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The Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal tracks government performance and gives power back to people · Global Voices
Emma Lewis

Screenshot of the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal's home page. The website aims to empower citizens to play an active role as part of the country’s oversight system.
In a region where governments are hardly taken to task for a lack of transparency or corrupt practices, Jamaica may have finally found a way to monitor performance and demand more of its elected officials.
Launched in the last quarter of 2019, the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP) is a ground-breaking website designed to track government performance — including abuse of public office and law-breaking — by giving citizens unfettered access to their political representatives and educating them about the way their government works.
Constructed around an Account-A-Meter that allows individuals, civil society organisations, media houses, researchers — and the government itself via parliamentary oversight committees — to keep track of policy or regulations breaches, the site gives visitors direct access to accountability officers.
There are other useful features: an MP [Minister of Parliament] Tracker that brings constituents into closer contact with their parliamentary representatives and allows citizens to assess their performance; and a real-time Legislative Tracker, which monitors the progression of bills through the two Houses of Parliament and gives citizens the ability to communicate with their elected leaders.
The brainchild of Jeanette Calder, JAMP is a non-partisan, non-governmental, nonprofit company dedicated to improving governance in Jamaica. I met with Calder at her office in Kingston to discuss how she hopes JAMP will bridge the gap between policymakers and citizens, as her small dog Baxter listened in. What came through most strongly throughout our interview is that Calder is upbeat and hopeful for positive change.
Founder and executive director of the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal, Jeanette Calder. Photo credit: JAMP, used with permission.
Emma Lewis (EL): Tell us a little bit about the inspiration behind JAMP. How did your vision develop?
Jeanette Calder (JC): I was inspired when I came back to Jamaica in 2012 (I had been living in the Netherlands). A public opinion survey had revealed that 60 percent of Jamaicans thought it was a mistake to gain independence. I thought that was really sad. The worst part of it was I felt the same way! This was “post-Dudus” [a Jamaican drug lord whose extradition to the United States led to a standoff between his community and state authorities] so the country was really not feeling at its best. I had returned to Jamaica to serve the public sector, where I had worked for six years and loved it. I was looking forward to contributing to the government’s Public-Private Partnership Policy — that was my area of specialisation — but this survey led me to rethink, to redefine “public service.” So I opted to serve via social advocacy.
EL: Is JAMP an anti-corruption tool?
JC: I don’t see JAMP as an anti-corruption tool, although it can reveal that. Accountability is different! It takes in issues like waste and inefficiency, which has nothing to do with corruption. Our goal is to improve public financial management so we have more resources to redirect towards social spending, developing and advancing the nation. We are tired of seeing news with people saying, “For ten years the water lock off.”
I don’t think you can “fight corruption.” Corruption happens in the dark. I can’t tell when it’s happening. Let's hold people accountable for not doing their job, not honouring the rules and policies that are in place! Once you start doing that, it takes care of a lot of the corruption. That is […] how I think it needs to be done.
JAMP is not going to be a crutch for people to lean on. It is a tool for people to use. If they see people taking it seriously, politicians will take it seriously.
Accountability is not just a key — it is the master key to change.
EL: Are there other ways in which JAMP can be used?
JC: JAMP is an educational tool and we are going to build it out in that direction. Students can find out more about the ministers, who is who, what the functions of parliamentarians are, how a Bill becomes law and the process [it goes through], things like that.
JAMP is bridging the gaps in accountability. There is an information gap and there is an access gap.
EL: How do our parliamentarians feel about JAMP?
JC: That’s a really good question. I have written to all of the Members of Parliament at least twice; they are aware of it. I have received only five responses to my requests for their constituency development reports.
It has been a little quiet… [Laughs].
We are expanding to the senators. I am not clear how the public is to communicate with them. Many are on social media in their personal capacity. We will have to meet to find out how citizens can contact them via the website.
EL: How important is the role of technology?
JC: Very important. Traditional methods are costly. We will still organise meetings [and] “on the corner” sessions, but we will be taking the tool to the people. Schools can use it; teachers can base their homework assignments on it. Digital penetration is well over 1.5 million now, and about the same number have smartphones.
EL: Are there any equivalents of JAMP globally?
JC: We are all connected. I am already thinking about networking internationally. Though there are other civil society organisations that track government performance, I have looked but have not yet found any that track breaches in this citizen-friendly digital design that we use. There are other civil society organisations that track government performance, but not in the way we are doing it.
We did find one website in Mexico, but the tracking of breaches is done by the government. I commend them for that, but there is a big difference. It’s not the prettiest website and though it is rich with data, is it not presented in a way that is easily understood by site visitors. It doesn’t make sense to inform citizens and then leave them to figure it out on their own — you want to connect the dots and show them what actions they can take.

author: Emma Lewis


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The Wuhan coronavirus is also an economic plague for China  · Global Voices
Filip Noubel

A 100 yuan banknote – the most popular paper money item used in mainland China featuring Mao's face covered with a respiratory mask. Image by Oiwan Lam, used with permission.
When an epidemic coincides with the spending spree that traditionally accompanies the Chinese New Year festivities, a country's economic health also comes under strain. Chinese government rhetoric is deeply embedded with promises of economic prosperity for its growing middle class, and looming fiscal insecurity, the likes we are seeing during the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak, is likely to have far-reaching social and political effects.
The most significant event of the past four decades has been the transformation of China from an underdeveloped country to the world’s top economic powerhouse. This statement is widely used by the Chinese government and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to claim loyalty and support from its 1.3 billion population. China started its economic reforms in 1979 and for decades boasted an impressive GDP growth, with frequent double-digit figures. Since Xi Jinping became the leader of China in 2012, the figure has oscillated between 6 and 8 percent. It must be noted that the reliability of data provided by Chinese official sources requires scrutiny given the political sensitivity attached to those figures as part of the ‘social stability’ narrative widely used by Chinese officials in speeches and statements.
The basis for the CCP’s grip over the country is a social contract that can be summarized by ‘prosperity without freedom’. In other words, as long as the 400-million strong middle class grows and enjoys comfortable living standards, the Party will not be seriously challenged for the many accounts of corruption, manipulation of justice, increasing censorship of media and information.
This explains why the GDP growth is viewed as a national indicator of the fulfillment of the ‘social contract’ and why any derailment causes great anxiety for the government and the Party, but also for citizens who typically react by online protests, rarely offline demonstrations, and for the wealthier by moving capital or entire families and businesses abroad.
While world markets have reacted nervously to news of the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak and many are predicting consequences for Chinese global trade and investment, the Chinese economy is the most directly affected. Some industries are already showing signs of a major slow-down.
Long considered a luxury, domestic and international tourism has boomed in China as the growing middle-class sees travel as one of the marks of social success. The Chinese New year period represents a peak in domestic travel as tradition demands that families gather across generations. For the 2020 celebration, 3 billion trips were expected, yet the government has now restricted movement and many scared citizens have abandoned their travel plans.
As Ting Lu, a tourism expert with Nomura Asset Management notes, the first time the Chinese domestic tourism industry was hit was after the 2002-2003 SARS epidemic:
“China’s real GDP growth dropped by 2 percentage points from 11.1% in the first quarter of 2003 to 9.1% in the second quarter, before recovering to 10% in the third quarter of that year. Growth was largely dragged by the tertiary sector, especially by two major subcomponents of GDP: (1) transport, storage, and post, and (2) hotel and catering services”
The film industry, estimated to be the second-largest movie market in the world, is also being hit hard by the timing of the outbreak. Releases for the major blockbusters of the year are always scheduled to coincide with the long Chinese New Year holiday — lasting anywhere from 10 days to two weeks — as people have time to visit the cinema. This year, the release of top movies have been postponed indefinitely. Besides film studios, including Hengdian studio, considered the largest in the world, over 70,000 cinemas have been shut down to prevent the spread of the virus. This also has political consequences on the Chinese film industry which is strictly controlled by Party ideology which imposes quotas on foreign movies as they often gain a much larger audience than domestic movies.
The following tweet includes a photo of the official announcement that the Hengdian film studios will be closed due to the Wuhan coronavirus alert.
横店影视城暂停剧组拍摄与景区开放 https://t.co/0ngtn5hHDo pic.twitter.com/wpjbXtm5e9
— 电影好好看 (@MovieDaily2018) January 28, 2020
The domestic economy will most likely be affected. It is too early to have figures now, but suffice to say that the Chinese New Year is a massive shopping season, with special offers, outside eating, and the offering of gifts. While a lot of shopping takes place online, deliveries have been halted or slowed-down given the risks of the coronavirus.
Wuhan is also a major industrial hub, as Benny Liu, co-chairman of KPMG operation in China explains:
“Wuhan serves as a critical industrial, research and education base, and integrated transport hub for the nation.  Wuhan’s GDP growth was 7.8 per cent in 2019, 1.7 percentage points higher than the national average, local government data showed”.
Indeed Wuhan hosts many top 500 company offices and plants.
In this context, slogans and statements delivered by central and local government officials might not suffice to reestablish trust in the ability of the government and the Party to honour the ‘social contract’. As Xi Jinping himself said at a crucial Party event, the 19th CCP Congress in 2017:
“What we now face is the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life.”
the impact of the Wuhan coronavirus

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Filip Noubel


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‘Volodya, aren’t you tired?’: Russia’s youth on Putin’s 20 years in power · Global Voices
Eilish Hart

