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Brazil: Future of Forests at Stake · Global Voices
João Miguel Lima

This post is part of our special coverage Forest Focus: Amazon and Global Development 2011.
Across the past few weeks, the Brazilian National Congress has been abuzz with the pressure to vote on a new Forestry Code. The project based on proposed changes of the existing Code is backed by a coalition of Deputies of the so-called “Ruralist Front”. The proposed Code raised controversy in mid-2010, as well as in December of the same year, when the matter was rushed forth while environmentalists were away in Cancún for the COP 16.
The proposal under discussion establishes a new management scheme for forests and protected environmental areas in all 6 biomes of Brazil: Caatinga, Cerrado, Pampas, Atlantic Forest, Pantanal and the Amazon. The rationale driving the project is that agribusiness is hindered by the existing Code and Brazil is missing out on opportunities for economic development.
A truckload of timber leaves the Amazon. — Deforestation and the timber industry on the Amazon. Photo by Christian Franz Tragni, copyright Demotix (18/02/2009)
Forestry Code
The proposed Forestry Code fashions a ‘consolidated rural area’ approach with many controversial features: making all cultivated areas legal (granting amnesty to those responsible for deforestation that created them); reducing the amount of riparian or stream-side zones to be protected (called ‘várzeas’ and ‘igapós’ in Portuguese); allowing occupation and use of areas above 1,800 m (which are currently protected) for agriculture; changing the parameters for Permanent Preservation Area (APP) to be replaced by new statutes created in each Brazilian State; eliminating the native reserve requirement in small properties; permits replanting of degraded areas with exotic plants (instead of only native species); allowing compensation for a devastated land with a protected area elsewhere (i.e. a devastated area in the Atlantic Forest could be compensated by a protected area in the Cerrado); and making it no longer compulsory to restore damaged native reserve on small properties.
Rumor has it that the version presented by the federal deputy from the Communist Party Aldo Rebelo to Congress on May 10, 2011, had its draft finalized just moments before the call to vote. The rumor made the voting session be adjourned as the version wasn’t available for appreciation. Former Minister of Environment and presidential candidate Marina Silva (@silva_marina) tweeted on May 10 [pt]:
Não se sabe quais propostas da sociedade e do governo estão no relatório do Aldo. Será um desrespeito se o Código Florestal for votado hoje.
On May 12, as deputies mentioned Marina Silva's message to demand more time to study the report, Aldo Rebelo accused Mrs. Silva's husband of illegal logging. He also stated that he had “spared” Mrs. Silva's husband, as had decided not to press charges.
Based on this statement, which was aired on television, YouTube user CiFuDetube (acronym for Citizenship, Future and Democracy) advised netizens to call for Aldo Rebelo’s impeachment, as he had publicly confessed misconduct.
http://youtu.be/vXaYzt2PQnQ
Agribusiness, the future of Brazilian economy?
According to journalist João Peres [pt], writing for Rede Brasil Atual, the “ruralist front” is made up of 170 deputies and 18 senators who openly support agribusiness and in some cases are farmers themselves. Deputy Kátia Abreu is a well-known member of the ruralist front, being a large producer in the meat industry. Since 2008, she has been the president of the Brazilian Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock (CNA) and is eager to see the new Code approved.
Abreu (@KatiaAbreu) tweeted [pt] that the “modernization of the Forestry Code is being set in a democratic and responsible manner”. She also tweeted in defense of her efforts [pt]:
Não somos desmatadores. Não exploramos madeira em reserva ambiental. Somos produtores de alimentos. Sustentamos o Brasil. #codigoflorestalja
During the COP 16, Deputy Abreu (member of the Social Democrat Party) was awarded the Golden Chainsaw [pt] by Greenpace Brazil, in recognition of “her efforts towards deforestation”.
Rise in deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest – The Brazilian Amazon rainforest had 5.850 km2 of its legal area deforested from August 2009 to April 2010, according to INPE- Instituto de Pesquisas Espaciais. Photo by Ronnie Luis Leite, copyright Demotix (20/11/2007).
Deputy Aldo Rebelo, member of the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB), is the rapporteur (sponsor) responsible for the new Forestry Code proposed in Congress. Mr. Rebelo has taken an uncompromising stand for the project. Despite his alliance with the Dilma Rousseff administration, he has shown deeper affinity with the proposal backed by the ruralist front rather then the less aggressive one backed by the Presidential Administration.
Rafael Chiaravalloti writes on his blog Diário do Verde (Green Daily) [pt] about the harmful effects of the new Forestry Code project and calls Aldo Rebelo a puppet doll:
Aldo Rebelo, um ex-militante da luta pela democracia na época que os militares criaram o código, é apenas uma marionete desse processo.
Environmentalists and scientists reject proposal
Concerned with the powerful forces behind the new Forestry Code, environmental NGOs like Greenpeace Brazil and WWF-Brazil and institutes such as ISA – Instituto Socioambiental (Socio-Environmental Institute) – and IPAM – Instituto de Pesquisa Ambiental da Amazônia (Environmental Research Institute of the Amazon) – joined their forces in 2010 to fight against the new Code. The website SOS Florestas (SOS Forests) [pt] aims at offering content to correct the currently widespread misinformation. The argument is that there have been lies [pt] about the way the new Forest Code was elaborated and it is necessary to publicize the potential negative effect on ecosystems in Brazil.
The initiative created an online petition [pt] with Avaaz to maintain the current Forestry Code. On Twitter, the hashtag #SOSFlorestas is used and a video [pt] has been produced to inform about the harmful possibilities of the proposed new code, especially in regards to ending the compulsory reserve of original forest on small properties, and the lower restriction of areas of permanent protection on hills and riversides, which has huge impacts on cities.
The Brazilian Society for the Progress of Science (SBPC) and the Brazilian Academy of Science (ABC) have come forward to argue for a two-year moratorium [pt] on the Forestry Code dialog in Congress. Both institutions agree the Code must be changed, but argue the current proposals lack the scientific data basis needed for new determinations of native reserve, for the adjustment of protected areas on riversides and other changes.
“Aldo Effect”: Deforestation is going up
Just a few days ago, Instituto Centro de Vida (ICV) and Imazon, institutions that conduct research and advocate for the sustainable management of Brazilian biomes, reported that deforestation [pt] went up in the state of Mato Grosso, against the previous trend of lower deforestation rates:
Em abril de 2011 o desmatamento atingiu 243 quilometros quadrados em Mato Grosso, o que corresponde a aumento  expressivo  de 537% em relação a abril de 2010 quando o desmatamento somou apenas 38 quilometros quadrados.
You can see maps and graphics here [pt] comparing deforestation rates in Mato Grosso over the past four years. As journalist Leonardo Sakamato argues, this is a race to deforest areas, as the new Forestry Code will provide farmers with amnesty. Environmentalists have named it the “Aldo Effect”.
"Protect our woods – Save the Forest Code" Photo from the blog of the AASPAFF (Association for Social Action and Conservation of Water, Fauna and Flora of the northern Chapada), used with permission.
Demonstrations have taken place in other parts of the country, as in the small town of Jacobina, Bahia. SOS Florestas is urging citizens to attend a massive demonstration this Sunday, May 22, in São Paulo.
This post is part of our special coverage Forest Focus: Amazon and Global Development 2011.

author: João Miguel Lima


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Bulgaria: Right-Wing Group and Muslims Clash in Sofia · Global Voices
Ruslan Trad

Violent clashes erupted between sympathizers of the nationalist Ataka (The Attack) party and local Muslims at the Bania Basha mosque in the center of Bulgaria's capital, Sofia, during today's nationalist demonstrations against the mosque's loudspeakers.
Right from the start of the preparations, one person from the nationalist camp pulled out a Turkish fez and cut it up in front of some 150 Ataka sympathizers and 200 praying Muslims. Tensions between the two groups escalated after Ataka sympathizers tried to put a loudspeaker over the mosque's toilet.
During the clashes, many people were injured, including a Muslim man with a fractured skull. According to Volen Siderov, the leader of Ataka, one of the party's MPs – Denitza Gedjeva – was also injured after a stone hit her jaw and she was rushed to the city's main hospital, Pirogov. Three more of the injured were accepted into the hospital's emergency room, but all, including Gedjeva, were later released for home treatment.
Medical teams arrived at the scene to examine and treat the injured. Three Ataka sympathizers were arrested.
Representatives of Ataka were throwing stones, fruit, eggs, sheets of metal and pieces of wood at the Muslims, who responded by applauding their attackers. There are many reactions on Twitter [bg, en]:
@gospodin_i:
They are beating Jehovah's Witnesses, beating Muslims. I want to ask: who's next?
@ruslantrad:
Muslim lying on the ground with a broken head after clashes in Sofia http://twitpic.com/502vuo
@ruslantrad: Muslim lying on the ground with a broken head after clashes in Sofia http://twitpic.com/502vuo
@ruslantrad:
Open letter from the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee to all media outlets in Bulgaria about clashes between right-wing activists and Muslims http://bit.ly/iGL4B2
@nervnata:
Will they be arrested for hate speech and racism attacks?
@ruslantrad:
Right-wing activists are burning prayer mats in front of the mosque in Sofia http://twitpic.com/502wu4
@ruslantrad: Right-wing activists are burning prayer mats in front of the mosque in Sofia http://twitpic.com/502wu4
Some Facebook reactions in Supporting Immigrants Rights in Bulgaria group:
Dafar Shaban:
Sadly, he [Siderov] is taking more and more dangerous actions, and he's turning from a poser into an actor in this situation, while the political scene is becoming a place of religious intolerance.
Trayana Kaleycheva:
We have to organize an event in defense of the Bulgarian Muslims! Today or tomorrow, we have to react to this madness!
Vida Delcheva:
This is a disgrace! It's amazing how far these pathetic bigots can go. They're putting the whole nation to shame in the worst possible way.
Dimitar Vesselinov:
Sickderov [a nickname for Siderov] is scum, a provocateur who abuses his support and his power to divert people's attention.
Akyra Mnoojak:
Seriously, who does that guy think he's representing? Obviously it's not just his fans, who are becoming fewer and fewer.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Ruslan Trad


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Cuba: Musings on the Sixth Congress  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Laritza's Laws blogs about “the trap of socialist democracy”, while Octavo Cerco says that “after the close of the Sixth Congress of the Communist Party…the only point on the official agenda that seems to be right on the mark is the repression of the alternative groups that have been growing at a significant pace in recent years.”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Cuba: Pastor Speaks Out  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Dissident Juan Wilfredo Soto García‘s pastor has a blog and is using it to “raise [his] voice for Juan Wilfredo.”


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Cuba: Reforms vs. Reality  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Laritza Diversent looks at some of the impending changes coming out of the Communist Party Congress, but says: “There is far too much optimism towards the announced changes made by the PCC.  Freedom and permission are not synonymous.”


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Ghana: Start-up Helps You to Share and Discover the Best  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Gamelmag writes about a Ghanaian start-up Tutamee: “Formed in mid 2010, Tutamee officially launched the alpha version of its website (http://tutamee.com/) on 27th April 2011. The co-founders of the company are Ghanaian entrepreneurs Mawuli Sikanku, Eugene Idan and Francis Bernasko. Tutamee received seed funding from the Meltwater Foundation.”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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India: A Day In The Life Of A Beggar · Global Voices
Rezwan

Vanillasense recreates a day in the life of a beggar in India.

author: Rezwan


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Jamaica: A Lucky Poem  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Litblogger Geoffrey Philp posts a poem by diaspora writer Shara McCallum.


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Macedonia: “Very Different Survey Results” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Belatedly, a link to the explanation by Razvigor :-) of why the results of a telephone survey on Macedonian political parties differed significantly from a similar personal in-home survey results.

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Nepal: Dhaka Topi, The National Identity · Global Voices
Rezwan

XNepali at Nepal Blogs writes about Dhaka Topi, an unique cap worn by many Nepalis which is considered as a national identity.


