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Another #SexForGrades scandal — and the birth of a movement against sexual harassment in Nigeria · Global Voices
Nwachukwu Egbunike

A graduation ceremony in a private university in Nigeria. Photo by Rajmund Dabrowski/ANN via Flickr, June 7, 2009, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
The #SexForGrades Twitter hashtag is transforming into a formidable movement against sexual harassment at Nigerian universities.
Sexual harassment at Nigerian universities is nothing new. But in the past two years, at least three high-profile incidences of sex for grades has led to vocal movements online, — and sometimes justice for victims offline.
In 2018, Richard Akindele, a professor of accounting at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife southwestern Nigeria, was sacked after a panel investigation found him guilty of soliciting sex in exchange for good grades to Monica Osagie, a female student.
Akindele was sentenced to two years in prison after a court in Osogbo, Osun State in southwestern Nigeria, proclaimed him guilty of the offense.
Similarly, in October 2019, the #SexForGrades Twitter hashtag went viral on Nigerian social media after BBC Eye released an investigative documentary that revealed sexual harassment and blackmail of female students at Nigeria's top universities.
A professor at the University of Lagos, Boniface Igbeneghu, was exposed in the documentary making demands for sex with an underage undercover journalist seeking admission to the university. Igbeneghu has since been fired by the university and denounced by his church where he was a pastor.
Bisi Olayele, lecturer at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria (Screenshot from ICRC).
In late 2019, Motunrayo Afolayan, a final year student in the department of international relations at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, in southwestern Nigeria, accused administrator Olabisi Olaleye of demanding sex in exchange for passing his course.
Nigerian online newspaper Premium Times reported on January 15, 2020, that Afolayan lodged a formal complaint at OAU's Centre for Gender and Social Policy Studies, in which she alleged that Olaleye failed her in a diplomacy course for refusing to “sleep with him“:
Afolayan first took IRS 305 during the 2017/2018 academic calendar while in 300 Level but was allegedly failed because she refused to sleep with the lecturer. During the next academic year, the 2018/2019 academic session, the student registered again for the course but received repeated threats from the lecturer that “she would fail again and again if she refuses to sleep with him.”
Afolayan submitted an audio recording to the panel set up by the university to investigate her allegations against the professor.
The said tape was shared by a Oau_Brezzident on Twitter:
Another sex for marks idiot that calls himself a lecturer in #Oau We need to make all of them scape goats. Please retweet with the hashtag#Oautakebisiout pic.twitter.com/xNkcypL6bC
— Oau_Brezzident????❤❤❤ (@melaninkhalisis) January 17, 2020
The conversation between Olaleye and Afolayan in the Yoruba language loosely translates as follows:
Olaleye: Hug me [while allegedly fondling Afolayan]. Are you using an iPhone?
Afolayan: No, it’s not an iPhone.
Olaleye: Where are you getting money from? Is your dad rich?
Afolayan: Yes.
Olaleye: You are just enjoying the money alone. Your child will do the same for you, too. … You don’t want to drop it now? [a euphemism meaning “to have sex.”] Didn’t you promise me that you will be with me when you’re done…? [“be with me” is another euphemism for sex.]
Afolayan: I only came to greet you.
Olaleye: How can you only come to greet me?
The OAU panel investigating the allegation is yet to conclude and submit its findings. However, university authorities, establishing a prima facie case, have placed Olaleye “on half salary pending the submission of the report of the panel.”
The aspiring doctoral candidate allegedly had other victims besides Afolayan. OAU students have been sharing their experiences with the Twitter hashtag #OAUTakeBisiOut, currently trending.
Akerele Isaac, former OAU student union president and another netizen, XLNT, both shared screenshots of a WhatsApp chat in which Olaleye was demanding sex from students:
If this can be said by a lecturer who is supposed to be a mentor, then he should be sent to JAIL and learn more in PRISON.
NO MERCY!!! @OgbeniDipo @segalink @insideOAU @OAUtrends @instablog9ja @OoniAdimulaIfe@ProfOsinbajo #OAUTakeBisiOut#OAUTakeBisiOut #OAUTakeBisiOut pic.twitter.com/l58JL4HmcS
— Akerele Isaac (@officialakisaac) January 18, 2020
Shame!
Inside a great citadel of learning
A lecturer asking for nudes of a student
As insane and immoral the act is, it's also a disgrace to the institution#OAUTakeBisiOut
Our ladies need to be free of this predator#OAUTakeBisiOut
The school is meant for learning and culture pic.twitter.com/osAGutoDGS
— X L N T✌ (@ONI_M_A) January 18, 2020
Twitter user “Mr. Lola” alleged that Olaleye, who supervised his thesis, made his life hell because he refused to “get him a lady to sleep with”:
I wasn't going to leave OAU if I did not get him a lady to sleep with. He meant it!!! For more than six months I finished my project he refused to read it. There was many days I spent in front of his office. He simply ignored me. Now here are a few things he did to me personally
— Mr Lola (@lopolics) January 15, 2020
That predatory Nigerian lecturers misuse their position of power to demand sex from their students is neither new nor news.
A 2011 study conducted by Eme T. Owoaje and Omolara Olusola-Taiwo, scholars from the University of Ibadan, showed that 69.8 percent of female students surveyed had been sexually harassed by male classmates and lecturers in several tertiary institutions in Nigeria.
The study also discovered that of these, 48.2 percent experienced physical sexual harassment, while 32.2 percent had requests to do something sexual in exchange for academic favours.
Another study confirmed that “the range of sexual harassment,” — going by the reported cases — is sadly pervasive in Nigerian universities. However, this is not only limited to public universities.
Omonijo and three other researchers, in 2013, investigated sexual harassment of female students in three faith-based private universities in Ogun State, southwest Nigeria. They discovered that although most female students were sexually assaulted on campus, many did not report it to authorities.
If sexual badgering is not new, then what has changed?
Nigerian women have become ferociously vocal and this has crystallized into a domino effect with extraordinary on- and offline impact.
Additionally, digital media has propelled these otherwise isolated predatory incidences into headline global news. Social media in Nigeria has provided victims the platform to tell their stories, seek justice and demand action.

author: Nwachukwu Egbunike


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In preparation for the Lunar New Year mass migration, China finally gets serious about the Wuhan coronavirus · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention stressed with an infographic that the new virus is not SARS. Screen capture.
As over 400 million Chinese citizens gear up for Lunar New Year on January 24, one of the largest seasonal migrations in the world, initial rumors of a new form of coronavirus are being confirmed globally and, albeit reluctantly, by Beijing.
Since mid-January, rumors have been circulating in China about the outbreak of a virus which was initially reported in the central city of Wuhan. Until very recently, Chinese social media did not mention the virus (popularly known as the Wuhan coronavirus) given the central government's strict laws governing the spread of ‘fake news’.
However, as millions of travellers prepare to visit their families all across China for the holiday, concerns about its spread are rising after the number of confirmed cases tripled to more than 200.
The Wuhan coronavirus is a new virus strain that can cause pneumonia and eventually lead to lung failure. The first case was reported on 8 December 2020; however, an official document issued by Wuhan Health authorities about the mysterious virus only started circulating online on 30 December. On 31 December, the National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China traveled to Wuhan to investigate the situation. Only then were Chinese news outlets given permission to cover the Wuhan outbreak.
In late December, the authorities reported 27 cases, out of which 7 patients were in serious condition. The majority of the 27 reported patients who were infected in December had worked at the Wuhan Huanan fresh food market which sells wild animals. The market was eventually shut down on 1 January. In addition, on 31 December, Wuhan health authorities said they had not yet recorded any human-to-human transmission cases.
As the origin of the virus most likely originates from wild animals, and because of this, some netizens have associated it with the 2003 SARS outbreak that claimed 774 lives in 37 countries. Other ‘rumors’ also emerged online that the Wuhan health authorities did not segregate patients with minor symptoms, and that there were human-to-human transmission cases as a result of this.
The Chinese authorities initiated an online crackdown on what was viewed as ‘troublemaking’ rumours. At least 8 netizens were called in by Wuhan police authorities on 1 January 2020, while many netizens saw their account suspended for ‘spreading rumors’.
Many netizens were outraged by what was seen as a cover-up by the authorities:
民眾傳謠還不是（因）官方一天了都沒有說法，這也怪大家嗎？我說話的權利沒有，連知道真相，恐慌自救的權利還沒有嗎？
People spread rumors because the authorities did not explain what had caused the outbreak, how could you blame people for this. I don’t have the right to speak, I don’t have right to know the truth and now I don’t even have the right to save myself?
On 7 January, medical experts confirmed the Wuhan pneumonia is caused by a new coronavirus which had previously never been found in a human body. According to a group of Chinese scientists, the virus is, in fact, more closely related to strains collected from bats than to SARS or MERS.
On 9 January, the virus took one life in Wuhan. On 13 January, Japan and Thailand confirmed cases of infected patients coming from China.
But it seems the Chinese Health Authorities continue to prioritize panic control over the spread of the disease. On 18 January, in an infographic published by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the government stressed that the new virus is not SARS and has “limited human-to-human transmission”.
Chinese netizens have reported feeling pressure against drawing attention to any new cases on social media. A netizen spoke about being labelled by bots and online patriots on the Chinese social media platform Weibo after mentioning his concerns about the situation on this timeline.
On 19 January, another ‘rumor’ stated that medical workers from a hospital in Guangzhou, a southern coastal province, had been contaminated with the Wuhan coronavirus, yet the hospital denounced the rumor on its website. Chinese Communist Party mouthpiece Global Times also confirmed it to be a mere rumour.
On 20 January, China Central Television interviewed Dr. Zhong Nanshan, a prominent Chinese pulmonologist who discovered the SARS coronavirus in 2003, who confirmed that there were 14 media workers affected by the virus in Wuhan, with one in critical condition.
The Wuhan virus has become a major hot topic on various social media platforms. Finally, the Chinese public has been given the right to express their justified concerns about the new virus.
the impact of the Wuhan coronavirus

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Oiwan Lam


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Kazakh family of writers and musicians caught in the Xinjiang vortex · Global Voices
Mehmet Volkan