Vladimir Putin takes the oath during his inauguration as President of Russia, May 2000. Outgoing president Boris Yeltsin stands to his right. Photo CC-BY-4.0: Wikimedia Commons.
On New Year's Eve, activists from the Vesna Movement, a Russian pro-democracy youth movement, held solitary pickets in the Siberian city of Omsk. These young protesters were marking the twentieth anniversary of Vladimir Putin’s rise to power and they had just one question for the Russian President: “Volodya [diminutive form of Vladimir – ed.], aren’t you tired?”
Hoping against hope, the activists put their photos on Facebook, along with a post wondering whether Putin would follow in the footsteps of Russia's first president, Boris Yeltsin, by announcing his resignation on New Year's Eve:
Так может сегодня случится новогоднее чудо, и он повторит слова Ельцина и сделает подарок для жителей страны? Увы, к сожалению, Путин не Дед Мороз и врядли способен на доброе волшебство, но с ролью Гринча он отлично справляется.
So maybe today a New Year’s miracle with happen and [Putin] will repeat Yeltsin’s words and give the inhabitants of the country a gift? Alas, Putin is not Father Frost and is hardly capable of casting good spells, but he’s doing a great job with the role of the Grinch.
Instead, Putin’s annual New Year's speech emphasised that 2020 marked the 75th anniversary of “Victory in the Great Patriotic War.” The Russian president made no mention of his own “anniversary.” He did, however, call for Russia’s many generations to come together, which implies that he is aware of the country’s generational divide.
Overall, the twenty-year anniversary of Putin’s reign came and went with little fanfare from the Kremlin. But in light of the major political shakeup that the president announced in mid-January – constitutional changes which appear to set the stage for him to remain in power past his final presidential term in 2024 – conversations about the length of his rule have continued long past the “anniversary.”
In a Facebook post, St Petersburg based journalist Alexandra Garmazhapova wrote that she was just ten years old when Putin became president, prompting responses from other users about where they were in their lives at that time:
А теперь просто представьте, что когда Владимир Путин пришёл к власти, вы были молоды. Мне, например, было 10 лет – я ела кашу и слушалась маму.
Now just imagine, when Vladimir Putin came to power, you were young. I, for example, was ten – I was eating porridge and listening to [my] mum.
– Alexandra Garmazhapova, Facebook, 18 January 2020
A slightly older user added the following reflection:
Мне было 16, я не слушал маму, а слушал Ред Хот Чили Пепперс. Путин – да, 20 лет сидит, но сама система не меняется еще дольше. Уже на тот момент было ясно, что долго ничего не будет меняться.
I was 16, I didn’t listen to [my] mom, but to the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Yes, Putin's been in power for 20 years, but the system itself has not changed [for] even longer. Even at that moment it was clear that nothing would change for a long time.
– Vladimir Plotnikov, Facebook, 19 January 2020
Twitter user Denis Orlov pointed out that Putin has now surpassed Leonid Brezhnev as one of Moscow’s longest-serving leaders (he now second only to Joseph Stalin):
только сейчас понял, что Путин за свои 20 лет правит больше Брежнева, который правил 18 лет, и это ещё не предел. В детстве по рассказам для меня казалось, что правление Брежнева – это нечто долгое. Пока не вырос и осознал, что сам живу уже сколько лет при одном человеке ?
— Denis Orlov (@DenisKuzbass) January 26, 2020
[I] only now understood that over his 20 years Putin has ruled more than Brezhnev, who ruled [for] 18 years, and this isn’t the end yet. During [my] childhood it seemed to me from stories that Brezhnev’s rule [was] something long. Then I grew up and realized that I myself have already been living for so many years under one person.
– Denis Orlov (@DenisKuzbass), Twitter, 26 January 2020
While Russia’s older generations were born and raised in the Soviet Union, Putin is likely the only leader that Russian millennials have ever really known, at least in their living memory. Children born at the start of the millennium have lived their entire lives under Putin. As he switched from the presidency to the prime minister's office between 2008 and 2012, they were growing up and going to school.
Throughout this period, Putin has projected the image of a stabilising force; as the leader who resolved the chaos of the 1990s and brought Russia back from the chaos following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Now, however, practically two generations have come of age under Putin and have no real memory of the turbulent past he allegedly helped Russia overcome. So while pundits and politicians are preparing to face some big changes in the Russian political system, the so-called “Putin generation” (поколение Путина) is developing a reputation for being disinterested in politics – or being less susceptible to the line that anything is better than the “wild 1990s.”
According to a recent sociological survey of schoolchildren from across the country, 67% of respondents (children aged between 10 and 18) had no interest in domestic politics. Furthermore, nearly 75% of the respondents couldn’t name a single politician that they sympathise with or respect. Only 15% of those surveyed named Vladimir Putin and just 1.9% named prominent opposition politician Alexei Navalny – making him even less popular than the recently ousted prime minister Dmitry Medvedev (who was named by 2.8% of respondents).
It’s probably safe to assume that the bar for political engagement is generally low among children worldwide. For those who are old enough to vote, however, things appear to be more complex.
Discussions about the political leanings of Russia’s young adults really kicked off in 2017-2018, when children born in the year 2000 began to come of age in Russia and became eligible to vote. This coincided with a wave of anti-corruption protests spearheaded by Alexei Navalny, which drew tens of thousands of people to the streets of Moscow and other Russian cities. The visible presence of young people at the rallies added fuel to the discussion about the growth of a politically engaged younger generation.
“Russian youth, in contrast with the older generations, consume information differently, they’re gradually formulating their own social and political influences,” wrote sociologist Denis Volkov in a 2018 op-ed for the Russian business daily Vedomosti. “Recently, the political attitudes of young Russians have also begun to diverge from the ‘general line’ and the perceptions of [their] parents’ generation,” noted Volkov.
“Russia without Putin” and “Putin is a thief” were popular slogans during the protests. Furthermore, surveys from the Levada Center, an independent polling agency, from around that time showed that 42% of respondents believed Putin was to a large extent responsible for high-level corruption in the Russian government. That  said, there was also anecdotal evidence that many younger Russian remained pretty apathetic when it came to the question of Putin remaining president.
In 2019, Navalny’s then 17-year-old daughter, Dasha Navalnaya, released a series of politically-oriented video interviews with people her age on her YouTube channel, under the hashtag #ГолосМоегоПоколения (#VoiceOfMyGeneration). The videos accumulated hundreds of thousands of views. Her interviewees – who are presented in terms of their political leanings, ranging from a Navalny supporter to a “USSR fan” and a “supporter of Putin” – had clearly been carefully selected to provide a wide range of answers. Nevertheless, their surprising responses spoke to the diversity of opinion among the Putin generation.
While 19-year-old Yuliya (an “apolitical girl”) tells Navalnaya “I don’t think about Putin,” she also concedes that “he’s probably a good president” since he’s been in power for so long. On the other hand, alleged Putin supporter, 18-year-old Kirill, shocks his interviewer when he tells Navalnaya he joined United Russia’s youth group out of pragmatism, simply to advance his future career.
Just months after Navalnaya released her videos, young people took centre stage in protests yet again. In the summer of 2019, Russia experienced a wave of demonstrations in the run up to local elections, in which independent opposition candidates were barred from running. Hundreds of young people were arrested – and it was all over the web. Photographs of 18-year-old Olga Misik reading the constitution in front of a barricade of riot police went viral. A rousing courtroom speech from 21-year-old Egor Zhukov was even featured in the New Yorker. And so Russia’s anti-Putin youth appeared to be gearing up to struggle once again.
Это Оля. Ей нет 18 лет. Её оставляют в ОВД до понедельника pic.twitter.com/3aN2OTuMEp
— Алексей Абанин (@aban_in) July 27, 2019
This is Olya. She's 18 years old. They're keeping her at [the police station] until Monday.– Alexei Abanin (@aban_in) July 27, 2019.
Sociologist Olga Zeveleva has her own theory about what brought Russian millennials to the streets in recent years. “First, more and more voters and protesters have grown up knowing only Vladimir Putin as Russia's political leader, and the Kremlin’s old narratives about the dangers of the pre-Putin era are losing their potency,” Zeveleva wrote in an op-ed for independent news website Meduza. “Second, new student solidarity campaigns are making millennials more visible.”
In other words, younger Russians who do oppose the system are disillusioned with Kremlin rhetoric and they know how to organise. But now the question is, will they remain in Russia?
In the aftermath of last year's protests, another Levada Centre survey showed that a shocking 53% of respondents age 18 to 24 would like to move abroad.
Given the constitutional changes that Putin is currently pushing through, some young Russians are fearing even more obstacles to their future political participation.
Kirill Shamiev, a PhD student and analyst who is studying outside of Russia, was quick to point out that under the proposed changes, people like him could be barred from running for president in the future:
25 лет постоянки на территории России, отсутствие за всю жизнь иностранного гражданства или вида на жительство в другом государстве. Интересно, будет ли это относиться к людям с разрешениями на временное проживание (учебные пермиты). Если да, то в 24-25 лет я стану второсортным гражданином.– Kirill Shamiev, January 15, 2020.
[The new amendments state that a candidate for president must have] 25 years of permanent residence on Russia’s territory, a lifetime lack of foreign citizenship or residency permit in another state. I wonder if this will apply to people with temporary residence permits (study permits). If so, then at 24-25 years old I become a second-class citizen.
– Kirill Shamiev, Facebook, 15 January 2020
The Kremlin’s ongoing attempts at online censorship are a good example of an issue which could provoke a political backlash from Russia's youth. As political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya recently told the Financial Times: “The younger generation in Russia are largely disinterested in politics and bored by the system and what it represents… But they are also sensitive to any moves the state makes towards their personal space. If you try to, say, censor their social media experience, then they will get upset and engage.”
In the meantime, the youth activists from the Vesna Movement have latched on to Putin’s 20 year rule as the inspiration for new slogans in their protest campaigns.
Алтайская «Весна» вышла на пикет против конституционной «реформы»Под видом внесения поправок в Конституцию РФ граждане…
Geplaatst door Движение Весна / Vesna Movement op Zaterdag 25 januari 2020
On January 26, 2020, activists of the Vesna Movement staged another series of single person pickets in the Altai Republic, a region in western Siberia, to protest the proposed amendments to the constitution. This time, one of their slogans read:
“Putin said that [we] need to change the constitution, because in the constitution it says that [we] need to change Putin.”