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North Korea: Has Idolization of Kim Jong-Un Failed?  · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

Whilst North Korean regime tries hard to apotheosize Kim Jong-un, report came out today claiming that most ordinary North Korean has no interest to the heir. The Free Radio for North Korea which founded and runs by defectors revealed [ko] that most low-level soldiers are unaware of the new dictator, let alone praising him.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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North Korea: News Resources  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Adam Cathcart from Sinologistical Violoncellist has complied a list of  North Korean news items on China, cultural diplomacy, US/Japan, Middle East, Environment, and etc. It helps to understand North Korea's understanding of its relation with the rest of the world.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Portugal: Uncovering Transparency in Parliament · Global Voices
Sara Moreira

With the backdrop of prolonged economic crisis, which contaminates social and political life, portuguese citizens demand for public governance transparency. Today an important step was taken in this direction, with the launching of Demo.Cratica, a website that lets you learn about portuguese MPs and all their discussions in the parliament.

author: Sara Moreira


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Russia: “Work and Shelter in Migrant Moscow” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Madeleine Reeves writes at OpenDemocracy.net about migrant workers in Moscow and their “daily struggle […] to stay ‘legal’, and survive.”


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Russia: Billionaire Gives Up Business After Publishing a Video On Bank Fraud · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

Alexander Lebedev, Russian tycoon, said that he will give up his banking business and join pro-Kremlin People's Front, after he published a video clip [ru] on corruption in Federal Security Service and Central Bank in his blog, Gazeta.ru reported [ru]. The video has been removed shortly after its publication, although bloggers re-posted it. Following that, Lebedev said ‘his business experienced problems in the Central Bank’ and announced his sudden decision.

author: Alexey Sidorenko


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Russia: Moscow Schools and Migrants’ Children  · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Window on Eurasia writes that “an increasing number of Muscovite parents are doing whatever they can to ensure that their children go to those schools which have few or no migrant children.”


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Russia: “Violence, Death and Cover-Up in the Russian Army” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

At OpenDemocracy.net, six tragic cases of hazing of new Russian army recruits: the Russian NGO Mother’s Right Foundation “used the highly popular Russian social network http://www.odnoklassniki.ru to publish selected profiles of young men who died while serving in the army. They were no longer alive, so couldn't write anything themselves, but the Foundation decided to present their profiles in the first person, as though originally written by the victims.” (More on it – in an earlier RuNet Echo text by Marina Litvinovich, The Dead Journal.)


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Spain: “Yes We Camp,” Mobilizing on the Streets and the Internet · Global Voices
Leila Nachawati Rego

Since May 15,  people in Spain  have taken the streets to demand democracy in advance the upcoming elections, with thousands camping out in different cities. On May 18, as protests made headlines in the international press, the Madrid Election Board banned the 15-M movement, but organizers defied them by converging on Puerta del Sol square for the third day, in spite of the rain.
Midnight at Puerta del Sol. Madrid, May 19. Image source: Mikel el Prádanos
According to the Madrid Election Board there are “no special or serious reasons” [es] for the urgent call for mass demonstrations. These declarations show the gap between the official discourse and citizen demands, and has swelled opposition against the two main political parties.  Protests have spread across the country and the Internet, with hundreds of thousands demonstrating in different cities like Málaga, Granada and Tenerife, and users sharing updates and supporting each other through social media, especially Twitter:
#acampadasol Mojándose por la democracia y por unos derechos y unos deberes más justos. Mucho Ánimo desde #acampadasegovia #nonosvamos
Events in solidarity with Spain have also been organized, mainly through Facebook and Twitter, in front of Spanish embassies in different cities like London or Jerusalem.
@Anon_Leakspin: At 19:00 a camp at Spanish embassy at London (UK) will start. #spanishrevolution #europeanrevolution #yeswecamp #acampadasol”
Citizens have organized efficiently into legal, communications, cleaning, food, health, and even music committees. There was so much food brought to the camps out that organizers had to look for somewhere to store it. Also, dozens continue to volunteer to translate documents and the committee's decisions into English, French, Arabic and sign language.
Protesters in Madrid, Spain. Photo by Julio Albarrán, republished under a CC License.*
With hashtags rapidly appearing, changing, and replacing one another on Twitter, it's hard for both the media and the main political parties to keep up: #democraciarealya, #spanishrevolution, #acampadasol, #nonosvamos, #yeswecamp, #notenemosmiedo, #juntaelectoralfacts, #esunaopcion, #tomalaplaza, #pijamabloc, coexist with the tags for local camps, one for each city: #acampadavalencia, #acampadalgño, #acampadabcn…
@LaKylaB: Cuántos decían que no era posible un cambio? Cuántos creían que siempre viviríamos así?Cuántos? . Esto es solo el comienzo. #acampadabcn
Dozens of tags have turned this protest, ironically, into a movement that is hard to pin down. With no visible leaders and a decentralized communications system, mobilizations in Spain are becoming another manifestation of a global movement that traditional structures have a hard time interpreting.
Protesters in Madrid, Spain. Photo by Julio Albarrán, republished under a CC License.*
People are not only using social media to organize and share updates, but they're also making a very effective use of digital collaborative tools. Their goals and demands can be read on the Real Democracy Now website. There is also a wiki where users include information and materials, online documents with legal advice on the right to association and reunion, an urgent petition to demand an end to the ban against the camp, and one blog post published on the same day by several activists from the #nolesvotes (don't vote for them) movement, among many other initiatives resulting from online collaborative work: “#nolesvotes: for a responsible vote”
Colaboración distribuida: Te invitamos a copiar este texto y construir páginas de enlaces que referencien todos los sitios que dan apoyo a la iniciativa. De igual modo, invitamos a los demás colectivos que comparten nuestra propuesta a que lleven a cabo acciones similares. La fuerza de la red reside en la distribución y colaboración entre sus nodos.
Camp site at Puerta del Sol, Madrid, Spain. Photo by Julio Albarrán, republished under a CC License.*
Some media outlets and political leaders have accused the movement for lacking a defined structure. But citizens, young and not so young, are organizing, in different and innovative ways.  They are occupying public spaces, both on the streets and the Internet, and are employing digital tools to organize, share, and build their own stories. A “silent scream” is planned for today, May 20, at midnight, and it seems a quite powerful metaphor for this communication gap.

author: Leila Nachawati Rego


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Sri Lanka: Transparency Regarding ‘Boot Camp’ For Youth · Global Voices
Rezwan

Serendipity discusses about the issues surrounding the latest “Boot Camp” initiative for A level students in Sri Lanka, which is an in house 3 week course at an army camp. The actual program and plan has not been publicized leaving scope for speculations and rumors.


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Uganda/Kenya: Anti Kenya Airways campaign bound to fail · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Will anti Kenya Airways campaign on Facebook succeed?: “…a group of Uganda’s opposition activists has now resorted to creating a Facebook page ‘Boycott Kenya Airways 4 Violanting(sic) Dr. Kiiza Besigye’s rights’.”


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Ukraine: “Thugs in Parliament” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Foreign Notes writes about yet another fight in the Ukrainian parliament, this time between the deputy speaker and one of the MPs.


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Uzbekistan: Anti-Turkish campaign deepens · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Ataturk Street in downtown Tashkent is about to be renamed, and in the view of neweurasia’s Avicenna, it’s the latest signal of Turkey and Uzbekistan’s rather bipolar relationship. “It’s obvious that this crisis is probably more serious than anyone thought,” he writes.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Uzbekistan: Presidential daughter launched twitter account · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Abulfazal writes that a few days ago Uzbek Internet community has probably got the first twitter account for a well-known high-ranking figure, Gulnara Karimova, the Uzbekistan president's daughter, but the question on whether it is a real account or a fake one remains.


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Zimbabwe: Action Alert: Women Arrested for Protesting · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Six WOZA (Women And Men of Zimbabwe Arise) women have been arrested for protesting about electricty supplies in Zimbabwe: “The members were arrested by police officers who accused them of painting messages on the road. The messages read- ‘power to poor people’ ; ‘no lengthy load shedding’ ; ‘prepaid meters now!’; focus on the electricity crisis in Zimbabwe.”


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Azerbaijan: National Identity · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Following a heated discussion on the issue of ethnic identity in the comments section on an entry written about Azerbaijan's recent Eurovision win, Scary Azeri responds in an extensive post to criticism from one reader in particular that she is not Azeri enough.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Brazil: “The City’s Most Beautiful Band” Wins the Internet · Global Voices
Debora Baldelli

A musical love “prayer” was one of the hottest topics of the week on the Web in Brazil. A Banda Mais Bonita da Cidade‘s video, (the name means “The City's Most Beautiful Band”) released on May 17 and recorded in a long take, has already thrilled more than 700,000 people [pt] and keeps being widely shared on Facebook.

author: Debora Baldelli


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Bulgaria: People Bring Flowers to Sofia’s Mosque · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Ruslan Trad (@ruslantrad) writes that people were bringing flowers on Saturday to the mosque in Sofia where clashes between a right-wing group and local Muslims took place the day before.


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Chad: How Communities Are Rebuilding Lives · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Paul O'Brien discusses his trip to Chad and how communities are rebuilding their lives: “The biggest challenge facing mothers in Chad is to feed their children and keep them healthy. The country has one of the highest rates of child deaths in the world.  In the villages in which Concern is working in Goré, I interviewed members of a mothers’ self-help group. One mother tells me that she had nine children, but only four survived.”


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France: French Women Bloggers on the DSK Scandal  · Global Voices
Claire Ulrich

French feminist bloggers and women bloggers writing on women's issues, have gained a larger audience and a new respect in France in the aftermath of the Domininique Strauss-Kahn (DSK) scandal. They were the first and very few voices reminding that there was a woman involved, possibly a victim, and they drew attention to the biased and sexist coverage of the French media.
Meet a few French feminist bloggers, blogging from different perspectives but all laboring online against prejudices and the French perception of sexual harassment and crimes.
Clémentine Autain
Clementine Autain
Clémentine Autain [fr] has gained a new following this week in France for being the first prominent French blogger and politician to speak out against the barrage of pro-DSK coverage on the day the news broke, in this blogpost, ‘A thought for the chambermaid‘ [fr]:
Qui a une pensée pour la femme de chambre ? Pas grand monde, et cela me scandalise.[…] Je veux dire l’omerta qui pèse sur les violences faites aux femmes,
In 2006, in one of her first blog posts, “Why I am a feminist‘ [fr],  Clémentine Autain spoke openly of being herself a rape victim at age 22 and how it has been  central to her political and feminist engagement. She filed a complaint  and her rapist was tried and convicted.
Olympe et le plafond de verre
Olympe et le plafond de verre
Olympe was spurred to create her blog [fr] about gender discrimination in the work place by her own experience of the plafond de verre (glass ceiling) in work, business and politics.
Her blog is a diary of  big and small offenses done to women in daily life, in politics or in the media. She kept a log of links pointing to disparaging comments published in French media about the chambermaid [fr], and writes:
If you file a complaint for rape, this is what you should expect [all links in fr]:
- They will ask  how on earth raping you is possible because you are unattractive: “Apparently the lawyers were surprised during the court appearance by how unattractive the young lady was.” [on national French radio RMC]
- Or, on the contrary, that your femaleness could explain everything:  “this chambermaid is a very pretty 30-year old with a nice bosom and behind.” [a quote published in national French daily Le Parisien]
- Or that you are stupid: “He could plead that she had misunderstood, that he was trying to flirt with her and she did not understand.” [on national daily newspaper Le Figaro]
- But after all, “il n'y a pas mort d'homme” (no one was killed) – a comment by Jack Lang [former French Minister of culture and education] reveals his concept of rape.
Her top award goes to Jean-François Khan, a famous editorialist, who compared the alleged sexual assault of DSK, if proven, to “a romp with the chambermaid” [on national radio France Culture].
Osez le féminisme
Osez le feminisme [fr] is a website and organization intent on creating a grassroot feminist movement in France. When French commentators went overboard with lewd comments, the site published an appeal stressing what was at stake [fr]:
To demean the testimony of the plaintif is a serious matter, and dangerous. Serious, because it adds to the burden of this woman. Dangerous, because it signals to rape victims, present or future, that filing a complaint exposes you to risks. […] Osez le féminisme reminds you that every year, in France, 75 000 women are raped. Only  10% of those file a complaint.
Les aventures d'Euterpe
Les aventures d'Eutherpe
Hélène's blog, Les aventures d'Euterpe [fr] is dedicated to “search for women lost in the space-time continum”.
She often revisits history in a feminist and playful style, like in this post on the rehabilitation of serial  killer Henry the VIII [fr] in the British television series ‘The Tudors‘. In her post ‘Omerta in France‘ [fr] (the law of silence in France that bred the DSK scandal), she wrote:
L'information s'arrête toujours à la porte de la chambre à coucher. Très bien, mais…même si derrière cette porte quelqu'un.e est en train de hurler au viol ?
Causette
'Causette' magazine cover
Finally, women in France can now turn to Causette [fr], a successful and refreshing magazine supportive of women, which was launched in 2009.
Flocha, on Causette‘s online readers page [fr] is waiting for her magazine's opinion on the DSK scandal:
Before long, we're going to hear she was consenting, she had provoked him with her dress, or that she lied! It stinks! Or is it only me? I'm sure I'm not! I've got an ally: Causette!!! Please say something!!!

