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Ethiopia: G8 Summit Casts Fresh Light on Ethiopia · Global Voices
Endalkachew Chala

Netizens have stepped up their efforts to draw attention to Ethiopia’s independent media situation as the G8 Summit in the United States approaches. Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and three other African heads of state are expected to attend.
Of late, there has been much  talk about Ethiopia’s fast economic growth and increased crackdown on media. While the state media continuously highlights economic achievements, netizens maintain that free press is key to stable economic growth and food security. Africa's food security is on the agenda for the upcoming G8 Summit which will be held at Camp David in Maryland from 18-19 May, 2012.
Several media and human rights organisations such as the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) have been  highlighting the relationship between free press and food security.
Taking the 38th G8 Summit as a window of opportunity, Joel Simon, Executive Director of CPJ, writes a public letter to President Barack Obama:
Dear President Obama:
As you prepare to host the G-8 summit and discuss the security of food supplies with leaders from Africa, we call on you to strongly consider the role of an independent press in identifying and assessing agricultural challenges and famine, and facilitating the national and international response to food crises.
Mr. President, we are deeply concerned that Ethiopia’s ongoing repression of investigative journalism fuels tensions that threaten the country’s relative stability and risk unraveling the economic and social progress registered in recent years. Since 2011, under the guise of a counterterrorism sweep, the government of Ethiopia has brought terrorism and anti-state charges against 11 independent journalists, including blogger Eskinder Nega, who may face life in prison for his writing about the struggle for democracy. Such policies deter reporting on all sensitive topics, including food security
Charlayne Hunter-Gault hopes that issues around press freedom in Ethiopia will come up during the summit:
It is time for me to return to Ethiopia and try to see the prime minister, to plead yet again for the journalists’ freedom and for their right to free expression. And maybe, just maybe, in the interim, when Prime Minister Zenawi attends a G-8 Summit Food Security at Camp David on May 19, American officials can weigh in, too, on the importance not only of strategic partnerships but also of freedom of speech in a democracy.
Alemayehu G. Mariam, an activist based in the US, asks, “Does aiding dictators who use food aid for political purposes end famine and food shortages in Africa?”:
On May 19, President Obama and the G8 leaders will have to face some tough questions: What is the moral hazard of endlessly supplying food relief to the Horn countries? Why should the world continue to help a country that leases millions of hectares of the most fertile land in the country and become the breadbasket for India and the Middle East while its people are starving? Why should the world provide food aid to a country when the ruling regime weaponizes the aid to decimate opposition, crush the democratic aspirations of the people and flagrantly violate human rights? Does aiding dictators who use food aid for political purposes end famine and food shortages in Africa?
Endalk summarises online commentaries about press freedom and food security in Ethiopia:
The campaign for press freedom has reached a critical stage in recent weeks. In this context it may be worth collecting commentary from those participating in an effort to regain freedom of the press in Ethiopia – from analysts to reporters to readers. You can also share your opinion on my blog, or throw in a perceptive from elsewhere to this collection.
Some Ethiopians in the Diaspora have gone as far as urging President Obama to rescind his invitation of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. A  Group of Ethiopians calling themselves Ethiopian National Transition Council posted a call on their Facebook page to detain Prime Minister Meles Zenawi at Camp David:
This is a call for all Ethiopians who love their country and are courageous enough to come and face him off, show your anger and disgust, and be heard loud and clear that his invitation is immoral and unacceptable and that he should never be allowed to touch American soil in respect of the millions who are his victims and suffering at home and abroad. This is a call for President Obama to stand by many Ethiopians who stood by you during your election in 2008. President Obama we got your back on your election and now it is your turn to show us to what extent you go to be on our side.
However, Daniel Berhane thinks that it is important for Zenawi to participate. He points out that Zenawi has been participating in the G-8 annual summits since year 2005.
*Thumbnail: Courtesy of EYOUTHM Facebook group.

author: Endalkachew Chala


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Jordan: Jordanians Say “Thank You!” to Monarchy · Global Voices
Ali Alhasani

Jordanian Twitter users have been using the hashtag #شكرا, or “thank you”, to tweet sarcastically about what the Jordanian monarchy has done for the country.
The tweets are a reaction to the slowness of the ongoing reform process in Jordan.
While King Abdullah has acknowledged the need for reform in Jordan, he has been criticised for not establishing a timetable for the introduction of governments based on a parliamentary majority. He recently appointed a new government, but it is seen as too conservative and MPs have complained of “elusiveness” in introducing real reforms.
Jordan's King Abdullah II arrives to attend the swearing in ceremony of the new 30-member Cabinet, at the Royal Palace in Amman, Jordan. Photo by Nader Daoud, copyright © Demotix (2/5/2012).
Mahmoud Homsi started the hashtag by tweeting:
Monther Hassouneh added:
Nabil Barqawi wrote:
Hadeel Maaitah tweeted:
Saif Abuhazeem said:
Mohammad Ziad wrote:
Anas Elayyan said:

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Ali Alhasani


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Lebanon: UK Ambassador to Chat on Twitter with Haifa Wehbe · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

The British Embassy in Lebanon has announced an online discussion between the UK ambassador (@HMATomFletcher) and Lebanese singer Haifa Wehbe (@HaifaWehbe), to take place on May 18 at 6pm (Lebanese time), tweeting under the hashtag #HaifaHMA.

author: Ayesha Saldanha


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Mexico: Blogger Posts Final Open Letters Addressing Presidential Candidates  · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

As we reported earlier, Global Voices contributor and blogger Juan Tadeo began an open letter [es] campaign to encourage citizens to write to the current presidential candidates. He recently finished writing his letters to all four candidates. His latest two are for Andrés Manuel López Obrador [es] and Enrique Peña Nieto [es]

author: Silvia Viñas


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Myanmar: Two Citizen Media Sites Launched · Global Voices
Chan Myae Khine

Two citizen media sites, Won Thar Nu and Myanmar Netizens were recently launched in Myanmar to provide global readers with news events, citizen media information, and other stories from Myanmar.

author: Chan Myae Khine


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Palestine: PalFest Literature Festival in Gaza for First Time  · Global Voices
Ola Anan

This year for the first time the Palestinian Festival of Literature, or PalFest, was held in Gaza. Since it was founded in 2008, the festival's aim has been to bring together Palestinian and international authors, and it organises public events in the evenings and creative writing workshops for Palestinian students during the day.
According to the festival's founder, Egyptian novelist Ahdaf Soueif, having the festival in Gaza has been the ultimate goal of the event since it began, but it has always faced tremendous difficulties in getting permits for the participating authors to come through the Rafah Crossing. This year they were successful at last, and a group of about forty Egyptian, Tunisian, Sudanese and Palestinian authors, artists and activists were granted permission to visit Gaza and participate in PalFest 2012 from May 5 to 10.
Books donated to PalFest Gaza. Image by PalFest on Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
Workshops
The first day of the event, May 6, was dedicated to workshops at three universities: Al Aqsa University, Al Azhar University and the Islamic Univeristy. As blogger Nader ElKhuzundar described:
The events kicked off by holding two workshops at both Al Azhar and the Islamic University of Gaza on writing and blogging in both Arabic and English. PalFest 2012 authors were astonished by the fact that many students attended the workshops. They were more astonished by the fact that most of the attendees were females.
Palestinian bloggers and tweeps attending PalFest. Image by @tamer_ps and posted by @olanan.
Music and poetry
The next day, May 7, was for a lot of the Palestinians the highlight of the PalFest activities. A four-hour concert took place at Rashad Al Shawa Cultural Theatre, with three Palestinian groups and the Egyptian group Eskenderella.
Palestinian Roba Salibi wrote:
In the following video uploaded by PalFest, Egyptian poet Amin Haddad recites a poem, and Eskenderella performs “Ya Falisteeniya” (O Palestinian):
Egypt and Palestine together
Throughout PalFest there was a strong sense of solidarity between the Palestinians and Egyptians. Palestinian Tamer Hamam commented:
Nour Abed wrote:
#PalHunger
A mass hunger strike by Palestinian prisoners was not forgotten by the participants. Egyptian Samia Jaheen tweeted:
Palestinian blogger Matar wrote:
Palestinian Mahmoud Omar echoed the sentiment:
@_Mahmoud: NOTE: #PalfestGaza is totally consistent with #PalHunger , don't think otherwise.
Egyptian novelist Ahdaf Soueif at the #PalHunger sit-in. Image by PalFest on Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
Shutdown
Despite having permission for its events, PalFest attracted the attention of members of the Hamas government. Nader ElKhuzundar described what happened:
In the last day of PalFest, a session was held in Qasr Al-Basha in the old part of Gaza City. The session included a goodbye performance by Eskenderella as well as speeches, presentations and readings by PalFest authors. The event drifted into [a discussion of] politics and suddenly, the electricity was cut. Everybody thought it was the electricity schedule under which Gaza has been living for years now so they continued the event. Five minutes later, a suspicious movement was noticed by the hall’s entrance then suddenly, the police stormed the hall, confiscated a woman’s camera as she was filming the event and called the event off claiming that there’s no official permit. […] Three hours later, the Chief of Police, his deputy and a colonel in the Interior Ministry visited the hotel. They officially apologized, stating it was an “individual error” and that they have opened an investigation into what happened. They stated that PalFest would always be welcome in Gaza.
However, a member of Hamas security admitted that the authorities had been reading the PalFest delegation's tweets and press statements, and were angered by the accusations that Hamas suppresses freedom of speech in Gaza.
Palestinian Saif Al Yazori wrote:
Blogger Nalan Sarraj wrote:
I want to apologize to the Palfest crew, but it's not my fault my government authority [Hamas] forgot how to love Palestine.
Dr Haidar Eid introducing the closing night of PalFest. Image by PalFest on Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
Goodbyes
Palestinian Ebaa Rezeq was sad to see PalFest end:
Egyptian Nariman wrote:

author: Ola Anan


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Portugal: Unemployment as the New ‘Thang’ · Global Voices
Sara Moreira

Portuguese Minister of Economy Álvaro Santos Pereira‘s speech on the Parliament today, May 18, has become a national joke [pt], with the hashtag #Coiso (slang for “thing”) trending on Twitter. The minister stated [pt] that “we all must to work together – unions, employers and parties so that we can overcome this ‘thang'”, referring to the high unemployment rates in the country.

author: Sara Moreira


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Russia: The RuNet’s Enduring Tomatoes & Tusovki  · Global Voices
Andrey Tselikov

