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Cuba: Bloggers on SOPA, Culture and the Democratization of Knowledge  · Global Voices
Ellery Roberts Biddle

Since mid-January 2012, the proposed anti-piracy legislation in the United States Congress known as SOPA/PIPA has drawn reactions from a broad range of cultural and political perspectives around the world.
Global Voices contributors have given readers a glimpse of responses from open Internet advocates throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas (here, here and here).  Open Internet advocates in the U.S. scored a major victory in January when members of Congress agreed to withdraw the bills from consideration.
Teatro Karl Marx, by Edgar Rubio. CC: BY-NC-ND.
In Cuba, where very few citizens use the Internet regularly, and where the concept of a site like Wikipedia or BitTorrent remains foreign to most people, bloggers brought a unique perspective to the discussion. Unlike many SOPA/PIPA critics in the U.S. and around the globe, Cuban bloggers did not focus on the technical implications of the proposed laws. Both independent and state-affiliated Cuban bloggers saw SOPA/PIPA not merely as legal measures that would have stifled online innovation and openness, but also as a powerful statement about how legislators (and the music and film industries) value culture and creativity as part of U.S. society.
Karel Pérez Alejo, writing for Cubadebate [es] and Trabajadores [es], framed the issue as a polemic dividing “society” or “the 99%” and the laws’ strongest supporters:
Si bien algunos han analizado el fenómeno como la confrontación entre Hollywood y Silicon Valley, los millones de reclamos de los usuarios hablan de una guerra más profunda, entre una sociedad que busca manejar una información sin restricciones y un grupo de intereses que intentan seguir un obsoleto modelo de propiedad.
Voces Cubanas blogger Regina Coyula drew a connection between SOPA/PIPA and the FBI’s partial shutdown of file locker site MegaUpload (Spanish version here). Coyula argued that such shutdowns, which would likely have increased if the legislation passed, limit access to knowledge and culture for people who otherwise can’t afford it:
[US authorities], with allegations of piracy, encroached [upon] the alleged right of millions of citizens of the global village to download content that they know they should not — or cannot — pay for.
On La Pupila Insome [es], Iroel Sánchez compared the paradigm of intellectual property rights in the U.S. to the Cuban model, remarking on the ways in which Cuba’s education and cultural systems have attempted to “democratize” knowledge, making it easily accessible for all:
Cuba, con una formación masiva de profesionales universitarios….no hubiera podido desarrollar [su] capital humano sin una concepción democratizadora y no lucrativa del conocimiento…
Since they were introduced in the 1960s, the revolutionary government’s cultural policies have generated bitter controversies over the ideological role of artists in Cuban society. But they also have yielded a strong system of support for artists and cultural institutions. In Cuba, one can attend the national ballet for just a few pesos more than it costs to buy a movie ticket. Access to culture, knowledge, and education is meant to be open to all citizens.
However, when it comes to culture and knowledge that is created and exchanged online, most Cubans are far worse off than any U.S. citizen. For those who do not occupy high-level positions in government, scientific research, or academia, Internet access remains limited.
The Internet has become a contested space where government authorities and the official press have denounced the United States’ “cyberwar” on Cuba; the seemingly limitless landscape of culture and knowledge online is rarely mentioned in the public sphere. Cuban authorities have elected to limit Internet use, presumably in an effort to dampen the potential societal effects of independent online political speech and economic activity.
Similar to Sánchez, Coyula alluded to the uniquely politicized nature of Cuba’s cultural policies, but cast a critical gaze on this “democratized” system for knowledge exchange. In closing, Coyula promoted the notion of an equilibrium, in which the interests of the market and the public good could be harmonized with one another:
It’s true that there is a symbiotic relationship between art and the marketing that puts it in the hands of the consumers. But to see art as a commodity has resulted in the promotion of products of dubious quality at the expense of other values. […] At some point, a balance must be achieved between both interests.

author: Ellery Roberts Biddle


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Cuba: Politics & Internet Access  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Dariela Aquique, writing at Havana Times, has a theory that “the Cuban blogosphere is fragmented, consisting of fiefdoms and courts like in the Middle Ages. While some share commonalities, others are definitely at opposing ends of the political spectrum.”

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Guyana: Send in the Clowns  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Every morning then, without fail, the clown put on she joie de vivre and tumble out”: Guyana-Gyal tries to keep a smile on her face despite her mother's diagnosis.


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Iran: Beautiful nature · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Here is a blog publishing the photos about Iran's northern province, Gilan. It lies along the Caspian Sea.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Iran: No War, No Dictatorship · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Gahneveshteaye Ali writes [fa] that Green Movement demonstrated in New York both against war and dictatorship. The Iran based media preferred to ignore them.Watch the photos here.


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Jamaica: Playing with the Law  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“With what passes for law and justice in this country is it any wonder that this is such a violent society?”: Active Voice explains that “a lot of the crime plaguing us is the result of people taking the law into their own hands because the extant justice system just isn’t delivering…complementing this is a dishonest, unreliable police force that doesn’t hesitate to resort to criminality in the name of policing.”


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Jamaica, St. Vincent: Happy Earth Day, Mr. Marley  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Geoffrey Philp and Abeni both pay tribute to the late reggae icon Bob Marley on his birthday.


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Jamaica: Women’s Political Role · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“The troubling disrespect for the ‘girls’ appointed to the Cabinet seems to confirm that the JLP is committed to the backward notion that ‘man must run tings’”: Jamaica Woman Tongue argues that “turning the size of Mrs Simpson Miller’s Cabinet into a gender issue betrays a deep-seated prejudice against women in politics.”


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Mozambique: All Aboard the Musical Marrabenta Train! · Global Voices
Janet Gunter

After a season of elections and cyclones in Mozambique, the country was owed some entertainment and good news. One of the highlights of Mozambique's cultural calendar, the Marrabenta Festival (celebrating its fifth year), came just in time.
The Festival consists of musical events in the capital Maputo, with the highlight being an acoustic musical train trip to Marracuene. The train picks up music fans for free along the way, taking them to the Festival's finale, a lively outdoor concert that lasts until dawn.
In Marracuene last year, photo courtesy of D J Clark (www.djclark.com)
The train trip this year was documented by YouTube user Charline Van Deth:
Website MozambiqueTV shared a clip from private television station STV on the platform of Maputo's historic train station before the train departed. The clip features an interview with a smiling producer of the Festival, Lito, with Logaritmo Productions:
Marrabenta is a genre of music closely linked to African urban life and modernity, making the train trip a delightful match. Marrabenta arose in the south in the 1930s and 1940s, the word coming from the verb rebentar (to break) which is a way people describe dancing. One urban theory is that the word originally described cheap guitar strings breaking with the energetic playing of musicians.
The genre was a mix of traditional Mozambican rhythms and new guitar arrangements inspired by that period's global explosion of popular music fuelled by radio. Pioneering artists such as Dilon Djindji, Fany Mpfumo, and Wazimbo (and the Orchestra Marrabenta Star) made an ever-lasting mark on Mozambican music.
Guitar is a key feature of Marrabenta, photo courtesy of D J Clark (www.djclark.com)
Ever since its beginnings in colonial Lourenço Marques (now Maputo), writes nostalgic website Xirico [pt]:
A música é um dos atributos culturais mais marcantes do povo moçambicano. O primeiro acorde provoca o primeiro movimento que ninguém ensinou. Depois não há força para resistir ao chicuembo da marrabenta. O requebro sincopado das ancas, uma mão na nuca outra atrás das costas, movimentos sensuais…
Performers on the mainstage last year, photo courtesy of D J Clark (www.djclark.com)
Photographer DJ Clark captured the essence of the festival last year in a stunning photo album. This video from the Marrabenta Festival in 2010 by YouTube user TheMarrabenta shows how the Festival is living proof of the power of marrabenta to enchant generation after generation:
The Festival is a breath of fresh air in Mozambique and crucial to maintaining roots music, as critics such as Fortunato of the Matapa blog pull no punches in relation to contemporary music
Local music does get its share of airplay here, but the thing, is, most of the current Mozambican (popular) music is nowhere near as interesting as the echos from its past. On Radio Maputo, you can hear a lot of local classics from the 70ies: they sound totally amazing, a diverse and experimental blend of tradition with pop influences. But nowadays about half of the musicians seem busy vocalizing the fact that Mozambican musicians need to find their own style. The other half seems more than happy selling whatever suits the mobile phone operators or the governing party.
In clear contrast to this kind of music were the headliners this year, the South African group the Mahotella Queens, celebrating their thirtieth anniversary. They just reinforced the links between popular South African music and Mozambican music, which have been intermingling since well before the railroads linked Johannesburg with Mozambique's then capital Lourenço Marques. Language groups transcends colonial borders, and the musical languages of neighboring South Africa and southern Mozambique have a great deal in common.
This year, @Verdade newspaper reported that more and more foreigners take time out and travel to Mozambique for this unique musical moment. But the Festival has an economic impact in Marracuene irrespective of foreign visitors, with informal bars and food stalls set up to sell palm wine, grilled chicken and fried fish, where visitors from Maputo infuse cash into the town's economy.

author: Janet Gunter


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Palestine: A Blogging Initiative for Jerusalem, the Praying City · Global Voices
Mohamed ElGohary