author: Claire Ulrich


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France, World: Discontent Against G8 Meeting About the Internet · Global Voices
Suzanne Lehn

Blog Club de l'Europe is outraged [fr] by the “Internet sharks’ feast” to be held on May 24 and 25, 2011, at the Musée du Louvre, in Paris. The meeting aims to prepare the G8 forum, which will be focused (according to its French presidency) on the Internet, but only economic and security issues will be tackled. A petition “Protect the Net” campaigning for citizen-centered Internet policies can be signed here.

author: Suzanne Lehn


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Georgia: Beyoncé’s Girls Rule an Apocalyptic… Caucasus? · Global Voices
Ana Keshelashvili

The premiere of American singer Beyoncé's “Run The World (Girls)” video on May 18, 2011, evoked much debate among bloggers and social media users in Georgia.
The reason for this was not that she had fans in the country, that it was the first single from her highly anticipated new album, or even because of its “women empowering” and aggressive nature, but rather a simple road sign that appeared 1 minute and 50 seconds into the video.
Dressed in Givenchy with two chained hyenas, Beyoncé was “set in an apocalyptic African landscape with a Tbilisi sign in the background (?)” as Giovanna Badilla, seemingly also confused, mentioned on The Wild Magazine blog.
Moreover, not only did the sign point to the Georgian capital, but also Gori, a city bombed during the August 2008 war with Russia and Tskhinvali, capital of the breakaway territory of South Ossetia.
The appearance of the road sign prompted a lot of speculation, as The Young Georgians explains:
It is unknown why did Beyonce use this sign or what is the message but many in Georgia talk about its link with the August 2008 war.
Some of those commenting on the post were happy, surprised or even insulted:
Lala: I really doubt there is a message behind it. She probably has no idea what it is and just liked the “exotic” alphabet.
@lala I totally Agree with u, And i Think that this is very disrespect of our nation….what the hell is doing georgian road sign in desert…i dont get it, no, useless, pointless..
One Facebook user said:
she may have no idea what this is all from. My guess it is some designer & choreographer that put this together…. follow the money to that. Just my speculation.
Some did “follow the money” and suggested that the Georgian government paid for the “product placement,” but others also considered that it could have been because of the Georgian alphabet used on the sign as a comment on Cyxymu's post said:
мне кажется, что для всего остального мира очень необычно и красиво выглядит грузинское письмо =)
Some suggested that maybe Georgian graphics designers were involved in the making of the video, or at least in its post-production, and decided to include it. However, others speculated that Beyoncé's new video was either related to, inspired or from the soundtrack of Renny Harlin's new film about the 2008 war, “5 Days of August” as one Facebook user somewhat sarcastically wrote.
1. სიმღერა იმ ფილმის საუნდტრეკია
2. ვიდეო იმავე პავილიონშია გადაღებული, რომელშიც ფილმი, თანაც რომელიღაც შუალედში, ფილმის ტიპები ლანჩზე როცა გავიდნენ
1. The song is from the soundtrack of the movie
2. The video is shot in the same set, as the movie was shot, while the movie crew went out for lunch
Being unable to find a real explanation, the online community started to joke about the political message of the road sign and started referring to Beyoncé as “Mother of Georgia” as the picture below shows:
Beyonce's couture outfit replaced with the Statue of Mother of Georgia also is a symbol of patriotic mothers, raising warrior kids to defend their country from the enemies
A Facebook group, now unavailable, to this effect was even set up while one user perhaps jokingly thanked the singer for her contribution to the development of their country.
"Beyoncé helps us in uniting Georgia"

author: Ana Keshelashvili


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Hungary: Facebook Blocked Popular Far-Right Website · Global Voices
Marietta Le

Hungarian news sites report that Facebook has blocked the most popular far-right website Kuruc.info. According to kuruc.info [hu], no referring links can be sent through Facebook's system, the Like button has disappeared, and Facebook is also blocking mentions of “Kuruc.info.” Kuruc.info wrote that the block was worse than similar measures in the communist China, encroaching on free speech and personal freedom. They also encouraged readers [hu] to file requests on Facebook to unblock the site. Many, however, welcomed Facebook's decision.

author: Marietta Le


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Malaysia: Tweets on the Orphanage Landslide · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

More than 20 students in an orphanage motivational camp were buried Saturday afternoon in a landslide in Hulu Langat near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As of the time of writing, 12 dead bodies have been recovered already by rescuers.
The hashtags #landslide, #orphanage, #langat, and #hulu have dominated the local twittersphere in Malaysia as netizens express their sorrow over the tragedy. Here are sample tweets asking for donations, volunteer efforts, and instructions for motorists:
@MrAbooDin: RT @zaimjazmani: They need HELP!!! Contact En Naza (017-3280013) help Hulu Lgt landslide victims.need torch lights,waterproof canvas,blankets,freshwater,etc
@ariffshah: RT @popmyberry: We will donate 25% frm sales of accessories n services 2 the Hulu Langat orphanage starting tmrw..please RT!
@popmyberry: @yunamusic we're doing a charity drive for the Hulu Langat orphanage by donating part of our sales ..@iamjetfuelshop nak join ? :D
@Pecicilan: Pls do not go to Hulu Langat if you are not part of the rescue mission as they need clear roads n they need to work fast
@vijaysaravanen: Too many visitors are blocking access for the rescue mission in Ulu Langat with their cars. Politicians also pls stay out. Let ppl do job
Most tweets reflect the sadness of many Malaysians today:
@RodgerMY: RT @prasys: I'm kinda upset with Hulu Langat landslide that killed orphans. I would have been happy if it was politicians who died – Why God ? Why..
@TaritaFarzira: Can't bear to read the news about the Hulu Langat landslide. Ain't in denial but the rising death toll just breaks my hear
@malaychic: Mom just called. Crying. It really gets to her whenever something like this happened, especially to orphans/ orphanage.
@jessejoy: my thoughts and prayers to all the landslide victims in Hulu kelang. the rescue team are doing their best.
While the world was busy discussing the ‘end of the world,’ Malaysians mourned the death of innocent children in an orphanage camp:
@Zu878: @nursamad Happy that #IfTheWorldEndsOnSaturday didn't happen..but its a
very sad day w/ landslide at orphanage in Ulu Langat. Al Fatihah.
@onenonlyJW: RT @euricko: It may not be the end of the world, but it is the end of probably 15 lives at the Hulu Langat orphanage. http://bit.ly/mgKaZs (expand) Pls pray.
The Starbucks Lover asks for donations:
To those who wish to lend a hand, you can do so by contacting En.Naza (017-3280013) and bring along torch lights, waterproof canvas, blankets and fresh water. Rest in peace to the lost ones and all the best to the rescue team to find the missing people who might got buried in the landslide.
On Facebook, Yatie Kay is disappointed with politicians:
My condolences to the orphans involved in d landslide tragedy in hulu langat but it is very sad to see the politicians using the incident to get airtime.
Sathish Kumar Batumelai believes it was not a natural disaster:
9 kids killed at Rumah Anak Yatim Hidayah at Hulu Langat. Why we have landslides? This is not natural disaster..they are killed by greedy people around..my prayers and thoughts for them..

author: Mong Palatino


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Myanmar: Ban on use of CDs, USB sticks, floppy drives · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Myanmar has issued a new regulation banning the use of CDs, USB sticks, and floppy drives in public internet cafe shops.


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Nigeria: The Nigerian Event Awards 2011  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

BellaNaija shares photos and writes about the winners of The Nigerian Event Awards 2011: “The celebration of this maiden edition of the awards brought together a great number of people who came all out to honour remarkable people in the Nigerian Events and Entertainment Industry.”


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North Africa: Manifesto for a Maghreb of Cinema · Global Voices
Suzanne Lehn

The Arab revolution has also impacted the cinema world. Filmmakers from Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia have just launched on their blog Maghreb du cinéma [fr], a suggestion box to reinvigorate the creation, production and distribution of their work. Their manifesto can be signed here [fr].


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Rwanda: Government threatens to assassinate opposition · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Is Rwandan government planning to assassinate opposition politicians?: “The British police informed two members of the Rwandan diaspora that their government may be trying to assassinate them, according to documents seen by various newspapers. The police visited Jonathan Musonera and Rene Mugenzi on May 12, officially informing them with letters. These letters were then apparently shown to various media outlets.”


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Thailand: Social media, elections, and politics · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Jon Russell writes how politicians in Thailand are using the social media in preparation for the coming elections.


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Translating a Vietnamese song to English · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Charvey notes the difficulty in translating songs from Vietnamese to English. He translated the lyrics of a song from the Vietnam War era.


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Vietnam: Increasing number of high-rise buildings · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Luan Nguyen writes about the urban impact of the boom in the construction of very tall buildings in Vietnam.


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Vietnamese phonetic alphabet · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

¡¡¡Việt Nam ơi!!! blogs about the Vietnamese phonetic alphabet system used to spell out words on the radio or telephone.


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Africa: Mobile Web Content in East Africa · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Erik comments on Vodafone's policy paper on “Broadband in Emerging Markets”: “This paper has identified two important barriers to the further diffusion of mobile internet usage across East Africa: lack of m-government policies; and, more important, an absence of charging mechanisms which share the cost of mobile internet access between end-users and content providers.”


