to discuss [ar] whether Hijab is a religious obligation or not:
This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.

author: Mona Kareem


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Equatorial Guinea: President Appoints Son as Deputy Envoy to UNESCO and the FAO · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

According to  guineequatoriale-info.net [fr],  the President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, has  appointed his son to lead the National  Directorate of the ongoing referendum campaign to create a vice-presidency position. This appointment comes  one week after appointing him as deputy envoy to UNESCO in Paris and to the FAO in Rome.

author: Abdoulaye Bah


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GovCamp Singapore 2011 · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

GovCamp Singapore 2011, which will take place this month, will discuss “how to improve citizen engagement and services using technology” and “will bring together leading thinkers from government,  academia, industry and citizens organizations to share Gov 2.0 initiatives and ideas for Singapore Government transformation.”

author: Mong Palatino


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Jamaica: Space for a New Type of Leader? · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

The Prime Minister's recent resignation has got Jamaica Salt thinking “about if and when the political make up in Jamaica can ever change.”


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Kuwait: Twitter Users Arrested then Released for “Insulting” Amir  · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

Four months ago, state security police in Kuwait arrested two Twitter and a YouTube user. On Thursday November 3, 2011, two Twitter users were called in and detained by the public prosecutor for violating the 54th article of the Kuwaiti constitution which states: “The Amir is the Head of the State. His person is immune and inviolable.”
Within 24 hours, Hamad AlOlayan (@hamadalolayan) and Tariq Al-mutairi (@al_tariq2009) were released. Yet, their cases will continue to be investigated.
Kuwaiti netizens were not happy with the arrests and sent support messages for the two. Many of them were not objecting to the interrogation but to the fact that Hamal AlOlayan was detained before being charged with any violation. Others were trying to show that the the two Twitter users in question did not disrespect the Amir and that what they wrote is open for interpretation.
Hamad AlOlayan, left with his two children and father. Photo by Nusaiba Al Anjeri.
Kuwaiti Blogger Khamis Almutairi (@KhamisAlmutairi) commented on how the process was illegal [ar]:
Then he added [ar]:
Political activist Jassim Al-Qames (@JassimQ) tweeted in criticism of this act as well [ar]:
@JassimQ: It is naive to think that you can arrest an idea, you are only making the person stronger. Unfortunately, instead of fixing our policies, we are hunting down those who criticize, whatever their opinions.
Blogger Shurouq Muzaffar (@ShurouqM) reacted to the arrests news saying [ar]:
Activist and blogger Dhari Al-Jutaili (@Dhari_) has also condemned the arrests [ar]:
Lawyer Bassam Alasousi (@Bassam_Alasousi) criticized the small protest that took place in front of the prime minister's house against the detention of the two Twitter users [ar]:
On the other hand, journalist Mohammad Al-Baghli (@albaghli74) criticized the participation of parliamentarians in sit-ins for the freedom of the Twitter users [ar]:
Meanwhile, Haya Alshatti (@hayaalshatti) was curious to know more about this case [ar]:
Saudi-Kuwaiti tweep (@AwthahAbs) pointed to the power of Twitter [ar]:
After the release of Hamad AlOlayan, activist Khaled Alfedala (@Alfadala) who was detained when the Prime Minister sued him last year, suggested a gesture for the released tweep [ar]:


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Nicaragua: A Preview of the November 6 Election · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Bloggings by boz previews Nicaragua's upcoming elections on Sunday, November 6. He analyzes two important points regarding President Daniel Ortega‘s reelection bid, and lists 7 things to watch for on Sunday.

author: Silvia Viñas


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Pakistan: The ‘Captain’ Makes His Presence Known · Global Voices
Salman Latif

Imran Khan, the former-cricket-star-turned-politician has sent ripples through Pakistan’s political arena with his mega-rally at Lahore, a city considered very significant to Pakistani politics. Sporting well over a crowd of 100,000 people, Khan has swept away all prior analysis of political pundits who are now forced to consider him a serious political contender.
What is most extra-ordinary about this show of power by Kaptaan (‘Captain’, Imran Khan being former captain of the cricket team) is that his rally was an event that brought the urban youth out on the streets, perhaps for the first time in well over two decades and for a political cause. No matter how one views his opinions, nearly all analysts and bloggers were unanimous in their appreciation for the fact that at least someone has finally stirred a sense of political activism among the youth.
Raza Habib Raja, wrote in Pak Tea House:
Imran Khan has been able to galvanize the students and the youth, including those who are often categorized as “Generation X”. Despite having severe disagreement with Imran’s conservative outlook, I could not resist myself from being appreciative of the sight.
And what a sight it was! I will be dishonest if I say that it was not an impressive show. Youngsters, women, children and those who had long become “cynical” were all there. Whether they are backing the right horse is a separate question but the fact is that they were participating. And yes even from the blurry video of YouTube, I could feel what the crowd was feeling in those moments: Hope.
Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman, Imran Khan addresses public gathering. By PPI Images. Copyright Demotix (21/10/11).
Whereas the rightists parties like Jamat-e-Islami seems to be fond of Imran Khan, primarily because of his anti-US rhetoric and his aim of ending the menace of terrorism by having peace talks with Taliban, the liberals have repeatedly and ardently criticized him.
What’s more interesting is that even the liberal coterie in Pakistan seems divided over Imran Khan – some, who have been against Khan so late as a few weeks ago, have shifted sides, taken in by the muscle shown by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Lahore and pinning their hopes on him for a better, more peaceful future.
Yasser Latif Hamdani, a socio-political analyst and a popular name among Pakistan’s netizens, wrote on Twitter:
@theRealYLH: “Pakistan seems like a different country today. In @ImranKhanPTIwe have a leader and an aim. #Jinnah reborn”
Sabahat Zakriya, giving a detailed narrative of the rally, shows how the very environment of the event was enough for her to ‘convert’:
Strings came on for one song to boost sagging morales. Half-way through ‘Mayn tau dekhooN ga’ (‘We shall see’) I fished for the PTI flag someone had thrust in my hand earlier and I had promptly discarded under my chair, and waved it in thumping rhythm to Strings’ lyrics; for that moment one with the crowd and just as starry-eyed and hopeful as them. For who so hard-hearted that can resist the adrenaline-pumped optimism of thousands of people singing along to ‘Woh din phir aae ga jab aisa ho ga Pakistan’, ‘jab roti sasti ho gi aur mehngi ho gi jaan’, ‘jo duur gae thay bhoolay se, lotayN ge phir watan ko aek sham (The day shall come again when thus shall be Pakistan, food will be cheaper and human lives precious, the ones who wandered away, shall return home once again)’ (this last one particularly makes me misty-eyed).
She concludes her note with the following lines:
I came away feeling that Imran's never-say-die philosophy seems to be paying off once again. I made yet another mental note to get my vote registered the next day. If I manage that, I will be voting in the next elections for the first time in my 33 years. And that right there is a victory for Imran Khan.
However, those who still consider Imran Khan as a significant yet ideologically confused candidate have incessantly voiced their opinions too. And the blogosphere seems more fraught with such views given the fact that most netizens leading the digital scene have retained their anti-Imran stance. The major contention is that Imran Khan has openly declared his fondness towards Jamat-e-Islami, a right-wing political party. This, the liberals argue, shows what future policies can be expected of PTI.
Kala Kawa does an excellent post detailing some things which are wrong with PTI and Imran Khan:
Let’s start with Imran Khan’s associates over his political career. General Hamid Gul was an early adopter of Imran Khan. The man incidentally still quite proudly speaks of cobbling together the IJI; so that’s great company for a politician to be in. ….While speaking of Imran Khan’s associates one must never forget the Jamaat-e-Islami. The Jamaat has stood by Imran through thick and thin.
Khan has also been criticized by media personnel and bloggers for his tacit approval of all things military. This, some say, is a glaring proof that he is simply yet another person favored and perpetuated by the military establishment/deep state. In an attempt to balance all things for and against Imran Khan in my blogpost titled “Imran Khan – to vote for or not”, I wrote while highlighting what persuades one to vote for Imran Khan:
On a neutral stand-point, Imran Khan is someone who hasn’t been tested yet. Despite all the talk about Imran Khan being the ‘suicide’ option, even worse than status quo, the fact remains that so far, Imran Khan has never been found involved in any corruption charges. And the feats he has achieved in the past, from leading Pakistan to a run for World Cup to establishing the hospital and a university, all these clearly tell that here is a man who wants a social change and who has tried to bring it as far as he could. So, after all give and take, Imran is still someone who one seeks out as a possibly better option. In short, his past record shows him a man who is honest and incorruptible.
And while presenting the counter-argument:
The worst, of all things leveled against Imran Khan, is his alleged involvement with the deep state or what we know as military establishment. There has been talk of agencies supporting his cause and Imran’s tacit approval of army’s actions since he never talked against the army or it’s exploitations in Pakistan. And this allegation gains much currency when one sees that right now, PTI is only hurting PML-N’s vote-bank, the only party in the political arena who aims to bring army to accountability. Naturally, the logical path for army is to support Kaptaan and that is understandable – but Kaptaan’s support for army is what perplexes many since corruption simply can never be eliminated from Pakistan until army, too, is brought under accountability.
Whereas there certainly are a lot of points of contention when it comes to the Captain and even the moderates may feel uncomfortable at PTI’s expected alliance with JI, the fact remains that Imran Khan has infused a new spirit into Pakistan’s politics – not only has he stirred the youth and won many big scoops in a single shot, his act at Lahore is being deemed as a re-birth of youth-led political activism in Pakistan. And that, everyone agrees, is a very welcome sign.