Palestinian bloggers joined hands to blog for their country, in a blogging initiative led by several Gaza bloggers under the theme: “For you, oh praying city, we blog.” In the following post, Abir Kopty, one of the prominent Palestinian bloggers, writes in Arabic about social media utilization in the Palestinian cause, and coordinating it with offline events on the ground.
She gives an introduction first:
A few days ago a blogging initiative started under the theme:”For you, oh praying city, we blog.” It is a blogging campaign for Jerusalem, started by bloggers from Gaza. Others followed from Palestine and Arabs from all over the world. The campaign goal was blogging and tweeting about Jerusalem till the 31st of January. This is not the first online campaign of its kind initiated by Palestinians. Since the beginning of the Arab Spring there were a lot of discussions about the important role of social media. The Palestinian arena is witnessing a strong tendency to use social media tools to deliver the Palestinian people's message to the world. Keep in mind that in Gaza specifically, using these tools was crucial in the fight against the Gaza siege that forced youth to utilize everything available to communicate with the rest of the world.
Social media tools are a very important media between Palestinians at home, in the refugee camps as well as in Palestinians in diaspora against all the boundaries, barriers and sieges. Communication has become nearly daily. A camp resident can communicate with someone in Ramallah, with a Gazan, and even between someone from Jerusalem and a American Palestinian.
Then she describes the utilization of social media among Palestinians:
مثلاً، أصدر المدونون الفلسطينيون في الفترة الأخيرة عدة بيانات مشتركة، قام بنشرها كل مدون فلسطيني يوافق عليها على مدونته الخاصة، منها البيان الرافض لإعلان الإخوان المسلمين في مصر تنظيم جمعة “إنقاذ الأقصى” في أحد أيام الجمعة ملتفين على إعلانها من قبل ثوار التحرير جمعة لإسقاط حكم العسكر، وذلك في ظل القمع الوحشي الذي تعرضوا له من قبل الجيش. كتب المدونون في بيانهم “نحن، مجموعة من الشباب الفلسطيني، نرفض أن يتم الزج بالأقصى وبفلسطين لضرب الثورة المصرية العظيمة”، وختموا بيانهم ب “فلسطين أقوى بمصر حرة وكريمة”. وقد لاقى هذا البيان رواجا كبيرا وتناقلته العديد من وسائل الإعلام المصرية. كما وأصدر المدونون بياناً متضامناً مع المدونة السورية المعروفة رزان الغزاوي والتي تشهد لها مواقفها في التضامن مع فلسطين وقضيتها العادلة. وقد طالب البيان بإطلاق سراح الغزاوي وكافة معتقلي الثورة السورية.وفي الذكرى الرابعة والعشرين للانتفاضة الأولى أطلق المدونون الفلسطينيون دعوة عبر مدوناتهم لكافة المدونين الفلسطينيين بتخصيص مدوناتهم يوم التاسع من كانون الأول لنشر قصص أو مقابلات مع شخصيات عايشت الانتفاضة الأولى أو نشر مقالات أو صور وأشرطة ذات صلة. وأكد المدونون والمدونات في بيانهم بأن هذه الذكرى تشكل مناسبة لتأكيد “إيماننا بالمقاومة الفلسطينية الشعبية كجزء أساسي في نضالنا من أجل الحرية وتحصيل حقوق الشعب الفلسطيني، غير القابلة للتصرف أو المساومة أو التفريط، وبمواصلة النضال حتى تحقيق الحرية والعودة.”كما وقام الناشطون في العالم الافتراضي بحملات مختلفة ترَكَّزت في فترة معينة، هدفت إلى رفع الوعي والمعرفة لدى المتابعين حول ممارسات الاحتلال. خلال أيام إضراب الاسرى عن الطعام نشط الشباب على شبكات الفيسبوك والمدونات والتويتر في دعمهم للإضراب، وأطلقوا دعوة عامة للإضراب عن الطعام يوما واحداً تضامنا ودعما لإضراب الاسرى، وطلب من كل مضرب أن يعلن هذا في شبكات التواصل “أسمي كذا وكذا، يوم 12.10.11 أنا مضرب\ة عن الطعام دعماً للأسرى الفلسطينيين”. وبالفعل قام الآلاف من العرب والأجانب بالاستجابة لهذه الدعوة. وبعد استشهاد مصطفى التميمي خلال المظاهرة  الأسبوعية في قرية النبي صالح، بعدما أطلق جندي إسرائيلي قنبلة غاز مسيل للدموع على وجهه عن بعد أمتار قليلة، قام الناشطون بحملة على شبكات التواصل حيث كتبوا النصوص في المدونات، وقاموا بحملة مركزة على التويتر كان وسمها #Israelkills، لإلقاء الضوء على جرائم الاحتلال بحق الفلسطينيين.يرى الكثير من هؤلاء الشباب أن النشاط في العالم الافتراضي ليس بديلا عن النشاط على الأرض، بل مكملا له، حيث يشارك البعض في المقاومة الشعبية في القرى الفلسطينية مثل النبي صالح والولجة والخليل وغيرها. ويقوم البعض بتنظيم أيام تطوعية، ويبادر لمسيرات ونشاطات مختلفة.
For example, recently, Palestinian bloggers announced several joint statements, shared by every approving Palestinian in their own blog. One of them is about refusing the Muslim Brotherhood announcement to organize the “Saving Aqsa” Friday, while backing the Tahrir revolutionaries [in Egypt] to name it as a Friday to take down the military rule, after the brutal repression that they faced at the hands of the army. The bloggers wrote in their statement: “We, a group of Palestinian youth, refuse to have Aqsa and Palestine's names used against the great Egyptian revolution.” They ended the statement saying: “Palestine is stronger with Egypt freedom and nobility.” The statement became very popular between bloggers and was also picked up by Egyptian media. They also issued a statement in solidarity with the Syrian blogger Razan Ghazzawi and all the Syrian revolution detainees.
To mark the 24th anniversary of the first Intifada, bloggers launched a campaign inviting all Palestinian bloggers to dedicate a post in the 19th of January about stories or interviews with people who witnessed the first Intifada, or publishing related articles, photos or videos. The bloggers assured in their statement that the Intifada memory is a suitable moment to reassure “our faith in the Palestinian resistance as a basic part of our struggle for freedom and to earn the non-negotiable rights of the Palestinian people, and to continue struggling till the realization of freedom and the right of return.”
Many online activists organized campaigns that are focusing on a certain period, aiming at raising awareness and knowledge to those who follow the occupation practices. During the detainees’ hunger strike, young activists shared their solidarity on blogs, Facebook and Twitter. They also announced a one-day hunger strike in their support. Everyone participating was asked to announce that on social networks in the following format: “My name is …., today 12.10.11 I'm on hunger strike supporting the Palestinian detainees.” Following that, many Arabs and foreigners supported the idea and joined in. After the martyrdom of Mostafa ElTamimi during the weekly demonstration in ElNaby Saleh village, after an Israeli soldier shot a tear gas bomb in his face from just a few meters, social media activists organized a campaign where they blogged and tweeted under the hashtag #Israelkills to spotlight occupation crimes against Palestinians.
A lot from those youth see that activism online is not a substitute of activism offline, but compliments it since some are involved in civil resistance in the Palestinian villages like Al-Walaja, Al-Khalil, and others. Some people also arrange volunteering days for marches and different activities.
Kopty then talks about coordination between the online and offline worlds:
Considering the fact the youth enthusiasm online is no less than their colleagues offline, the past year witnessed many events and youth initiatives raising the peaceful resistance value. All this was done in ways which were creative and different than before. So we see the freedom waves and freedom riders, we see a march of cars that wanted to drive through the settlement streets protesting the apartheid regime. The march was stopped by the occupation army. Not to mention the “Welcome in Palestine” campaign in Ben Gurion Airport telling visitors they have reached Palestine. They also organized the return marches commemorating the Nakba and the Six-Day War, along with volunteering days and street art activities. Two weeks ago, some special activity for an anonymous group was noticed, writing political slogans on Jerusalem walls, especially in Jewish dominated neighborhoods since 1948. This group mentioned in their statement that “This is our message to our occupiers and to our people in Palestine and in diaspora, we are telling them that we are here, our voice is still loud and we will continue to resist.”
These activities contribute to reviving Palestine. Many are engaged in photographing what is happening in real time, by live steaming or live blogging or via Facebook and Twitter, etc. This way the occupation is in a losing battle. Those who follow social networks know that the Israeli propaganda is not yet able to neutralize or fight the social media “army” who support the Palestinian cause.
Palestinian social media activity contributes to telling the world the Israeli practices against the Palestinian people, thus supporting BDS as well as the daily communication between Palestinians wherever they are, integrating their efforts on their networks and coordinating their campaigns and joint activities offline.
And finally, she concludes:

author: Mohamed ElGohary


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Panama: Indigenous Mining Protest Blocks Pan-American Highway · Global Voices
Ariel Moreno

Todo lo acordado con los indígenas ha sido cumplido. Ahora elementos foráneos desean que no haya hidroeléctricas. Eso hará triplicar la luz
That's how President Ricardo Martinelli of Panama made excuses via his Twitter account (@rmartinelli) [es] for the road closure that on February 3, 2012, marked its fifth day. The indigenous people of the Ngäbes Buglés region have blocked the Pan-American Highway up to the Chiriqui Province to demand that the government comply with the agreement reached last year with regard to mining in the region.
The closure has caused millions of dollars of losses as this is the main transportation artery for the country. It has also caused hundreds of people to be trapped in the massive congestion, leaving them without water or food. As reported in La Prensa [es]:
Cientos de viajeros y conductores de vehículos de carga atrapados por el tranque de la vía Interamericana, en el distrito de La Mesa, clamaron por ayuda de las autoridades de la provincia de Veraguas, debido a que después de cuatro días de protesta se han quedado sin agua y comida.
Up until now, the government has chosen to ignore the protests and look for alternate routes for transporting people and goods, like the so-called “Air Bridge” that would transport people and goods by air.
Woman wearing a nagua (skirt), typical dress of the Ngöbe-Buglé in Chiriqui, Panamá. Image by Flickr user Lon&Queta (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
The shaky image of Ricardo Martinelli's government appears even worse on social networks, where people have repudiated the apathy and arrogance with which the president and his team have handled the situation, although there are also those who see the attitude of the indigenous people as self-centered and showing little concern for the country.
Roberto Troncos B. (@tronky22) [es] writes to the president:
@rmartinelli Es inadmisible q un sector de la población nos tenga de rodillas, pero tmbn es inconcebible que no se tenga vías de solución
Jaime Correa (@JCorrea1293) [es] is upset by the autocratic manner of the president and states that he often confuses this with controlling his supermarket chain (Super 99):
Martinelli todavìa sigue pensando y creyendo que Panamá se administra como un Super 99 y que al ser presidente, es dueño de los recursos
Fermin Osorio (@MeisterBrake) [es] on the other hand, thinks that people are exaggerating a little to point to Martinelli as being responsible for everything bad that happens:
Todo lo que hace martinelli ta mal, fren en mi opinión el a echo muchas cosas y buenas, también sus defecadas pero bueno.
Maria Moreno (@ascadelia1986) [es] Maria compares the current government with Manuel Antonio Noriega's dictatorship:
est gobierno esta peor q el gobiern o d noriega nadamas falta q martinelli salga planeando y alzando el machete
Daniel Acosta (@Daar05) [es] states that all politicians are responsible for the crisis the country is currently in:
Yo siento que toodos los de la politica en Panamá son culpables de lo que ocurre! Martinelli debe buscar rapido alguna solucion!!!!!
Blogger Erick Simpson Aguilera shares his perspective in his blog Pma507pty [es]:
Finalizo solidarizándome con la lucha de los hermanos Ngäbes por la defensa del territorio nacional, el cual el gobierno autócrata de turno pretende vender a las mineras canadienses y coreanas, para depredar y saquear nuestra riqueza natural. Y, haciéndole un llamado al gobierno en el sentido que, no insista en mantener al país al borde de la ingobernabilidad y el caos, dando al traste con la imagen de Panamá, afectando las inversiones, el turismo, y el crecimiento económico que experimenta la nación; lo cual evitarán si dialogan con las autoridades Ngäbes Buglés y aceptan formalizar legalmente, la no exploración, ni explotación minera, ni hídrica en la Comarca.
Although the solution seems far away right now, Panamanians have not lost hope of finding a solution beneficial to all.