This post is part of our special coverage Russia's Protest Movement.
To a casual observer, the Russian protest movement seems current and contemporary. Undeniably, it is. The throngs of people. The charismatic young leaders and elder statesmen. The use of social media networks in their multitude to communicate, organize, and argue. The positioning of the protests within a global movement: from Occupy to Tahrir and the Arab Spring.
Amidst all the excitement, it is easy to forget that the core of the protests — the professional revolutionaries, the leaders, young and old, the activists and the reporters, the analysts and the bloggers, the Russian political tusovka and its online extension — has now existed for almost a decade. Few bloggers last this long. Certainly, the entire Internet infrastructure has changed several times over during the period. Nevertheless, the tusovka endures, perhaps due to the peculiarity of the Russian blogosphere and its longtime sequestration at LiveJournal.
That is not to say that the scene has ossified. On the contrary, relationships have changed, as have account names. Some figures lost prevalence; some have switched sides and opinions. But on the whole, the RuNet of the early oughts is a microcosm of modernity. Pick any recent protest organizer. Oleg Kashin has blogged on LiveJournal since 2002, the same as Sergei Parkhomenko. Ilya Yashin began in 2004 (and has been a promising young politician since). Alexey Navalny and Sergei Udaltsov’s wife, Anastasia, started blogging in 2006, a year after Ilya Ponomarev and Garry Kasparov.
Or pick a critic: former Natsbol and current DemVybor functionary Stas Yakovlev started writing in 2004, while the unabashedly pro-Kremlin Maksim Kononenko (formerly known as Mr. Parker) and Konstantin Rykov have been prominent bloggers for over a decade (though both have since abandoned LiveJournal).
Then, as now, they not only blogged on the same platform; they also argued and engaged each other in polemics. A snapshot taken seven years ago of these movers and shakers would today present many familiar faces and opinions (although notoriously flip-floppy Kashin has done his best to keep things interesting).
Screenshot of Andrei Morozov's LiveJournal, 18 May 2012.
Bearing this in mind, it is perhaps fitting that the man who last Sunday threw tomatoes at Ilya Yashin and journalist/writer Yulia Latynina was a man who did precisely the same thing seven years ago. Andrei Morozov (also known as “Murz,” who blogs at kenigtiger), wearing the same jacket he had on seven years earlier, approached a crowd of OccupyAbai protestors during the “Control Stroll” rally. He threw two tomatoes at the speakers (both missed), after which he was detained by the crowd, who mistook him for a Nashist. Oleg Kashin reported the small incident, lamenting a forgetful new crop of protestors.
Indeed, during the summer of 2005, Morozov gained RuNet notoriety for what he called the “Red Blitzkrieg.” It was the heady summer after the success of the Orange Revolution — the summer of Russian youth politics, and the summer of tomatoes. “Red Blitzkrieg” was what Morozov named the tiny Stalinist-nationalist group he had founded around the time, but the phrase referred more visibly to his strategy of throwing tomatoes at political and ideological opponents.
“Tomato terrorism,” as Morozov jokingly called it, claimed several victims that summer. The first was Yashin, then a leader of Young Yabloko and a memeber of Oborona (a youth organization modeled on Pora and Otpor). On June 20, 2005, Oleg Kashin wrote in his blog, “Today, at Kitai-Gorod, unknown parties threw tomatoes at the Oborona picket line (the tomatoes were good and fresh).” Yashin later posted the name of the assailant, identifying him a member of Dugin’s Eurasia group.
Morozov, who spent a day under arrest for the incident, responded in his blog (vandalized and deleted in 2009; an archive exists on the alternative lj.rossia.org service), claiming full responsibility and denying membership in any political group:
And in general, dear “orangists,” get used to the fact that someone can throw a tomato at you without it being some kind of political commission, but simply from the bottom of their heart, out of aesthetic considerations.
Perhaps because of the gleeful response of Russian netizens to his actions, several days later he tomatoed (“otpomidoril”) the editor of the occasionally sensationalist newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets, which had published an article about World War II with which Morozov disagreed (the author controversially wrote that the USSR should have surrendered to Germany, and was “ice-creamed” by another activist on the same day). Soon after came a failed attempt (Morozov missed) of tomatoing Yulia Latynina, whose revisionism of WWII orthodoxy also angered the Red Blitzkrieg.
Ilia Yashin, a member of the Solidarity coalition, 23 November 2008, photo by Lena Lebedeva-Hooft, CC BY-SA 3.0; Wikimedia Commons.
In the meantime, Morozov showed up at another Oborona action, and this time gifted Yashin the tomatoes, rather than throwing them. He followed a similar strategy at a book signing by Maksim Kononenko (whose book of Putin anecdotes was published by Parkhomenko). In August came the tomatoing of the Polish embassy (a response to a scandal involving children of Russian diplomats in Poland, for which Morozov and an accomplice spent three nights in jail), and in September the tomatoing of Echo Moskvy's offices (on general principle).
Other noteworthy incidents included an October small-sword duel (described here by Morozov’s second) between Morozov and a defender of Latynina's honor (which thankfully led to no bloodshed), as well as a failed (and ill-conceived) attempt to throw mice at an opposition rally.
In 2007, Morozov did something even crazier than usual. He had always claimed that his “tomato terrorism” was equal opportunity; that rather than singling out the liberal opposition in his actions, they just happened to be in the way. And so, one cold spring night, Morozov armed himself with a sawed-off shotgun, fired it at the Moscow office of United Russia, and blogged about it. As he had also managed to hit the FSB office located in the same building, this escapade did not end well. He was sentenced to three years in prison for the shotgun, and, under Article 280 of the Criminal Code, for extremist rhetoric in his blog (becoming one of the first Russian bloggers to serve time for extremist speech).
By the time he was released in 2009, after serving eighteen months of his sentence, “Red Blitzkrieg” had fallen apart. Morozov himself states that he has quit public politics, calling it an ineffective waste, and that personal, not political, circumstances were behind his arrest. While it appears that he still has some connections to the nationalist underground, claiming membership in the so-called “Black Blitzkrieg,” he has dismissed his ‘tomato period’ as childish, which makes the May 13, 2012, incident all the more surprising.
Morozov described the impetus for his return to form in a May 12 post. “Fate itself,” he argued, brought together in one place his old opponents, Yashin and Latynina. He could “no longer stand” the concentration of “abomination” in the center of the city. ‘Action had to be taken.’
After he went to prison in 2007, Morozov fell off the RuNet radar, though he has been writing regularly since his 2009 release. Most of the protestors present at his latest action had no idea who he was. The ones who did recognize him reacted with disbelief and nostalgia. “F…, the man who threw tomatoes at Yashin was the notorious Murz? Now that's f-ing something!” tweeted Kashin. “The very same?” sentimentally asked Rykov.
There is definitely something romantic about Morozov's little acts of defiance. Of course, there are always questions. Is he a Kremlin project or his own man? Does he believe in what he says or is he just very good at “trolling”? These same questions were asked seven years ago, to no avail. Kashin later succinctly summed up the sentiment: “Today is the same day it was yesterday.“
This post is part of our special coverage Russia's Protest Movement.

author: Andrey Tselikov


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Spain: 12M, a Ray of Sun in the Midst of the Crisis · Global Voices
Elena Arrontes

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.
On the 12th of May (12M), the Indignado movement demonstrated not only that it is alive and well, but that in fact it continues to have strong social support. A little less than a year after its birth, the 15m (the movement's name after the date it began May 15, 2011) has once again brought together tens of thousands of people unhappy and angry with the government's actions and handling of the European crisis.
Although the demonstrations took place on a global level, Madrid and Barcelona once again took the leading roles of the Indignado movement. A mass protest was carried out around 8 in the evening on May 12th in the Puerta del Sol (Gate of the Sun) in Madrid, an emblem of this social revolution. The four marches coming from the four cardinal points of the capital culminated at the central plaza in a peaceful and festive atmosphere. At 10pm, the time that the government had specified as the end of the demonstration's legality, Kilometer Zero (Sol) continued to be full of people and the police did not try to break up the gathering. Just as was planned, at midnight the crowd let out a silent cry after which they took up again the cries of demands, the drum circles, and the cheers. They also sang “Happy Birthday” to celebrate one year of the Indignado movement. Next, the demonstrators spoke directly to the officers through repeated cries of: “Police, join us!”
"The key is in the Sun (Sol)" a poster says in the Madrid plaza. Photo by Elena Arrontes.
Nevertheless, in the early morning hours the authorities intervened to keep around 300 remaining demonstrators from camping in the center. They have taken action in several Spanish cities. The previous year, the movement was uninterrupted and the “Indignados” were able to stay in the streets where they had organized meetings and other activities. This time, those present responded with cries of “No violence,” but all were forced to leave and there were 18 arrested. In the following days, the “Indignados” returned to the plazas. On the Internet, they are denouncing the police actions, the attempt to create fear and to silence their voices.
The blog #AcampadaSol  (#CampSol)[es] for its part posted a release from the Sol Legal Commission regarding the events. It came to the following conclusion:
Una vez más, los derechos se conquistan ejerciéndolos. Porque el espacio público es patrimonio de la ciudadanía, un ágora de intercambio de ideas sobre aquello que nos afecta para la contrucción colectiva de un futuro común. Esta es una de las premisas sobre las que ha de asentarse un estado que aspire a considerarse democrático.
In his post The removal from Sol and the biggest humiliation of my life [es] the blogger Principia Marsupia, after experiencing the forced removal, shared his observations which are now circulating on social networks:
En mi opinión, el gobierno debería sentirse muy satisfecho de que la desesperación generada por la crisis se canalice en un movimiento como el 15M, mayoritariamente pacífico. Basta recordar episodios pasados de sufrimiento social (cierre de astilleros en Galicia o de explotaciones mineras en Asturias) para comprender que cuando manda la desesperanza, la violencia estalla. En el pasado, los ingredientes habituales de una protesta eran las barricadas de neumáticos ardiendo y los cócteles molotov. El símbolo 15M son las tiendas de campaña.
This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.

author: Elena Arrontes


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Trinidad & Tobago: Laws for LGBT Too · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Globewriter applauds the contribution of Senator Corinne Baptiste-McKnight “in response to a Clause in the Children Bill that criminalized same sex intimacy among youth”, saying: “Give that woman an award!”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Video: Capacity Building in Rising Voices Media Training  · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

In the border between Burma and Thailand, the Rising Voices grantee project Karen Border News has launched their audio podcast workshop. In this short film, the students of the radio journalism course speak about their experience.
From their Blog post:
During this first round of training, we focused on four topics: news writing, audio recording & editing, and broadcast. It’s been really exciting watching these students improve their skills, and learn entirely new ways to tell their stories. While KSNG’s media staff runs most of the trainings, we also invited two specialist, Aung Nai, who works for Internews and Jack Chance, an experienced radio producer and media trainer. In addition to the workshops, we are also distributing some media equipment to students, including notebooks, media guidebooks, and audio recorders.
On a past blog entry, the Karen Border News blog explains the importance of their efforts in the context of the Ceasefire talks between the Myanmar government and the Karen National Union:
Most Karen cautiously welcome the ceasefire agreement, but there is much concern for how reconciliation will affect the Karen population, especially with so many of our people now living outside of our traditional homeland in Karen State
Rising Voices is an outreach initiative of Global Voices, aimed to helping to bring new voices from new communities and speaking new languages to the global conversations on the web by providing resources and funding to local groups working with underrepresented communities. The Karen Border News is one of the 2012 Rising Voices Grantees.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Africa: Fresh Perspective in Telling African Stories · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

SautiProject is an African citizen journalism project supported by Al Jazeera Kiswahili and Pawa254 Sauti Project is an African citizen journalist initiative; a fresh perspective into the telling of African stories. It's journalism with a flair, stories with a passion.