author: Salman Latif


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Palestine: Israeli Commandos Intercept Gaza-bound Flotilla and Arrest Activists · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Israeli soldiers boarded two ships heading to Gaza earlier today. The Canadian ship Tahrir (Liberation) and Irish Saoirse (Freedom) were en route to Gaza in an attempt to break the Israeli siege on it. Journalists reported on Twitter that naval Israeli commandos intercepted the vessels in international waters, off the Gaza coast, arresting the activists and journalists on board and taking them to the Ashdod port in Israel.
On YouTube, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has released a video entitled IDF Soldiers board the vessels en-route to the Gaza Strip.
The flotilla, named Freedom Waves, was kept under wraps until just before it set off from a Turkish port on its way to Gaza, two days ago. In addition to activists, the two boats which carry humanitarian aid, also has journalists on board.
Journalist Alan Fisher reports:
@AlanFisher: Israeli naval forces board 2 boats heading for #gaza foiling the latest attempt to break the four-year Israeli blockade of the territory.
Fisher continues:
@AlanFisher: The Israeli boarding of the two vessels took place in international waters
Support is also pouring in for Egyptian journalist Lina Attalah, who was on board the Tahrir. Egyptian Amr Gharbeia tweets:
@gharbeia: Thinking of @Linaattalah and all those detained on #freedomwaves boats, now detained by Israel
Mohamed Abdelffath adds:
@mfatta7: Egyptian journalist @Linaattalah who is managing editor of @AlMasryAlYoum_E was on boat Tahrir and now detained by Israel at Asdod port
Salma Said asks:
@salmasaid: What is the egyptian gov going to do about #freelina?
And Tunisian Slim Amamou continues:
@slim404: My friend @linaattalah has been arrested by Israelis during #freedomwaves she's using @alaa avatar in support to #freealaa #freelina
Jordanian Shaden Abu Al-Haijaa appeals to Brazilian cartoonist Carlos Latuff, who has drawn cartoons to support the Palestinian cause and Arab revolutions, for a drawing:
@Shad84: @CarlosLatuff please draw something about #FreedomWaves and detaining activists who were on board! @Linaattalah
Meanwhile, Israeli journalist Joseph Dana sums up today's operation as follows:
@ibnezra: The simple facts of the matter reveal that the Israeli army has illegally taken #FreedomWaves activists to Israel against their will.
He also notes:
@ibnezra: Imagine you wanted to go to Canada & the US navy stopped you, arrested you & then charged you with illegal entry into the US #FreedomWaves
And continues:
@Ibnezra: The Israeli army will take #FreedomWaves activists directly to jail inside Israel, likely to be charged with ‘illegal entry to Israel’
And needless to say, Israel's continuation of its siege on Gaza is not sitting well with Arab netizens.
Roqayah complains:
@iRevolt: The #Gaza Strip is the worlds largest open air prison; Israel has deprived 1.6 million people of their liberty and basic human rights.
For more reactions on the story, check out the hash tag #Freedomwaves on Twitter.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Russia: November 4th – a Day of Marches · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

Ridus.ru, citizen media platform, provides an extensive coverage (photos, reports, streaming videos) of 4 marches: “Russian march” [ru] (anti-government, nationalist; ~6,000 participants), “Russian imperial march” [ru] (pro-government, nationalist; ~300 participants), Anti-fascist march [ru] (anti-nationalism, anti-capitalist; ~200 participants), “United Russia” march dedicated to the Day of Peoples Unity (pro-government, ~10,000 participants). Maya Shelkovnikova, photoreporter from Novosibirsk, posts pictures [ru] from the “Russian march” in her city.


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Russia: Reactions to Arms Smuggler Viktor Bout’s Conviction · Global Voices
Donna Welles

