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Distribution of SMS Printers in Cameroon to Reduce Delays in HIV Testing for Newborns · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

Afrique IT news reports that [fr] a new type of device (SMS printer) is being installed in several HIV testing facilities in Cameroon thanks to the Clinton Foundation and the telecommunication company  MTN :
La Fondation Clinton et l’opérateur de télécommunication MTN ont établi un partenariat pour lutter contre le diagnostic tardif de l’infection au VIH chez les nouveaux nés. Comprenant une mini-imprinante, ce dispositif mobile sera installé dans 682 centres de prélèvements à travers le pays. Pour sa part la MTN devrait mettre son réseau, ainsi que ses équipements à disposition, pour un meilleur déploiement du service dans les régions trop éloignées qui semblent être les plus touchées. Les nouveau-nés pourront subir des tests pour le VIH dans divers hôpitaux avec l’impression immédiate des résultats en envoyant des tests via la technologie SMS à deux laboratoires spécialisés du pays.
The Clinton Foundation and the telecommunications operator MTN have partnered to fight against the late diagnosis of HIV testing in newborns.  This new mobile device will include a pocket-size printer and will be distributed in 682 testing centers across the country. For its part,  MTN will share its cell network and its facilities for better service deployment in remote areas that have the most urgent needs. Newborns will be tested for HIV in various hospitals, the results of tests will be printed via SMS technology in two of the advanced laboratories in the country to allow the preparation of the treatment.


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It’s Raining Fire in Gaza: Israel Starts Ground Invasion · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Palestinians say it is raining fire in Gaza, after Israel started ground operations into the besieged enclave tonight.
Home to about 1.7 million Palestinians, Gaza is bordered by Israel on one side and Egypt on another. Both borders are heavily controlled, leaving residents with nowhere to run. Critics of Israel's occupation have described Gaza as an open-air prison.
On Twitter, Jehan Alfarra, with 8K followers, says:
NOW: It's raining FIRE on #Gaza tonight with an Israeli ground invasion on the wayyy! #PrayForGaza pic.twitter.com/QMOTBduZ96
— Jehan Alfarra (@palinoia) July 17, 2014
Gaza Writes Back, who has 36.4K followers on Twitter, says the start of the land invasion and the heavy bombardment has turned “the whole of Gaza into a ball of fire”:
israel starts a land invasion and turns the whole Gaza Strip into a ball of fire… #GazaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/pnyFbdtcra — Gaza Writes Back (@ThisIsGaZa) July 17, 2014
And iFalasteen, also from Gaza, tweets to his 26.8K followers:
It's raining bombs across Gaza Strip now from sea, land and air… Israel is bombing everything… #GazaUnderAttack
— فلسطين i (@iFalasteen) July 17, 2014
Also, in Gaza, Palestine, shares this photograph from the bombardment in Gaza tonight with his 10k followers on Twitter:
it's the heaviest attack now !! #PrayForGaza #GazaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/VNWN6Dlaui — Palestine | פלסטינה (@iPalestinian91) July 17, 2014
In another photograph, he says:
Even the moon is red in Gaza tonight… #GazaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/EtgQgkyyTX
— فلسطين i (@iFalasteen) July 17, 2014
Photographer Jehad Saftawi shares a photograph from the Gaza borders, showing the start of the operation:
The Israeli ground invasion has started on Gaza Strip, here the borders of Gaza. #GazaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/ny7sEjhar0
— Jehad Saftawi (@Jehadsaftawi) July 17, 2014
While Lara Abu Ramadan, Palestinian journalist, translator and a freelance photographer based in Gaza, explains:
This is horrible I can see a huge fire from the Israeli tanks western Gaza strip. #GazaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/whpSbRmSpo
— Lara (@laraaburamadan) July 17, 2014
And Palestinian blogger Haitham Sabbah, shares this link of a livestream from Gaza:
Online Live Stream From #GazaUnderAttack http://t.co/jg2PZQbXXK — Haitham Sabbah (@sabbah) July 17, 2014
Meanwhile, journalist Richard Hall, who is based in Paris, reminds his 6,800 followers:
Last time Israel invaded Gaza 1,387 Palestinians were killed. 773 were civilians, including 320 children and 109 women. (Source: B'Tselem)
— Richard Hall (@_RichardHall) July 17, 2014
Today is the 11th day of the start of “Operation Defensive Edge,” which has left more than 230 Palestinians dead, including women and children, and more than 1,500 injured.
From Gaza, Hamas, which has ruled the strip since 2007, has fired missiles into Israel. Most of the rockets coming into Israel have caused no serious damage, due in part to the US-funded Iron Dome aerial defense system, which has intercepted at least 70 projectiles so far, according to the Guardian.
With the group operations, the casualties are expected to rise.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Are Black Americans More Aware of Race Than Black Caribbeans?  · Global Voices
Matthew Hunte

A Jamaican and an American flag on display at the 2008 West Indian-American Carnival in Brooklyn, New York. Photo by Flickr user David Berkowitz. CC BY 2.0
Are Caribbean people over race? One Jamaican-American blogger, Aidan Neal, says they are, at least in comparison with their American neighbors.
In a provocative piece titled “Racism In America: Caribbeans Just Don't Get It“, she argued that because of their historical experiences, native-born African-Americans have an “often unwarranted sense of racial awareness” and so experience racism differently than Caribbean immigrants to the United States do:
I can be at a restaurant and never once notice that my table has the only number of black people in the establishment. I would have enjoyed my meal, engaged in great conversation, and left a healthy tip, without having noticed that ‘we didn’t get straws with our water,’ or that ‘the other table didn’t have to ask for their bread.’ I’m not looking for racial discrepancies and as such, I don’t find any.
She said that Caribbean people, by comparison, were more easygoing when it comes to issues of race:
Those of us who were raised in the West Indies did not grow up in homes where race was a common topic of discussion. I never heard anyone call another person the N-word, and I never once distinguished my friends by their race. Some time ago, when I received a friend-request from an old classmate, I was a tad surprised that she was Caucasian. When I reminisced on our time together I couldn’t recall her race. I always thought of her as having a lighter complexion than I, but I never thought of her as white. Growing up, we didn't place each other in different racial categories.
Neal concluded that taking a more positive attitude and not seeking out grievances would be a better approach:
By no means am I suggesting that one ignore racist acts or persons. I am suggesting that instead of looking for racism in every act, slur or interpretation, that perhaps your outlook would be a bit brighter if you instead let it find you. We can change the course of our future if we desist from breathing life into acts of discrimination. It is not, nor will it ever be acceptable. However, we can remain conscious of the reality and fight to bring backward ideologies to an end without continuously perpetuating it in our own lives.
Her perspective echoes American actor Morgan Freeman's solution to racism: In a 2005 interview with 60 Minutes’ Mike Wallace, he advised, “Stop talking about it.” Still, Neal's blog post was the latest contribution to an ongoing discussion about the different ways African-Americans and their counterparts from the Caribbean react to racism. Even author Malcolm Gladwell, whose mother is Jamaican, explored the issue in a 1996 essay for The New Yorker.
While both groups experienced the injustice of slavery, it has been argued that blacks in the Caribbean, just by virtue of their numbers (blacks still comprise either the majority or a significant minority in all the Caribbean territories), were able to play a more active role in their societies and were therefore shielded from the harsh racism which continues to affect African-Americans.
Is it possible that because most black people from the Caribbean were accustomed to assuming positions of responsibility in their communities – largely denied to blacks in America – they are, today, either less aware of racism or less inclined to give it power in their lives? On Facebook, Marva Linsday Reid thought so:
We saw ourselves reflected in each other in our villages and saw that we were capable, strong and smart. That gave us a strong sense of self confidence…
Other responses to Neal's post have been passionate. Corey Gks said that while the apparent differences could be explained by history, this simple conclusion downplays Caribbean radicalism:
For the most part yes…but I don’t know why one could expect otherwise. Racism was more overt and direct in the US which party explains why [African-Americans] would be more attuned to it. In the Caribbean it was much more subtle; in most of the islands whites were in the minority.
Because of this numerical imbalance there was a certain degree of confidence among young Caribbean people, especially when they settled in the US. It is no coincidence, and I find the writer displays a marked ignorance of this historical fact, that most of the radicalism of the US Civil Rights, Black Power and other anti-exploitation movements were influenced either by Caribbean people or African-Americans who lived among them.
Gks argued that Caribbean people were not as indifferent to racism as Neal implied and named several activists and leaders of the Pan-Africanism movement who were of Caribbean descent:
Where do African Americans think Edward Wilmot Blyden, Marcus Garvey, Kwame Ture/Stokely Carmichael, Claudia Jones or CLR James came from? Who do they think help radicalise Malcolm X? Caribbean people are not as innocent of racism some may want to think.
However, novelist Marlon James was critical of Neal's post, maintaining that Jamaicans were not as close to being over racism as she implied. “A country where people bleach skin is not over slavery. A country where men still marry lighter to white up the family line is not over slavery. A country where people still talk about ‘good hair’ is not over slavery. A country where many of its major industries were set up during the slave trade and still profits people who benefited from it for hundreds of years (hello Tate Gallery) is not over slavery,” James wrote.
While the debate will continue, it has already served to show the different ways that race and culture intersect – and perhaps to prove that racism, to quote Jamaica's Bob Marley, continues to impose a type of “mental slavery” on black people nearly 150 years after the slave trade was abolished in the United States.

author: Matthew Hunte


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Some Communities in Sub-Saharan Africa Have No Online Presence. ‘Kumusha Takes Wiki’ Wants to Help Change That · Global Voices
Francois-Xavier Ada

