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Thai journalist convicted over a 2017 Twitter post about a labor conflict · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Thai journalist Suchanee (Cloitre) Rungmueanpon. Screenshot from YouTube video
Thai journalist Suchanee (Cloitre) Rungmueanpon was sentenced to two years in prison for a 2017 Twitter post about a labor conflict involving a poultry company and migrant workers.
On December 24, 2019, the Lop Buri Provincial Court found Suchanee guilty of libel for tweeting in September 2017 that the Thammakaset poultry company was ordered to compensate workers “for using slave labor”. Suchanee was at the time a reporter for Voice TV.
Thammakaset was accused of maltreatment by 14 of its migrant workers. The workers, who were mostly from Myanmar, filed cases in several government agencies alleging that they were forced to work overtime without pay, received less than the minimum wage, had their movements restricted, and their passports confiscated.
After investigating the matter, Thailand's Department of Labor Protection and Welfare ordered the company to compensate the workers.
Suchanee retweeted a Twitter post by the Migrant Workers Rights Network about the issue. But Thammakaset accused the journalist of defaming the company by using the term “slave labor” in her Twitter comment.
Additionally, Thammakaset charged its former workers and even human rights defenders advocating for the issue with defamation.
In February 2019, several civil society organizations signed a letter urging Thai authorities to reject the cases filed by the poultry company:
The complaints by Thammakaset appear to be reprisals brought to harass human rights defenders involved in exposing abuses. Such reprisals interfere with the work of human rights defenders and prevent the implementation of labor rights protections.
Suchanee is currently free on bail. She plans to appeal her conviction.
Dear All
Thank you very much for your support. I got no choice but need to be strong. At least for my baby boy.
Suchanee Cloitre
— Suchanee Rungmueanpon (@suchaneeR) December 26, 2019
She also bemoaned the state of free speech in Thailand during a media interview:
There is a high level of self-censorship in Thailand…When you forbid freedom of expression… you forbid an open society.
Suchanee’s conviction was condemned by media and human rights advocates. The Committee to Protect Journalists criticized the court decision:
Journalists should never be jailed for their critical commentary on issues of public import. It’s high time Thailand repealed its draconian and abusive criminal defamation law.
This is an outrageous sentence in a case that should never have even been entertained by the court. A complete farce. But one that will likely have a chilling effect on #Thai journalistic freedom #SLAPP #Thammakaset #HRDs https://t.co/91wBIt2Fiz
— Patrick Phongsathorn (@patrickphongsa) December 24, 2019
Cartoon by Stephff on the use of defamation law against journalists pic.twitter.com/xB0qJaxmtj
— Prachatai English (@prachatai_en) December 27, 2019
Watch this short video to hear some of the testimonies of workers who filed the labor violation complaint against Thammakaset:

author: Mong Palatino


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Why is Donald Trump so popular in Nigeria? · Global Voices
Nwachukwu Egbunike

President Donald Trump returns to the White House in Washington on August 19, 2018. Image by Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times, CC BY 2.0.
United States President Donald Trump has received low ratings across the world for his handling of international affairs — but not in some African countries like Nigeria.
According to a recent survey by the Pew Research Centre most Nigerians “have confidence” that Trump “will do the right thing in world affairs.”
The Pew survey results were gathered from telephone and face-to-face interviews conducted under the direction of Gallup — a Washington, DC, based analytics and advisory company.
An October 2019 Tweepsmap analysis of on Trump’s total followers on Twitter shows that Nigerians ranked in the top five across the world:
Except we want to live in denial, Trump is hugely popular in Nigeria. Note, I am not his fan but truth be told, he has a huge fan base here.
— Omadi (@iamtenseven) January 10, 2020
However, this does not explain why Trump is adored by some Nigerians.
Nigerian writer Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani explained to The World, a public radio show co-produced by the BBC, that Trump's “tough guy image” strikes a chord in Africa's most populous country:
People admire his tough guy image and his bluntness is entertaining. He's weird to Americans. He's strange. He's different from what you've had. But we're used to leaders who speak without restraint, who are verbally abusive when they please. And so, he's not as outlandish to us as he may appear to an American.
The other reason is religion. Nigerian Christians love Trump.
Cheta Nwanze, Head of Research at SBM Intelligence told Global Voices:
I'd like to see exactly WHERE in Nigeria this survey was conducted. I'm willing to bet that it was largely in southern Nigeria, which explains the love of Trump. A lot of his base are evangelical Christians, from whom many Nigerians draw their inspiration.
Nigeria, with an estimated population of 200 million people, has two major religions: Christianity and Islam. Muslims and Christians make up 50 percent and 48 percent of the Nigerian population respectively.
The methodology of the recent poll states that the study was conducted in Nigerian “local government areas stratified by geopolitical region.” However, Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe states in northwestern Nigeria were excluded from the study due to security concerns.
Nigeria has 774 local government areas, the grassroots arm of executive governance structure in the country. There are also six geopolitical regions: North Central, Northwest, Northeast, South-south, Southeast, and Southwest.
Nwanze's position that Christians in southern Nigeria must have formed the core of the sample size for the Pew Research results are not unfounded. The survey also showed that Nigerian Christians also “have a more favorable opinion of the US (69 percent) than do Muslims (54 percent).”
After the killing of top Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, by the United States, Nigeria's police chief issued a national security alert to forestall any disturbances by “domestic interests.”
The Islamic movement in Nigeria described the US airstrike that killed Soleimani as a “declaration of war on Iran.”
Trump has been described as “one of the most controversial world leaders in modern times.”
Yet, he is clearly adored by many in Nigeria.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Nwachukwu Egbunike


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In Modi’s India, anti-Bangladeshi-immigrant rhetoric is used to justify changes in citizenship laws · Global Voices
Rezwan