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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East Timor: New President takes office · Global Voices
Janet Gunter

Taur Matan Ruak, East Timor's new president, was sworn in today, on the eve of the celebration of 10 years of independence since the UN transition from Indonesian rule. CJITL shared his inaugural speech [Tet], in which he emphasized the need to diversify the country's oil-dependent economy.

author: Janet Gunter


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Macedonia: Graffiti Art in “Times of Revived Antiquity” · Global Voices
Filip Stojanovski

A short documentary on the Macedonian graffiti scene in the context of the state-sponsored art/construction boom, made by two female scientists and bloggers–Vasilka Dimitrovska and Ilina Jakimovska–has been shown at the renowned archeological conference Buffalo TAG 2012.
Entitled “Lions, Warriors and Graffiti Artists: Counter-Culture in Times of Revived Antiquity”, the documentary juxtaposes (an important visual arts theory word!) information about the vigorous efforts of the government to impose new, polished classicist/baroque visual identity on the center of the Macedonian capital through the Skopje 2014 project (which features bronze lions), with interviews of people from the graffiti scene.
A co-author, archeologist Dimitrovska, wrote this [mk] on her blog, injecting a disclaimer often heard by people who dare to speak in public in Macedonia:
We made this documentary… in order to document with love part of the graffiti which disappeared or are about to disappear due to the new urban concepts implemented in our country, primarily in Skopje. The project has no political dimension, nor did we intend it to have any political connotation. This small project on Macedonian graffiti was made with modest finances, and we intended to present–without any censorship or montage of statements–the voices and opinions of the graffiti artists who shaped or are still shaping the visual part of this subculture, which is punishable by the laws but is also used (not abused) by the political class in power.
In the film, the interviewed artists also feel the need to decline any interest in political life. They talk about being torn between the threat of punishment if caught “writing” on their own (EUR 50 at least), and becoming a sell-out for commercial reasons or in local government projects, which sometimes involve co-opting graffiti artists to legally adorn specified public buildings. They also mention a quickly forming generation gap within the subculture.
The other co-author, ethnologist Jakimovska wrote this [mk] on her blog in 2007, in a post referencing the famous scene from the film Life of Brian:
It might sound incredible, but the graffiti are – folklore! Regardless of whether they convey messages through drawing or text, the graffiti, for those who make them and those who read them on city walls, are a form of expression and communication. If you have something hidden deep inside you, something that aches and burns you, write it on the wall, and it will speak it… Some of my favorites from Skopje include “A woman is not a woman unless she's a woman,” “Thank God I'm an atheist”…
In the past, other bloggers such as Alexx [mk] or Django [mk] wrote about Skopje graffiti. The artists featured in the documentary do not have online presence on the public internet, but sometimes publish photos of their work within Facebook.

author: Filip Stojanovski


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Malawi: President Promises to Lift Ban on Homosexuality · Global Voices
Isabella Mukanda-Shamambo

Just months after the Zambian netizens were up in arms against UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon for asking the country to be tolerant of homosexuals, President Joyce Banda says that Malawi will lift the ban on homosexual acts in the country angering some Malawi netizens over the pronouncement.
In her first national address Joyce Banda told Parliament that  her government will repeal laws that discriminates against people based on sexual orientation.
“The indecency and unnatural acts laws shall be repealed,” she said.
A map showing penalties targeting gays and lesbians in Africa. Image source: http://ilga.org/
Malawian religious groups have made it clear that same sex marriages cannot be allowed in God-fearing and cultural strong Malawian norms. However, human rights groups argue that minority rights, including those that encourage same sex marriages, should be promoted.
A court in Malawi sentenced Malawi gay couple to jail for fourteen years 2010. This was after the gay couple, Steven Monjenza and Towonge Chimbalanga, hosted an engagement ceremony. They were immediately arrested and thrown in jail.
Netizens reacted to the news on Facebook. Khalil notes:
She dnt have a choice
Isaac disagrees:
She had a choice of keeping quiet.
Abdulmalik suggests that the move results from donor pressure:
No wonder the late President quarreled with her. She is just a stooge of the West. We don't need such stooges in Africa
Joyce Banda  speaking at the DFID conference in 2010. Photo shared on Flickr by DFID under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) .
Harutizwi asks, “Where is our African identity?”:
Western nations are pressuring African nations to legalise homosexuality in exchange 4 aid. Malawi's Banda is already playing 2 the western tune. Where is our African identity? If we allow homosexuality will we ever hv a future? Ndiyani achazvara 4 the next generation? I can't even say gone 2 the dogs coz dogs hv never heard o4 that. May the God o4 heavens save mankind.
But Phetie reminds critics that Malawi's system of government and even Christianity did not come from Malawi:
Its no prblm 4 Malawi legalising homosexuality…after all almost evrythn in our system of government copies 4rm western countries…even christianity came 4rm them
Clemans congratulates the president:
Wow Banda congrats
Lyson Sibande identifies five fallacies against decriminalisation of homosexuality:
Fifth fallacy: The Bible is the ultimate judge over homosexuality
It is an absurd fallacy ever, to think that every human being believes in the Bible. In this regard, it is a total disregard of the secularism of the constitution should homosexuals’ rights be criminalized on Christianity grounds. There is no rationale behind judging homosexuals with the Bible, which they may not believe in. It is like forcing a Moslem or Hindu to swear over the Bible. Nonetheless, if homosexuality is a religious catastrophe, then denominations have the right to deal with it among their memberships within their jurisdiction.
My conclusion:
According to Christianity, homosexuality harbors grievous transgression of God’s law and is punishable by death; Leviticus 20:13, as a Christian myself, I believe this Biblical teaching is irrefutable within its domains. However, non Christian homosexuals can not be denied their rights based on Biblical dogmas. Malawi as a secular nation that upholds democracy; where discrepancy arise as such that particular religious beliefs conflict with democratic fundamentals, democracy must prevail; because democracy is for everyone while religion is for those that espouse the respective teaching.  Therefore, such a gesture as condemnation of gaysim based on Christian morals would symbolize crucifixion of democracy on the cross of Christian creeds.
Seba Space, LGBT blogger from Uganda, believes that Joyce Banda's heart is in the right place:
Bless her soul for taking a lead on homosexuality. Malawi‘s president has vowed that the gay law will be repealed.
Yes, Malawi’s Joyce Banda is swimming against the parliamentary tide but her heart is in the right place so we must applaud her stance. Africa needs a lot of conviction politicians like her.
On Twitter, the news quickly attracted attention.
@mugumya: #Malawi's president #Banda wants to overturn ban on homosexuality in country. Why do I think she will lose the next election?
@femianthony: In Malawi, Homosexuality is Punishable by 14 Years in Prison
@moronwatch: @gnixon88 @Original_Cindy I'm not – just returned from Malawi where a book on the evil of homosexuality was on sale at the airport
@moronwatch: @gnixon88 @Original_Cindy I'm not – just returned from Malawi where a book on the evil of homosexuality was on sale at the airport
However, the Africa producer for BBC News, @forbeesta, says that the President's Office in Malawi has denies the reports:
@forbeesta: Malawi Pres Banda's office have confirmed to me that they object to reports that she will repeal homosexuality laws. BBC will update #Africa
Early this  year, Uganda re-tabled a controversial anti-gay bill introduced in 2009 that proposed the death penalty for homosexual acts. Former Liberian first lady Jewel Howard Taylor has introduced a bill making homosexuality liable to a death sentence.
Malawi will be the first country in Africa to lift ban on homosexuality since 1994. It is outlawed in 38 African countries and it can be punishable by death in Mauritania, Sudan, and northern Nigeria.

author: Isabella Mukanda-Shamambo


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North Korea Denies GPS Jamming  · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

North Korea denied that it jammed Global Positioning System (GPS) signals in the border area between North and South Korea which has caused inconvenience to commercial aviation flights. North Korea Tech blog wrote an analysis on the jamming which South Korean media have reported as coming from North Korea.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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The Future of Sino-US Relations: Ask Andrew Nathan · Global Voices
Andy Yee

Xiaomi (twitter: xiaomi2020) is organizing an interview with Andrew Nathan, an internationally renowned expert on US-China relations from Columbia University. Submit a question or vote on a question that's already been asked here. Xiaomi is one of the organizers of Yizhe, a group which translates western journalism on China.

author: Andy Yee


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Cambodia: Teenager Killed During Eviction · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

A 14-year old girl was killed when police forces evicted a rural village in Cambodia. The case highlights the growing land disputes in the country and the use of violence by government forces to stifle dissent

author: Mong Palatino


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Iran: Buying book can become dangerous · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Several bloggers published a photo where a woman pushed to the ground by the security forces in a book fair. Gargagarga writes it happens in book fair and everybody is watching. It seems people get used to seeing such scenes.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Iran: Protesting against Google · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Iranians have been complaining that Google Maps now has no name on the body of water called the Persian Gulf.IranFarda says [fa] Mr.Google do you like we call you, Yahoo?