Kumusha Takes Wiki by WikiAfrica (CC-BY-SA 3.0)
People in Sub-Saharan Africa face hurdles to get online. Despite some progress, the region lags behind in Internet connectivity due to the high costs of service and poor infrastructure, according to a recent World Economic Forum report.
This digital divide means some African communities are underrepresented on the web. Without a well-developed online presence, misinformation about them can spread relatively unchallenged.
The Kumusha Takes Wiki Project wants to give those communities a voice. The initiative is working to enable African people to take ownership of information on Wikipedia to strengthen the level of understanding foreigners have about local communities across Africa — and the continent more broadly. The word “Kumusha” in the Shona language of Zimbabwe means “the place where one comes from.” According to the project,
[Kumusha Takes Wiki] uses community journalism to gather community-relevant information on heritage, culture, notable persons, geographical features, among other things. It gives each community an online presence that is ‘owned’ by the community […] and it adds immeasurably to the understanding of Africa to every human being on the planet.
Much existing information available about local African communities can only be accessed within the confines of specific languages and dialects. Though Wikipedia is available in several local African languages including Swahili, Yoruba, Zulu and Afrikaans, these versions are underdeveloped due to a small number of contributors. Thus, there is a need for skills development and encouragement among new communities across the continent.
This is part of the larger WikiAfrica, which “encourages individuals and organisations to create, expand and enhance online content about Africa, its history, its people, its innovations and its many contemporary realities, on the world’s most used encyclopaedia, Wikipedia.”
Kumusha Takes Wiki centers on “activating” communities, starting initially as a pilot in two countries: Cote d'Ivoire and Uganda. In the two targeted countries, Wikipedians In Residence work with various communities, such as fishing and agriculture, universities, writers and borders towns, teaching them how to contribute to and edit Wikipedia about their local environments and heritage.
Zimbabwe-born Isla Haddow-Flood is the project manager of Kumusha Takes Wiki, who has spent the majority of her life in Africa. Through Skype, she told us that the project will work to create information that benefits everyone — not just those writing the articles. So far, there have been many challenges, including a lack of cell phone coverage and Internet connection in remote areas, and sometimes a language barrier.
Kumusha Takes Wiki by WikiAfrica (CC-BY-SA 3.0)
Also involved in correcting the spread of incorrect information, the Africa Centre, where the project is based, is working on other projects to “revitalize the information base”, including (but not limited to):
Together, these projects hope to, as they say at WikiAfrica “share their knowledge of their community and passions” across the world.

author: Francois-Xavier Ada


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Authorities Have Confiscated $9.9M Hidden in Bean Cans, Shoes and Even Stomachs at This Guatemalan Airport  · Global Voices
Connectas

Runners hide money in suitcases, inside books, or concealed on their bodies. Photo courtesy of Prensa Libre archives.
The original version of this article was written in Spanish by Luis Ángel Sas and published on journalism platform CONNECTAS in May 2014.
Ecuadorean newscaster, psychologist and model María Magdalena Stahl Hurtado, a U.S. citizen of German heritage, strolled through the La Aurora airport in Guatemala one May afternoon in 2010. At almost 5'9″, her elegant figure was a magnet for the eyes.
Carlos, an anti-drug officer, was captured by Stahl's magnetic field; she had almost represented Ecuador in the Miss Universe pageant five years earlier. Carlos approached her for a routine screening for which passengers are randomly selected. Truth be told, his choice of Stahl was based more on her attractive figure than on any grounds for suspicion. But when he looked her in the eyes, he saw the fear characteristic of those who have something to hide.
He was trained for this. He began a barrage of questions; Stahl did not resist. Carlos asked to search her luggage; she objected, but had to give in. After several hours of counting, the Public Ministry calculated that there was $435,762 USD hidden in the luggage that Stahl was taking to Panama. According to the General Subdivision of Anti-Narcotics Information Analysis (SGDAIA), a total of $9.9 million USD was seized from passengers of various nationalities and profiles trying to transport undeclared money out of La Aurora International Airport between 2010 and 2013.
The latest reported case is that of Coatepeque soccer coach Richard Alexis Preza Herrera, who was arrested for transporting $14.6 million USD. At his trial he was fined 600,000 quetzals ($7,750 USD) and was prohibited from leaving the country. Of the past four years, 2011 saw the most money seized: a total of $5.7 million USD. The year before, in 2010, $2.2 million USD was confiscated. The total decreased to $859,000 in 2012 and reached $969,000 in 2013.
How money gets moved
The $9.9 million USD was confiscated from 67 individuals, an average of $147,000 per person. However, the amount carried by each person ranged from $12,000 to $1 million.
Credit: Prensa Libre.
Techniques for transporting hidden money also varied wildly: bills stuck in books and notebooks, hidden in the heels of shoes, stuffed into belts, or concealed on the body and secured with stockings or adhesive tape.
Money has also been concealed in cans of beans, in the false bottoms of suitcases masked with carbon paper, and even in the stomach, after being swallowed in latex capsules. “The only limit is the imagination,” says Rolando Rodenas, head of the·Anti-Money Laundering Prosecutors’ Office.
Rodenas says that there are other forms of getting money out of the country without the need to hide it, although these other methods leave a trail of evidence that may be sufficient to get the perpetrators caught.
“The law states that up to $10,000 USD can be transported without declaration. Thus there are people who travel with $9,700 or $9,800, just barely within the legal limit,” says Rodenas. At least two large groups of runners, each carrying legal amounts of money, have been caught transporting money to Panama, the primary destination for money laundering.
According to Rodenas, another way to transport money was to claim that the runners were managers or employees of businesses who were traveling to make deals or purchases. After months of investigation, it was determined that the businesses were only a cover and that they had no real financial activities. In fact, money launderers continue to use this method.
“That's how they're getting the money out of the country. They're doing what the law permits,” says Rodenas, who will not venture a guess as to the amounts of money that are taken out of the country illegally. “It's difficult to give a figure; a study would have to be performed,” he says.
Élmer Sosa, head of the SGDAIA, declined to be interviewed for this article. However, his staff at La Aurora International Airport estimate that the confiscated money represents only 10 percent of the amount that leaves the country in suitcases: “hidden or declared, but without legal ground,” claims an agent who requested anonymity.
A report from Global Financial Integrity (GFI) states that between 2002 and 2011, Guatemala moved 10 percent of Central America's total dirty money, which may be as much as $14 billion USD. Guatemala's illicit financial flow of $1.3 billion puts it in fourth place after Costa Rica (4.3 billion), Panama (3.9 billion), and Honduras (2.8 billion). El Salvador's illicit financial flow was $1 billion and Nicaragua's was $700 million.
“About two years ago, personnel identified some 45 people who were traveling with $9,800 or $9,700 on the same flight to Panama!” explains the agent.
This number seems believable after the capture of members of a group that the Public Prosecutor has baptized the Pitufos (the Smurfs), led by David Cervantes Urízar. According to the Prosecutors’ Office, this group alone coordinated 20 trips to Panama, laundering approximately $3 million per month.
Another trafficking group caught by the Prosecutors’ Office was one called Véliz-Palomo (the surnames of two members). The Prosecutors’ Office determined that over the course of a year, between 2010 and 2011, the group organized 20 trips per week to bring money to Panama. In 2012, a tribunal sentenced 48 members of the group to terms of 3 to 56 years behind bars.
A presiding court sent María Magdalena Stahl Hurtado to prison, which initiated a penal process for money laundering.
A few days later, judge Adrián Rolando Rodríguez Arana, of the Seventh Court of First Criminal Instance, let Stahl go free while the investigation continued. On March 29, 2011, Rodríguez Arana decided to indefinitely shelve the case and return the money to Stahl. The International Commission against Impunity sought an investigation into this action.
The money laundering route
According to the itineraries of detained runners, there are two clear routes used for transporting money via airports. The first is Guatemala-Panama. According to police records, 37 people transported $7.5 million USD on this route. Some were forced to return to Guatemala, where they were arrested upon arrival. “We cooperate with authorities in that country because people repeatedly try to take money there,” said Rodenas.
The second route is Guatemala-Colombia. Eleven people, carrying $1.2 million USD, tried to take this route.
The third is Guatemala-Costa Rica, where eight travelers were caught transporting $224,000 USD. There was also an attempt to transport more money to Venezuela, but that was only one case.
The authorities in El Salvador issued warnings after capturing various Guatemalans who managed to slip past La Aurora airport security but were detained in El Salvador as they attempted to leave for Panama. Of the 67 detained individuals, 37 percent are Guatemalan, 20 percent Colombian, and 10 percent Mexican.
El Salvador: another key stop for money laundering
More than $3 million USD has been confiscated in El Salvador's international airport in the last five years. Sixty-nine people have been caught.
According to the El Salvador police, 48 of the detained are foreigners, mainly from Guatemala and Mexico.
According to the detained individuals’ flight itineraries, there are two clear routes taken by those trying to take money out of El Salvador. Most frequently, travelers leave from Guatemala, stop in El Salvador, and then leave for Panama. A total of 38 percent of the detained travelers reported Panama as their final destination. The second frequent route starts in Mexico, stops in El Salvador, and ends in Colombia; 11 percent of the detained travelers intended to go to Colombia.
If the money is moving south, that means it's intended to pay for drugs that have already been sent or are going to be purchased. The final destination is Panama because that's the financial center of the world; there are a lot of banks. We think that that's why Panama is the most convenient location for drug traffickers established in Panama or Colombia to receive money and put it in banks,” says Marco Tulio Lima, chief of the Anti-Narcotics Division of El Salvador's National Civil Police.
Money laundering expert Daniel Rico, of the Washington-based think tank The Wilson Center, explains that criminal groups that illegally move cash via border crossings such as airports are “small criminal organizations that need to move cash urgently in order to make payments.”
Rico says that the transport of cash via airports is “the most primitive and vulnerable method of money laundering,” only used by organizations who do not have the financial and logistical means to use more sophisticated systems like the creation of false companies or the laundering of money by means of financial institutions.
The confiscations in El Salvador's airport are grounded in intuition. “We analyze the individual's origin and nationality, the payment method, the duration of stay, the intended destination. Our units study individual profiles; there are no full searches of the plane,” explains the head of the anti-narcotics unit in El Salvador. He adds that no El Salvadorian money laundering structures have been found, and that the existing groups are from other countries.
+ See this Spanish-language publication in Prensa Libre
+ Download diagram in PDF

author: Connectas


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App Created by Global Voices Contributor Selected to be Developed Online · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón Orbe

Lawyer, blogger, digital activist, dreamer and Global Voices Paraguayan Global Voices contributor Gabriela Galilea, was selected by Techpeaks program from European organization Trento Rise, a startup promoter, to develope her online game platform Mr. Patch:
[un] videojuego para tabletas, smartphones, televisores inteligentes y web (PC), que ejercita los músculos de los ojos encargados de realizar los movimientos. El objetivo es ayudar a las personas que tienen deficiencias en la visión.
(a) videogame for tablets, smartphones, smart TV and web (PC), that exercises the eye muscles in charge of the movements. The gola is to help people with impaired eyesight.
Gabriela has been receiving support on Twitter:
¿Sabías que una paraguaya creó un juego que mejora la vista? ▶ http://t.co/JnmRcdh1bC cc: @gabrielagalilea pic.twitter.com/6847oKpNSD
— KOGA (@kogaparaguay) julio 11, 2014
Did you know a Paraguayan lady has created a videogame that helps people with eyesight problems?
.@GabrielaGalilea representa a Paraguay en Italia con su juego dedicado a la salud oftalmológica. ∞ http://t.co/iRp0M8mKB3
— Ejempla (@Ejempla) julio 10, 2014
Gabriela Galilea represents Paraguay in Italy with her videogame for ophtalmology health.
The Demo Day will be held on July 18 in Trento, Italy, where Gabriela will present her app.