Many citizen media outlets from around the world have captured the controversy surrounding the November 2, 2011, conviction of a Russian man named Viktor Bout by an American jury.
Arms Control Now, the blog associated with the Washington, DC-based Arms Control Association (ACA), an organization founded in 1971 for the purposes of monitoring the world's most dangerous weapons, announced Mr. Bout's conviction:
After two days of deliberations, a New York jury has convicted Russian arms smuggler Viktor Bout on multiple conspiracy charges that could lead to his life imprisonment. Bout was found guilty of conspiring to aid the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist group, providing it with surface-to-air missiles, and conspiring to kill U.S. nationals and officials. A Feb. 8 sentencing has been scheduled by the Southern New York U.S. District Court. Bout’s lawyer has indicated that his client will take further legal means to challenge the verdict.
A website created in Mr. Bout's support offers this view on the convicted arms smuggler's identity:
Viktor Bout extradited to the United States aboard a Drug Enforcement Administration plane on Nov. 16, 2010. Photo by Drug Enforcement Administration (in the public domain).
Victor Bout is a Russian businessman who became one of the world’s famous on the basis of fictitious tales and stories which were generated from one source — a corrupt United Nations contractor who was generously paid for the UN contracts he arranged with the help of others for Victor’s companies, and then became mad for vengeance when Victor refused to continue paying him. All you know about Victor Bout is traceable to Johan Peleman’s report, a report that was written as a novel and made Peleman an expert, a hero, and a very wealthy man. […]
At the heart of the controversy is the notion that although Mr. Bout's activities were international in nature, he was tried by an American jury, and therefore his accusers might have had political motives.
Mr. Bout was not initially arrested in the United States but rather in Thailand. Russia opposed his extradition to the United States from Thailand.
Douglas Farah, a Senior Fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center, announced Mr. Bout's extradition in his August 20, 2010, post:
Well, it is a day I had long predicted would never occur, but I have never been happier to be wrong. A Thai appeals court today ruled the Russian weapons merchant Viktor Bout could be extradited to stand trial in the United States. […]
In her October 31 post on CNN.com's Global Public Square blog, Kathi Austin, a former arms trafficking expert for the United Nations, described her perception of the trial itself, which she had witnessed in person:
[…] Viktor Bout’s defense has been built around the notion that he was conning the undercover DEA operatives, posing as the FARC, about a potential arms deal only because he wanted to sell them a couple of airplanes – ones in his fleet that Bout still had parked in the Congo despite the fact these assets should have been frozen under the current UN sanctions regime.
The U.S. called the aviation witnesses in an effort to provide additional corroboration that Bout had the intent and ability to supply arms as in the past. The prosecution has argued that the airplanes were just part and parcel of the entire package deal, as it would typically be for multi-capacity arms dealers like Bout.
On the surface, the positions of the prosecution and defense may appear to be different. But on closer examination, each point to the same conclusion when it comes to the problematic way arms trafficking networks conduct their murky business by air.
In the wrong hands, as Bout exemplifies, aviation can contribute to a diabolical ecosystem destroying many lives when weapons are illicitly delivered. When it comes to tightening arms brokering controls in the future, this sector must be included. […]
On Twitter, Andrew Osborn, a Moscow correspondent for The Daily Telegraph, posted this ominous appraisal of the trial's outcome:
Viktor Bout's conviction will definitely damage the already faltering reset in relations between the US and Russia #russia #bout
Mr. Osborn also mentioned the reactions inside Russia:
In Russia hardcore nationalists like LDPR leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky regard Viktor Bout as a wronged innocent of the motherland #russia
The Russian daily Izvestia published an opinion piece by businessman and suspected criminal Alimzhan Tokhtakhunov, aka Taiwanchik, who captured a Russian perspective [ru] on Mr. Bout's conviction:
[…] The problem with these kinds of stories is that the United States regularly and harshly blamed our citizens for some incredible crimes, after which it takes a long time to prove one's innocence and clean oneself of negative impact. This means that Americans gain trumps in the political game against Russia, and we have no way to fight it, no recourse. Americans might intervene everywhere, and we, as it turns out, can not adequately respond.
Why can the US authorities arrest a Russian citizen in a third country and extradite him and try him without our intervention? And we do not intervene, because Russia is still in some ways a dependent country. It is difficult for us to utilize strong initiatives to protect our citizens – we want to get into the WTO and to show civilized politics. […]
[…] In this case, time is a doctor. Thanks to our current authorities, the country is growing mightier, and maybe in 5-10 years, in some cases, we'll be able to unzip the fly [on our pants], so to say, and show them.
The publication of Mr. Tokhtakhunov text has surprised and outraged some of the Izvestia readers; below is a selection of their comments [ru].
Elena wrote:
Oh, [Russia has reached a new low] – bandit […] Taiwanchik expresses his “expert opinion.” He unzips his fly – and his mental development becomes obvious right away.
Ilya wrote:
When will this respected publication offer us an expert opinion of another bandit? We, the citizens of the Great Power, are unable to sleep and eat until the thugs teach us how to live.
Lyokha wrote:
We are eagerly awaiting texts by [mobster Aslan Usoyan, aka Grandpa Hassan] and other noteworthy individuals.
Bonzai Aware wrote:
The author of the article features in the film “Thieves by Law,” talking passionately about his career as a thief and about how hard it is to escape [Interpol]. Astra Film 2011 – Thieves by Law – watch it on YouTube. This is definitely someone we shouldn't be defending. We do not need such people.

author: Donna Welles


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Russia/Georgia: The Dilemma of Politics Blogging for Cash · Global Voices
Dmitry Davidov

Paid bloggers and the phenomenon of “shady PR” has become a reality in the Russian online sphere and even received some coverage on a Russian television channel. Global Voices wrote about the issue in detail a year ago – although it seems that prices have increased significantly since then; one can also read about it on other websites (for example here and here).
A recent discussion on the blog of Yuri Yakunin, a writer and popular political blogger in Georgia, shows how tempting accepting money for writing a blog post may be on many levels. Yakunin’s post is interesting because it digs into the ethical aspect of the issue. The discussion reveals why it may be acceptable for some people to take the payment, and it also shows why the refusal to write a paid story can be viewed as stupidity.
“Am I an idiot?”
'Money under the mouse' stock photo from sxc.hu
On October 17, 2011, Yakunin wrote [ru] on his blog:
Сегодня предложили написать статью за …. 300$ : – нужна статья про вашего президента и его министров о том какие они плохие.
The conversation started on Skype when someone named “Sergey” introduced himself as the manger of one of Moscow public relations agencies and made the offer.
Yakunin posted a screenshot [ru] of the chat to prove his words.
“What is in it for you?” Yakunin asked apparently smitten by such a generous proposal.
“I am paid for that”, Sergey explained. “And more than 300 dollars.”
“I see”, Yakuning paused.
“It is just I cannot find a blogger in Georgia”, Sergey seemed frustrated and a little surprised. “Everyone is for Saakahsvili [Georgia’s president].”
“You won’t find any. I am not Saakashvili’s supporter and I can write a lot of things but not for money”, Yakunin replied.
“Am I an idiot [for refusing the offer]?” Yakunin asked his readers. He second-guesses his decision several times in comments referring to his lack of money (he lives on a small pension) and the upcoming birthday of his son who wants a present.
“Write the article,” fellow blogger and reader temur25 replied [ru].
“If you don’t write it, someone else will.”  “You don’t need money?” tipo-graff asked [ru].
“Write it. Everybody wins. You and the manager. And Saakashvilli, I think, will survive it,” Run-if-you-can wrote [ru].
But Yakunin stood by his decision:  “I would [write it]”, Yakunin replied. “But a spoon of s**t in a barrel of honey or a spoon of honey in a barrel of s**t is still s**t. I don’t want my family to smell that.”
“But would there be any lies in the article?” continued run-if-you-can. “I understand you don’t like Saakashvili and you don’t support the official party line. So, what is the problem?”
“I am not talking about lies” explained Yakunin. “One can find in the comments here more than needed for this kind of article but I won’t be writing the TRUTH for money! I would write an advertisement [for money] but not something sacred.”
Tempting reality
It should be noted that many LiveJournal users did support Yakunin in his decision. But the fact that he – one of the best known bloggers in Georgia – feels he needs to explain himself and turns to his online community for support, indicates the climate of insecurity in which many prominent political bloggers in the country live.
Popularity and influence online often leads to “interesting” offers to monetize on the hordes of followers (again, see the Global Voices article mentioned above or confessions by russos here [ru]). The practice amongst Russian bloggers of accusing each other of taking money in return for writing a blog post rarely surprises anyone. One can only guess how many people actually take money without saying anything, or advertising their incorruptibility. Difficult financial situations and the enormous effort needed to attract thousands of blog readers play their role.
As some of the replies to Yakunin's post show, there is an assumption that someone is always willing to take the money  (“If you don’t write it, someone else will”). Unfortunately, the mere expression of a different point of view leads to accusations of being a paid blogger. “They think if you write about someone in a way different from the others, that means you are paid [for your posts],” Yakunin wrote.
Although largely viewed as a platform for expressing opinions silenced  by traditional media, the Internet can easily become a tool for setting  political agendas. But paying bloggers for promoting certain political messages is a slap in the face  of freedom of expression. It is also a dangerous tendency that may well  discredit the very principle of the marketplace of ideas, which in Russia and former Soviet Republic countries is still struggling with the legacy of repressive regimes.

author: Dmitry Davidov


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Singapore: Dengue Alert App · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

x-Dengue is a free public service project in Singapore to “raise the general public’s awareness of dengue clusters, health risks and prevention through location-based, individual SMS and email alerts.”