Women locked up in Assam in a detention center for illegal immigrants. Screenshot from YouTube Video by Md. Sajid/CJP.
In December 2019, India amended it's Citizenship Act 1955 allowing Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian refugees and immigrants from neighbouring Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan to be eligible for requesting Indian citizenship. This act has drawn criticism from civil society organizations and the opposition for unfairly excluding Muslims from the list. It has also put the relationship between India and Bangladesh, two neighbouring countries on stress.
The exercise of updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC), a government register containing the names and relevant information for the identification of all Indian citizens, which has been piloted in the Indian State of Assam in the Northeast of the country, has left 1.9 million Indians, including 1.3 million Hindus, facing the possibility of becoming stateless. The state has a large Bengali population, who are also predominantly Muslim and are commonly labelled as Bangladeshi migrants.
Many top ruling party leaders, including Home Minister Amit Shah, have proposed that the NRC should be implemented across India. As the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) provides recourse to people of other religions, Muslims fear that they will end up in detention centres  being built in Assam and other states.
The debate on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) has divided opinions in India and hundreds of thousands of people have started protests across the country against both laws. So far at least 27 people have been killed and many injured, while a few thousands have been arrested.
Six detention camps for illegal immigrants are being built in Assam. Screenshot from YouTube Video by Md. Sajid/CJP.
After the 1947 partition of India on the basis of religion that affected nearly 15 million Hindus and Muslims, a mass migration took place as Bengali Hindus from Bangladesh moved to neighbouring Indian states, such as West Bengal and Assam, while Muslims from those places in India migrated to Bangladesh. Even though there is no accurate information available, the Indian government estimates suggest that around 2.6 million migrants left what was then called East Pakistan (and is now Bangladesh) for India, and 0.7 million migrants came to East Pakistan from India.
A second major wave of migration took place during the Bangladesh liberation war with West Pakistan in 1971, when an estimated 10 million people fled Bangladesh, and took refuge in India, particularly in the Indian states of West Bengal and Assam. Most of these refugees went back to Bangladesh after it was liberated on 16 December 1971, but common estimates suggest about 1.5 million people stayed back in India in different states. These people (Muslims and Hindus) have gradually become assimilated in Indian society, and many of them have obtained papers such as ration cards, voter IDs, and have given birth to children on Indian soil.
The Census of India 2001 Report on migration shows that about 6 million persons who live in India were born in other Asian countries, out of which 3.7 million were originally from Bangladesh. The 2011 India Census data, released in 2019 under Modi's government, shows that the total number of Bangladeshi immigrants fell from 3.7 million in 2001 to 2.7 million based on birthplace data. The overall number of immigrants also fell from 6 million to 4 million.
India is not being overrun by immigrants; an excellent, fact-filled piece by a leading scholar of the subject: https://t.co/5u550TXtAc
— Ramachandra Guha (@Ram_Guha) July 29, 2019
If the trend continues, the numbers will shrink, as the result of assimilation and naturalization. According to the Indian citizenship laws there are a number of avenues to get Indian citizenship for migrants, including by birth (if born before 1st July 1987 – irrespective of the nationality of one's parents), by descent and by naturalisation (if a legal resident in India for 12 years).
Widespread stereotyping and hate speech about Bangladeshi immigrants take place regularly across India, an issue that has been widely politicized and instrumentalized.
Chinmay Tumbe at LiveMint writes about the political rhetorics about illegal Bangladeshis:
[..] The anti-illegal-Bangladeshi-immigrant chorus has gripped India, with a figure of “20 million” making the rounds for more than a decade. It was a number stated by the government in the Rajya Sabha in 2016 in response to a question. It is a number circulating on social media. It is also a number without a methodology.
A Bengali blog from West Bengal in India – Panchforon writes on the NRC that the Indian government also proposes to implement in the state of West Bengal:
পশ্চিমবাংলায় কি সত্যিই দু'কোটি বাংলাদেশি অনুপ্রবেশকারী আছেন? না, এটা বিজেপি-র ছড়ানো গুজব।
Are there really 20 million illegal Bangladeshis in West Bengal? No, it's a rumour spread by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
During the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, migration from Bangladesh to India took place mostly for economic reasons linked to natural disasters, such as the 1974 famine, or the floods of 1988 which drowned almost 60 per cent of total land area in Bangladesh, damaging the livelihoods of millions and rendering thousands homeless. Thousands of people are believed to have then migrated to India through the unsecured porous borders. But they came back whenever floods receded so that they could go back to their ancestral homes and access agricultural lands.
There were a number of notable persecutions of Hindus in Bangladesh during the 1990s mainly by the Islamists and nationalists, which resulted in the migration of hundreds of Hindu families to India. However, in the last decade, incidents against the Hindus have gone down and the government has vowed to protect minorities, including Hindus who constitute more than 10 per cent of the population.
India has long tried to prevent illegal migrations from Bangladesh. In the 1990s it made several moves, such as operation pushback to identify and deport Bangladeshis without documentation living in different Indian states.
Indian Border Security Force And barbed Wire. Image by Sanjeev Syal. Copyright Demotix
India has a 4,096 km-long border with Bangladesh and has been spending US$ 155 million since 2009 to erect high barbed-wire fences – 68 per cent of it has been completed in 2019. The Indian Border Security Force (BSF) had been known for its shoot on site policy for Bangladeshis trying to enter India illegally. More than a thousand people have died in the past two decades due to BSF shootings.
In the past three decades, Bangladeshis are increasingly migrating to the Middle East, Malaysia, the Maldives and Europe for work or other reasons. And Bangladesh's transformation in development indicators and progress towards a middle-income country has reduced the need to move to India as pointed out by Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan in an interview:
Why will people from Bangladesh illegally migrate to India? All I can say is that before the Liberation War some Hindus migrated to India but no Muslims went to India illegally after 1971. Bangladesh is not a poor country that people will migrate illegally to India. Our economic growth was 8.15 per cent in fiscal 2018-19. Our current Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth is 8.13 per cent and our per capita income stood at 2000 US$. You tell me, why someone from Bangladesh would illegally go to India when the living standard in Bangladesh is better?
According to independent journalist Ranjit Bhushan, the question of `deporting’ illegal Bangladeshi citizens from India exists mainly in theory, as there is no existing extradition treaty between both countries.
The Bangladeshi government, through its Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen, has stated that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) are India’s internal matters, while seeking assurance from India that it won’t send people across the border arbitrarily, according to reports. However, Bangladesh said that it will take back any Bangladeshi citizen staying in India illegally given there is proof of their citizenship.
Mr. Momen has also noted that trends have reversed, as some Indian nationals are entering Bangladesh illegally for economic reasons. Bangladesh is already hosting more than 1.3 million Rohingya refugees.
Analysts predict that despite official statements, people may leave India in the face of fear of the NRC implementation and try to enter Bangladesh. A new influx of refugees would create more problems for Bangladesh.
Read our special coverage: Who is paying the cost of India’s declining democracy? for more details on the protests against the citizenship laws in India.