author: Gabriela García Calderón Orbe


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First Russian Reactions to the Downed Plane in Eastern Ukraine · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

The skyline over eastern Ukraine, where a plane carrying 395 people was shot down. Image distributed anonymously online.
An airplane carrying 295 civilians has crashed in Eastern Ukraine. The Ukrainian government is blaming separatists armed with Russian surface-to-air missiles. Ukraine's rebels have denied responsibility. With nothing but a few pixelated YouTube videos and a fast-growing mountain of accusations, Russian Twitter users are in the midst of a full-blown hysteria.
Теперь всем пиздец.
— Kashin⚓Kashin⚓Kashin (@KSHN) July 17, 2014
Now everyone is fucked.
Это полнейший пи-ц
— Alya Kirillova (@lubopitner) July 17, 2014
This is a complete clusterf**k.
August is notoriously a bloody month in Russian history. Past victims of the “August Curse” include several plane crashes, wars, terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and so on. Some Russians have grown tired of the idea.
Только, пожалуйста, не надо про “август в этом году рано начался”
— Zlata (@prervana) July 17, 2014
Just, please, let's not start with the “August came early this year.”
Many online have reached the natural conclusion that rebels shot down the airliner, probably by accident, using weapons provided by Moscow.
В СНБО Украины заявляют,что имеют информацию о технике, которая находится в распоряжении боевиков и может сбивать самолеты на большой высоте
— Тихон Дзядко (@tikhondzyadko) July 17, 2014
Ukraine's national security council announces that it has information about the military hardware now available to militants [in the East], which are capable of downing a plane at such a great altitude.
Naturally, not everyone is ready to hold the rebels responsible. Fast on Dzyadko's heels is Pro-Kremlin figure Konstantin Rykov, who accuses Dzyadko of rushing to judgment.
Дзядко уже провел расследование и нашел виновных pic.twitter.com/2EodbjiRTX
— Константин Рыков (@rykov) July 17, 2014
Dzyadko has already conducted an investigation and discovered who's guilty. [Dzyadko's tweet reads, “Now the ‘militants’ have really done it with their weapons from Russia.”]
Others have questioned why a civilian flight was crossing over Ukraine's rebel airspace in the first place.
Зона АТО закрыта для полетов гражданских судов, что делал там Боинг? pic.twitter.com/t8YQUA26NV
— Новороссия (@NovorossiaNews) July 17, 2014
The anti-terrorist zone is closed for civilian flights. So what was this Boeing aircraft doing there?
Of course, when in doubt, there is always the tried-and-true fallback of blaming the United States. Indeed, many Russians remember another incident that happened more than 30 years ago—Korean Air Lines Flight 007, which Soviet jets shot down west of Sakhalin Island in 1983, escalating tensions between the US and USSR.
Американцы никакие солдаты. Но они мастера провокаций. Война на востоке проиграна, поэтому им пришлось сбить малазийский самолет.
— Дмитрий Aгрaновский (@Agranovskiy) July 17, 2014
The Americans are no soldiers, but they are masters of the provocation. The war in the East is lost, so they decided to shoot down this Malaysian plane.
Ужасная трагедия с малазийским боингом. И, почему-то, мне все это сильно напоминает американскую провокацию с южнокорейским самолетом в 80-х
— Тигран Кеосаян (@KeosayanTigran) July 17, 2014
This story about the Malaysian Boeing is a terrible tragedy. And for some reason it really reminds me of the American provocation with the South Korean plane in the 1980s.
Details about the attack and the body count are emerging fast, but nothing rivals the speed with which Twitter spins conspiracy theories. In an environment as polarized and angry as the online debate about Ukraine's rebels, the facts probably never had a chance anyhow.

author: Kevin Rothrock


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The Maya Nut, a Nature Giant · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón Orbe

In the Guatemalan department of Petén, a group of local women market natural products prepared with Maya nut, well known as natural medicine. The president of the producer association, Benedicta Galicia Ramírez, notes they “pick up the seed and then dry it, toast and grind it to make fluor”, and that the Maya nut enhances children growth, with food values higher than maize, beans, cassava and plantain.
This species grows in many American countries, from Mexico to Peru, and is very appreciated for its medicinal and nutritious attributes:
Video: Conoce el proyecto “Selva Viva”, de un grupo de mujeres que producen alimentos a partir del árbol ramón. http://t.co/7NwTAN9WIu
— Reforestamos México (@ReforestamosMex) junio 24, 2014
Video: Here we introduce the project “Selva Viva”, by a group of women who produce food items from the Maya nut tree.
Promueven el consumo de la semilla del árbol de ramón http://t.co/Zhq9fqNPdM @DIF_Yucatan
— INFORMATYUC (@INFORMATYUC) junio 17, 2014
Here, the consumption of the Maya nut seed gets promoted.


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The World Shouts #FreeAlexSodiqov During Global Vigil · Global Voices
Chris Rickleton

Moscow asks Tajikistan to #FreeAlexSodiqov, пожалуйста! All photos below taken for the purposes of sharing and posted here via the FreeAlexSodiqov Instagram account and Twitter.
Names, affiliations and countries of origin do not matter in the campaign to #FreeAlexSodiqov. Exactly a month on from the wrongful arrest of Alex on espionage charges June 16, people from all over the world held vigils for his release. Below are the results:

author: Chris Rickleton


text:
The World Cup in Brazil Ended Just Like It Began — With Tear Gas, Stun Grenades and Police Aggression · Global Voices
Raphael Tsavkko Garcia

Demonstrators try to march in Rio. Photo of Mauricio Campos dos Santos, used with permission
The “preventative” arrests of activists against the World Cup on the eve of the final match between Germany and Argentina to stop demonstrations during the tournament's close did not succeed in discouraging Brazilians from protesting in Rio de Janeiro.
One rally gathered hundreds of people, who oppose the lavish spending on the mega-event. As activists have come to expect, the protest was met with tear gas bombs, stun grenades and baton-wielding police officers.
Protesters were unable to walk to the Maracana stadium, where the final match was played, because of police cordons blocking off the area. Attempts to break the blockade was rebuffed aggressively. Even the cavalry, with police officers armed with swords, were used against protesters.
Activists and journalists said they were kicked by the military police, manhandled and beaten. Canadian filmmaker Jason O'Hara was kicked in the head by a passing officer and his GoPro camera that was attached to his helmet was stolen, the alternative newspaper A nova democracia (The New Democracy) reported. The newspaper recorded the assault, and the video is available on YouTube.
Another activist was kicked by military police officer Rogério Costa de Oliveira, who has been accused by social movements of assaulting women in demonstrations in the past, and the moment was captured on film by YouTube user Tandy Firmino:
According to the Union of Journalists of Rio de Janeiro, at least 15 journalists were assaulted during protest by the military police.
The collective Midia Ninja listed others who were injured:
O jornalista Felipe Peçanha, Mídia Ninja, foi cercado por 8 policiais, teve sua lente quebrada e sofreu agressões enquanto transmitia os cuidados médicos ao Jason O'hara.
A documentarista Aloyana Lemos, MIC, foi detida enquanto registrava as agressões à manifestantes no ato até então pacífico na praça Saens Peña, Tijuca. Aloyana está sendo encaminhada para a 21º DP.
O fotógrafo Bernardo Guerreiro, Mídia Ninja, teve sua lente quebrada e foi agredido com spray de pimenta no olho de curta distância.
Journalist Felipe Peçanha, Midia Ninja, was surrounded by eight policemen, had his camera lens broken and was assaulted while filming Jason O'Hara's ordeal as he was being helped by doctors.
Filmmaker Aloyana Lemos, MIC, was arrested while recording the assaults on protesters who were at that moment demonstrating peacefully at the Saens Peña square, Tijuca. Aloyana was sent to police department 21.
Photographer Bernardo Guerreiro, Midia Ninja, had his camera lens broken and was assaulted with pepper spray in the eye from a short distance.
Protesters try to walk towards the Maracana. Photo from the Mariachi Collective.
In some situations, police blocked protesters and reporters from leaving the area. Journalist Tamara Cardoso summarized the situation:
estou sendo mantida refém pela polícia.
Identificada como jornalista, dentro de um carro identificado como um carro de reportagem, não posso sair da praça Saens Pena.
Ta bom ou precisa mais?
I'm being held hostage by the police.
Identified as a journalist, in a car identified as a reporter car, I cannot leave the Saens Pena square.
That's enough or do you need more?
Photo by Camila Nóbrega – Canal Ibase
The Rede de Comunidades e Movimentos Contra a Violência (Network of Communities and Movements against Violence) posted a photo by journalist Camila Nobrega from the NGO Ibase of protesters using their bodies to spell out “SOS”:
“SOS”. É a mensagem que pessoas encurraladas pela polícia nas imediações do Maracanã acabam de escrever no chão da rua Desembargador Isidro, na Tijuca: um pedido de socorro. Após reprimir de forma truculenta a manifestação que ocorria no entorno da Praça Saens Pena, a Polícia Militar fez um cerco em todas as ruas do local, impedindo a circulação. Cerca de mil pessoas estão “presas” nas ruas da Tijuca, cercadas de policiais.
“SOS”. Its the message that people trapped by police in the vicinity of Maracanã just spelled out at the Desembargador Isidro Street in [the neighborhood of] Tijuca: a distress call. After aggressively suppressing the protest that occurred in the vicinity of the Saens Pena square, military police laid siege to every street their, preventing movement. About a thousand people are “stuck” in the streets of Tijuca, surrounded by police.
Engineer Maurício dos Santos posted a series of photos of the scene and commented on Facebook:
PM fecha metrô, joga bombas, destrói faixas e cartazes, espanca pessoas e transforma a Praça Saens Peña em praça de guerra. Nessa praça jaz a democracia.
The military police close the subway, throw bombs, destroy banners and posters, beat up people and transform Saens Peña Square into a war zone. In this square lies democracy.
At least seven people were arrested, including a minor, the Collective Mariachi reported on Facebook. Activist Paula Kossatz and Anna Baptista Marim posted videos on Facebook of moments when police lashed out at protesters seemingly without provocation.
Baptista Marim described what she filmed:
PM ataca passageiros no metrô.
Minutos antes deu apanhar:
Durante muitas bombas, prisões e porradarias de PMs com cacetete na praça Saens Pena, eu e meu marido fomos os últimos a conseguir entrar na estação cheia de gás.
Ficamos filmando a caça da polícia que tentava identificar quem era manifestante e quem não era.
Nosso grande crime, merecedor de muita porrada, foi ter ficado filmando a ação da PM. Por isso que é dificil encontar vídeos denunciando a covardia da policia.
The military police attacks passengers on the subway.
Minutes before I was beaten:
Throughout many bombs, arrests and beatings from police with batons at the Saens Pena Square, my husband and I were the last to get into the crowded gas station.
We were filming the police try to identify who was and who was not a demonstrator.
Our greatest crime, none which deserved that much beating, was to have been filming the police's actions. That's why is difficult to find videos denouncing the cowardice of the police.
While the Germans were celebrating their win against Argentina in the Maracana stadium, police and protesters were clashing outside in a scene all too familiar since last year's Confederations Cup. Cartoonist André Dahmer, author of comics Malvados (Evil) characterized what will happen to people who protest nowadays in Brazil: “I wanted to demonstrate my sorrow for the Argentina national team, but whoever demonstrates gets arrested.”

