text:
As Sudan transitions to democracy, urgent reforms must tackle disinformation · Global Voices
Mohamed Suliman

Sudanese protesters gather in front of government buildings in Khartoum, Sudan, to celebrate the final signing of the Draft Constitutional Declaration between military and civil representatives, August 19, 2019. Photo by Voice of America, public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
‘Fake news‘ became the word of the year in 2017 for a reason: The proliferation of online disinformation campaigns has made international headlines. Yet the spread of mis- and disinformation is not new and has existed long before the advent of the internet.
Sudan, a country embarking on a three-year-long transition toward civilian and democratic rule following a massive revolution that toppled the long-standing regime of Omar al-Bashir, is no exception. As Sudan transitions to democracy, it must address the former regime's legacy of disinformation tactics and limits to freedom of expression through urgent legal reforms.
In Sudan, government-sponsored disinformation campaigns have long impacted Sudanese people, with the goal to manipulate and exploit their perception, either to advocate for the regime's policies and figures or to attack dissenting protesters and opposition political parties.
Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service operate the so-called Cyber Jihadist Unit, established in 2011. According to the 2014 Freedom of the Net report, the unit's tasks included “infiltrat[ing] online discussions in an effort to ascertain information about cyber-dissidents and spread disinformation”. Government-led disinformation was particularly rife during the 2019 protests calling for an end to al-Bashir's rule and the protests demanding a civilian transitional government in the aftermath of his removal from power.
More on mis- and disinformation during the Sudan protests
During the recent anti-government protests that sought an end to military rule in the government, journalists and activists documented several cases of mis- and disinformation such as manipulated photos, government-sponsored disinformation campaigns, and even fake accounts on Instagram that hijacked solidarity and donation efforts during the revolution.
The regime coordinated with the Russian company, M-invest, to spread rumors and fabricated news stories about anti-government protests during the revolution. According to documents reviewed by CNN, the company suggested spreading fabricated stories ‘’that protesters were attacking mosques and hospitals.’’  The company proposed a social media campaign claiming that “Israel supports the protesters.” Sudan has no diplomatic relations with Israel and it previously fought alongside other Arab countries in the Arab-Israeli wars of 1948 and 1967.
They also suggested to ‘’plant LGBT flags’’, which could have seriously threatened the safety of protesters and activists because homosexuality is not only illegal in Sudan, but also punishable by death.
War militias such as the Rapid Support Forces ( RSF) and military leaders also launched and orchestrated propaganda and disinformation campaigns. Days after the dispersal on 3 June by security and military forces of a sit-in calling for a civilian-led transitional government, an Egyptian company called New Waves started an influence campaign aimed at presenting and marketing for a good image for the RSF militia and its leaders.
More than 100 protesters were killed as a result of the crackdown on the sit-in, which later became known as the Khartoum massacre.
The former Sudanese regime waged its own campaigns to dis-inform the public and attack critics and passed laws to restrict freedom of expression and press freedom under the pretext of fighting rumors or false information.
Article 87 of chapter 12 of the 2018 Telecommunications and Postal-Regulation Act, prescribes a punishment not exceeding five years in prison or a fine or both for those convicted of spreading rumors deemed harmful to state security.
Article 66 of the Sudanese Criminal Act of 1991 states:
Whoever circulates, propagates any news, rumor or report which he knows to be false with intent to cause fear or alarm to the public or threat to public peace or undermine the respect of the State shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may not exceed six months or with fine or with both.’
In July 2018, the Sudanese parliament approved a draft cybercrime law which prescribes a punishment of up to one year in jail against those convicted of spreading ”fake news” and rumours. According to the Beirut-based digital rights group Social Media Exchange (SMEX):
Article 23 of the new Cybercrimes Law imposes sanctions such as “imprisonment for less than one year, flogging, or paying a fine” for “anyone who uses the internet, or any means of communications, information or applications to disseminate any news, rumor or report, knowing it’s fake, to cause public fear or panic, threaten public safety and offence the reputation of the State.“
The bill was awaiting final approval before the regime was deposed. A transitional legislative council is expected to be put in place to approve new laws or repeal old ones.
These legal provisions were passed to curb ‘’fake news’’ in Sudan, yet they threaten press freedom and freedom of expression.
The vagueness and opacity of language and terms in these laws intentionally leave the door ajar for biased interpretations. For example, “undermining the respect of the State”, “threat to public peace” and “threat to state security” are vague terms that could be easily deployed to silence critics and journalists.
In August 2019, authorities convicted journalist Suhair Abdelraheem of ‘’spreading fake news’’  for “writing a sarcastic article about the Sudanese police.” In her opinion piece, Abdelraheem criticized the police for their lack of action against those who steal public funds and those involved in corruption cases. She was fined $150 USD while her newspaper was ordered to pay a fine of $250 USD.
To counter misinformation and disinformation, part of the solution lies in decentralized fact-checking efforts. In Sudan,  journalist Wasil Ali has actively worked to debunk false claims. In early September, he debunked a viral false news story about plans by Lufthansa Airlines to start offering flights to Khartoum. In some cases, Sudanese police have also taken to the media to debunk totally fabricated news such as the viral news story that claimed the current Sudanese passport design will be canceled or changed.
Sudanese fact-checking platform Karrib, which relies on crowdsourcing to submit reports of false and fabricated stories and verify them, also countered misinformation and disinformation during the revolution. While it relies on crowdsourcing, moderators still have an influence over the final decision. The platform also runs no ads and it has a comment section for people to share their opinions about each published report.
Right to rectify in Sudanese law
Article 27 of the 2009 Press and Publications Act establishes “the right to correct and rectify”, under which newspapers and other forms of publications are required to publish ”a rectification of facts or statements that caused the damage”, when ”requested by the aggrieved”. While this measure allows those affected by mis and disinformation to correct information published about them, it remains an inadequate measure to counter the widespread dissemination of such information online.
While fact-checking efforts are an important component in the fight against misinformation and disinformation, in the absence of an enabling environment for freedom of press and freedom of information, they are not enough.
The Sudanese transitional government, sworn in last September, should take steps to create the conditions to appeal current laws that allow authorities to send people to jail for allegedly publishing rumors and false news. The government can also create better conditions to promote press freedom, improve transparency and make it easier for journalists and citizens to submit Freedom of Information requests.
These reforms will make it possible for journalists, bloggers and media organizations to seek and publish the truth.
However, tasked with rebuilding the economy, ending internal conflicts and managing the country’s daily affairs until the transition toward full civilian governance is complete, it remains unclear whether the government will prioritize these reforms.
As Sudan transitions to democracy, delaying these reforms could seriously jeopardize the process.

author: Mohamed Suliman


text:
Can the 2019 presidential election alleviate rampant poverty in Afghanistan? · Global Voices
Ezzatullah Mehrdad

Manual laborer Mohammad Jan Hussaini came to cast his vote in the Afghan presidential election, but was told he could not, as the voting machine was unable to read his fingerprint. Photo by Ezzatullah Mehrdad, used with permission.
Mohammad Jan Hussaini is a daily laborer in Kabul who is determined to exercise his civic rights. On September 28, he showed up early at his polling station to cast his vote in the presidential election. But things didn't go as planned.
Hussaini, who at 35 looks more like 50, struggles and waits every day in his ragged clothes and worn-out shoes in the hope of getting a menial job. On election day he wandered for a few hours in front of the Marefat polling station in central Kabul. After standing in a queue for 30 minutes, he finally put his finger on the biometric device to cast his vote. The device did not recognize his fingerprint.
“Your fingerprint is damaged, you cannot vote,” an Afghan election officer told him. Refusing to take this for an answer, Hussaini requested to seek an explanation from higher ranking officers. Once again, he was told he couldn't vote.
Biometric machines were introduced last year in Afghanistan to prevent fraud. According to Hussaini, however, what happened to him on September 28 amounts to fraud. “I already feel powerless and the only thing I can do is vote,” he says. “Our situation is beyond hardship: the level of unemployment, elections marred by fraud, and the war.”
Afghans are deeply affected by a prolonged civil war in which 50 people lose their lives every day. An equally heavy burden is poverty: according to a Gallup Poll published in 2019, 85 percent of Afghans describe themselves as ‘suffering’, and none say they are ‘thriving’. The same source indicates that 90 percent of Afghans say it is difficult to get by on their household income, while 57 percent struggle to afford food.
A desperate desire for change is what drives people like Hussaini and 2.5 million other Afghans to vote for the person who will be running the country for the to next five years. “It is the last day of Ashraf Ghani [the current president who is also running for a second term],” Hussain explains. “Today I came to vote for my favorite candidate.”
Amina, a 53-year-old mother who lives in a rented house thanks to the income provided by her son, has a similar motive: “I have voted every time an election has been held. This time, I voted with the hope of bringing stability and security in the country, and that people could afford to eat.”
Afghan women at the Sayed Shuhada polling station in Kabul during the 2019 Afghan presidential election. Many returned home without voting after not being able to find their names on the voter lists. Photo by Ezzatullah Mehrdad, used with permission.
But not all women were as fortunate as Amina. Mohammad Eisaq Arefi, who is in charge of the Marefat polling station where Hussaini tried to vote, acknowledges that in some cases women's names were listed under the men's section, and vice versa. “I really do not know why we have these widespread technical problems,” he said, “but it seems to be a bigger problem related to the election body.”
Some other Afghans determined to vote lost their lives in the process: at least 30 security personnel and 10 civilians were killed in incidents related to the election, according to conservative estimates.
While the election process ended on September 28, results are not expected to be made public before October 19. The election authorities did not say exactly how many polling stations were opened across the country, but reported a significant increase in votes between their first and the second updates about participation rates. This is particularly relevant in light of fraud allegations, as Jawad Zawulistani, a young human rights activist who decided not to vote explains: “I do not have any trust in the election body. When my vote counts and is respected, it’s valuable. But as a citizen, I did not want to be manipulated by a team [of the current President] that has decided to betray us.”
It was also reported that as election officers were counting votes, the Taliban destroyed towers belonging to telecommunication companies in the north of the country, making it impossible for the election authorities to release accurate data.
The confusion around the electoral process has also escalated as the two top candidates have both claimed victory. Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, and President Ashraf Ghani have each claimed they won before the election body could have tallied the total number of votes. Both candidates contested the previous presidential election of 2014, and claimed victory back then in a similar scenario.
Should another political crisis develop, however, the impact on people like Mohammad Jan Hussaini will be severe. As a father of six, Hussiani is responsible for the livelihood of nearly ten households, including that of his parents. Food prices are constantly rising: a sack of rice now costs the equivalent of US$35, a liter of oil is US$15.
“Who knows what will happen next,” Hussaini says. “For 20 days in a month, I go home without having an income. The rest of the month, I go home with 400 Afghani [US$ 5].”