author: Rezwan


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Victory for labor rights in Cambodia as largest casino workers’ strike ends in peace · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Protest in front of Naga hotel. Photo from Cambodian Center for Human Rights, used under CC license.
Cambodia registered an unusual victory for labor rights when on January 11, a two-day strike by workers of the country's largest casino company NagaWorld ended peacefully and possibly successfully following the management's decision to raise wages and reinstate the union’s leader.
NagaWorld, owned by Hong Kong company NagaCorp, operates the biggest casino center in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh. Chinese-owned casinos have boomed in recent years targeting tourists from mainland China, where gambling is officially illegal. This economic development reflects the increasing number of Chinese investments in the country, and the pro-China policy of the current Cambodian government, led by Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has been in power for more than three decades already.
Workers initially demanded a wage increase in September 2019. The management’s response was to suspend Chhim Sithar, the president of the union.
In December, the union voted to hold a strike within one month, and sent notices to the company's management, the police, and the city government.
Despite the legal precautions taken by the union, a Phnom Penh court issued a ruling on 8 January 2020 declaring the planned strike illegal. Reacting to this court order, 23 civil society organizations then signed a statement urging authorities to respect labor rights.
Ignoring the ban, on 9 January, more than 1,000 NagaWorld workers proceeded with their original plan to hold a protest outside the hotel. Several non-union members also walked out of the building to support the striking workers who were demanding adequate wages, better working conditions and a reinstatement of their union's president. Some signs displayed at the protest read: “Stop Exploitation at Nagaworld”, “Stop Discrimination Against Unions” and “Demanding living wages is a right not a crime”.
Naga world casino staff protested this morning to demand the company to allow one of their representative to resumes her work pic.twitter.com/qxEQPMyaAv
— Mech Dara (@MechDara1) January 9, 2020
Chefs and pit bosses walking out to join striking workers at NagaWorld. Their show of solidarity got a standing ovation from workers, who are continuing to call for reinstatement of suspended union leader Chhim Sithar https://t.co/6WQY9QG621
— Brendan O'Byrne (@BrendanOByrne) January 10, 2020
Strike outside #nagaworld today… Lots of peaceful staff on one side, and a line of rent-a-cops in new uniforms on the other #cambodia pic.twitter.com/asCmCpzAZW
— Pete Ford (@PeteAFord) January 9, 2020
On 10 January, representatives of the NagaWorld management were eventually joined by government officials and entered negotiations with the striking workers. During the dialogue, the management reportedly agreed to raise wages and to reinstate Chhim Sithar. The strike was subsequently concluded and the employees returned to work on 11 January.
The media quoted union officers who claimed that the management agreed to raise workers’ salaries by 18 to 30 percent. According to the same source, workers were getting paid between 150 to 250 US dollars a month before the strike. Minimum wages in Cambodia vary between 130 to 150 US dollars.
The news of the success of the strike have been celebrated by labor advocates, since it is rare that a major labor protest would be peacefully settled in Cambodia. For example, a 2014 strike by garment workers was violently dispersed by the police.
But apparently, the company has not said its last word: in a statement issued by NagaWorld on 10 January, while it assured its shareholders that “all business operations of the Group remain normal and the Board expects that the above matter [the strike] has had no negative impact on the business operations of the Group.”, it also described the strike as an “illegal gathering” of 500 to 700 employees and failed to mention any agreement on wage hike proposal.
At this point, it thus remains uncertain whether workers could still face sanctions for breaching the court order that declared the protest illegal.
Strike of Naga hotel and casino workers. Photo from Cambodian Center for Human Rights


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Zanzibar mourns the death of Omani sultan who strengthened historical ties with East Africa · Global Voices
Amanda Lichtenstein