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Argentina: Buenos Aires Mayor Quits Presidential Race · Global Voices
Fanny Rahmouni

On May 7, 2011, Mauricio Macri, current mayor of Buenos Aires, announced he would seek re-election as mayor on July 10 of this year. After weeks of suspense, his decision confirms that he is giving up the October presidential race.
As the leader of the Republican Proposal Party (PRO by its Spanish acronym), one of most important alternatives to the ruling Justicialist Party (PJ by its Spanish acronym), Macri was expected to run for president after one term in office as mayor of Buenos Aires. Yet the decision was not easy to make. A presidential win of the opposition remains uncertain, especially considering the renewed popularity of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.
For now, the only other identified candidate for Buenos Aires City Council is the film-maker and leftist politician Fernand ‘Pino’ Solanas. President Kirchner is expected to release the identity of the official candidate soon, but it is likely that the candidate will either be Economy Minister Amado Boudou, Senator Daniel Filmus or Labour Minister Carlos Tomada.
Mauricio Macri at the Club 17 de Agosto, announcing he would seek reelection as Mayor of Buenos Aires. Photo by Flickr user Mauricio Macri, used under a CC BY-ND 2.0 license.
Macri's announcement, which occurs after a long period of time, provoked opposite reactions, as the liberal, ex-businessman profoundly divides Argentine public opinion.
Twitter user Donato Spaccavento (@DrSpaccavento) ironically responds to Macri's decision:
Macri abandona otra vez la pelea presidencial y se refugia en la Ciudad..cuando le ganemos a él y a solanas juntos, va probar suerte en Boca.
On the contrary, the economist Daiana Molero (@daianamol) criticizes the possible candidacy of official Minister Amadou Boudou, one of Macri's fiercest rivals:
Amado quiere salir a demoler a macri y a su gestion.Demolio superávit, demolió tipo d cambio competitivo.Demoler la ciudad no le va a costar
Indeed, his management of the Buenos Aires’ government is also widely discussed in the web.
The former journalist of the newspapers La Nación [es] and El Cronista Comercial [es], Hernán Haines, sharply criticizes [es] Macri's management and forecasts an electoral backlash for the current mayor:
En los tres años que lleva al frente de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Macri no ha cristalizado lo que prometió allá por 2007. Es más, el malhumor de los porteños crece sin pausa. Y los habitantes de la Capital Federal suelen castigar con el voto. No se comen cualquiera…  Por otra parte, no ha podido, sabido o querido rodearse de funcionarios virtuosos, capaces de llevar a Buenos Aires a jugar en la liga de las grandes ciudades del mundo. En cambio, se ha encerrado en sus compañeros de colegio o en ex empleados del club de fútbol que alguna vez administró.
Buenos Aires municipal palace. By Flickr user verovera78 (CC BY 2.0)
For many bloggers, the future of Mauricio Macri seems unsure, as he himself admitted last week that it would be impossible to win the election in the first round.
Maria, in the blog Arte y Politica [es], defends the idea that the mayoral elections’ results depend on Proyecto Sur [es], the party of the challenger Pinos Solanas, who could gather support from the government coalition or Macri's PRO Party should there be a second round in the mayoral election:
La gran pregunta, que va a ser crucial en esta elección, es si Proyecto Sur competirá por sus votos con el FPV o con el Pro. O sea, si Solanas enfatizará su perfil de progresista luchador contra las multinacionales, o si se concentrará en presentarse como la acérrima oposición al gobierno nacional.
Yet the most discussed question remains whether Mauricio Macri has what it takes to be a presidential candidate, and what would be the consequences of his decision for the divided opposition to the ruling Peronism. In his May 7 speech, Macri tried to call for opposition unity in the presidential election.
In his blog “Qué te parece…?,” Juan Carlos Lynch denounced the lack of political will in the opposition after many of its leaders abandonned the presidential race:
La pregunta que sigue es ¿qué pasa acá con la oposición? Hace algunas semanas había muchos que querían ser la cabeza de la oposición al Gobierno… de los 6 que en teoría todavía podrían estar pensando en eso, solamente 3 siguen en carrera. Porque los otros 3 decidieron simplemente “bajarse”. Hablo de Reutemann, de Pino Solanas y de Macri. ¿Cuál es mi lectura? Que falta vocación de hacer política grande. Que falta patriotismo. Que no hay conciencia de lo importante que es para un país tener un buen Presidente, pero también y sobre todo tener un buen jefe de la oposición.

author: Fanny Rahmouni


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Azerbaijan: Eurovision winner Nigar Camal’s visa criticism · Global Voices
Pervin Muradli

Dissident blogger and journalist Elnur Majidli, now living in France and facing arrest in Azerbaijan for his Facebook activity, has uploaded a screenshot of a status line apparently written last year by Nigar Camal, one of the two singers who won this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Germany, on the popular social networking site. With concerns already being raised about the less than simple visa application process for the oil-rich former Soviet republic ahead of next year's competition, Camal, now a British citizen, appears to says she was  refused an extension for her own visa and commented “what an idiotic country with idiotic laws.”

author: Pervin Muradli


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Azerbaijan: Bloggers Divided Over Eurovision Win · Global Voices
Pervin Muradli

This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.
Last weekend, Azerbaijan was shaking, with thousands of people flooding onto the streets of Baku, the capital, in the early hours of the morning.
No, it wasn't an earthquake or even a popular uprising. It was instead spontaneous celebrations that broke out following the country's win in the Eurovision Song Contest held  in Düsseldorf, Germany just hours earlier.
Nevertheless, while most Azerbaijanis were euphoric following the Eurovision success, some bloggers were more critical, considering that the euphoria surrounding the win, which now means next year's competition will be held in Baku, was futile and meaningless.
One of them was UK-based Scary Azeri who asked some of the questions the international media is now starting to raise too:
[…] with all those people who watch the contest, and the attention drawing to Azerbaijan as the possible host for 2012, would at least some things change for the best? Would there be some benefit to the people? Also, as some friends wondered, would Armenians participate? Would they be welcome to?  Would Azerbaijan handle the fact that Eurovision is extremely gay, and will involve a huge gay crowd coming to Baku? Would it show its hospitality to all of the above? How will it actually work, if it does at all?
Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines, another blog based outside the country, also wondered about the significance of the victory and how it might benefit the country. Following a particularly critical post, the blogger clarified and expanded more on the subject in a second entry:
[…] let me explain. Azerbaijan won the Eurovision song contest- it has invested a lot, […] and the fact that it won, shows how much effort was put into this. My point was that if Azerbaijan and those responsible for the contest manage to get Azerbaijan come first in some of the (though I still think the most unimportant) most popular competitions held every year- the Eurovision- why cannot it do the same thing regarding everything else that is wrong in this country- freedom of expression, freedom and security of journalists, overall security of its people, respect of human rights, equal rights, “0” corruption, better salaries, better liberties and much more…
Elə-belə [az] also agreed, albeit in a more nationalistic tone, specifically referring to the still unresolved conflict with Armenia over Nagorny Karabakh.
İnsanı üzən isə bu uğuru İqdidarın uğuru kimi qələmə verənlərin çox olmasıdı.Əzizlərim bu nə müxalif insanların məğlubiyyəti, nədə ki İqdidarın qələbəsi deyil.Bu seçkilər deyil, Qarabağı qaytarmamışıq. […]
[…]
Hər kəsi də təbrik edirəm..2012 çox maraqlı il  olacaq,Ermənilərsiz Dünyada yaşasaq bəlkə də biz hər zaman qalib ola bilərdik… […] Və ümid edirəm Ermənilər bura gəlməkdən imtina edərlər,çünki Onlar Bakıda qalib olsalar o zaman AZADLIQ meydanında nələr olacaq onun xəyalı belə pisdi.. […]
What is disappointing is that there is a majority who pass this victory off as the success of the Government. My dears, this is not a defeat of the opposition, neither is it the victory of the Government. This is not elections. We have not returned Karabakh. […]
[…]
I congratulate all.. 2012 will be very interesting. Probably if we lived in a world without Armenians, we could always be winners… […] And I hope Armenians will refuse to come here, because if They win in Baku, then the idea of what might happen on the FREEDOM square is horrible. […]
Another blogger, Baxram [az], also commented on the mass celebrations and what it believed to be the irrationality displayed by some who attributed the victory to the successful foreign policy of the government (An English version in full is available here):
Dünən gecə və bu gün küçəyə çıxan insaların tv-lərə verdiyi müsahibələrə qulaq asdıqca bir daha əmin oldum ki, bu insanları nə qədər minsən, söysən, təhqir etsən bir o qədər yaxşıdı. Kimisi deyir gün o gün olsun gələn il yevrovizyona Şuşada çayçıda baxaq, kimisi deyir bu qələbə ilə Qarabağın azadlığı yolunda ilk addımı atdıq…Kimi də bunu ucunu Heydər Əliyevin qoyduğu, İlham Əliyevin də dibinə qədər itələdiyi uğurlu daxili və xarici siyasətin bəhrəsi olduğunu qeyd etdi…Sonuncuya qatılıram. […]
Nəhayət, kralımız Avropanı da almağı bacardı…
Ən pisi isə odur ki, demokratiya diktaturaya, padşahlığa məğlub oldu…
Seeing interviews with people who took to the streets to celebrate these last couple of days confirmed that, the more you belittle them, the more you insult them, the better it is. There are some who say “May we watch Eurovision in Shusha next year”, those who say “this is another step towards the liberation of Karabakh”… And there are those who say that this is a result of Heydar and Ilham Aliyev's successful domestic and foreign policy. I agree with the latter.
Finally, our king managed to conquer Europe, too.
The saddest thing is that democracy was beaten by dictatorship… By monarchy…
As pro-government supporters used Twitter and Facebook to spread links to articles and videos showing how developed the Azerbaijani capital had become (in response to some Europeans voicing concerns about Baku lacking the necessary infrastructure to host Eurovision), bloggers such as XezerXeber [az] rejoiced in the win:
Biz bacardıq – öz mədəniyyətimizlə bir Avropa dövləti olduğumuzu, Avropa dəyərlərini bölüşdüyümüzü, Avropa geomədəni çevrəsində yaşadığımızı sübut etdik. […]
2009-cu ildə Azərbaycan İslam ölkələrinin mədəniyyət paytaxtı idi.
2011-ci ildə Azərbaycan Avropanın mədəni paytaxtına çevrildi. […]
We made it – with our culture we proved that we are a European country, we share European values, we live in the European geo-cultural environment. […]
In 2009 Azerbaijan Azerbaijan was a cultural capital of Islamic countries.
In 2011 Azerbaijan has become a European cultural capital. […]
Dissenting voices such as In Mutatione Fortitudo still remained, however. Elaborating on some of the many challenges the country now faces as it prepares to host the competition in 2012, it did not sound too optimistic:
[…] we clearly understand what results this victory can bare – encountering serious legitimacy concerns at home, the Azerbaijani government will use this opportunity to full extent to mobilize popular support for their authoritarian policies. […]
It will become a favorite propaganda toy in the hands of the government. Tightly controlled media has already started to sing dithyrambs in honor of the President, et all (“architects of the victory”) and the victory itself is soon going to be the result of successful foreign and domestic policies of the government.
Serious human rights and democracy concerns will be pushed aside.
Baku will host Eurovision 2012 and as a typical shame-based society, critics will be silenced – with a silent approval from general conformist public – not to spoil the show.
[…]
We don't see any wish and will of the government in Baku to soften the regime yet.
But others such as Pərviz Şükürzadənin bloqu [az] held a different opinion:
Ermənistanda isə qeyri-rəsmi matəmdir. Bu onların saytlarından da hiss olunur. […]
[…] Nə qədər təəcüblü olsa da, Azərbaycanlılar arasında da bu qələbəyə sevinməyənlər, müsabiqəyə ləkə yaxanlar da tapıldı. Hərənin bir dərdi var, amma bildiyim qədəri onların bir çoxu bu qələbənin iqtidara işləyəcəyindən ehtiyatlanaraq bu addımı atırlar. […]
In Armenia there is unofficial mourning. You can tell it from their web sites as well. […]
[…] However surprising it might be, there are a few Azerbaijanis who are not happy about the victory and smeared the contest. Everyone has their own issue, but as far as I know most of them do it fearing that the victory will work for the government. […]
However, not all critics of the government considered the victory in such a context, with recently released video blogging youth activist Adnan Hajizada tweeting his hopes for the competition:
@FuserLimon: #Eurovision will change #Azerbaijan, the same way as #Olympics changed #China! I believe in that!
Despite the divided opinion, or perhaps even because of it, the issues surrounding holding Eurovision 2012 in Azerbaijan are likely to become the center of much discussion in the year ahead.
Image source: www.eurovision.tv
This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.