author: Raphael Tsavkko Garcia


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Archaic Laws Continue Jamaica’s History of Injustice   · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

The anti-sodomy law is not the only archaic statute up for repeal in Jamaica. Author Kei Miller is astounded that a proposal to rescind the country's “blatantly racist Obeah Laws” has met with resistance:
We seem to like throwing fits whenever it is suggested that we review and correct our colonial inheritance…We seem to get a kick out of whipping ourselves all over again. I guess, we really are the good niggers. We have been so brutally damaged by unjust laws kept in the books for so long that they are now wired into the blood of our country, and for generations to come, we believe in the deep and terrible injustices that such laws promote.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Jews and Arabs in Chile, Home to One of the Largest Palestinian Communities, Call for Peace in Israel and Gaza · Global Voices
Elizabeth Rivera

Chilean congressmen show banners calling for the end of the massacre and occupation of Palestine. Image widely shared on Twitter.
Israel's bombardment of Gaza has not gone unnoticed in Chile. Representatives of Chile’s sizable Palestinian community have been urging the government to take a more active stance in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and build on President Michelle Bachelet's condemnation last week of the shelling.
So far, 243 Palestinians, including many women and children, have been killed and more than 1,500 injured since the bombing began on July 8, according to Gaza's health ministry. In Israel, rockets launched from Gaza that weren't picked off by the Iron Dome missile defense system have injured several people. One Israeli civilian died after he was hit by shrapnel near the Gaza border, and an Israeli soldier was killed during ground operations that began on July 17.
Chile, which recognized Palestine as a “free, independent and sovereign state” on January 7, 2011, is home to the largest Palestinian community outside the Middle East. Estimates of the number of Palestinian descendants in Chile range from 450,000 to 500,000.
About 1,000 people protested in the Chilean capital city Santiago on Saturday, July 12, under the banner, “silence is complicity”. Two days later, with the number of Palestinian victims rising, members of Congress requested urgent action from the Foreign Ministry including the suspension of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations; the withdrawal of its ambassador to Tel Aviv; and a call for Israel's condemnation by the UN Security Council (UNSC) in which Chile is currently a non-permanent member.
“Chile has to be an instrument of peace, because from the moment that it recognized the Palestinian state, Chile also recognized [Palestine’s] struggles to be a free and sovereign state,” Senator Iván Moreira told the press.
On the other hand, the Chilean-Israeli group within the Chamber of Deputies met with Foreign Minister Heraldo Muñoz to express their concern regarding the Foreign Ministry’s statements and warn the government against focusing solely on Israel’s attacks on Gaza and not the Palestinian role in the conflict. “We’ve asked the foreign minister to be careful and not bring the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to [Chile],” Congressman Gabriel Silber said. “We have to be especially careful that statements reflect a certain impartiality to what is happening in the Middle East.”
There was an exchange of open letters between Chile's Jewish and Palestinian communities. One letter, addressed to young Jewish people in Chile and signed by leaders of the Chilean-Palestinian community, urged the Jewish people to speak out against Israel's abuse of the Palestinian people's human rights:
[…] No los culpamos porque, quizás, han crecido pensando en que somos sólo un grupo de personas sin rostro y no han tenido la oportunidad de mirarnos cara a cara. […]
Sabemos que ustedes conocen este sentimiento: el sentir que para otros, sus vidas son tan solo un número. Sentir que su pueblo está siendo masacrado y que el mundo, mientras tanto, permanece impávido. Entendemos, como nadie, el dolor que sus antepasados sintieron alguna vez y por lo mismo, es que nos extraña que ustedes, los más jóvenes de la comunidad judía, no estén llevando hoy la bandera de lucha de los derechos humanos con nosotros. […]
En Chile no hay conflicto porque ninguno impide al otro retornar a sus hogares, o controla hacia dónde y cuándo puede viajar, o coloniza sus tierras, o secuestra a sus hijos. Es cierto, debemos mostrar que podemos vivir sin odio y sin ocupación; pero sobre todo, que el camino hacia la paz y la fraternidad no es el sometimiento, sino que la justicia y el reconocimiento mutuo.
[…] We don't blame you, because maybe you have grown up thinking that we are only a group of faceless people and you haven't had the chance to look at us face to face. […]
We know that you have felt this: the feeling that to others you are just a number. The feeling that your people is being massacred while the world stands still. We understand, more than anyone, the pain that your ancestors felt and thus we don't understand why the younger Jewish generation isn't holding the human rights banners with us. [..]
In Chile, there isn't conflict because no one prevents the other from returning to their homes, or controls where and when they can travel, or colonizes their lands, or kidnaps their children. It's clear, we must demonstrate that we can live without hate and without occupation; but above all, that the road to peace and brotherhood isn't submission, but justice and mutual recognition.
Four days later, an open letter signed by leaders of the Chilean-Jewish youth community responded:
No recordamos cuándo fue, pero aprendimos a referirnos los unos a los otros como primos. Hoy tenemos el atrevimiento de llamarlos hermanos. Hermanos, no porque compartamos una misma madre, sino porque anhelamos una misma patria.
[…] Nos invitaron a apuntar con el dedo a Israel, atribuyéndole toda la responsabilidad del conflicto sin dejar espacio para el entendimiento mutuo. ¿Esperan que luchemos por los derechos humanos? Por supuesto que lo haremos. Condenaremos directa y enérgicamente la violación de aquellos que se cometan en Medio Oriente o en cualquier otra parte del mundo. Marcharemos con ustedes por la búsqueda de la paz, pero ¿lo harán ustedes? ¿aplicarán a Hamas y la Autoridad Palestina el mismo estándar moral que exigen a Israel? […]
Nosotros, por nuestra parte, estamos dispuestos a tranzar porque tenemos la convicción de que el diálogo y las ansias de vivir en armonía en Medio Oriente son la única forma de terminar el conflicto. […]
[…] Hoy les tendemos la mano, no para que se unan a nuestra causa, sino para que entendamos que la causa de ambos pueblos sólo puede prosperar si es la misma. Los invitamos a caminar juntos, desde Chile, por la paz para Palestina e Israel.
We don't remember when it was, but we learned to refer to each other as cousins. Today, we dare to call you brothers. Brothers, not because we share the same mother, but because we long for the same nation.
[…] You invited us to point the finger to Israel, making it fully responsible for the conflict without leaving space for mutual understanding. You wish that we fight for human rights? Of course, we will. We will condemn directly and strongly the violation of human rights in the Middle East or anywhere in the world. We will protest with you in search for peace, but, will you? Will you apply to Hamas and the Palestinian Authority the same moral standard that you ask from Israel? […]
We, on our side, are willing to compromise because we are convinced that dialogue and the desire to live in harmony in the Middle East are the only way to end the conflict. […]
[…] Today, we are extending our hands to you, not to ask you to join our cause, but to understand that the objective of both communities can only be fulfilled if it is the same one. We are inviting you to walk together, from Chile, for the peace in Palestine and Israel.

author: Elizabeth Rivera


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China’s National Mahjong Team Loses To Japan · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Mahjong, originated from China is considered a national game. The fact that China's national mahjony team lost the the fifth Open Mahjong Championship in France and finished in 37th place out of 51 teams came as a shock to the country. Worse, the individual title was claimed by a Japanese competitor. Nanfang.com translated an article from New Beijing Daily on the reasons behind China's defeat.

author: Oiwan Lam


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This Video Parodies What a Government-Approved Sex Education Class in India Would Look Like  · Global Voices
Rezwan

Stand-up comedian Sourav Pant‘s comedy company East Indian Comedy has uploaded a YouTube video lampooning what a government-approved sex education class in India would look like. The video has gone viral, with more than 1 million hits in three days.
The video mocks a suggestion made by Health Minister Harsh Vardhan a few weeks ago that sex education should be banned in Indian schools (he later claimed his comments were taken out of context) as well as parodies how teachers shy away from discussing the issue in the class.
“Sex Education in India” created a buzz on social media. Santosh Kumar wrote on the East Indian Comedy's Facebook page: “The same thing happened with me when i was in school!”
Some like Sravan Kumar did not like the video: “Dont forget India is the country which gave Kaama sutra to the world.”

author: Rezwan


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Improper Land Allocation Harms Trinidad & Tobago’s Public Interest · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Property ownership is a critical ingredient of the society we are trying to build. No one can deny that. The wealthiest people and companies in this society have made a great part of their wealth through property dealings – buying, leasing, sub-dividing, selling, renovating and so on….property is critical to amassing and holding wealth.
With the state being “the single largest owner of all classes of property” in Trinidad and Tobago, blogger Afra Raymond is interested in how public property is allocated, noting that because of its value, all dealings involving state lands must be transparent.