Sultan of Oman Qaboos bin Said Al Said in Muscat, Oman, May 21, 2013. United States State Department photo via public domain.
Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman, the world's longest-ruling king who reigned for 50 years, died on January 10, 2020, at the age of 79. His death was announced by the Royal Court of Oman on January 11, with the following message:
“To the people of the beloved homeland in all its districts, to the Arab and Islamic nations and to the world at large. It is with hearts filled with faith in Allah and his Providence, and with great sorrow and deep sadness— yet with complete satisfaction and absolute submission to the will of the Almighty Allah, that the Diwan of Royal Court mourns His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, who passed away on Friday, the 14th of Jumada Al-Ula, the 10th of January 2020.”
Oman named Sultan Qaboos’ cousin, Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, as his successor within hours of his death and declared an official three-day period of mourning, with the flag at half-mast for 40 days.
When the news broke, netizens from Zanzibar and the wider East African community poured out condolences for the leader known in some circles as a “quiet diplomat” who modernized Oman and restored and strengthened historical ties with East Africa.
The sultans of Oman ruled over a substantial part of the Swahili Coast along the Indian Ocean from 1689-1856, controlling elaborate trade routes in East Africa, including those for slave labor and cloves. In the mid-1800s, they moved their seat of power from Muscat, Oman, to Stone Town, Zanzibar, and ruled as a constitutional monarchy.
In December 1963, Zanzibar had a brief moment of independence when the British, who had shared power with the sultans as a protectorate (1890-1963), left the islands as a constitutional monarchy under Omani rule. On January 12, 1964, a violent revolution in Zanzibar overthrew the sultanate, ending over two centuries of power in the region.
Zanzibar merged with mainland Tanganyika as the United Republic of Tanzania, led by the first president of Tanzania, Julius Nyerere, and a union government soon formed between mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar, that remains fiercely contested today.
The ousting of Omanis from the islands of Zanzibar in 1964 left a hole in the hearts of many Zanzibaris who have strong familial and historical ties to Oman. To this day, many East Africans share a special connection with Oman, and many Omanis speak fluent Swahili, a Bantu-Arabic language forged through centuries of trade and connection along the Swahili Coast.
Politician Zitto Kabwe, from mainland Tanzania, was one of the first online to share his condolences and recognize Sultan Qaboos’ significance in the region:
My heartfelt condolences to the people of Oman on the death of Sultan Qaboos Bin Said. During his reign Sultan Qaboos strengthened historical relationship between East Africa and Oman, something we hope the new leadership will continue with. Inna Lillah waina ilaih raajiun
— Zitto Kabwe Ruyagwa (@zittokabwe) January 11, 2020
Kenya's cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Monica Juma, also shared her condolences on Twitter. She described the kingdom of Oman as “sisterly,” and described Sultan Qaboos, in particular, as an “inspirational, iconic leader”:
1/2..I convey sincere condolences to my brother and Minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah & through him the people of the sisterly Kingdom of Oman during this trying period of mourning the passing of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos. His Majesty was an inspirational, iconic leader and..
— Amb. Monica Juma (@Diplomacy_Kenya) January 11, 2020
2/2..an influential peacemaker and statesman that dedicated his life towards serving with distinction in pursuit of peace. May the Almighty God rest his soul in eternal peace and provide the people of the Sultanate of Oman the fortitude to bear this loss.
— Amb. Monica Juma (@Diplomacy_Kenya) January 11, 2020
Kenyan researcher and analyst Rashid Abdi also recognized Sultan Qaboos’ statesmanship and Kenyans’ historical ties to Oman:
Kenya mourns death of Sultan Qaboos – one Gulf leader to whom all came for counsel. He kept Oman out of trouble, inoculated his people against violence, extremism that blighted neighbours.
Oman has long history with East Africa. Many in Kenya's Coast trace their family to Oman. https://t.co/rWLgBU1AJR
— Rashid Abdi (@RAbdiCG) January 11, 2020
Just a few weeks before Sultan Qaboos died, residents of Stone Town, Zanzibar, gathered at Jaws Corner, a famous meeting place for coffee and politics, to pray for Sultan Qaboos’ health after news circulated that he was ill.
Journalist Ally Saleh from Zanzibar posted an image of the prayer gathering:
Uhusiano baina ya Oman na Zanzibar ni wa kidugu na historia. Barazani Jaws Corner, Jimbo la Malindi kumuombea dua Mfalme Qaboos
…
Relation between Zanzibar and Oman is historical and family ties. At Jaws Corner, Malindi Constituency praying for good health for Sultan Qaboos pic.twitter.com/BgkwvhdYUW
— HAKIKISHA UNAPATA ZAN=ID YAKO (@allysalehznz) December 26, 2019
After the revolution, Oman remained relatively distanced from Zanzibar, which was closed off to the world under the new, socialist government. In the mid-1980s, as Zanzibar and mainland Tanzania slowly began to open their doors to tourism and trade under subsequent administrations, Oman also continued to modernize under Sultan Qaboos.
For many years, the Omani kingdom has quietly restored these historical ties and bonds with Zanzibar and East Africa, through various charitable initiatives as well as policies geared toward development and transformation:
#NipasheHabri Serikali ya Mapinduzi Zanzibar imeeleza kufurahishwa na juhudi za kiongozi Mkuu wa Oman, Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, katika kukuza maendeleo ya Zanzibar na kuendeleza udugu wa watu wa nchi mbili hizo.https://t.co/GBq1mnPFO0 pic.twitter.com/KMT1zUnKML
— Nipashe Tanzania (@Nipashetz) November 23, 2019
The Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar has expressed gratitude for the efforts of Oman's leader, Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, in promoting Zanzibar's development and promoting the brotherhood of the two countries.
Omani historian Mohammad al Rahbi, who documents the historical ties between East Africa and Oman, posted this photo of the first president of Tanzania, Julius Nyerere, now deceased, on his first trip to Oman in 1985, during which he met with Sultan Qaboos:
Ziara ya kwanza ya Marehemu Mwalimu Julius Nyerere ya Oman ilikuwa mwaka 1985, na pia alikutana na Sultan Qaboos bin Said. #Oman #Tanzania #Zanzibar pic.twitter.com/gwZAQi153t
— محمد الرحبي Mohammed Al Rahbi I (@MohammedAlRahbi) December 12, 2019
The first trip of the late Teacher Julius Nyerere to Oman was in the year 1985, and also he met with Sultan Qaboos bin Said. #Oman #Tanzania #Zanzibar
In 2011, Oman Air pleased Zanzibaris when it announced that it would restore direct flight routes from Oman to Zanzibar, promising that it would “build stronger business, cultural and touristic ties between the two countries,” according to an Oman Air press release.
In 2017, Sultan Qaboos sent a delegation by ship to East Africa to strengthen cooperation along the Swahili Coast. In Zanzibar, the delegation focused on strengthening tourism, manufacturing, education, investment, and oil and gas, according to a Zanzibar statehouse press statement.
Politician Ismail Jussa, from Zanzibar, posted an image of the grand mosque built by Sultan Qaboos, presented as a gift to the people of Zanzibar, in 2018:
Jami'a Zinjibar, the grand mosque of Zanzibar built by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman and presented as a gift to the people of Zanzibar. pic.twitter.com/df6XQOjQOj
— Ismail Jussa (@IsmailJussa) September 11, 2018
Sultan Qaboos also agreed to invest $5,931,770 Omani rial [approximately $15,405,221 United States dollars] to restore Zanzibar's decrepit Beit el-Ajaib, or “House of Wonders” to its former glory as a cultural heritage site, according to the Oman Observer. This grand architectural gem from 1883 — overlooking the Indian Ocean — is where Sultan Qaboos’ forefathers once governed from Stone Town.

author: Amanda Lichtenstein


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Smoke from Australia’s fires reached South America · Global Voices
Melissa Vida