The Oralbais — another family destroyed by China's crackdown in Xinjiang. Photo used with permission
When they were children, Bagila and Baktygul Oralbai frequently went swimming. Their village was on the shores of the Ili river and their childhood memories were shaped by that great body of water that flows from the Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture in China’s Xinjiang region to Almaty province in neighboring Kazakhstan.
Their older brother, Dilshat, often joined them. In the warmer months, Dilshat would fish on the river, and in the winter, when it froze over, he would snowboard there. All six Oralbai children loved music, but it was Bagila and Baktygul that sang and danced whenever Dilshat played his dombra, a traditional Kazakh stringed instrument.
Their idyllic childhood, recalled by the trio’s sister Gulaisha Oralbai, finds echoes in the family histories of many other ethnic Kazakhs from Xinjiang. But this way of life, along with those of other Turkic and majority-Muslim groups living in the region (Uyghurs, Kyrgyz, Hui and Tatars) is fast vanishing under a crackdown directed by the Communist Party of China (CCP) that many argue amounts to cultural genocide.
At the time of writing, Gulaisha, a 47-year-old citizen of Kazakhstan, has no contact with sisters Bagila 38, and Baktygul, 42, or brother Dilshat, 57, and has learned from multiple sources that all three are incarcerated. Her mother Auahan Kurmankyzy, and oldest brother, Zhurat, are presently both under house arrest in the region.
While it is not clear which of the three was the first to be detained, Gulaisha had heard that Dilshat, Baktygul and Bagila were in detention in concentration camps by the end of May 2018.
Since the CCP began transforming the region into a 21st-century dystopia three years ago, well over a million members of majority-Muslim communities find themselves in similar circumstances to the Oralbai family.
Baktygul Oralbai with her three children.
CCP officials have repeatedly defended massive arbitrary incarcerations in Xinjiang as part of its “anti-radicalisation” measures, and described camps as ‘vocational training centres’, amid criticism from international rights groups and two dozen foreign governments.
The persecution of the Oralbais, a mainly secular, well-educated family with no history of opposition to the party, demonstrates the improbability of that claim.
The oldest brother, Zhurat, a career bank employee born in 1959, was detained in the city of Kulja at around the same time but was released into house arrest on medical grounds last year after nine months in a camp.
After his release, he video-chatted from a hospital bed with relatives, who noticed Zhurat was bleeding from his nose.
Siblings Bagila, Baktygul and Dilshat eventually left their life on the shores of the Ili river and moved to Kuitun, a small city in Xinjiang’s Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture. The majority of the trio’s friends were Han Chinese, and all three spoke fluent Mandarin.
Of all the Oralbai siblings, it was Dilshat whose star shone brightest.
After graduating from university in 1985, he became a member of the Chinese Communist Party, a long process requiring multiple verifications, and found work as a journalist and editor at both city and prefecture-level newspapers. He later entered academia and became a notable name among the Kazakh intelligentsia in Xinjiang, publishing numerous articles in Kazakh and Chinese.
Dilshat was also a prolific translator, translating 15 books and more than 30 stories from Chinese to Kazakh in the space of just over two decades.
Among his translations are “Captain Grant’s Children” by Jules Verne and “Russian Character” by Alexei Tolstoy. He won more than a dozen awards for his scholarly and journalistic works before moving to Kazakhstan, where he set up a business in 2008.
Baktygul became a journalist at Kuitun City Newspaper — the same newspaper where Dilshat started out — before setting up a small publishing company. She always remained close to Bagila, who ran a small beauty salon out of the same store where Baktygul printed her books.
That store was just across from the Kuitun Pedagogical University where Baktygul’s husband worked as the director of the state-run university’s dining hall.
As international scrutiny of Xinjiang's sprawling re-education camps has grown, some inmates have been released into limited freedom, house arrest or forced labour. Others have simply been transferred to prisons.
Gulaisha at one point believed that this last, terrible fate had befallen her two sisters and Dilshat, after a source told her that they had received sentences ranging from 7 to 15 years.
She now thinks it is more likely that the trio remain in camps. Gulaisha is particularly worried about Dilshat, who had undergone three surgeries before he was arbitrarily detained.
Dilshat is one of dozens of Chinese-born Kazakhs who held Kazakhstan residency permits at the time of his detention. Unlike brother Kabyt Oralbai and sister Gulaisha, he is not a fully-fledged Kazakh citizen.
Kazakhstan has a policy of allowing ethnic Kazakhs, regardless of their original citizenship, to live in or migrate to Kazakhstan. Such people, designated “oralman” by the Kazakh authorities, can eventually apply for citizenship. There are at least 1.5 million Kazakhs living in Xinjiang. Targeting residents with foreign connections, even to countries like Kazakhstan, with whom China has ostensibly friendly relations, has been a big part of the Chinese Communist Party's repression in the region.
Several former Kazakh detainees have recounted how they were interrogated in jails over their links to their historic homeland.
Dilshat had only planned to visit family in China briefly when he travelled there in November 2016. But that year Xinjiang authorities began confiscating all identification documents from to minority citizens, leaving many Kazakhs who traveled between the two countries trapped in the Xinjiang vortex.
On the other side of the state border that cuts through the river of their childhood, Gulaisha and Kabyt are pleading with the international community not to forget their family's plight.

author: Mehmet Volkan


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Editor of environmental news platform Mongabay arrested in Indonesia for alleged visa violation · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Philip Jacobson in a police station. Photo from Twitter post of Andreas Harsono (@andreasharsono).
Philip Jacobson, editor of conservation and environmental science news platform Mongabay, was arrested in Indonesia on 21 January 2020 for an alleged visa violation.
However, human rights and media groups believe his arrest is related to his work with indigenous farmers that are petitioning the government to probe a number of plantation companies for their role in causing forest fires in Borneo.
On 16 December 2019, Jacobson attended a meeting between the Legislative Council of Central Kalimantan province and a chapter of the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), Indonesia’s largest indigenous rights advocacy group. The meeting was about a criminal case involving indigenous farmers and a corporation.
Jacobson was detained by the police the following day, his passport was confiscated, and he was told not to leave while his case is being investigated. He was formally arrested and charged for a visa violation on 21 January. If found guilty, he faces a prison term of up to five years.
Mongabay founder and CEO Rhett A. Butler is surprised why a punitive action was imposed on a supposedly administrative matter:
We are supporting Philip in this on-going case and making every effort to comply with Indonesia’s immigration authorities. I am surprised that immigration officials have taken such punitive action against Philip for what is an administrative matter.
The Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Club said that Jacobson’s presence in a local meeting should not be considered a visa violation:
While we of course urge all foreign journalists visiting Indonesia to ensure they follow immigration rules, if a journalist is simply attending meetings or happens to be present during a news event this should not be cause for punitive action or detention.
In Indonesia, @Mongabay editor Phil Jacobson was detained since Dec 17 over an alleged issue with his business visa. He's formally arrested on January 21, currently incarcerated in Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan #freephiljacobson https://t.co/8xc9YVhBNm pic.twitter.com/sIFmLubHRg
— Andreas Harsono (@andreasharsono) January 21, 2020
The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) suspects that Jacobson’s previous work documenting the struggle of indigenous farmers could be the reason why authorities used excessive action against him:
What the immigration office did showcases Indonesia’s reputation in a bad light abroad. Especially after treating a journalist excessively like this over administrative issues.
Official statement from Indonesia’s indigenous network @RumahAMAN. The arrest of @mongabay reporter Philip Jacobson poses “a serious threat upon press freedom, democracy and human rights in Indonesia….We demand that [he] be released immediately.” https://t.co/zeeTpLZX03
— Kevin Currey (@ktcurrey) January 22, 2020
AMAN added that the work of Mongabay in Indonesia is also related to Jacobson's arrest
Mongabay has helped raised our Indigenous “voice’ in Indonesia and throughout the world. In Indonesia, Mongabay is very consistent in uncovering corporate crimes including corruption regarding forest licenses, forest, and land burning by corporations. We presume that the arrest of Jacobson is related to Mongabay reporting on cases of environmental crime and criminalization of Indigenous Peoples.
Ranu Welum Foundation provides more context regarding the struggle of indigenous farmers in Kalimantan. Since September 2019, farmers have petitioned the government to stop blaming indigenous practices for forest fires in Borneo. Instead, they urged authorities to probe the destructive operations of palm oil plantations.
Let’s unite to make sure the authorities do what is necessary and not act in opposite. This way the issue of Indigenous Peoples Rights in Indonesia, especially Kalimantan, will be heard, and also to help Philip Jacobson released.

author: Mong Palatino


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Pakistani director halts release of award-winning film after receiving threats · Global Voices
Qurratulain (Annie) Zaman