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Pakistan: Twitter Goes Through Weekend of Censorship · Global Voices
Teeth Maestro

Starting 1pm on Sunday 20 May, 2012, Twitter users in Pakistan suffered a total blanket censorship across all Internet Service Providers (ISP) in Pakistan. Some ISP have received an email from Mohammed Ali, Deputy Director (Enforcement) at Pakistan Telcommunucation Authority at around noon to block Twitter.com immediately and ordering them to flush out the cache as soon as possible.
Around 1pm Sunday afternoon internet users in Pakistan started facing the blockage, and flooded Herdict Web with reports of blockage across all ISP:
HerdictWeb : Raw Data Feed
Express Tribune through its sources claimed that the block was due to a blasphemous cartoon competition:
Express News correspondent Suhail Chaudhry had reported that the access to Twitter was blocked due to an ongoing “competition” of Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh) caricatures. This move was made, keeping in mind the “emotions of the masses” reported Chaudhry.
Aamir Atta of ProPakistani also confirmed via his sources:
We have got the confirmation that decision for blocking Twitter was taken yesterday on account of Draw Mohammad Day, during a meeting held at Ministry of Information Technology and chaired by Raja Parvez Ashraf, Federal Minister for Information and Technology. Meeting was attended by MoIT members, PTA and other concerned stake holders. A source who is directly aware of the meeting told ProPakistani that it was decided that Twitter will remain blocked on May 20th, 2012 to avoid any possible access of blasphemous content to Pakistani internet users.
While I opined in my personal blog that it was PTA merely testing their new url Filtering service:
My gut feeling is that PTA is just testing their URL Filtering system, we had reports of them testing some image servers on facebook last week, and it disappeared by the evening. PTA choose Sunday to avoid any legal backlash exploiting the courts day off.
Ingrid Luden on TechCrunch wrote ‘Sure, Draw Something. Just Not The Prophet‘:
Pictures of the Prophet Mohammad have always been a highly contentious issue — they’re not explicitly prohibited in the Qu’ran but many Sunni Muslims forbid the idea, while others do not seem to mind as much. Among the latter group are those who feel that banning such images is a restriction on freedom of expression.
Farieha Aziz comments on BoloBhi:
Speaking to Dunya TV, Minister for Information and Technology, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf said Facebook complied with the government’s request to remove blasphemous content, but Twitter refused. According to Yaseen, PTA simply passed on the orders to the ISPs and has no knowledge of how long the website is likely to remain blocked.
BytesforAll also talked about Raja Pervaiz Ashraf ordering the block on Twitter due to blasphemous content:
Late last night, the newly appointed Minister for Information Technology, Raja Parvez Ashraf spoke to the media showing his concerns about the blasphemous content on different websites and threatened that Twitter will be banned soon if the company did not comply with the government’s orders. Within half an hour of this statement, past midnight, an official directive was issued to all Internet Service Providers in the country and Twitter started disappearing from Pakistani Cyberspace starting 10 a.m. today.
Dawn.com quotes Chairman PTA Mohammed Yaseen saying that they tried to negotatiate with Twitter to remove the content:
We have been negotiating with them until last night, but they did not agree to remove the stuff, so we had to block it
By around 10pm, roughly nine hours after the ban started suddenly the block seemed to have been removed which resulted in tweets by Rehman Malik, Interior Minister claiming responsibility for the unblocking of Twitter:
@SenRehmanMalik: Dear All yes I spoke to PM and informed how people are feeling about it.PM ordered to reopen the twitter.I also spoke to Raja pervez abt it
Reporting the opening of the internet blockage ProPakistani narrates:
However, as per our sources, ban was lifted before time due to bad name the incident had earned for Pakistan, especially in foreign media.
While Fiza Batool Gilani the daughter of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani also laid claim for the Prime Minister to have restored the twitter connection.
@FizaBatoolGilan: The Prime Minister has ordered the IT Minister to restore Twitter service in Pakistan
@FizaBatoolGilan: @abidbeli- I was with him when he ordered & I'm tweeting while sitting in Pakistan . So that's confirmation enough :)
The netizens fear that with this incident the PTA successfully tested their url filtering service which may threaten freedom of speech in the future.

author: Teeth Maestro


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Science Blogging in Sub-Saharan Africa  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Blogging has become an integral part of popular culture in Sub-Saharan Africa but blogging about science is still lagging behind. Many initiatives have been launched to increase the culture of sharing in the African scientific world, yet African science blogs, particularly about research, are still few and far between.
Lack of public interest?
The reason for this dearth of science blogging may be related to the uneven development of scientific research on the continent; the need for more research is well-known. B. Ruelle explains on his blog [fr]:
Le niveau de développement atteint par l’Asie du Sud-Est devrait pousser les Africains à investir dans la science et la technologie ; la science et la technologie représentent la seule voie d’évitement de la perpétuation de la faiblesse de l’Afrique dans le commerce international ; c’est aussi, dans un monde inégalitaire où racisme et xénophobie perdurent, la condition de l’affirmation de la part des Africains dans l’un des phares de la connaissance humaine.
University of Cheik Anta Diop in Dakar Senegal by Myriam Louviot (CC-License-BY).
The continent is not short on talented scientists. Bernard Kom lists a few of the mosts prominent African scientists [fr] right now, and some of them are also active on the web.
Jacques Bonjawo is a Cameroonian engineer who chairs the Board of Directors of the African Virtual University (AVU). He explains the objectives of the institution [fr]:
L’UVA a été conçue comme un système d’éducation à distance à travers Internet dont la mission est précisément de former une masse critique d’africains à des coûts faibles, grâce à des économies d’échelle ; une formation moderne et de qualité au terme de laquelle l’étudiant devient immédiatement opérationnel sur le marché de l’emploi.
Mzamose Gondwe from Malawi recognizes the need to promote more African engagement with science. That is the objective of her blog, African Science Heroes. She explains what she aims to accomplish:
I documented in print, exhibition and film African Science Heroes, Afrrican scientists who have made considerable contributions to science. In this way I hope to generate a sense of pride in our African science accomplishments and promote public engagement with science.
African research pigeonholed?
When scientific news from Africa makes it to mainstream media platforms, it is usually related to environmental programmes, public health or research on exotic animals. A typical story that was shared many times on various online media was the recent research publication of the mating habits of the female gray mouse lemur in Madagascar. The title itself, “Costly sex under female control in a promiscuous primate”, was bound to draw quite a bit of interest from the non-scientific community.
As it turned out, the study draws interesting conclusion about strategy for the survival of the species as Sara Reardon from Science NOW explains:
Either a polygamous lifestyle confers some unknown evolutionary advantage for females, the team concludes, or girls really do just want to have fun.
African science and engineering has much to offer in other areas as well. The blog Afrigadget highlights innovative engineering projects aiming at solving specific problems. One of these projects is biogas installations in Kenya.
Paula Kahumbu explains how piki piki (motor bikes in Kiswhahili) can help distribute dung more efficiently:
The problem I face is common to many folks around here, we rent houses but we don’t have livestock. But there are huge cattle farms around us. So Dominic came up with a solution that creates jobs and moves poop quickly and efficiently. So we went to the local juakali welder on the roadside to create a dungmobile ..a trailer designed specially for cow dung!
The Africamaat project aims to document the full history of African science and its inventors. More precisely, it adds [fr]:
Notre démarche vise donc essentiellement à démontrer qu’il est profondément arbitraire d’exclure systématiquement l’Afrique noire de l’historiographie universelle lorsqu’il est question des sciences
In this video, YouTube user White African showcases an invention by Killian Deku, a Ghanaian engineer that came up with a device to dose the amount of chlorine to add to water:
Open access to publications
Madagascar is accustomed to have its lemur population draw more headlines that its people. However, it should not go unnoticed that the scientific blogging community there is starting to emerge. Several projects aim to collect and make available to the public all the scientific resources about the country.
Ange Rakotomalala describes the objectives of website Thèses Malgaches en ligne [mg]:
Ho hitanao eto ireo vokam-pikarohana tontosa teto amin'ny firenentsika nanomboka tamin'ny taona 2002.
The scientific community blog MyScienceWork aims to promote the culture of sharing among scientists [fr]:
Pour construire la culture scientifique de demain, la science doit devenir toujours plus multidisciplinaire. Elle doit s’adresser aux amateurs de science, au public, aux professionnels de la recherche [..] En 2011, nous avons publié les textes d’étudiants en informatique des pays d’Afrique du Nord, de chercheurs en communication d’université belge, de doctorants en neurosciences, en agronomie, d’exobiologistes de renom [..] Parce que nous croyons que la culture générale doit inclure les savoirs scientifiques, nous vous remercions chaleureusement. Faites passer le message : « partager c’est vivre ».
The final words on science in Africa belong to Cheikh Anta Diop, one of the most prominent scientists in Africa, as posted by Africamaat [fr]:
En attendant, les spécialistes africains doivent prendre des mesures conservatoires. Il s’agit d’être apte à découvrir une vérité scientifique par ses propres moyens en se passant de l’approbation d’autrui, de savoir conserver son autonomie intellectuelle

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Southeast Asia: ASEAN Committee on Consumer Protection Website · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations committee on consumer protection has launched a website to inform consumers in the region regarding banned or recalled products.


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Brazil: A Comic Book and its Soundtrack · Global Voices
Luis Henrique

Brazilian blogger Francielle Costa reviews [pt] Achados e Perdidos (Lost and Found), a comic book in which each chapter counts on an original soundtrack produced especially for the story. The project was crowdfunded. Chapter 1, and its soundtrack, is available here [pt].

author: Luis Henrique


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Brazil: Famous Singer Pays Homage to Her Iconic Mother · Global Voices
Yohana de Andrade

Thirty years after the death of Elis Regina, one of the most iconic performers within the Brazilian music scene, her daughter Maria Rita, a successful singer in her own right, took to the stage to sing her mother's songs for the first time in her career. Maria Rita already has a ten year long singing career behind her, selling more than one millon copies of her first album.
The ‘Viva Elis’ or ‘Long Live Elis’ tour of free concerts covered the Brazilian cities of Porto Alegre, Recife, Belo Horizonte, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, finishing, symbolically, on May 13, 2012, Mothers’ Day. The tour became a trending topic on Twitter [pt] both in Brazil and worldwide.
Elis Regina, known as ‘Pimentinha’ or ‘Little Pepper’ because of her fiery temper, had an intense, powerful stage presence which became her trademark. The singer first became known with the song ‘Arrastão’ which won the prestigious Brazilian Popular Music Festival [pt] in 1965.
Due to her prominence in the Brazilian music scene, following her death Elis left behind many fans who missed her voice. Comparisons between her and her daughter were inevitable when Maria Rita arrived on the scene with a similar sound. However, the daughter chose to make a career outside of her mother's influence, never performing songs that her mother had sung. Until now.
Maria Rita performing in São Paulo, May 5, 2012 by Instagram user @rocharonald, used with permission
Jéssica Rodrigues, from Portal Maria Rita blog, describes [pt] the fervent reaction of the audience in Belo Horizonte on April 8, 2012:
A platéia se divide ao longo do show em participar ativamente, cantando, vibrando e empolgando e em outros momentos, a serem meros espectadores, silenciando para contemplar as obras como sinal de devoção, tamanha a genialidade e emoção.
The shows enabled a meeting of generations through the audience of fans of Elis Regina and Maria Rita. In São Paulo, Maria Rita told the crowd [pt] that she could get to know her mother better through her music, since Rita was only four years old when Elis died. Fans of Maria Rita also got to know Elis’ work through her daughter's voice, as twitter user Carla Santos tweeted [pt] to Maria Rita:
Seu objetivo foi alcançado. Hoje na fila aqui em BH [Belo Horizonte], tinha fãs seus,que estão conhecendo melhor sua mãe. Graças a você. Parabéns!
Fefeu, from the Clube da MPB blog, describes [pt] how the same thing happened in São Paulo:
A diversidade do público presente tornou o ambiente ainda mais bonito e agradável. Fãs de Elis, pertencentes a antigas gerações, os quais tiveram importantes passagens de suas histórias marcadas por canções alegres ou tristes interpretadas por ela, sentiram-se ainda mais emocionados quando Maria Rita entrou em cena explicitando expressões corporais, trejeitos, coreografia e timbre muito próximos aos de sua mãe. Foi como voltar no tempo.
Photos taken by fans flooded the social networks following the concerts. Twitter user Dudinha Sales [pt] shared an image of the crowd at the concert in Recife:
Crowd at Maria Rita Concert, Recife, April 1, 2012, by Twitter user @mdudasales, used with permission
Carol Mendonça captured [pt] the energy of the concert in São Paulo:
Maria Rita sings Elis in São Paulo, May 5, 2012. Photo by Flickr user Carol Mendonça, used with permission
As well as sending texts and taking photos, fans of Maria Rita and Elis Regina also recorded videos of the tour. A search with the words ‘Maria Rita Elis Regina’ returned dozens of recordings. YouTube user ‘smaila’ posted a video of Maria Rita speaking of her relationship with the songs of Elis Regina.
This post was sub-edited by Jane Ellis.