author: Ariel Moreno


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Russia: Practice of Compulsory Military Service Comes Under Attack · Global Voices
Donna Welles

Russia's compulsory military service practices have come under attack for a variety of reasons, including the issues of economic inefficiency, governmental corruption connected with determining exemptions from service, dynamics of Russia's demographic status as it affects the military's ability to meet its quotas, and the practice of dedovshchina (from the Russian word for ‘grandfather’), a violent form of hazing directed at young conscripts.
Known as the first Emperor of Russia, Peter the Great included a “recruit obligation” in his efforts to form the Imperial Russian Army. The term of service in the 18th century Russia was for life, until it was reduced to 25 years in 1793, 20 years with an additional 5 years in reserve in 1834, and 12 years active duty in 1855. Russia's modern conscription practices date back to a 1967 law that remained largely unchanged until the mid-2000s, when the term of service was reduced to 1 year in 2008 for all men aged 18-27.
Russian soldiers march during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade at Palace Square in St. Petersburg. Photo by Elena Ignatyeva, copyright © Demotix (18/04/11).
Writing for The Volokh Conspiracy Blog, a group blog comprised mostly of law professors, Ilya Somin put the practice of conscription in its historical context by paraphrasing an article written by economist Joshua Hall:
Economist Joshua Hall has an interesting article describing an oft-ignored, but very important expansion of freedom over the last several decades: the declining use of military conscription. He notes that, as of 1970, some 80% of the world’s governments used conscription, including the US and many of the democratic nations of Western Europe. By 2009, that had declined to 45%, and many of those nation that still have conscription have reduced the length of conscript’s terms and made it easier to escape the draft. Even France, the nation that first pioneered conscription in the 1790s, abolished it in 2001.
Hall also gives a good summary of the economic case against conscription. Most knowledgeable people are aware of the standard points that conscription reduces the quality of the military because professionals are, on average, better soldiers than short-term conscripts, and that conscription creates major social costs by forcing people to serve who would be more productive in other occupations. Hall notes two other ways in which conscription is inefficient that are less well-known – that it creates deadweight losses by diverting people from their preferred occupations to those which have draft exemptions, and that it encourages governments to underinvest in military equipment and instead sacrifice more lives in battle rather than capital […]
In addition to the economic inefficiency issues associated with conscription, there are governmental hazards as well in that it is known to incite corruption. International Defense and Security Programme Blog discussed in general terms the importance of applying a mandatory military service law equally, regardless of socio-economic status, and then cited Russia's military as a specific example of the methods by which conscription corrupts the military, along with efforts the Russian government has taken to address these issues:
Compulsory military service can be a cause of pervasive corruption within the armed forces. Such is the case in Russia. In order to avoid conscription, would-be soldiers pay bribes to the military authorities, medical personnel in charge of assessment and officials in draft boards. Such practices are widespread and publicly acknowledged.
In July 2010, Russia’s nationalist Liberal Democratic Party, led by Vladimir Zhirinovsky, tabled draft legislation which would allow potential conscripts to pay a sum equivalent to US $32,500 to avoid military service. The resulting funds would be channeled toward the costs of the Ministry of Defence (MoD). This measure, aimed at Russia’s military commissions, signifies both the great extent of draft corruption in the country and a clear recognition of this reality.
Serious attempts to deal with this issue have been made in recent years by the Russian government. The length of conscript service was shortened by six months in April 2008 to one year, while the list of exemptions from conscriptions has also been made more restrictive. However, the 2004-7 federal government programme designed to trial a transition to fully professional armed forces was largely ineffective, due to poor design and pervasive corruption which prevents full remuneration from reaching the contracted soldiers.
Mikhail Prokhorov‘s 2012 presidential election program included putting an end to Russia's compulsory military service by 2015:
• Create a professional, mobile, high-tech army, able to respond quickly to local and regional conflicts;
• Pay special attention to our strategic nuclear forces and space-based weapons as means of ensuring Russia’s independence and security;
• End military conscription from 2015 while moving to a professional army;
• Ensure social benefits for war veterans (free education, tax exemptions and soft loans to start businesses or buy housing) […]
Global Voices discussed in a post entitled, “Russia: Demographic Collapse Means ‘No One Left to Draft’,” how the low birth rate of the 1990s has affected Russia's ability to maintain conscription quotas. However, demographic decline was only one of the major factors that General Nikolai Makarov, Russia's chief of the General Staff, mentioned in a RIA Novosti article quoted in the aforementioned GV post; dedovshchina was the other one:
Russia has no conscript-age young men left to recruit […].
The current conscript service crisis in the Russian Armed Forces is mainly due to demographic decline, bullying and brutal treatment of conscripts. […]
Marina Litvinovich reported for Global Voices on a relatively new trend where social media accounts of those who have died have been converted into memorials. One such memorial was dedicated to Evgeniy Shamukhin, a Russian soldier who had been drafted and then beaten to death during a dedovshchina ritual:
I was drafted in November 2007 and served in the Academy of the Ministry for Emergency Situations in Moscow region. On May 13, 2008, I was brutally beaten up by my fellow soldier Alexandr Revyakin. He was beating my head with his feet regardless of my appeals to stop it, and at the end I lost consciousness. Suffering serious injuries and not coming to my senses I passed away in a hospital on May 19, 2008. On August 14, 2008, the military court of Solnechnogorsk city sentenced Revyakin to 6 years and 6 months of detention.
Russia has one of the highest suicide rates in the world, and it is believed that close to 1 million Russian people have taken their own lives since the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s. Russian Defense Policy Blog argued that the dedovshchina practices associated with Russia's compulsory military service make young soldiers even more prone to suicidal actions:
Dedovshchina has always had potential to drive desperate conscripts to take their own lives to escape it. Hence, the majority of Russian Army suicide cases are investigated under Article 110 of the RF Criminal Code, “Incitement to Suicide.”  Western legal tradition has long experience with incitement, but “incitement to suicide” is a little unusual. Not so for Russian military prosecutors and criminal investigators.
The author went on to list recent accounts found in the Russian press of young Russian soldiers who had indeed taken their own lives or who had attempted to do so:
In late August, a conscript on guard duty in Volgograd shot himself, leaving a suicide note blaming dedovshchina in his unit. The case is being investigated under Article 110.
In late August, a conscript from a Krasnoyarsk unit was detailed to the Railroad Troops brigade in Abakan to help prepare for Tsentr-2011. With only three months left to serve, he went AWOL, and apparently hung himself.
In mid-August, a conscript in Kaliningrad jumped off the boiler house roof and sustained a number of serious injuries, but survived. He had left a note asking that no one be blamed in his death.
In early August, a conscript in the 735th Missile Regiment, 62nd Missile Division in Uzhur killed himself while on guard duty at night. He had served six months.
In early March, in Belogorsk, a conscript due to demob in a few days shot himself to death.
In early February, a conscript in Sergeyevka shot himself to death. The case was being investigated under Article 110.
Public awareness of the soldiers who have taken their own lives has grown recently. A June 2011 Radio Free Europe article described an incident where protesters gathered in Moscow in response to the surge of soldiers who had died under such circumstances in the previous months.
In a November 2011 post, Russian Defense Policy Blog relayed the results of a poll conducted by the Public Opinion Foundation, which surveyed 3,000 people living in 64 of Russia's regions. Many of the questions that were asked reflected a widespread awareness that dedovshchina exists, that it is related in some way to compulsory military service, and that many young men resort to illicit activities in order to avoid military service:
Finally, buried deep in the results, participants were asked for their views on the state of affairs in the Russian Army in coming years:
• 19% said it will improve.
• 19% said it will worsen.
• 35% said it will stay the same.
• 26% said hard to answer.
However, when asked to compare military service conditions today against those 10-15 years ago, more respondents said they are easier (39%), and many fewer said they are harder (14%), by comparison with Russians asked the same question in 2002 (just 6% and a whopping 64% respectively).

author: Donna Welles


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Syria: “Revolution + Blood – Oil = Veto” · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.
Netizens are still enraged over Saturday's double veto by Beijing and Moscow of the United Nations Security Council draft resolution on ending 11 months of violence in Syria.
Iyad El Baghdadi tweets that this inaction by the UN completely erodes the organisation's legitimacy among Arabs:
@iyad_elbaghdadi: The veto also completely demolishes in the Arab mind the idea that the UNSC has any legitimacy or indeed is of any use. #Syria
Syrian Alexander Page notes:
@AlexanderPageSY: #China's Veto at UNSC means that thousands more of #Syria's innocent civilians will die #BoycottChina4Syria #BoycottChina
And Palestinian Dima Khatib compares the reaction to the massacres in Syria today to that in the Gaddafi-era Libya:
@Dima_Khatib: Libya + Revolution + Blood + Oil = NATO bombs. Syria + Revolution + Blood – Oil = Veto
Foreign Policy Editor Blake Hounshell comments:
@blakehounshell: In a way, the Russo-Chinese veto absolves the West of responsibility for #Syria. Little will to intervene.
Syrian Revolution notes:
@RevolutionSyria: The veto is just allowing Syria to kill more people
Syrian children condemn the veto. Photograph from Facebook group Syrian Days of Rage
And Syrian blogger Razan Ghazzawi concludes:
@RedRazan: Veto or not, Assad will be toppled by the great people of #Syria.
Meanwhile, online activists have started a campaign to boycott Chinese products in retaliation against the Chinese veto. On Twitter, the campaign is run under the hash tag #BoycottChina4Syria.
Lina Tibi writes [ar]:
This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Thailand: Scholars Press for Lese Majeste Law Reform · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

An open letter signed by 224 international scholars, writers, and activists was sent to Thailand Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra expressing grave concern over the use of Lese Majeste Law to stifle dissent in the country.

author: Mong Palatino


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Tunisia: Politicians and Deputies Opt for Open Governance Through Social Media  · Global Voices
Ahmed Medien