Screenshot from the official trailer of Zindagi Tamasha (Circus of Life)
Renowned Pakistani filmmaker and actor Sarmad Khoosat is facing constant threats to stop the release of his film Zindagi Tamasha (Circus of Life) in Pakistan. Even after announcing that he is no longer releasing the film and cancelling the premier in Pakistan, personal threats against him continue unabated.
Zindagi Tamasha premiered at the Busan International Film Festival, where it won the Kim Ji-seok Award. The story of this bi-lingual film revolves around Naat Khwan Rahat Khawaja (Arif Hassan), a devout Muslim who writes, composes, and even records hymns praising the Prophet. As the film goes on, Khawaja and his family find themselves ostracised from society when Khawaja's dark secret becomes public knowledge. According to the official synopsis, the film is a “scorching political commentary on little gods on this earth who police our private passions.” The film is seen as hinting at the misuse of religious laws in Pakistan.
#ZindagiTamasha by @KhoosatSarmad, is Pakistan's first film to win the prestigious Kim-Ji-Seok award at the Busan Film Festival. A different yet unique film addressing topics such as gender stereotypes, queer representation, child molestation & religious beliefs
Release: 24 Jan pic.twitter.com/c6uMKorejV
— Effie⁷ (@rm_fishcakes) January 15, 2020
Despite passing three Pakistani censor boards, a section of conservatives in Pakistan, especially the far right-wing Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), are claiming that this film is anti-Islam because of its portrayal of Khawaja. The TLP announced a countrywide protest on 22 January 2020 against the film because “it wrongfully portrayed those who recite hymns in praise of Holy Prophet (PBUH).”
Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) has announced countrywide protest against Sarmad Khoosat’s upcoming film “#ZindagiTamasha” for alleged blasphemy on Janaury 22. pic.twitter.com/AdwJBHuqQU
— Copy Paste (@copypasteOff) January 18, 2020
A letter by Sindh provincial Board of censors shared on Twitter mentions that the board has put restrictions on screening of the film to the public as “it may create unrest within the religious segment of the society and may deteriorate and be detrimental to the peaceful circumstances in the country”.
Not banned. But reecomeneded for a 3rd review after being certified. Perhaps setting the ground for a ban https://t.co/neQXB1X2pA
— Rafay Mahmood (@Rafay_Mahmood) January 21, 2020
After the objection of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Sarmad received massive online abuse and his personal details like ID and phone number were shared online. Global Voices talked to a digital rights organization that mentioned that they have informed and complained to Twitter about tweets sharing Sarmad's personal info.
On 16 January, Sarmad wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan and President Arif Alvi asking for their support to release his film. He wrote that he and his team were being bullied even though the Censor Board of Pakistan passed his film for countrywide release:
میں بھی پاکستان ہوں
An open letter to:@ImranKhanPTI@ArifAlvi #Chiefjusticeofpakistan #Chiefofthearmystaffpakiatan#ministerofinformationpakistan@DanyalGilani #censorboardofpakistan #ZindagiTamasha #pakistanicinema pic.twitter.com/D10lS1V1gw
— Sarmad Khoosat (@KhoosatSarmad) January 16, 2020
Sarmad wrote:
“It’s a story about a ‘good enough Muslim’ – there was/is no mention of a sect, party or faction of any sort. Neither in the uncensored version nor the censored one. If a bearded man is to be generically called a molvi (cleric), then trust me, this is/was a film about a good molvi (cleric). An empathetic and heartfelt story of a bearded man who is so much more than just that. He is a human being portrayed through a very humane eye. Well, forget it!”
The trailer for the film was also taken down from YouTube in the last week of December 2019 after some users took issue with the content of the clip. A statement was later released by Khoosat Films:
Khoosat Films took down the trailer from YouTube themselves. A trailer is just a tiny part of the entire film, there's no context so a few people had some issues regarding the content of that clip and we took that into account. After minor tweaks, we'll reupload it soon enough.
The revised trailer of the movie (in the Urdu language) is already up.
Under immense pressure, Sarmad Khoosat decided to stop the release of his film in Pakistan.
Getting dozens of threatening phone calls and msgs. Should I withdraw Zindagi Tamasha? pic.twitter.com/OJB396B1xq
— Sarmad Khoosat (@KhoosatSarmad) January 19, 2020
However, after canceling the national release of his film online trolling against Sarmad didn't stop. There are continuous calls on Twitter to rally against the filmmaker and his team to stop the film. These accounts are continuously stereotyping this film as anti-Islam and blasphemous without citing exactly why. Posters are shared and countrywide calls for protests are still being made on social media to ban this film despite the fact that the filmmaker has already cancelled its release in Pakistan.
this whole zindagi tamasha debacle is another reminder of how helpless and frustrating it is to be a common citizen in this country. they're holding a film hostage for all the wrong reasons and there's nothing we can do about it.
— Faizan. (@merabichrayaar) January 19, 2020
Update: The Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) has announced that they will defer protests scheduled on January 22, 2020 in response to the decision of the Sindh and Punjab governments to block the release of the film Zindagi Tamasha.

author: Qurratulain (Annie) Zaman


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Malawi opens the first drone academy in Africa · Global Voices
Susie Berya

In Malawi, 14 million people rely mainly on agriculture as a means of subsistence. In 2017, drought in the country affected more than half the population. This EU-funded project uses drones to create maps that help to locate resources such as hospitals, schools, and roads which are all vital in providing safe shelter for the population in case of a disaster. Photo by the European Union/Anouk Delafortrie, April 13, 2018, via Flickr CC BY 2.0.
Since 2016, Malawi has stood at the forefront of utilizing unmanned aircraft systems — also known as drones — in Africa. This year, the country took a step further by opening the African Drone and Data Academy (ADDA) — the first of its kind in Africa.
ADDA officially opened on January 13, 2020, in Lilongwe, Malawi.
“In Malawi, we strongly believe that adopting modern technologies such as drones and advanced data analysis and management techniques will help us to serve our children better,” said James Chakwera, director of Malawi’s Department of Civil Aviation.
Open to Malawians and citizens of neighboring countries, the academy will equip individuals with drone technology skills necessary for jobs using drones, particularly in humanitarian aid and disaster preparedness.
Graduates will earn certificates issued from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (based in the United States), through a partnership between ADDA and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
The academy plans to educate 150 students by 2020 through a 10-week course. The first cohort has already begun training and will graduate on March 18, 2020. The cohort is comprised of 26 students, with 16 from Malawi, 10 from across Africa, and women making up over half of the class.
Debora Mtambalika, a member of the first ADDA cohort, appreciated ADDA’s presence in Malawi:
My sincere gratitude to be part of the first cohort of African Drone and Data Academy (ADDA) in Malawi. Getting to interact with International people and learn new skills in Drone Technology is really exciting. @MeloGasai @Sdhikrullahi @banza024 #Malawi#Drones https://t.co/LLpcBWjQu0
— Debora Mtambalika (@DeboraMtambali2) January 15, 2020
Shittu, a biomedical researcher and also a member of the first ADDA cohort, shared his reasons why he's excited by ADDA's mission and work:
Ever wonder if we can predict disaster before it happens, map out breeding habitats of the world most deadliest insects (mosquitoes), monitor outbreaks and transferring medical supplies to remote areas….
All these are questions I seek to explore with drone…
— Shittu Dhikrullahi B (@Sdhikrullahi) January 23, 2020
Applications for the second cohort are already open.
The academy plans to partner with Malawi University of Science and Technology for a free, 2-year master's degree in drone and data innovation by 2022 — another first in Africa.
Drones have long been recognized as an essential tool for conducting humanitarian operations in Malawi, where floods account for 48 percent of major disasters. Since 1946, the severity of flood disasters has increased, with more than 80,000 displaced in March 2019 flash floods in Malawi.
Flooding makes already poor roads inaccessible — completely cutting off affected communities, especially in remote, rural areas. Adapting innovative technology for efficient real-time monitoring and disaster response preparedness is critical.
In June 2017, the Malawi government partnered with UNICEF to launch a drone testing corridor in Malawi, also the first of its kind in Africa. They set it up to research how drones can impact humanitarian work. UNICEF chose to establish the testing drone in Malawi because unreliable infrastructure has often hindered the distribution of critical medicine to clinics in remote, rural areas.
In November 2017, a drone called Eco Malawi delivered drugs within a 19-kilometer radius. Eco Malawi is one of five drones designed and built by 13 Malawian students at Virginia Tech University’s unmanned systems lab in the USA.  Before this achievement, the 13 students had limited or no experience with drone construction.
UNICEF has been using drones in Malawi to provide vaccines, blood transfusion kits, antibiotics and malaria drugs. In drone trials by UNICEF in 2016, drones were used to carry blood samples from babies in villages to clinics for HIV testing. These efforts have improved access to antiretroviral drugs to HIV+ mothers and children in remote regions.
The European Union has also supported a range of humanitarian initiatives in Malawi that feature drones as a tool for mapping, research and evacuation training related to disaster preparedness.
Uganda has its own drone hub known as Uganda Flying Lab to provide solutions to its development and humanitarian challenges. The lab is a mapping and data analytics hub that also trains students to collect and analyze data.
Karen Asaba, an ADDA student, first developed an interest in drones while studying at the Uganda Flying Labs.
Tanzania also uses drone technology to combat malaria and map possible hotspots. Tanzania Flying Lab (TFL) offers courses, builds local robotic skills and incubates new businesses. TFL hub is the East African Regional Flying Lab that trains the trainers of other Flying Labs. It deployed the first anti-malaria drones in November 2019.
Flying Labs operates in 14 countries in Africa including Kenya. However, Samuel Wanjohi, a film director, was quick to point out on Twitter that Kenya had banned the use of drones with a steep fine attached to it.
3/4
Meanwhile in Kenya:
The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) has prohibited the use of drones, warning that those violating the ban risk a fine of Sh100,000 or a year in prison.
— Samuel Wanjohi (@samdablew) January 15, 2020
In Rwanda, Zipline, a drone medical delivery company, has operated since 2016. As of 2018, Zipline has supplied 35 percent of blood from national blood transfusion banks to remote clinics.
Drones are considered as a type of “fourth industrial technology” with the potential to transform business models, curb climate change, increase agricultural production, and create jobs.
The fourth industrial revolution, known also as “industry 4.0,” is the current era of human development where disruptive technologies are fusing with the physical and biological worlds.
Netizen Cristina Karrer celebrated ADDA's launch with hope for what this means for Malawi's future, particularly women in tech:
The first #drone #academy in Africa has opened in #Malawi . 26 #dronepilots, more than half of them #womenwhofly will get a topnoch education. #srf #UNICEF #powertowomen #frogleaping pic.twitter.com/YA11k75MYu
— Cristina karrer (@karrer_cristina) January 16, 2020
With the right policies and platforms, drone technology can help solve critical problems. For now, flying a drone in Malawi is legal, but citizens must obtain permission from the Department of Civil Aviation before each flight. For commercial, corporate or nonprofit drone use, licensing and registration are required.
ADDA, through knowledge and skill-building, unleashes unlimited potential to revolutionize Malawi.

author: Susie Berya


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What’s in a ‘Japanese Adult Cream Pie’? · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