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Lucky 13: Tips for Protecting your Data on Public Computers · Global Voices
María Romina Mascareño

Image from the blog profesoradeinformatica.com, used with permission.
If you are about to go on holiday and you are thinking of taking your computer and get connected to Wi-Fi or using computers that are available in hotels and other public places, you must read this post with 13 tips to protect data, as published by Andrea on her blog:
¿Conoces los riegos de utilizar ordenadores públicos?
Desconoces el “estado de salud” de estos ordenadores, es decir estos pueden tener virus o programas maliciosos instalados para robar tu información (malwares). Entonces si no quieres que el estrés post-vacacional sea más agudo por problemas con tu información, lee con atención.
Do you know the risks of using public computers?
You ignore these computers’ “health condition”, and they can have virus or malware set up to steal your information. So, if you don't want post-holiday stress to be more serious for problems with your information, read carefully.
No doubt about it, now the 13 will be a very lucky number.

author: María Romina Mascareño


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Malaysia Airlines Crash in Ukraine Brings on Heart-Wrenching Déjà Vu for Chinese Families Still Waiting on MH370 Answers  · Global Voices
Owen Guo

Ukrainians bring flowers, candles and toys to the entrance of the Dutch Embassy in Kiev on June 17, 2014. Malaysian Airlines airliner MH17 Amsterdam – Kuala Lumpur was shot down earlier in the day. Photo by Oleksandr Ratushniak. Copyright Demotix
The crash of a Malaysian Airlines flight over eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board, has touched a nerve among many Chinese families whose loved ones were on Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, which disappeared en route from Malaysia to China in March.
Flight MH17 was brought down by a missile on Thursday near Torez, an area controlled by pro-Russia separatists, according to Reuters news agency. The Ukrainian government and the rebels are accusing each other of being responsible for the crash. The Boeing 777 was flying from Amsterdam to the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.
In response to the incident, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said on Friday, “We feel shocked after learning about the crash of the Malaysian airliner MH17 in eastern Ukraine. We offer our deep condolences and sincere sympathy to families of the victims. We hope the cause will be identified soon.”
The ministry later confirmed that a Hong Kong resident was killed in the incident.
Memories are still fresh for those who don't know what happened to their loved ones after airliner MH370 vanished from radar screen a few hours after it left Kuala Lumpur on March 8. The plane, which was travelling with 239 people on board, has yet to be found. The disappearance has sparked perhaps the most extensive international search and rescue effort in aviation history.
No one was believed to have survived the twin plane incidents. There were 154 Chinese on board of MH370. MH17 was carrying mostly Dutch nationals.
Reacting to the second Malaysian airliner tragedy in the span of a few months, the MH370 Family Committee, an online community formed shortly after the incident by Chinese relatives of those on board, posted this on Twitter-like site Sina Weibo:
MH17航班的最新进展也牵动着我们MH370的家属们，有得家属一直在看直播，泪流不止，家属微信群里也不停的讨论和祈祷，希望MH17的家属坚强。接连不断的航空事故让我们不得不问，航空安全在哪里？难道以后坐飞机都要变成坐过山车一样提心吊胆了吗？
The latest development of MH17 has also affected us, the MH370 family members. Some are watching live reports while shedding tears nonstop, and we are using Wechat to discuss the incident and keep praying. We hope MH17 family members can stay strong. These constant plane incidents have made us wonder, where is aviation safety? Do we have to keep worrying and go on an emotional roller coasters every time we board a plane?
On Friday, the Family Committee sent out an additional message in English: “To us, it’s still a mystery where our loved ones are. Our torture and fear continue every day.”
Chinese web users offered their condolences and comments about the tragedy on social media.
“LovelySmile Yue” lashed out in anger at Malaysia Airlines:
#马航客机被击落#MH370还没有给中国人一个交代，又来了MH17。马航，你是要告诉全世界，所有空难都被你包了吗？无奈，逝者安息吧！
Malaysian airliner shot down. MH370 still owes the Chinese an answer, and now comes the MH17 crash. Malaysian Airlines, are you trying to tell the world that you will bear all the plane crashes in the world? How helpless are we, may those who deceased rest in peace!
Others, like China's former Education Ministry spokesman Wang Xuming, were sympathetic towards the airliner, which has come under increasing criticism and financial troubles:
马航一客机在乌克兰坠毁，在我们对遇难者表示哀悼和对他们的亲属表示慰问和同情的同时，让我们又想起了那架同样是马航的失联飞机。同一个国家、同一个航空公司短短的时间内发生了同样的空难，命运啊命运，这是怎样的命运！所以，同情马来西亚，同情马航，同情所有因命运而不幸的人们。
Another passenger jet has crashed in Ukraine. While we offer our condolences to the relatives of those on board, the incident also reminds us of the other missing Malaysian airliner. Plane crashes affecting the same country's airliner in a short amount of time. Fate, what kind of fate is this! Therefore, I feel sympathy for Malaysia and Malaysian Airlines and those who have unfortunately lost their lives.
“Nianzihan Magical” from Beijing wrote:
坠落瞬间的惊恐和挣扎，是我们这些坐在电视机前的看客难以体会的。人如蝼蚁，那一刻终于才不分什么头等公务经济舱，共同面对命运的残忍。逝者一路走好
The horror and struggle as [the plane] plunges to the ground are what we can make sense of sitting in front of our television sets. Human beings are like ants, and it was during that moment that we see no difference between first class and economy, passengers all have to face the cruelty together. May the deceased all rest in peace.
Meiyutang, an employee of the nationalistic Global Times newspaper, speculated how the crash will affect Russia's support in China:
几个朋友分析认为，乌东部武装击落飞机的可能性较大，但蓄意可能性较小，误伤可能性较大。若是如此，即便误伤，也必遭严惩；而俄罗斯从此会被更加孤立，中国与俄罗斯开展外交，在国内舆论得到的支持度，也恐怕会大大降低…
According to some analysis from my friends, it's more possible that the Eastern [rebel] forces shot down the plane, but it's more likely an act of negligence rather than a deliberate act. Even if it's a negligent act, [those who are responsible] will be punished; Russia will be more isolated in the future and China's public discourse will be shifting away from supporting Russia when the country conducts its diplomacy.

author: Owen Guo


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Malaysians on MH17 Crash: “Regardless of Nationality, We Are All United in Grief” · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Family members rushed to Kuala Lumpur International Airport when informed about the flight MH17 crash. Photo by Danny Chan, Copyright @Demotix. (7/18/2014)
Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, crashed in eastern Ukraine Thursday evening, killing all 298 passengers and crew members aboard.
Most reports indicate that the plane was shot down by a missile approximately 50km from the Russia-Ukraine border. The Ukraine government is accusing pro-Russian insurgents of using a BUK surface-to-air missile system to shoot down the plane but rebel leaders have denied this.
This infographic shows the flight path and crash site of MH17:
Infographic: Crashsite Map incl. MH17 Flight Path – pic.twitter.com/JkPwUJAv8u
— Florian Witulski (@vaitor) July 18, 2014
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak assured his constituents that those who shot down the plane will be brought to justice:
This is a tragic day, in what has already been a tragic year, for Malaysia.
If it transpires that the plane was indeed shot down, we insist that the perpetrators must swiftly be brought to justice.
The flight’s passengers and crew came from many different countries.
But today, regardless of nationality, we are all united in grief.
He also clarified that the aircraft’s flight route, even if it passed directly above a conflict zone, was declared safe by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
Flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine. Photo by Danny Chan, Copyright @Demotix (7/18/2014)
The MH17 crash was the second time that a Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777-200 aircraft went down this year. On March 8, a Malaysian Airlines MH370 plane carrying 237 people went missing just an hour after it left Kuala Lumpur during its flight to Beijing. The MH370 plane and its passengers have yet to be found.
A daughter of an MH370 flight attendant tweeted her message of support to the families and friends of MH17 passengers:
As the family member of the crew MH370, and on behalf of all them, we pray for MH17. Stay strong dear families. #PrayForMH17
— Maira E. (@Gorgxous_) July 17, 2014
Josie Fernandez of Transparency International Malaysia urged a complete probe of the incident:
What has happened is unprecedented – Malaysia is the only country where the same carrier, the same type of planes have been involved in tragedies with loss of many lives within months. MH370 has not been found.
Malaysia must demand for international action on this unprecedented tragedy. This is a passenger plane. We are not at war with any nations.
Writing for The Ant Daily, Alyaa Alhadjri described the shooting down of MH17 as a ‘mass murder’:
Why are commercial passenger jets still flying over a conflict area where airplanes have been shot down and warned to steer clear of the airspace.
Whatever the causes for another MAS Boeing 777 for going down a second time in 133 days, losing 537 people in two air disasters does not help lift passengers’ confidence in the national airline.
As Malaysia grieves over another tragic crash, it seems inevitable that many citizens will again press the government to explain the mysterious disappearance of MH370.

author: Mong Palatino


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Only Months After MH370 Disappears, Plane Crash in Ukraine Sends Malaysians Reeling  · Global Voices
Jerrenn Lam

A relative of those on board flight MH17 getting emotional while being interviewed by media. Photo by Hon Keong Soo. Copyright @Demotix (7/18/2014)
In the wake of the tragic crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in eastern Ukraine, condolences have poured in for the families of the 298 passengers and crew members who were on board.
MH17 was en route to Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam when it was shot down by a BUK missile. Many reports have pointed to pro-Russian insurgents mistakenly shooting down the passenger jet, but rebel leaders have denied this.
This is the second tragedy to hit Malaysia Airlines in a matter of months. It lost flight MH370, which was carrying 239 passengers and crew on March 8 when it vanished from radar.
Reeling from the twin tragedies, Malaysian netizens are using the Twitter hashtag #PrayForMH17 to talk about the crash.
A Malaysia Airlines flight attendant highlighted the loss of lives on MH17 as well as MH370, sharing a picture on Twitter and Instagram:
Within 4month i lost almost 30 frends … Sad but true we live in hostile world #mh17 #malaysia… http://t.co/n1aQ7ohPGp
— HJB ® (@HJB__) July 18, 2014
Image shared from a Malaysia Airlines flight attendant's Instagram
Many politicians used Twitter to express their shock and explain what they think are the next steps forward.
Prime Minister Najib Razak extended his sympathies to the victims and their families:
Doa saya semasa solat Jumaat tadi utk penumpang2 dan anak2 kapal #MH17 dan keluarga mereka. Ini tempoh yg amat sukar buat kita semua.
— Mohd Najib Tun Razak (@NajibRazak) July 18, 2014
My prayers today went out to the passengers and crew of MH17 as well as their families. This is an extremely tough time for us all.
Hishammuddin Hussein, Malaysia's minister of defence, tweeted the Malaysian government's priorities:
#MH17 @1MinDef : Our immediate priority – 1) Was d plane brought down? If so 2) How ? 3) Who ? All our intel agensies have been activated .
— Hishammuddin Hussein (@HishammuddinH2O) July 18, 2014
Malaysian Minister for Youth and Sports Khairy Jamaluddin stressed that blame should not be put on Malaysia Airlines for flying over a conflict zone:
We must oppose narrative blaming route selection. FACT: many other planes were traversing same route. FACT: ICAO approved the route. #MH17
— Khairy Jamaluddin (@Khairykj) July 18, 2014
Several renowned Malaysians also tweeted sympathies and shock. Malaysian badminton player Lee Chong Wei was one of them:
My heart aches to see the family members and loved ones of #MH17 going through such a tragic and devastating loss. pic.twitter.com/2TJyMIB9LL
— Dato’ Lee Chong Wei (@lee_c_wei) July 18, 2014
Television presenter and radio host Xandria Ooi said that blaming will not help the cause:
Listening to the PC was painful. So much implication that MAS flying the route was a mistake. It's a TRAGEDY. Blame doesn't help.
— Xandria Ooi (@xandriaooi) July 18, 2014
Pang Khee Teik, organiser for Seksualiti Merdeka (Malaysia's sexuality rights festival), sent his sympathies:
In a senseless universe, senseless tragedies make sense. In a senseless universe, senseless loving is my only salvation. Hugs to all. #MH17
— Pang Khee Teik (@PangKheeTeik) July 18, 2014
Conspiracies about the crash are circulating in cyberspace, but for many Malaysians this is the time to grieve the loss of innocent lives and to help their loved ones recover from the tragedy.