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China: Rejected Self Defense Plea A Green Light For Deadly Demolitions · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Sina blogger Sheng Dalin, assistant to the editor in chief of Henan's Orient Today, updates us on a story which began last year in Hongshan District in Wuhan, Hubei province.
Tong Yihong's home was the last one standing in his village after neighbors in the area, slated for development, took the compensation package and relocated. As lot after lot of the surrounding land was leveled, the Tongs built a barbed wire fence around their property and waited for a better offer.
On November 18, 2010, a group showed up with a bulldozer and moved within throwing range of Tong's building. Police say that bricks Tong was throwing down from his roof put someone in the hospital; Tong says the group tore through his fence and began to roll in, that no one was injured and that, acting in self defense, he was only aiming for the bulldozer.
Tong Yihong, November 2010
After local police took a statement from a skeptical Tong on November 19, telling him he faced charges of public disorder, he flew the next day to Beijing to ‘turn himself in’ and try pleading his case there. By November 21, Tong was in Hongshan police custody and on a train back to Wuhan, where he faced new charges of inflicting grievous bodily harm.
Last Wednesday, Tong was found guilty of the charge in a closed trial at an intermediate people's court in Hongshan district. According to media reports over the weekend which quote the official verdict, Tong was sentenced to four years in prison and ordered to pay RMB 190,000 in compensation to the alleged victim, surnamed Luo.
Sheng provides further background to the case:
进京“自首”的武汉被拆迁户童贻鸿，17日被武汉洪山区法院一审判刑4年，判赔19万余元。去年11月18日，童贻鸿在自家楼顶守护房子时，看到一群人和机械“冲向房子”，因担心房子被强拆，就从楼顶丢砖头，致一人被砸伤。法院认定，当事公司的人按合同要求到场平整土方，不是强拆，施工机械没有接触到童家房屋，童不构成正当防卫。但童的律师表示，童家房屋四周土地已拆迁平整完毕，无需再平整。童家提供的视频资料显示，其房屋四周铁丝网围墙当日被上述人扯开。警方调查认定，这群人当天携带的是被称为“啄木鸟”的破碎机。（据5月20日《新京报》）
Tong's attempt to turn himself in outside of the jurisdiction of the arresting police, in the hope of ensuring due process, received sustained media and public interest at the time. The fate of Tong's property, however, remains unclear. Tong has reportedly already filed an appeal.
The verdict comes at the same time that China's State Council makes yet another call for an end to the practice of forced demolition of housing and land expropriation and, Sheng notes, putting the charges against Tong aside for a moment, the court took neither this nor public opinion which see Tong's actions as self defense into consideration, in a decision which he suspects might indirectly encourage developers to continue such behavior:
拆迁方的行为是不是强制拆迁，童贻鸿扔砖头是否属于“正当防卫”，与辩护律师提到的三个事实确实大有关系：一，童家房屋四周的土地是否已经拆迁平整完毕——如果这个属实，那么“平整土方”之说就明显是谎言；二，那群人携带的机械是不是破碎机——如果这个属实，那么“平整土方”更不应该采信，而应认定“强制拆迁”，因为破碎机是拆迁工具而不是平整工具；三，童家四周的铁丝网是否被那群人扯开——如果这个属实，那就有“私闯民宅”之嫌，即使不是强拆，童家也有自卫的权利。
上述三个细节的核实和认定并不困难。童家周围的土地是否已经平整完毕，应该有很多目击者；如果对方没有证据证明童家提供的视频资料是假造的，那就应该采信被告方的意见；而携带的工具为“啄木鸟”更是警方的认定，法院有什么证据足以否定警方的认定吗？
“机械没有接触到童家房屋”显然是法院认为不构成正当防卫的主要理由。可问题是：等机械接触到房屋的时候，不就晚了吗？《刑法》第二十条规定：“为了使国家公共利益、本人或者他人的人身、财产和其他权利免受正在进行的不法侵害，而采取的制止不法侵害行为，对不法侵害人造成损害的，属于正当防卫，不负刑事责任。 ”很显然，童贻鸿扔砖头就是为了制止不法侵害行为，而自那群人开着破碎机扯开铁丝网围墙的时候起，不法侵害就已经开始了。
The court's main reason for finding the self defense claim inadmissible seems to be that “the construction machinery did not come in contact with Tong's house”. However, if Tong had waited until the machinery came in contact with his house, wouldn't it have then been too late? According to Article 20 of the Criminal Law of The People's Republic of China, “Where a person conducts an act to stop an unlawful infringement in order to avert an immediate and unlawful infringement of the state's interest or of the public interest or of his own or another person's rights of the person, or property rights, or other rights, resulting in harm to the unlawful infringer, such an act shall be justifiable defence, and criminal responsibility shall not be borne for such an act.” Obviously, Tong Yihong was throwing down bricks in an attempt to avert an act of unlawful infringement, unlawful infringement which began the minute that group of workers started the crusher machine and ripped a hole in the barbed wire fence.
近来，因强拆而引起的自焚等恶性事件接连发生。为此，国务院办公厅13日发出通知，决定立即在全国开展征地拆迁制度规定落实情况专项检查，强化监管，严肃问责，坚决制止违法强拆行为，切实维护群众合法权益。而洪山区法院对童贻鸿的判决显然是对非法强拆的鼓励。
当然，国务院的《通知》对法院并没有约束力，法官只应该“以事实为依据，以法律为准绳。”可是，童贻鸿案的法官“以事实为依据”了吗？此案要想服众，洪山区法院至少应该就辩护律师提出的三个事实作出正面的回应。
Recently, a succession of self-immolation and other horrible incidents have taken place as a result of forced demolitions. In response to this, the State Council issued a notice on the 13th, announcing its decision to immediately launch an investigation into the legality of land expropriations and housing demolitions being carried out across the country, as well as to strengthen supervision and crack down on illegal demolition projects in an attempt to ensure people's legal interests are being uphold. The court's ruling against Tong Yihong, however, clearly encourages illegal demolitions.
Of course, the State Council notice has no legally binding power over courts, and judges in any event should measure facts against the letter of the law. If confidence is to be had in this case, the court should at least give a direct response to the three facts put forth by the defense lawyer.

author: John Kennedy


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China: Writing Imaginary Book Reviews · Global Voices
Andy Yee

Writing a review of an imaginary book is a form of pseudepigrapha. Renowned Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges, a great popularizer of this art form, famously wrote in the introduction to The Garden of Forking Paths (1942):
The composition of vast books is a laborious and impoverishing extravagance. To go on for five hundred pages developing an idea whose perfect oral exposition is possible in a few minutes! A better course of procedure is to pretend that these books already exist, and then to offer a resume, a commentary… More reasonable, more inept, more indolent, I have preferred to write notes upon imaginary books.
Cover of 'Review of Imaginary Books' collection of fictional reviews.
This kind of amusing review has also finds its way in China. In 2010, Review of Imaginary Books [zh], a collection of fictional reviews, was published by the Shanghai Bookstore Publishing House.
The reviews are entertaining commentaries on a wide range of subjects, from issues in contemporary Chinese society to literature and arts. Here is an excerpt from a ‘review’ of The Art of Road Crossing [zh]:
The Art of Road Crossing is actually a book on how to deal with hidden rules in the Chinese society and commercial world for foreigners (laowai) living in China. The book is divided into the following chapters. Chapter 1: You cannot ignore the traffic lights – avoiding mistakes of principles; Chapter 2: When can you ignore the traffic lights – grasping policies and regulations with flexibility; Chapter 3: Looking at the cars is more important than looking at the traffic lights – how to understand and apply ‘hidden rules’; Chapter 4: The police cannot deal with too many rule-breakers – deciding on how bold to act; Chapter 5: That you can run the red lights today does not mean you can do the same tomorrow – understanding the rapid changes in Chinese regulations.
Here is another extract on the ‘book’ Self-cultivation for the Parvenu [zh]:
Although the author reminds the parvenu that they do not need to re-create themselves, he offers a lot of practical advices for parvenu in urgent need to improve their image and tastes. He starts from the basics, including personal and environmental hygiene and etiquette. ‘If you want someone to respect you,’ he writes, ‘you must not be too harsh on waiters in restaurants and hotels. Being impolite on service providers is a typical behavior of the uncivilized parvenu. For those who want to cultivate their tastes, he lists out the most famous writers, musicians and other cultural celebrities. The book also talks briefly about finance, insurance and charity donations.
The author of these imaginary book reviews, Bimuyu, is a Chinese writer of fictions, essays and book reviews. Apart from his own blog [zh], he also maintains the website Duxieren [zh], an aggregator of literary criticisms and reviews from the book supplements of major Chinese newspapers. In 2010, Duxieren was honored with the ‘Model Worker Award’ by the English-language China website Danwei.
Bimuyu has also designed book covers for the imaginary books reviewed by himself:
If a normal book review entails a level of abstraction, a book review for an imaginary book involves an additional level of abstraction. How about a review of these imaginary book reviews? He drew an analogy [zh] from the multi-level world of the movie Inception:
第一层：虚拟书和非虚拟书；第二层：评论这些虚拟或非虚拟书的《虚拟书评》；第三层：评论《虚拟书评》的书评；如果没有搞错的话，本文应该处于第四层；欢迎给本文留言，借以进入这个系统的第五层（陀螺仍然在旋转……）
This month, Bimuyu has shared with us two recent interviews with the media about the thinking behind his imaginary book reviews, and reading and writing in general. Below are excerpts from the transcripts.
What motivates you to write these imaginary book reviews?
其实最初我没想过写书评。一直以来我最大的愿望是写小说，可是一直写得不是很顺，产量极低。开始写博客以后，有一天忽然想写一些假书评玩玩儿。这种形式并不是我的发明，博尔赫斯、艾科，甚至伍迪•艾伦都写过类似的东西。虚拟书评虽然基本上是书评的文体，但是我感觉当初可能还是把它们当小说来写的。小说的主要特点就是虚构，所以虚拟书评大概也可以算是小说，只不过这些小说的主人公不一定是一个人，而是一本书。写虚拟书评的另一个起因是当时我读了一些欧美书评文章的中译本，发现译文中那种英文复合句掺杂中文成语的知识分子气很浓的文字风格挺有意思，我在虚拟书评里大多模仿（或者说戏仿）这种文风，所以也可以说是一种“风格练习”。比较有意思的是，因为虚拟书评有了一些影响，后来开始渐渐有书评杂志的编辑专门找我约稿，于是我开始写起真的书评来了，越写越多，以至于到现在经常被称为“书评人”了。其实，我觉得我骨子里还是一个写小说的。
Is it easier to write reviews for real or imaginary books?
这是两种不同的东西。写真正的书评需要对读者负责，因为读者可能根据你的书评来选书、买书，同时也必须参照一定的格式，比如交待清楚书的关键内容、作者信息等等。但“虚拟书评”是虚构的，在形式上可以更自由些，我写的虚拟书评中有些严格来讲并不符合书评的格式和要求，但我也没去特别计较。
Should writing book reviews be treated as a career or an interest?
就我本人而言，写书评是一种兴趣。遇到感兴趣的书就写一篇，至于是贴在自己博客上还是发表在期刊杂志上、有稿费还是没有稿费，这些对我来说差别不是特别大。一本书自己如果不感兴趣，即使有人征稿我一般也会婉言推辞掉。如果把写书评当作一种（主要的）谋生手段，我觉得那就太辛苦了。读完一本书需要很多时间，书评的稿费又不怎么高，投入、产出不合比例。如果单单是为了谋生，应该可以找到更容易挣钱的行当。
How can we write good book reviews?
并没有认真地想过这个问题，估计很难给出完整、正确的答案。倒是有些零散的体会可以分享。比如写书评时不要忘了给出这本书的内容简介和对作者的简单介绍。我有时候看到一些书评，从头到尾都是关于这本书的评论，谈得口若悬河，可是读到结尾也没搞清原书是写什么的，作者是个什么样的作者。书评的读者事先未必了解那本书，所以写书评时既要有评论，也应该有介绍。另外，我觉得书评作者应该把握好自己的语气和心态，对原书作者不应该过于俯视或者过于仰视。即使是文学大师的作品，既然你要评论，就不应该以一个崇拜者的语气写，满篇都是敬仰、感叹；你应该尽量把自己和对方摆在一个平起平坐的地位，不卑不亢地、客观全面地来写，这样才是好书评。此外，我觉得书评也应该有文采。书评文章不应该是 “今天我读了一本非常好看的小说”这种白开水式的东西，也应该具有一定的文字魅力。这方面欧美的书评作者做得比较好，他们的书评很多写得非常“有范儿”，抖机灵、玩儿幽默，让你觉得是非常精彩的文字。最后还有一点建议，听起来可能有点儿滑稽，但我觉得还是应该说一下，那就是：如果要写一本书的书评，还是尽量真的把那本书读过之后再写吧。

author: Andy Yee


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Ecuador: Citizen Reflections on Referendum Results · Global Voices
Milton Ramirez