This post is part of our special coverage Tunisia Revolution 2011.
The toppling of the Ben Ali regime last January paved the way for a growth in the use of social media across Tunisia. Today, politicians are using the same tools repressed by the state to get their messages across to the people.
Moncef Marzouki (@Moncef_Marzouki), elected interim president of the Tunisian republic, Khalil Zaouia (@KhelilEzzaouia), current minister of social affairs, and other deputies at the constituent assembly such as @LobnaJribi and @IyedDahmani have all joined the Twitterverse recently.
Politicians use Twitter and other social media for many reasons, including sharing greetings with the Tunisian people on a religious holiday as demonstrated by MP Dahmani [ar]:
@iyeddahmani: Happy Mouled (Prophet Muhammed's birthday) to all of you. May you all be blessed.
Twitter is also the place where Tunisian politicians share their frustrations with the disorganization of their own parties or the slow processes of the current government.
Mabrouka Mbarek, elected deputy of the CPR party shared her disappointed vis a vis the vote of her party to another fellow Islamist deputy to chair the committee charged of drafting the new constitution. Such a worrisome tweet was retweeted several times other Tunisian Twitter users who shared similar concerns [fr]:
Des fois #jemeposelaquestion #jeudiconfession “@MoniaBH: qu'est ce que vous faites au CPR??? #TnAc”
Iyed Dahmani, deputy and member of the opposition Progressive Democratic Party uses Twitter to criticize the work of the government. The language used is sometimes the Tunisian Arabic dialect and the aim is to reach out to more to Tunisians [ar]:
Other politicians also use their Twitter accounts to record their media appearances locally and internationally.
And since he became president, Marzouki uses his personal Twitter account to share the calendar of his activities with Twitter users. He also shares media files such as photos and videos.
Netizens have been instrumental in drawing politicians into social media. For instance, 7ell is a social media and citizen campaign that started last year to encourage politicians and political parties to share more information with citizens. 7ell has a Facebook page with more 8,000 likes and dozens of posts to promote open governance among Tunisian Facebook users.
The initiative is described as [ar]:
هي هبادرة مدنيّة تبنّاوها بعض الأعضاء من المجلس الوطني التأسيسي
المبادرة هاذي تحبّ تكرّس مبدأ الشّفافيّة في الدّستور التّونسي و تدخل آليات الحوكمة المفتوحة في إصلاح الإدارة. نطمحو إنّو الصّحافة و المواطنين التّوانسة ينجّمو يتبّعو عمل اللّجان في المجلس الوطني التّأسيسي و يتفاعلو معاه بطريقة مباشرة كيفما تفاعلو مع الثورة ولاّ الأحداث إلّي صارت في تونس عام 2011. من أهدافنا زادة نشر محاضر و تقارير اللّجان للنّاس الكلّ. التّونسي اليوم عندو الحقّ باش يعرف كيفاش النوّاب إلّي إنتخبهم قاعدين يكتبولو في دستورو و في مستقبلو و منظيّعوش حقّنا باش نبنيو تونس على قاعدة صحيحة
OpenGov is also a hashtag frequently used during the sessions of the constituent assembly. Now, a good number of the 217 deputies use Twitter to share the discussions happening at the assembly sessions with a larger public.
You can also follow tweet feeds from OpenGov Tunisia on @OpenGovTN .
Nearly three months after the launch of 7ell campaign, the Tunisian Presidency has also opened new accounts on social media to interact with Tunisian internet users and get their feedback about the activity of the presidency and the president, Moncef Mazouki.
Their first post was a photograph asking the Tunisians for their opinion about the performance of Marzouki a month after his election.
The Tunisian Presidency Facebook page has a myriad of photos of president Marzouki to inform Tunisians of his visits, meetings and foreign travels. It is also a direct interface to share Press releases. The most recent entry was a Press release concerning the Homs massacre in Syria on the eve of February 4. The wall post received 646 Facebook shares, 674 likes and 1,726 comments in a few hours.
The Tunisian presidency has also created accounts on Twitter and on Youtube. The Youtube channel serves to broadcast official and governmental and non-governmental representatives that Marzouki meets at the Presidency Palace in Carthage.
Policy makers in Tunisia are becoming keen to interact with their constituents with more transparency. For now, social media seems to be the solution.
This post is part of our special coverage Tunisia Revolution 2011.

author: Ahmed Medien


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Uganda: What Lies Beneath the Cloak of Exclusivity? · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

When some expats in Uganda decided to form a Facebook group called ‘Mzungus in Uganda’, they probably did not know that they were about to stir up controversy and a heated online debate. Mzungu is a term commonly used in southern, central and eastern Africa to mean a white person.
This is the group's description:
This is a group for all the Mzungus living in Kampala…to share your likes, dislikes, advice or interesting (or boring) stuff….
On January 16, 2012 Facebook user Lindsey Kukunda shared a discussion thread from the group under with a question, “What lies beneath the cloaks of exclusivity?”:
So this is a post from the facebook page ‘Mzungus in Uganda’. The moderator starts off the post. Read and enjoy.
The group moderator, Adam Williams, started the discussion with a question about membership:
I'm getting at least 50 requests every day for Ugandans to join Muzungus in Uganda group. What should I do?
Downtown Kampala, Uganda. Photo courtesy of Andrew Regan released under Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
This forum is supposed to be a place for expats, living in Uganda (hence the name of the page) to share their views along with hints and tips etc etc. If I had accepted every request from a non-muzungu in Uganda this page would have 15,000 members of which 1,000 would actually be muzungus in Uganda. Any thoughts?
Chelsea Jaccard said Ugandans cannot join the group:
it might sound terrible, but I say no…
Jamie Strickland agreed:
we need to keep it just expats for its purpose to be served
Sophie Bremner said:
Difficult – maybe you could request wannabe members to write a short message to you explaining why they are interested? There could be some transnational Ugandans / expats with Ugandan heritage & therefore Ugandan names who have the same interests as others in joining this group. Also, there could be some professional Ugandans who are interested in the odd job opportunity that comes up. I recommended my ex-research assistant join this page, for example, in case any requests came through for researchers looking for staff… Tough one…
Adam Williams wrote again:
The most common thing I get is “Please can you help me find a muzungu girlfriend / boyfriend?”
Marie Wiesenmaid suggested a lottery system to allow 3 non-expats per week:
U'r right, that is a tough one… sometimes the expats here are looking for things or information that only Ugandas can give.. or can give BETTER.
Don't know.. maybe some kind of lottery? Say 3 non-expats (I hate the word mzungu!) per week? Or 5 in a month? Something like that?
Richard Kennair said the group is simply for expats:
My thought is that it is a Muzungu page. How is anyone supposed to ‘vet’ people if there are so many requests? I know it sounds like profiling – but its a site for expats.
Christian Douti left a comment in French:
Ohhh la … c'est quoi la question deja ? le truc je crois c'est quoi un expat selon votre entendement… c'est etre blanc de peau ou quoi… personnellement j'ai eu un mal fou a me faire accepter sur cette page…Alors je suis noir de peau mais expatrier ici…car je suis pas ougandais mais je bosse ici pour des compagnies, ong et institutions. Si expate c'est etre blanc alors cette page friserait le racisme…sinon bon vent ….
Chelsea Jaccard Allan wrote:
I think you've significantly overreacted here. The name of the page is muzungus in Uganda, the goal is for foreigners here to share tips, information, etc. It doesn't say Uganda information group, in which case of course it would be welcome to all. If 5,000 Ugandans joined this page and started sharing messages back and forth, the INTENT of the page would be lost completely. This is not a page to just share what's on your mind, as the one you suggest, and I hope it doesn't become one. I come here to find out where gas is, about a new restaurant that's come in, to buy something when someone's moving etc. Sorry if this has offended you, I'm sure that was no one's intent.
But who is a ‘mzungu”?, Sophie Bremner wondered:
Aha… but look at how Ugandans differentiate… my (African) husband was called ‘Muzungu’ in our area of KLA because people thought he was African-American, and I (pasty Anglo-Saxon type) was called ‘muhindi'…!
Jennifer Eringaard disagreed with the idea of excluding Ugandans:
In my opinion it is rather small-minded to limit this group to ‘muzungus only’. Of course those with the white bf/gf motivations should be left out but already in many occasions have Ugandans provided good tips on this page. The name of this group ‘Muzungus in Uganda’ to me indicates a target group, not a colonial-type ‘ownership’ ruling out all others. One would hope we'd grown past all that….In my opinion, the page is great as it is right now, i.e. mixed.
Kari Mathisen asked:
My husband is an Ugandan citizen, would your suggestion mean I can be here but he can't?? Difficult to segregate I think.
She added:
Or maybe I don't qualify to be here either as I do not class myself as an expat nor a muzungu, having lived in Uganda for the last 30 years!
Eric Walford thought that membership should be open but certain types of content should not be allowed:
we should not restrict who should join but list the type of post that will be accepted,i.e. no personal ads etc. After all when you want a plumber or mechanic etc are you not looking for anyone including Ugandans etc to fulfil you wish. We are all one community living together irrelevant of tribe or colour with a common goal!!
Richard Davies disagreed saying that the group should remain ‘Mzungus in Uganda':
but what i like about here is if you want a plumber or a mechanic, people here recomend you one which you know is reliable and is not going to take advantage, steal ur petrol, over charge you for parts etc! I think it should stay Muzungus in Uganda… like the group name suggests.
Desta Abraham argued that excluding Uganda would be discriminatory:
The group should be open to anyone irrespective of nationality. The point of the group is to help people connect/obtain advice/assistance of a service and yes sometime inform people of activities that are of a social variety. If anybody(expat or not) abuses the purpose of the group then kick them out. But to be exclusionary because someone's name sounds “local” (which by the way I am an American citizen of Eritrean origin with an Eritrean name) is discriminatory and small minded. Anybody from anywhere can tell you where to buy LPG when there is a shortage or that a new sushi restaurant opened up or that something is going on at the National Theatre. A group that excludes on such a basis would be unacceptable in The US or Europe so why behave in such a way in Uganda?
The moderator of the group, Adam Williams, decided to clarify further:
There are millions of pages and groups on facebook and they are for specific target markets. I certainly wouldn't join a group set up for lesbians in Pakistan just because I live in Pakistan and wanted to see what they were saying. I'm not a lesbian. This group was set up for expatriates living in Uganda and, personally, if you're not an expatriate living in Uganda then why join the group? There are other groups, of which I am also members, such as trade links uganda with 35,000 other members all selling things in Uganada. This group isn't for that. I started this group for a purpose and that purpose needs to continue and I'm sorry if you and others may be offended by that but you are very welcome to start your own group and if I feel I am not someone who fits the bill of that group then I certainly wouldn't ask to join it – why would I? The best suggestion, if you're offended by this comment is to leave the group as maybe it's not for you.
He added:
Two men on bodaboda (popular motorbike-taxis) in Uganda. Photo courtesy of Daryona released under Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
And just to add… I don't think that by having a forum we are attempting to segregate ourselves!! It's simply a group for like minded individuals to come together to share ideas and views. As I have said before… there are many groups, such as a group of Arsenal supporters, all from London, now living in New York. They want to discuss football together as only they know how. They certainly don't want a bunch of New York Giants fans joining their group telling them that they are being racist as they are keeping themselves to themselves. NO. This is only one aspect of their lives that they want to remain that way. I'm sure these Arsenal fans live in New York for a reason, work with Americans, have American friends, eat apple pie, go to baseball games and love their lives in America. But they still want to connect with other Arsenal supporters now and again as only they know how to connect. I would never join that group. It's for them and I certainly wouldn't be offended that they set it up.
Jessica Snow supported Adam's arguments:
Adam/All, we are faced daily with the Ugandans/African mentality (not saying this is BAD at all, it is our way of life) but it is nice to know that we have a group facing the same challenges and issues as all of the other expats (or Muzungus). This group is a support system or crutch. I would appreciate if we could keep the group as it is, much like Claire states, so I don't get friend requests or proposals because I am a member. I joined save the Mabira Forest to try and help……I was scolded by locals for my suggestions and had at least 30 friend requests from making my opinions. I would much prefer not to have to endure that again. This group has saved my a$$ several times, but to extend it beyond is only going to cause confusion on what we share or need. I am not biased, I choose to live in Africa, but I will have to remove myself if this goes further.
She added:
And if you are offended by this group, that is so helpful and informative, then delete it from your facebook.
Jillian Larsen Okello observed that life is too complex to try to fit people into neat categories:
I wholeheartedly agree with Eric Walford & Desta Abraham. This inclusion/exclusion is impossible – how could you possibly determine if someone ‘belongs’ or they don't? Life is simply much too rich and complex to try to fit anyone into neat categories. Anyone of any nationality should be able to join the group, and I would welcome and encourage Ugandan participants. As Eric suggested, a simple list of posting rules that apply to everyone equally would resolve any concerns there might be.
Adam Williams wrote:
But there are other groups! This is not the only group on facebook. How about a group for Hindus in Paris. Should Christians in Beijing be welcome to join it?
Ray Clague Ray Clague argued that the word ‘mzungus” is too narrow:
Adam – Like i said before just change the name to expats in Uganda!! so any expat “Mzungu” or not can feel welcome.. if like you say its a forum for expats then say so clearly.. MZungu means white does it not? arent asians welcome , are turks Mzungus? african american, black english? change the name .. feels a bit right wing at the moment.. i personally know many expats ( whites ones) that wont join because of the name…ps arent there already a few ugandan as members? im sure ive seen a few post comments from ugandans.. or are they ok cos “we know them” “there one of us” .. later mate.. got to admit debates on this site ( cant even bring my self to say the name) are never dull…………..EXPATS in Uganda….people what do you think?
Jillian Larsen Okello wanted to know who is an expat:
I don't think it is necessarily so simple or easy to identify what you are referring to as ‘expats’. Does that mean you also exclude backpackers or tourists who ask to join and are just travelling through? How about visiting students or researchers? Journalists on short assignment? The Ugandan spouse of an expat? How about Ugandans who have lived or studied or grown up in the US? How about Kenyans from just across the border?