McDonald's Japan's new “Cream Pie for Adults” (大人のクリームパイ), with Belgian chocolate (left) and “sweet frommage” (right) flavors. Screencap from McDonald's Japan official YouTube channel.
If the goal was to generate buzz, McDonald's Japan struck the mother lode in January when it launched its new dessert. For at least a week, the new offering was a key topic of conversation on Facebook and Twitter, and generated headlines around the world. Unfortunately for McDonald's, however, it wasn't the new product people were talking about, but its name translated into rather lewd English.
“Didn't McDonald's Japan understand how bad it sounds in English?” was a common reaction. “What were they thinking?”
The name of new dessert offered by McDonald's in Japan? Otona No Kuriimu Pai (大人のクリームパイ). Available in semi-sweet ‘frommage’ and Belgian chocolate flavors, directly translated, the dessert's name means “Cream Pie for Grownups.” But the English-language Twitterverse preferred a more juvenile translation with pornographic connotations: Adult Cream Pie.
I’m amazed it doesn’t look pixelated.https://t.co/PrIXfFjdzs
— 9GAG (@9GAG) January 13, 2020
For some English-speakers, the “Adult” in “Adult Cream Pie” brought to mind the “adult” in “adult” (pornographic) videos, while “cream pie” was immediately associated with slang for a very specific sexual act. It's not a particularly grown-up topic of conversation, but such is the level of discourse in January 2020.
It didn't help that the cream pie controversy came shortly after Japanese car maker Subaru announced the launch of its new Forester Unlimited Customized Kit Special edition (F.U.C.K.S. for short) on the Singapore market. Following the uproar, Subaru of America lamely distanced itself from the launch, but the pump was primed for a lewd online discussion about Japanese cream pies.
The dirty connotations of the McDonald's dessert was reported on by a variety of major English-language news outlets around the world, including Kotaku, News.Com.Au, GaijinPot, Lad Bible and Daily Mail.
McDonald's Japan is mocked for launching Adult Cream Pie dessert https://t.co/TuEQOZkSd2
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) January 13, 2020
The cream pie fiasco renewed calls for Japan to pay more attention to the nuance and innuendo of the foreign loanwords it appropriates.
“Always hire a native English speaking consultant before launching your product,” exclaimed one member of a popular Facebook group for professional translators I belong to.
The actual meaning of Otona No Kuriimu Pai (大人のクリームパイ) is completely innocuous in Japan. There are all sorts of dishes incorporating “cream” that are popular in Japan, especially in winter, such as “cream stew“.
Otona No (大人の) can be translated into English as “adult”, which as a loanword means “pornographic” — pornographic videos in Japan are known as “adaruto” (adult) “bideo” (video), or “AV”. However, in this case a Japanese person looking at the menu at McDonald's would never associate Otona No with the English word “adult”.
A more nuanced translation for Otona No Kuriimu Pai would be: “a cream pie that is mildly sweet, and can be enjoyed by grownups.”
And, needless to say, most adults in Japan — at least women, the target market of the new McDonald's product — would not immediately associate “cream pie” with the sexual act, although the meaning of this English slang seems to be well-known in some “adult” corners of the Japanese Internet.
Taking a look at Japanese social media, the conversation did indeed seem to be focused on how the desserts actually might taste, rather than on any sort of childish sexual innuendo.
One fairly popular article on blogging site Naver Matome discussed how delicious the new pies were:
マック 大人のクリームパイも！話題の新メニューがめちゃウマ～♪
The new “Cream Pie for Adults” that everyone's talking about is delicious!
Another mildly popular Naver Matome blog post provided a more in-depth product review. A third blog post that discussed the more lewd English-language connotations of the McDonald's Cream Pie barely generated any interest, despite including the presence of “pervy” (eroi) in its title:
エロい？！考えすぎ？！【大人のクリームパイ】がネットで話題に
Is it pervy? Or are people just overthinking it? “Cream Pie for Adults” goes viral.
Responding to a calls on Twitter that McDonald's should have asked a native English-speaker to review the product name before launch, independent journalist Thoton Akimoto disagrees:
同意できません。「大人のクリームパイ」は日本語なので、英語圏の人がこれを読んだ時にどう思うかは、我々日本人には全然関係ありません。イタリア語で「ティ・マンコ（俺がいなくて寂しいか）？」という表現がありますが、我々は変だと思っても、イタリア人に文句は言いません。 https://t.co/897bxArJHv
— Thoton Akimoto (@Thoton) January 11, 2020
I don't agree. Otona No Kuriimu Pai is Japanese. Whatever the English-speaking world thinks it means has nothing to with Japan. For example, even if we Japanese think it's strange when Italians say “Ti Manco” (note: this phrase includes a sexual slang word in Japanese), we would never complain.
It's also unclear why people believe McDonald's Japan should prioritise English-speaking residents of Japan when it comes to marketing campaigns — English speakers are in a distinct minority among foreign residents and visitors.
In 2018, the top three nationalities of foreign residents in Japan came were Chinese, South Korean and Vietnamese, none of which are English-speaking countries. Nearly two-thirds of foreign tourists come from Korea, Taiwan and People's Republic of China.
While the use and misuse of English in Japan can be both amusing and irritating to a relatively small number of people, most residents of the country, Japanese and foreign-born alike, would never notice, or even pay attention.
Finally, I wonder why no commissioning editor or adult at one of the many English-language news outlets that ran this story didn't feel a sense of shame or embarrassment for spending more than ten seconds laughing at the childish innuendo of “cream pie” and then moving on with their day.
The main point of this dessert, after all, is that adults should sometimes possess more subtle, adult tastes. But maybe that is something that makes Japan so distinct from some other parts of the world.

author: Nevin Thompson


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A regional security intervention in Nigeria sparks ethnic, political tensions · Global Voices
Nwachukwu Egbunike

Newly deployed Nigerian Formed Police Unit (FPU) personnel under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) disembark the plane at Aden Abdulleh International Airport, Mogadishu, Somalia, January 6, 2016. AMISOM Photo / Ilyas Ahmed (CC0 1.0)
The state governments of southwest Nigeria have launched Operation Amotekun, a self-help intervention designed to fight back against a recent spike in insecurity in the region, pitting these regional governments against the central government.
A spike in kidnappings and killings across southwest Nigeria has caused alarm and fear among citizens.
Logo of Amotekun.
The Western Nigeria Security Network, codenamed Operation Amotekun (meaning “leopard” in Yorùbá), was launched by the states of Lagos, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo and Ogun, on January 9, in Ibadan, the capital city of Oyo State, Nigeria.
Kayode Fayemi, Ekiti State governor, explained Amotekun as a “community security” outfit that will “complement the efforts” of police.
The regional security initiative is only a “response to a problem” while the Nigerian police actualize a national “community policing strategy”.
Hence, Amotekun is “a confidence-boosting strategy” for southwest residents.
The obligation of Amotekun is to provide first-hand information that could help tackle crime. Information is the main factor in any operation. This is a preventive measure towards resolving our insecurity problems other than focusing on corrective measures.
— Shina Peller (@ShinaPeller) January 21, 2020
Nigeria's police chief, Mohammed Adamu, “is not opposed” to Operation Amotekun or “any legitimate and community-based efforts” that aims in fighting crime in any part of the country — as long as these efforts conform to Nigeria's “national security policy,” reports Nigerian newspaper, the Daily Trust.
But the federal government, on January 14, declared Amotekun an illegal security organisation.
Abubakar Malami, Nigeria's Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, said that the establishment of Amotekun “runs contrary to the provisions of the Nigerian law.” Malami maintained that the security of the nation is a constitutionally exclusive preserve of the central government. Consequently, “no state government, whether singly or in a group,” is legally allowed to “establish any form of organisation or agency for the defence of Nigeria or any of its constituent parts.” Maintaining “law and order,” according to the justice minister, is the duty of the police and other security agencies as prescribed in “Item 45 of the second schedule of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Afe Babalola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, described Malami's declaration as an “unlawful pronouncement.” Babalola stated that the minister of justice went “overboard dishing out judgment on issues of such nature as if he were a law court. He continued:
Amotekun had been launched, let them go on. Anybody that feels what they have done is wrong can go to court.
Wole Soyinka, 1986 winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, lamented that the federal government who “have been sleeping all this time taking belated actions, watching the people being decimated” seem to have suddenly found their voice. “They should go back to sleep. Amotekun has come to stay,” Soyinka insisted.
Southwest governors at the launch of Operation Amotekun in Ibadan. Image from Ekiti Government Website
Political mistrust along ethnic lines runs deep in Nigeria.
Amotekun, an initiative of six southwest states, is being interpreted as a militia of the Yorùbá nation.
Chief Gani Abiodun Ige, the 15th Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorùbáland described Amotekun as an intervention “to defend our people” in a public letter addressed to the justice minister. In the old Oyo Empire, the Aare Ona Kakanfo is the supreme military commander that “lead battles, fight wars, mobilize, train soldiers and conquer the enemies.” Today, the Aare Ona Kakanfo is a ceremonial title but still commands respect.
On the contrary, I read the letter Gani Adams addressed to the AGF [Attorney-General] and even though I am not Yòrúbà, I am very proud of his boldness on an issue that not only smacks of ethnic bias and intimidation, but more importantly, affects the lives of his people.
It is leadership!
— Charles the 1st (@9jaBloke) January 18, 2020
Chief Ige recalled in his public letter that “even Mrs. Funke Olakunrin, the daughter of Yorùbá leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti, was killed and nobody has been arrested in respect of all these killings.” Fasoranti was one of the founding fathers of Afenifere, a Yorùbá socio-political organisation.
In July 2019, Olakunrin was attacked and “killed by Fulani herdsmen who emerged from the bush, shot her and killed her in the process,” according to Premium Times based on an eyewitness report.
Within southwestern Nigeria, statements like this are politically charged.
According to Simon Kolawole, editor of Nigeria's ThisDay, there is a strong belief that “the Fulani have an agenda to take over the country. The criminal activities of the herdsmen are interpreted within that context.” Kolawole further asserts: “There are, thus, those who think the Yorùbá must push back. To them, Amotekun represents the counterforce.”
The desertification in northern Nigeria caused a southward migration of Fulani cattle herders to the south. There have been increased tensions between herders and communities in the south as a result, leading to violent conflicts and the deaths of about 4,000 people from 2015 to late 2018, according to Amnesty International.
For others, the federal government is being hypocritical, condemning Amotekun while turning a blind eye on the Sharia (Hisbah Corps) police active in some parts of northern Nigeria.
Sharia Police is legal but Amotekun is illegal.
Some Nigerians are more equal than the others. https://t.co/Ruv8OVpnmq
— Nwoke Wawa. (@EbubeIsaac) January 16, 2020
The Hisbah Corps is a police force that enforces Sharia (Islamic law) by arbitrating disputes, chastising violators and maintaining public order. Like Amotekun, the Hisbah Corps neither carry arms nor execute arrests, but alerts the police on perceived violations. Human Rights Watch compared “the role of the Hisbah to that of vigilante groups,” self-help groups that provide security within local communities in other parts of Nigeria.
Naturally, Amotekun has draw both commendation and condemnation from other ethnic-based organisations in Nigeria.
Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (a partisan group promoting the welfare of Fulani pastoralists in Nigeria), speaking through Miyetti representative, Saleh Alhassan, described “Amotekun, the Yoruba tribal militia” as a “threat to democracy” and a “monster” which should be tamed.
On the other hand, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, praised the southwest governors for birthing Amotekun. Chief Nnia Nwodo, president of Ohanaeze, noted that “nobody needs to tell any Nigerian today that your security is in your own hands.”
This is brilliant. The FG [federal government] should tread carefully; it seems States are waking up to the reality that they can use state-level legislation to partially implement the restructuring Buhari promised Nigerians. https://t.co/xCqQRslGlm
— Ose Anenih (@ose_anenih) January 16, 2020
Beyond the ethnic fireworks surrounding this regional security outfit, a decision by the court on Amotekun will be interesting.
The limits and powers of the independent tiers of government within Nigeria's presidential democracy has remained a contentious topic. Many have called for “restructuring,” which means strengthening state and municipal governments.
Nigeria's constitution endows so many powers at the centre to the detriment of other tiers of government.
On January 23, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo held a meeting with the governors of the southwest, the justice minister and the police chief “over the controversy surrounding the Amotekun Initiative.”
Fruitful and unanimous resolutions
were made on the way forward in a meeting today with South West Governors, the Attorney General
of the Federation and the Inspector General of Police over the controversy surrounding the Amotekun Initiative. pic.twitter.com/Qn5t9r2HeJ
— Prof Yemi Osinbajo (@ProfOsinbajo) January 23, 2020
They agreed that “the structure of Amotekun should also align with the community policing strategy of the federal government,” according to a tweet from the vice president's Twitter handle.