author: Yohana de Andrade


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Bulgaria: Calling for National Protest Against Shale Gas Extraction · Global Voices
Ruslan Trad

Activists in Bulgaria have called for national protests against shale gas extraction on May 22. There is a Facebook event [bg] “National protest against shale gas and changes in Forest Law!”. Tensions are growing after The Greens’ activist posted a video [bg] showing a secret meeting between the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) representatives and Chevron officials.

author: Ruslan Trad


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Bulgaria: Discussing the “European Idea” · Global Voices
Ruslan Trad

Young Bulgarians and guests from Italy, with support of the New Bulgarian University and project “Beautiful Europe” [bg] will meet on May 23 to discuss the “European idea” and what Europe means to Bulgarians at an event called “Blue Night” – an evening dedicated to the European idea [bg]. The event comes just one day before one of the brightest Bulgarian holidays – the Day of Slavic writing and culture.


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Colombia: Tweeting Marathon to Demand Senator’s Resignation · Global Voices
Cati Restrepo

Twitter users have organized [es] a tweeting marathon to demand the resignation of Senator Eduardo Merlano after the politician refused [es] to undergo a sobriety test. The goal is to reach 50,000 tweets (the amount of votes that got him elected senator) and through these tweets argue that he needs to resign. Netizens also created the account Renuncie Senador (@renunciesenador) [es] (“Resign, Senator”) and the hashtag #FueraMerlano [es] (“Out Merlano”).

author: Cati Restrepo


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Cuba: Fifth Cuban Congress against Homophobia · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

Blogger, journalist and LGBT activist Francisco Rodríguez Cruz (Paquito el de Cuba) discusses Mariela Castro Espín's [es] message on occasion of the 5th Cuban Congress against Homophobia recently celebrated on the Island. Castro Espín is the daughter of President Raúl Castro and head of the state-run agency on sex education.

author: Firuzeh Shokooh Valle


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Dominican Republic: Juan Bosch and the Elections · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

Journalist Nelson del Castillo analyzes the political significance of Juan Bosch [es] -the Dominican politician, writer, essayist, historian and educator- on occasion of the national presidential elections held yesterday, May 20, 2012.


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French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique: Ministers Appointed for Skills or as Tokens? · Global Voices
Fabienne Flessel

Before his election as the 24th President of the French Republic, left-wing candidate Francois Hollande, had promised a new government with two specificities: an equal number of women and men and ministers – and from all ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
With a great majority of voters for candidate Hollande in the presidential elections hailing from the overseas regions, French-Caribbean bloggers were impatient to see which French Guyanese, Martinican or Guadeloupean politicians would be assigned a key government ministry.
Prior to the official announcement on May 16th 2012, a Guadeloupean blogger at Indiscrétions [fr] thought it was unlikely that Christiane Taubira would get any major position:
Christiane Taubiraby, image taken from her own blog. Photo by Jean Francois Robert. Visit Taubira's blog @http://chtaubira.tumblr.com/
La guyanaise Christiane Taubira, qu'on a entendu et réentendu en boucle sur les médias oraux nationaux le 10 mai, pourrait être ministre. Un ministère symbolique, tout comme sa présence d'ailleurs. Car, malheureusement, on ne donne que des fonctions symboliques aux ressortissants d'outre-mer quand on les prend au gouvernement. A quand un vrai ministère, comme le Budget ou l'Agriculture ?
This time around things are different and as Martinican Bel Balawou announces [fr]:
Christiane Taubira originaire de la Guyane, a été nommée ministre de la justice et garde des sceaux dans le gouvernement de Jean-Marc Ayrault.
Guyanese blogger at Blada reposts [fr] some of the official messages sent to congratulate the newly-appointed, but expresses, nevertheless, some mixed feelings:
Deux raisons de faire sauter les bouchons de champagne sous les palmiers… ou d'avaler cul sec un bol de vinaigre lorsqu'on a une haute idée de ce que peut être la justice.
Official government publicity photo of George Pau Langevin taken from her profile on the website of the French National Assembly (http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/)
Bel Balawou also congratulates [fr] George Pau Langevin, a Guadeloupean-born political woman who was chosen to become the Junior Minister in charge of Education Achievement.
Among these well-acclaimed assignments, reactions to the appointment of Victorin Lurel to the Ministry of the Overseas Departments is discordant. Guadeloupean blogger at Carib Creole News publishes a post entitled “Victorin Lurel, Last Minister of the Last Colonies [fr] in which he denounces the inconsistencies of the new Minister:
Lurel ministre, qui s’en étonne ? Personne. Lurel ministre des « outremers» (à CCN nous disons des Dernières Colonies : MDC) c’est la big surprise. Notre ex président de Région avait toujours clamé urbi et orbi, qu’il ne souhaitait surtout pas, ce ministère qu’il considérait comme « dévalué ».
Sa « préférence » allait vers l’agriculture ou les collectivités territoriales. Mais il semble bien que Lurel n’ait guère eu la possibilité de choisir.
In this same post, CCN reminds his readers that since the 2009 social crisis in Guadeloupe, Lurel who was then member of the left-wing parliamentary opposition to Sarkozy's government, never stopped tackling the numerous causes of the discontent (prices, employment, status of Creole language, education and vocational training and governance) and condemning the policies enforced by the government then. He wonders how the new minister is going to solve the problems he once pointed at.
Victorin Lurel; photo taken from his Twitter profile @VictorinLurel
Regarding Lurel's appointment, Bel Balawou publishes no personal comment but reposts a letter [fr] from Patrick Karam, a Guadeloupean-born former junior minister in Sarkozy's government, who unexpectedly expresses his complete support to his former rival, Victorin Lurel.
Le plus compétent et populaire des ultramarins, qui fut de tous les combats en faveur des outre-mer, l’homme qui a tenu bon face au LKP pendant la crise de 2009 et dont le comportement irréprochable et courageux avait été salué par le Président de la République Nicolas Sarkozy […]
These inconstencies are also pointed at by Martinican blogger at Montray Kréyol, who publishes a letter from Victorin Lurel, in a post entitled “The Contortions of Toto” (Toto being Lurel's nickname in his native Guadeloupe) [fr]. In this letter, Lurel, before being appointed, legitimizes President Hollande's choice to honor French stateman Jules Ferry on his inauguration day. The choice was judged awkward and Lurel's support even moreso, since Ferry was the well-known advocate of the French colonial expansion.
Martinican blogger at Bondamanjak humorously wonders [fr] why no Martinican-born politican was appointed in this new government.
Le hic dans cette histoire c'est que la Martinique, terre d'Aimé Césaire… creuset de la démocratie participative est étrangement absence de cette réunion de compétences.
Visit French mainstream online magazine, Le Nouvel Obs [fr], to see the new faces of the French executive.

author: Fabienne Flessel


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Germany: #Blockupy Protests Against Pan-European Austerity · Global Voices
Sara Moreira

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis
‘Blockupy‘ protests against “the widespread impoverishment and denial of democratic rights occurring in the Eurozone as part of a global systemic crisis” shook the financial epicenter of Europe – Frankfurt – last week.
Following the global action days on 12 and 15 May, 2012, (12M and 15M), activists from across Europe were called to converge in Frankfurt in an international solidarity demonstration. The ultimate goal was to blockade the European Central Bank (ECB) and other crucial global capitalism institutions. On May 4, however, the Frankfurt Municipal Department for Public Order announced that all actions planned were deemed illegal, except for a rally on Saturday, May 19.
Occupy Frankfurt in front of ECB. Photo shared by Roarmag.org (copyleft).
Still, thousands of activists decided to take a stand against the ban and claim the constitutional right “of unarmed assembly, without either prior registration or permission”.
While international mainstream media didn't give much attention to the events, online social networks buzzed with citizen reports on the mobilizations that occurred under massive police presence and repression.
On Twitter many videos and photos were shared under the hashtag #Blockupy. Netizens and collectives from different countries, such as Occupy Brussels and Belgium, livestreamed the protests, marches and assemblies, as well as the cultural program and diverse debates on labor, ecology, economy among others.
“Demonstrate for the right to demonstrate”
Blockupy started on the same day that newly elected French President Hollande met Chancellor Merkel [fr] in Berlin, May 16. Meanwhile in Frankfurt, the police complied with the order of eviction of the seven month long Occupy Frankfurt settlement around the Euro sign near the ECB headquarters. The blog Critical Legal Thinking, which had a comprehensive coverage of the four days of protest, described the city as “effectively in [undeclared] State of Exception“.
Police intercept three Berlin buses on the way to #Frankfurt. Photo by @Blockupy on Twitter.
On May 17, a bank holiday, as mainstream media directed the spotlight to the German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble – who was awarded the Charlemagne Prize for his major role in the definition of the austerity policies mostly imposed on the periphery European countries – buses filled with activists from different cities heading to the anti-austerity demonstration in the center of Frankfurt, were stopped from entering the city and escorted back by the police.
Despite the attempts of intimidation, around 2,000 activists managed, at least for a few hours, to occupy the historic Roemerberg square where the city hall is based, and which represents the birth of democracy in Germany.
Blockupy protesters take action against banking and finance system. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Stoesser, copyright Demotix (May 17, 2012).
The square was soon surrounded by the riot police:
Protesters sit down and lock arms in opposition to police presence. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Soesser, copyright Demotix (May 17, 2012).
At the end of the day riot police evicted the square with violence, as different photo reporters [de] illustrated:
A protester is detained by police. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Stoesser, copyright Demotix (May 17, 2012).
The detention of at least 400 protesters of different nationalities triggered solidarity protests in different cities across Europe:
Embassy of Germany in Rome – Protest against repression and arrests in Frankfurt during the protests against the crisis. Signs against the Rome-Berlin axis, the ECB and Merkel. Photo by Simona Granati, copyright Demotix (May 18, 2012).
A video report by Finnish user of YouTube sydansalama1, with interviews subtitled in English, sums up the events of the day:
The staff of banks were told by their employees to take the day off or work from home to avoid having to come into the city on Friday, May 18 – the day when the blockade to the financial district was expected to take place. However, as Jerome Ross from Roar Magazine wrote the night before, “Frankfurt [is] on lock-down as over 5,000 police [are] deployed in an unprecedented operation to keep protesters out of the city and away from the banks”:
as the activists here prepare to physically block the headquarters of the European Central Bank, the police already seems to have done the job for them.
"I block! You too?" Photo by ateneinrivolta on Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0).
That day, international mainstream media reported on Goldman Sachs being hired by the Spanish government to evaluate banking conglomerate Bankia, taken over by the state earlier in May, and also about rumors of a referendum in Greece to ballot the membership in the Eurozone. In Frankfurt, while banners read messages of support to the European southern countries (such as “We are all Greeks“), the city remained “affected by massive police presence, identity checks and road blocks“.
When the legal day for protesting finally arrived, May 19, around 20,000 protesters (according to the police, or more than 25,000 according to the organization) rallied the city center.
Blockupy Demonstration in Frankfurt. A large banner held up by protesters reads: 'International resistance against the Austerity Imposed by the Troika and Governments.'. Photo by Michele Lapini copyright Demotix (May 19, 2012).
Blockupy Frankfurt: More than 20,000 against financial crisis politics. International participants in the demonstration. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Stoesser copyright Demotix (May 19, 2012).
Blockupy demo (May 19, 2012). Photo by strassenstriche.net on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0).
John Halloway, writing for the Guardian, described Blockupy as “a glimmer of hope in times of austerity“, and argued that it would bring momentum to “explosions of creative anger that will follow”. International policy analyst Vinay Gupta, finalizes:
Those people in the streets rioting, the protesting classes, are fighting not for internal political change within their own countries, but (whether they know it or not) for a re-arrangement of the political balance of an entire continent.
This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.