Storm clouds. Photo from Piqsels.com. CC0 public domain.
Chileans have been surprised by cloudy days in the middle of January — uncommon weather for the country's summer season. The anomaly was caused by the smoke coming from Australia's “monster fires,” which reached South America last week, the BBC reports. Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil have been affected.
In Australia, nearly 6,000 km² of land has been burnt after seasonal bushfires were intensified by climate change. The fire claimed the lives of 27 people and, according to one estimate, more than a billion animals. Once the smoke of the flames reached the lower stratosphere, it managed to travel 12,000 kilometers all the way to Chile, unperturbed. The smog that reached South America is not hazardous for the population's health, unlike in Australia.
Images of Chile's meteorological center shared images showing the smoke path across the Pacific Ocean:
En la imagen (RGB Color Verdadero del GOES-16) se aprecia el humo (color café tenue) proveniente de los incendios forestales de Australia. El humo ha sido transportado por el flujo de aire hasta Chile y Argentina #humo #incendiosforestales #AustralianBushfire pic.twitter.com/hutnrX6hWP
— MeteoChile (@meteochile_dmc) January 6, 2020
The image (RGB True Color of the GOES-16) shows the smoke (light brown) from the Australian wildfires. The smoke has been transported by airflow until Chile and Argentina.
According to Chilean newspaper La Tercera, the sky of the capital Santiago was covered by a cloud that caused a slight drop in temperatures.
This is how the sky looked like in Valizas, Uruguay. Journalist Alberto Siva shared this photo and explained that the smoke altered the color of the sunset, as confirmed by the Uruguayan Institute of Meteorology (INUMET).
Un mundo totalmente #globalizado…
El #INUMET confirma que el especial color del sol en su puesta, es debido al humo de los #ncendios en #Australia.
Lo mismo que ocurrió en Chile y Argentina llegó a Uruguay y quedó plasmado en esta foto en #Valizas sobre el monte del arroyo…. pic.twitter.com/DEAuRRWchf
— Alberto Silva (@albertosilvauy) January 9, 2020
A totally #globalized world…
The #INUMET confirms that the special color of the sunset is due to the smoke from the #fires in #Australia.
What happened in Chile and Argentina arrived to Uruguay and was captured in this photo in #Valizas above the creek bed…
And this is how it looked like from Buenos Aires and Patagonia at sunset:
Atardecer patagonico!!!! pic.twitter.com/xbXzy2EGYe
— jorge alvarez (@jorgedalvarez36) January 7, 2020
Patagonic sunset!
People have also shared their thoughts on this phenomenon. Ramiro Diez tweeted on how ecological issues around the world are interconnected:
Una delicada nube de humo cubre parte de Chile y Argentina. Proviene de los incendios de Australia. En ecología nada le pasa “al otro.” En ecología todo nos pasa a todos. En ecología no existen fronteras.
— RAMIRO DIEZ (@ramirodiez) January 9, 2020
A delicate cloud of smoke covers part of Chile and Argentina.  It comes from the fires in Australia. In ecology nothing happens to “the other.” In ecology everything happens to all of us. In ecology there are no borders.
Nano Stern, a Chilean musician, tweeted about his feeling of despair at how some people deny global warming:
? ? ? ?
Hasta Chile llega el humo
de los incendios de Australia…
Vivimos la represalia
del planeta y su consumo.
De pensarlo, yo me abrumo:
El mundo se esta quemando
y algunos siguen negando
que la tierra se calienta.
¿Será que esa gente mienta
hasta que se esté ahogando?
— Nano Stern (@nanostern) January 6, 2020
The smoke arrived in Chile
From the fires in Australia…
We are living the retaliation
of the planet and its consumption.
I'm overwhelmed by thinking about it:
The world is burning
and some continue to deny
that the earth is warming.
Could it be that these people are lying
until they drown?
Meanwhile, more than 30,000 people in Sidney, Australia, protested against their government handling of the fire crisis and urged for more climate action on Sunday, January 12, 2020.

author: Melissa Vida


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Supreme Court of India declares internet ban in Jammu and Kashmir unconstitutional · Global Voices
Anumeha Verma

The nature of Internet shutdown in India over the past 8 years. Chart via Internetshutdowns.in CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
On 10th of January, 2019, the Supreme Court of India, requested the Indian central government to review the suspension of internet services in Jammu and Kashmir. The ruling stated that the five-month long communication blockade imposed on the region by the Indian government is unlawful, and it gave the administration seven days to justify its continued use.
Since August 5 2019, after the abrogation of Article 370 of the Indian constitution that provided special autonomy status to Jammu and Kashmir, access to mobile, landline and internet networks have been suspended. The government cited protection of national security as a reason for the restrictions. In October 2019, certain services were partially restored, however, most of Kashmir has remained disconnected from the internet making it the longest network restriction in a country that likes to describe itself at the ‘world's largest democracy’.
5 Aug 2019 – 5 Jan 2010.
Today marks 5 months of internet blockade in Kashmir – perhaps the longest in the world.
We know about curfews, detentions etc – but is that all?
Here's a short thread about the lesser-known things that have happened in Kashmir over the last 5 months.
— Sameer Rashid Bhat (@sameeric) January 5, 2020
In November 2019, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court disposed of a petition seeking restoration of prepaid mobile phone connectivity and internet services in Kashmir on the ground that similar petitions were pending before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court of India, responding to the petition by Ms Anuradha Bhasin, the Executive Editor of Kashmir Times, gave the petitioners and the people of Jammu and Kashmir a glimmer of hope with this verdict. Ms Bhasin, in her argument, challenged that such blanket restrictions violate the fundamental right to freedom of expression, and that there is no proved connection between the availability of the internet and the rise of terrorism.
The ruling by the Apex Court is being seen as a welcome move, even though restrictions on fundamental rights in Jammu and Kashmir continues.
It Was The Spring of Hope, It Was the Winter of Despair’ : SC Rules on Kashmi #Kashmir #KashmirLockdown #SupremeCourt Verdict explained https://t.co/I9A6e59Tv8
— The Citizen (@TheCitizen_in) January 11, 2020
The blockout has affected the lives of millions of people in Jammu and Kashmir, depriving them of the basic right to access the internet, which many take for granted in today's digital age. This situation is also taking a huge toll on the economy.
No internet in the valley, Volunteers of @JKSTUDENTSASSO across the country step in to check board exam results online for Kashmiri students. That’s where we stand today. #KashmirLockdown pic.twitter.com/Ud9y4zEjVI
— Avani Rai (@avanirai) January 10, 2020
People in Kashmir are making gruelling daily journeys to find internet access as the region’s longest ever internet blackout continues. pic.twitter.com/jKLPlBmK5q
— SCMP News (@SCMPNews) January 9, 2020
The Apex Court of India has given the government a week’s time to review the internet ban. It also noted the imposition of Section 144 (unlawful assembly) of the Criminal Procedure Code which prevents movement in the Kashmir valley, and said the law can't be used over and over again for a long time and needs to be justified. The Court based its decision in the Indian Constitution, which grants citizens the right of freedom of speech and expression.
A three-judge bench, headed by Justice N V Ramana delivered the ruling saying:
We declare that the freedom of speech and expression and the freedom to practice any profession or carry on any trade, business or occupation over the medium of internet enjoys constitutional protection under Article 19(1)(a) and Article 19(1)(g).
SC [Supreme Court] linking internet to Article 19 (1) (g) of Constitution is crucial. It gives right to carry on any occupation, trade or business. This is critical for Kashmir because many businesses using internet , especially tourism, health, finance & other services have suffered big time.
— M K Venu (@mkvenu1) January 11, 2020
The bench further added:
Although the choice is seemingly challenging, we need to clear ourselves from the platitude of rhetoric and provide a meaningful answer so that every citizen has adequate security and sufficient liberty.
What the ruling entails?
The ruling clearly states that the right to freedom of speech and expression cannot be taken away without specifying reasons and duration for restrictions on this fundamental right.
So far, the restrictions have also included a ban on the internet in educational institutions and hospitals. Some hotels, businesses and government offices have had their internet restored since October 2019 under certain conditions. The January 10 ruling has given instructions to restore internet connections for all the essential services.
The government has been citing security concerns and a fear of loss of lives as the reason behind the continued ban on internet access. However, with the Supreme Court's new ruling making it mandatory for the government to publish orders that have been passed, newer petitions challenging the lock-down of Jammu and Kashmir will emerge.
The Internet Freedom Foundation (India) has said in a an statement on the verdict:
The judgement in Anuradha Bhasin v. Union of India provides a sound legal basis to challenge future communication shutdowns but it does little to address the harm already caused to Kashmiris in the last 158 days. The Court has rejected several extreme arguments made by the government regarding secrecy of orders and national security, and the principles and safeguards laid down, in this case, are the first steps in reforming the telecom suspension process in India. This judgement is a call to action in a lot of ways and it marks the beginning of a long uphill campaign. There needs to be disciplined and strategic follow up action to ensure it is implemented by the government in its true spirit in Kashmir and other states.
Check out Global Voices’ special coverage of the situation in Kashmir.