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Taiwan: Will Taishang be the decisive power of Presidential election? · Global Voices
Portnoy Zheng

On Ballots and Bullets, Chun-Yi Lee brings up the role of “Taishang”(Taiwanese businessmen, especially those who are doing business in China) in the coming joint election of President and legislators next January: “Most Taishang expect the government to negotiate with the Chinese government a better deal for them in more practical terms. For instance, in acquiring loans from local Chinese banks. This kind of practical issue certainly was not included in the grand framework of ECFA, and yet it is greatly needed for most Taishang in China.”

author: Portnoy Zheng


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Tunisia: Netizens Turn to Facebook to Criticise Islamists  · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

This post is part of our special coverage Tunisia Revolution 2011.
The question of the power of Islamic movements has become a hot topic since the so called Arab Spring started in Tunisia last December. Salafis have caused many controversies over the past months in post revolution Tunisia. According to news reports, they have attacked a movie theater for showing a movie by Tunisian female secular filmmaker Nadia El Fani; attacked a university office for refusing to register a woman wearing a Niqab, as rules put by the former regime impose; and they have also burned the house of Nessma TV owner for showing the movie Persepolis, which includes a scene of a girl talking to God.
These actions were used to attack the Ennahda Islamic party, which won 40 per cent of the votes in the recent elections, saying that Islamists in Tunisia want to turn the country into another Taliban-run Afghanistan, Sudan, or Iran. The attacks were seen as Islamophobic reactions, and the image of political Islam by some.
Others found them to be just planned campaigns by competing Tunisian political parties to decrease the popularity of Ennahda. Yet, many of those groups have defended themselves by saying they are of Islamic identity yet they have the desire to protect secular Tunisia.
Tunisian netizens have turned to Facebook to criticise and mock such movements and draw support to Tunisia's secular way of life. One of those most active groups on Facebook is [ar] شماتة في العرب تونس حرة بالحرام ما تقعد حرة which can be translated to English as “Tunisia will stay free whether Arabs like it or not” in reference to the Tunisian mainstream connection made between the Gulf states and their assumed funding for Islamic groups.
In the first picture below, Head of Ennahda party, Rached Al-Ghannouch, has been photoshopped onto the body of former Tunisian President Zein Al Abideen Ben Ali and the caption for this picture puts Ghannouchi reciting the last words of Ben Ali in his famous speech “I finally understood you, people of Tunisia.”
The same group has also posted a song that says “No No No to Muslim Brotherhood“.
Another famous Facebook group that came to light during the revolution called ابتسم كثيراً فأنت لست من سيدي بوزيد  (Smile a lot; you are not from Sidi Bouzid) has also been dedicated with a more moderate approach (as in less sarcasm and insults) against Ennahda saying that letting Islamists rule Tunisia will ruin it and is against the real goal of the revolution.
Here, the group posts a picture of how Tunisia will be represented when Ennahda rules Tunisia:
And in this picture they attack the owner of Hannibal TV Larbi Nasra, who is a relative of Ben Ali's wife, accusing him of supporting the former ruling party, then the revolution, and now Ennahda party, for his own interests.
Another Facebook page entitled أنا مسلم و النهضة لا تمثلني (I am Muslim and Ennahda doesn't represent me) posted a picture comparing Ghannouchi with Iranian head of Islamic revolution Ayatollah Khomeini.
A group called الحركة التونسية لمقاومة المتطرفين و تجار الدين : النهضة ، التحرير (The Tunisian Resistance Movement against Extremists and Religion Traders: Ennahda and Tahrir) pointed out what they described as the anti-freedom practices of Islamists in post revolution Tunisia. In this picture, the page says one of the night clubs announced its decision to shut down as they have been ordered to stop serving alcohol and playing music after 11pm.
One more Facebook page لا للسكوت على تجاوزات النهضة (No to Silence towards Ennahda Excesses) posted many videos criticizing and mocking Ennahda, one of them is for a famous Tunisian YouTube persona called “Jalel Brick” as he addresses the people of Sidibouzid after the clashes they had with Ennahda supporters over the poll results.
And here is another video  that addresses couples saying that Ennahda can get you the money to get married, posted by the same page, to hint that Ennahda buys people by getting them such services. Another page had a different approach by asking for a million signatures against Ennahda to put them on trial, the way the former ruling party is getting trialed after the revolution.
This post is part of our special coverage Tunisia Revolution 2011.


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Ukraine: First Online Political Talk Show  · Global Voices
Tetyana Bohdanova

On Politiko.ua, Serhiy Levytsky posts [ru] an announcement about the second broadcast of the first Ukrainian online political talk show. The show, called  “The Firing Line” [uk], is run in an informal atmosphere from Café de Paris restaurant in Kyiv, and features noteworthy Ukrainian politicians and analysts taking questions from an Internet audience. The first broadcast, aired Sep. 21, gathered nearly 11,500 viewers across the country.

author: Tetyana Bohdanova


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West Papua: Human Rights Issues · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

West Papua Media Alerts summarizes the major human rights issues in West Papua. One issue involved Indonesian security forces which are accused of attacking the strike of mine workers.


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Armenia: Impressions and reflections on Turkey · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Back in Armenia from his motorcycle ride through Turkey, Areg Harutyunyan reflects on the journey and shares his impressions of the country. Despite its political and historical problems with Armenia, the motorcyclist and blogger says Turkey is fascinating, hospitable, complex, and diverse.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Colombia: Top FARC Leader Alfonso Cano Dies · Global Voices
Lully

author: Lully


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Costa Rica: Viral Campaign Says Country is Run by Clowns · Global Voices
Oscar Howell

A viral video has spread in Costa Rica in the first days of November. It seems to be a high budget production that makes a pun out of the country's name, calling it “Costa Risa” (i.e. “Costa Laughs”).
The video, uploaded to YouTube [es] (with 24,000+ views) compares Costa Rica to a circus, where high taxes, corruption and criminals have their way and laugh at the taxpayer and regular citizen. The campaign is seen as a well funded attempt to influence public opinion using social media.
Video screenshot from Amelia Rueda Blog
The government has been working to pass a new fiscal package that has found opposition, especially amongst the private sector. The video, which is released by a group called “República de Costa Risa” [es], is part of a social media and viral communication strategy with webpages, blogs, and Twitter (@RCostaRisa, #costarisa) and Facebook accounts. The group's press communication is signed by Luis Loria, who is a leader of the ANFE [es] (National Association for Economic Promotion), an interest group in Costa Rica.
The video [es] features a circus of sorts called “Costa Risa” and several grotesque clowns that dance and sing to a carnival-like tune. The text of the song claims that the governing class is intended on preserving a status of disorder for their own and their cronies’ benefit:
Costa Risa is my country, and it must be governed like this, theft and poverty a-plenty, a paradise of corruption…
The press release of the “República de Costa Risa” movement [es] communicates that the video and the staged clowns are part of a citizens’ movement to stop the “ransacking” by the government:
La República de Costa Risa es un país ficticio que nace gracias a la iniciativa y apoyo de ciudadanos que rechazan el manejo irresponsable de las finanzas públicas y la intención del Gobierno de Costa Rica de profundizar el saqueo legal de los costarricenses por medio de la aprobación de un nocivo “paquetazo” de impuestos
Blogger Oscar Cruz [es] comments on the big budget necessary to produce the video, and questions its validity as a real product of the concerns of the people. He sees it as a misuse of the values of the country by an interest group that has found common cause with the people, and uses social media to spread a shallow and propagandistic message. The problem is that private capital interests enter the political arena using social media:
Si esto está patrocinado por dinero de conglomerados empresariales es grave; es grave el daño institucional que se hace al imaginario de los costarricenses, de lo que nosotros mismos pensamos de este país. Decir que este país es una payasada de manera tan públicamente publicitaria es un daño increíble a la institucionalidad.
He adds:
[…] esto es incitantemente absurdo, esto busca claramente la empatía del pueblo para amasar una bola de nieve popular que cuestione, que se rebele – […] esto es la viralidad per sé y ese es un objetivo fútil.
José Medrano, founder of Ticoblogger.org, the service that hosts the Costa Risa page, writes in his personal blog [es] that every user may publish any content, without censorship, and that the distribution of content must be open to all, of course excepting Ticoblogger of endorsing any content of the service.
La capacidad de burlarse de sí mismo, o en el caso en especifico de la propia nación, denotan seguridad por sus sentimientos hacia sí mismos o hacia la patria, por lo cual siempre que se busque un efecto positivo en la sociedad debería verse con buenos ojos […] por lo cual muchos en vez de sentirse ofendidos por ser caricaturizados en esta realidad costarrisible, deberíamos tomar alguna acción, aunque sea fiscalizando el actuar político mediante blogs.
He goes on to remark:
Me parece que si estas en contra de los impuestos la campaña te llama a la acción, y en un caso especifico e innovador, te brinda la posibilidad de mediante su página web, hacerle llegar por correo inmediatamente a todos los diputados en tiempo real, por lo que es una excelente oportunidad para hacernos sentir, eso si, de manera respetuosa.
Photo of the circus act, from the Facebook account of ANFE
All the while, the Facebook page of the ANFE [es], the organization behind the social media campaign, contains a post [es] comparing the use of the video to a strategy of using representation to unmask the powerful:
El organizar una obra de teatro (un espectáculo musical de Circo, en el caso de la “República de Costa Risa”), que refleje las sospechas de la gente, es un recurso muy válido para descubrir si estas tienen fundamento. Eso es, precisamente, lo que hizo, hace unos 400 años, Shakespeare con “La Muerte de Gonzago”, en Hamlet, para desenmascarar a Claudio.
In a world where activism has merged with social media, all the players involved have a shot at using the medium in the best way possible. Citizen journalists, bloggers, mass media, political parties and politicians, private companies and intellectuals, governments democratic or other: all compete for the same trickle of relevance and impact in cyberspace.
If a group has greater resources at disposal, it does not mean that the virality and vitality of its message is greater. What counts, at the end of the day, is the sense of urgency of the dwellers of a new public sphere that has its own rules of leverage.