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Video: 6th Annual DoGooder Nonprofit Video Awards · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

Submissions are being accepted up to February 29th for the 6th Annual DoGooder Nonprofit Video Awards in four different categories: small, medium and large organizations and best storytelling.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Video: Sociology Cinema Gathers Videoclips for Lecture Topics · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

Online video is being used by sociology instructors at the University of Maryland to teach basic concepts and accompany lectures. In The Sociological Cinema Valerie Chepp, Paul Dean, and Lester Andrist edit and publish posts where video clips are tagged and referenced so that other sociology instructors can use videos to make their classes more interesting without having to spend the extra time finding the right video for a specific content.
In their Facebook page they explain:
The idea of The Sociological Cinema came to us over the course of several conversations in which we repeatedly found ourselves discussing our use of video clips in the classroom. Our experiences in the classroom taught us that videos were highly effective at illustrating course concepts and theories, supplementing analyses found in course texts, and keeping students more engaged. With our experiences confirmed by scholarship on teaching and learning, the pedagogical case for using video in the classroom was overwhelming.
Videoclips or videos do not necessarily have to be short: this 50 minute Al Jazeera documentary on the Bahraini Uprising is suggested as an introduction to the study social movements and “exploring the evolution and consequences of state tactics aimed at quelling the protests – both violent and non-violent.”
When studying globalization, inequality and communities, this next short videoclip titled The Miniature Earth is suggested:
Given that large numbers can be difficult to put into perspective (and thus important information about the world runs the risk of becoming meaningless or unremarkable), this video illustrates for students how the global community fares on such indicators as hunger, religious affiliation, literacy, wealth, education, government expenditures, among many others. The clip is not only useful for helping students understand global inequality and differences, but it also reminds students of the enormity of their own social privilege relative to the majority of the world.
Movies are also sources for videoclips, like this minute long example from Up In the Air, starring George Clooney, which serves to illustrate stereotyping. The Sociological Cinema also provides additional suggestions for reading material to accompany the lessons.
This clip shows comedian Anita Renfroe condensing the phrases a typical mother says to her children in the course of a day to the duration of the William Tell Overture. In the classroom, sociology students can first list role expectations of mothers, and then discuss the roles mothers have and also focus on gender role expectations of fathers.
Beyond being a repository for videos, the site is also a source for teaching advice and shared experiences when teaching sociology. In An Online Video Assignment (that is Fun to Grade!) instructors suggest turning the tables on the students, and asking them to look for videos which they will categorize and tag as a way for them to apply their knowledge:
In the process, students do the same analytical exercise that we do in the classroom with clips found elsewhere on this site. The learning outcomes are for students to 1) become familiar with using and applying sociological concepts; 2) use their sociological imagination to engage familiar content; 3) teach each other through the course blog; and 4) become more critical media consumers. The upside for me is that I have interesting and engaging assignments with which I can evaluate them (of course, the videos must be short to make this a time effective exercise to grade).


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Yemen: Yemeni Protesters Greet Saleh With a Shoe in New York · Global Voices
Noon Arabia

This post is part of our special coverage Yemen Protests 2011.
Yemenis in New York threw a shoe in the direction of outgoing Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, whom they say should be standing before the International Criminal Court (ICC) and not staying at Manhattan's Luxury Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The shoe did not hit Saleh but sent home the message that Yemenis are angry he is getting pampered instead of facing justice for his crimes against the Yemeni people.
On Thursday February 2, 2012, a press conference was organized in front of the Ritz Carlton, where Yemenis and Yemeni Americans standing on the sidewalk opposite the hotel expressed their anger by waving placards with slogans saying “democracies should not host dictators,” as well as photographs of people who were killed in Yemen's year-long revolution.
Amel Ahmed @iiamelii, a NYC-based freelance writer, law student and member of the Yemeni American Coalition for Change speaking to Democracy Now (video starts at “10:45) said:
Dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh is staying at this hotel, so we came out to protest the fact that our government would allow him into this country to begin with. We don’t feel that he should be here in the United States of America. We think it sends the wrong message to the Middle East, if you’re saying that you support democracy in the Middle East, and you’re anti-extremism in the Middle East, then you shouldn’t be supporting dictators. You should be supporting people on the ground who are calling for a democracy. I mean, for years, we’ve criticized the Muslim world, for turning to extremism and not sharing the same democratic values, meanwhile we have an entire generation that’s rising up and demanding democracy, and meanwhile, you’re hosting a dictator in a five-star hotel. The message is conflicting, and there should be a consistent message coming from the White House.”
Another protester rally was staged on Sunday (Feb 5), when Saleh himself exited the Ritz Carlton, confirming his debatable stay at the hotel. Protesters shouted at him, “O'Afash (an offensive name given to Saleh by Yemenis) you will be prosecuted for killing innocent people,” when Saleh provokingly waved at them and blew kisses at them as shown in this video (posted by: ahmedfathinyc) prompting a shoe to be hurled at him from a protester. Another tried to cross the police barricade but was arrested.
@SummerNasser, who was at the protest, tweeted:
@SummerNasser: SALEH CAME OUT OF THE RITZ, throwing kisses at us. one protester tried to run across the street to go after him. He got arrested!!!!!
@SummerNasser: The chants that we said were: “ICC not NYC” ; “Shame On Ritz for hosting criminals” ; Obama must choose a side, Human rights or genocide”
@SummerNasser: I can't believe I saw the man that killed thousands of my people back home. No words to describe what I was feeling. No words..
She tweeted a photograph of a sign another fellow activist, Ahlam Said, was carrying:
@SummerNasser: @AhlamS's sign for the rally today. pic.twitter.com/elI9JIU7
A sign Ahlam Said was carrying in the protest in front of the Ritz Carlton Hotel in New York
@AhlamS, an online organizer and daughter of Yemeni immigrants, tweeted:
While Yemenis at Guantanamo bay r being tortured w/out a trial, Saleh is livin it up at the ritz carlton. THE RITZ! #yemen
@AhlamS added:
video of #Saleh n NY waving & throwing kisses at the #Yemeni protestors. Medical treatment my @$$. He looks fine 2 me ht.ly/8Tb7e
She finally added:
@monaeltahawy picture of us with the shoe that was few feet frm hitting #Yemen's brutal dictator #Saleh ow.ly/i/rHHG
@SamWaddah expressed what the majority of Yemenis felt:
@SummerNasser @AhlamS Proud of you guys! Saleh has faced humiliation today like never before!
@wsaqaf tweeted with irony:
Protester who threw #Saleh with shoe in #NYC got arrested by police yet when Saleh threw bombs at his people, he was rewarded!
A statement issued by the Yemeni American Coalition for Change, the organizers of the rally said:
[We] are outraged and disgusted with our government's decision to grant the dictator temporary haven and diplomatic immunity….We demand with a unified voice that that these hotel chains respond to what the international community has classified as the work of war criminals.
Yemenis, especially the Yemeni-American community living in the US have been protesting against Saleh's visit to the US, which was under the pretext of seeking medical treatment. Many believe Saleh is in the US for a treat rather than a medical treatment. When the Obama administration decided in December to permit Saleh to visit the country, an official said that NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital would be providing his treatment, but the hospital has not confirmed that report.
Update: If the purpose of the visit to the US was really medical @GregoryDJohnsen suggested:
This all could have been avoided http://nyti.ms/zjvMjA Instead of bringing Salih to the US, could have brought US doctors to Salih in Saudi
This post is part of our special coverage Yemen Protests 2011.