author: Jerrenn Lam


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“Muito Obrigado, Brazil” · Global Voices
Luis Flores

Image by MULADAR NEWS on flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Colombian student Juan Pablo Ramírez blogs his opinions, mainly about football and politics. He shared his farewell to 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, and called it “the best 21st century World Cup”, because of the many records broken and the many surprises this tournament brought. Like Colombia qualifying to quarter finals for the first time ever, Germany hammering Brazil on semifinals (the semifinal with the most goals ever) and mucha more.
En fin, el que terminó ayer fue un gran Campeonato del Mundo, lleno de emociones y sorpresas, el cual deja muy alto el listón para Rusia 2018 que es lo que viene, y para el que lo único que queda por decir es muito obrigado, Brasil.
Anyway, the World Cup that ended yesterday was a great World Cup, full of excitement and surprises, that sets the bar high for Russia 2018, which comes next, and the only thing that's left for us to say is muito obrigado, Brazil.
The author also writes about Lionel Messi being awarded with the FIFA Ballon d'Or that he, as many other people, considered unfair, comparing it to James Rodríguez as the highest scorer.
Follow Juan Pablo on his blog and on Twitter.

author: Luis Flores


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Palestinians are Friends with Journalists · Global Voices
Milton Ramirez

Image by Omar Chatriwala on flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0).
Marcelino Torrecilla N. has started a series in Spanish called Stories from Gaza. The first installment by this United Arabe Emirates based Colombian was published on El Tiempo of Bogotá and tells a story of two Gulf News journalists in Abu Dhabi.
Taking pictures in the Gulf is challenging and even when trying to take pictures of women. But Palestinians are used to be photographed. The media are friends of the Palestinians and they know that. as Torrecilla translates:
In Gaza it is very different. With one of the highest concentrations of media in the world, the people of Gaza are used to being photographed. Not only this, but they welcome the eyes of the world. The Palestinians don't have an army to fight with. They have the rocks they throw at Israeli soldiers and they have their tears.
For more stories about the Gaza Strip in Spanish told by an eye witness, follow Marcelino Torrecilla's updates on Twitter.

author: Milton Ramirez


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Bangladesh Has Formaldehyde to Thank for Its Short Supply of Mangoes This Season · Global Voices
পান্থ রহমান রেজা (Pantha)

Dhaka Metropolitan Police jointly conducted a drive at Hatirpul Bazar against the chemical formalin. Image by Reaz Sumon. Copyright Demotix (3/6/2014)
Monsoon season in Bangladesh is a delicious time when markets overflow with an abundance of seasonal fruits. Red lychees, green jackfruits and yellow melons are on colorful display, piled high in baskets and on tables.
The sweet, fleshy mango is especially sought after, but this year the fruit is harder to find due to a police drive to control the misuse of formalin, a strong solution of formaldehyde used to preserve produce (traditionally used to preserve dead bodies). Last month, police set up mobile formalin-detection units, confiscating and destroying truck loads of locally produced and imported fruits.
Fruits can naturally contain 0.03-0.15 part per million (ppm) of formalin, but the police drive against formalin, which primarily targeted the seasonal fruits, found the level between 3.5 ppm to 46 ppm in fruit found at markets in the country's capital Dhaka. There, police set up checkposts at entry points into the city to check for contaminated fruit.
Formaldehyde is highly toxic. Ingesting only 30 mL of a solution containing 37 percent formaldehyde can kill a human. In the past few years in Bangladesh, formalin has been used without limits on vegetables, fruits, meats and other putrescent foods to prevent them from rotting. On 30 June, 2014, the country's cabinet approved a draft law that calls for a maximum punishment of life in prison and a hefty fine for formalin abuse and unauthorized trading.
Journalist and blogger Anis Raihan at Istishon blog described how mangoes are treated with formalin:
আম যখন গাছ থেকে পাড়া হয় তখনই একদফা ফরমালিন দেয়া হয়। এরপর এগুলো প্যাকেট হয়ে শহরে আসে। শহরে এসে পৌঁছাতে দেরি হলেও যাতে পচন না ধরে তাই প্রথম দফায় ওই ফরমালিন দেয়া হয়। পাইকাররা আমের ঝুড়ির মুখ খুলে কিংবা যদি দেখেন আম নরম তাহলে সব বের করে আরেক দফা ফরমালিন স্প্রে করেন। যাতে খুচরা দোকানগুলোতে পৌঁছানো পর্যন্ত আমের কোনো ক্ষতি না হয়। খুচরা দোকানিরা ওই অবস্থায় আম বিক্রি শুরু করেন। আম নরম হলে খুচরা দোকানেও ফরমালিন স্প্রে করা হয় আরও কিছুদিন আম রক্ষা করার জন্য।
When the mangoes are plucked they are sprayed with the first dose of formalin. Then they are packed and transported to the cities. The first dose is to cover the delays in the transport to prevent them from rotting. After arrival the traders check whether the mangoes are intact or show signs of rotting and spray another dose if necessary to keep them fresh till they are distributed to retailers, who start to sell the mangoes as they receive them. However, if the mangoes show signs of rotting when they are received, the retailers spray another dose of formalin.
Fruit sellers haven't been happy about their loss of produce. In the port city Chittagong, the fruit sellers association went on strike for several hours, claiming that police have been harassing them by testing the fruits with inadequate machines.
Contaminated food is an issue in Bangladesh. In 2012, the deaths of 14 children in Dinajpur after eating lychees tainted with pesticides sparked uproar in the country.
A recent study conducted by the Bangladesh government and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations showed that in Bangladesh more than 40 percent of foods contains banned pesticides. Toxic substances in the food samples was three to 20 times the limits set by the European Union. In the same report, 50 percent of vegetables and 35 percent of fruits have been declared unsafe. The mango and fresh shrimp samples contained the highest level of formalin.
Police destroying fruit contaminated with formalin. Image by Reaz Sumon. Copyright Demotix (3/6/2014)
A group of activists arranged a protest called “Stop poisoning us” last May and urged to the government to take proper measures. One doctor, Dr. Shafiq, opined in Facebook that there should be stricter law against use of formalin.
Blogger Kobid shared a shocking statistic related to contaminated food in Bangladesh:
ভেজাল খাদ্যগ্রহণে ডায়রিয়ায় আক্রান্তদের মধ্যে প্রতি বছর প্রায় ৫৭ লাখ মানুষ কোনো না কোনোভাবে শারীরিকভাবে অযোগ্য হয়ে পড়ছে। সরকারি সংস্থা বাংলাদেশ পরিসংখ্যান ব্যুরোর (বিবিএস) এর সর্বশেষ তথ্য অনুসারে প্রত্যক্ষ বা পরোক্ষভাবে ভেজাল খাদ্যগ্রহণ জনিত কারণে ২০১০ সালে মৃত্যুহার ছিল প্রায় ৪০ শতাংশে।
Each year almost 5.7 million people face health hazards due to adulterated food. According to statistics from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, almost 40 percent of deaths in 2010 were due to illness caused directly or indirectly by adulterated food.
Shahadat, a blogger, didn't mince words in describing the people who sell food contaminated with unsafe chemicals:
শুধু মানুষের খাদ্যে নয়, যে কোন প্রানীর খাদ্যে ভেজাল দেয়া মানুষের কাজ হতে পারে না, যারা সামান্যতমও খাদ্যে ভেজাল সমর্থন করবে, তারাও মানুষ হতে পারে না! মানুষরূপী পশুই!
Not only in human food, adulterating food for any living being is cruel. The people who resort to this slow poisoning are not humans, but human-like animals.
But the issue is a little more complicated than that. As writer and columnist Tahmina Anam pointed out in The New York Times, the rural poor are the ones growing the fruit, which are then sold in urban areas. Transport is costly for small growers and risky because of non-air-conditioned trucks and road delays caused by traffic jams, strikes or road conditions. Formalin ensures they won't lose their produce, but at the cost of people's health.
Tighter regulations on the chemical’s use will solve the adulteration problem today, but not the transport issues — and growers’ desire for a workaround, chemical or otherwise.

author: পান্থ রহমান রেজা (Pantha)


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The 5 Most Insensitive Reactions to the MH17 Crash in Ukraine · Global Voices
Tanya Lokot

So much for “knowing that feel,” when it comes to polemics surrounding the downed Malaysian airliner. Images mixed by Kevin Rothrock.
Russian officials, politicians, and media personalities were quick to react to the crash of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which went down over Eastern Ukraine on Thursday, July 17. Authorities in Kyiv, Moscow, and Donetsk have all traded accusations, blaming each other for shooting down the civilian aircraft and killing the nearly 300 people aboard. With emotions running high, a handful of particularly calloused statements by figures in Moscow and Donetsk have attracted the Russian Internet's attention.
The self-proclaimed Prime Minister of the Donetsk People's Republic, Aleksandr Boroday, was curiously unsure about rebel involvement in the incident:
К сожалению, цитата дня pic.twitter.com/3ibcpjFOVL
— reeD (@reedmagofficial) July 17, 2014
Unfortunately, this is the quote of the day. [Caption reads, “If it is really a commercial airliner, then it wasn't us,” Alexandr Boroday.]
Leonid Kalashnikov, deputy representative to the Russian parliamentary committee on international affairs, told TV Rain it didn't really matter who was to blame for the downing of the aircraft:
“Вам что, легче станет, если узнаете, кто сбил самолет?”
“What, will it make you feel better if you find out who shot down the plane?”
Bothered that Russian liberals and Ukrainian “propagandists” echoed many of the same sentiments (i.e., they criticized Russian policy in Ukraine), Konstantin Rykov of Russia's ruling political party had this to say:
В такие моменты очень хорошо видно, кто на что надеется и чего реально хочет.. наши либералы и украинские пропагандисты в едином порыве..
— Константин Рыков (@rykov) July 17, 2014
In these moments it's very clear who is hoping for what and what they really want.. our liberals and Ukrainian propagandists striving for the same..
Russia Today's chief Margarita Simonyan chalked up the tragedy to good ole Soviet absent-mindedness:
Я так давно работаю в самом сердце разных громких новостей, что абсолютно не верю в теории заговора. Зато верю в простой советский бардак.
— Маргарита Симоньян (@M_Simonyan) July 17, 2014
I've been working at the very heart of various breaking news for so long, that I absolutely do not believe in conspiracy theories. But I do believe in simple Soviet chaos.
Last but not least is the reaction of Vladimir Putin himself, who told ITAR-TASS that Kyiv is accountable for the skies over Ukraine's rebel-controlled east.
“Безусловно, государство, над территорией которого это произошло, несет ответственность за эту страшную трагедию. […] Этой трагедии не произошло бы, если бы на этой земле был мир, не были бы возобновлены боевые действия на юго-востоке Украины”
“Certainly, the state over whose territory this occurred bears responsibility for this terrible tragedy. […] This tragedy would not have occurred if there were peace in this land, if the fighting had not renewed in the South-East of Ukraine.”