author: Eilish Hart


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Hope for dying Nepali language wanes as one of the last fluent speakers passes away at 85 · Global Voices
Sanjib Chaudhary

Gyani Maiya Sen with Uday Raj. Photo by Sanjib Chaudhary. Used with permission.
Gyani Maiya Sen Kusunda was not known to many but she was a beacon of hope for linguists who hoped to revive the isolated and dying Kusunda language. She passed away on 25 January 2020 at her home in Kulmor Village of Dang District in western Nepal. She was 85.
She was one of the last two fluent speakers of the Kusunda language, an oral language without any script. Though the 2011 Census puts the population of Kusundas at 273, field studies suggest there are actually only 150 Kusundas living in the western districts of Nepal.
Read More: A conversation with Gyani Maiya Sen, one of the last speakers of a dying Nepali language
Gagan Thapa, Member of House of Representatives, tweeted:
कुसुण्डा भाषाका दुई जानकार मध्ये एक ज्ञानीमैया कुसुण्डाको निधनले कुसुण्डा भाषामा अपूरणीय क्षति पुगेको छ। दिवंगत ज्ञानीमैया कुसुण्डा प्रति हार्दिक श्रद्धान्जली।
— Gagan Thapa (@thapagk) January 26, 2020
With the demise of Gyani Maiya Kusunda, one of the two fluent speakers of Kusunda language, the language has suffered an irreparable loss. Heartfelt reverence to deceased Gyani Maiya Kusunda.
The Kusundas led a nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle until only few decades ago when they began settling down in villages mainly in western nepal. Recently, Gyani Maiya helped researcher Uday Raj Aaley conduct the first phase of Kusunda language classes for a cohort of 20 people interested in learning the language. She has worked not only with Uday for the revival of the language but also with researchers like Brian Houghton Hodgson, Johan Reinhard, David Watters, B.K. Rana and Madhav Prasad Pokharel among others.
Read More: Indigenous Nepali Language With Only Two Fluent Speakers Sees Pages of Hope in Newly Launched Dictionary
Researcher Uday Raj Aaley wrote on Facebook:
देशले एउटा अमूल्य निधि गुमाएको छ । ज्ञानी मैयाँ सेन कुसुण्डामा अद्भूत भाषिक क्षमता थियो । मैले उनीसँग कुसुण्डा भाषाको विविध पक्ष, संरचना, शब्दावलीका बारेमा एक दशकभन्दा बढी काम गरेँ । जीवनका अधिकांश समय गुमनाम बिताएका उनलाई अन्तिम चरणमा मात्र देशले सम्झियो । यसबीचमा स्वदेश र विदेशका प्राज्ञिक व्यक्तित्वहरुले सम्झिए पनि उनीसँग काम गरेका महत्वपूर्ण सामग्रीहरु व्यवस्थित गर्नु पर्ने देखिएको छ । उनले कुसुण्डा भाषाको विकासका लागि पु¥याएको योगदानलाई म सम्मान गर्दछु …
The country has lost an invaluable personality. Gyani Maiya Sen Kusunda had amazing linguistic capability. I worked with her on Kusunda language’s diverse aspects, structure, glossary for more than a decade. Having spent most of her life in anonymity, the country recognized her only at the last moment. During this time, although the national and international academics recognized her, the important documents produced working with her needs to be organized well. I appreciate her contribution towards the development of Kusunda language…
“Now there is no one to discuss in Kusunda language,” laments Uday. “But we still have little hope. Her sister Kamala Sen Khatri, 50, is fluent in Kusunda language. We will need to utilize her services to revive the language.”
Sangnaan wein (rest in peace in Kusunda language), Gyani Maiya!

author: Sanjib Chaudhary


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In Kerala, millions form human chain to protest India’s ‘anti-muslim’ citizenship laws · Global Voices
Rezwan

Human Chain in Kerala. Screenshot from YouTube Video by indusdotnews.
On 26 January, on the Republic Day of India, several millions of people formed a 620 km human chain from the north to the south of Kerala demanding the withdrawal of the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
The Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 (CAA), promulgated in December 2019, provides a path to citizenship for non-Muslim immigrants from the neighbouring countries of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. However, it has drawn criticism from civil society organizations and the opposition for unfairly excluding Muslims. The Citizenship Amendment Act, combined with the nationwide National Register of Citizens (NRC), is deemed to be disastrous, not only for the minority Muslims, but also all other Indians.
The human chain event was organised by Left Democratic Front (LDF), a coalition of left-wing political parties led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist)  and its leader, the Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan.
Another Human chain is going to be created by the Malayalis in Kerala on our Republic Day,2020.
This human chain will be 620 km long to show the protest against #CAA_NRC_NPR and other unconstitutional activities of Sanghis.
From Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram.#CAA_NRCProtests pic.twitter.com/Rb0MANTJXc
— Debasish Paul (@ComradeDebasish) January 25, 2020
Note: Malaylalis = People from Kerala speaking the Malayalam language. Sanghis = Followers of Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), a right-wing, Hindu nationalist, paramilitary volunteer organisation.
The crowd included politicians, cultural activists, religious leaders, artists and concerned citizens. Social media accounts were flooded with colorful images and videos from the protest:
A view from the 620 km long human chain in Kerala to protest against the anti constitutional CAA, NRC & NPR and ‘Hum Dekhenge’ in Malayalam in the background.
Let our PM identity all these people by their dresses :)
pic.twitter.com/N9exiGsooa
— Ravi Nair (@t_d_h_nair) January 26, 2020
Note: “Hum Dekhenge” = We will see.
The Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan joined the protests and said in a statement:
The citizenship law will endanger the Constitution and destroy peace in the country since their (the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s) intention is to destroy secularism. We have already declared that Kerala is not the place to accept the new citizenship regime.
He also shared this tweet:
Kerala, in essence, is an argument for equality. The people of this land are unapologetically secular. The #KeralaHumanChain of today is yet another example for our unity. This battle, we will not rest and we shall overcome.#HumanChain pic.twitter.com/W3Hprr7E8t
— Pinarayi Vijayan (@vijayanpinarayi) January 26, 2020
Stand up in any way you can. It's necessary#NoCAANoNRC
PHOTOS: Newlyweds, Young Children Take Part In Kerala's Human Chain Against CAA https://t.co/fhGy6zEAm3
— Riddhi Doshi (@riddhi09) January 29, 2020
From their Wedding to the 620 km human chain —-
formed in Kerala demanding withdrawal of CAA.#शाहीन_बाग_से_हिलती_सरकार pic.twitter.com/4rHfwRA3EA
— FAISAL ALAM?? (@FAISALALAM832) January 27, 2020
The Kerala human chain was not allowed to break even in backwaters. Such is the devotion towards constitution. pic.twitter.com/TASApYuqIk
— Ramesh_India (@CommonManInd65) January 28, 2020
Thousands of people formed an 11km long human chain in Kolkata, the capital of the state of West Bengal on the same day.
#Kolkata . This human chain goes 11 kms to Golpark from Shyambazar Against NRC/CAA/NPR. pic.twitter.com/Yj40ArgKFd
— Dibyendu (@Dibyend48970765) January 26, 2020
Republic Day honours the date (26 January 1950) on which the Constitution of India came into effect and turned the nation into a newly formed republic. On this day, India saw protests across the country that accuse the CAA of being detrimental to a key component of the constitutional value system — envisioning a secular India.
Protest against CAA/NRC/NPR in india in 56 cities on Republic Day #शाहीन_बाग_से_हिलती_सरकार pic.twitter.com/XqtXuNRent
— Aamir Siddiqui (@AamirSi11033884) January 27, 2020
?Lakhs in a Human Chain in Kerala
?11km Human Chain in Kolkata
?Republic Day celebrations in Shaheen Bagh
?Dalit & Adivasi march in Bengaluru
Anti-CAA-NRC movement grows bigger & bigger. Modi would be tired of seeing pics & identifying crores of people by their clothes ? pic.twitter.com/9wxWADKlW0
— Srivatsa (@srivatsayb) January 27, 2020
Read our special coverage: Who is paying the cost of India’s declining democracy? for more details on the protests against the citizenship laws in India.

author: Rezwan


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Jamaica’s Accountability Meter Portal: ‘Accountability is the key to progress’ · Global Voices
Emma Lewis