author: Sara Moreira


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Germany: “Rundshow” A New Social TV Format  · Global Voices
Mario Sorgalla

The Bavarian broadcasting company, Bayerischer Rundfunk, in Germany recently launched a social TV experiment called “Rundshow” [de] (Roundshow). Viewers are actively incorporated into the show through virtual means such as Google Hangout, videos, an app called “Die Macht” (The Power), and Twitter. The concept of blurring the lines between TV and the Internet can already be seen with Al Jazeera's show The Stream. But Rundshow is the first format of its kind to be attempted in Germany.

author: Mario Sorgalla


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Guadeloupe: “Political Manipulation” · Global Voices
Fabienne Flessel

In a post entitled “On Kalkil Politik” [Cr], Guadeloupean blogger Gwakafwika explains his complete distrust in the recent appointment of 1 Guianese and 2 Guadeloupean-born Ministers in the new socialist French government. He calls it a political manipulation.


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Haiti: Haitian Flag Day · Global Voices
Fabienne Flessel

Haitians all over the world recently celebrated the 209th Haitian Flag Day along with the country's educational system. Martinican blogger at Bel Balawou publishes a stream of pictures [Fr], taken during the event in Haiti, while Haitian Alterpresse explains and comments [Fr] on the main speeches of the day.


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Israel: Increase in Racism Against African Asylum Seekers · Global Voices
Elizabeth Tsurkov

In the past few weeks two cases of rape of Jewish women by Eritrean and Sudanese asylum seekers have been reported in the Israeli media, prompting a new wave of racism against asylum seekers in Israel.
Israel is currently home to about 45,000 asylum seekers; over 80% of them are from Eritrea and Sudan, who are barred from gaining refugee status in Israel. Instead, the refugees receive a conditional temporary release, until their deportation is possible. Currently, since such deportation would endanger the lives of the asylum seekers, it is illegal according to both international law and Israeli law.
The Israeli government insists that the asylum seekers are in fact illegal economic migrants and refuses to grant them any rights. Top Israeli officials, including the Minister of Interior Eli Yishai and Prime Minister Netanyahu have consistently claimed that the refugees pose a demographic threat as well as a threat to Israel's national security.
Following the two incidents of rape, Yishai said in an interview that “most African infiltrators are are involved in crime” and stated that the solution would be to lock up all refugees and deport them. However, police statistics show that the general crime rate in Israel is more than double that of Africans in Israel.
Racist graffiti in Hativa neighborhood, southern Tel Aviv. The graffiti reads "Sudanese go home" and "Price tag". Photo courtesy of Alon Sherf.
Blogger Shooky Galili has written [he] about the government's policy of sending the refugees to the poorest neighborhoods of Tel Aviv the moment they get out of detention (which they enter after crossing the border with Egypt):
Sigal Rozen, a prominent refugee rights activist from the Hotline for Migrant Workers (whose employees last week received death threats for assisting refugees), described the consequences of this incitement:
For the residents of southern Tel Aviv, where most of the refugees are concentrated, official crime rates undoubtedly do not matter. Their subjective feelings of fear are understandable. The irresponsible statements of senior police chiefs, together with the media coverage of actual incidents and the speeches of ministers and MKs, lead the residents to believe that almost all Africans walking the streets are criminals. This belief, and the fact that the streets of their neighborhoods are indeed filled with African newcomers, leads residents of the neighborhoods to the painful conclusion that the authorities are abandoning them. But this discourse has dangerous implications. In the last month, the number of hate crimes carried out by Israelis against Africans has risen tremendously. Multiple Molotov cocktails were thrown into houses of Africans in southern Tel Aviv on two separate occasions, a week apart.
Professor Moshe Negbi wrote on the 7th Eye blog about the role of the Israeli media [he]:
חיוני להזכיר למנסחי הכותרות ולכתבי הפלילים כי סעיף 14 לתקנון האתיקה של מועצת העיתונות – שכותרתו “אפליה וגזענות” – אוסר לאזכר את שיוכו של עבריין או חשוד למגזר כלשהו, אלא אם יש לשיוך האמור קשר מובהק וברור לעבריינותו. […] ברור שהכותרות “אריתריאים חשודים בתקיפה בדרום תל-אביב” ו”אפריקאי חשוד בשוד” אף הן עבירות קשות על הסעיף האמור, משום שבאזכור מוצאו האתני של העבריין יש כדי להטביע אות קין במצחם של כל בני עמו או גזעו.
כאשר הדבר נעשה בהקשר לתקיפות מיניות, העבירה חמורה ומסוכנת שבעתיים, משום שהפחד מ”הזר האפל”, המאיים כביכול על תומתן של בנותינו, הוא חומר הבעירה הגזעני הקטלני ביותר. מקומם שעורכים וכתבים מזינים בניסוחיהם את חומר הבעירה הזה. לא למותר לציין כי 85% מהתקיפות המיניות לא רק שאינן מבוצעות על-ידי “זר אפל”, אלא אחראים להן מכרים, קרובים או מעסיקים של הנאנסות.
It is crucial to remind editors in charge of phrasing headlines and crime reporters that Article 14 of the Ethics Regulations of the Israeli Press Council – entitled “Discrimination and Racism” – forbids mentioning the association of a criminal or a suspect with any sector of society, unless the affiliation to this group has a direct and clear connection to his crime. […] It is clear that the headlines “Eritreans suspected of an assault in southern Tel Aviv” and “African suspected of robbery” are grave violations of the aforementioned article, because the mentioning of the criminal's ethnicity implicates the criminal's entire people or race.
When it comes to sexual assaults, the violation [of the Ethics Regulations] is much more severe, since the fear of the “dark stranger”, who supposedly threatens the innocence of our daughters, is the most deadly racist combustive material. It is outrageous that editors and reporters feed the fire of this combustive material with their reports. Needless to say, 85% of sexual assaults [in Israel] not only do not involve a “dark stranger”, but happen at the hands of acquaintances, relatives or employers of the rape victims.
Injury of Eritrean man attacked by two Israelis holding broken bottles and a knife. Photo by Sigal Rozen on Facebook.
Yossi Gurvitz, leading Israeli leftist blogger, commented:
When the Israeli media reports a rape by “foreigners,” it engages in dog-whistling. It informs its readership that something much worse than rape took place: the defilement of the blood and honor of the Jewish people, the defiling of the honor of a daughter of Israel.
On his blog Room 404, Ido Kenan reported on the racist comments [he] posted by some Israelis in response to police requests for help in locating a five-year-old Eritrean girl who went missing (and was later found) in southern Tel Aviv:
Quick to joke about anything, Israelis on Twitter also commented on the growing wave of racism toward Africans:
Ayelet quipped:
Erez Raviv joked:

author: Elizabeth Tsurkov


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Mali: Interim President Injured as Protesters Enter Presidential Palace · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Malijet reports that Interim President Dioncounda Traoré was hurt [fr] during protests [fr] that asked for his removal and caused three casualties.


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Mayotte: Capsizing Boat Kills at Least 5 Economic Refugees    · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Malango Actualité provides the social context [fr] related to the sinking of a boat  that killed at least 5, including 3 children and an infant. The fishing boat was carrying 43 people from Comoros to the French territory of Mayotte. It is the third disaster  of such kind in 2012 for Comoran economic refugees.