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Ezzatullah Mehrdad


text:
Climate activists in the Netherlands: “We need hope through action” · Global Voices
Tori Egherman

“You all come to us young people for hope? How dare you.” Greta Thunberg spoke with anger and passion about the urgency for world leaders to take swift action on the climate emergency the world faces. She’s not the first young person to beg for action, or the first activist. She is one of many. For decades and decades, activists and scientists have warned us about the impact of industrialization and consumerism on the ecosystem. Yet it is Greta's generation that will experience the most dramatic changes.
In the lead-up to the UN Climate Action Summit, people all over the world have been joining the students striking for action on the climate emergency. For this article, I spoke with three climate activists in the Netherlands about their activities and motivations.
Leila Gray speaks six languages. She’s an actor and a transplant to the Netherlands from the UK. In the past, she felt that there were plenty of people working on climate change solutions, so she didn’t have to:
“I went through that period of thinking that other people were working on climate change, so I didn’t have to. And then there were the fires in Indonesia around 2015. People were walking around with oxygen masks. Children were evacuated.”
Leila discovered that palm oil production was one of the key factors in the fires. She felt the obvious thing to do was demand that the EU end the import of palm oil.
If only it were so simple.
Instead, Leila discovered that eliminating palm oil meant replacing it with something else that would likely be as damaging:
“It’s not as simple as getting rid of something. The solution is not to replace. In the Global North we need to reduce our consumption.”
In 2018, she started following the activities of Extinction Rebellion (XR) in the UK. Their tactics and passion spoke to her: “I was stunned to see that many people, including young mothers, were saying, ‘I’m so scared for the future that I’m willing to go to prison to make change’.”
She found the XR group in the Netherlands and joined. “I’ve never engaged in activism before. I believe in this so much that I am prepared to make a sacrifice. I never felt I’d be willing to be arrested. But I am now.”
University student Jonathan Leggett joined the Extinction Rebellion movement for similar reasons to Leila's:
“Frankly, I am absolutely terrified of the course we are heading on, and government inaction.”
As a student of climate change, he is especially concerned.
“In 1990, the UN was saying that we had to halt warming to 1 degree centigrade. We’re now at 1.1. The IPCC [The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] is saying 1.5 is the absolute maximum.”
Jonathan adds that those numbers are conservative.
Jonathan Leggett at the Sept 27 Climate Strike demonstration in The Hague. Photo used with permission.
Unlike Leila, Jonathan has been involved in activism in one form or another since he was a child. Some of his earliest memories of protest are from the 2003 antiwar demonstration in London, which he attended on the shoulders of his parents, who are activists themselves. He notes that the appetite for activism is smaller in the Netherlands than in the UK, where he was born.
“One of the issues we’re having in the Netherlands as opposed to the UK is that there is not currently a strong culture of protest. This can work to our advantage, because we can think about new forms of protest. To a certain extent this frees us to be more creative.”
There's another advantage, as Jonathan points out:
“Having two capitals, Amsterdam and The Hague, means that we have twice the opportunity for disruption.”
I asked Jonathan if he was angry at previous generations for not doing more to address climate change.
“In some respects yes. But I know there were other issues that needed tackling. And I know there was a coordinated campaign to cast doubt on climate issues. So while I am angry that it hasn’t been dealt with sooner, I’m not angry at a whole generation. I’m angry at those people who purposely misled others and made sure that climate change was not addressed sooner.”
Talissa Soto is a founding member of the Climate Liberation Bloc (CLuB). She started working in social justice activism at university. At the same time she was teaching a course on the politics of climate change.
“The more activism I did around social justice, I realized that climate change is going to hit the people who have been most impacted by colonialism and marginalization first and disproportionately. I asked myself, how can we make sure that there is a just and healthy planet in the end for us to live our liberated lives?”
Talissa began challenging climate activists in the Netherlands.
Talissa Soto photographed at a demonstration. Photo by Alex Bleu. Used with permission.
“What does it mean to decolonize the climate movement? What is it like to see the crisis as the result of 500 years of colonialism and colonial capitalism and plundering of resources? The climate emergency is not only about the future. It already exists for much of the population of the world.”
It’s been hard work challenging mainstream climate activists, Talissa adds.
“We [CLuB] are trying to expose the iceberg underneath the discourse on climate change and work with groups that are doing feminist and anti-racist work and then bring it back into the mainstream climate movement. And there has been a response in the Netherlands. It’s rare that groups don’t say climate justice. It’s rare that groups don’t acknowledge the systemic nature of climate change.”
At times the work has left Talissa emotionally drained and too exhausted to engage.
“It’s hard getting your comrades to understand that they have to focus on racism and sexism too. It’s a lot of emotional labor.”
The work, however, has been worthwhile. Another founding member of CLuB, Chihiro Geuzebroek, has become a popular speaker in the Netherlands climate movement. The work of CLuB has been acknowledged by more mainstream organizations. Old school activists are coming around to the need for a focus on social issues and acknowledge that marginalized populations need to be centered in all climate activism.
This small success means that Talissa can change the focus of her activism.
“Now we want to work more with marginalized people inside the movement, and not focus on the mainstream. We’re working a lot more with queer people and people of color and women of color and black women now.”
Talissa, Leila, and Jonathan have all found ways to transform their concerns for the future into action. Jonathan calls it “hope through action.”
“We need hope through action. Most political change came about as a result of a huge amount of protest. It’s protest that has made the way we live today possible. I just hope it’s not too late to be honest. I am heartened by the how quickly the climate movement is spreading. Look at the school strikes and how enormous they’ve become.  Just recently OPEC said that the school strikes are the biggest threat to the oil industry. All the CEOs of the different companies are hearing their children ask why are my classmates striking? And what do you answer?”
On October 7, 2019, there will be further demonstrations and civil disobedience to call attention to the climate crisis. Many groups and individuals are involved, including XR Netherlands. They will be protesting in front of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and at many other locations.
Photo by Tori Egherman

author: Tori Egherman


text:
From Syria to the world: Notes on tyranny, war and despair · Global Voices
Guest Contributor