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Conservationists decry Sri Lankan decision to arm local groups against elephants · Global Voices
Rezwan

Elephants bathing at Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. 2017. Image by the author.
Activists in Sri Lanka are concerned after the government announced plans to issue firearms to a newly formed civil defence force tasked with protecting farmers from elephants.
There are an estimated 7,500 wild elephants in Sri Lanka and human-elephant conflict is a burning issue for local farmers. Elephant habitats are shrinking as humans are slowly encroaching on their roaming spaces. Having no place to go, these animals end up destroying crops in farmlands in their search for food. Some rural communities see them as dangerous pests and people have lost their lives in encounters with elephants. Around 100 people were killed by the elephants in 2019 alone.
During 2019, a record number of 361 elephants died in Sri Lanka and 85% were killed by people as revenge for ‘crop-raiding’. Each year, elephants kill dozens of people and damage agricultural crops and livelihoods and people kill them with electric fences, poison, and explosives concealed in food.
Sri Lanka reaches record number of elephant deaths in 2019, 85% at the hands of Man. Electric fences, poison and explosives believed the cause for roaming elephants’ deaths. We trust the Sri Lankan Government acts immediately. #elephants #srilankahttps://t.co/Q28rnTcONw
— Save The Asian Elephants (@stae_elephants) January 21, 2020
Killing wild elephants in Sri Lanka is a criminal offence that, in its most severe form, can carry a death sentence. But this does not deter the killing of elephants as people often cite self-defence.
Over the years, the Sri Lankan government has taken a number of measures to minimize human-elephant conflicts, including relocating farmers living on the edges of forests and providing electric fencing.
On 13 January 2020, Sri Lanka's Ministry of Wildlife Conservation announced that the government is recruiting a 2500 strong civil defence force which will be made up of local volunteers in areas most affected by the human-elephant conflict. The first phase of the program has already been launched. Every eight officers from the civil defence force will be given five firearms each to scare away elephants. Building strong elephant fences with aid from the Chinese government has also been proposed.
People are raising their voices against the decision to arm local volunteers. Although the reported purpose of handing guns is to scare elephants, elephants can also be killed with the guns as people use various methods such as poisons and explosives to kill elephants each year. Legal practitioner Uween Jayasinha says the government is licensing its citizens to kill.
“This decision by a Government [to issue 2000 shotguns to farmers] is astounding for many reasons, but mostly for the extreme short-sightedness of licensing its citizens to kill or maim elephants”..#SriLanka #lka #HumanElephantConflict https://t.co/vfEQCkjDR4
— Uween Jayasinha (@Uween_J) January 21, 2020
Sunela Jayawardane writes at Groundviews:
Killing elephants with shotguns is very inefficient. The clusters of tiny, iron pellets rarely kill such large animals instantly. Instead, pellets lodge in tissue and cartilage, causing wounds that ooze and fester for months before infection, then limited mobility and eventual starvation kills the great aristocrats of Sri Lanka’s jungles. This long and painful penalty plays out, with the fallen elephant calling a final, heart-wrenching, childlike gulping, a cry of distress.
Jayawardane highlights a report on YouTube by a Sri Lankan magazine Pulse.lk which says that 2000 guns are being handed to farmers and villagers to protect themselves from elephants and more will be issued.
In the report, Sumith Pilapitiya, former Director-General of Wildlife Conservation reminds that by law elephants cannot be harmed. However, the government is issuing guns to civilians in the name of protection.
Nishan Wijetunge, committee member of Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators warns that giving guns to civilians means that there will be increased poaching on other species too and the illegal game-meat industry may grow.
Elephant stuns staff and guests when he wanders into reception at luxury hotel in Sri Lanka https://t.co/YxsMxOPS6o
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) January 20, 2020
Sri Lanka was recently recognised as Asia's best nation for wildlife tourism. Each year, hundreds of elephants assemble on the shores of an ancient reservoir in Sri Lanka's north-central Minneriya National Park — which is known to the world as ‘The Gathering’. Jayawardane asks:
I wonder, will the wildlife enthusiasts of the world want to visit a Nation that is systematically killing her elephants? Will Sri Lanka, where magnificent elephants have now been demoted from National Treasure to vermin, be the paradise isle that modern tourists dream of?

author: Rezwan


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For the first time, clouded leopards have been found high up in Nepal’s Himalayas. But can they survive climate change? · Global Voices
Sanjib Chaudhary

Clouded leopard. Image by Charles Barilleaux for Flickr. CC BY 2.0
Clouded leopards, one of the most elusive cats, were found for the first time at an altitude of 3498 meters (11476 feet) above sea level in the Langtang National Park in Nepal. The study, led by Özgün Emre Can from the University of Oxford, confirmed the existence of this cat species in this high altitude.
(3/4) We discovered clouded leopards at 3500 m a.s.l. in Langtang National Park, Nepal. The species wasn’t known to exist in this region of the Himalayas. This altitude is also a world record for clouded leopards. @WildCRU_Ox @OxZooDept @UniofOxford https://t.co/T7t8JxLqBk
— Özgün Emre Can (@ozgunemrecan) December 28, 2019
In the research study published by Can and his colleagues, the authors state:
Before this study, there was no hard evidence that clouded leopards occurred above 2300 meters above sea level, having documented them at almost 4000 meters above sea level in the Himalayas, we emphasise the importance of this extreme portion of the species’ range where climate is likely to change more rapidly and with greater consequences, than the global average.
Named after its cloud-like blotched pattern on the skin, the clouded leopard is found in the Nepali Himalayas in the west to southern China in the north and east, and Peninsular Malaysia in the south. It has been listed as a vulnerable species in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Estimates say there are around 100 clouded leopards in Nepal and they were believed to be extinct in the country until 1987. Apart from the Langtang National Park, there have been reported sightings in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Chitwan National Park, Kanchenjunga Conservation Area, Makalu-Barun, Rara and Shivapuri Nagarjun National Parks.
Achievement in wildlife conservation: Nepal is listed in Top 5 country for conservation of Clouded Leopard by European Outdoor Conservation Association ???
Photo: Charlie Marshall pic.twitter.com/nq4oOHMyA6
— Routine of Nepal banda (@RONBupdates) October 20, 2019
Largely nocturnal, clouded leopards are great climbers which has earned them the moniker “tree tigers”. They have very long teeth compared to their heads, so some call them the modern-day sabre tooth cats.
The National Park and Wildlife Conservation Act 1973 has given special protection to clouded leopard in Nepal. According to the Act, any person illegally killing or injuring, selling, purchasing or transferring or obtaining a clouded leopard shall be punished with a fine ranging from fifty to one hundred thousand rupees or imprisonment ranging from five years to fifteen years or both. But this has not stopped poachers – four clouded leopard pelts were found by Nepal Police in 2018 within a span of two months.
Clouded leopards are poached for their beautiful pelts that are traded illegally while the habitat loss and degradation remain the prime concerns for their conservation. In addition, these leopards found at high altitudes face the threat of warming temperatures that are pushing other highland species towards higher elevations. In the Eastern Himalayan region, the annual mean temperatures are projected to increase research on average by 2.9 degrees Celsius by the middle of the century. According to researchers, even if global warming is limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century, the high mountains are likely to warm even more.
Read: Flora and Fauna Signal the Visible Effects of Climate Change in Nepal
However, the study found that Langtang National Park has abundant prey species like red muntjac, wild boar, Himalayan serow, Himalayan goral, musk deer, Nepal grey langur, Assam macaque, and Malayan porcupine for both clouded and common leopards.
Technologies like camera-trapping have been helping scientists study the dynamics and behaviour of this species. In addition, captive breeding and artificial insemination techniques are projected to further help save these leopards. The presence of the Nepali army and park administration working together to protect the park and curb illegal wildlife trade gives hope for the conservation of these leopards in the high altitude.