Ecuador's National Electoral Council [es] (or CNE by its Spanish acronym) concluded counting the votes of the May 7, 2011, referendum. However, Omar Simon [es], president of the CNE, said they will begin [es] public hearings next Monday and that official results will be announced on Friday of next week.
As Global Voices has previously reported, preliminary results gave President Rafael Correa his sixth electoral victory since he became president in 2007. The referendum gives the PAIS Alliance Movement, Correa's coalition of governing parties, more control over the judiciary and more power to impose restrictions on media content and ownership.
Pro-Government supporters from Guayaquil. Photo by Flickr user "Presidencia de la República de Ecuador," used under a CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 license.
The Wall Street Journal comments on the results in the South American country:
With 100% of ballots from the May 7 balloting counted, the “yes” vote gathered between 44.96% and 50.46%, while the “no” vote accounted for 39.25% to 42.56% for nine questions with national jurisdiction.
The decisions of this referendum are compulsory for the entire country. The exception was a question that referred to bullfighting prohibitions and mandate to keep bulls alive. Its application is jurisdictional. On this question, the “Yes” won in 127 of 221 cantons countrywide, included Quito.
Columnist Pablo Lucio Paredes, who writes for El Universo [es], explains why people chose the “Yes” and why the “No”. He says people voted “yes” because Correa  has:
made an effort to pay and draw attention to marginalized groups. [He] has invested significant resources in education, health and roads [… In Ecuador,] a slogan such as “… it’s already for everyone” has a true symbolism which helps create social cohesion and a sense of belonging.
Because of the slimmer margin of support to president Correa in this referendum, results could still be contested by political adversaries and may not be put into law for several months. Likewise, results prompted bloggers and people in Ecuador to discuss who really won this referendum.
For instance, Dimitri Cevallos at LibreRed.net suggests that the government should tone down its triumphalism, pointing to government estimates that it would win in a 5 to 1 proportion.  A reader called “Juanita” commented this article supporting Correa:
Sr. Cevallos, me parece que su análisis es llevado por su odio al Presidente Rafael Correa. A todos los ecuatorianos nos consta que nuestro Presidente tuvo que luchar sólo contra la derecha: Lucio Gutierrez, Nebot, Carlos Vera, Montufar, Ruptura de los 25 (son financiados por la USAID)Hurtado, Noboa, la Iglesia Cátolica, los medios de comunicación y su campaña millonaria, los toreros, los dueños de casinos […] además de los Pachacutik (oportunistas que ayer estuvieron con Lucio, luego con Correa, ahora ya no están, pero lo que es peor se han aliado a lo más recalcitrante de la oligarquía guayaquileña como lo es la Junta Civica de Guayaquil, y ni que decir de Alberto Acosta…contra todo esto lucho Correa, y hoy el Sí es un claro triunfador. El cambio va por que va, duelale a quien le duela.
But not all Ecuadorians share Juanita’s excitement. Omar Vargas from the blog Cambiemos Ecuador [es] writes that it is necessary to go beyond numbers [es]. He explains why both Correa and the leader of the opposition in Guayaquil, mayor Jaime Nebot, have lost the referendum:
Los grandes perdedores de la campaña fueron Correa y Nebot, cuyos cálculos políticos se basaron en encuestas poco confiables y los llevaron por sendas distintas. Por un lado el presidente de la republica, que basó  sus acciones en la legitimidad avalada por las encuestas, más que en la legalidad o la ética política.  Esto lo llevo a celebrar anticipadamente y a hacer planes de acción a corto plazo sobre la implementación de los resultados de la consulta,…  Y por otro lado Nebot, timorato líder de la oposición que también basó sus acciones políticas en encuestas y cálculos a favor de sus intereses mas que en los de los ciudadanos, cuyo camino en esta consulta fue marcado por la torpeza y mediocridad, dado que inicialmente proclamo un tibio no y luego […] apareció con un menos timorato pronunciamiento.
Some of the criticism raised by Vargas is shared also by Luis Hidaldo of Desde mi Trinchera [es]. He thinks the big loser is not only the government that hoped to win by a landslide, but the Ecuadorian people [es]:
El electorado esta dividido y el efecto de esto es que el Ecuador no lograra superar la gran cantidad de obstáculos que están impidiendo su desarrollo, mientras nuestros vecinos disfrutan de una prosperidad envidiable.
According to the CNE, reports El Comercio [es], “12 provinces voted against the government overhaul in 9 of the 10 questions. The same tendency was observed with Ecuadorians in the North America, who vetoed 6 out the 9 questions they were to answer.”
But the other 12 provinces, included Ecuadorians in  Europe and Latin America gave the “vote of confidence” Correa has been calling for. The absenteeism, however, was of 22.6 per cent.
Official results are not yet announced, but some assemblyman like Andres Paez, representing the Democratic Left Party, are preparing to demand answers [es] from the president of the CNE for the alleged impartiality during the referendum campaign and disruptions in the electoral process.
Some others, like Rafael Mendez, say something that should be eliminated  is what he calls “plebiscite democracy” without a prior process of debate. Some leaders in the Cotopaxi and Zamora Chinchipe provinces, where the “No” won, made calls to resist against the national will expressed at the polls in these provinces.
Finally, a reflection by a blogger who writes under the pseudonym Endivio Roquefort I, in his blog Balcon del Peregrino [es], explains why he supports exluding null and blank votes [es] from official counts and reflects on the election:
Discutir sobre “quién realmente ganó” es perder el tiempo. Ganaron los de siempre. Ganaron el populismo, la propaganda, la manipulación, la demagogia, el chantaje, el soborno. Ganó, limpia e indiscutiblemente, una propuesta que se resume en la anulación de una serie de supuestos “derechos” constitucionales, y en la creación de una serie de nuevos crímenes sin víctima, que servirán de pretexto para más encarcelamientos de opositores y mayor represión policial. Ganó, en suma, la violencia estatal, la intolerancia, la polarización y el odio, como ya nos venimos acostumbrando desde hace cinco años.

author: Milton Ramirez


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Egypt: Brutal Army Crackdown of Nakba Day Protests in Cairo · Global Voices
Asteris Masouras

This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.
The Egyptian army cracked down with brutal force on a Nakba day protest in front of the Israeli Embassy in Cairo on May 15, 2011, firing teargas, rubber-coated steel bullets – and, some reported, live bullets – at protesters.
More than 350 people were reported injured, while over 150 protesters were arrested pending military interrogation and trials, including prominent revolutionary youth reporting the events of the night on Twitter. Protesters as well as bystanders provided a gripping minute by minute narrative, complete with photos and videos, of the protests and the ensuing crackdown in the teargas filled streets of Cairo's Giza district.
As news broke of the bloody response by Israel to the Nakba (‘Day of Catastrophe’, as it is known in the Arab world) protests at its borders with Lebanon, Syria and Gaza, protesters in downtown Cairo converged on the Israeli Embassy early in the afternoon.
At one of the largest protests up to date by the Israeli embassy. Twitpic photo by Mosaab Elshamy.
Political activist and revolutionary media icon Gigi Ibrahim (@Gsquare86), back from a world tour of the lecture and media circuit, posted a video on YouTube showing scores of protesters chanting while clinging to the embassy fence, as security forces were deploying in front of the building:
The violence by security forces reportedly broke suddenly and unprovokedly, while protesters were demanding that the embassy flag be taken down:
@mosaaberizing: Large group of CSF [paramilitary Central Security Forces] troops just arrived at the embassy. Met with angry chants.
@3arabawy: csf pigs have fired tear gas and the army has shot in the air in front of israeli embassy in giza
@Gsquare86: The peaceful protesters at the #IsraeliEmbassy in#Cairo are doing nothing to the embassy, why are they firing tear gas and shooting in air?
@msheshtawy: First, people were just chanting, then some people removed the fence , but didn't enter or did ANYTHING to the army #israeliEmbassy cont.
@msheshtawy: They just stood there , the army didn't do a thing, were standing peacefully , then suddenly the police came #israeliEmbassy
Coverage quickly turned dramatic, reminiscent in tone of the 18 days of the revolution, as many protesters and journalists tweeted non-stop reports of the clashes and posted snapshots:
Police moves back, we come forward, they fire tear gas, we run back and throw rocks.. Yfrog photo by Gigi Ibrahim
@Gsquare86: People r regrouping ..morad st is a battle zone police holding machine guns and non stop firing
@3arabawy: the firing of tear gas continues. Haven't seen as much fired since 28 jan
@LeilZahra: Tear gas is still raining. It is unbelievable. We can hardly breath. #Egypt #jan25 #nakba #may15
@arwasm: Silent streets. Only sounds of people running and shouting, women screaming, sirens, tear gas.#israeliembassy #egypt #jan25
@ianinegypt: Israeli Embassy is also next to the Cairo Zoo. Tear gas is drifting into the animals’ cages. #Egypt
@3arabawy: machine guns! They r firing machine guns into the air, after rounds of blank rounds
@Gsquare86: Tires are being set on fire in front of the zoo..police by embassy throwing rocks and firing tear gas non stop
@moftasa: Well everyone tweeting its like the 28 again .. it is. And it is not the bloody tear gas that we crave it's the adrenaline.
Tarek Shalaby posted several poorly lit dramatic live videos on Bambuser, showing protesters recovering from teargas [ar], and shouting as bursts of gunfire are heard close by [ar]. Amr Salama also posted live videos on Bambuser, showing ambulance crews treating protesters [ar], and spent ammunition casings used by security forces [ar].
Gigi Ibrahim, Hossam Hamalawy, Mostafa Hussein and others published photosets of the clashes on Flickr and Purephoto. A video by Gigi Ibrahim on YouTube features impressive footage of protesters regrouping after the first teargas attack:
Many protesters were injured or treated for respiratory problems caused by the heavy tear gas use by security forces. There were also multiple but unconfirmed reports of two possible fatalities:
@tarekshalaby: Young men just dropped to the ground in front of me. Prolly just temporary breathing problem…
@moftasa: From the ambulance radio: 4 cases suffocation.
@tarekshalaby: We're by kintaaki [KFC, Mubarak propaganda had claimed it was feeding Tahrir revolutionaries]. How ironic! Ambulance staying put to treat the injured. We're about 100 here…
@HebaAfify: Dozens of protesters keep losing consciousness and ambulances carry them out #isreliembassy
@Gsquare86: The last round of shots were delivered by military police ..that was the live amo..one shot in the head rushed him to hospital and 8 injured
@GSquare86: Video: (Grafic) of Aly khalaf he took a bullet in his stomach at 11:30 & still in the operating room now http://tinyurl.com/5uwbffq #may15
@monasosh: Reports of 2 dead. One bullet through the head, and another CSF truck ran over him
@alaa: so my baby sister spent the night carrying an injured protester trying to hide him from the army and get him to a hospital. hope he lives
@SheriefFarouk: Atef Yehia Ibrahim has been shot in the head during today's #Egypt demonstrations – pvt. hospitals won't take him, pub. ones will arrest him
An Al Jazeera crew was harassed by security forces, as correspondent Rawya Rageh reported:
@RawyaRageh: @AJEnglish crew stopped & harrased by police & military. Our camera was confiscated alongside a number of personal items #Egypt
@RawyaRageh: State security goon bragged about his affiliation as he scatteredcontents of my purse & hurled insults at me calling me an ‘agent’ #Egypt
@RawyaRageh: Even my make up purse wasn't spared.. my medicine box.. they were checking for ‘drugs’ they said as they called me all sorts of names #Egypt
More than 120 protesters were arrested that night. Abdel Hamid Abdella (@meedo11) and Nadine Sabry (@nsanbry) provided photos, video and running commentary of the clashes and subsequent arrests right under their balcony:
@meedo11: Co ordinated attack from both sides of the road by state security and army on crowds in Giza #egypt
@meedo11: They have detained 15 people at least, they are tying them on the ground. Gun shots. Scary #giza#egypt
@nsabry: Army and police arresting ppl right under our house like the good old days! Violence and army guns! #giza
@nsabry: All protestors lying on the floor getting arrested with their hands on their hands on their backs surronded by 2amn dawla and army #giza
Friends and family of protesters quickly coordinated information on Twitter to find out who were missing. Among them were Tahrir “veteran” Mosa'ab Elshamy (@mosaaberizing), whose Twitter bio reads “I revolted and overthrew a dictator”, and Tarek Shalaby (@tarekshalaby), proprietor of the Freedom Motel in Tahrir Square, who led an aid convoy into Libya.
Both tweeted their own arrests (Amira Al Hussaini wrote about the subsequent campaigns to have them released on Global Voices):
@tarekshalaby: Shit! We've been ambushed! Army coming from other side. Ran into side street…
@Gsquare86: according to @meedo11 who saw the arrest of@tarekshalaby said they took around 18 people..which means @3effat & @mosaaberizing too :(
@abdallahelshamy: My brother @mosaaberizing has been missing since an hour. I hold the Egyptian army and police total responsibility of his safety.
@abdallahelshamy: My brother @mosaaberizing just called me on the phone and said he's detained in a csf truck in front of Modyryet Amn ElGiza
@norashalaby: Confirmed. Friend called from scene and said that @tarekshalaby has been arrested by the army
A video posted on YouTube by Abdella and Sabry, showing the arrest of a group of protesters, included Mosa'ab Elshamy and Tarek Shalaby, according to Gigi Ibrahim:
Also arrested along with Shalaby and Elshamy, but later released, was video journalist Mohamed Effat (@3effat):
@3effat: people i am home and safe, i was the only one released, army and police have around 50 to 60 people detained #israelembassy #may15
Another Twitter user translated harrowing reports of Effat's and others’ arrests from Arabic:
@ysalah: Tr. @3effat Whoever looked up would be smacked on the neck. An 8yrold was sobbing & they hit him. They took us 2 the corniche next 2 embassy
@ysalah: Tr. @3effat They spewed insults & cuss words: fags of the rev, you facebook people. Officer looked @ soldiers & said “we brought you dinner”
@ysalah: Tr. @gemyhood Mahmoud Hassan Ahmed Elsadaty arrested; called us from truck which is on Nile St. & has 24 ppl & he's been severely tortured
As the night wore on into dawn, the revolutionary youth fell into disbelief and abject anger that the army would descend into such brutality, after staying it's hand during the 18 days of the revolution. Blogger Mahmoud Salem, aka Sandmonkey, felt livid and conflicted, as he was about to travel abroad to accept an award on behalf of those same revolutionaries being beaten and arrested by the “guardian of the revolution”:
@Sandmonkey: The night of my flight to accept a USF honorary doctorate for “the youth of the revolution”, some of those best youth gets detained by army!
@Sandmonkey: Should I even fuckin go? Honestly? What kind of inspirational speech will I be giving when those same people are now in jail?
And Gigi Ibrahim tweeted tersely:
@Gsquare86: i feel numb and can't think
@Gsquare86: how will the army justify this? #iWantToKnow
For more information, the author of this report compiled a live account of the Nakba crackdown in Cairo using Storify, in mostly chronological order.
This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.