Screenshot of some of the services offered on the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal's home page. The website aims to empower citizens to play an active role as part of the country’s oversight system.
This post is the second instalment in a two-part series. The first part is here.
The nonprofit Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP), an innovative website that gives ordinary citizens the ability to track government performance by giving them more intimate access to their parliamentary representatives, is beginning to transform how Jamaicans interact with their government.
The idea, launched by Jeanette Calder, expands knowledge of how elected officials are supposed to work for their constituents.
In the JAMP model, users — which include everyone from individuals and civil society organisations to members of the press and even the government itself — engage with an Account-A-Meter which monitors breaches of policy or law, and gives site visitors direct access to accountability officers. An MP [Minister of Parliament] Tracker brings constituents into closer contact with their parliamentary representatives and allows citizens to assess their performance, and a real-time Legislative Tracker monitors the progression of bills through the parliament and facilitates direct communication with representatives.
At her office in Kingston, Calder and I talked about how her activism was integral to birthing JAMP and how excited she is — despite scepticism and concerns that Jamaica is trending toward systemic corruption — about the positive changes the website can help create.
Founder and executive director of the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal, Jeanette Calder. Photo credit: JAMP, used with permission.
GV: How did your experience in advocacy help you in JAMP's development?
JC: I got involved with the Jamaica Civil Society Coalition (JCSC). I was impacted by what I saw at these meetings. Citizens with a high level of expertise, collaborating monthly on a range of governance issues and in many instances, successfully influencing government policy. I learned that our political leaders are more responsive than I thought and that advocacy is far more than a mere radio or TV interview. A lot of work happens behind the scenes. The door was opened for my contribution, as many procurement concerns were coming up; that was my area and I was passionate about it. I still am. We all have different tools as citizens, but from the JCSC I learned to use research-based advocacy. And as I moved from co-executive director at JCSC to becoming the founder and executive director at JAMP, research remains at the core of our approach.
At the Outameni protest at Emancipation Park, Kingston, in 2014, Jeanette Calder addresses a group of activists. Photo by Emma Lewis, used with permission.
EL: What was a watershed moment for you?
JC: I was aggrieved about the Outameni issue. [The Outameni Experience was a privately owned, loss-making tourism attraction in western Jamaica]. I heard the prime minister say, “I am not firing the board because they did not commit a crime.” This statement changed my life! A message that accountability in the public sector would be limited to criminal activities was alarming. I created flyers, posters and we held a protest in Emancipation Park in November 2014. I encouraged the Jamaican diaspora to write a sign and upload it on social media. They were there in spirit. Members of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica attended. Soon after, the then-prime minister [Portia Simpson Miller] changed her mind — a compromise, really. She committed to having the board resign and changing the board.
Our signs said things like: “What is Jamaica worth to you?” “Accountability is the key to progress.”
The Auditor General produced a report in April 2015 on the Outameni issue — $4 billion Jamaican dollars worth of questionable investments. My mouth fell wide open. Government spends approximately $2.5 billion on watchdog agencies. Are we getting value for money?
EL: How is JAMP funded?
JC: It is funded by the European Union in Jamaica. The Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica helped us implement the project, so, JAMP is now undertaken in partnership with PSOJ. It was through initial support from the PSOJ that JAMP received $6 million Jamaican dollars [approximately $44,900 United States dollars] in seed funding from six private companies to complete the design and creation of the website that now houses our database.
In 2016, the EU funded some research that the JCSC conducted on accountability in government. We came up with really powerful findings and recommendations. It seemed wrong to just put it on the shelf and move on. That year, I also produced Jamaica’s first citizen’s budget. It provided a clear picture [of the purpose, procedure, rules and inner workings of the national Budget. I wanted to empower citizens to learn what I had learned.
It was important to get buy-in from key stakeholders. I went to the Access to Information Unit at the office of the prime minister, the Auditor General, the public accounts committee. The Press Association of Jamaica was also very supportive.
GV: I hear you are writing a play about the period in Jamaican history that inspired you?
JC: Yes, it is set in the 1930s — I am on Act Three! I want to tell the stories about the people of that period of dramatic change: Walter Roberts and others who are not well known, such as the “soup lady” who became an activist during the dock workers’ strike that year Agnes Bernard and others. I have realised we are too reactive; we need to plan and prepare. I thought those people from the past were telling me, “Go on and finish the job!” so I keep them with me along the journey.
The Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP) logo.
EL: What are the next steps for JAMP?
JC: We have the basic tool up [and running]. We are only tracking three key performance indicators for MPs; we have a fourth in the making, with two more to come by the end of the year.
There is a concern about the management of public boards, many of which are self-financing. There is one agency of government right now that does not have a board. How is that possible? We will be examining the boards and checking boxes.
Someone wanted to know [about] MPs filing their returns on campaign funding with the Electoral Commission of Jamaica after an election. So now we will be talking with the ECJ to find out who is compliant.
All you have to do is ask us [and] we will start tracking it. Citizens can complain [or] make suggestions, and we will follow up.
EL: Do you feel proud, now that JAMP has been born?
JC: I don’t think of JAMP as my idea. It has just been birthed.
I had one last question to ask myself before we started: I learned from the life of Marcus Garvey that you can come up with a good idea but if you don’t have the support, maybe it’s too soon. Timing is everything and I am convinced that the time for JAMP is now.


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Remembrance for femicide victims in Trinidad & Tobago raises awareness of gender-based violence · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Screenshot taken from a public Facebook video posted by Womantra, chronicling some of the events from ‘Orange Day: Remembrance for Victims of Gender-based Violence’, which took place in Port of Spain, Trinidad, on January 25, 2020.
In the heart of Port of Spain, opposite to Trinidad and Tobago's newly refurbished Red House, is a tree-shaded oasis that, thanks to its history of political oratory and protest, has long been known as “The University of Woodford Square” or “The People's Parliament.”
On January 25, 2020, gender activists converged on Woodford Square to lend their voices to an issue that has been plaguing the country for some time — gender-based violence (GBV).
The event, a remembrance for local victims of femicide, took place on Orange Day — a United Nations observance on the 25th of each month to raise awareness about GBV.
Several civil society organisations and women's rights defenders, including CAISO (which fights for sex and gender justice), Womantra (a woman-centered non-profit), the country's Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Family Planning Association and the Institute for Gender and Development Studies at The University of the West Indies’ St. Augustine campus, came together to honour victims and call on the state to take action to protect the lives of women and girls.
Infographic of the six demands that stakeholders are asking for; these are outlined in their petition to the government to respond to the plague of gender-based violence in Trinidad and Tobago. Image courtesy Womantra, used with permission.
Stakeholders, which number 20 civil society organisations, also circulated an online petition demanding, among other things, increased accountability and transparency in preventing and combating GBV, improved support for the national systems that provide services to survivors and victims, amendments to the Domestic Violence Act, and an investment in social reformation programmes to facilitate cultural change.
Women's right activists outside the Red House in Port of Spain, Trinidad. Screenshot taken from a public Facebook video, posted by Womantra, which shows different aspects of ‘Orange Day’, a remembrance for victims of gender-based violence, which took place on January 25, 2020.
According to statistics shared at the event, 20 women were killed in Trinidad and Tobago as a result of gender-based violence over the last year alone. However, in January 2020, three femicides occurred in rapid succession, prompting the ‘Orange Day’ action.  University lecturer and co-director of CAISO, Dr. Angelique Nixon, suggested some of these deaths could have been prevented, as “people knew” that the women had been threatened: “If the reporting mechanisms worked, those women would be alive.”
Infographic on the three femicides that took place in Trinidad and Tobago on January 5, 6 and 8, 2020. Image courtesy Womantra, used with permission.
In her own address, Sabrina Mowlah-Baksh, general manager of the Coalition Against Domestic Violence, mourned the women “whose lives have been taken away from them by men whose notions of manhood are tied to the exercise of power and control over women.”
On January 21, just days before the remembrance, The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) launched a new Gender-Based Violence Unit, which will focus on cases of domestic violence and breaches of restraining orders. Noting that giving the police valuable information helps save lives, Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith encouraged witnesses to make reports about GBV.
Shireen Pollard, head of the newly formed GBV unit of the TTPS, was present at the ‘Orange Day’ event.
Sadly, a few days after the event, the country lost yet another woman to intimate partner violence — and the Newsday, which headlined the story “Relatives: Killer was pushed over the edge,” was roundly criticised for how it chose to frame the incident:
In a public Facebook post, Kathryn Stollmeyer-Wight said:
Don't you dare blame the victim.
Fed up of people making excuses for violence.
Fellow Facebook user Darryn Dinesh Boodan added:
This is a deplorable headline and overall deplorable report. Singh's relatives believe that he is the real victim — not the person he murdered in cold blood.
One of the men who attended the ‘Orange Day’ remembrance for victims of gender-based violence in Trinidad and Tobago on January 25, 2020. Screenshot taken from a public Facebook video posted by Womantra.
Several male social media users weighed in as well. Ian Michado Royer posted a list of suggestions for “what do do when pushed over the edge,” adding:
We need to stop enabling toxic masculinity and justifying psychopathic behaviour by victim shaming! If you taught your […] son some real time coping mechanisms and how to be a decent human being he wouldn’t have murdered someone because he was stressed out. #MissMeWithThatBullshit
Anthony Morgan Beach agreed:
1. Men and boys need to learn to treat women better (and a lot of that falls to men to teach them);
2. We need to teach our men and boys how to cope in various aspects of their lives:
3. We men need to do more in being our brothers’ keepers.
One of the victim's best friends, Christa Prevatt, also pushed back against the Newsday article and began to advocate in earnest for victims of femicide.
In her weekly Newsday column, Dr. Gabrielle Hosein, who lectures at the Institute for Gender and Development Studies at The University of the West Indies, quite fittingly wrote:
In contrast to the argument of provocation being spuriously promoted, none of these women was having an argument, being violent or abusing the men who killed them. They were only attempting to get up in the morning, go to work and move on. […]
Men’s killing of women is not a response to relationship rejection. These women endured and escaped chronic treat and abuse, in forms which are criminal offences. They didn’t ‘jilt’ a lover. They rejected terror and harm. They left a crime scene. Call it for what it is.
Head of the organisation Women Everywhere, Adeline Gregoire, listens to a speech at the ‘Orange Day’ remembrance for victims of gender-based violence in Port of Spain, Trinidad, on January 25, 2020. Screenshot taken from a public Facebook video posted by Womantra.
Meanwhile, in an interesting twist, activist Nazma Muller, who says “we will not lie down and take this femicide” — has called for a sex strike to protest gender-based violence. One activist in Jamaica has taken up the call, and the story has been picked up by other islands, like St. Kitts and Nevis, as well.
In her announcement of the strike on Facebook, Muller revealed that the concept was based on a successful sex strike that took place in Liberia, helping to end the country's civil war. The regional manifestation of the sex strike, she said, is intended to “starve men into submission and put the cause of women’s rights on the front burner.”
The concept is simple, she explained:
We are doing this to show solidarity with our sisters who are suffering and to raise awareness of our demands for better security and better treatment.
Muller has proposed to impose the sex strike until March 8, International Women’s Day. While some social media users oppose the idea, fail to see what it will accomplish, or are against women's power being whittled down to sexual favours, others believe it will have quite an impact if women band together in this manner.
Either way, the message is clear: women have had enough.
Montage of photos from ‘Orange Day’, which took place in Port of Spain, Trinidad, on January 25, 2020. Participants wrote messages on the “silent silhouettes”, which represented the victims of GBV. Photos by Womantra, used with permission.
In Trinidad and Tobago, if you or someone you know is a victim of GBV, you are encouraged to contact the police on 555, 999, or 800-TIPS, or to make a report at the nearest police station.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Waterfront communities displaced by forced evictions in Lagos, Nigeria · Global Voices
Adetomiwa Isiaka