author: Sanjib Chaudhary


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Morocco intensifies crackdown on freedom of expression · Global Voices
Afef Abrougui

The Moroccan government has intensified its crackdown on freedom of expression, arresting several people in recent months for merely expressing their opinions, including online.
Over the past fews months, authorities in Morocco arrested several individuals for expressing themselves online. Photo by user Pierre Metivier on Flickr [CC BY-NC 2.0].
According to a local rights group, a total of 15 people have been arrested in recent months and six were convicted in December 2019 alone.
Independent journalist Omar Radi was arrested on December 26, 2019, after a public prosecutor charged him with ‘’insulting a public servant’’ under the country’s penal code over a tweet he posted eight months earlier. In the tweet, Radi slammed a verdict by a Casablanca appeals court, which confirmed harsh prison sentences against dozens of activists of the Hirak protest movement in the Rif region. Some of the defendants, including a leading figure of the protest movement, Nasser Zefzafi, were sentenced to 20 years in jail.
Radi was released on bail on December 31. He appeared in court  on January 2, and his trial was adjourned to 5 March. However, Radi still risks up to one year in jail under the penal code if found guilty. Many more are also still in jail. Following his release, he tweeted:
Cependant, si aujourd'hui je suis libre, ce n'est malheureusement pas le cas pour beaucoup de nos concitoyens qui aujourd'hui sont incarcérés pour avoir exprimé une opinion, une colère, une blague ou une chanson.
— Omar Radi (@OmarRADI) January 3, 2020
Though I am free today, it is unfortunately not the case for many of our fellow citizens who remain incarcerated for expressing an opinion, anger, a joke or a song.
Rapper Gnawi. Photo is a screenshot from one of his video clips on Youtube.
On November 25, 2019, a court sentenced rapper Mohamed Mounir, known by his stage name Gnawi, to one year in jail and a fine of 1,000 dirhams (around 103 USD) for cursing the police on social media for ‘’mistreating’’ him. His lawyer told Reuters that the authorities may in fact have targeted him over a song he and two other singers recorded and published on YouTube. The song, titled ‘’Long Live the People’’, denounces the socio-economic conditions, corruption and torture in the country, and also contained criticism of the country's rulers, including the king.  On January 15, a court of appeal confirmed Gnawi's one-year-jail term.
On December 19, a court in Meknes sentenced a high-school student to three years in jail for merely posting the song’s lyrics on Facebook. The student was released on January 16, 2020.
Another rapper, Hamza Asbaar, was arrested on December 28 at a football stadium. His family told independent news site Lakome that the arrest occurred after Asbaar had performed his song “We understand’’ at the request of spectators. In the song, published on YouTube on October 20, Asbaar, who is a high school student, criticized the social and economic conditions and the rights situation in Morocco. On December 31, he was sentenced to four years in jail and a fine of 10,000 dirhams (10,000 USD) for ‘’insulting sanctities’’.
Hamza Asbaar is a 18 yo #moroccan high school student and a young rapper who got sentenced to 4 years in jail for a rap song he wrote, practicing #FreedomOfSpeech is one of the most fundamental human rights, let Hamza go! #FreeKoulchi #Morocco pic.twitter.com/RCavMwJtBp
— Hajar El Fatihi (@HajarElFatihi3) January 5, 2020
A court of appeal reduced his prison sentence to eight months on 16 January.
The crackdown has also affected individuals who have taken to YouTube to express opinions on social, political and economic issues.
On December 26, a court in Settat sentenced YouTuber Mohamed Sekkaki to four years in jail and a fine of 40,000 dirhams (4,150 USD) over a video in which he criticized the king and described Moroccans as ‘’stupid’’, and ‘’donkeys’’.
Another YouTuber, Mohamed Bodouh, was sentenced to three years in jail on January 7 over videos critical of corruption and the authorities.
Mohamed Boudouh is a shop owner who got sentenced to 3 yrs in jail because of some @YouTube videos he filmed in which he talks about precarity and the lack of justice and equality in #Morocco. The regime is losing it and for all I know I could be next or you could! #FreeKoulchi pic.twitter.com/dQjLVbv4g5
— Hajar El Fatihi (@HajarElFatihi3) January 8, 2020
Morocco has a dire record of cracking down on freedom of expression, independent media and press freedom media.
Yasmina Abouzzouhour, an associate fellow at the Moroccan Institute for Policy Analysis (MIPA) writes:
The regime has displayed a pattern of repressing activists through judicial proceedings, sometimes under false pretexts. Indeed, famous activists perceived by the regime as dissidents- such as Radi, the journalist Hajar Raissouni, and the rapper Gnawi- are taken to court over unrelated issues, such as a supposed abortion in Raissouni’s case or a video that allegedly incited violence against the police in Gnawi’s case.
Moroccans continue to advocate for the release of all those imprisoned for expressing themselves, including activists, journalists, artists and protesters under the #FreeKoulchi [“Free everything’’] campaign.

author: Afef Abrougui


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The real reasons people are fleeing Honduras · Global Voices
Melissa Vida

A mother named Doris holds a portrait of her son, Wilfredo Moncada, a former leader of anti-government protests in 2018. Choluteca, Honduras, May 29, 2019. Photo credit: Martín Cálix for Contraccoriente. Used with permission.
According to the government of Guatemala, between January 15 and 16, 2020, more than 3,500 people crossed the border into that country on foot, in the eventual hope of building a new life in the United States or Mexico. The majority of them were from Honduras. According to reporting by international media such as NPR, Wall Street Journal, and Reuters, the people migrating across Central American are fleeing “poverty and violence”—but these terms barely scratch the surface of why people choose to hitchhike for thousands of miles and face an uncertain future at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Hondurans have been fleeing their country for years, but the term “caravan” was popularized worldwide in 2018, when more than 10,000 Central Americans traveled together to mutually support and protect each other on the road through Guatemala and Mexico.
More than living in “poverty and violence,” Hondurans are in fact engulfed in a narco-state whose leadership is supported by the United States. They suffer from widespread corruption, gender violence, gang control, land-grabs, and drought driven by climate change.
In 2020, even if the road ahead for migrants is more difficult than before for reasons outside the scope of this story, thousands have decided that their fate is likely to better outside of Honduras than inside.
The migrant caravan in Ayutla, Guatemala, January 17, 2019. Photo credit: Martín Cálix for Contraccoriente. Used with permission.
We know that corruption and drug-money are, well, bad.
Yet, when we think about what bad politicians do, we seldom imagine them to have been found guilty of funneling tons of cocaine to the United States. This is the charge on which Tony Hernández, former politician and brother of incumbent President Juan Orlando Hernández, was convicted last October.
Now President Hernández, who has been lauded by the U.S. Drugs and Enforcement Agency for his fight against drug-trafficking, is himself under scrutiny for his alleged role in the cocaine business.
During Tony Hernández's trial, witnesses asserted that the president tried to protect his brother from extradition and received millions of dollars worth of bribes to fund his party's political campaigns, according to reports from The New York Times and Reuters. President Hernández denies the allegations.
One might say that Hondurans freely elected such politicians and have therefore put their trust in the governance of Hernández, but this reasoning does not take into account that Hondurans did not want this government in the first place. Hondurans have protested—and have been killed by state forces during demonstrations—to demand a new vote after apparent fraudulent elections in December 2017, which put Hernández in power. At that time, the U.S. decided to support Hernández's election anyway.
In 2019, amidst heavy suspicions about their president's involvement in drug money, Hondurans asked their president to leave, again. Police released tear gas in response.
A Honduran police agent launches teargas at protesters who demanded President Hernández to resign after his brother and former politician, Tony Hernández, was found guilty of drug-trafficking in court. Tegucigalpa, Honduras, October 24, 2019. Photo credit: Martín Cálix for Contraccoriente. Used with permission.
The next option for Honduras would then have been to count on anti-corruption systems to prosecute high-level criminals, right? Well, on the same days in January 2020 that thousands of Hondurans trekked north, President Hernández and lawmakers scrapped that thread of hope.
The Honduran authorities decided to end the mandate of its internationally-backed anti-corruption body, the Mission to Support the Fight against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (MACCIH). According to Insight Crime, MACCIH had spearheaded high profile corruption cases, and “MACCIH’s dissolution does not bode well for the fight against corruption in a region beset by graft.”
Widespread corruption, on top of being illegal and immoral, undermines society.
For example, when “the corrupt steal 49 lempiras [US$1.99 approx.] out of every 100 lempiras [US$4.06 approx.] from the Ministry of Health,” as the National Anticorruption Council has reported, it leads the Honduran healthcare system to near collapse.
Last year, Honduras experienced its worst dengue epidemic in 50 years. More than 400 people died, according to The New York Times, which also reported that the health crisis is compounded by the effects of climate change and government dysfunction.
A child with dengue fever at the University School Hospital of Tegucigalpa. At the time the photo was taken, the room was overwhelmed with patients. Tegucigalpa, Honduras, July 24, 2019. Photo credit: Martín Cálix for Contraccoriente. Used with permission.
The future of the country is also at risk, as the education system is ineffective. The day the migrant caravan left San Pedro Sula, Honduran media published another symbolic statistic about the country's condition—one million Honduran children are out of school. They are either too poor or believe school is unnecessary because they would not find a job by the end of it, anyway.
Last year, the Honduran National Congress passed reforms to healthcare and education, a move Hondurans saw as opening the door to more corruption and to privatization of these sectors. Hondurans took their grievances to the streets in May and June 2019, where they were met once again by tear gas and bullets. Lawmakers suspended the reforms.
X-ray of a university student's arm with a bullet splinter after the crackdown on June 24, 2019 in which the army and military police entered a university and shot students with tear gas and live ammunition. Tegucigalpa, Honduras, June 27, 2019. Photo credit: Martín Cálix for Contraccoriente. Used with permission.
On top of being oppressed by the forces of their own state, Hondurans must navigate the rules set by gangs. In many neighborhoods, gangs, often comprising impoverished youth who fall into criminality, are the de facto controllers, extorting and threatening locals. Death is a daily occurrence in a country where there were more than 42 homicides per 100,000 people in 2019. The way the Honduran government responds to gangs is, well, with more soldiers.
While gang violence is a real threat, gender violence permeates society as well. Honduras has the second-highest rate of femicides on the American continent, according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). Fifteen women were killed during the first two weeks of January alone.
Doña Blanca cuts onions and carrots, sitting in front of the display case that keeps meat warm in her dining room. Tegucigalpa, Honduras, March 1, 2019. Foto: Martín Cálix.
In rural areas, indigenous peoples and peasants put their lives on the line defending their homes against land grabs. The murder of the renowned indigenous leader and environmental activist, Berta Cáceres, who was killed by gunmen in her home in 2016, is well-known and has found partial justice.
The case of Cáceres was widely reported by the media—however, many other murders of environmental activists remain in the shadows.
In 2017 Global Witness called Honduras “the deadliest country in the world for environmental activism.” At the beginning of January 2020 indigenous leader Vicente Saavedra was found dead. Garifuna people, who also live under threat of expulsion from their ancestral lands by tourism or international business projects, defend their territories and face violence too.
These business-related threats do not take into account the growing effects of climate change, which force farmers to abandon their drying, dying, corn and bean crops.
And there's more—this story only scratches the surface of why Hondurans of all ages, genders, sexual orientations, and ethnicities find the dangerous migrant route more hopeful than staying in Honduras.
Hondurans flee more than “violence and poverty.” They flee a murderous, exploitative, racist, misogynist, and drug money-fueled system that does not change despite their efforts.