author: Asteris Masouras


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El Salvador: Food Insecurity Rising in Rural Areas · Global Voices
Felipe Cordero

The blog “Locavore del Mundo” [someone who eats locally grown foods around the world] discusses how rural Salvadorian families are struggling to secure food for themselves, not particularly because they lack access to nutritious food, but rather because they are having to sell it to cover expenses that once they did not have, such as cell phone costs, and because of rising unemployment in the countryside.

author: Felipe Cordero


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France: DSK Scandal Fires a Protest Against Sexism  · Global Voices
Claire Ulrich

French feminist network Osez le féminisme (Dare to be a feminist) [fr] is organizing a protest [fr] in Paris on Sunday May 22, 2011, in front of the Pompidou museum against “the sexism of the French ‘elites’ revealed by the DSK scandal”. In a matter of hours, their online petition [fr] was signed by more than 10,000 men and women.


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Japan: Aiding the Aid Workers · Global Voices
Scilla Alecci

This post is part of our special coverage Japan Earthquake 2011.
More than two months have passed since the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan and while those who weren’t affected directly by the disaster have been able to go back to a  normal life, around 110,000 people are still living in evacuation centers according to police estimates.
The lack of privacy, separation from their original community, unemployment and a deep sorrow for the loss of loved ones has been a harrowing experience for many victims who are physically and emotionally exhausted.
Map of earthquake/tsunami evacuation centers in Japan.
Hiroshi Moriwaki explains [jp] the different types of trauma experienced and encourages care of both children and adults as, although at different levels, the tragic experiences they have undergone have emotionally debilitating after-effects:
我々の目の前には、日々さまざまな事が起こります。ただ事故やトラブルなど、
想定外の事が起こったとしても、ある程度までは健全な対応をとる事ができます。
しかし天災や人災・犯罪など、「自我のコントロール」を超えた暴力的・侵入的な刺激には、
対応ができなくなり、強い衝撃となって「心の傷（トラウマ）」となります。
この「トラウマ」には、大事件・大災害等による急性の外傷と、
虐待やいじめ等による慢性の外傷があります。
Many things happen before our eyes every day. When something unexpected happens, like an accident or some kind of trouble, we are able to deal with it to an extent.
However, we become unable to deal with violent/intrusive stimuli that go beyond ‘self control,’ such as natural disasters or crime. They impact us strongly and become emotional wounds, or trauma.
There are two types of ‘trauma’ – acute trauma from serious incidents or major disasters, and chronic trauma from things such as abuse or bullying.
その症状には、悪夢・フラッシュバック・頭痛・腹痛・吐き気などがあり、
特に子どもの場合は、衝撃を受けた時そのままの体験を生じる事があります。
今回の大震災で、通常生活では体験することのない感情に多くの被災者が直面しました。
大震災が目の前で起こり、大災害が迫る大きな恐怖の中で、もしかしたら家族や友人が目の前で災禍に巻き込まれ、あるいは震災後になって、悲しい姿に直視するケースもあったでしょう。
多くの大人たちは、これまでの喜怒哀楽・愛別離苦など人生経験を通して、消化できたとしても子ども達にとっては、心の傷が生涯のこる事が想定されます。
自衛隊や警察・消防など、ボランティアの方々にも必要性が出てくるかも知れません。
こうして「PTSD」を内容を整理しただけで、訓練された専門家でなければ対処できない事、そして今後、長期にわたる復興の中で、心のケアが必要であることが分かります。
産官学連携での長期対応が、必要になってくると予想されます。
During this major earthquake, many victims faced emotions that they would not normally experience in everyday life. As the earthquake happened in front of their eyes, and in midst of fears of the huge disaster approaching them, some may have witnessed their family or friends getting engulfed in the catastrophe. Some may have had to face the sad sight of their loved ones’ [bodies] after the disaster.
Even if most adults were able to digest these experiences through past life experiences or various emotions they had felt before, it will most likely leave lifelong emotional scares on young children. Support may also become necessary for the volunteers, such as the Self Defense Force, police, and firemen, etc.
Just from observing these different forms of ‘PTSD’ [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder], we can see that it is something only a trained professional can deal with and that long term emotional care is necessary during this recovery period.
Long term support from a industry-government-academia collaboration is expected to become necessary.
Some patients are moved to an elementary school after the earthquake, Fukushima. Image by Natsukado, CC BY-NC-ND.
Since the event, teams of volunteers and professionals such as doctors,  nurses  and psychologists have flocked to the affected areas to help. Sometimes with direct medical intervention, sometimes by just lending an ear to the refugees’ tragic stories or worries.
Because of the very nature of their job and the fact that they're used to working in emergency situations, the aid workers tend to work very long shifts and their dedication is often taken for granted. Too often, however, it is forgotten that among those doctors and nurses there are those who are victims themselves and have lost family or friends or houses.
It is for this reason that private and government related centers have begun a campaign to educate the aid workers against the dangers of overwork and to warn them to take care of themselves first, in order to be better able to help others.
Reporting the experiences of a friend, @jishin_care  tells of the emotional and physical stress doctors have to deal with. According to the author of the blog called ‘Information on Psychological Care Related to the Earthquake’, although doctors and nurses are trained to do their best in emergency situations, it's in such difficult situations as this that they most need the support of other people:
私も、被災地へ医療派遣された友人の話を聞きましたが、それはもう大変過酷な状況であり、その間、よくぞ持ちこたえられたものだ、さすがプロフェッショナルだと、頭が下がる思いでした。
同時に、彼の心身の疲労へのサポートは、大変重要な課題であると痛感しました。特に、全力を尽くしたけれども、資源や人手が足りず、十分な援助ができなくて申し訳なかったと自分を責める話を聞くと、胸が締め付けられました。
彼ら援助者は、｢緊急時での｣｢強く｣｢弱者を救う｣存在です。
一般にそう認識されています。
そのため、彼らのケアやサポートは、後回しにされてしまうことは予想に難くありません。
しかし、想像を絶するような現場で様々な死や悲しみや怪我などを取り扱い続けること、その中で冷静を保つ努力をする（涙を見せないなど）ということは、どんなスーパーマンにも心身に負担が来て当たり前のことです。
それだけ、大変な状況で大変なことをしているのです。
だからこそ、援助者のストレスをケアし、サポートすることは、援助者自身の心身の健康のためにも必要ですし、それがひいては、より多くの被災者を援助していくことにもつながるのです。
また、援助者は、「救う立場の自分たちが弱音を吐いてはいけない」という思いが強いために、その辛さや苦しさを口にすることを我慢してしまいがちです。
ですから、援助者をとりまく家族や友人や職場組織の皆さんが、援助者へのサポートの必要性を十分に理解し、適切なサポートをしていくことが大切なのです。
I also heard some stories from my friend who was one of the doctors dispatched to the disaster area. He was working under such harsh conditions and I felt the utmost respect for his true professionalism for holding on during the whole ordeal.
At the same time, I became acutely aware that support for his emotional and physical fatigue is a very significant issue. I especially felt sympathetic when I heard him blaming himself for not being able to provide sufficient aid despite his efforts, because of the lack of resources and manpower.
Aid workers are viewed as ‘strong’ in ‘times of emergency’, ‘to help the weak’. Because of this, it’s not difficult to imagine that care and support for them tend to take a backseat.
But to continually deal with various kinds of injuries, death, and grief under unimaginable conditions, and to try to keep one's cool (such as show no tears) in such a situation will inevitably put emotional and physical strain on anyone, even if they were some kind of superman. It’s only natural.
They are doing difficult things in difficult situations, which is why is it important to provide care and support to aid workers, for their emotional and physical health as it will ultimately lead to helping more victims.
Also, aid workers tend to hold back expressing their pain and anguish because of their belief that ‘we are the ones providing help. We can’t be weak’. Therefore, it is important that families, friends and organizations around them fully understand the need to support aid workers and provide appropriate support for them.
Finally psychologist Satoko says [jp] that the volunteer and professional aid workers should not consider their sense of ‘disaster fatigue’ as a weakness:
被災者の方の中にも、援助者として頑張っている方がいます。
どうか無理をなさらないでください。
具体が悪くなったり、疲れたりすることは当然のことで、
それは、けっしてあなたが弱いからではないのです。
There are some victims who are helping out as volunteers. Please take care and don’t overwork yourselves.
It’s natural to fall ill or get tired.
It’s not because you are weak!
This post is part of our special coverage Japan Earthquake 2011.