Boys paddle a canoe in the waterfront community of Makoko, Lagos, Nigeria., June 11, 2017. This community fears they could be next in a series of forced evictions of waterfront communities. Photo via Wikimedia Commons, CC.BY-SA.4.0.
On Tuesday, January 21, 2020, residents of Tarkwa Bay and Okun Ayo waterfront communities in Lagos, Nigeria, were given two hours to leave their homes.
The Nigerian Navy entered both communities and began shooting guns in the air. Initially described to one community chief as a military drill, the aggressive evacuation plan has left about 4,500 people homeless.
BREAKING: Reports reaching us that demolition has begun again at #TarkwaBay this AM, @NigerianNavy moving excavator from #OkunAyo into forcibly evacuated community, destroying houses — RAISE your voice to #SaveTarkwaBay before it is too late cc: @NaijaFederation @AmnestyNigeria pic.twitter.com/FJY7SFiXXa
— JEI (@justempower) January 25, 2020
Several residents reported violence. Speaking on behalf of the residents, Nigerian Slum/Informal Settlement Federation in conjunction with the human rights group Just Empower Initiative (JEI), released a statement with details:
Several persons reported violence and that at least one resident was shot in the leg and excavators reportedly began working in Okun Ayo community bringing down buildings, with military stationed to stop any entrance to that area.
Netizen A.S. Elijah sounded the alarm on Twitter over the latest evictions:
Portraits of evictees from Tarkwabay, an ancient community on the island of Lagos (dated to World War II) now squatting around neighboring communities. RT#housingisahumanright #InclusiveCities #endforcedevictions #documentaryphotography @justempower @kikimordi @ayosogunro pic.twitter.com/rEK6mV9KgA
— A. S. Elijah (@as_elijah) January 27, 2020
The Nigerian Navy insists that the order to forcefully evict the residents came from higher authorities — with the goal to stop looting at nearby pipelines — but they did not mention which arm of government had issued the orders or plans to compensate the evictees.
Forceful evictions in Lagos, Nigeria’s most populated city, is nothing new. As far back as 2013, waterfront communities — populated mostly by those in the fishing industry and those who can’t afford to live on the mainland — have been demolished as Lagos continues to evolve as a megacity. As a result, residents were forcefully evicted, with authorization by the Lagos state government.
Authorities have not shied away from expressing disdain toward waterfront communities. These communities have gone without electricity and other essential services for decades. In October of 2016, the Lagos state government threatened to demolish all the makeshift, informal communities around waterways in Lagos.
Law enforcement labels these communities as a public health and safety threat, but to the residents, these spaces are often the last resort for those who can not afford housing elsewhere.
In 2017 and 2018, many residents of the Otodo Gbame and Illubirin waterfront communities on Lagos island were killed or injured during forced evictions ordered by Lagos state authorities. Now, those areas are being prepped for luxury apartments that the average Nigerian cannot afford.
Forcefully evicting thousands of people from their homes (Tarkwa Bay etc) and outrightly banning okadas and kekes that thousands others make their honest living from within weeks of each other.
When the crime rates skyrocket now, they’ll feign surprise. https://t.co/yPwhCeo2Iv
— Ifeoma Chukwuogo (@FizzyThatcher) January 27, 2020
So far, 24 communities have been demolished, rendering over 50,000 people homeless. Many have dispersed and settled on the streets of Lagos. JEI reports that one resident went into labor amid the chaos of evictions at Tarkwa Bay and she and her new baby now live under a busy Lagos bridge:
Janet was pregnant on Tuesday when @NigerianNavy rushed into #TarkwaBay shooting guns & chasing everyone out. She fell down in the chaos & put to bed that night. Now she sleeps outside w/ her newborn at #Agala waterside. Read full story by @SamPhotographs: https://t.co/kaC8CqjG9J pic.twitter.com/xhfQ5Tyauy
— JEI (@justempower) January 25, 2020
The Federal High Court has ordered an immediate halt on all evacuations and demolitions in Tarkwa Bay and Okun Ayo. There’s no telling whether or not the authorities in charge will adhere, but they have a track record of ignoring orders from High Courts.
In June 2017, after two months of rigorous advocacy and protests driven by the residents and human rights activists and organizations like JEI and Nigerian Slum/Informal Settlement Federation, the Lagos High Court decreed that the eviction of the over 5,000 people from Otodo Gbame was a violation of their human rights.
The court ordered the government to pay compensation. After 2 1/2 years, the residents haven’t received an acknowledgment, let alone any compensation from authorities.
Concerned citizens and victims have also physically protested at the Lagos State Governor’s office, but so far, the government has eluded the issue, and any attempt to bring up evictions and demand accountability has been shunned.
#BadiaEast and #BadiaWest communities protest to #Lagos governor's office — still no remedy after forced eviction pic.twitter.com/BhzjJqMaya
— JEI (@justempower) May 24, 2016
Waterfront communities historically lack official identities and are often not recognizable on maps.
Organizations like Code for Africa and OpenStreetMap believe technology can help protect vulnerable waterfront communities from future evictions, so the duo started a project aimed at giving them identities through the use of drone technology and map-making.
Last year, they launched the project in Makoko — another waterfront community whose residents are worried they could be next. They use drones to photograph and map the community and have trained community members to work with drones to map their area.
The idea, they said, is to put the community — streets, churches, schools, etc. — on the map, so that the government would more willingly acknowledge these communities and perhaps create an inclusive development plan.
Hopefully, with recognizable spots on satellite maps, the High Court’s scolding, and louder-than-ever protests, the government will finally be compelled to respond and begin to see waterfront communities for what they are: people who deserve basic human and state rights.