author: Tanya Lokot


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Russian State TV Edits Wikipedia to Blame Ukraine for MH17 Crash · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

The war in Ukraine moves to Wikipedia. Images mixed by author.
A day after a horrific plane crash in eastern Ukraine claimed the lives of nearly 300 people, speculation about who is to blame for shooting down the aircraft is in full swing. Leaders of Ukraine, Russia, and even the separatists in Donetsk have all placed responsibility on each other. In Kyiv, President Poroshenko blamed rebels in the east and criticized Russia for destabilizing the border. In Moscow, Vladimir Putin claimed that Kyiv is accountable for anything that happens in Ukraine. Donetsk’s putative leader denies any role in the attack on Malaysian Flight MH17, saying it must have been the Ukrainian Air Force.
Unsurprisingly, the blame game is now playing out on Wikipedia, where editors battle to record the polemics that best reflect their side of the story. Earlier this morning, the Russian-language Wikipedia entry for commercial aviation accidents hosted one such skirmish, when someone with an IP address based in Kyiv edited the MH17 record to say that the plane was shot down “by terrorists of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic with Buk system missiles, which the terrorists received from the Russian Federation.” Less than an hour later, someone with a Moscow IP address replaced this text with the sentence, “The plane was shot down by Ukrainian soldiers.”
Thanks to a Twitter bot that tracks anonymous Wikipedia edits made from IP addresses used by the Russian government, we know that the second edit to the MH17 article came from a computer at VGTRK, the All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company.
Статья в Википедии Список авиационных катастроф в гражданской авиации была отредактирована ВГТРК http://t.co/peZ60q07Fj
— Госправки (@RuGovEdits) July 18, 2014
A Wikipedia article about commercial aviation catastrophes was edited by VGTRK.
VGTRK is the home of Dmitri Kiselyov, who is known informally as the Kremlin’s chief propagandist. Kiselyov is notorious for his strong criticisms of the governments in Kyiv and Washington. During the Crimean crisis, Kiselyov once boasted on television that Russia remains “the only country in the world capable of turning the USA into radioactive dust.” In June, two VGTRK journalists were killed near Luhansk after coming under mortar fire while embedded with local rebels. Nadiya Savchenko, the helicopter pilot whom separatists captured in Ukraine and transferred to Voronezh earlier this month, now sits in a Russian detention center, accused of participating in the attack that killed the VGTRK reporters.
The Twitter account that discovered VGTRK’s Internet activity, @RuGovEdits, is modeled on another bot, @CongressEdits, which tracks Wikipedia edits made from IP addresses in the US Congress. The code for CongressEdits, created by programmer Ed Summers, is open-source software and can be configured easily to watch for anonymous edits from any IP ranges.


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The Arrest of CCTV News Anchor and Refection on China’s Public Relation Business · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

The arrest of CCTV news anchor Rui Chenggang was related to his ties to PR firm Edelman subsidiary in China. Silicon Hutong took the opportunity to reflect upon public relation businesses in China:
Two issues prevent widespread improvement in PR industry ethics in China. First is a persistent exclusivist belief that because this is China, things are done the Chinese way, and always will be. Operating ethically is seen as naive at best, and culturally imperialist at worst (“how dare you impose your values on us!”)
The second issue is fear. PR executives and their agencies believe that if they don’t take advantage of every opportunity, however morally ambiguous, they will lose revenue and clients to competitors who lack – or opportunistically ignore – their moral compasses.


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Vietnamese Government ‘Opinion Shapers’ Target Activist Facebook Pages · Global Voices
Duy Hoang

The battle for Facebook (Source: www.facebook.com/viettan)
In recent weeks, well-known Vietnamese activists have found themselves suddenly unable to log in to their Facebook accounts. Their personal pages have been suspended for “abuse” even though there was no apparent violation of any Facebook policy.
According to Angelina Trang Huynh, who temporarily lost access to her Facebook account earlier this month, the culprit is the Vietnamese government’s online army, known as “opinion shapers” (dư luận viên). These opinion shapers used Facebook's “report abuse” system to orchestrate an onslaught of reports that likely led Facebook to suspend the targeted accounts.
Instructions for reporting Viet Tan's Facebook page. Viet Tan is a pro-democracy party with members inside Vietnam and around the world. (Source: “I love the Vietnamese security police” FB fan page)
With 25 million Vietnamese users, Facebook is the social network in the country. Since Facebook took off in Vietnam in 2009, authorities have tried unsuccessfully to restrict its explosive growth and role as a medium for free expression.
Early attempts by authorities to block Facebook did not succeed and only encouraged netizens to learn how to circumvent and became versed in civil disobedience.
In 2013, 30-year old Dinh Nhat Uy was the first Vietnamese activist known to be arrested for his activities on Facebook. He was convicted for “abusing democratic freedoms” through status updates calling for the release of his younger brother who also used social media to express dissent. Uy’s arrest sparked widespread attention but did not temper enthusiasm for using the social network for political discussion and organizing.
It appears that Vietnamese authorities have given up on totally blocking Facebook. The country’s economy and image depend on authorities maintaining some semblance of an open Internet.
However, through “opinion shapers” authorities apparently hope to achieve their goal of stifling free speech. This online army has been blamed for creating an environment of intimidation and harassment, as evidenced by their tidal wave of toxic and profanity-laden comments.
By flagging an account en masse, not unlike a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, these government henchmen can quickly trigger the takedown of a Facebook profile or community page with content critical of the Hanoi government.
Facebooker Trinh Huu Long posted a list of accounts taken down recently. It reads like a list of who’s who in the Vietnamese online activist community:
15. Nguyen Lan Thang – blogger
16. Nguyen Tien Trung – former prisoner of conscience, recently released on April 12, 2014
17. Nguyen Tuong Thuy – blogger
18. Nhat Ky Yeu Nuoc – a news/media page
Expect Vietnamese netizens to strike back, says Angelina Trang Huynh:
Offline, the authorities wield security police to physically abuse peaceful activists. Online, they use ‘opinion shapers’ to silence bloggers. Does the Vietnamese government really think they can get away with this abuse?

author: Duy Hoang


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Was Singapore Airlines’ Facebook and Twitter Message After the MH17 Crash Insensitive? · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

A Singapore Airlines flight on March 29, 2014. Photo by Flickr user Aero Icarus. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
After news broke out about the Malaysian Airlines MH17 crash in eastern Ukraine, Singapore Airlines posted this message on Facebook and Twitter:
Customers may wish to note that Singapore Airlines flights are not using Ukraine airspace.
— Singapore Airlines (@SingaporeAir) July 17, 2014
Many netizens accused the airline of being insensitive. Sophie Chang commented on Facebook that “a better way for the airline to do is to express condolences first.” But Stephen Chapman believes that the statement “was intended to bring calm in a general sense.” Ryan Ik appreciated the clarification but he also felt that “without any words of sympathy, the update feels very cold.”
Insensitive or not, this short update has since then become a viral message in a matter of hours.


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Zone 9 Bloggers Charged With Terrorism in Ethiopia · Global Voices
Ellery Roberts Biddle

Zone 9 bloggers Zelalem Kibret, Edom Kasaye, and Befeqadu Hailu. Photos used with permission.
Nine bloggers and journalists, four of them Global Voices members, were charged with terrorism and related activities before Ethiopia’s Lideta High Court yesterday. Arrested and detained in Addis Ababa on April 25 and 26, they since have been behind bars on informal accusations of “working with foreign organizations that claim to be human rights activists and…receiving finance to incite public violence through social media.”
The defendants’ attorneys and families were not given prior notice about the hearing, and they thus had no legal representation present when the charges were issued.
The Zone9 Trial Tracker blog, run by sources close to the defendants, reported that the charges included working with organizations branded as “terrorist” by the Ethiopian government; participating in an email encryption training; and “underground organization.”
The bloggers’ attorney told AFP that the charges have no “credible substance.” Supporters around the world expressed outrage over the charges on Twitter, under the #FreeZone9Bloggers hashtag. Yoseph Mulugeta, a former Human Rights Watch representative in Ethiopia who has been following the case closely, tweeted:
19page fabricated charges but no mention of Zone9 by name.Not even once.The brand surely terrifies enemies of free speech #FreeZone9Bloggers
— Yoseph Mulugeta (@YosephMulugeta) July 18, 2014
Enacted in 2009, Ethiopia’s controversial anti-terrorism law is unfortunately familiar for political journalists in the country. Journalists Eskinder Nega and Reeyot Alemu faced the same charge and have been held in Addis Ababa’s Kalaity prison since 2011. Prosecutors reportedly issued the charge based on accusations that the bloggers had received training and financial support from two Ethiopian political groups based in Europe and the US. Trial Tracker notes that the two groups are ideologically dissimilar.
According to news reports, the bloggers and journalists were also accused of organizing themselves clandestinely as the Zone9 blogging collective, a puzzling charge, given the public nature of the Zone9 blog and activities undertaken by the group.
The group has been given a trial date of August 8. Visit the Trial Tracker Blog for updates on the case and to learn how your can support the Zone9ers.
Free Zone9 Bloggers campaign image. Created by Hugh D'Andrade, remixed by Hisham Almiraat.

author: Ellery Roberts Biddle


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Artists Explore the ‘Melting Point’ of Art and Propaganda in Skopje · Global Voices
Filip Stojanovski