author: Melissa Vida


text:
This Nigerian human rights lawyer wins second order of restraint against government · Global Voices
Pamela Ephraim

Gloria M. Ballason is a human rights lawyer and host of the law radio show, “House of Justice,” based in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Photo screenshot via Bridgewater State University/IREX/DC.
Lawyer Gloria M. Ballason was granted an interim court order by Kaduna State High Court in Kaduna, Nigeria, on January 15, 2020, that prohibits the government from arresting her. This order came after Ballason filed a motion for her “fundamental rights,” — including freedom of expression and human dignity — under Order IV, Rule 4 of the constitution.
This interim order is the second of its kind issued against her arrest.
Photo of Gloria M. Ballason, human rights lawyer, courtesy of Gloria M. Ballason.
Ballason is a principal partner at Mive Legals in Kaduna State with a focus on human rights. She is also a columnist and chief executive officer of the “House of Justice,” a human rights call-in radio program, who has written articles critical of the Kaduna State government.
Ballason has experienced ongoing intimidation and harassment by Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai and his administration, amid a growing crackdown on freedom of expression and dissent in Nigeria.
Between November and December 2019, officers from the Nigerian police force in Kaduna State visited her office in Barnawa, Kaduna. According to her detailed Facebook post, she was harassed, threatened and intimidated since November 28, 2019, when the visits began:
Since 28 November, 2019, the police have laid siege on the office of House of Justice, in Barnawa, Kaduna, reportedly in search of me. House of Justice is a public interest advocacy and legal service centre in Kaduna, Nigeria. I lead its advocacy work. Over the past decade, I have established and practised Law from Kaduna. On that day, three hefty men, claiming to be from the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Kaduna reportedly showed up on Thursday, 28 November, 2019 and requested for me. My colleagues in chambers informed them that I had gone out.
Ballason wrote that according to the Kaduna State police command, they made visits to her office after they received a petition by Engr E.K Gaiya, a private citizen, that listed Ballason as a “notorious criminal.”
Gaiya originally sent the petition to the office of the executive governor of Kaduna State on October 20, 2019, cataloging 40 years of “criminal attacks on life and property,” and asked for investigations into 20 listed persons and organizations, including “Barr. Gloria,” listed Number 13.
Ballason denies any knowledge of Gaiya. Her lawyers obtained a copy of the petition that was also reviewed with Global Voices for verification.
Balllason told Global Voices via Whatsapp on January 20, 2020:
The petition was written to the governor’s office and copied to the [All Progressives Congress Party] APC ruling chairman and police. The petition was not addressed to the police. How do they act on an allegation they were merely copied into? The petition [cites complaints that I am] 40 years old and I am in my mid-30s. How spurious and laughable does it get. Yet I, my colleagues and family was subjected to incalculable psychological torture. I couldn’t work. I had to leave the state until I obtained the court interim order.
When Ballason’s lawyer made further inquiries into the petition and the reason for the visits, the police then delivered Ballason an interrogation request letter citing “criminal breach of trust and cheating” on December 18.
Ballason told Global Voices in the Whatsapp interview that this letter did not clarify who made the complaints or establish any facts. A photo of the letter obtained by Ballason's lawyers was viewed by Global Voices for verification.
Fearing for her safety and security, the ordeal prompted Ballason to file a motion ex parte against the inspector general of police, commissioner of police and government of Kaduna State, on January 7, 2020.
On January 15, 2020, Kaduna State High Court granted an interim order preventing Governor El-Rufai from arresting her.
In 2016, Ballason was first threatened with arrest and persecution by Governor El-Rufai, for a November 28 article titled, “Kaduna: When government kills,” that Ballason wrote for her weekly law column in Blueprint Newspaper (which has since been removed).
“Villages live in misery. Communities have become lands of despair as they are subdued by treachery and brutal violence,” wrote Ballason of the deteriorating security situation in Kaduna, as republished in Signal.
Ballason sued the governor for infringing on her fundamental human rights to express her opinion and won the case. Kaduna State High Court fined Governor El-Rufai 50,000 nairas ($138 United States dollars) for breaching the lawyer’s “right to life,” according to a Daily Post report in May 2017. The governor was also restrained from arresting, prosecuting and jailing the young lawyer for expressing her published opinion.
Since then, Ballason has represented several prominent clients whose rights were also violated by the governor — most notably media entrepreneur Audu Maikori.The Federal High Court in Abuja awarded Maikori 40 million nairas ($110,650 USD) as compensation for his unlawful arrest and detention between February and March 2017, according to a Punch newspaper statement in October 2017.
Many Nigerians speculate that Ballason’s most recent ordeal with law enforcement was triggered as a result of her position as lead counsel to Chidi Odinkalu, a prominent human rights activist, in ongoing suits against the government of Kaduna State.
Odinkalu accuses the Kaduna State government of “multiple violations of his fundamental rights under the 1999 constitution, including free speech, due process, fair hearing and human dignity,” according to The Guardian, Nigeria.
Journalist and author Ohimai Godwin Amaize linked Ballason’s harassment with her position as Chidi Odinkalu’s lead counsel:
The assault on #HumanRights in #Nigeria continues as @ChidiOdinkalu‘s lawyer Gloria Ballason accuses @PoliceNG of harassment. Gloria is lead counsel to Odinkalu in a suit against @elrufai and 4 others for alleged multiple violations of Odinkalu's rights https://t.co/cyTgpujwXH
— Ohimai Godwin Amaize (@MrFixNigeria) December 7, 2019
Edetaen Ojo, a digital rights and freedom of expression activist stated that “the basic tenets of democracy and rule of law are now under attack in Nigeria:”
The basic tenets of democracy and the rule of law are now under relentless attack in Nigeria and we are waking up to the rude realization that truly a leopard does not change its spots: “Chidi Odinkalu’s lawyer Gloria Ballason accuses police of harassment” https://t.co/ZaP5BbnwDj
— Edetaen Ojo (@EdetOjo) December 8, 2019
Jeff Nnaka voices similarities between Ballason's case and other lawyers:
These ugly scenarios've become a NORM w/ this apc regime!
Barrister Ifeanyi Ejiofor @MaziNnamdiKanu #IPOB Lawyer was attacked by Anambra police command & now Barrister Gloria Ballason is on the run from Kaduna police that surposed to be protecting her.
WHAT A LAWLESSNESS COUNTRY https://t.co/ZBZ5ECOhvV
— #WeAreAllBiafrans (@JeffNnaka) December 9, 2019
Amnesty International in Nigeria raised concerns over the increasing harassment and intimidation by the Nigerian police toward Ballason and urged the police command in Kaduna State to respect, protect and uphold human rights without discrimination:
Amnesty International is concerned that Nigeria Police is increasingly harassing and intimidating Gloria Ballason @GMabeiam – a lawyer based in #Kaduna. We urge Kaduna state command of the police to respect, protect and uphold human rights without discrimination.
— Amnesty Int. Nigeria (@AmnestyNigeria) January 15, 2020

author: Pamela Ephraim


text:
A sea of red: Celebrating the Chinese New Year · Global Voices
Filip Noubel