author: Adetomiwa Isiaka


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Chinese patriots retaliate online after Danish outlet spoofs Chinese ‘virus flag’ · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Image from the Stand News mocking the People's Republic of China where the usual yellow stars have been replaced by images of a virus and a photo of leader Xi Jinping on the right. Used with permission.
The Chinese embassy in Denmark demanded that a leading Danish daily Jyllands-Posten apologizes over a cartoon turning the stars on the People's Republic of China (PRC) national flag into images of a virus earlier this week. The cartoon was published on January 27 to highlight the PRC's initial move to cover up the outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus which has since spread around the world. After the Danish Prime Minister commented on the incident by referring to the country’s tradition of free speech, Chinese online patriots waged an online war to spoof the Danish flag.
As of January 31, there are confirmations of more than a dozen cases of the Wuhan coronavirus in Europe. In China, there are 9,692 confirmed cases, 15,238 suspected cases, and 213 deaths.  Many critics have pointed out that China’s failure to inform its citizens about the outbreak in December 2019 led to this global health crisis. The World Health Organization (WHO) was declared a global health emergency after the new coronavirus spread across the country during the Lunar New Year seasonal travel rush in mid-January.
For many in China, the satirical cartoon of the PRC flag is a matter of hurt national pride. The Chinese embassy issued a statement demanding an apology from the paper on the same day:
Without any sympathy and empathy, [the cartoon] has crossed the bottom line of civilized society and the ethical boundary of free speech and offends human conscience…We express our strong indignation and demand that Jyllands-Posten and [cartoonist] Niels Bo Bojesen reproach themselves for their mistake and publicly apologize to the Chinese people.
However, no apology has been provided and several newspapers in Europe have re-published the cartoon as part of their reporting on the Chinese statement. To China's dismay, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen commented on the incident by defending the country’s tradition of free speech:
I have nothing more to say but that we have a very, very strong tradition in Denmark not only for freedom of expression, but also for satire drawings, and we will have that in the future as well… it is a well-known Danish position, and we will not change that.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong netizens pointed out that the first “Chinese virus flag” initially appeared on Hong Kong-based news outlet The Stand News on January 23 (see top photo). The online news site went on to publish another satirical image in their coverage of the Chinese embassy’s statement:
Image from the Stand News, used with permission.
In fact, there have been several political satire cartoons making use of the Chinese national flag online:
pic.twitter.com/YbtzKSjq3E
— Otto Huang  (@OttoHuang120) January 29, 2020
However, for Chinese online patriots, Denmark is in no position to mock China. Here is one Chinese theory circulating widely online:
正当中国人民全力与病毒抗战时，丹麦??主流媒体《日德兰邮报》竟公开刊登有辱中国的漫画，将别的国家人民饱受的灾难当做笑话来哗众取宠。还口口声声说“民主”“人权”。在我们看来，这是何等的虚伪与卑鄙无耻。有国外网友评论：二战时期，丹麦4小时就向德国投降，而中国人民抗争了14年。
这次丹麦蠢极了。
— Wudoko (@lostindream1) January 30, 2020
As Chinese people fight against the coronavirus, the Danish paper Jyllands-Posten published a cartoon to insult China, making use of other people's misery to attract attention and using the rhetoric of “democracy” and “human rights”. This is so hypocritical and low. Comments from overseas Chinese netizens: during World War II, Denmark surrendered to Germany in 4 hours. China fought for 14 years [during the same period]. Denmark is so dumb this time.
Along with such arguments, a large number of images spoofing the Danish national flag have emerged online. Here are some highlighting the “4-hours to surrender” history:
pic.twitter.com/j3GZgYTmg5
— 广9Trump (@9Trump1) January 28, 2020
hey .look . good idea ！！！ pic.twitter.com/qSOD6nNyZF
— xinnianhao (@xinnianhao9) January 29, 2020
Some are also more offensive, like this one:
小國真他媽囂張，要有「真」言論自由，14億人一人一句可以把你國家說哭。 pic.twitter.com/WpHGkU5GBQ
— Jon Chan (@sumtingwong2019) January 29, 2020
The small country is so fxxking arrogant. To take freedom of speech for real, each of the 1.4 billion Chinese speaks of one sentence, an will make this country learn to cry.
More are making use of the Nazi symbol to insult the Danish flag, the following are just very few examples circulating on Twitter:
pic.twitter.com/Nz1XrlxLFy
— Hanson Lee (@HansonL67451555) January 29, 2020
pic.twitter.com/tLXoPoaKoL
— 赵本山 (@iK96pOIKkMwuzPL) January 30, 2020
the impact of the Wuhan coronavirus

author: Oiwan Lam


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‘Mario Kart’ cosplay company crashes and burns after appealing Nintendo ruling · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

A YouTuber dressed as Nintendo character Mario drives a go-kart on the streets of Tokyo. Screencap from YouTube. The tour operator claims there is no connection with Nintendo.
On January 29, 2020, Japan's Intellectual Property High Court rejected an appeal by a popular Tokyo-based tour operator in a lawsuit that Nintendo brought against his company. Instead, the high court dramatically increased the damages payable to the video game and entertainment giant from 10,000,000 Japanese yen ($100,000 United States dollars) to 50,000,000 yen (US $500,000).
MARI Mobility Development, also known as Maricar, rents out street-legal go-karts in several locations across Tokyo, Japan. Participants have long been encouraged to dress up in costumes provided by Maricart as characters from the popular Nintendo ‘Mario Kart’ series, then ‘race’ through city traffic in fleets of go-karts. Anyone with a Japanese driver's license or international driving permit can drive the go-karts.
According to BengoDotCom, a Japanese news site that reports on legal issues, prior to being sued by Nintendo, Maricar's website stated:
スーパーマリオのコスプレをして乗れば、まさにリアルマリオカート状態！
If you dress up as a Super Mario character, it will be as if you are driving a real Mario Kart [from the video game]!
BengoDotCom also reported that Maricar used Mario-themed props, statues and official Nintendo merchandise to decorate and market its different tour locations around Tokyo.
Although Maricar claims it has no connection to or affiliation with Nintendo — “Street Kart is in no way a reflection of Nintendo, [or] the game ‘Mario Kart’,” reads a popup disclaimer on a franchise website — the Kyoto-based video creator of ‘Mario Kart’ decided to take Maricar to court in September 2018. Nintendo argued that, under Japan's Unfair Competition Prevention Act, by using ‘Mario Kart’ characters in marketing materials without permission, Maricar engaged in ‘unfair competition’ (“不正競争行為にあたる“).
A Tokyo court agreed with Nintendo, awarding the video game maker 10,000,000 Japanese yen in damages, to be paid by Maricar that same year. Maricar appealed the Tokyo court ruling to Japan's Intellectual Property High Court, which rejected the appeal in an interim ruling in May 2019, stating that “Maricar's actions infringe Nintendo's business interests” (“MARI社の行為は、任天堂の営業上の利益を侵害する”).
In January 2020, the Intellectual Property High Court increased Nintendo's award to 50,000,000 yen:
That's a lot by Japanese standards.
Nintendo has been serial-winning cases in recent weeks in Japan and the US.
(There is a reason why in a company portrait a while ago, the Nikkei called Nintendo's department “legendary”.) https://t.co/qpfE6xyVNG
— Dr. Serkan Toto / Kantan Games Inc. (@serkantoto) January 29, 2020
Nintendo has a reputation for being litigious. Around the same time the company won its appeal against Maricar, it also won an intellectual property judgement in the United States, in its long-running fight to ban versions of its popular older games from being hosted online. In Europe, also in January 2020, Nintendo won its legal battle to prevent some customers from canceling pre-orders.
As far as Maricar goes, since Nintendo plans to open a theme park later this year in Osaka that would include characters from ‘Mario Kart’, the existence of a Tokyo go-kart tour company using Nintendo branding — even informally — has the potential to confuse visitors. As well, Maricar go-karts have caused several accidents, and Tokyo locals generally don't like to see them on city streets, the outfit posed a tangible risk to the Nintendo brand:
地元の住民たちは、街ゆく公道カートを見かけては、任天堂に対する怒りを抱いて、苦情のメールや電話をするまでに至っていた。
After seeing the go-karts traveling down the streets in public, locals grew quite angry with Nintendo itself, sending emails and complaints to [the video game company].
While Maricar still offers go-kart tours in Tokyo, ever since the May 2019 interim ruling, the company has taken down its main website and removed costumes and Nintendo-related branding from its different locations. However, the days of Mario and other Nintendo characters driving go-karts on Tokyo city streets still live on in many YouTube videos.

author: Nevin Thompson


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Pakistani students under lockdown in Wuhan are appealing for assistance · Global Voices
R Umaima Ahmed