author: Noon Arabia


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Zambia: Netizens Weigh in on Labour Minister, Chinese Quarrel · Global Voices
Gershom Ndhlovu

Zambian netizens have weighed in on the quarrel involving the former Labour Minister Chishimba Kambwili, the Chief Medical Officer of the Chinese-run Sino-Zam Friendly Hospital in the mining region of the Copperbelt and the Chinese Ambassador to Zambia. The hospital was once owned by the state mining conglomerate, Zambia Consolidated Copper  Mines (ZCCM) before it was broken up and its assets privatised.
Kambwili who served as Foreign Minister in the first ruling Patriotic Front government cabinet before he was transferred to the Labour Ministry, ordered the revocation of the Chief Medical Officer Xisheng Quing’s work permit for allegedly mistreating workers at the hospital and exhibiting rude behaviour to the minister. The Chief Medical Officer complained that the minister was rude for pointing a finger at him while talking.
Chishimba Kambwili. Photo source: Chishimba Kambwili Facebook page.
Kambwili is now Minister of Sports, Youth and Gender after President Sata moved the Labour portfolio to Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Ambassador Zhou Yuxiao was quoted as saying that Kambwili must be moderate in handling labour-related matters concerning foreign investors in Zambia, further saying that there was only one party in Africa, Zambia’s Patriotic Front, that made China an issue.
Ambassador Zhou said:
I do not know why this is so, because Chinese input in Africa is the largest among all African countries but the approval rate of China by Zambia is the lowest among all African countries. That doesn't mean China is doing the worst in Zambia. There is only one political party (PF) in Africa that makes China an issue.
Netizens on various online platforms were divided in their reaction to Kambwili’s behaviour at the hospital with some supporting his actions and others disapproving.
Samfya Mafia, in a rather lengthy comment on Lusaka Times, had this to say:
Dear Minister of Labor,
May I begin by congratulating you on your recent appointment and your gallant effort in trying to restore normal work conditions in the mining industry.
In light of the recent events at Sinozam Friendly Hospital, I have a few concerns, which I would like to bring to your attention.
It is possible, for anyone to write a letter to you making allegations against their employers. Did, the authors of the letters you received append their names, so you could be able to properly verify these allegations? If they did not indicate their names, which is comprehensible, did you then give the alleged contraveners of Labor law an opportunity to explain themselves? Our Employment Act gives heavy emphasis on the observance of natural Justice when dealing with a person against whom allegations have been made. If you did indeed give the other party an opportunity to be heard was it in a free and fair environment, furthermore, did you actually give them a chance to speak and on your part listen to their explanation?
Sir, you have a great task ahead of you. Being one of the people who were present at the Hospital on the fateful day, I could see that the environment was emotionally charged, and it appears that it was very easy for you to fall for playing to the Gallery. However, as a leader you have to hold your calm and not allow yourself to be influenced by only the emotions of the people, you will have to more importantly ensure that the allegations when made are substantiated.
In a Facebook post, Musamba Chama Mumba wrote:
Well, well now the Chinese Ambassador Zhou challenges Hon Chishimba Kambwili to pick 10 Zambian Companies and 10 Chinese owned, then compare the wages paid to workers. Sort your house first before you point fingers at others? My question is why then do you come into our country disguised as investors and excepted to certain taxes when in fact you are nothing but ordinary locals? And please learn when to open your mouth, because Hon Kambwili Chishimba has the backing of many Zambians on this one.
In a response to Mumba’s post, Milimo Mutale wrote:
I remember so many delegations going to China wooing these investors and granting them the incentives. We invite them because we want their money. We sell our companies for a song and benefit personally so our hands are tied. We need to sort out our mess for sure. Fire non performing civil servants. Begin to enforce all laws across the board. Scrutinize so called investors and give them the talk before while and after they set up- that we will not tolerate labour abuse or shoddy work. That their work is subject to regulation and inspection. Its time to act! And act by permanent solutions and when the investors still violates enter the minister on a white steed . To the rescue! Lol
Joe Chilaizya  – if his is a genuine profile, he is Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation director-general – wrote:
How much do we pay our own workers??? Look at how abused domestic workers, farm laborers are in Zambia at the hands of fellow Zambians….We must be THE standard ourselves because foreigners will only pay according to the standard they find….Its so easy to blame chinese investors on this matter, but they are only doing what the “romans” (in Zambia) do – abuse workers!…..for instance how many Zambians employed by zambians on this forum can say they are adequately paid? Almost none!!!!…..Thats the tragic tale! We cheapen our own skilled labour when we offer it low salaries and wages. Foreign investors only pay what WE ZAMBIANS pay our fellow citizens.
On Twitter, @missbwalya wrote:
@missbwalya: Nice to know that Kambwili is willing to die for Zambian workers. This guy is an attention seeking clown. #Zambia
BradleysEvents wrote:
@BradleysEvents: #Kambwili had the interests of the Zambians at heart but his work methods were tottally wrong. He was not diplomatic & lacked ettiquett
@BradleysEvents added:
@BradleysEvents: #Kambwili works thru militancy & forcefulness. He won't change, he will take those ills with him to the ministry of sport & youth
@ssepiso tweeted:
@ssepiso: Things not looking pretty for Chishimba Kambwili. Trying too hard to impress as Labour Minister and ends up misrepresenting #Sata. #Zambia
On the issue of the minister pointing finger at the medical officer, @zadama24 said:
@zadama24: “Mr Kambwili the Chinese may mistake the finger pointing for a Karate or Kungfu move!” bit.ly/ziViIB
President Sata later cautioned ministers to stick to procedure and respect investors as well. Ironically, the PF issued the most anti-Chinese rhetoric among opposition parties before last year’s elections which ousted the MMD after 20 years in power.

author: Gershom Ndhlovu


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Africa: Do You Need a Handbook For Bush Flying?  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

“Low timer pilots handbook to bush flying?,” Bush Pilot in Swakopund asks:  “I was wondering if any of you would be interested in an e-book that has all the information about the where's, how's and what's of the job hunt in Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania (and also some other information I have).


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Bahamas: University of the Bahamas?  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Larry Smith at Bahama Pundit wonders what the keep-back is with establishing a Bahamian university, saying: “An autonomous university would be a big step to achieving such a counterweight to political inertia (and I suspect that's the real issue here).”


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Balkans: Online Platform Tracks Reports From Areas Hit by Record Snowfall · Global Voices
Danica Radisic

Since last week, the Balkans have been hit by massive snow storms, the likes of which have not been seen in over a decade, if not longer. After an unusually long period of nearly no real signs of a typical Balkan winter, last week brought what seems to be non-stop snowfall throughout the region, including the seaside areas around the Adriatic that seldom get any snow.
Men shoveling snow from a street in Sarajevo. Record snowfall has paralyzed transportation in the Bosnian capital, where a state of emergency has now been declared. Photo by Sulejman Omerbasic, copyright © Demotix (5/02/12).
Serbia's national television network, RTS, and other media reported on Friday 3 February, 2012, that a state of emergency has been declared by the government, while citizens have been reporting critical situations throughout the country and that municipal services have been doing a poor job of tackling the snowfall in many urban areas.
In an article titled “Serbia Blocked by Snow, State of Emergency in 27 Municipalities, Recommendation to Call Off School Attendance” [sr], the Head of the State of Emergency Sector of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs, Predrag Maric, is reported to have stated on Friday:
27 municipalities in Serbia have declared a state of emergency due to heavy snowfall. Maric has told Beta news agency that the most difficult situations are in Sjenica, Ivanjica, Prijepolje, Crna Trava and Surdulica, where the height of snow has reached approximately 2 meters. According to him, power supply is “relatively good,” outages are being fixed quickly and there have been no long power outages.
Maric also announced the possibility of declaring a full state of emergency nationwide, which the Government did on Sunday evening, cancelling school throughout Serbia at least until Friday, February 10, among other things.
Several actions have been organized by the online community in Serbia and the region to fend off the snow and to attempt to regain a functional state in urban areas at least, such as a #lopataup (“#shovelup”), organized by one online community leader, Zoran Torbica, and other local Twitter users.
In the meantime, Al Jazeera Balkans, the recently established regional office of Al Jazeera news network in the region, has joined forces with the team from Ushahidi to set up a platform for tracking verified information on everything from road blocks, power outages to other critical points and information in the entire region.
Ushahidi is an open-source platform for information collection, visualization and interactive mapping, which was also used in Serbia just after the earthquake in Kraljevo in November 2010 to map and track damage in the area.
Haris Alisic, who heads the New Media team for Al Jazeera Balkans, launched the platform on Sunday evening, and many members of the online community, including some of the region's GV authors, have joined the Al Jazeera-Ushahidi team in curating, tracking and verifying reports from the region.
The adapted Ushahidi platform can be located on Al Jazeera's official site, while reports can be sent in by anyone using the following channels:
- via SMS to +387644218661
– via Twitter by using the hashtags #kolaps #sneg #snijeg #lopataup #iskljucenje
– via email to oluja2012@aljazeera.net
– or by entering information directly into the form on the”pošaljite izvještaj” tab on the Al Jazeera page
If you would like to volunteer your time to help map critical areas and are familiar with using online tools, please contact the author of this article, or Haris Alisic via Twitter, or leave a comment here on Global Voices, and we will contact you for more information on what you can do to help. We also ask that you all begin reporting from your area on Twitter and using the above-mentioned hashtags on Twitter, which are automatically collected by the platform and then reviewed and verified by Al Jazeera and volunteers.
Bosnian men are trying to push a car away from the deep snow. Photo by Sulejman Omerbasic, copyright © Demotix (5/02/12).

author: Danica Radisic


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Brazil: Folha, The Second Best-Selling Newspaper · Global Voices
Raphael Tsavkko Garcia

Teacher Chico Bicudo [pt] and journalist Lino Bocchini from the blog Desculpe a Nossa Falha [pt] comment on the fact that the newspaper Folha de São Paulo still declares itself as the number one newspaper in Brazil while the country's institute that verifies the circulation of newspapers denies it.

author: Raphael Tsavkko Garcia


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Brazil: Indigenous Guarani Kaiowá’s Letter Asks for Survival · Global Voices
Raphael Tsavkko Garcia

Blogger Sonia Matuscelli posts a letter [pt] written by the leaders of the Guarani-Kaiowá people of the Ñanderu Laranjeira-Rio Brilhante settlement, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, saying that they “want to physically and culturally survive as a Brazilian original people”, in face of the genocide they are suffering.