Making incense offering at Grand Matsu Temple (大天后宮) in Taian, Taiwan. Photo by Filip Noubel, used with permission.
The Chinese New Year is a holiday rooted in agricultural traditions that celebrate the end of the long winter months. The 2020 lunar new year begins at midnight on January 24 and will last for several days as people from all over the world mark the passage from the Year of the Pig to the Year of the Rat.
The date of the celebration changes every year because it is based on the lunisolar calendar and coincides with the occurrence of a new moon in the period ranging from late January to mid-February. This is also why it is described under different names and is celebrated in many East Asian cultures. One common term, mostly used in China, is Spring Festival (春节). The Vietnamese use the term Tết (which means feast and comes from the full name Tết Nguyên Đán or “Feast of the First Morning of the First Day”), while Tibetan culture refers to it as Losar (ལོ་གསར་, literally meaning “New Year”). The Lunar New Year is officially celebrated in Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and by members of the Sinophone diaspora around the world.
Lantern representing the character 春 or Spring as in Spring Festival, in Tainan, Taiwan. Photo by Filip Noubel, used with permission.
Both before and during the period of the Chinese New Year, the color red is prominent as decorations on doors, in houses, temples, shops, on wish cards, and on the clothes that people choose to wear.
Street market selling New Year decorations in Tainan in Taiwan. Photo by Filip Noubel, used with permission.
The celebration takes its origins from a legend featuring a mythical beast called the Nian that would attack villagers and eat them — until an old man, who happened to be wearing red, announced he would guard the village at night by setting off firecrackers, which scared the monster away. It has therefore become a tradition to wear and display red, as well as to use firecrackers to get rid of all the “negative forces” of the preceding year, thus meeting the new one in an auspicious way.
New Year clothes on display in Tainan in Taiwan. Photo by Filip Noubel, used with permission.
In the Chinese tradition, each year is represented by one of 12 totem animals. The 2020 New Year marks the passage from the Year of the Pig to the Year of the Rat, which is the first animal in the 12-year cycle.
The character used in Chinese is shu or 鼠 which, because it does not distinguish between mouse or rat, has resulted in many of this year's designs featuring cute mice, often clad in red.
Lantern featuring a red mouse in Tainan, Taiwan. Photo by Filip Noubel, used with permission.
The same zodiac — and its related symbols — is also widely used in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand.
Street decoration for photo portraits in Tainan, Taiwan. Photo by Filip Noubel, used with permission.
The centerpiece of the New Year’s Eve celebration is the family dinner which requires all family members, across generations, to gather in one home to eat together. The food served varies according to geography and local cuisine. In northern China, it is usually dumplings, called jiaozi, while in southern Chinese culture, it can include a glutinous New Year's cake called niangao. Here are some popular dishes that are traditional in northern cuisine:
Families also visit local temples in the hours before the start of the New Year to pray for prosperity, health, and success in projects or exams. The next two weeks also contain special days that are marked by specific rituals, often involving family visits.
Visit to a local temple just before midnight in Tainan, Taiwan. Photo by Filip Noubel, used with permission.
According to the Chinese zodiac, each animal symbolizes and describes what is to be expected as the year unfolds — and if we are to believe the Chinese horoscope, 2020 promises to be interesting: “As a highly perceptive animal that can sense its environment and know when to act, the rat is one of the Chinese zodiac’s most auspicious signs.”
One master of geomancy, who hails from Hong Kong, offers detailed predictions for each Zodiac sign: “It's about finding that law and flow of the universe. When you know how to calculate it, you can predict the trends for everything.”
Either way, 新年快樂! Happy New Year!

author: Filip Noubel


text:
Citizens from Chinese city on lockdown roar ‘Beijing has abandoned Wuhan!’ · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Photo from Twitter in which a woman holds a sign saying 中央政府放弃武汉了吗？meaning “Has the Chinese central government abandoned Wuhan?’ Photo used with permission from this tweet.
The city of Wuhan, located in central China, has been quarantined by the Chinese government on January 23, 2020 in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus (2019-nCoV). The new virus is believed to have originated in December 2019 in a Wuhan market. Now, over 11 million residents are in a state of shock and panic, given the lack of appropriate medical response and credible information.
According to the latest updates issued by Chinese authorities, there are now 2,034 confirmed cases of infection, and 56 deaths within mainland China, for the period of December 8, 2019, to January 26, 2020.
The majority of infected patients are either Wuhan residents or people who recently visited the city. However, the official figure may not reflect the entire reality as certain virus carriers do not display serious symptoms, and medical institutions do not have the capacity to treat infected or possibly infected patients.
There have been a number of estimations on the actual figure of infected people using an epidemic transmission model. An international medical team estimated that the number of infected residents of Wuhan could be more than 11,341 by January 21, while it could potentially reach 191,529 by February 4, 2020.
Currently, the deadly coronavirus has spread across China except for Tibet, as large numbers of migrant workers and students from Wuhan have traveled back to their home province since early January for the Lunar New Year family reunion on January 25.
In order to contain the spread of the epidemic, the central government decided to quarantine the city on January 23 — the airport, train stations and public transportation were all shut down. On the next day, 11 other cities in Hubei province were added to the quarantine zone.
Citizens in Wuhan are understandably in shock, as just a few days ago, the authorities had told them that the virus could be contained given that there was no indication of human-to-human transmission.
Wuhan based journalist Chu Chaoxin reconstructed the timeline since December 31, 2019, when the epidemic alert system was activated and found out that between January 5 and January 15, Wuhan health authorities had not announced any newly confirmed infection. The number of confirmed cases remained at 59. The period coincided with the annual government meeting known as Lianghui or Two Sessions of Wuhan city and Hubei province:
武汉市的两会期间无新增病例，死的一例公布时间恰好是武汉两会闭幕之后。湖北省的两会期间，也无新增病例，无死亡病例，只有治愈出院的。省里的两会闭幕当日，新增17例，但消息是18日公布的。
No newly confirmed cases during the Wuhan Two Sessions. The first death case was announced after the closing of Wuhan Two Sessions. No newly confirmed case, no death during Hubei Two Sessions. The notification only reported about cases released from hospitals. As the provincial Two Sessions came to an end on January 18, the health authority announced there were 17 newly confirmed cases.
Even more concerning is the fact that officials did not call off year-end celebration activities. On January 18, a residential community in Wuhan organized a year-end buffet for 40,000 families (about 130,000 individuals). On January 21, the Hubei’s year-end cultural performance at Wuhan Hongshan Hall was also attended by top officials of the province.
By January 23, there were 886 confirmed cases and 26 deaths across China, as Beijing suddenly announced Wuhan's shutdown. City residents panicked as they ran for food, daily necessities, medicines and masks — and some attempted to escape from quarantine. Many have criticized the sudden decision, as this citizen who left Wuhan before the shutdown and wrote:
我不知道政府是昏庸无能还是准备放弃这个省，我宁愿是前者。
因政府失职造成的封城及交通封锁，最起码政府得提供免费口罩，社区消毒，大折扣的食物补给，及医护人员上下班免费班车，病患免费就医通道……且应该在封城前就布属好。这些是一个政府承认过失的基本诚意。然而，什么都没有，只有冰冷的公文…
I don’t know if the government is just incapable of handling the situation or they have prepared to abandon the whole province. I hope for the former explanation. The government should be responsible for the shutdown and it should at least distribute free masks, ensure food supplies, sanitize the residential areas, transportation for the medical workers and channel for those who were sick to be hospitalized… they should have prepared for all these before the announcement. These are basic measures of an accountable government. However, there was nothing, just an official announcement.
As a result, all hospitals have been flooded with patients who have developed symptoms that could possibly indicate cases of coronavirus. The vast majority were asked to quarantine themselves at home, as there are not enough medical workers and supplies to accept more patients.
On social media, messages about people seeking help for hospital admission in Wuhan have continued to circulate. Yet many hospitals seem to lack enough protective gear to safeguard medical workers from the infection. Medical workers themselves are in despair: a video that shows a medical worker who had a nervous breakdown in a hospital in Wuhan has gone viral online in the past few days:
这段视频我想了好久，我希望我分享出来是增加大家对武汉医护人员的心疼和敬畏，而不是被粉红看到了去指责她们。
微信有很多信息，我不想都放出来，只要我们记住，一个政府的无能会导致无数的问题，如果我们漠视，有一天一定一定会到我们自己头上。
我诚心的向上祈祷，病毒早日消亡。 pic.twitter.com/EVMom8kTjT
— loh (@660loh) January 24, 2020
I share this video so that people can understand how the medical workers in Wuhan felt and would show more respect on their work. There are so many messages circulation on WeChat that I withhold myself from releasing. But I want to stress that if we ignored all the problems caused by an incapable government, one day we will all become victims.
Jennifer Zeng, an independent journalist, reposted an eye-witness account from Wuhan:
前南方週末記者：即便是我参加过17年前的SARS报道，16年前还一路从四川、广西最后到越南河内报道禽流感，依然被这次武汉的情况吓到。24日，武汉多所医院医护人员和协助人员严重不足，连病死者都没人运。
疫情规模，武汉方面医疗物资匮乏的程度，中国政府指挥调度的混乱程度，都远远超过了我的想象。
— 曾錚 Jennifer Zeng (@jenniferatntd) January 25, 2020
A former reporter from Southern Weekend: even though I had reported on the SARS epidemic 17 years ago and tracked the spread of the Avian Flu from Sichuan to Guangxi to Hanoi in Vietnam 16 years ago, I am terrified by the situation in Wuhan. On January 24, many hospitals in Wuhan faced were facing a serious shortage of medical workers and suppliers. No one took care of the dead bodies. The scale of the epidemic, the shortage of medical supplies and the chaotic response — all these are things I could have never imagined.
One of the main reasons for panic is the fact that certain netizens, either paid by the government or speaking out of their own belief, are patrolling social media platforms, accusing netizens who ask for help or express their frustrations of spreading rumors that create trouble. Some netizens also started to worry that the authorities could cut the internet in Wuhan as part of the lockdown, as this netizen:
求⚠
如果武汉断网了
要怎么样可以联系到外面
求方法！！！！
求求求求
大力求
— 小雀斑女友 冰糖花卷 (@bingtanghuajuan) January 25, 2020
Seeking help! If Wuhan has its internet access shut down, how can we reach out to the rest of the world? Please give me some suggestions. Please, I beg you!
On January 25, the first day of the Lunar New Year, Chinese President Xi Jinping finally broke his silence concerning the spread of the new coronavirus by admitting that the new virus is accelerating and that the country is in a grave situation.
On the same day, Beijing deployed 450 military medical staff members to Wuhan to assist with medical relief work. Authorities have also banned all private cars from running in the city starting January 26 and began the construction of two new hospitals in Wuhan within 10 days to provide space for an additional 2,300 patients.
However, as the virus has spread across the country, less developed, second-tier cities, in particular those in Hubei province, may face similar outbreaks, as this netizens warns:
请大家也多多关注武汉周边地区县市！湖北的其他地方情况也不容乐观！当全世界的目光聚焦于武汉的时候，不要让这些地方自生自灭！
请救救湖北的其他城市，我们不想变成切尔诺北利……https://t.co/BgMDAEQ2AV
— Zoey.X (@xyxxiexie) January 25, 2020
Please pay attention to the cities at the outskirts of Wuhan. The situation in other Hubei regions is not optimistic. Now the whole world is watching Wuhan, don’t forget are other cities, please save them…
the impact of the Wuhan coronavirus