Image by Carabo Spain from Pixabay.
By Jihad Eddin Ramadan
Based on actual events and true stories of Syrian people, including the author's friends and relatives, these Notes capture the many aspects of the Syrian tragedy and shed light on the fragility of the Syrian life. They send a clear, loud message that Syrians deserve to live in peace, dignity and freedom—just like everyone else in the world. The Notes were translated from the original Arabic by Tesbih Habbal.
‘I am a child, studying at an elementary school in the east, west, south, north of Syria—or somewhere in between. It doesn’t really matter where my school is. I once dreamed of becoming a teacher. My school, and so my dreams, turned into ruins. I suddenly found myself displaced, without dreams, at some camp.’
‘I am an infant. I live with my seven brothers in a pitiful house. But I love our house. It is my paradise; my safe haven. Then on a dark night, wild beasts wearing human skins broke into it. They slaughtered me along with my brothers; oh father, they did so just because you said “no.””
‘I am an annoying child. I ask my mother every day of Ramadan to buy me Eid clothes and new shoes. My nagging only stopped after I tried on the new outfit and shoes. I watch my mother hiding my new clothes in the closet—she hid them for coming Eid. Then, and in a fleeting moment, a missile blew through my body. To avoid listening to my cries, my mother laid down my Eid outfit and new shoes on my grave.’
‘I have aged rapidly, as I watched them cruelly killing my father and two brothers at the checkpoint. I wish they didn’t leave me alive, wandering the cold streets alone. Oh God, why didn’t they just kill me, too! So I am no longer accused of insanity…’
‘I am an artist. I play the violin. I composed all the songs of rage for my beloved neighborhood. I planted seeds of hope in peoples’ hearts. And fought, with my melodies, misery and death; until my soul made a peaceful journey to heaven.’
‘I am still a young girl, but my rapist turned me into a grown woman—at the age of eight. He invaded my body in a small room at school. It is the room where I go to buy candies. He gave me candies and chips and told me, “Don’t worry, you can take them for free.”’
‘I am a fine young man. I took up arms to defend my country. I knew who my enemies and friends were. I never thought I would be murdered by my brother and camp-mate. As they were burying me in the Martyrs’ Cemetery near my hometown, I saw the face of my murder. He was crying; he was my brother; my own flesh and blood. He betrayed me, for a few dollars.’
‘I am a father, over 50 years old. I have no family or relatives left here. I often think of my son who fled across the sea. I talk to him every day, gently and fondly, as I sit at the bench in the Public Park. I sing to him: “I want to see you every day, my love.”’
‘I am an infant. My mother carried me away in a rotting boat to save my life. My parents, the passengers on the sea boat (the balam), and everyone else have died. The waves cast me back on to the shore, not too far from the place from where we were smuggled. The smuggler escaped. The entire world sympathized with me, but my story soon faded away; all that's left is an image of a drowned child called “Eilan” murdered by human savages.’
‘I am a fragile poet. They locked me up in a dark basement because I refused to glorify “the master.” They tortured me, electrified me, gouged my eyes out, and raped me. When I was released, I was able to see only though my heart and sensations. People saw me as a shallow being, senseless and insensate.’
‘I am an innocent child. They pulled me out of the rubble and filmed me. I don’t know who destroyed the house over my head. I don’t know who rescued me, and I don’t know how to deceive or act. Why have you made of me a movie star far too soon?!’
‘I am a wheat field, blowing in the wind, ready to harvest. I am awaiting my farmer to cut my corn with his noble sickle. I can see my ears of grain turning into bread for the hungry. But I was burned down by spiteful beings during the harvest season. They claimed someone threw a cigarette that burned down all of my country’s fields.’
‘I am the head of Abu al-’Ala’ al-Ma’arri, the temple of Bel, and the statue of Ibrahim Hanano on his horse. I was destroyed by men who came from all over the world; who came from the old ages of banners and conquests. They raised their black banners over my ruins. They destroyed the temple and statue, and killed the horse, claiming that they were idols worshiped instead of God.’
‘I am a sarcastic artist. I painted a picture of the spiteful leader. It was a nightmare. They burned my paintings and confiscated my pens and paintbrushes. They beat me and broke my fingers and said, “This is the penalty of one who insults our most gracious leader. The leader has now lost his patience, and it is time for you to stop painting him, or we will wipe you off the face of the earth.”’
‘I am the Syrian who stood against the world and shouted, “I am a human, not an animal.”  But what did I get in return? Talks from the “very seriously concerned” Ban Ki-moon, and a gentle tweet from Trump: “Yes, indeed! He (Al-Assad) is the animal—not you.”’
‘I am a baker. I make bread and bake cheese and zaatar pies. I dream of a Yafawi orange orchard or olives. They besieged me in “Al-Yarmouk camp” and deprived me from wheat, flour, and bread. They hang the bread on the fence of the siege to hunt me down, just like they would hunt a mouse with a few crumbs. Every time I starved and attempted to break the siege, they shot at me before I ever reached the bread.’
‘I am the Syrian everywhere. I stood in the face of tyranny. I was attacked by the universe in the name of defeating terrorism although I am the first victim of it. I have been doomed by all nations and religions. But you will not defeat me. You will not weaken my determination or stop me from dreaming of a better tomorrow—in which the sun of rightfulness shines.’
Jihad Eddin Ramadan is Syrian lawyer and writer from Aleppo, currently living in Vienna as a refugee. Tesbih Habbal is a Syrian researcher and editor, currently based at the University of Chicago.

author: Guest Contributor


text:
Lilly Satidtanasarn, the 12-year-old taking on plastic pollution in Thailand · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Lilly Satidtanasarn teaching Kindergarten students about the need to eliminate single-use plastic in society. Photo from Facebook page of Bye Bye Plastic Bags Thailand
12-year-old Ralyn ‘Lilly’ Satidtanasarn was among those who joined a ‘die-in‘ protest on 20 September 2019 in front of Thailand’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to symbolize the worsening climate crisis. It was part of the global climate strike initiated by mostly young people around the world to highlight the need for urgent action in order to reverse the rapid warming of the planet.
Lilly is known in Thailand for advocating the reduction in the use of plastic. She has been talking to officials, corporate bosses, and civic leaders in the past four years about the pollution caused by single-use plastic.
Her efforts have been successful in drawing attention to the alarming plastic waste in Thailand. And her advocacy has been acknowledged in persuading a Bangkok supermarket to stop offering plastic bags for one day every week.
In an interview with the author via WhatsApp and facilitated by her family, Lilly said she was not sure whether she should call herself an environment advocate since she feels her work is more of a responsibility:
I feel the responsibilities to do something about it now. I don’t know that I am an environment advocate like you said. I just want to do something to help out. My family always teach me that if we can do something to help then we should. I saw many issues where we live and I know even kids like me can change to do something about it, so I do that. Also, it’s not enough that only I-myself do something. Everyone should come help too. The government and people with power too. I can tell others to help by letting them know the issues and that they can do something about it.
Lilly's concern for the environment was triggered when she saw plastic garbage on a beach during a family vacation when she was eight-years-old.
She shares some of the challenges and difficulties she encountered while reaching out to authorities and other leaders in society:
Adults think I’m doing homework or a school project. They didn’t take me seriously but I kept emailing them and now they take me seriously. I have meetings with them and present my ideas and I showed them what I have done so far. People will follow me not because I have an opinion or knowledge about something. People will follow me because I do it, I showed them I made the change.
Lilly, Thailand's Greta Thunberg, wages ‘war’ on plastic #AFP https://t.co/7KXPRWRDnF
? @AFPMladen pic.twitter.com/PTQmApyonG
— AFP Photo (@AFPphoto) September 17, 2019
Many media reports describe Lilly as the Greta Thunberg of Thailand, referring to the 16-year old Swedish climate activist who has become a popular icon of the global climate strike. This is Lilly’s reaction:
Greta is very important to me. She symbolizes that kids have power to change and I have believed that for a long time already. I don’t think I’m Greta of Thailand. I’m my own person. So, I’m Lilly. I live in Thailand and I’m a citizen of the world. The earth is what we all have in common.
This is Lilly’s reminder to Thai officials:
I think if the government agrees that our environment is important then they should declare that we are in a crisis in all parts of Thailand. We have serious droughts and flooding for decades. So many sea creatures are dead from eating plastic. We have only 34% of the rainforest left in Thailand. We are depleting fossil fuels. There won’t be any left. And we have so many new factories and increasing carbon emission. So, with all the issues we are facing, we should declare Climate Emergency for Thailand.

author: Mong Palatino


text:
Netizen Report: Human rights groups demand justice for Jamal Khashoggi, one year after his murder · Global Voices
Ellery Roberts Biddle

The Advox Netizen Report offers an international snapshot of challenges, victories, and emerging trends in technology and human rights around the world. This report covers news and events from September 27 – October 4, 2019.
Jamal Khashoggi. Photo by April Brady / POMED [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]
On October 2, 2018, 59-year-old Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi walked into the Saudi embassy in Istanbul to collect paperwork for his marriage and never returned. Later it was revealed he had been killed and his body dismembered by Saudi agents.
His killing sparked widespread condemnation of the Saudi government and brought increased international scrutiny to the treatment of journalists and rights activists by the regime.
Saudi officials initially denied any knowledge about the disappearance of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and former editor of Al Watan. Later, they claimed that he had died after a fight broke out inside the embassy, and then finally acknowledged that his killing was premeditated.The Saudis have yet to return Khashoggi’s remains to his family. Multiple world leaders and intelligence agencies believe Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman ordered the journalist’s murder.
In late 2018, allegations emerged that surveillance software built by the Israel company NSO Group had allowed Saudi authorities to snoop on Khashoggi’s communications in the months leading up to his killing.
News and analysis of Khashoggi’s murder also raised the profiles of other Saudi Arabian voices pushing for greater human rights protections in the country. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 16 journalists were behind bars for their work in 2018, and at least nine others have been arrested in 2019. Human rights defenders and online activists are also behind bars, including Loujain al-Hathloul, a campaigner for women’s right to drive, and Israa Al-Ghomgham, an activist who was threatened with a death sentence (which was later reduced) for violating the kingdom’s Cybercrime Act.
Vigils and demonstrations were held outside of Saudi embassies in several countries on October 2. Human rights and media freedom groups also jointly published a letter calling for further action by both the international community and the Saudi government to implement due process in the investigation of Khashoggi’s murder and to release other journalists, human rights activists and prisoners of conscious currently behind bars in the kingdom.
The European Court of Justice issued a landmark ruling concerning illegal content on Facebook. In a defamation case brought against the company by Austrian politician Eva Glawischnig-Piesczek, the court ruled that the company should be obligated to remove defamatory posts about her not only within Austria or EU jurisdiction, but worldwide.
The ruling sits in sharp contrast with previous rulings by other courts, agreements with governments, and Facebook’s current approach to content found to be in violation of the law, under which the company “geoblocks” or removes the offending content only within the relevant national or regional jurisdiction. The ruling also calls for the implementation of automated content filtering systems, but offers no indication of how these should work.
The decision could have profound implications for the company and its users, both within the EU and globally. It sets a new standard, under which any court in an EU member state could order content found to be in violation of that state’s law to be removed from Facebook altogether. But it also sets a precedent on which non-EU governments may argue that Facebook should follow the same procedure for any piece of content deemed illegal in any jurisdiction. It could increase the power of countries like Turkey, which makes hundreds of successful content removal requests each year, to dictate what the whole world sees and doesn’t see on the platform. For these and many other reasons, the decision may mean that speech is about to get a lot less free on Facebook.
The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act officially went into effect in October 2019, giving broad, unchecked powers to government ministers to determine what online information is “false” and demand that it be censored or corrected. The Ministry of Law says the legislation will help stop the circulation of “deliberate online falsehoods,” but journalists and human rights advocates worry it will be used to stifle free speech.
The law also raises significant concerns for technology platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Google, which maintain their Asian headquarters in Singapore. The law introduces significant administrative obligations for web platforms offering their services in the country, and imposes fines on companies.
Only six months after his release from prison after serving a five-year jail sentence for defying a protest ban, Egyptian activist and blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah was arrested again on September 29.
Alaa was arrested at the Dokki police station, where he is required to spend the night every day from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., as part of his probation period. However, on the morning of 29 September, Alaa did not emerge from the station and his family was told that he was detained by the National Security Agency and taken to State Security Prosecution headquarters. According to Mada Masr, authorities have accused him of “joining an illegal organization,” “receiving foreign funding,” “spreading false news,” and “misusing social media.” He is yet to be charged.
A leading voice among Egyptian bloggers and technology activists in Cairo on the lead-up to the 2011 Egyptian Revolution, Alaa has been jailed or investigated under every Egyptian head of state who has served during his lifetime.
Alaa’s re-arrest comes in the midst of a government crackdown on small-scale anti-corruption protests that took place in multiple Egyptian cities in late September. Hundreds of arrests have been documented, and cybersecurity experts sayseveral activists and opposition leaders have received targeted surveillance software that has been linked to the Egyptian Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.
Activist and documentary filmmaker Dandhy Dwi Laksono was arrested on September 26 and accused of spreading hate speech on social media. Dandhy had posted several tweets from protests against racial discrimination in Indonesia’s Papua and West Papua provinces.
Ananda Badudu, a musician and former journalist, was briefly detained and questioned by the police for his involvement in crowdfunding in support of the Indonesian student protests that are currently underway in cities across Indonesia. He has been released since.
Croatian journalist Gordan Duhacek, who writes for Index.hr, was arrested at Zagreb airport on September 16 and fined for a tweet that included the anti-police acronym ACAB (All Coppers are Bastards). He is awaiting another court decision regarding a second tweet, in which he made a satirical reference to a patriotic Croatian song in a thread focused on pollution and environmental degradation in the country. Dunja Mijatovic, Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, says the cases against Duhaceek “amount to pure intimidation of the press.”
UAE human rights activist Ahmed Mansoor has begun his second hunger strike in protest of poor prison conditions and ill treatment at al-Sadr prison in Abu Dhabi. Mansoor, who has been arrested and jailed in his country multiple times since 2011, is serving a 10-year prison sentence after being convicted of insulting the “status and prestige of the UAE and its symbols,” publishing “false reports” on social media.
Mansoor was named the winner of the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders of 2015 for being “one of the few voices within the UAE who provides a credible independent assessment of human rights developments in the country.”
State of Internet Freedom in Africa: Mapping Trends in Internet and Government Controls, 1999 – 2019 – Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa CIPESA
The Global Disinformation Order: 2019 Global Inventory of Organised Social Media Manipulation – Phil Howard and Samantha Bradshaw, Oxford Internet Institute
Are we any better at judging right from wrong? Automation in content moderation – Namita, GenderIT.org
Afef Abrougui, Ellery Roberts Biddle, Mohamed ElGohary, Leila Nachawati, Mong Palatino and Juke Carolina Rumuat contributed to this report.