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Bulgaria: Severe Flooding Emergency · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

GV Author Ruslan Trad is tweeting – here, here, here, and here – about the severe flooding in southern Bulgaria, which was caused by heavy rainfall of the past few days and has killed at least eight people in the village of Bisser. The latest tweet came about an hour ago: “Breaking: Maritsa River’s dike broke close to the village of Generalovo, municipality of Svilenhrad, huge wave.” More photos from the disaster in the village of Bisser – at the Facebook page [bg] of the Bulgarian National TV's fundraising effort to help the victims.

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Cuba: Exit Visa as Punishment  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Bloggers republish Amnesty International's statement on the Cuban authorities’ decision to deny blogger Yoani Sanchez permission to travel overseas, noting that they “[use] exit permits to punish freedom of expression.”


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Cuba: Fatal Collapse in Downtown Havana Stirs Online Debate  · Global Voices
Ellery Roberts Biddle

Over the last three weeks, two buildings have collapsed in downtown Havana. Located on Calzada de Infanta, a bustling thoroughfare that runs from the Vedado section of the city to Old Havana, the first building to fall killed three of its inhabitants and severely injured six more. There were no fatalities or injuries with the fall of the second building, an old theater that was no longer in use.
Bloggers from Voces Cubanas [es] and Havana Times saw the incidents as clear evidence of state officials’ negligence of housing conditions in the city.
Generacion Y‘s [es] Yoani Sánchez wrote (English translation here):
Calzada de Infanta, in Havana. Photo by Flickr user amycgx (CC: BY – NC)
¿Qué solución urgente se aplicará para que esas tragedias no sigan siendo parte del escenario cotidiano? No vamos a aceptar una respuesta al estilo de que “se está estudiando el tema para aplicar soluciones de manera paulatina”. Tampoco nos vengan ahora con que la culpa la tienen los propios moradores que se quedaron en un lugar inhabitable. ¿A dónde hubieran podido ir? En lugar de eso exigimos que se construya, se repare, se nos proteja.
Sin EVAsion's [es] Miriam Celaya wrote that such incidents have become “commonplace” in the city, but that the first received much greater attention than usual, due to the building's central location, and reports of the collapse by citizens using Twitter.
As Twitter users and bloggers reported on the incident, Celaya wrote that the state press had little choice but to cover it as well. She criticized their approach to the story (English translation here):
La prensa revolucionaria aprovechó la desgracia para resaltar la importancia de la intervención del Cuerpo de Bomberos, la Policía Nacional Revolucionaria, los servicios médicos de urgencia y las autoridades de la provincia y de los municipios Centro Habana y Plaza de la Revolución. Ellos fueron, a juzgar por los medios, los verdaderos protagonistas. La tragedia humana palidecía y se empequeñecía frente a la grandeza de las instituciones revolucionarias.
She summarizes the article about the collapse that appeared in the print version of the national daily, Granma [es], on Thursday, January 19:
“la actuación coordinada e intensa” de “las fuerzas del Cuerpo de Bomberos y los servicios médicos de urgencia en el rescate de las víctimas y en el empeño de salvar la vida de los que se encontraban atrapados”, como si esa no fuera exactamente la función que se espera deben cumplir dichos cuerpos; o como si los derrumbes fuesen un accidente del clima o un mero capricho arquitectónico. Algo inesperado, impredecible, antojadizo, casual.
Isbel Díaz Torres, at Havana Times, wrote of the many buildings in Havana that have fallen into disrepair and described how government policies have left Cubans with little capacity to repair their homes:
From what has been announced, the new formula designed by the government to provide home improvement loans and grants doesn’t allow for major structural work, which is what is required for many of the dilapidated buildings that abound across the capital, particularly in the municipalities of Centro Havana and Old Havana.
[…]
Of course many of the buildings are in such deteriorated states of construction that the only plausible solution would be their demolition. This, however, is impossible without a housing option for those people still living in them.

author: Ellery Roberts Biddle


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Cuba: Get Mad  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Without Evasion shares her wish for 2012: “To see Cuba full of angry people, for it is on that day that we will be closer to such longed for rights and democracy.”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Cuba: Letters to the Editor · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

Elaine Díaz comments on and critiques the state-run newspaper Granma's publishing politics of letters from [es] the readers.

author: Firuzeh Shokooh Valle


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Cuba: New Angle on Wilman Villar Case · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

The Miami Herald reports that the widow of Wilman Villar -the Cuban prisoner who died recently after a hunger strike purportedly in protest against the government- has confirmed that her husband was put in jail after being arrested for domestic violence.


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Cuba: On Yoani Sánchez and Dilma Rousseff · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

La Pupila Insomne republishes a ferocious critique of the press coverage [es] of Yoani Sánchez's plea to the President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff to intervene with the Cuban government to grant her the exit permit to travel to Brasil for the screening of a documentary in which she appears.


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Cuba: Young Activist  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Pedazos de la Isla blogs about a sixteen-year-old dissident who “calls on ‘all Cuban students’ to join the resistance to end with the Castro dictatorship.”


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East Timor Presidential Candidates · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Centru Jornalista Investigativu Timor Leste uploads the list of presidential candidates in East Timor who have registered with the Court.


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Gambia: International Chef Talks About Working in the Gambia · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Kathryn interviews Jonathan Groves, the executive chef at Ngala Lodge in the Gambia: “Have you ever cooked for 900 people for a wedding and have 1,500 turn up! No, unsurprisingly, me neither. Jonathan Groves, the superb chef at Ngala Lodge has.”


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Ghana: Three ICT Books Launched · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Three ICT books have been launched in Ghana, Seth Bokpe reports: “THREE books on Information Communication Technology (ICT) have been launched in Accra to enhance the teaching and learning of the subject in educational institutions.”


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Guatemala: The Role of Women in Decision Making · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Hector Javier Tecum blogs about the role of women in Guatemalan politics for Americas Quarterly [es]. He argues that the inclusion of women in decision-making positions is still a challenge for the country.

author: Silvia Viñas


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Internet Radio and Podcasts from Ecuador · Global Voices
Juan Arellano

All links lead to Spanish-language websites unless otherwise noted
Campus Party Quito was held after the Free Culture Congress in October 2011 in Quito, Ecuador [en] (see reports here). In a previous post [en] we shared some video interviews with people present at that event. We are presenting a few more of these people because they showcase internet radio and podcasts from Ecuador.
We start with the team at Radialistas, an entrepreneurial company that now has had more than 10 years of production and distribution of radio content by traditional mediums and the internet. In addition, they organized the Free Culture Congress. Unfortunately due to scheduling complications we were not able to speak directly but from their own words on their website we learn about their mission:
Nuestra misión es contribuir a la democratización de las comunicaciones, especialmente de la radio, desde las perspectivas de género y ciudadanía. Somos un centro de producción al servicio de radialistas de todos los continentes, priorizando América Latina y el Caribe.
In their website we can find a lot of material, from videos to radio productions organized by subject: Culture, Harmony, Ecology, Training, Human Rights, Women, Gender, Sexuality and Specials. But they also have a very interesting section on books and guides: Must-read Guide for Content Producers, Sexual and Reproductive Rights Guide, Citizen Radio, Guide for Technically Illiterate Content Producers and more.
As an example of their radio productions we are sharing this audio clip (link includes audio transcript in Spanish) titled “The Secret of the Herbs. Tsáchilas or painted indians, the best folk healers of Ecuador” from their series “Living Roots“. You can also find Radialistas on Facebook and Twitter.
THE SECRET OF THE HERBS
 Radialistas.net
Another initiative that has to be mentioned with internet radio in Ecuador is Radio Turismo Ecuador. As their name indicates, they publish content on tourism in Ecuador and have been doing so for a little over a year. Here they share their mission:
Difundimos y promocionamos la imagen de Ecuador, un país de gente amable y emprendedora; de riqueza étnica, natural y cultural, e impulsamos a través del Centro de Negocios y Servicios Turísticos de la Radio, actividades directa e indirectamente vinculadas con la industria del turismo.
Radio Turismo Ecuador was present at Campus Party and broadcast a special 5 hour program from there. There is a summary of highlights on their website. Because of their participation in Campus Party we were able to meet with them, including their manager Mayra Clavijo:
Even though their productions are made for online streaming, there are some programs available as downloadable podcasts. You can follow Radio Turismo Ecuador on Facebook and Twitter. An excellent example of their work is the program “Interview with Carlos Nuñez,” where Nuñez skeaps about his findings on the migrations from Ecuador to Central America and Mexico.
And finally we want to highlight more traditional podcasts that have a style similar to blogging. Adrian Paliz, Dennis Pazmiño and Diego Cevallos have created a group of podcasts, now numbering 20, which they call Ctrl Alt Freak:
…es un podcast quincenal, que de forma divertida y un tanto freak, habla de temas de actualidad acerca de tecnología, internet en general, software, series, cine, video juegos y demás temas a fines. Los temas que este podcast trata, son el compendio de lo mas relevante y comentando en la semana, así como también de temas que por su importante “recuerdo”, no lo pasamos por alto.
During Campus Party, we were able to speak with Dennis about how Ctrl Alt Freak came about, what they do to keep it going and more.
In their last podcast they covered some interesting subjects. During their “Music” section they speak about open database Musicbrainz, which is collaboratively maintained by users. In their “Our Listeners” section they read comments made on their blog, social networks and podcast broadcasting services. Their third section spoke about developments on the internet front, discussing SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act), which was being pushed forward in the U.S. Congress:
Ctrl Alt Freak has a presence on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.
If you know of more great podcasts from Ecuador, leave us a comment with the details.

author: Juan Arellano


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Italy: More Protests Against Austerity and Information Deficit · Global Voices
Ylenia Gostoli