author: Scilla Alecci


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Kenya: The Judiciary Kenyan Are Dying For · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Kenyans may soon have the judiciary they deserve: “With the nomination of Dr. Willy Mutunga and Ms. Nancy Baraza to serve as Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice respectively, Kenyans are seeing an opportunity for them to be served with justice.”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Korea: Is North Korea Behind Every Unsolved Cyber Attack? · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

A slew of reports on North Korea's cyber attack capability recently came out in South Korea, and even Fox News this week.
In the first week of May, one South Korean bank was shut down for several days due to a cyber assault and the South Korean government concluded that North Korea was behind the attack. But South Korean citizens, IT experts and even mainstream media outlets have doubted the government's version of the story and stressed that it lacks evidence.
Some net users went a little further, suggesting that the authorities’ real intention is to exaggerate North Korea's cyber warfare power. South Korean Tweeters have made sarcastic jokes about the government's poor analysis and its knee-jerk reaction of blaming North Korea for every unsolved case.
The cynical jokes trending widely in the South Korean Twittersphere comprise two parts: you list all the problems and then, no matter what the problem is, you blame North Korea. On South Korea's biggest public forum, Daum Agora‘s net user ID: KsG, mocking this situation, wrote [ko] as if he had the North Korea paranoia:
[…]우리 아버지 어제 감기 걸리셨는데, 북한 놈들이 감기 바이러스 퍼트려서 걸리셨다. 우리 어머니  어제 오래 주무셨는데, 북한 놈들이 수돗물에 수면제를 탄 게 틀림없다. 어제 우리집 TV 잠깐 안 나왔는데 북한 놈들이 방해  전파 보낸게 틀림 없다. 다 진짜 모조리다 북한 탓이다.
Jo Hyo-jin (@JJOHYO), a student who is studying another year to enter university,  tweeted [ko]:
은행 마비도 북한 탓 ,단수도 북한 탓, 군사정변도 북한 탓, 내  배방귀도 북한 탓, 나 배고픈것도 북한 탓, 내가 재수하는 것도 북한탓…
Jung Hae-seung (@haesjung), a office worker tweeted [ko]:
와우~ 커피 금단증상이 좀 있네요. 이게 다 북한 탓…
Another Twitter user, J. Kim (@jkim0124)  tweeted [ko]:
2월쯤부터 해서 한 10키로쯤 빼려고 했는데, 5주만에 5키로를 빼고, 그 후로 그냥 유지만 되고 있습니다. 이게 다 북한 탓입니다.
To other's complaints about their relationships, Si-Gyeong (@Samituy) tweeted [ko]:
북한탓이야 이건 RT @caissis: 이사실들은 외계인의음모일꺼야ㅠㅠ RT @choitopholic 나는왜남친이안생길까ㅜRT”@caissis: 저는왜여친이안생길까요ㅠㅠ
A software developer, Kim Yoon-bong (@y8k) tweeted [ko]:
트윗 상태 안좋은 것도 북한 탓인가… 표식을 찾아봐야겠네
Game programmer Kim Hyung-gyu (@cloudree) tweeted [ko]:
농협 해킹 북한 탓만 할뿐, 하도급 개선이나 IT 처우개선, 보안 강화 같은 정부 시책은 없다[…]
Fox News reported on May 17 that the North Korean military has about 30,000 electronic warfare  specialists with capabilities rivaling those of the United States Central Intelligence  Agency, quoting defectors and exports.
The latest cyber attack on April 12 had hobbled the banking  system of the Nonghyup (its rarely-used full name is National Agricultural Cooperative Federation) for  several weeks. This prompted a nationwide investigation. On May 2, the South Korea Prosecutor’s Office concluded that North Korea is to blame for the cyber attack. North Korea is strongly suspected of carrying out the 2009 and 2008 Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks.
Image of Nonghyup Bank. Image by Author.
The Prosecutors’ Office reported in a  press briefing on May 2 that hackers turned an IBM employee’s laptop into a “zombie  PC” last September and have been controlling it since with full access to the Nonghyup Internet banking service. (Nonghyup outsourced Internet security to IBM).
To support their theory, they pointed out the similarities between this Nonghyup case with the previous attacks, which are believed to have been carried out by North Korea; how mal codes were distributed and the Internet Protocol (IP) of a server used to control the zombie PC were identical.
About a week later, on May 11, North  Korea denounced the South Korean Prosecutor's Office's claim as a “fabrication like the Cheonan incident“. Not because they agreed with North Korean's version of the story, but because of a series of inexplicable questions, South Koreans citizens have raised suspicions of the authorities’ explanation.
The programmers and web developers pointed out that the IP addresses could be manipulated easily and that the malicious software and code planted on this case's zombie PC are commonly used among hackers and not exclusively by North Korea. They also questioned the IBM security expert who went on using his infected laptop for several months without noticing the difference.
South Korea’s progressive news outlet, Presssian consolidated [ko] several major media’s responses. According to the report, the DongA, one major conservative media organisation who usually sides with the government, pointed out the ineffectiveness of the IP address in identifying the hacker. It commented that since it is not yet 100 percent proven that the last DDos attack was carried out by North Korea, jumping to  that  conclusion would be making “an assumption based on an  assumption”.
The Hankook wrote its subtitle as “what kind of hacker uses his own  IP  address?” and explained that the number of IP addresses is  so  limited in the North that they borrow internet networks  from China. The ZD Net Korea, an online-based media outlet specializing in IT, argued that the attack patterns of the last DDoS attack are different from the one detected in the Nonghyup attack, which worked in a more interactive way.
The conservative side finds this trend of what they call ‘underestimating the national enemy’ very disturbing. South and North Korea remain technically at war and the high chances of military provocation such as  last November's YeonPyeong attack cannot be ignored. There is even a possibility of war, though the odds of an all-out war are extremely low.
Conservative Agora net user ID:이순신장군의후예 (Descendant of General Lee Sun-shin) questioned [ko] other net users about why it is so hard to believe that North Korea, our enemy, has done it:
현대 캐피탈과는 다른 금전적 협박이 없다.(일반 해킹의 경우 그 목적이   100% 금전적인  이유이다.)  일부 아고리언의 북한  사이버전 수행능력에 대한 폄하는 다르게 북한은 이미 오래전부터 수만명의 해커   등을  조직적으로 양성하여 현재 수천명 이상의  정예 사이버 병사들을 두고 있다는 점. […] 대한민국 국민이라면 누가봐도   혐의자   1순위인 북한을 두고 굳이 이를  부정하고자 하는 의도는 과연 무엇일까?
Other net users wrote [ko] that they were offended by the North's response of comparing it with the Cheonan incident. Many net users warned that the government's rush to the conclusion that the North Korea is behind every unsolved case could backfire and undermine people's awareness.
A blogger whose first name is Wook compared [ko] the government's quick reaction and cursory analysis with the Shepherd boy's lies in the Aesop's fable:
[…]요즘 정부와 한나라당은 무슨 양치기 소년도 아니고, 무슨 골치아픈 사건 터지면 죄다 “북한 소행”라고 하는 듯한 느낌입니다. 분명 천안함이나 연평도 포격 사건처럼 북한의 비열한 테러 행위에 대해서는 명백하게 규탄해야 합니다. 그런데 무슨 장난하는 것도 아니고 국민을  바보취급하는 것도 아니고 걸핏하면 이런 식으로 외치면 오히려 국민들에게 내성만 줄 뿐인 것을 정말 정부는 모르는 것인지  모르겠습니다.
Beside these worries and cynicism, there is one humorous joke which compares marriage with the inter-Korean relations. During a talk show last week South Korean actor, Lee Sun-Gyun pointed out [ko] the three similarities between a married couple and the two Koreas.
First, they are a family. In bad times, even though they want to separate themselves from each other, they cannot. Second, they cannot communicate well with each other. In talk table, each speaks their own story without listening to others. Third, they share a De-Militarized Zone (DMZ) where military actions are forbidden. For a couple, the DMZ would be a kid.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Kuwait: Parliament Members Go Boxing! · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

A picture of the Kuwaiti parliamentary fight as posted by blog Frankom.com on May 18, 2011.
Kuwaiti parliament members had a fight during a session discussing the case of Kuwaiti detainees in Guantanamo. Shia parliament member Hussein Al-Qallaf was accused by the Salafi parliament members of describing those detainees of being terrorists which was met with a violent reaction from Salafi parliament members Mohammed Hayef, Waleed Al-Tabtabai, and Jimaan Al-Hirbish, who used his Iqaal (head gear) to beat up Al-Qallaf.
Another Shia parliament member, Adnan Al-Mutawa, was also beaten when he tried to stop the fight.
The news came as a shock to Kuwaitis, who debated how low the parliamentary performance has plummeted and debated how this fight makes them more hopeless towards improving the situation of the country.
Former Kuwaiti communication minister, politician, and Kuwait university professor, Dr Saad Bin Tiflah found [ar] this fight to be a distraction from the decision taken in the same parliamentary session when the majority voted to postpone a questioning request of the prime minister to take place after one year:
ستكون “هوشة” النواب هي حديث البلد، وبالتالي ينسى الشعب أن دستوره قد أفرغ من محتواه أمس بتأجيل الاستجواب وتحويله للدستورية، وهذا هو المطلوب
Faisal Al-Qinai, head of the journalists association in Kuwait, wrote a sarcastic tweet [ar] about the fight saying:
حرس مجلس الأمة بحاجة لدورة كراتيه إستعدادا للجلسات المقبلة
Dr Thaqal Al-Ajmi, professor of law and human rights in Kuwait University, commented [ar] saying:
ما يحصل الآن في مجلس الأمة هو مهزلة وجرأة غير مسبوقة في الاستهزاء بالدستور وبالشعب الكويتي
Kuwaiti blogger, Ali AlSarraf, noted [ar] how this fight reflected the political situation in Kuwait:
إن تقاتل أبناء الوطن الواحد تحت قبة البرلمان التي تشرع فيها القوانين تأكد أنه لا يوجد لا غالب ولا مغلوب فالكل قد خسر .. الشعب والوطن #
Kuwaiti law professor and political activist Dr Obaid Al-Wasmi also made his comments [ar] on the fight explaining how it benefited the government:
تحرشات القلاف بالقبائل لا تعكس موقفا طائفيا, بل دورسياسي منظم سبق أن شارك فيه زميله الكومبارس الجويهل قبل اعتزاله ولذلك استبدل المدرب
A Kuwaiti blogger with the nickname “Panadol” wrote a whole post [ar] about this parliamentary fight saying:
كيف ستحترم الحكومة النواب، وكيف سيحترمنا العالم، وكيف سنعلم أبناءنا، وكيف وكيف وكيف عندما نشاهد مثل هذه الصور (البايخة) وهي من أفعالكم

author: Mona Kareem


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Macedonia: Monument Fixed After Blogger’s Complaint? · Global Voices
Filip Stojanovski

Partikopolis informs [mk] that the vandalized statue he blogged about a few months ago has been re-erected: “Maybe this wasn't influenced directly by me, but I am glad when I see some kind of a solution for a problem I wrote about.”

author: Filip Stojanovski


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Macedonia: Raising Awareness of Election Monitoring Techniques from Uganda · Global Voices
Filip Stojanovski

An article on bribery and intimidation published in Macedonian and Albanian by the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections in Macedonia mentions the example of Uganda Watch, recommended in two GVO articles.