author: Ellery Roberts Biddle


text:
NGOs slam Hong Kong’s enacting of emergency law banning masks at protests as draconian · Global Voices
Hong Kong Free Press

Typical outfits of HK protesters. Photo: May James/HKFP.
The following post was written by Kris Cheng and published on Hong Kong Free Press on October 4, 2019. It is republished on Global Voices according to a content partnership agreement.
The Hong Kong government has invoked the Emergency Regulations Ordinance (ERO) in order to implement a law banning the wearing of face masks at protests.
The law will ban protesters from covering their faces fully or partially during protests. Anyone who wears a mask at lawful rallies and marches, unlawful or unauthorised assemblies, or at riots could be sentenced to a year in jail and a fine of HK$25,000 (US$3,180). The law exempts people wearing masks at protests for professional, religious, medical or other work-related reasons.
Additionally, the law states that anyone who disobeys a police order to remove a mask could be sentenced to six months in jail and a fine of HK$10,000 (US$1,200). The definition of “facial covering” includes not only masks, but also face paint and other such coverings.
The legislation comes into effect starting at midnight on Friday 4 October. It was announced after a special meeting of the Executive Council on Friday, by the de facto cabinet of Chief Executive Carrie Lam.
“The decision to enact an anti-mask law is not easy one, but it is a necessary decision considering the situation today,” Lam said.
Hong Kong is “not in a state of emergency” despite the enactment of the law, she added.
When asked if the move was approved by Beijing, Lam claimed there was “no such thing as the Central People’s Government approval” for such a decision. “It is something handled within Hong Kong under ‘One Country, Two Systems,'” Lam said. She added that her trip to Beijing on October 1 was “very brief” and she had no interaction with Chinese officials on the mask ban.
Major officials of the Hong Kong government. Photo: GovHK.
The Emergency Regulations Ordinance (ERO) is a colonial-era law that gives the chief executive unlimited power in the event of an “emergency or public danger.” Introduced in 1922, this is the first time the ERO has been used since the 1967 leftist riots.
A government source told the pro-Beijing Sing Tao Daily that the government expects that protesters would not obey the law, but that for some it may have a deterrent effect.
Hong Kong has experienced over 17 weeks of protests sparked by the government’s soon-to-be-withdrawn extradition law. The sometimes violent demonstrations have evolved into wider calls for democracy, police accountability, amnesty for those arrested since June, as well as other community grievances.
The latest development came after the most violent day of protest Hong Kong has seen since the beginning of the movement, as police fired six live rounds of ammunition on October 1. An 18-year-old student was shot in the left lung by one officer. Since then, district-level protests have occurred nightly.
The new law banning masks has taken into account human rights concerns under Hong Kong law, which are not absolute and can be limited, said justice chief Teresa Cheng on October 4.
The legislation will not affect Hongkongers’ freedom of assembly, as they can still exercise their rights when not wearing masks, Cheng added.
Cheng said the law has “struck a balance” between Hongkongers’ rights and the need to help police enforce the law, so the restriction was a “proportionate” one under the law. The use of the ERO is not the same as Hong Kong entering a state of emergency, Lam said, noting that the name of the law has caused some confusion.
When asked if the government will ban police officers from wearing masks as well, Secretary for Security John Lee said officers must wear suitable protective gear. “When police officers execute their duties… we have ways to identify them,” he said, addressing concerns that police may be hiding their identities.
The Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), an alliance of 50 NGOs which acted as the organiser of mass marches, called the ERO a draconian law from the colonial times. The CHRF said that:
Once invoked, the Carrie Lam government would be declaring the death of ‘One Country, Two Systems’, and that Hong Kong is now a colony under Mainland Chinese rule. This old severe colonial law must be abandoned to keep the government in check and stop it from persecuting Hong Kong residents.
If the anti-mask law, once applied, will threaten personal safety and the freedoms of expression and religion. The primary reason for wearing masks and industrial respirators is for protection from tear gas. It is also a political gesture. Without carefully examining practicalities, such laws would also impede religious practices that are under the protection of the Basic Law.
It said the Hong Kong police should be the first to stop wearing masks and show their identity, following incidents in which they used “excessive and lethal force.”
The CHFR also said the government should respond to the public’s demands, and not further crack down on protests.
Activist Lester Shum and the “King of Judicial Review” Kwok Cheuk-kin said on Friday that they would file legal challenges against the anti-mask law.
Meanwhile, Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch, said:
Hong Kong authorities should be working to create a political environment in which protesters do not feel the need for masks—not banning the masks, and deepening restrictions on freedom of expression.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam needs to agree to an examination of excessive force by police and to resume the process toward universal suffrage. Additional restrictions are only likely to inflame tensions.

author: Hong Kong Free Press


text:
Video: Two months of lockdown in Kashmir · Global Voices
VideoVolunteers

A barren road in Kashmir. Screenshot from the video report by Basharat Amin, a Video Volunteers community correspondent from Kashmir.
This post was written by Grace Jolliffe and originally appeared on Video Volunteers, an award-winning international community media organisation based in India. A slightly edited version is published below as part of a content-sharing agreement.
Barren roads, no public transportation, mobile services snapped, schools and colleges shut — Kashmir is still as silent as a grave.
Daily life remains severely affected across the valley as the Indian-administered region of Jammy and Kashmir enters its 60th day of lockdown, with no conclusion of the dilemma in sight.
Basharat Amin, a community correspondent for Video Volunteers, reported that markets, shops and other small businesses are closed, and public transportation is still off the road. While fruit sellers can be seen on street corners, costumers are afraid to come out. Schools and colleges are also shut, and so are government offices, Basharat added.
Normal banking activities are on hold, as all the banks are closed across the valley. The cash supply in ATMs is limited, forcing people to queue for hours for cash withdrawals. Trucks loaded with essential supplies standing on the side of the roads can be seen unattended. The ongoing blockade is affecting businesses, education, emergency medical assistance, and the overall economy.
Basharat tried to interview people willing to voice the difficulties they are facing. However, most are scared to say anything on camera at this moment of political instability.
As people in Kashmir wait for normal life to resume, the silence lingers.
Basharat had to send the video to Delhi, through a person, who then sent the video to Video Volunteers. Watch it here:
Check out Global Voices’ special coverage of the situation in Kashmir.

author: VideoVolunteers


text:
Filipino teachers hold protest as presidential promise of salary increase remains unfulfilled · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