author: Oscar Howell


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Greece: The Prime Minister at Cannes, A Referendum And The 6th Tranche · Global Voices
Veroniki Bacharidi-Krikoni

Greek PM George Papandreou at the G20 Summit in Cannes. Photo by Flickr user francediplomatie (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Greek PM Giorgos Papandreou attended the G20 summit at Cannes to negotiate the upcoming 6th tranche of the bailout fund for the Greek economy, as well as the referendum he had announced.
French PM Sarkozy and German Chancellor Merkel stated [el] that “the Greek referendum must address the question of whether Greece wants to remain in the Eurozone or not”, while the deadline was set [el] for December 4th. German chancellor Merkel declared that “the 6th tranche will not be disbursed if Greece does not respect the October deal.”
The official Twitter account of the Greek PM announced [el]:
We are members of the Eurozone, we have rights and obligations. The Greek people possesses the wisdom to make the right decisions http://t.co/wH4Ptcnf
Returning from Cannes on November 3rd, Greek VIce President and Finance Minister, Evangelos Venizelos, made a statement at 5am. Among other things, he declared [el]:
Greece's position in the Eurozone is an undeniable historic achievement of the country. This achievement of the Greek people cannot depend on a referendum.
[…]
Political correlations within the country and future of political individuals and parties are not important; what is important is the country's rescue and recovery through the only feasible procedure included in the decision made on October 26th.
Since last night, Internet reactions were immediate and various, mainly in Twitter.
Dr Teddy commented [el] on the announcement time by Venizelos:
@doctor_teddy: Venizelos made an announcement at 5 a.m. in the morning??!! While you were sleeping…that's what it means…
Nikos from France says [fr]:
@smykos: Merkozy (Merkel and Sarkozy) decide which question will be included in Greek referendum: yes/no to euro. Gift: 8 million euros cheque for the right answer
While he adds [fr] his opinion:
@smykos: Papandreou enjoys his last hours as PM. The referendum killed him
Panagiotis Vryonis highlights [el] that the country has reached a dead-end and lacks alternative choices:
@vrypan: Merkel announcements made clear what many people found difficult to see or say: we don't have much choices. Let's choose Yes or No.
While Magica from Thessaloniki criticizes [el] the match between euro and Papandreou government:
@magicasland: that's what it means “we were caught asleep”. while Greece was sleeping, GAP [short for George A. Papandreou] decided that we must see his face every day in order to still have euro [as currency].
And she concludes [el]:
@vrypan this is not a referendum, it's pure extortion
Cyberela wonders [el] how IMF can express its opinion about a Greek state's case:
@Cyberela: IMF demands that the referendum question must be this. IMF has sovereign rights over our country without any parliamentary seat.
N. Sfikas poses [el] the “true dilemma” of the referendum:
do you want to live as a slave with 300€ or as a free man with 300 drachmas?
Stratos from Athens criticizes [el] all those that declare to be deceived and victims of the previous notorious PM statement that “Money exist”:
@stratosathens: Whoever says he got deceived from “Money exist” statement, don't dare to say tomorrow you got deceived by “I will re-negotiate”. Read the translation.
Giorgos Panagopoulos displays [el] another different perspective [el], in case Greece exits Eurozone and returns to drachma:
@georgethebeast ok, let's go with drachma…for internal market, it will do only good, because you won't be able to import like a crazy one any more…
Because Greece indeed ended to import even LEMONS from other countries…I didn't see you protest that time…just an example
SotoMi wonders [el] about the government:
@sotomi: perhaps we should stay without government for a while? Like in Belgium? #xeirotera_apokleietai [“as worse as it gets”]
Users Dr. Reason and Anemos Naftilos conclude [el], with Dr. Reason a bit more cynical [el]:
@AnemosNaftilos: Throughout the post-war history of the country, there hasn't been such an extortion and such a devastated dignity for Greece ever before
@DoctorReason: Fortunately I don't have any motherland to feel humiliated by.

author: Veroniki Bacharidi-Krikoni


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Japan: Design Week in Tokyo · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

The annual Design Week in Tokyo is here – online magazine greenz [ja] is covering the trade show Tokyo Designers Week while Spoon and Tamago showcases exhibits from DesignTide Tokyo.

author: Tomomi Sasaki


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Japan: Hook based solutions around the city · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Chris Berthelsen's visual collection of “hook based solutions” for storage and barriers around suburban Tokyo has reached the 10th mark.


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Japan’s IT Exodus: A Personal Perspective (Part 2) · Global Voices
Chris Salzberg