A not-for-profit, self-financed group of artists calling themselves Kooperacija (“Cooperation”, Macedonian slang for a general store in small villages) hosted an exhibition titled “Melting Point: Art as Anti-Hegemonic Propaganda” [en, mk, with photos] in Skopje recently.
‘Fear makes the world go round’ by Ines Efremova. Photo by Kooperacija, used with permission.
As reported [mk] by several news outlets that cover culture [mk], including Belgrade-based SEE Cult [sr], the event presented works by several individuals and groups of world renowned artists. Among them were pieces by Vitaly Komar, IRWIN, Santiago Sierra, DETEXT, as well as by some of the most vibrant artists from the region, like Nemanja Cvijanović, Ibro Hasanović, Igor Toševski, Kristina Gorovska & Jure Lavrin, Ines Efremova, Filip Jovanovski, O-P-A, and others.
The group of artists who put together the exhibition described it on their pages as:
Kooperacija is an initiative whose purpose is artistic activity outside the inert institutional frameworks, thus suggesting an exceptional approach to the creation and experience of contemporary art […]
[Its] basic strategy is the occupation of temporarily free space dispersed throughout the urban landscape and exhibiting through a chain of blitzkrieg events. The desired effect is a constructive dialogue regarding the re-questioning of the critical positions in art and producing a favorable environment for a free exchange of ideas, experience and freedom of expression.

author: Filip Stojanovski


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4 Photos of Street Art by the ‘Iranian Banksy’ That Speak Volumes About Life Today in Iran · Global Voices
Mahsa Alimardani

Images of daring graffiti adorning the walls and buildings of Tehran have gone viral on Facebook and Twitter.
The street art, which offers timely social commentary on the events in Gaza and life in Iran, is the work of an anonymous artist or group of artists known as Black Hand, dubbed the “Iranian Banksy” by some media outlets. Graffiti is illegal in Iran, though authorities allow street art that supports the Islamic Republic.
Black Hand's work challenges the government on its ban against women attending sporting events and fraud in the 2009 elections that saw millions take to the streets against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's “landslide” election. Take a look at four photos of the artwork currently circulating on social media.
1. Bleeding Gaza
Iranian graffiti artist Black Hand strikes again, this time for Gaza. pic.twitter.com/YGkJ6ySkP4
— Arash Karami (@thekarami) julio 12, 2014
In the most recent Black Hand graffiti to trend on social media, Iranians posted images of the artist's wall depiction of blood pouring over the word “Gaza” from 2012. The artist later thanked fans on Facebook for reviving the artwork in light of the renewed violence between Israel and Gaza, which has left more than 200 Palestinians dead so far. In his post, Black Hand was pleased to see that Iranians of all political stripes stood united together against Israel’s bombardment of the coastal enclave.
#Iran‘s washing up liquid protest. Black Hand is sometimes referred to as “Iran's Banksy”! http://t.co/FINwgOzP7W pic.twitter.com/bw88GP5uKK
— Saeed Valadbaygi (@SaeedBaygi) July 14, 2014
This image of a woman wearing the Iranian football team's jersey while thrusting a bottle of diswashing liquid is reminiscent of players holding up the World Cup trophy. The image appeared around the time that the team was competing in Brazil in June. Black Hand posted an image of the artwork on Facebook.
Women, including female journalists, are banned from attending football and volleyball matches in stadiums. The graffiti, which was on a main street in Tehran, was blotted out with red paint shortly after it appeared.
It's unclear whether authorities erased it or the artist did it as metaphor for the lack of female presence in sports.
3. ‘Enough fighting, continue with diplomacy’
Iranian #streetartist Black Hand has advice 4 #IranTalksVienna: Enough fighting, continue w/ diplomacy. (July 2013). pic.twitter.com/hNYQW6pFbr
— Sidewalk Lyrics (@pedestrian) julio 14, 2014
This depiction of boxing gloves seemingly hung up for good is accompanied with the caption, “Enough fighting, continue with diplomacy.” An image of the art started to trend among Iranian users on social media this week as nuclear negotiations in Vienna continued.
The graffiti was spotted in July 2013 as Iranians were finishing a tough political period under President Ahmadinejad during which tensions over Iran's nuclear program were renewed and sanctions took a crippling toll on the Iranian economy. Iranians elected the moderate President Hassan Rouhani in June 2013, who campaigned on the platform of diplomacy and and end to the conflict and resulting economic crisis.
4. 2009 elections
انصافن یکی از بهترین گرافیتی هایی که تو عمرم دیدم.کار هنرمند ناشناخته ایرانی #Blackhand https://t.co/gXN3YnwP6r pic.twitter.com/IjwYBpqT1R
— Babi (@Babifrown) June 30, 2014
One of the best works of graffiti I have seen in my life. The work of a unknown Iranian artist. #Blackhand
This June sighting became popular on social media, with simple graffiti of the link to the leaked YouTube video of Iran's Revolutionary Guard commander saying that the reformists’ return to power in the 2009 elections was a “red line” for them, deemed as the first time authorities admitted to participating in election fraud.
Then, President Ahmadinejad was reelected in the vote, but millions argued that the election was rigged. Anger over the results sparked the Green Movement, with mass demonstrations in the months that followed until an attempted rally in February 2010 was brutally suppressed.

author: Mahsa Alimardani


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The Art Nouveau Windows to Belgrade’s Soul · Global Voices
Danica Radisic

Aleksandar Lambros, a Serbian-born photographer currently living and working in Monaco, has been snapping photos of tell-tale details of Belgrade's architectural history and collecting them on his blog.
A detail on a building in downtown Belgrade. Photo: Aleksandar Lambros© 2014.
While the city still retains snippets of Roman and Ottoman architecture, as parts of the city were under both Roman and Ottoman rule throughout history, most of what is today downtown Belgrade expanded during the 19th century, under the still very visible influence of the highly popular European Art Nouveau movement of the late 19th and early 20th century.
Lambros has captured some of the most interesting decorative details on Belgrade's older buildings in a set of 18 photographs that depict the quaint, unique mixture of Serbian culture with a well-known European architectural style. The full set, along with Lambros’ other work, is available on his blog.

author: Danica Radisic


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The Engineer, Documentary About the Man Unearthing the Dead in El Salvador’s Gang Wars · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón Orbe

Symbolic weapon handover from the gangs to Monsignor Colindres and Raúl Mijango. Photo on Flickr by user Departamento de Seguridad Pública OEA (CC BY-ND 2.0).
The documentary “The engineer” tells the story of the man that unearths the dead in El Salvador's gang wars. Israel Ticas has been trained as a civil engineer, and as forensic criminologist, every day brings with it the promise of new bodies, victims of a remorseless Salvadoran gang culture, dumped in disused wells or buried in the thicket of inaccessible woodland.
This has made him a target for the pandilleros, whose ugly deeds he unearths. “He's sticking his nose in where it doesn't belong”, comments one member of 18 Street. In spite of the risks, however, and not for want of a way out, Israel Tocas carries on. “When you think of the 20 mothers waiting for the bodies down there, that's when you get motivated”.

author: Gabriela García Calderón Orbe


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The World Stands With Palestine: Protests On Every Continent · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

In the days since the latest Israeli offensive against Gaza, protests have sprung up in numerous cities around the world to support Palestine and call for an end to the ongoing attacks. Recognizing the need to demonstrate solidarity, a Tumblr has been created to document these protests. The account, which is anonymous, states its purpose is to collect “Photos, videos, and reports from demonstrations in solidarity with Palestine during Israel's ongoing attacks and collective punishment.” These are images from just a few of the demonstrations that have taken place in countries around the world.
“World Cup protests in Brazil become Gaza protests.” – July 12, 2014.”
Kabul, Afghanistan – July 13, 2014.
Hyderabad, India – July 13, 2014.
Helsinki, Finland – July 12, 2014.
Istanbul, Turkey – July 12, 2014.
San Francisco, CA (US) – July 12, 2014.
Seoul, South Korea – July 12, 2014.
The Hague, Netherlands – July 12, 2014.
Japan – July 12, 2014.
“Today, the people of South Africa marched in support of the Palestinians that are suffering under the Occupation. Nelson Mandela once said “We know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.” So today we stood up to be the voice of the voiceless.” – July 13, 2014.
Indonesia – July 12, 2014.
“Montreal protesters holding the longest Palestinian flag in the world during Gaza Solidarity protest on Friday July 11, 2014.”
Maldives – July 12, 2014.
Tunis, Tunisia – July 13, 2014.
Valparaiso, Chile – July 12, 2014.
Berlin, Germany – July 12, 2014.
Canberra, Australia – July 18, 2014.
“On July 12th a group of people organised a silent protest in Krakow – in solidarity with Gaza. Protesters printed names of all the children martyred in Gaza during operation “Protective Edge”.”

author: Jillian C. York


text:
Trinidad & Tobago: Does Living in the Digital Age Forfeit Your Right to Privacy?  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

ICT Pulse reviews a recently published report from the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the right to privacy in the digital age.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


text:
Twitter Users Call the NY Times Out On Shifting Coverage of Israeli Bombing On Gazan Children  · Global Voices
Elia J. Ayoub

The New York Times recently came under a wave of criticism for its coverage of Israel's bombardment and killing of four Gazan children playing football at the beach.
The trusted American newspaper changed its headline from “4 Young Boys Killed Playing on Gaza Beach” to “Boys Drawn to Gaza Beach & Into Center of Mideast Strife” which was perceived by some as being misleading. The headline, as can be seen on NewsDiffs, changed between 8:35pm and 9:13pm on July 16.
In response, the pan-African website ‘Africa Is A Country‘ asked its followers to parody the title change on Twitter using the hashtag #NYThistory:
Screenshot of the status shared by ‘Africa Is A Country’
Here are some examples of the ongoing hashtag campaign:
“Joan of Arc drawn to stake, and into center of large fire” #NYTHistory
— Africa is a Country (@AfricasaCountry) July 17, 2014
“Rosa Parks drawn to public transport and into center of American racial tensions.” #NYTHistory @AfricasaCountry
— Niamh Ni Mhaoileoin (@nnimhaoileoin) July 17, 2014
East German govt builds a Wall in Berlin, raising questions about the applicable building code. #NYTHistory
— Christiane Wilke (@jaanewilke) July 17, 2014
“Native people drawn to pale bearded guys off boats, into center of unprecedented attempts at annihilation” #NYTHistory CC @AfricasaCountry
— Anaïs Bédé (@anaisbd) July 17, 2014
“Chickens Drawn to Farms, and Into Center of Nutritional Practice” #NYTHistory
— Trond Gausdal (@trondgausdal) July 17, 2014
“Cambodians drawn onto the fields of Kampuchea and into center of Pol's Pot.” #NYTHistory
— Imran Garda (@ImranGarda) July 17, 2014
At the time of writing, Israel's “Operation Defensive Edge” has entered its 13th day and has already claimed the lives of more than 280 Palestinians among them children and women, and one Israeli.

author: Elia J. Ayoub