‘Honor our teachers’ reads the slogan used during a fitness exercise event highlighting demands made by public school teachers for salary increase. Source: Facebook page of QCPSTA, used with permission.
Thousands of public school teachers marched on 4 October 2019 in the Philippines to demand the granting of a ‘substantial’ salary increase for themselves as well as for other government workers, in reference to a promise made by their government. The rally was held on the eve of World Teachers’ Day to highlight the plight of Filipino educators.
According to the Department of Education (DepEd), there are more than 800,000 public elementary and high school teachers in the Philippines. Almost 90 percent of them receive a monthly salary of 20,000 pesos (US$ 387). The monthly minimum wage prescribed by the government different types of employment ranges from US$ 287 to 308.
The Alliance of Concerned Teachers, a leading organization in the movement, is requesting a basic salary of 30,000 pesos (US$ 580) for entry-level public school teachers. It also reminded President Rodrigo Duterte of his 2016 campaign pledge to raise the pay of public school teachers.
While it may seem significant, a 30,000 pesos basic salary would still remain below the 42,000 pesos (US$ 809 US) monthly cost of living that is based on a calculation made by the government's Socioeconomic Planning secretary in 2018.
Contend, a group of activist educators, explains why one of the protests was organized by public teachers near the presidential palace:
It is now more than three years that Duterte is the President and still the promise of salary increase for teachers is illusive. Today, teachers are burdened with many required paper works, saddled with extra-school works, burn out by extended school hours and assignments, and are wallowing in misery of financial deprivation.
Veteran journalist and activist Satur Ocampo enumerates the extra work performed by many teachers:
…they act as clerks, property custodians, guidance counselors, nurses, librarians, or maintenance staff. There are tasks for the Department of Health (DoH): taking the students’ health data, facilitating the DoH deworming program, assisting in vaccination campaigns. For the Department of Social Welfare and Development, they handle feeding programs in their schools and monitor students belonging to family-beneficiaries of the 4Ps [cash assistance] program. For all this work they receive no additional compensation.
‘Books not bullets’ was one of the slogans in the protest organized by public school teachers to demand the rechanneling of military and police intelligence funds to education and other social services. Source: Facebook page of Alliance of Concerned Teachers, used with permission.
Teachers and their supporters used the Twitter hashtag #TuparinAngPangako (#FulfillThePromise) during the protest.
At the end of the protest program, the teachers formed a ‘30K’ human formation to symbolize the demand for a 30,000 pesos basic salary.
'30K’ human formation symbolizing the demand for a 30,000 pesos basic salary for entry-level public school teachers. Source: Kodao Productions, a content partner of Global Voices
So far, the Filipino government has taken small measures to appease the teachers, short of a permanent salary increase: in July 2019, Duterte announced his government was looking into a solution to slightly raise the salary of teachers. Just a week before World Teachers’ Day, the Philippine senate passed a resolution honoring the work of teachers. Finally, the Department of Education announced public teachers would receive an incentive pay on World Teachers’ Day. But ioffering an extra 1,000 pesos is unlikely to stop demonstrators from protesting further.


text:
After Xinjiang, the long road to recovery · Global Voices
Eurasianet

Tursynbek Kabiuly recovering in Almaty. Photo by Chris Rickleton for Eurasianet.
The following is a story by Eurasianet and is republished by Global Voices under a partnership agreement.
When Tursynbek Kabiuly arrived in Kazakhstan in February following a 17-month absence enforced by Chinese authorities, he could see the joy on his wife Oralkhan’s face.
But unless she spoke loudly, he could hardly hear her.
Kabiuly, an ethnic Kazakh who hails from Emin county in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region, says he owes the burst eardrum in his right ear to a guard in the police detention center where he was held arbitrarily for six days last year with minimal food and water.
During a trip to a restroom, Kabiuly resorted to slurping from a tap in order to quench his thirst. The guard waiting for him outside lost his temper and struck Kabiuly around the head so hard that his ear bled from the pain.
“If I had complained to his superiors about it, my situation would have gotten much worse, very quickly,” Kabiuly told Eurasianet.
Kabiuly is one of nine former Xinjiang detainees who have had health problems diagnosed and treated at a private clinic in Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty, following their release from China.
The visits are the result of a crowd-sourced campaign organized by a Russian-American researcher, Gene Bunin, and a Kazakh rights organization, the International Legal Initiative, or ILI.
The $500 hearing aid that the crowdsourcing project purchased for Kabiuly is one of the more expensive outlays from the funding drive that raised $6,000 and has now entered a second round. At least one other former detainee that reported similar blows to the head in incarceration had hearing loss that could not be treated.
“It’s like a gift from God,” Kabiuly said of the earpiece. “I feel I am getting back to myself again.”
Kabiuly’s Xinjiang nightmare began in September 2017 after he travelled from Kazakhstan, where he had filed papers for citizenship, to Emin to attend a relative’s funeral.
The trip coincided with an intensifying security crackdown in the region that began with the confiscation of millions of passports belonging to Turkic and Muslim minorities.
By the end of the year, Xinjiang had been reshaped as a futuristic police state, complete with internment centers slated for “re-education” of minority citizens.
Kabiuly’s return in February this year came on the heels of a Kazakh Foreign Ministry statement which claimed China had allowed over 2,000 ethnic Kazakhs to cross into Kazakhstan as a “kind gesture.”
ILI’s director Aina Shormonbayeva says over a hundred of the 162 individuals whose cases her organization raised with the foreign ministry and other international advocacy groups have now returned to their historic homeland.
Many of them, like Kabiuly, had begun the process of applying for Kazakh citizenship and had immediate family members who were Kazakh passport holders.
The Foreign Ministry, which has trodden delicately around the hypersensitive issue of Xinjiang, provided no details to substantiate its much larger figure for returnees.
Whilst in Xinjiang, Kabiuly witnessed a broad cross-section of the horrors that the Chinese state has inflicted on non-Han citizens in its bid to reshape life there.
Although he was never a resident of one of the now-notorious internment camps, his mother-in-law was.
As Oralkhan and her children petitioned for Kabiuly’s release from China and her mother's release from the camp, Kabiuly and his brother-in-law were confronted with constant surveillance and regular check-ups from authorities.
Under this pressure, Oralkhan’s brother committed suicide, months before their mother was released from the camp.
Kabiuly sent a message to Oralkhan, informing her of his intent to divorce her – a message she instantly dismissed as sent under duress.
At one point during this campaign of intimidation, Kabiuly told Eurasianet that Emin authorities forced him to deface several family tombstones.
Kabiuly was given no official reason for his brief but harrowing detention last September.
But it was his links to Kazakhstan – China’s closest economic partner in Central Asia – that were the subject of consecutive interrogations.
“They told me that Kazakhstan was on a list of countries with terrorism. But I think it is China that is the terrorist country. How can a government that treats citizens like livestock talk about terrorism?” he asked.
Donors to the medical aid project have typically been the same people who have donated to Bunin’s Xinjiang Victims database, an online register consisting of over 5,000 testimonies for people who have fallen prey to repressions in Xinjiang.
Bunin says the project has focused on returnees whose medical problems require specialist care.
“One detainee has a brain cyst that might need removing. Depending on the cost of that operation, however, it might not be something that we can fund,” he told Eurasianet.
One area that the crowdfunding effort has not yet touched is mental health, wherein former detainees and their relatives describe pressing needs.
Kabiuly says his main priority after restoring his hearing is rebuilding muscle mass so he can get the type of construction jobs that he landed before a costly and physically draining stint in Xinjiang.
But Oralkhan told Eurasianet her husband is now more withdrawn than the man who went to Xinjiang in 2017, and that he was prone to hiding mobile telephones in far corners of the house when guests arrived, fearing Chinese eavesdropping.
“We have had some strange calls to the house, and I am worried for our children,” Kabiuly explained.
“I am getting better with the phones now,” he said smiling as he eyed a smartphone on the table.
Shormonbayeva praises the Foreign Ministry for its work returning ethnic Kazakhs marooned in Xinjiang, but she is critical of the government’s extreme caution on Xinjiang, which has seen Kazakhstan sit out international condemnation of Beijing's policies there.
This position limits the state's ability to involve itself in efforts to rehabilitate victims. And it represents a sharp contrast to its work reintegrating women and children returned from the war in Syria, whom the Foreign Ministry says will benefit from state-funded specialist medical and psychological care.
“Kazakhs from China already face linguistic challenges because they cannot speak Russian, and bureaucratic difficulties gaining citizenship and finding work,” said Shormonbayeva.
“But many of the Kazakhs that have recently arrived here are victims of torture, and sufferers of psychological trauma. The authorities do not categorize them as such.”

author: Eurasianet


text:
Trinidad and Tobago president’s stance on unmarried partners faces backlash · Global Voices
Jada Steuart