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Palestine: Agreement Made to End Prisoners’ Hunger Strike · Global Voices
Jummana Kahlout

On May 14 over 2000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails ended their hunger strike after periods varying from 28 to 77 days. This decision to end their strike came after an agreement was reached between the Israel Prison Service (IPS) and the Palestinian committee in charge of prisoner affairs to ensure the basic rights of prisoners would be met.
The agreement came a day before the 64th Nakba Day on May 15, an annual day of commemoration of the ethnic cleansing of hundreds of Palestinian villages and cities following the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948.
The agreement consisted of five main provisions:
The prisoners would end their hunger strike following the signing of the agreement; there will be an end to the use of long-term isolation of prisoners for “security” reasons, and the 19 prisoners [currently in isolation] will be moved out of isolation within 72 hours; family visits for first degree relatives to prisoners from the Gaza Strip and for families from the West Bank who have been denied visits based on vague “security reasons” will be reinstated within one month; the Israeli intelligence agency guarantees that there will be a committee formed to facilitate meetings between the IPS and prisoners in order to improve their daily conditions; there will be no new administrative detention orders or renewals of administrative detention orders for the 308 Palestinians currently in administrative detention, unless the secret files, upon which administrative detention is based, contain “very serious” information.
Awareness about the hunger strike reached a peak in the days before the agreement was announced. On Facebook there was a huge public display of support as thousands of users changed their profile picture in solidarity with the 2500 Palestinian prisoners. The pictures showed blindfolded Palestinians in prison uniform.
Solidarity on Facebook. Image posted by @tounsiwaftakhir.
Additionally, almost instantaneous updates on the strike were provided on Twitter under the hashtag #PalHunger. Palestinian blogger and activist Linah Al Saafin confirmed that Thaer Halahleh, a prisoner on hunger strike for 77 days, ended his strike following the agreement:
@LinahAlsaafin: BREAKING: #ThaerHalahleh's father just called me; told me Thaer has agreed to end his hunger strike on the morning of 15/5 Tears #PalHunger
Nevertheless, only two days after the agreement there was a general call to continue supporting the hunger strike, because administrative detention had not ended. The director of Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, Sahar Francis, explained in an interview conducted by Electronic Intifada:
The success in this hunger strike doesn’t mean that the problem of the Palestinian political prisoners has reached an end, and they would be now living in perfect conditions, no. As well, the changes with administrative detention — until we get to monitor it on the practical level, we have to wait and see how it would work.
It is now apparent that a number of prisoners have resumed their hunger strike protesting Israel’s continued mistreatment of Palestinian prisoners, such as holding them in isolation.
Learning from the Palestinian hunger strikers: dignity first. Cartoon by Carlos Latuff.
Addameer provides constant updates on Twitter about prisoners. On May 17 it tweeted:
@Addameer_ps: Ahmad Sa'adat was taken out of isolation today after over 3 years and moved to Shatta prison
@Addameer_ps: As far as we know, there are at least 4 hunger strikers now: #MohammadTaj, #MahmoudSarsak, #AkramRikhawi & #MohammadAbdelAziz
@Addameer_ps: Because he's still on hunger strike, #MahmoudSarsak is not even guaranteed release date of 22 Aug (next date of judicial review)
An agreement may have been reached, but the Palestinian prisoners will not rest until their demands are met. They are ready to strike again if the agreement's terms are not implemented.

author: Jummana Kahlout


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Peru: Controversy Over Banning of Popular Priest · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón

On Friday May 11, 2012, local online edition of newspapers [es] broke the news that the Cardinal Priest and Archbishop of Lima, Juan Luis Cipriani, had decided not to renew the ministerial license for Father Gaston Garatea [es], a well-known Peruvian priest from the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Father Gaston communicated he will abide by that decision.
According to some analysts, the cause of the decision was Father Gaston's stance on homosexuality and civil unions. Cardinal Cipriani is well-known for his conservative position on matters such as birth control, homosexuality, civil unions, etc.
Father Gaston has embraced various fair causes, most related to poor and extremely poor people.
He has served as Chairman of the Consensus-Building Board on the Fight Against Poverty, and as such, he also participated in the National Agreement. He also acted as commissioner for the Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The Archdiocese of Lima issued a statement [es] regarding Father Gaston's situation:
[…] para realizar trabajo pastoral en una determinada jurisdicción, requieren que el Obispo, Ordinario del lugar, les otorgue las respectivas Licencias Ministeriales (cfr. canon 265).
2. En ese sentido, el Obispo Ordinario del lugar, por motivos suficientes y anteriormente advertidos al Superior Mayor de la respectiva comunidad religiosa, puede disponer que un sacerdote religioso no trabaje pastoralmente en su jurisdicción eclesiástica. Ello, que es lo que ha ocurrido con el Padre Jorge Gastón Garatea Yori, SS. CC., no suspende o prohíbe al sacerdote religioso el ejercicio de su ministerio sacerdotal en otros lugares.
[… ] in order to accomplish pastoral labor on a specific jurisdiction, [priests] require that the Bishop, the Ordinary from the jurisdiction, grant them the respective Ministerial Licences (cfr. canon 265).
2. As such, the Ordinary Bishop of the jurisdiction, due to sufficient motives already warned to the Superior of the respective religious community, may provide that a religious priest won't work pastorally on his ecclesiastic jurisdiction. As it has happened with Father Jorge Gaston Garatea Yori, SS. CC., this doesn't suspend nor forbid the religious priest from exercising his ministry elsewhere.
The website ACI Prensa [es] cites an unnamed source and explains that the process against Father Gaston was made according the due process. This source explained:
Existe en todas las diócesis un tribunal sinodal, que examina a todos los que piden las licencias ministeriales, y todos los sacerdotes -diocesanos y religiosos-, están sometidos al examen sinodal previo a las licencias ministeriales”.
Por ello dijo que “cuando el Obispo toma una decisión, en este caso de no renovar las licencias ministeriales, previamente ha tenido que pedir informe a este tribunal sinodal y también a su senado, que es el colegio de consultores. No es una decisión personal, previamente ha tenido que cumplir todo un procedimiento“.
In every diocese, there is a synod tribunal that examines all people who ask ministerial licences, and every priest -diocesan and religious-, are subject of that synodal examination prior to ministerial licences”.
That's why [this source] said that “when the Bishop makes a decision, in this case, not to renew ministerial licences, ha has to request a report to this synod tribunal and to its Senate as well, which is the consulting board. It's not a personal decision, previously there has been a whole process to be observed“.
The site later adds:
Indicó además que el P. Garatea ha tenido “un sinfín de pronunciamientos contrarios (a la doctrina católica) explícitamente aunque hoy quieran maquillarlo”.
“No sólo es lo último del ‘matrimonio gay’, que lo dijo y ahora pretende decir que se refería al contrato civil. En su momento dijo ‘matrimonio gay’, y si dice ahora que se refería al contrato civil, en la práctica es lo mismo. Lo único es que está maquillando una doctrina que va en contra de la Iglesia“, afirmó.
[…]
Sin embargo, indicó que las autoridades eclesiásticas no revelarán los motivos por los que no se renovaron las licencias porque el derecho canónico pide que se guarde “absoluta reserva por la dignidad, honor y fama de esa persona.
[The source] also remarked that Father Garatea has made “countless statements against (the Catholic doctrine), although today there is an intention to sugar coat it”.
“It's not just about the latest statement on ‘gay marriage’ [es], which he said and now pretends to say he meant the civil contract. Back then he said ‘gay marriage ’, and if he says now he was refering to the civil contract, technically it's the same thing. The only thing he is doing is disguising a doctrine that is contrary to the Church [es]”, he declared.
[…]
Nonetheless, he noted that ecclesiastical authorities won't reveal the motives for not renewing the licenses, as Cannoic Law demands “absolute reservation on behalf of the dignity, honor and fame of that person.
The blog Pastores y líderes publishes [es] the explanation of Father Jose Chuquillanqui, episcopal vicary of the Archbishopric of Lima:
[…] no renovación de licencias ministeriales al padre Gastón Garatea no ha sido una decisión tomada de un día para otro, sino tras un proceso de diálogo y advertencias.
Por ello, dijo que a Garatea “se le ha llamado la atención desde hace seis años” por sus opiniones polémicas, y que el cardenal Juan Luis Cipriani ha sostenido constantes conversaciones y diálogos con el supuesto afectado.
“No podemos juzgar abruptamente y decir que ha sido una decisión intolerante e impronta. Se le pidió que tenga cuidado en sus expresiones”, dijo Chuquillanqui en RPP.
[…] asserted that the decision of not renewing Father Gaston Garatea's ministerial licenses hasn't been a decision made overnight, but after a process of dialogue and warnings.
So, Garatea was “warned for six years” because of his controversial opinions, and that Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani has talked constantly with the alleged affected [priest].
“We can't judge abruptly and consider this has been an intolerant and sudden decision. He was asked to be careful with what he said”, declared Chuquillanqui on [local radio station] RPP.
Meanwhile, Twitter is abuzz with comments using the hashtag #GastonGaratea [es]:
Eduardo (@edurpeque) [es] expresses surprise:
Q #Cipriani no le haya renovado el permiso a #GastonGaratea me parece hasta benigno,no creen? Raro es q no lo haya recriminado o excomulgado.
@eromanp [es] is ironic:
El padre Gastón #Garatea ha recibido la mejor carta de recomendación que pueda existir: #Cipriani le ha prohibido ejercer su labor pastoral.
Victor Mantilla (@yourjournalist) [es] recommends:
Cierto, no olviden el #FF para #GastónGaratea y el #ReportSpam para Juan Luis.
Elí Castelo R. (@primerafuente) [es] wonders, a little annoyed:
Buenos dias, siguen con lo del Padre #GastonGaratea. Que lo resuelvan los catolicos y no los convenidos. Parece lo mismo, pero no es asi.
Santiago Correa Jara (@SantiagoCorreaJ) [es] adds some international context:
Que feo día en #Perú. Expectoran al Padre #GastónGaratea y fallece #DonnaSummer. A veces la vida, por mas que protestemos NO TIENE SENTIDO!!

author: Gabriela García Calderón


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Puerto Rico: Filiberto Ojeda Documentary · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

The team behind the documentary on the life and death at the hand of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of Puerto Rican freedom fighter Filiberto Ojeda Ríos [es] have sued the public agency Film Corporation of Puerto Rico for withdrawing funding for the film.


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Puerto Rico: Old San Juan, for Rent and for Sale · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

Eloísa Gordon analyzes the decadence and transformation of Old San Juan [es] -the colonial city in the capital, San Juan- within the logics of globalization.


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South Korea: Police Question Influential Podcasters for Campaign Violations · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