Why are Japanese companies losing their programming talent? There are no lack of discussions on the topic, but far fewer first-person perspectives. Blogger/programmer Ryo Asai (@ryoasai74) and his blog “Becoming a Master Programmer” provide one. After working for seven years at a Japanese IT company in the system integration sector, Asai recently decided to apply for a position at Amazon Japan, and got the job.
In this article, I'll be translating a blog post by Asai titled “What I noticed about the differences between Waterfall and Agile programming approaches after changing jobs” [jp] (転職して感じたウォーターフォール文化とアジャイル文化の違いについて). For background on why Asai decided to quit his previous job, see Part 1 of this series.
Bookshelf photo by Flickr user Roo Reynolds
Asai begins the post with a run-down of the challenges he's faced so far at his new workplace:
やはり、自分としては、外資系の会社で英語でのコミュニケーションが必要となるということが、最も気がかりなことでした。実際、初日の歓迎ランチはいきなり名前もわからない多くの外国人に囲まれる状況でしたし、電話会議を使って中国やアメリカのチームと一緒に行う日々の進捗ミーティングも英語で行われています。自分としては、特に、リスニングが 苦手ということもあり、いまだに完全に会話についていくのが困難なところはありますが、同僚やマネージャーもみんなすごく親切に教えてくれるので安心しました。私は新しい環境に慣れるのに結構時間がかかる方なので、まだまだ完全に新しい職場の文化に適応するというところまではいかないのですが、徐々に仕事のやり方を覚えて、チームの一員として頼られる存在となれるよう努力していきたいですね。
ということで、実はまだ新しい会社の文化を完全に理解したという段階ではないのですが、それでも以前私が働いていたSI業界の文化とアジャイルな考え方が尊重されるグローバル企業とでは、やはり大きな違いがあるなということは、実際にはっきりと感じられますね。
This agile approach to software development also required some adjustment:
まず、第一に大きく違うと思ったのは、会社の売上や利益に直接つながる、ビジネスの中心に近いところに開発チームが置かれていて、当然プログラマーはプロダクトオーナーなどビジネス担当の人と密接にやり取りをしながら開発を進めるというところがありますね。ビジネス担当の人とプログラマーが同じ部屋で作業をするということはもちろん、たとえば「この項目を外すとプログラムはすごくシンプルになるし、顧客にとっても画面がすっきりしてメリットがあると思いますが。」といったような提案をプログラマーからすると、あっさり認められて翌月のリリースに変更を反映するといったことが日常に行われています。
少しでも使いやすいシステムの開発に貢献することで、売上に貢献するのだというモチベーションも湧きます。ウォーターフォールが中心のSI業界のやり方だと、項目の追加はまだしも削除などと言うことを提案しても、稟議書などを上げて何階層にもわたった承認が必要で、何週間、何か月も待つといったことは普通だと思います。そのような状況があるので、PGの側でもよいアイデアがあっても、わざわざ提案しようという気にはならないし、逆に、仕様書に書かれていることのみを実装して、余程の問題がない限りそれ以上のことはやらないという傾向が強くなってしまうところがあると思います。
それから、チームのサイズが小さくて、業務担当の人とプログラマーが直接会話できる距離にあるため、作成する文書は非常に少ないというところがあります。これはもちろんチームによると思いますが、開発後に説明のためWikiに情報を書くということはあっても実装前にWordやExcelの文書を作成するということはめったにないですし、作業時間の大半はEmacs、Vim、Eclipseといったツールを立ち上げてのコーディング、単体テストの 作業が中心となります。以前は自分自身がコードを書くといった作業にあてられる時間は、全体のプロジェクトの中ではせいぜい10%程度でしたので、そこは 大きな違いだと感じています。逆に言うと、自分の英語力のなさから、口頭で英語で説明を受けても理解しにくいというところがあり、時としてきちんと書かれた仕様書が恋しくなる時もあるわけですが、そこは文化の違いですね。
The business model at Amazon is also different to his previous workplace:
さらに、B2Cでどんどん新しい機能をリリースしていくという環境では、システム全体を何年もかけて作り直すという機会はほとんどありません。むしろ、細かい機能改善やバグフィックスを行うというプレッシャーが常にあり、その中で空き時間を見つけてリファクタリングを繰り返すという方向になります。
そういう意味では、SIerのように新システムの開発をゼロから行うという機会はめったにありません。だから、常に最新の言語やフレームワークでなくては嫌な人には向いていないかもしれません。一方、SIerの場合は自分のシステムを維持管理するという機会は少ないのですから、むしろ、最新の最良の開発手法を取り込めばすごく面白い仕事ができるのに、実際には古いフレームワークを使い続けているケースが多いというのは残念なことですね。
Asai's earlier blog entry discussed the so-called “retirement age” of 35 imposed on programmers in Japan. But Amazon has no such retirement age:
なお、気にしていた自分の年齢ですが、やはり、グローバルな会社では35歳定年などということは全くないですね。今の会社の場合は全くの新卒というよりも、ある程度経験を積んだ人を中心に採用しているようなので、プログラマーとして自分くらいの年齢でも結構普通みたいです。実際、おじさんというレベルを超えて、そろそろ孫がいても不思議でない、おじいさんという感じの年齢の現役プログラマーもたくさん活躍しています。もちろん、年齢というよりはスキルによってポジションが決まるので、年齢が下の人がより上級のプログラマーということも普通にあり得ます。（おじさんと書きましたが、もちろん、グローバルには女性のプログラマーもたくさんいます。）
In bookmark comments, responses to the post were positive:
megascus:
改善ができるというのは素晴らしい。
mongolianpunch:
楽しそうだなー
For those who were already thinking of changing jobs, the post was a useful reference point. allargand writes:
グローバル企業への転職を検討しているところだったので、非常に参考になりました。
And kingyodojo, perhaps hinting at a trend:
読んだら今の仕事を続けていていいのか疑問を持った。
For more on Asai's perspective on Japan's IT industry, see also a comment he posted on the first article in this series.

author: Chris Salzberg


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Madagascar: Illicit Sale of Drugs On the Rise · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Baovola Rajaosafara, president of the National Committee to Fight against the Illicit Sale of Drugs ( CNLCMIM in French),  declares that it is too costly and inefficient to arrest illegal sellers of drugs and that they will strive to increase awareness in the general population instead [fr]. Purchasing drugs at illicit selling points is on the rise because the majority of the population cannot afford the current selling prices at pharmacies and hospitals.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Africa: An African Voice Telling the African Story · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Africa: What’s Your Story? is the latest A24 Media project that seeks to highlight the common problems that the people of Africa share, and also promote transparency and accountability. Through an interactive online social forum, Africa: What's Your Story? gives Africans the opportunity to unite in empathy for each other as they share ideas and solutions to their problems. In addition, the project gives Africans a platform to tell their stories to the rest of the world.
In this interview, Asif Sheikh, the CEO and co-Founder of A24 Media, talks to Global Voices Online about the project.
Ndesanjo Macha (NM): Call you briefly tell us about yourself?
Asif Sheikh (AS): I am 5th generation Kenyan, but was away for 20 years. This is my first investment in media but I have a background in business for many years.
Asif Sheikh, the CEO and co-Founder of A24 Media
NM: What exactly is “Africa: What’s Your Story?”
AS: Africa: What’s Your Story? is a user-generated platform that seeks to promote transparency in Africa and hold individuals and organizations accountable for their actions.
NM: How did the idea come up?
AS: It started with the premise that Africa is growing both with people and countries. We now have 55 countries in Africa. We share a common name: AFRICANS. But the reality is that we have no clue about each other on many aspects from culture to food to politics etc. What we wanted to do is get Africans to start talking to each other and get a better understanding of one another. In order for us to do this we had to find a common thread, what links us as a continent and as a people. What we came up with is that we share the same PROBLEMS. We then had to categorize what those problems were based on what data was available. This how we came up with Africa: What's Your Story?
So the idea is to highlight the problems we all share and to try and get Africans to understand more and to come and share and communicate their issues in their respective countries. In India, for example, it is one country and their are institutions where this information can go. As you know in Africa there is none and there is no place for someone to just share their story and get heard.
Africans: What is your story?
NM: So how exactly are you trying to get African voices and stories heard?
AS: Obviously we are using our own platform to showcase and if we can have a snowball effect it will have millions of Africans sharing and accessing each others’ information. Through this alone we hope we can achieve some form of problem solving. A Ghanaian can say I had this health issue and this is what helped me or what made it worse. A Kenyan can see this story and not go down the same route.
But as you know, our philosophy with our whole model is that Africa needs to stop taking handouts as AID in its conventional model does not work in Africa. Look at the famine going on right now. This is 25 years after famine in Ethiopia. So we want to take the content side of those citizens sending their stories and to try to use our media mighty which now has over 5000 broadcasters to showcase our issues and help citizens get some form of revenue. It is our version of citizen journalism.
The official logo of Africa: What's Your Story?
NM: Do you have an example of how this model will work?
AS: Let me give you a live example. Just a few days ago we got a picture from Nigeria showing a policeman getting bribed. We are now using that picture and asking for others from other countries in Africa if they have a similar story. We then pick the best 5, use the resources we have as we are now producing our own shows with AFRICA JOURNAL for Reuters and glue together a 3-5 minute story on corruption on Africa's police force. Nobody is doing Pan African stories this way. We believe this story will sell, and we will then give revenue to those 5 citizens.
Generally, all content that comes in is looked at by our editorial department, then content that is sellable is packaged and marketed to our vast database of media outlets. The citizen reporter will get revenue share on any that sales.
NM: I understand that one of the aims of your project is to get Africans to start talking to one another. There are 55 countries in Africa using different languages, how are you going to overcome linguistic barriers since your content is currently in English?
AS: We are starting with English and as the demand increases as is with our whole site and model we will slowly integrate other languages. We are looking at French, Swahili and Arabic.
Video below: Africa: Whats Your story ? ‘An African Voice Telling the African Story’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kELpOGQtYgM
NM: Do you also intend to use the platform as a space for citizens to talk to their leaders and policy-makers? If yes, how would you do it?
AS: It is a space for ALL Africans to talk about what is important to them and with the hope that other Africans will then react and interact.
NM: Is there a common theme that will motivate Africans to talk to one another?
AS: Yes, there is and it is that we share the same problems.
NM: What type of content do you accept?
AS: We accept text, audio, videos and photos.
NM: Who are the people running the project at the moment?
AS: All is done by A24 media with partners supporting us with data.
NM: Apart from What’s Your Story website,  what other social media tools do you use to push your content online?
AS: We are using as much social media as we can such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
NM: What are the main issues that you would like to see citizens talking about on “What’s Your Story?” website?
AS: Our problems: corruption, health, education and governance.
Video below: Farah Chaudhry, the head of marketing at A24 Media on the launch of Africa: What's Your Story?:
NM: What has the project achieved so far?
AS: So far we have made progress in several aspects.
We think we are onto something big. But with initiatives like this we need help. Thank you.