author: Anumeha Verma


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The Trinidadian that inspired Sam Mendes’ WWI epic, ‘1917’ · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Screenshot from the official trailer of the feature film 1917, directed by Sam Mendes.
Most films by British director Sam Mendes capture the imagination of movie buffs in Trinidad and Tobago, and his World War I epic, “1917,” is no different. Apart from the drama being an example of filmmaking at its finest — Mendes would not have copped those two Golden Globes for best director and best motion picture otherwise — local interest is further piqued by the fact that the director has Trinidadian roots (to the point where some local filmmakers have even signed a petition asking Mendes to shoot a film in the twin-island Caribbean nation).
In his acceptance speech, he thanked his late grandfather, the writer Alfred Mendes (fondly known to many as Alfie), for inspiring the story, which Mendes co-wrote. “He signed up for the first world war, age 17, and I hope he is looking down on us and I fervently hope it never ever happens again,” he said.
The film is based on Alfred Mendes’ role as a messenger during the war, when he served in the 1st Battalion Rifle Brigade, training as a signaller in France. He was thereafter sent to Belgium, along with the rest of his battalion, to win back the village of Poelcappelle, which had been seized by the Germans. The battle was devastating for the British, who suffered great losses — 158 of the nearly 500 men in their battalion were killed, badly wounded, or missing — poor weather conditions and well-organised German counterattacks had a disastrous effect on their effort.
Screenshot of a photograph of Alfred Mendes, taken from a review of his novel, Pitch Lake.
Afterward, the battalion leader asked for a runner to find the locations of the survivors and report back; Alfred volunteered. He wrote about the decision in his autobiography:
I had done a signalling course and although it bore little relationship to the job at hand, I felt myself under an obligation to the battalion.
Because a signaller's role included assisting the artillery and providing reconnaissance on targets, the job was dangerous and often solitary, though in one of the film's most riveting scenes, two characters (Blake and Schofield) run across no man's land, charged with the mission of getting a message to the troops that they are about to walk into an enemy trap. (Interestingly, there is an isolated beach called No Man's Land in Tobago, though the moniker may have less to do with the war and more to do with the fact that the area, bordered by private land, is only accessible by boat.)
In real life, Alfred determined the positions of the wounded, allowing them to be rescued, for which he was awarded the Military Medal of Bravery — an honour bestowed on members of the British Army and the Commonwealth for displaying courage in land battle.
Following his military service, Alfred Mendes returned to Trinidad and got a job in his family's business, working as a writer on the side and immersing himself in the world of academia, literature and politics.
Mendes became part of the Beacon Group — an anti-colonial, intellectual think tank of sorts — which included writer and activist C.L.R. James, social realist novelist Ralph de Boissière, and trade unionist Albert Gomes. Mendes was a regular contributor to The Beacon, the publication which emerged from this community.
Along with James, Alfred Mendes helped publish two issues of Trinidad, a literary magazine that he described as “depart[ing] from the convention in the selection of our material, in the choice of a strange way of life, in the use of a new dialect. And these departures are still with our Caribbean successors.”
That contribution is hugely important. Through such writing, Caribbean people began to realise and inhabit their own unique identity, their own voice — and to be proud of it. Independence from Great Britain would take another few decades (Trinidad, like many other regional territories, became independent in 1962), but the idea of that melting pot of Caribbean-ness saw some of its beginnings through the pioneering eyes of Alfred Mendes and his literary peers.
Alfred Mendes’ first novel, “Pitch Lake,” published in 1934, explored the issues of class and race in 1930s Trinidad, issues the country still grapples with today — albeit in different manifestations. ‘Black Fauns,” a novel which came out the following year and dealt with life in the country's barrack yards, also took a social realism slant and helped plot a way forward for West Indian literature; C.L.R. James’ acclaimed novel “Minty Alley,” which also revolved around a barrack yard, was published in 1936.
Despite his talent, Alfred Mendes would not work as a writer his entire life. After a longish stint in New York, during which he participated in the city's writing community, he returned to Trinidad with his third wife, Ellen (née Perachini), with whom he would have two sons — James (Sam Mendes’ father) and Stephen. Alfred Mendes worked in Trinidad's private sector and then in the civil service, eventually becoming the general manager of the country's port.
Trinidadians who either worked or socialised with Alfie remember him as bright, energetic and deeply involved in the affairs of his country. Realising the power of politics to create change, he became a founding member of the United Front, a socialist-leaning party that contested Trinidad and Tobago's 1946 general elections. Although they won the lion's share of the vote and secured three of nine parliamentary seats, they never again ran for office.
In 1972, Alfred Mendes was made an honorary doctor of letters by the University of the West Indies, for his contribution to the development of West Indian literature.
Mendes retired in Barbados; many of those years were spent writing his autobiography. Upon his death in 1991, his unfinished drafts were edited and eventually published.
To read more about Alfred Mendes and his fascinating life, check out “The Autobiography of Alfred H. Mendes 1897–1991.”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


text:
‘An interplay between Western and Eastern Cultures’: Two art exhibitions on cultural collisions · Global Voices
Omid Memarian