Pakistani students in Wuhan appealing to the government. Screenshot from Twitter.
In December 2019, when China faced the first outbreak of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), the government responded by placing Wuhan, the city in Hubei province where the virus was first detected — as well as 13 nearby cities — under quarantine.
The move affected over 40 million people, among them Chinese citizens and foreign nationals, including nearly 500 Pakistani students studying in Wuhan. By December 29, 2019 four of them had already tested positive for the coronavirus. By January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the pandemic an international public health emergency.
Coronavirus, usually found in animals, has evolved to the point where it can (and has) infected humans, as evidenced by past outbreaks of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). There are also four Coronavirus strains out of seven known strains that cause mild respiratory symptoms similar to the common cold.
On January 28, the moment a Pakistani student travelling from Wuhan arrived in Karachi, he was admitted to the isolation ward of a private hospital for observation. The student, identified only as Arsalan, will be kept under observation for 14 days.
The escalating scope of the outbreak has since made it difficult for others to leave. As many as 150 Pakistanis have been stranded for days at the Urumqi airport in the northwestern province of Xinjiang. Tariq Rauf, who is in China studying for his PhD, mentioned in a video that the Pakistani community is stuck in Ürümqi because onward flights to Pakistan have been cancelled.
Like many other countries, Pakistan has cancelled all flights to and from China until February 2, 2020, when, it is expected, authorities will reassess the situation and decide how best to move forward.
Cross-sectional model of 2019 n-CoV showing the components of the virus. Source: Scientific Animations (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Pakistani students stuck in Hubei province took to social media to appeal to the Government of Pakistan to send for them; an #EvacuatePakistaniStudents hashtag is also making the rounds.
On Twitter, Umar Bhutto, who hails from Karachi, shared the plight of his brother and friends:
My elder Brother & other Pakistani students requesting to government of Pakistan to help them out from China due to corona virus. There are other several Pakistani Students who are in Stuck In China. Kindly Do Something for our Pakistani Students. :”(#coronarovirus @ImranKhanPTI pic.twitter.com/FfBI1K47BG
— Umar Bhutto ?? (@umarbhutto50) January 30, 2020
In the video, Bhutto explains that when the stranded students contacted the Pakistani embassy in Beijing, officials advised them to go to higher authorities. They, therefore, made the video to appeal to the Pakistani government for help and to inform the public of their situation.
All over social media, there were similar appeals:
please raise the issue of #pakistani students being stranded in #Wuhan#coronarvirus#EvacuatePakistaniStudentspic.twitter.com/CcmfwNIdHs@imrankhanPTI @SMQureshiPTI@sayedzbukhari @ForeignOfficePk@bolnetwork
— Abdullah (@Abdullah_575757) January 30, 2020
However, the Foreign Office of Pakistan tweeted:
#coronavirus vigilance:
Regular contact and updates being sought from Chinese authorities. Our Embassy reaching out extensively to all our students and nationals. Chinese universities have ensured free meals to all students and regular monitoring of students’ health.
1/2
— Spokesperson ?? MoFA (@ForeignOfficePk) January 28, 2020
To some, however, that is not enough. Hajrat Ali, a Pakistani student living in Wuhan, shared a video proving that India is in the process of evacuating its own students from China:
India evacuating their students from a university in wuhan..And our politicians rejected to evacuate us and making excuses. Don’t make excuses that no one is evacuating their students and don’t make Pakistani fool @iihtishamm @ImranKhanPTI @zfrmrza @SMQureshiPTI pic.twitter.com/7fMr1lhYxL
— Hazrat Ali (@Hazrat__Ali) January 31, 2020
In the clip, he shared his frustration that Pakistan's government is failing to assist its stranded students, while other neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and India have started evacuating their nationals from Hubei province.
The chances of Pakistan following their lead seem slim. On January 31, Senator Seemi Ezdi of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party admitted that while the government’s decision not to evacuate the students “is apparently looking harsh […] the students will likely receive better treatment in China”. He fears that Pakistan is not sufficiently equipped to provide the level of medical care that coronavirus patients would need.
Backing up this position is Dr. Zafar Mirza, special assistant to the prime minister on national health services, who said, “We believe it is in the interest of our loved ones in China to stay there. It's in the larger interest of the region, the world, and the country that we don't evacuate them now.”
Meanwhile, the first consignment of coronavirus detection kits, which were donated by Japan, has reached Pakistan's National Institute of Health (NIH) in Islamabad. The shipment has allowed health sector employees to analyse at least 1,000 suspected samples for the novel coronavirus.
Despite the government's refusal to evacuate the Pakistani students, the fact that there is a large number of Chinese nationals in Pakistan — as well as frequent travel between the two countries — is instilling a sense of fear among Pakistanis.
While the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) has taken measures to quarantine Chinese and Southeast Asian ship personnel to help stem the spread of the coronavirus, there is also a lot of misinformation circulating.
One such example was the rumour that the Punjab Government issued a warning against eating goat meat for sixty days; the authorities denied it, but it still spread like wildfire on social media. In another case, a fake emergency notification claimed that Pakistan’s health ministry had advised the public to avoid crowded places.
Some people posted insensitive comments and memes on social media, suggesting that the virus was Allah's revenge for China banning the niqāb, and for its repression of the Uighur Muslims, while implying that Pakistanis, being Muslims, will be protected. The state religion of Pakistan is Islam; over 96 percent of the population is Muslim:
#coronarovirus #كورونا
China Once Said “Niqaab Is Banned” Now #Chinese are wearing Masks same as “Niqaab”
Power Of Allah . .
#coronavirusuk #Pakistan pic.twitter.com/EyIjZhFDcy
— Muhammad Osman?? (@inketweets) January 31, 2020
While the Pakistanis stranded in Hubei province do their best to cope, their families back home anxiously await their safe return.
the impact of the Wuhan coronavirus

author: R Umaima Ahmed


text:
To apply for a national ID card in Iran, members of ‘unrecognized’ religious minorities now need to deny their faith · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

National ID card of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has removed the “other religions” option from the national ID card application form, a move that appears to be designed to deny millions of Iranians full citizenship.
Members of unrecognized religious minorities such as Baháʼís, Yarsan, Mandaeans and Christian converts will either have to lie or hide their beliefs in order to enjoy citizenship rights in Iran. Under the new regulations issued by the National Census Bureau, ID card applicants may choose only from the following list of recognized religions: Islam, Zoroastrianism, Judaism and Christianity.
Recognized religious minorities have long faced discrimination in Iran, and many of them have left the country since the 1979 revolution.
This latest move by the Iranian state represents another chapter in the drama that has been unfolding in the country in recent months. It follows the cold-blooded repression of protesters and the killing of around 1,500 people, including at least 17 teenagers, in the government crackdown on anti-regime protests last November, not to mention the shooting down by the Revolutionary Guards on January 8, 2020, of a Ukrainian passenger plane, killing the 176 people on board. Another mass arrest took place when protests erupted after the government, under international pressure, confessed it had in fact shot down the aircraft by mistake. There is still no news of what has happened to the thousands who were arrested during November and January protests.
National ID cards are a prerequisite for everything official in Iran, including enrolling in a university, obtaining a passport, selling and purchasing property and cars, making hotel reservations, booking flights, obtaining work permits, bank transactions, filing complaints, entering into contracts, and accessing one's pension. As Simin Fahandej, Baháʼí representative in United Nations, told Global Voices, “not being able to get it makes one's everyday activities almost impossible.”
“The Shiite state wants to keep minorities marginalised in order to hold onto power itself,” Behnaz Hosseini, a Europe-based researcher who has published numerous articles and books on religious minorities, told religious rights organisation Article 18. “The regime intensifies the pressure on minorities to make them immigrate, or, in the case of the Yarsan, to rob them of their own identity by Islamising them.”
The persecution of religious minorities began in the early days of the revolution, with the arrest and execution of Baha’is and extrajudicial killings of Christian converts and those who stood up for them. Persons belonging even to recognised minorities, including Sunni Muslims, became at best second- or even third-class citizens.
“The persecution of the Baha’is by the Islamic Republic has been a consistent policy over the last 40 years,” Afshin Shahi, a senior lecturer in Middle East politics and international relations at Bradford University, told Global Voices. “Even under more moderate governments, the Baha’i community has faced discrimination. Historically the regime has regarded members of the Bahai Community as the potential fifth column. This stemmed from a political paranoia which is fused with religious prejudice. At a time that the regime is facing mounting challenges I’m not surprised that they have taken new measures to put further pressure on this vulnerable community.”
According to Simin Fahandej, Bahá’ís continue to be denied access to higher education in Iran, as well as barred from employment in the public sector and receiving benefits from the pension system. “Bahá’í university applicants are turned away at the first hurdle by being mendaciously told that their files are “incomplete”,” Fahandej told Global Voices. “Even when Bahá’ís are able to register, they are expelled soon after they are identified as Bahá’ís.”
“Essentially, over the past 40 years, the Iranian government has used every tactic to force Baha'is to lie about their faith,” Fahandej said. “In the early years of the revolution, Baha'is were told that if they simply denied their faith, they would not be executed. They were made to choose between their faith and the right to work, and now between their faith and the right to citizenship. Truthfulness is considered by the Baha'is to be the “foundation of all human virtues” and so the Baha'is do not lie about their faith. The new issue with ID cards is simply another ploy to try and make Baha'is deny and lie about their faith.”
With this latest move, the Islamic Republic is not only breaching the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which it is a signatory, but also its own Constitution.
Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.”
Article 19 of Iran’s own constitution states: “All people of Iran, whatever the ethnic group or tribe to which they belong, enjoy equal rights; and colour, race, language, and the like, do not bestow any privilege.”
With the removal of the “other religions” option from the national ID card application, millions of individuals in Iran belonging to religious minorities find themselves excluded from “all people of Iran.”
Simin Fahandej believes in international action. “The Baha'i International Community reports these violations to UN agencies at the international level,” Fahandej says. “International pressure is always useful in bringing in holding governments accountable based on their own commitments and obligations at the international level. Governments do not want to be seen as human rights violators and so bringing these issues up international and raising awareness about them is an important aspect of seeking justice.”

author: Fred Petrossian


text:
Pakistani human rights activist who challenged military is arrested · Global Voices
Qurratulain (Annie) Zaman