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Bahrain: Reports of Military Personnel Tortured, Imprisoned, and Killed by Regime · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

This post is part of our special coverage Bahrain Protests 2011.
Release our activists, release our students, release our medics, release our women, release our teachers, and now release our military personnel. All of these are Twitter campaigns that Bahraini netizens have been pushing for to create awareness about the different segments targeted by the Bahraini regime since protests started on February 14.
Activists say there are scores of military and police personnel who have been arrested and trialed in military courts during the unrest for refusing to shoot protesters, sending text messages, attending funerals, protesting, or just for being members of the Shia'a sect. The sentences they have received vary between 1-12 years.
Activists insist they have not had fair trials, just like the rest of those prosecuted in Bahrain since pro-democracy protests shook the nation. They add that the military personnel, who work for the defense and interior ministries, were also not able to appeal their sentences and that the media has unfortunately neglected their cause, especially with the lack of information about their cases.
Free Ali Al-Ghanmi (who refused to shoot protesters) by Twitter user @HoPeGlObE
On Twitter, activist Hadeel Kamalaldin (@hadeeloosh) asked people to use the hashtag #FreeMilitary to demand the release of soldiers and to tweet their names and details of their cases [ar]:
شاركوا معنا اليوم في حملة التغريدات حول العسكريين من الثالثة وحتى السابعة مساء باستخدام هذا الهاش تاغ #FreeMilitary
The campaign encouraged many to share their stories and experiences. @adharinews tweeted about two cases:
@aljamsee tweeted about yet another case:
@al3abas tweeted about her own brother:
Khalaf (@wald_khalaf) posted several tweets under the campaign's hashtag:
(@Fa6ima_) wrote about another case:
Om Mujtaba (@OmMujtaba2005) brought up the issue of sectarianism in the army:
اخي المغرد,أتعلم ان ابناء الطائفة الشيعية محرومون من الخدمة العسكرية منذ عقود,هل تعلم ان البلاد محرومة من اوفياءهم؟تمييزا ضدهم
Sayed Jalal Mohammed (@Sayed_Jalal) tweeted about one of the policemen and the treatment the imprisoned soldiers receive:
Hadeel Kamalaldin noted the case of a Pakistani soldier:
الحرية للعسكري الباكستاني نجم المحكوم بسنتين و بالابعاد عن البلاد لأنه رفض ما يحدث من قمع للمتظاهرين
Hussain Al-Aali (@alaali_hussain) spoke about a personal incident:
@Dwarseeker wrote about the case Abdulhadi Al-Araadi:
Abdulla Abuidrees (@aabuidrees) is one the military personnel who were jailed and he tweeted how his imprisoned colleagues were treated:
According to (@iGulfObserver) there are soldiers who were killed during the uprising. Here, he tweets about two of them, including their pictures [WARNING: GRAPHIC PICTURES]:
الشهيد العسكري عبد العزيز عياد:انقطعت اخباره من تاريخ13مارس وتم تسلييمه لأهله جثة بتاريخ 24مارس http://t.co/cGU2D5Aa
This post is part of our special coverage Bahrain Protests 2011.

author: Mona Kareem


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Egypt: All Set for Parliamentary Elections 2011 · Global Voices
Tarek Amr

This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.
The parliamentary elections in Egypt are just around the corner. Beside it being the first parliament to be elected after the fall of Hosni Mubarak, this parliament will also be responsible for appointing the committee that will draft the country's new constitution which in turn will pave the way to the presidential elections later on.
The Election law
The People Council's (Lower House) elections will start on Monday, November 28, 2011, and will be in three stages – each for a number of the Egyptian governorates, with dates for second rounds of voting in case none of the candidates in a certain district receives the required number of votes.
The three stages and their second rounds will end on January 10, 2012, as shown in the table below and the results are expected to be out on January 13. Meanwhile, the Shura (consultative) Council (Upper House) elections (Upper House) will start on January 29.
Egyptian elections timetable
The distribution of the seats in the parliament are a bit complicated and that's why on the official website of the parliamentary elections they added a special FAQ page, in order to help people understand the complex election system they are about to participate in.
The site notes [ar]:
During the previous decades, dictatorship and the centralization of the government in Egypt prevented the MPs (Members of Parliament) from fulfilling their actual role in the political system and created a huge confusion among many Egyptians who cannot really differentiate between the role of an MP and that of a member of a local council.
Alex News tried to clarify such difference here [ar]:
According to a poll made by the Center for Socialist Studies, some Egyptians do not trust the election results. However, they are still going to vote. Meanwhile, some others are calling for boycotting the elections in disagreement with the way the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) is handling the transitional period in the country.
Egyptians abroad
With an estimate of 8 million Egyptians living abroad, there has been many discussions about their right to vote. The current transnational regime has been claiming that have no problem with the Egyptian diaspora voting. However, they do not have the appropriate facilities and means to achieve this. Recently, an Egyptian court ruled that Egyptians living abroad should be allowed to vote at embassies in upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections. Since then, it is not clear whether they will finally be allowed to vote or not.
Election monitoring
Meanwhile, many non-governmental initiatives are being formed in order to monitor the elections. U-shahid, or You Witness, is an Ushahidi-based interactive map for monitoring any violations regarding the electoral process. They have previous experiences in monitoring the previous parliamentary elections in 2010 and the the referendum the took place in March as well.
Another initiative is called Haraket Morakba (Monitoring Movement),  who are looking for volunteers to join them:
@FouadZayed: If you are interested in volunteering to monitor the upcoming elections kindly check out this account @moorakpa #Egypt #EgyElections #EgElec
Campaigns
And finally, most of the candidates now have started their campaigns all over the country, and according to the law a campaign can go on for until two days before voting starts. Since then, we have witnessed controversial and funny banners, like the one of El-Nour (The Light) Salafi Party that decided to replace the photographs of women  in their banners with a flower.
Sameh Hanafy mocked the banner here.
Also, another banner featured one of the candidates talking to himself.
This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.

author: Tarek Amr


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Japan: Using videos to explain basics of nuclear power · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

MOJO [ja] creates 2-3 minute videos that explain the basics of radioactivity monitoring and decontamination, via conversations between illustrated characters and interviews with officials and experts. Their most recent video [ja] answers the question, “What is decontamination?”.