Negin Sharifzadeh, “Modern Girls, Ancient Rite,” 2019, mounted museum print (1 of 3) 30’’ x 18.17’’
Two women artists from Iran and Pakistan recently exhibited new bodies of work in New York, in which they portrayed the interplay between Western and Eastern cultures, evoking histories of iconography and the way women, in particular, are represented by others in canonical art history.
In an interview with Global Voices, the artists, Negin Sharifzadeh and Qinza Najm, stated that by using contemporary tools such as photography and animation they aimed to “question traditional narratives.”
In each case, the artists appropriated works from the Western canon, then inserted themselves in a tension of opposition and integration, subversion and homage, by claiming agency over their own bodies and the right to sit within positions of power inside art, history, and society.
Negin Sharifzadeh, a cross-disciplinary artist and storyteller based in Brooklyn, New York, received her BFA in sculpture from Tehran University in Iran in 2002, and her BFA in Performing Arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2010.
In her show “Appearance Stripped Bare,” Sharifzadeh interrogates the concept of the European Renaissance as an isolated phenomenon rather than a period in organic conversation with movements that had started earlier in the Middle East.
In Italian Renaissance paintings such as “Annunciation,” by Pierro Della Francesca and “Lamentation of Christ,” by Andrea Mantegna, Sharifzadeh appears sometimes as Mary, sometimes as Jesus, sometimes as herself simply observing.
Negin Sharifzadeh, “When Caravaggio meets Gentileschi”, 2019 Mounted Museum Print (1 of 3), 40’’ x 40’’
“I have placed myself into photographic recreations of iconic paintings from the Italian Renaissance, creating works that are simultaneously homage and subversion, with the aim of exploring the impact of the broader Mediterranean culture, art and ideas that helped spark and inform Europe’s rebirth,” Sharifzadeh said.
“Too often,” she added, “art historians have placed European arts in a position of privilege, exorcising and minimizing arts from the broader Mediterranean regions. Through this re-contextualization and reclamation, I aim to challenge the very idea of European and Middle Eastern otherness.” That re-contextualization and reclamation occur as Sharifzadeh places her own contemporary, Middle Eastern, female body within the imagery, iconography, and physical geography of the Italian Renaissance.
Her work is also a commentary on present-day cultural collisions.
“Negin’s point of view, influenced by her Iranian identity and her American life, is very remarkable as it is able to inspire a sense of dialogue and reconciliation, very precious in the current political turmoil,” said curator Giulio Verago, director of Via Farini Artists-in-Residence in Milan. “The use of irony, especially in a time of great depression and disillusion, celebrates the freedom of artistic expression. She takes into account the divergences in the representation of the female body between East and West—how, for instance, the influence of classical representation of female nudity gave shape somehow to the way we see women’s bodies and women’s desires and ambitions nowadays.”
Negin Sharifzadeh, “Anodyne (Triptych)”, 2019 Mounted Museum Print (1 of 3) 40’’ x 28.65’’
Sharifzadeh said that she has brought lots of questions to the forefront about the exchange of art and architecture between the Italian Renaissance and its broader Mediterranean Ottoman Empire. “Hopefully, these conversations will make my audience more curious about that specific era with the silver lining [being an awareness] that our interconnectedness through arts and culture has been a phenomenon throughout history.”
Pakistani-American Qinza Najm, born and raised in Lahore, pursued her studies in fine arts at Bath University in the UK and The Art Students League of New York. Originally trained as a psychologist, Najm uses performance, video, painting, and other mediums to create empathy and understanding between societies and cultures in order to address the deepest social traumas.
Drawing from a broad swath of art history, Najm uses a wide range of techniques to “break the frame.” For instance, her “stretched carpets” works take the Persian-style rug, ubiquitous across much of the Middle East, and emblazons the carpets with elongated female figures that explore the contradictions and cultural clash between contemporary life and the reactionary traditional world. One powerful work in the show, based on an earlier performance piece, was “Veil of Bullets,” which depicts Najm encased in a 40-pound veil made of a fishnet and 1,100-plus empty bullet casings representing both the honor killings in Pakistan during the previous year as well as the 1,100 children and adults killed during school shootings in the United States.
“Story of Rashida,” photo in a lightbox, 17×11 inch each, 2017-18, by Qinza Najm.
In another series, “The Story of Rashida,” Najm explicitly explores gendered violence and female subjectivity. She does this using photos of her own mother, cousins and friends holding quotidian household objects—from cheese graters to scissors—that have been used against women as tools of domestic violence in Pakistan, a country where honor killings are still a pervasive and sanctioned practice.
The exhibition’s title, “Still, I Rise,” refers to a poem by Maya Angelou that celebrates female empowerment in the context of slavery and black culture. Curator Tami Katz Freiman explained that “Najm chose words that promise redemption, thus endowing her personal story with a universal feminist context, while also attending to the themes of empathy, generosity, transformation and change.”
“Her fluid movement,” Freiman added, “between different disciplines is illustrated in this exhibition which features a selection from four bodies of work that resonate with one another.”
“I am interested in the body as both medium and subject—the circumstances surrounding its physical occupation of space, the norms and laws that govern bodies as political subjects, and the uneven burden these norms often place on women and minorities,” writes Najm in her statement for the exhibition, adding that, “drawing from my upbringing in Lahore, Pakistan, and adulthood in the United States, my sculptures, installations, and performances address gender politics, displacement and cultural power through lenses of geography and social identification.”
In her art Najm says she often uses “…motifs of bodies stretched, deconstructed, distorted, and pushed beyond their limits. A manipulated body is a reflection of how power is exerted on our being. However, I am more interested in the depiction of human potential—an extended body claims space beyond its expected role, both physically and figuratively. In particular, I aim to raise questions about how we might transcend and combat cultural stereotypes, prejudice, displacement and sexist norms.”
“Veil of Bullets,” 66×44 inch, Print on Aluminum, 2019, by Qinza Najm,
Najm told Global Voices that the theme of violence is universal, and possibly it can bring us together through the empathy and compassion that is currently missing in the international dialogue of the East and the West, dividing narratives and what media portrays, especially between the U.S. and Islamic countries.
“This exhibition and the conversation the came out of the exhibition is giving me material to take the dialogue of this exhibition further,” she emphasized. “I am excited to see what comes out of it and I like to surprise myself through taking more risk and experimentation.”
Both “Appearance Stripped Bare” and “Still, I Rise” evoked histories of iconography and the way women, in particular, are presented by others in canonical art history. The artists are reclaiming this representation as a site of power, using the contemporary tools of photography and animation to question those traditional narratives. Both shows powerfully interrogated the role of women across the boundaries between Western and Eastern cultures and, through their art, claimed an agency over their own bodies and their right to sit within positions of power inside art, history, and society.
The two exhibitions took place at the A.I.R. gallery in October 2019, Brooklyn, New York.