The President's House, Trinidad, taken November 19, 2010, by
Albert Sydney, used via Wikimedia Commons under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.
A recent decision by the president of Trinidad and Tobago, Her Excellency Paula-Mae Weekes, to prohibit unmarried partners of guests to attend official events at President's House, has caused a widespread public backlash.
While in the midst of preparations for the country's National Awards ceremony on September 25, 2019, a number of state officials went to the press to express their dismay over the office of the president's decision.
According to reports, the office of the president does not allow state officials to be accompanied by partners with whom they are not legally married for any event held at the President's House — a stance which critics deem “backward”.
The Trinidad and Tobago Council of Evangelical Churches was quick to weigh in on the issue, saying that citizens have forgotten the sanctity of marriage and that the word of God is “supreme”. In a statement, the organisation added, “Marriage is not just a legal contract as presented by the secular world, but a divine covenant established by God.”
Although President Weekes has not provided a rationale for her decision, this has not stopped people from assuming that it is based on religious grounds. Many social media users, across various platforms, shared their consternation, with some interpreting the issue as a matter of the president pushing her own religious agenda onto citizens constitutionally entitled to religious freedom:
President Paula-Mae Weekes really disappointed me when she brought religion into the discussion. It’s not right to impose your religious values onto others.
— VB (@Vanellabelle) October 2, 2019
One Twitter user reminded the president about her role as a servant of the people:
Respectfully acknowledging your position your Excellency. But we are talking about an invitation to the “people's” house. Not a passage into heaven.
— Raymond868 (@trinibeachboy90) October 3, 2019
Judging by the tone of online discussions, many people felt that religion had no place in the political arena, especially in a diverse country like Trinidad and Tobago:
Christocentric and ecclesiastical tenets ought not to invade public institutions in a secular society
— Tim Charriandy (@TimCharriandy) October 1, 2019
Further proof that our leaders are backwards and religious nutjobs.
— Redzone (@MenaceZone) October 1, 2019
Many public officials and members of the government who attended the event voiced their displeasure over the president's stance. Given that common-law unions are legally recognised in Trinidad and Tobago — as well as the fact that the country's high court ruled against the discrimination of same-sex couples in a landmark decision back in April 2018 — detractors suggest that the president's position is outdated and lacks both inclusivity and cultural sensitivity.
Dubbing the move something from the “Victorian era”, former head of the public service, Reginald Dumas, asked why the president considered this a relevant policy:
Not merely in 2019 but in a society like this where there are lots of common law relationships and it is virtually the norm. What, therefore, is the aim the President had in mind? To achieve what exactly? I don’t know.
Janine Charles-Farray, who attended the same secondary school as the president — the alumni of which rejoiced at her inauguration — suggested in a public Facebook post that perhaps the president was the wrong target to rail against:
I'm all for plus-one invitations whether wed or unwed, but […] near-inconsolable upset over Common Law relationships not recognized at State Functions???…wow.
If it's one thing you learn when you go to Bishops is which battles to fight. Doh beat up Madam President. […] I can't see how one can argue that the office and the figurehead is a waste of money, and in the same breath say stormers must be wined and dined too. Make up your mind, T&T!
Beyond the witty school bashing, memes and the single-female-President shaming, which we know is a favourite(!!!) …is this a frugality issue? A security issue? Is it an event management issue? Pure colonial hogwash? We not really discussing anything here, just jamming the President for maintaining the rules that existed in the office before she even got there.
A string of disagreement appeared on the thread. Some commenters asserted that the post simply defended the president as an example of alumni closing ranks.
Weekes, who has been in office since March 2018, is the country's first female president. Her role as pioneering individual clashes with her stance on this issue, which has put her at the forefront of a national discussion about tradition and progress.
However, even as citizens clamour on Twitter and Facebook for an explanation, President Weekes has yet to make an official statement about her decision.
Update: October 11, 2019 — The Office of the President issued a statement titled, “Invitations to National Award Ceremony”, which said, among other things, that the Head of State does not issue invitations addressed to “Guest”, and that the method of compiling the list has remained the same for the last two years (a “formal tradition” to which the Office of the President subscribes). There are two categories of guests for the national awards — guests of the president, prime minister and awardees, for which marital status is not a consideration, and guests who are invited by virtue of the positions they hold, who are not entitled to bring a “plus one”; spouses are invited as a courtesy. It further clarified, “Legislation dealing with cohabitational relationships does not provide a guide to social invitations.” Some social media users still found the policy to be tone deaf.

author: Jada Steuart


text:
South Park creators mock the NBA with a sarcastic apology to China · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Randy standing in a Chinese court. Screen capture of South Park's episode “Band in China”.
The producers of the American animated sitcom South Park issued a sarcastic apology to China after Beijing censors deleted every trace of the cartoon on all video streaming services and social media platforms within mainland China.
The apology, published on October 7, mocks the American National Basketball Association (NBA) for bringing “the Chinese censors into our homes and into our hearts”. The humorous statement follows a global online row caused by a tweet posted by Daryl Morey, the general manager of Houston Rockets, a team playing in the NBA, in which he supports the Hong Kong protesters for more political freedom and oppose Beijing policies.
What triggered the Chinese censors’ action is the latest episode of the series, called “Band in China”. It depicts one of the main characters, Randy, on a business trip in China during which he lands in jail where he meets Disney characters including Winnie the Pooh and Piglet.
The episode, which mocks Hollywood for its self-censorship practices in China, was released on October 2, just one day after the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the People's Republic of China.
The episode shocked some of the cartoon's fans both inside and outside China for its violent scenes, which is typical of the series since its debut in 1997.
South Park’s “Band in China” episode on companies self-censoring in China is pure gold. Watch here: https://t.co/Ts4dz0vKkH
Warning: Program contains scenes of extreme violence—from forced confessions to Stan’s dad, Randy, killing Winnie the Pooh. Also, there’s death metal. pic.twitter.com/1vymgWWM14
— Ray Kwong (@raykwong) October 5, 2019
The story goes as far as to criticize China's “forced confession” practices by having Randy compelled into confessing that he murdered Winnie the Pooh, an online meme of the Chinese President Xi Jinping:
The new South Park episode entitled “Band In China” focuses on China's strict censorship of media
During the episode China tasks the gang with having to kill Winnie the Pooh. In real life, Winnie the Pooh is defacto banned in China due to memes comparing him to China's president pic.twitter.com/Xvj7ZYMO0M
— Censored Gaming (@CensoredGaming_) October 5, 2019
Clearly, cartoon’s creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone had anticipated the Chinese internet ban. In fact, as if the message of Randy's China experience was not clear enough, South Park made another new episode of “Band in China” available for free on October 3:
Kyle returns to South Park and gives Stan a great idea, but the boys realize they can't betray their ideals. Watch the all-new episode, “Band In China” for FREE – https://t.co/oktKSJvjxS #southpark23 #fingerbang pic.twitter.com/Bq5K6gWjOV
— South Park (@SouthPark) October 3, 2019
On October 7, following China's ban and the release of NBA's apologetic bowing statement to China over Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey Hong Kong tweet, South Park posted an “official statement” on Twitter mocking the NBA:
Like the NBA, we welcome the Chinese censors into our homes and into our hearts. We too love money more than freedom and democracy. Xi doesn’t look just like Winnie the Pooh at all. Tune into our 300th episode this Wednesday at 10! Long live the Great Communist Party of China! May this autumn’s sorghum harvest be bountiful! We good now China?
It all started on October 5 when Daryl Morey posted an image on Twitter of Hong Kong protesters’ rallying cry, “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong”. Despite the fact that he later deleted the tweet, his social media gesture was captured by Chinese state media outlets including Global Times and People’s Daily and circulated on Weibo. Both outlets act as mouthpieces of the Chinese Communist Party and framed the gesture as being supportive of a “separatist movement”. As anticipated, an online campaign demanding a public apology was organised in China.
In response to the Chinese uproar, Morey explained that his tweets only represent his views:
2/ I have always appreciated the significant support our Chinese fans and sponsors have provided and I would hope that those who are upset will know that offending or misunderstanding them was not my intention. My tweets are my own and in no way represent the Rockets or the NBA.
— Daryl Morey (@dmorey) October 7, 2019
NBA also issued an official statement in an effort to put the fire off in China:
The NBA's original statement:
Recognize that [Morey's views] have deeply offended many in China, which is regrettable.
Translation it posted on Chinese social media:
Extremely disappointed in Morey's inappropriate statement. No doubt he's severely hurt the feelings of CN fans. pic.twitter.com/pi5PdQq3q9
— Yiqin Fu (@yiqinfu) October 7, 2019
However, the statement backfired with NBA's fans in the U.S. A US presidential candidate, Beto O’Rourke, deemed it an “embarrassment” while Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio also accused the NBA of throwing Morey “under the bus” to “protect NBA’s market access in China”:
This is bigger than just the @NBA. It’s about #China’s growing ability to restrict freedom of expression here in the U.S.
TV networks,airlines,hotel chains,retailers & Hollywood already self censor.
Now private citizens risk losing their jobs if they offend China. https://t.co/DQOFdBkb1e
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 7, 2019
On the other hand, China considers the NBA's apology as insufficient, thus all Rockets’ brand products were taken down from Chinese online shopping platforms including Taobao, Tian Mall, and Jingdong. China state media, including China Central Television and Internet giant Tencent have also announced the suspension of NBA broadcasts following Morey's tweet.
While the creators of South Park have made it clear to China that they will not betray their ideals, NBA decided to accept the ideological framework that China imposes on the rest of the world — which also indicated in  the Open Letter to NBA fans by the owner of the Brooklyn Nets Joseph Tsai who agrees with Beijing labelling the current protests in Hong Kong as a defacto separatist movement, and urged NBA fans to understand Chinese history.
A large number of foreign brand companies have recently apologized to China over Hong Kong tensions. As the conflicts deepen, more global corporations will be forced to make a choice between upholding their values or bowing to China's set of values. In this game, there is no second chance: while the NBA tried to follow the middle way, it ended up being slammed by both sides.

author: Oiwan Lam


text:
A burqa controversy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan · Global Voices
R Umaima Ahmed