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Sri Lanka: Isso Wade And Ulundu Wade · Global Voices
Rezwan

Rice & Curry, a Sri Lankan food blog, introduces us to two of the quintessential Sri Lankan street foods – Isso (prawn) wade and ulundu wade (savory donuts).

author: Rezwan


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Caribbean: the meaning of identity · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

Creative Commess hosts a blog symposium “about Caribbean people, about West Indian people, about our contemporary  experiences … ranging through race & identity to culture, mental  health to constructs of beauty and more,” with contributions from seven Caribbean bloggers.

author: Nicholas Laughlin


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China: Appeal to Richard Branson · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

A petition calling for Richard Branson, the founder of the 400-company Virgin Group, to call for the release of blind Chinese Lawyer Chen Guangcheng.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Cuba: speaking to La Joven Cuba · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

Along the Malecón interviews Harold Cárdenas and Roberto González, co-founders of La Joven Cuba, a blog based in Matanzas.


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Guatemala: Controversial General Elected President · Global Voices
Renata Avila

School of the Americas alumni and retired General Otto Perez Molina is the elected President of Guatemala after a tight and highly polarized election, where a large percentage of voters abstained or voted blank. Also, for the first time in Guatemalan history, a woman, Roxana Baldetti [es] – currently a member of the Guatemalan Congress and a public relations expert – was elected vice-president.
Election results were close with an evident advantage in urban areas for the elected  candidate, a very different result from the past election when rural voters elected the social democrat President Alvaro Colom.
Presidential elections were peaceful but tense. Apart from isolated incidents involving irregularities with votes, especially with the transport of voters in rural or marginal areas, few violent incidents and murders were reported in the Ushahidi platform Mirador Electoral [es].
Otto Pérez Molina -Picture by Flickr user Lestermosh under an Attribution 2.0 Generic license (CC BY 2.0).
Bloggers like Luis Figueroa were inviting others to vote [es] from early in the morning.
Others were very disappointed as both candidates did not meet their expectations, and decided to express why they would not vote and the dark perspectives they have for the future of the country, like Fe de Rata [es] and Hunahpu Ixbalanque [es] expressed in their blogs and many others commented on different social networks.
Iván Morales (@ivancarrera) in his blog PoliticaGT points out in his article: “If they are there it is because they represent someone” [es]:
Después de conocerse los resultados de la  primera ronda y hasta el día de hoy ha prevalecido un sentimiento de  apatía y frustración por el hecho de que los votantes deben elegir entre  dos candidatos que no los representan y por tener que verse obligados a  votar por el “menor de los males”. Por otro lado, trato de recordarme a mi  mismo que los guatemaltecos que participan en las redes sociales no son  el universo de la población del país, sino una muestra pequeña y poco  representantiva de la diversidad poblacional que es Guatemala.
Amazingly, it seems that the samples from social networks were accurate, at least in the city. Voters interviewed by Plaza Publica in an urban area of Guatemala said they were very skeptical [es] of the future of  the country and the change any elected president can bring.
Since the ruling party did not present a candidate for president after former first Lady Sandra Torres Casanova was banned by the Constitutional Court to take part on the electoral process, the two parties which disputed the presidential seat were right-wing and very similar, promoting strong fist policies, militarization, benefits for foreign investors, and replicating the errors of the state sponsored assistance programs.
The elected president was a member of the Guatemalan Army, an institution with a vast record of human rights abuses; he served in one of the areas most affected by torture, murder, and massacres of indigenous peoples. During his presidency, high rank officers will be prosecuted for genocide and crimes against humanity, as Global Voices recently reported.
You can follow the conversation about the elections by browsing the hashtag #eleccionesgt. Reactions from Guatemalan citizens and from people all over the world are expected today and tomorrow. There is hope that the situation will remain as peaceful as it it now, a sign of mature and responsible democracy and citizenry.

author: Renata Avila


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Indonesia: Journalism and Religious Violence · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Indonesia Matters links to an article by journalist Andreas Harsono who wrote about the tendency of Muslim journalists in Indonesia to “cover up or distort stories of religious violence against the minorities” in the country.

author: Mong Palatino


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Indonesia: Komodo and New 7 Wonders of Nature Competition · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Fika Fawzia summarizes the issue surrounding the withdrawal of the Indonesian government from the New 7 Wonders of Nature competition. Indonesia's Komodo Island is a finalist in the competition


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Jamaica: perspective on Indian literature · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

Jamaica-based Annie Paul’s post on a recent visit to Delhi offers snapshots of two new books by Indian writers.


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Japan: A new type of capsule hotel · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Fumiko Ichikawa documents her stay in a pod at the capsule hotel “Nine Hours” with a photo report.


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Japan: Liveblogging “1Q84” · Global Voices
Tomomi Sasaki

Daniel Morales has liveblogged his experience of reading the English translation of Haruki Murakami's book, “1Q84″, from a Friday morning to Saturday afternoon.


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Nicaragua: Citizens Report on Elections via #votonica · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Presidential elections were held on Sunday, November 6 in Nicaragua. Through #votonica [es] and a Ushahidi-powered map [es], citizens have been reporting on the electoral process since October 21, 2011, and will continue until January 10, 2012, when President Daniel Ortega is expected to begin his third term.

author: Silvia Viñas


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Puerto Rico: ideas are just the start · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

“It's great to give everyone the opportunity to voice their concerns, but ideas are the easy part…. We can do anything, as long as we are willing to accept the sacrifices and consequences that result from our conviction.” Dondequiera reflects on the public forums hosted by the Puerto Rican civil society group Citizens Agenda.


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Russia: Celebration of Eid al-Adha in Saint Petersburg · Global Voices
Ekaterina

Mr7.ru writes [ru] about the Eid al-Adha celebration by Muslims living in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg. The site writes that up to 80,000 people took part in the celebration according to different sources, quoting Shamil Mugattarov, the head of Coordination Council of Muslims in Saint Petersburg, as complaining about “the lack of infrastructure for Muslim worshipers in the city”. Photographer Sergei Chernov publishes the pictures he took during the celebration.

author: Ekaterina


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Russia: Hidden Political Messages in Well-Done YouTube Videos · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

RuNet witnesses a new competition of high quality YouTube videos. The first video [ru] is called “Half-Dead Bloggers in DeadJournal” and mocks top-bloggers exposing them as neo-Nazis, drug addicts, unstable personalities, etc. The other video [ru] made by popular illustrator Zhgun, on the contrary, tells that unless you want to stay in ‘crappy Russia,’ (with the current politicians) you should join “F…ng awesome Russia” (#охуеннаяроссия) [ru] and that the blogger celebrities are already there.

author: Alexey Sidorenko


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Russia/Azerbaijan: Azerbaijan Airlines Refuse to Check-In Russian Citizen with Armenian Surname · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

LJ-user dimulenka re-publishes [ru] the closed post [ru] of Sergey Gurdzian, “Avtovaz” export director, who writes about a case of ethnic discrimination by Azerbaijan Airlines. Airline representative at the Domodedovo airport refused to check-in Gurdzian on the flight to Baku referring to his Armenian surname and some ‘security instructions.’


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Slutwalk Singapore · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

A Slutwalk event is scheduled to take place in Singapore next month. Slutwalks are organized to protest sexual violence and victim blaming in rape cases


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Trinidad and Tobago: animated voices · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

ban-d-wagonist posts a video clip in which Trinidadian artist James Hackett interviews participants in the just-concluded Anime Caribe animation festival in Port of Spain.


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Uruguay’s Unemployed Youth  · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Denisse Gelber in the blog Reasons and people: rethinking Uruguay [es] writes about youth unemployment, presenting the stories of two young Uruguayans from different socioeconomic backgrounds but with the same problem: a lack of employment opportunities in their chosen field.