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.
The many protest movements that followed the implementation of austerity measures in a number of European countries dealing with the sovereign debt crisis, should have taught us that when a national economy is left at the mercy of interest rates and financial markets, sooner or later you can expect its people to express their discontent. Especially in a country, like Italy, already strained by years of government mismanagement, and where to the budget and democratic deficits, an information deficit needs to be added to the equation.
Since mid-January, Italy has been swept by a wave of protests, which began in Sicily with the mobilisation of farmers, truck drivers and fishermen, mostly small business owners, later joined by the Sicilian population at large, including waged workers, students and the unemployed. The movement goes by the name of Forza d'Urto [it] (“shock force”), better known as “the Pitchforks Movement”.
The Pitchforks Movement, image from Facebook.
From January 16, trucks brought the island's roads and motorways to a standstillfor six days through at least 26 blockades, disrupting the circulation of goods and bringing business to a halt, with long cues for petrol and empty supermarket shelves.
The protests later spread to other regions [it], with strikes and blockades all over Italy. In Rome, during a fishermen demonstration in front of the Chamber of Deputies, three demonstrators were reported injured. A mass mobilisation against the austerity package implemented by Prime Minister Mario Monti and his cabinet, lamenting especially the steep rise in the price of petrol. However, during the first few days of the protests, the Italian media was largely silent, except for a few local newspapers, as Marco Cedolin points out in his blog Il Corrosivo [it]:
I media mainstream in queste stesse ore tacciono, reputando (e lasciando intendere) che in Sicilia non stia accadendo nulla che meriti attenzione, tutto tranquillo e nessun problema.
Davvero la protesta in questione è una vicenda d’importanza ed incidenza così minimale da non meritare neppure un servizietto di 50 secondi, di quelli che comunemente vengono dedicati perfino al nuovo tatuaggio sfoggiato dal vip di turno?
The sectors on strike are protesting against the government liberalisation package, but are also united by a sense of disenfranchisement from the whole of the “political caste”: fishermen who claim to be no longer able to sustain the costs of running their business because of excise tax; truckers who can't afford to transport goods at the low fee determined by open market competition because of rising petrol costs. Because of this, the mobilisation was met with a lot of skepticism and accusations that it merely represents a set of narrow interests.
On Fuori Onda Blog [it] David Incamicia reflects this position, which tends to criticise the movement for putting all the blame on the current government, which last November inherited from Berlusconi a country with a broken economy and a shattered international reputation:
Le piazze in rivolta avevano certamente motivo d'essere fino a qualche settimana fa, quando l'irresponsabilità di “un sol uomo al comando” e la sua ostinata resistenza al potere hanno finito per rendere ancor più dura e di difficile risoluzione la pesante situazione sociale del Paese (…)
Ma oggi, proprio per evitare il tracollo definitivo, occorre che tutti giochino nella stessa squadra (…) Gli egoismi vanno rimossi senza se e senza ma. Così come l'ancora poderosa demagogia che arringa a destra e a manca.
Those taking to the squares certainly had every reason to do so until a few weeks ago, when the irresponsibility of a “one man-leadership” and his stubborn refusal to give up power only made a resolution even more difficult for the country's already tense social fabric.
But today, precisely in order to avoid an irreversible downfall, everyone needs to play in the same team (…) Selfish interests need to be removed with no ifs and no buts. The same goes for the strong demagogic discourse coming from right and left.
While those keen to seize the opportunity to voice criticism of the current government (like the far-right party Lega Nord, now at the opposition) seem to ignore that the farmers movement (or Pitchforks Movement) was actually born last summer [it], and that fishermen have been organising strikes since 2008, there persists an inability (or lack of willpower?) to define the nature of the movement, which paves the way to confusion and exploitation for different political ends.
During the strikes, mainstream media focused on alleged mafia infiltrations [it] and the death of a trucker in Asti [it], while on Facebook the pages devoted to or associated with the movement proliferated, revealing, among other things, a number of links [it] with the neofascist movement Forza Nuova, which supports the Pitchforks. Commonly used hash tags on Twitter were #fermosicilia, #forzadurto e #forconi.
The following comment by Veneti stufi [it] on what labels itself the movement's official Facebook page [it] is representative of this confusion:
Non capisco più nulla, pagine colme di rabbia e non di vera indignazione/protesta, ma quali sono i VERI FORCONI? Il sito non è attivo, ognuno in rete dice tutto ed il contrario di tutto, USATE la rete e coinvolgete le persone, non date modo di strumentalizzarvi.
However, at the various marches organised in various cities around Sicily, including Gela (in the video) and Palermo, there were students, the unemployed and young people with all kinds of political affiliations, as demonstrated by the following press release [it] signed by the Studentato Autogestito Anomalia [it] (Anomaly autonomous student centre) e dal Laboratorio Vittorio Arrigoni [it] (Workshop Vittorio Arrigoni), two of the city's main social centres:
La protesta popolare che si sta diffondendo in Sicilia come tutte le proteste di questo tipo sono complesse, di massa e contradditorie, ma di sicuro parlano il linguaggio della lotta contro la globalizzazione, contro equitalia e lo strozzinaggio legalizzato che sta mettendo in miseria larghe fasce della societa’ siciliana , contro la casta politica di destra e di sinistra (…)
Noi, militanti di centri sociali e di spazi occupati della citta’ di Palermo, sosterremo la lotta di “forconi” e autotrasportatori perchè frutto di una giusta battaglia e perchè ricca di positive e “incompatibili” energie; per questo, come sempre, saremo al fianco di chi lotta contro la crisi e questo intollerabile sistema.
According to Marco Cedolin [it], the protest deserves attention because it tries to go beyond the ideological divide:
Non so quanta “fortuna” avrà la protesta dei Forconi che sta paralizzando la Sicilia, così come non conosco le prospettive di una movimentazione che sembra manifestarsi (per la prima volta in Italia) realmente trasversale, abiurando i partiti e tentando di mettere nel cassetto le divisioni settarie fra “rossi e neri” che da sempre minano alla radice qualsiasi battaglia in questo disgraziato paese, conducendola ogni volta sul binario morto della diffidenza e dei distinguo.
The failure of public opinion to comprehend the nature of the protests is also, and perhaps especially, the failure of the mass media to tell the story, another legacy of the Berlusconi years (Italy is 61st in Reporters Without Borders’ world press freedom index 2011-12, and one which politicians still hesitate dealing with [it]. For Davide Grasso, writing on the blog Quiete o Tempesta [it], the Pitchfork protest was:
l’ennesimo successo a metà del sistema italiano dell’informazione. Successo nel combattere le aspirazioni dei soggetti sociali che scelgono la strada della protesta ma fallimento (opposto e speculare) nel comprendere e riportare un rilevante fenomeno sociale.
Lastly, Nicola Spinella writes on Agoravox [it]:
Il celebre motto “divide et impera” rivela ancora oggi, dopo due millenni, la propria immortalità: è bastato agitare davanti al popolo il fantasma della mafia infiltrata nelle fila degli autotrasportatori, assimilarli a sigle dell'estrema destra, per ridurre la protesta ad un fuoco di paglia. Difficile pronosticare uno scenario futuro per tutta un'Italia scossa dal salasso Monti e da un ventennio di malgoverno berlusconiano.
The dialogue between the government and the movement appears to have reached a standstill, and a new wave of protests was due to start on Monday 6 February, with sit-ins in a number of sicilian towns and cities. A few of these have been reported, but it looks like the planned occupation of seaports and oil refineries has been postponed.  Long queues at petrol stations in Messina were reported on Saturday 4 February, allegedly in preparation for the strikes.
This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.

author: Ylenia Gostoli


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Kyrgyzstan: World Bank Country Director Storms Out of Round Table · Global Voices
Chris Rickleton

For Kyrgyzstan-based netizens the story of last week was undoubtedly the sudden and violent meltdown of Alexander Kramer, head of the World Bank's Bishkek office, at a high level government-donor round table on February 3, 2012.
Kramer appeared to boil over during a speech by his IMF counterpart, Koba Gvenetadze, during which he rose from his chair, lobbed a drinking glass in the direction of Kyrgyz Deputy Prime Minister Jomart Otorbayev, and stormed out of the meeting.
David Trilling, Eurasianet's Central Asia editor, was one of the first to blog the news:
The incident occurred during a donor meeting at government headquarters, known as the White House, in Bishkek. According to one eyewitness, Kramer had just spoken for a few minutes, praising recent government initiatives and encouraging Bishkek to ensure officials are chosen for their merits. He defended the World Bank’s sometimes slow motions in the country, noting that development is “a marathon rather than a sprint,” according to EurasiaNet's source. During the next set of remarks, by the International Monetary Fund’s country director, Kramer suddenly stood up, yelled, “This is all crap!” and threw the glass, which shattered on the floor in front of Otorbayev.
Although the Kyrgyz government and the World Bank offered slightly different versions of the condition that caused Alexander Kramer to “totally freak out“, as one online news agency put it, both agreed that it was something to do with blood.
According [ru] to citizen media portal Kloop.kg:
The World Bank argues that the office head performed the act solely because of his sharply deteriorating health. The glass, they say, was thrown by accident, and now Kramer is in hospital.
“The act of A. Kramer was caused solely by the state of his health: there was a sudden onset of circulatory disorders of the brain, which led to the extraordinary and unusual behavior of A. Kramer,” said the World Bank in a press release.
The government press service similarly reported that the behavior of Kramer was the result of a “heart attack”.
Tellingly, Kloop's reportage continued:
The World Bank has apologized for the behavior of the head of its office and said that the incident had nothing to do with the person speaking at the time – the head of the International Monetary Fund in Kyrgyzstan, Koba Gvenetadze.
It is no secret that officials from the fund and the bank often regard each other with suspicion and occasionally even hostility. In fact, the dysfunctional relationship between the global economic order's bad and good cops was the subject of a fascinating chapter in ex-World Bank Chief Economist Joseph Stieglitz's 2002 whistleblowing best-seller “Globalization and its Discontents”. But if the IMF's abrasive, take no prisoners approach to fiscal policy in the developing world was the source of Kramer's red mist, why did the tumbler land closest to Deputy PM Otorbayev?
Twitter user @Ahmadon had [ru] another theory:
Hahaha, Alexander Kramer – hero, man, baike [elder brother in Kyrgyz], you see, he couldn’t be f***ed to listen to the empty chatter of our state officials
A second Twitter user, @azzzik, compared [ru] Kramer to ex-presidential candidate turned nutty clairvoyant Arstanbek Abdylaev, the subject of this recent Global Voices Post. However, post-tumblergate, Abdylaev's premonitions of ruptures in the international political order seem suddenly prescient, and a third user of the service suggested Sabri bey, a Turkish man who thinks he can fly, was a more worthy parallel.
A few days on from the scandle, the focus of Bishkek Twiterazzi is on Kramer's future:
@ajoroev: Is it true that Alexander Kramer is already the ex-head of the World Bank in Kyrgyzstan and moreover, [already] overseas?
While the former has yet to be confirmed, various agencies have since reported that he is now recuperating in London.
Whatever happens to Alexander Kramer in the long run, it is clear that one projectile-throwing monkey won't stop the show. Yesterday, the World Bank announced that it would be providing nearly $20 million in infrastructural funding for Kyrgyzstan's two main cities, Bishkek and Osh, in 2012. Whether that package will include compensation for a certain smashed glass will doubtless be the subject of a future round table.

author: Chris Rickleton


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Latin America: Energy Podcasts in English · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Setty recommends the Institute of the Americas’ English-language podcast series on energy in Latin America.