Girls in a school in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Image via Flickr by DFID. BY SA 2.0.
A shuttlecock burqa is the most concealing of all Islamic veils. It is designed to cover a woman from head to toe with a mesh net eyepiece allowing them to see. While this style of burqa is often associated with women in Afghanistan and a few tribal areas of Pakistan, a recent photo of shuttlecock burqa-clad students from an area of Mardan Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) in Pakistan, has caused an uproar on Pakistani social media and stoked criticism of growing conservatism in schools.
According to available information, Muzafar Shah, a former district council member from the ruling Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf party (PTI) distributed 90 shuttlecock burqas to female students. The councilor said that his action was inspired by the recent directive from Ziaullah Bangash, the provincial advisor on education, who directed school girls to observe purdah (the practice of female seclusion).
Drive to make mandatory for girls to wear burqa is in full swing in KPK. After some schools instructing girls to wear abayas. A former district member of PTI Muzaffar Shah distributed shuttlecock burqas among students of Govt Middle School Cheena, Rustam District Mardan. pic.twitter.com/Gszq3h4KoK
— Fazil Jamili (@faziljamili) October 4, 2019
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) is located in northwestern Pakistan along the international border with Afghanistan. This area has been in the centre of militancy and terrorism as it became a refuge to over five million Afghan refugees pouring into Pakistan after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. In 2013, the provincial politics shifted towards the right-wing national conservatism when the Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf party (PTI) led by Imran Khan was able to form the minority government.
A number of people reacted to this news and demanded action against this latest move.
Sanna Ejaz, a journalist from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa said on Twitter:
مردان میرا آبائی گاؤں ہے اور ہمارے ہاں سفید چادر کا رواج ہے. بڑی عمر کی خواتین دو تہوں والی بڑے ارض والی چادر پہنتی ہیں اور لڑکیاں کڑھائی کی سفید چادریں برقع ہمارا کلچر ہے ہی نہیں. یہ پی ٹی آئی حکومت کے کمالات ہیں کہ ضلع کونسل کے فنڈ سے برقع لے کر بچیوں میں تقسیم کیے جا رہے ہیں pic.twitter.com/HTSzBgrml6
— Sanna Ejaz(سیاله) (@sanaejaz2) October 4, 2019
Translation: Mardan is my ancestral home and we do not wear burqas. Elderly women wear plain shawls while girls shawls have some embroidery on it. This is the doing of PTI government, by distributing burqas from development funds.
How students are going to sudy wearing these #burqas, at 40'C in summer, we don't even have air conditioning in government schools in Pakistan.@PTIKPOfficial@ImranKhanPTI@ShireenMazari1https://t.co/wrekV0lgML
— Mumtaz Manzoor (@uotokyo) October 5, 2019
However, there were people who supported the decision to supply the girls with shuttlecock burqas. Women who resist or do not wear the veil are considered too westernized by the conservative community members in Pakistan.
Habiba Tanvir, a student tweeted:
This step is taken only in KP province not in other provinces.This type of burqa is the culture of pakthoon and also pathans live in KP and they all are muslims.I am studying in government college no such thing happen there.Please stop this propaganda against Islam and PAKISTAN.
— Habiba Tahir (@Habiba34340591) October 7, 2019
Hijab is not about oppression but freedom from evil eyes only wise ppl can understand
— Bintebader (@1Bintekhalid) October 5, 2019
Contrary to those arguments, Gallop Pakistan recently released a poll that found the burqa to be a less popular choice for women in Pakistan:
#Burqa for #women is becoming a less #popular #choice of #dressing, replaced by Shalwars Kameez with Dupatta and #Hijab without face veil. (GALLUP & GILANI PAKISTAN POLL)https://t.co/axC1SyMaad pic.twitter.com/XplH1u2KVu
— Gallup Pakistan (@GallupPak) September 30, 2019
Earlier in September, Ziaullah Bangash, Adviser to Chief Minister on Elementary and Secondary Education of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, issued a notification making it mandatory for female students of provincial government schools to wear a chaddar, an abaya or gown to protect them from any ‘unethical incident’ and remove the doubts raised by parents about the safety of their children. Although the directive was almost immediately overturned, Muzafar Shah purchased the shuttlecock burqa's citing Bangash as inspiration for the decision.
Despite this, after netizen comments turned against Shah, Bangash did a complete u-turn and denounced Shah's actions:
This step was taken without our knowledge and permission. KP government is looking into this matter and action will be taken against him.
This double standard of the government was also slammed on social media.
To prove how the order for wearing burqa was being justified using flawed logic that burqas will keep girls safe, people on social media posted pictures of two recent incidents that took place in Pakistan. One of them was the rape and death of Ayesha Zulfiqar who was wearing an abaya (a type of burqa).
Ayesha Zulfiqar, a matriculation student was found raped and murdered in District Narowal, Pakistan.
She was wearing an abaya/burqa.
I’ll just stop there.
Art by @ayeshaklondon #sexualabuse #childabuse #rape #burqa #bikini #metoo #rapist #rapists #girlchild #auratmarch pic.twitter.com/RRVm5caaC4
— Natasha Kundi نتاشا کُندی (@NatashaKLondon) September 30, 2019
Burqa? The coffin doesn't protect women in Pakistan from getting raped. I just saw this video, and it made me feel physically unwell. It's not on women to defend themselves; men need to do something about how our species functions around women.https://t.co/vYNhSX1Swf
— Shahryar Khan (@shahryar92) October 6, 2019
Another incident mentioned was caught on film in D.G Khan where a passerby groped a woman in an abaya on the road.
These show that covering women in an abaya or chaddar is actually not protecting them from harassers. It seems that strict laws, sensitization of legal and police fraternity, awareness and speedy justice is the way to resolve the issue.

author: R Umaima Ahmed


text:
Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa: Global Voices represents at Addis Ababa digital rights conference · Global Voices
Amanda Lichtenstein

Global Voices’ sub-Saharan Africa community manager Nwach Egbunike (left), from Nigeria, stands with GV contributor, Rosebell Kagumire, (center), from Uganda, and Derció Tsandzana (right), from Mozambique, at the Forum for Internet Freedom in Africa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, September 27, 2019. Photo used with permission by FIFAfrica.
The Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa (FIFAfrica) took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on September 23-26, 2019, as a historic event convening over 300 journalists, media workers, researchers, human rights defenders, ministers and other government officials from across Africa, to exchange ideas and push the conversation on digital rights forward. Several members of Global Voices’ sub-Saharan Africa team attended and presented on digital rights, internet shutdowns, freedom of expression and digital security, among other topics.
With love from Addis! The @gvssafrica team of @globalvoices at the #FIFAfrica19 conference… >>> @derciotsandzana @RosebellK @ekenyanito @Afaf_TN @feathersproject @D_Kandeh and @travelfarnow pic.twitter.com/7gI8RiQ21X
— Nwachukwu Egbunike (@feathersproject) September 26, 2019
The event, organized by the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), represented a huge step forward for digital rights in Ethiopia, where, just five years ago, press freedom and digital rights were at an all-time low. The former administration jailed journalists and bloggers including the Zone9 bloggers, for dissenting views deemed a threat to state security.
Since 2018, Ethiopia's new prime minister Abiy Ahmed has ushered in a series of unprecedented reforms that have renewed dialogues on digital rights in Ethiopia. CIPESA writes:
On the internet freedom front, the new administration has restored mobile and broadband internet services that had been disrupted since 2016, and unblocked 246 websites, blogs, and news sites that had been inaccessible for over a decade. These pivotal developments serve as an avenue to advance more progressive efforts on internet governance and promotion of human rights online, not only in the country that hosts the African Union (AU) but on the continent at large.
However, the situation is far from ideal. Several Ethiopian journalists, bloggers and political aspirants attended the forum to share formal and informal insights into Ethiopia's current digital rights climate. Abel Wabella, a former Zone9 blogger who founded and edits a new media platform called Addis Zeybe, told Global Voices that fear still lingers despite the reforms. Wabella said Zone9 bloggers have disbanded and each blogger has gone on to pursue various paths in academia, media and politics.
Abel Wabella (center) from Ethiopia, a former Zone9 blogger who now runs his own media project as managing editor, speaks at a session on Ethiopian bloggers at FIFAfrica 2019 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Photo used with permission by FIFAfrica.
FIFAfrica 2019 began with two days of pre-conference sessions that focused on issues such as digital security, digital rights research, inclusivity, disinformation and hate speech and language localization, among others. These sessions gave participants the chance to connect with colleagues and learn more in-depth about a particular topic.
Regional editor for sub-Saharan Africa, Amanda Leigh Lichtenstein, attended the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) sessions hosted by Small Media. Global Voices has a partnership with Small Media to work on UPRoar, a Small Media initiative designed to empower and inform civil society organizations on UPR processes within the United Nations Human Rights Council:
The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique process which involves a review of the human rights records of all UN member states. The UPR is a state-driven process, under the auspices of the Human Rights Council, which provides the opportunity for each state to declare what actions they have taken to improve the human rights situations in their countries and to fulfil their human rights obligations.
This two-day workshop led by Small Media staffers, James Marchant, Bronwen Robertson and consultant Glenn Payot, brought human rights defenders, digital rights advocates, journalists, and lawyers together to learn more about the UPR process and offered concrete strategies to engage civil societies to advocate for digital rights. Attendants drilled down on particular laws or policies that negatively impact digital rights in their home countries and designed specific talking points targeted at diplomats and policymakers. Alieu Sowe, from The Gambia, offered an example of how UPR advocacy work at the grassroots level helped shift policies that impact digital rights, through Give1ProjectGambia.
Demba Kandeh (left), from The Gambia, Gnagna Kone (center), from Senegal, and Thobekile Matimbe (right), from Zimbabwe, discuss UPR processes in their home countries during the UPRoar/Small Media workshop. Photo used with permission by FIFAfrica.
The public forum kicked off on September 26, 2019, with official remarks from Ethiopia's Minister of Innovation and Technology, Dr. Getahun Mekuria, who welcomed attendants and insisted that while digital rights spaces have opened up in Ethiopia, he still sees a strong need to temper internet freedom with mechanisms in place to control hate speech and mis- and disinformation online. The minister asked for reflection on three main questions:
How do we [as a government] balance digital rights and privacy on the internet? Which is the role of the government to ensure security using internet? How do we [as a government] empower people and be more responsible using internet?
The packed two-day public forum included panels, workshops and small group discussions designed to push the conversation forward and learn about Africa-specific challenges in terms of internet freedom, access to online information and governments’ use and misuse of technology to control dissent and promote political agendas. Nearly half of all African countries have engaged in internet shutdowns or throttling online services.
Global Voices’ Lusophone Africa editor, Dércio Tsandzana, attended a session on elections, democracy and security in Africa, organized by European Union Institute for Security Studies. Panelists from Ghana, Nigeria, and Mali, agreed that it’s important to promote privacy and freedom on the internet to avoid what happened during the United States’ 2016 elections when Facebook experienced foreign meddling and interference to influence voters. George Owuor, from Facebook, said:
We are trying to foritfy our rules as social media platform. We do not want the same situation which happened in US. In Africa, we are working to change it, but many Africans do not send reports to denounce fake accounts.
Global Voices’ sub-Saharan Africa team members Nwach Egbunike and Amanda Leigh Lichtenstein led a brief session on the power of headlines in the digital rights newsroom and GVSSA team member Derció Tsandzana was present to observe and answer questions about Mozambique coverage.
.@travelfarnow @gvssafrica @globalvoices #FIFAfrica19 #Internet #Africa | cyberspace — citizenship — on-line participation — privacy — expression — politics pic.twitter.com/GqqJV33RX6
— Dércio TSANDZANA (@derciotsandzana) September 26, 2019
Advox lead editor, Afef Abrougui, spoke on a panel called, “Does Africa Need New Norms to Protect Association and Assembly Rights in the Digital Age?” Professor and activist, Demba Kandeh, from The Gambia, gave a “lightning talk” on the internet and mass mobilization. And Global Voices contributor, Rosebell Kagumire, moderated a panel on women in digital spaces that challenged the notion of “politeness” on and offline. The panel pushed on definitions of African feminisms, highlighting, among other themes, the critical yet dangerous role that women played on- and offline in Sudan’s revolution.
The moderator of the panel: “End of politiness: African Feminist Movements and Digital Voice” — our own Ugandan contributor of @gvssafrica – @RosebellK Rosebell Kagumire declares the panel open. #FIFAfrica19 #InternetFreedom pic.twitter.com/LuT0KsVbtW
— GV SSAfrica (@gvssafrica) September 25, 2019
“End of Politeness: African Feminist Movements and Digital Voice” panel, left to right: Beatrice Mateyo, Coalition for the Empowerment of Women and Girls (CEWAG), Malawi, moderator, Rosebell Kagumire, AfricanFeminism, Selam Mussie, media and communications consultant, Ethiopia, Lugain Mahmoud, Fifty Campaign, Sudan. Photo used with permission by FIFAfrica.
Global Voices is proud to partner with CIPESA as inaugural grantees for the African Digital Rights Fund. GV reporters from seven African nations will report on “Writing Toward Freedom: Africa in the Age of Internet Shutdowns” in 2019.
Read CIPESA's latest report, “State of Internet Freedom in Africa,” released at FIFAfrica 2019.