Manzoor Pashteen. Image by Qurratulain Zaman, used with permission.”
On January 27, 2020, Manzoor Ahmad Pashteen, the young human rights activist from South Waziristan, Pakistan who dared to challenge the country's military over its human rights record, was arrested for alleged conspiracy and sedition.
According to a police complaint lodged against him on January 21, Pashteen is accused of using threatening and derogatory language against the state during a public gathering on January 18.
The  Pakistan Penal Code states that certain sedition charges can carry a possible life sentence.
The son of a primary school teacher, 25-year-old Pashteen has been highlighting the plight of the Pashtun people — also known as Pathans — an ethnic group residing mostly in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Thirty million Pashtuns, representing 15 percent of Pakistan's total population, are disadvantaged, and anti-Pashtun sentiment prevails in both countries. In the past decade, there have been reports of systematic abuse and enforced disappearances of the Pashtun people by the Pakistani army.
Pashteen leads the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a social movement for Pashtun human rights. Based in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, Pashteen founded the group in 2014. Over the past few years, its members have been facing legal harassment for speaking out for the rights of the Pashtun people, and for calling for justice when it comes to violations against the community.
In May 2019, for example, local members of parliament Mohsin Dawar and Ali Wazir were arrested in North Waziristan on allegations that their supporters had attacked a Pakistan Army check post in North Waziristan’s Kharqamar. They are currently out on bail.
Media coverage of the movement and its activities also faces restrictions; in fact, local television channels avoid covering the movement altogether. In February 2019, Pashteen's interview with The New York Times (NYT), which called for an end to the enforced disappearances and extra-judicial murders of ethnic Pashtuns by security officials was forced to be censored by the military in Pakistan. The NYT's local edition in Pakistan dropped the article and the column with his interview appeared blank:
Welcome to pakistan
Land of censorship pic.twitter.com/D3c1IsQw3d
— Niazbeen Malang (@niazbeen31) February 12, 2019
In May 2018, Global Voices reported how digital outlets that covered the movement experienced disruptions to their websites.
Mohsin Dawar, member of the National Assembly of Pakistan and one of the leaders of the Pashtoon Tahafuz Movement, tweeted:
Last night Manzoor Pashteen was arrested in Tehkaal, Peshawar. This is our punishment for demanding our rights in a peaceful & democratic manner. But Manzoor's arrest will only strengthen our resolve. We demand the immediate release of Manzoor Pashteen.#ReleaseManzoorPashteen
— Mohsin Dawar (@mjdawar) January 27, 2020
“These arrests are not going to put us down,” Dawar told Global Voices in a phone interview. “This is a sign for recognition of our demands of justice, peace and equality.”
The Pashtoon Tahafuz Movement called a press conference and a peaceful protest to highlight Manzoor's case, as well as the plight of nine others who were arrested with him. However, on January 28, during a demonstration against Pashteen's arrest, Dawar, along with 22 other peaceful protestors, were dragged into police vans and arrested. Dawar was released the following day and the rest of them were sent to Adiala Jail in judicial custody. A first information report (FIR) was lodged against them accusing of different crimes as per the Pakistan Penal Code including “assault on public servants”, “defaming army” and “obstructing public servants from discharging duties” and they were denied bail.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan issued a statement:
There is no indication that the protestors resorted to violence at any point, although video footage shows several of them being manhandled by the police. HRCP believes that these actions were unconstitutional and have violated citizens’ right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. The arbitrary use of the charge of sedition under an archaic law to curb political dissent – that has in no way incited hatred or violence – indicates how little regard the state has for its citizens’ civil and political liberties.
Journalist Fahad Desmukh tweeted:
1. Manzoor Pashteen spoke against extrajudicial killings & disappearances –> Manzoor was arrested
2. @AmmarRashidT and 22 others protested in Islamabad against Manzoor's arrest –> they were arrested
3. @MohsinAbdali4 protested against their arrest –> he was disappeared https://t.co/kK0ha74GzF
— Fahad Desmukh (@desmukh) January 30, 2020
Social media users shared independent videos in which police could be seen dragging women activists. Political activist Tooba Syed tweeted one such video:
In this video @IsmatShahjahan & Nawfil Saleemi are being dragged by police.Nawfil Saleemi can be heard saying “chooraiN mujhe yeh peaceful protest hai” Lifelong political worker Ismat Shahjahan being shoved in the ground.Shameful #ReleaseIslamabadProtestors #ReleaseNawfalSaleemi pic.twitter.com/LX48Wv64yx
— Tooba Syed ☭ طوبیٰ (@Tooba_Sd) January 30, 2020
Professor of political science Aasim Sajjad Akhtar tweeted his support for the 22 protestors still in custody:
Crime?
1.Creative/critical minds
2.Struggle for oppressed ethnic-nations, women & religious minorities
3.Friends of poor
4.Agnst war, ecol destruction & profit-based economy#FreeAmmarRashid#FreeNawfalSaleemi#FreeSaifullahNasar#FreeShahRukneAlam#ReleaseIslamabadProtesters pic.twitter.com/26t20jYVs9
— Aasim Sajjad Akhtar (@AasimSajjadA) January 29, 2020
Secretary of the Awami Workers Party Maria H Malik also tweeted:
Jaqueline Berumen, wife of @AmmarRashidT talking about Ammar's politics.
The moment where Isa yells “I'M MISSING MY PAPA, ACTUALLY!” is just so beautiful it breaks my heart.
Shame on this state for torturing families like this!#ReleaseAmmarRashid#ReleaseIslamabadProtesters pic.twitter.com/4Dpfb0bvih
— Maria H. Malik ☭ (@marriyamalik1) January 30, 2020
To survive as an organic, grassroots movement, the PTH depends on social media to spread information, but activists say they are facing ‘suspension’ and ‘legal threats’ from Twitter, a popular social networking site.
Widespread reporting of Twitter accounts is a tactic used by pro-government trolls to silence PTM supporters or anyone else speaking out against human rights abuses in the country.
Ziyad Faisal, editor of The Friday Times, tweeted:
Twitter suspended accounts of a number of critical voices from Pakistan.
So far 2 journalists that I'm aware of – & now at least 1 intellectual.
They are locked out of their accounts for 12 hrs.
This coincides with a countrywide crackdown on civil liberties & critical voices
— Ziyad F.I. (@Ziyad_F) January 29, 2020
Maria H. Malik tweeted about her own experience:
My account was locked for 12 hours because of “questionable tweets”. I come back to Twitter and find more stories of abductions and arrests. Where is everyone who was elected to run this state and look after its people? Is this a joke? @sherryrehman @ShireenMazari1 @ImranKhanPTI pic.twitter.com/O2lgt0DWkf
— Maria H. Malik ☭ (@marriyamalik1) January 30, 2020
In 2018, Pakistani authorities threatened to ban Twitter, alleging that the platform had not responded to their requests to block certain ‘offensive’ material. In 2019, Twitter sent notices to a number of Pakistani journalists and human rights activists, informing them that their content was allegedly in violation of Pakistani law.
Update: On February 3, 2020, Monday, a Pakistani court granted bail to 23 human rights activists detained in Islamabad on January 28, 2020 for protesting the arrest of Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) leader Manzoor Pashteen. The judge also summoned the Inspector General of Police to explain under what authority of law the offence of sedition has been included in the first information report. The activists were released on Tuesday, February 4, 2020, however, Pashteen remains in police custody and faces charges of “sedition.”

author: Qurratulain (Annie) Zaman


text:
7 reasons Hongkongers are angry about the government response to the coronavirus · Global Voices
Hong Kong Free Press

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam at a press conference on coronavirus control. Photo from the Stand News.
The following post is originally written by Kris Cheng and published on Hong Kong Free Press on February 1, 2020. It is republished on Global Voices under a content partnership agreement.
Hong Kong people have been angered by the government’s response to the recent coronavirus outbreak. In a matter of weeks, almost 10,000 people have been infected and over 100 have died in China. And locally, there have been ten confirmed cases as of this week.
The spread of the virus has caused panic around the city, with residents stockpiling surgical masks and food. Meanwhile, mistrust of the authorities has already been building during months of pro-democracy protests and unrest, clashing head-on with the outbreak this month.
Here is a roundup of seven reasons why Hongkongers remain angry with the response by the authorities.
In response to the ongoing protests last November, Chief Executive Carrie Lam enacted an anti-mask law by invoking the 1922 Emergency Regulations Ordinance. Pro-democracy lawmakers filed a legal challenge and the Court of First Instance in November ruled that the law was unconstitutional. But the government decided to appeal, and the case was heard earlier this month.
The result is still pending, though democrats have questioned how the government can be advising citizens to wear face masks whilst simultaneously trying to ban facial coverings through legal means.
Lam has resisted calls to drop the case, saying that the virus outbreak is unrelated.
The government stopped short of recommending that residents wear face masks in the early days of the outbreak, even after the first locally confirmed case on January 22. Three days later, Chief Executive Carrie Lam appeared at a press conference without a face mask.
Although the vast majority of Hongkongers had donned masks on public transport, in scenes reminiscent of the 2003 SARS outbreak, it was another six days after the first case that Lam joined top officials in wearing one to a press event.
The authorities have since recommended that Hongkongers wear surgical masks at mass gatherings and during commutes, despite a territory-wide shortage.
And although Singapore is giving out free face masks, and the Korean consulate is also handing them out to their citizens in Hong Kong, there have been no promises of any similar government-led programme in the city. Instead, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung has said the focus will be on restoring the supply to retailers.
There were calls to close off the border with mainland China even before the first case of Wuhan virus was confirmed in Hong Kong. But the government only announced measures on Tuesday, January 28 to cut the number of people crossing into the city from the mainland.
A new union of more than 15,000 Hospital Authority employees has threatened to strike if the government does not close the borders with China completely, but Lam’s administration has said such a move would be discriminatory and has not been recommended by the World Health Organization.
Meanwhile, other Asian nations such as Mongolia and Singapore have barred Chinese citizens from passing through their borders.
When the government finally began to close checkpoints, it faced criticism for closing only a handful of minor crossings rather than all of them. Though the high-speed rail link and cross-border trains were halted, as well as all ferry services, the routes only see about eight percent of the daily traffic between Hong Kong and the mainland.
Many visitors are trusted to fill out a health declaration form, though there are fears not everyone will do so honestly.
Meanwhile, the main checkpoints – Lo Wu, Lok Ma Chau, Shenzhen Bay and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge – remain open.
The government announced that it would provide free treatment for patients who contracted the new virus, saying that it was intended to prevent victims from not receiving treatment owing to the fees.
But the policy was widely criticised as indirectly attracting mainland patients to come to Hong Kong for treatment as the border remained open. The government had to reverse the policy a day later and announce fees for non-Hong Kong residents.
The government said this month that it would use the Fai Ming Estate in Fanling – a public housing estate that has yet to be opened – as a quarantine centre.
As the proposal had not gone through any public consultation and the site was just a street across two other highly populated residential estates, many residents opposed and protested against the plan. During the protest, journalists found that quarantine materials had already been placed inside the estate. Some activists threw petrol bombs at the lobby. Eventually, the government was forced to abandon the plan.
In a bid to encourage its use, the government announced in January that the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge will be toll-free for small passenger vehicles during the Lunar New Year holidays. The offer extends to February 2.
Although a similar policy was enacted during last year’s holiday period, many in Hong Kong were concerned that the offer would simply attract more mainland patients to come to Hong Kong, causing the virus to spread.
the impact of the Wuhan coronavirus

author: Hong Kong Free Press