One of South Korea's most influential podcasters was summoned for questioning last week over alleged illegal campaign activities, igniting heated debates and discussions online. Kim Eo-joon, head of an activist Internet newspaper and one of four hosts of the nation's most popular podcast ‘I am a petty-minded creep’, which lampoons the country's president and governing ruling party, was charged with violating election laws by holding eight rallies in a public place.
Another host of the podcast show, investigative reporter Joo Jin-woo, was also summoned for questioning [ko] on May 18, 2012. While there are some net users expressing that the investigation is justified, a majority of Twitter users have defended Kim and accused police of unfairly summoning him while condoning other major political heavyweights responsible for similar remarks and campaign activities.
Image of the four hosts of the show, From left – Kim Eo-jun, Chung Bong-ju, Kim Yong-min and Ju Jin-woo, Naggomsu team from Naggomsu Daum Cafe holds the copyrights, Used under permission.
Kim Sang-ho (@sinbi2010) tweeted [ko]:
김어준 “선거법 위반 혐의로 소환하는 것은 권력과 자본의 집단 광기에 불과하다. [수 없이 많은 이명박의 비리와 선관위 비리 부정 선거 등은 미혼적 수사하면서 선거 독려 했다는 이유로 수사하는 것은 미친짓이며 누구에게도 이롭지 않는 처사다.
Twitter user @shanti reminded people of the similar treatment [ko] of Chung Bong-ju, one of the four co-hosts of the show, who was sentenced to a jail term over defamation charges for raising allegations that the president was involved in stock fraud.
The verdict was accused by many as politically motivated, but Park Geun-hye, the governing party’s strongest presidential candidate who made similar remarks on the fraud cases, has gone unscathed:
박근혜 BBK 발언 결국 무혐의 처분되었다. 봉주는 감옥에가고 그네는 무죄다.김어준 삼두노출은 선거법위반 조사 받고 그네 쌍두노출은 우연의 산물이라 무죄다.대한민국 만인 앞에 법이 평등한 법치국가 맞는가?
Twitter user @badasok, referencing Kim's answers to the questions [ko] on whether he thinks himself as guilty, argued [ko]:
김어준 총수 ‘선거에는 최대한 많은 사람이 참여해야 한다고 본다'며 ‘제가 한 일은 그런 정신에 부합한다’ =>민주주의한다면서 선거하라고 했다고 잡아가는 정권은 세상천지에 없죠.정치검찰과 낙하산 선관위원들.. 이게 민주주의입니까?
Another Twitter user (@__hope_) criticized [ko] the police for probing the hosts of the show who have unearthed numerous political scandals of the ruling party and the president, and even made an investigative report on the election fraud. It is also ironic that it was none other than the election commission who requested the investigation.
[…]10.26 로그기록,박근혜 선루프 차 조사 등. 경찰이 해야 할 일들을 한 나꼼수에게 부끄럽지 않은가. 김어준 앞에서 고개 들 수 있는가. 우리는 경찰 앞에 선 김어준이 자랑스럽다.
However, there were some divided responses online. Some net users from Daum Agora [ko], the nation's biggest public forum, criticized the hosts of the show for “creating public commotions”. Net user ID:Doctor K  wrote [ko]:
아무리 나꼼수가 처음엔 스스로 마이너적인 해적방송을 지향했다고 해도 지금 나꼼수는 그들이 비판하던 권력 그 자체가 되었고 스스로 그 권력을 즐기고 있다고 해도 과언이 아니다. 이번 선거에서 김용민 파문에서도 볼 수 있듯 나꼼수가 적극적으로 ‘김용민 구하기'에 나서면서 국민의 뜻은 안중에도 없지 않았던가. 그들을 따르는 지지자들의 환호에만 귀기울일 뿐.
Net user ID:진보는없다 adviced [ko] the show to lose its aggressiveness:
잘 새겨들어서 우리의 생각만 옳고 우리만 정의로우니 우리는 이 길을 가야한다는 생각 버리길 바란다. 같은 길을 간다고 해도 지혜롭게 덕스럽게 가는 길을 택해보기 바란다.
As the multiple probes made national headlines throughout this week, some criticism fell on conservative mainstream media. Lee Myung-hyun (@thezoker) tweeted [ko]:
조중동에게 김어준이 정말로 선거법을 위반했느냐 아니냐는 별로 중요하지 않죠. 그냥 경찰에 출두했다는 사실과 출두하는 그 그림만이 중요할 겁니다. […] 죄의 유무를 떠나 국민들에게 마치 죄가 있는 것 같은 인상을 주면 되는 거죠.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Thailand: Red Shirts Back in the Streets · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

On May 19, 2012, tens of thousands of Red Shirt protesters commemorated the second anniversary of the army and police crackdown on anti-government protesters in central Bangkok, Thailand. The May 2010 street violence resulted in the deaths of more than 90 people. Many Red Shirt members are supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra who was ousted by a coup in 2006.
The violent dispersal of the Red Shirt protest contributed to the unpopularity of the government in 2010 which was at that time headed by Abhisit Vejjajiva. Abhisit’s party lost in the elections last year. Thailand’s incumbent Prime Minister is the younger sister of Thaksin.
Photos of the event last Saturday are available on Facebook and Flickr. Here are some photos:
Thousands attended Red Shirt rally in Bangkok. Photo from @RichardBarrow
Red Shirts rally. Photo from Facebook page of Richard Barrow
Red Shirts demand justice. Photo from Facebook page of Richard Barrow
Red Shirts program in the evening. Photo from @aleursic
A video clip of Robert Amsterdam’s speech during the rally. Amsterdam is the lawyer of Thaksin. Some netizens are critical to the activities of the Red Shirts:
@Rom Senakant: sad group of people… They thought they are fighting for just cause but actually they are the being used by a crony ex PM Thaksin or Thug-Sin
@ric_lawes: Reds calling for Justice http://bit.ly/Jv8Ien – simple fact – reds lay siege to the city and 91 people died. No reds no deaths.
@Agam_T: Today, I'm celebrating 2nd anniversary of the END of #RedShirts arson and violence. May19th was the day we got our city back.
Thaksin’s appeal for unity is interpreted by some people as betrayal to the cause of the Red Shirts who are still demanding justice for those who were killed in 2010:
@freakingcat: Are the Red shirts in Ratchprasong so brainwashed and cheered to Thaksin's betrayal speech. 93 died for the greed of the billionaire
@steviegell: Both Thaksin & his sister turned their backs on the red movement. Robert Amsterdam is trying to hide that fact from the reds. Bad form.
Tammy attended the rally and commented about the lack of change in Thailand’s politics:
I just got back from the 2 year anniversary of the crack-down on the Red Shirts protest at Rajprasong, that 2 years ago caused bout 100 civilian death
The new constitution is poised to disappoint those who are looking for democracy, the lese majeste law, the root cause, of many injustices in Thailand, will likely be the same. The death and imprisonment of political prisoners, looks like it will be un-accounted for and not re-solved.
Meanwhile, a government investigation body concluded that state forces are responsible for the deaths of 25 people in the 2010 crackdown.


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Turkey: Poetic Commemoration of Uludere Airstrike Victims · Global Voices
Stratos Moraitis

On December 29, 2011 in southeastern Turkey several Turkish Airforce F-16s bombed a convoy of Turkish Kurds on mules who were engaged in border trade, apparently mistaking them for Kurdish rebels. Thirty-four were killed; the average age of the victims was twenty.
While the Uludere (Roboski) bombing is still in the news headlines today, interest has been focused on the government's silence and the ongoing investigation, and the human side of the tragedy has been neglected.
However, last week poet and author Bejan Matur visited the region and posted her impressions on her Twitter account [tr], in both her poetic prose and photos.
A mother at her son's grave.
@bejanmatur: bugün geldim roboskiye ve gidemedim. yaslı kızkardeşlerin sesleri bırakmadı beni…
@bejanmatur: roboskide gece;sınıra düşen top sesleri, F-16 ucusşları ve bütün gün mezarlıkta ağıt yakan kadınların anlattığı ölü oğullar. ahh yeter mi?
At her brother's grave.
@bejanmatur: o kadar uzaktık birbirimizden. o kadar yalnız kendimizle…
@bejanmatur: Tum bunlar olurken butun gece ve gun roboskide top sesleri dinmedi. helikopterler, karsi tepelerden yukselen dumanlar arasinda yasanan hayat
His look…
@bejanmatur: ‘Aile ici siddet nasil korkuncsa bizim cocuklarimiz da bu seslerle buyuyor’ diyor biri roboskideki top seslerini kastederek.
@bejanmatur: Olumden duyduklari aciyi azaltacak tek sey sorumlularin cezalandirilmasi cunku!
As one of Bejan's poems says:
To live and to die at Roboski.
Beklemeyi bilen kan,
Taş olmayı da bilir.
Dünyada olmak acıdır. Öğrendim.
Bejan Matur was born in 1968 in an Alevi Kurdish family in the city of Marash in southeast Turkey. As well as being a poet she is a newspaper columnist and runs a cultural foundation in Diyarbakır.
All photos courtesy of Bejan Matur.

author: Stratos Moraitis


text:
United Kingdom: App for Sharing Mobile Videos for Collaboration  · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

The Next Web  analyzes how the new UK app Vyclone could have helped get more footage of Arab Spring or the Occupy Movement  onto mainstream news channels, and if it could do the same for future newsworthy events.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


text:
Yemen: Millions Go Hungry in Ongoing Food Crisis · Global Voices
Noon Arabia

In Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, millions of people are facing a severe humanitarian crisis, widespread hunger and chronic malnutrition.
In March the charity Oxfam International gave a dire warning in a press release:
Yemen is at the crossroads of humanitarian catastrophe international aid agency Oxfam said today in reaction to new figures from the World Food Programme, which showed a radical increase in the number of people facing severe hunger in the country. The new figures indicate that 45 percent of the population in Yemen do not have enough to eat – more than 10 million people, with half of these people severely food insecure and in need of urgent emergency aid.
However, mainstream media is more interested in the existence of Al Qaeda in the country, supposedly justifying the US drone war.
Yemeni Mohammed Adel Alamer tweeted in dismay:
@M7mmdAdel: 10 million Yemenis facing #famine in Yemen! The world only cares about #Qaeda and #DroneStrikes them and to hell with the 10 million
Oxfam offered more figures:
@Oxfam:.@WFP [World Food Programme] reports #Yemen food insecurity levels have doubled since 2009. Today 5 million people go hungry so often that it affects their long-term health
Yemen has had massive food security problems for years, and Al Jazeera English recently produced two videos highlighting how the ongoing political turmoil has aggravated the situation and is putting the lives of many children at risk.
British-Yemeni blogger Omar tweeted Al Jazeera's photo of a severely malnourished child:
@OmarMash: ‘The tiny bodies are still breathing’ – Babies starve in Yemen's hospitals, he's a lucky one, he made to the hospital.
Severely malnourished Yemeni child, Sana'a, Yemen, April 2012. Image by Al Jazeera (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Yemeni blogger Afrah Nasser wrote a post entitled “Hunger in Yemen”:
Food crisis is increasingly becoming epidemic in Yemen. Reports of starvation and malnutrition among children in Yemen have been gripping headlines for a while. Last night [April 27], UNICEF spokesman Mr. Mohammed al-Asaadi spoke to al-Jazeera about this issue and said, “Around 1 million children are food insecure and malnourished. At least 120 thousand under-5 children may die between now and the end of 2012 if no action is taken.” […] I wonder what the government is doing exactly to tackle this issue. It's really sad that politicians in Yemen could ignore the children's plight.
Omar tweeted:
@OmarMash: The #YemenFoodCrisis is only going to increase in severity if not immediately dealt with by international donors, the Yemen government and the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council].
He added:
@OmarMash: I have a horrible feeling that in 6 months time the #YemenFoodCrisis will at its peak, only then will the world's attention be focused.
London-based Yemeni Loubna Maktary urged immediate action to be taken to save Yemen's dying children:
@LoubbyM: Children in Yemen are dying of HUNGER!!! Stop ignoring them. Yemen is not a political problem, it is a human catastrophe #YemenFoodCrisis (:
It is hoped that the food crisis will be discussed at the Friends of Yemen Conference in Riyadh on May 23. UNICEF has called for children to be kept at the centre of the conference's security and political dialogues.
To learn more about Yemen's food crisis read this Storify.

author: Noon Arabia