author: Amanda Lichtenstein


text:
#SexForGrades: A new documentary exposes sexual harassment at West African universities · Global Voices
Nwachukwu Egbunike

This masked victim was repeatedly sexually abused by Boniface Igbeneghu, a professor in University of Lagos, Nigeria (Screenshot from BBC #SexForGrades video)
#SexForGrades, a BBC documentary on sexual harassment of female students by university professors in Nigeria and Ghana, has ignited heated online conversation and raises many questions about how to put an end to it:
Thread:
Sex for Grades — university lecturers harassing female students, pressuring them for sex in return for grades or admission — is a scandal that's gone on for decades.
You asked #BBCAfricaEye to investigate.
This is what we found.
Full doc: https://t.co/C9dT31HKS3 pic.twitter.com/IsPwSeCOA3
— BBC News Africa (@BBCAfrica) October 7, 2019
The groundbreaking investigation, released on October 7, 2019, was anchored by journalist Kiki Mordi, who was forced to abandon her own university degree because she refused to yield to the sexual advances by a university teacher who kept failing her:
Nope I never did. I'm a University drop-out.
I hope to go back to school though because I genuinely enjoy learning. I just hope to do it in a saner, safer environment.#SexForGrades https://t.co/0O8JILy6r0
— Kiki Mordi (@kikimordi) October 8, 2019
Boniface Igbeneghu, University of Lagos, is caught sexually harassing female students in an undercover investigation by the BBC. Screenshot from BBC #SexForGrades video.
The nearly one-year investigation revealed the scandal of “sex for grades” crises at two West African universities: Nigeria's University of Lagos (UNILAG) and the University of Ghana.
Nigeria's Boniface Igbeneghu, a professor in UNILAG'S faculty of art and an evangelical pastor of local Foursquare Gospel Church, Lagos, was one of the teachers busted by the investigation.
Igbenegbu is seen in the BBC video sexually propositioning an undercover BBC reporter who pretended to be a 17-year-old seeking university admission. Igbenegu can be heard saying:
Don’t you know you are a beautiful girl? Do you know I am a pastor and I am in my 50's but if I want a girl of 17 years, all I need is a sweet tongue and put some money…
In a final meeting between the pair, Igbenegbu switched off the lights, asked her for a kiss and went ahead to hug her in his locked office.
Foursquare Gospel Church has suspended Igbeneghu “from all ministerial assignments”. Similarly, the University of Lagos has barred Igbeneghu from the school and also “ordered the shutdown of the staff club’s ‘”cold room,” used by senior staff to hold parties attended by young female students and staff.
This exposé ignited reactions of cataclysmic proportions from Nigerians online with the trending hashtag #SexForGrades on Twitter. Many female Twitter users recount their own experiences of sexual harassment:
Lola Shoneyin, book festival curator and author, recounted the “terrible shame” she felt after she was touched inappropriately by a university Deputy Vice-Chancellor (DVC):
A DVC (also my dad’s friend) lunged at my breasts in his office. I froze from shock before flinging off his hand. For months, I felt terrible shame. Played the scene over in my mind to see what I could’ve done to invite such a violation. Nothing. I told my dad and he was furious!
— Lọlá Shónẹ́yìn (@lolashoneyin) October 7, 2019
An “abuse of office”, one Twitter user posited:
For those of you saying “bUt ThEsE gIrLs AlSo OfFeR sEx To LeCtUrErS”
Demanding or accepting sex for grades is an abuse of office. It is corruption in its very sinister form.
Everyday we cry anticorruption here but look at yourself supporting the corruption u love to condemn.
— A Fokken Queen! ? (@cremechic11) October 7, 2019
Others wanted the investigations to extend to other universities, like Abia State University in Nigeria:
Lord Jesus pls carry this campaign to ABSU or to wherever they've moved on to and expose Ijioma Ijioma and U.U. Chukwumaeze
— N. (@PUREHAIRE) October 7, 2019
And the University of Calabar in Nigeria:
Imagine if this #SexforGrades goes to UNICAL.
The stories there are really unlimited.
— ESTHER AGBARAKWE (@estherclimate) October 7, 2019
Others wanted this kind of investigation to focus on churches and other aspects of social life where sexual harassment occurs:
Waiting for the day the undercover investigations on sexual harassment gets to the church as well.
Then we’ll really see how deep the filth we’re dealing with in this country really is.
— Rita C. Onwurah (@RitaOnwurah) October 7, 2019
It's not only universities but also the banking sector:
I was moved from admin to marketing cos I have a “marketable” feature. They needed me to attract/seduce Igbo men into opening bank account. Few weeks later, I over slept and never went back to work. Next BBC Stop is Sexual harassment in banking sector
— Ada Bekee (@zynnnie) October 7, 2019
Philandering university professors have for decades debased female students in Nigerian tertiary institutions. However, it is usually difficult to prosecute perpetrators because victims are afraid of the backlash and unwilling to talk due to deep trauma associated with these abuses.
In 2016, the “Sexual Harassment in Tertiary Education Institution Prohibition Bill,” passed by the Nigerian Senate prescribed a 5-year jail term for lecturers and educators convicted of sexually harassing students.
However, the Academic Staff Union of Nigerian Universities opposed the bill, claiming that it was discriminatory since it targeted teachers and that it undermined university autonomy.
The opposition to the bill may have led to the death of that legislation — which did not get presidential assent.
In July this year, Nigeria's celebrity photographer, Busola Dakolo, accused Biodun Fatoyinbo, the lead pastor of Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA), of forcefully raping her when she was 16.
Over the past six years, the flamboyant Fatoyinbo has been plagued by allegations of rape and sexual abuse. However, the emotional interview during which Dakolo accused Fatoyinbo ignited a national reaction online. For days, #ChurchToo — a national iteration of the global #MeToo movement — trended on social media in Nigeria.
This agitation soon morphed from online to street protests in major Nigerian cities like Lagos and Abuja. The #ChurchToo movement called on the government to take “the issue of violence against women and girls seriously.”
The #ChurchToo revealed the silent but “horrific thriving rape culture, especially within religious circles” in Nigeria. It provided an opportunity for women to speak out.
This generation of women, we will be more protective of “our daughters” because we did not inherit “the silence of our mothers”….
— Mercy (@AbangMercy) October 8, 2019
Like the #ChurchToo movement, the #SexForGrades outcry has again revealed the realities of sexual violence against women and the abuse of power that allows this sexual violence to thrive.
Will this hashtag lead to an offline advocacy movement that pushes for reforms to ensure that universities are safe places for women? Time will tell.

author: Nwachukwu Egbunike