author: Omid Memarian


text:
Ukrainian workers battle controversial new labour code · Global Voices
Maxim Edwards

Trade unionists block a road in the Luhansk Region in protest against Ukraine's proposed new labour code, 14 January, 2019. Photo (c): Pervaya Polosa. Used with permission.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky tried to strike a note of unity and inclusivity in his New Year's speech, calling on citizens of all professions and backgrounds to ask themselves the question “Who am I?”
Zelensky may have started 2020 by asking the questions, but two weeks on, the Ukrainian government is on the back foot dealing with an outraged section of the population.
The government in Kyiv plans to introduce a new labour code in order to “simplify” employment practices. The initiative, which was drafted without prior consultation with trade unions, has left lawyers and workers deeply concerned. According to Labour Initiatives NGO, it includes provisions for employers to terminate contracts without good reason, reduces the premium for overtime pay, obliges employees to disclose any (vaguely defined) information which may impact the performance of their work, and significantly expands the scope of zero-hours contracts. Furthermore, it amends Ukraine's current law on trade unions, limiting the number of unions in an enterprise to two, increasing the minimum number of members required to start a trade union, and allowing directors to refuse to negotiate with unions who employ (vaguely defined) “managerial” staff.
Trade unionists are predictably up in arms. While they're urging parliamentarians to vote against the new labour code at the end of this month, today locals blocked roads in three towns in Luhansk region. An online flashmob has been launched with the hashtags #МолодьПРОТИрабства (youth against slavery) and #НіРабськимЗаконам (no to slave laws). The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) now declares that the Ukrainian government “has sided decisively with oligarchs and multinational enterprises against its own people.” As Sergey Movchan, a journalist and editor at the left-wing journal Political Critique wrote on Facebook, “the holidays are over, and the protests are beginning.”
Zelensky and his allies in the Servant of the People party were swept to power in landslide parliamentary and presidential elections last year, promising a complete overhaul of Ukraine's deeply unpopular political elite. But they are now discovering that their agenda for domestic reform attracts a more mixed response. A move to overturn a ban on the sale of agricultural land to foreigners has been particularly controversial.
Many observers of Ukrainian politics have seen these moves coming. Several influential members of Servant of the People, such as party ideologist Ruslan Stefanchuk, are known to have free-market libertarian leanings. Speaking about the party's ideological sympathies, one of the authors was told by party chairman Dmytro Razumkov before last year's parliamentary elections that Servant of the People isn't “[libertarian] when it comes to social guarantees to our fellow citizens, because at present there are many citizens who require the support of a social state.” Razumkov did not specify exactly which guarantees this meant, but a constriction of labour rights would be in keeping with other policy proposals. Last November, parliament passed a law constraining the labour rights of public servants in Ukraine, restricting their ability to use trade unions to fight for better conditions at work.
The new labour code was introduced by Minister of Economic Development Timofiy Milovanov and Halyna Tretyakova, a parliamentary deputy from Servant of the People. In comments to Focus.UA last September, Tretyakova said that the goal of the new labour code was to streamline the process of opening and closing businesses, thereby creating more new jobs. By her own admission, the law would clash with employees’ rights, but Prime Minister Oleksiy Goncharuk dismissed the existing labour code as a Soviet hangover, joking that “people don't want to hire a registered employee because it's almost like your relative. In Ukraine, it's often easier to divorce than to dismiss an employee.”
Milovanov argued that Ukraine's trade unions did little to defend workers, and were in dire need of reform themselves:
Профспілки є різні. Є профспілки, які борються за права робітників. А є такі, хто насправді працюють на керівництво підприємств. Особливо олігархічних. Щось я не бачу протестів профспілок проти умов та оплати праці на заводах олігархів. А ще є такі, які взагалі нічого не роблять, і просто отримують (обов’язковий) відсоток з зарплати робітників. Ситуація з профспілками має бути змінена. Справжні, ефективні профспілки мають отримати доступ до ресурсів. А ті, хто паразитують на робітниках, мають бути зупинені.
Trade unions are diverse. There are those which fight for workers’ rights. And there are those which actually work for the management of enterprises. Especially oligarch-owned ones. For some reason I don't see trade unions protesting against conditions and wages at oligarch-owned enterprises. There are [unions] which don't do anything at all, and just receive a (mandatory) percentage of workers’ salaries. That is why the situation with trade unions must change. Real, effective unions should have access to resources. And those which leech off workers have to be stopped.
— Timofiy Milovanov, Facebook, 7 January 2020
Labour rights activists believe that the draft labour code sets a radically different principle for the role of trade unions in Ukrainian society, however imperfect they may be. International colleagues share their deep concern, with several international unions coming out against the law. ILAW, a network of lawyers engaged in trade union issues, is one of several international organisations to have pointed out in an open letter that the new labour code actually goes against international agreements on civil and economic rights which Ukraine ratified.
Svetlana Kozhushko, labour law expert, associate professor and media commentator, believes that the new code actually violates Article 22 of the country's Constitution.
Проєкт трудового кодексу звужує права працівників. Це пряме порушення Конституції України 22 статті, яка чітко зазначає, що при прийнятті нового законодавства не допускається звуження прав. Йде мова про порушення трудових прав.
The draft labour law reduces the rights of workers. This is a direct violation of Article 22 of the Constitution of Ukraine, which clearly states that new legislation cannot reduce rights. We’re talking about a violation of labour rights.
— Svetlana Kozhushko, Facebook, 8 January 2020
Vitalii Kopysh, a trade union activist and trainer from Chernihiv, wrote the following in reaction to an event dedicated to the proposed law:
Загальне враження можна описати так: влада нас не просто дурить, а нахабно і цинічно дурить. Коротше кажучи: урядова “реформа” – це менша зарплата, менше відпусток, менше доплат, нуль захисту. Начальник – бог, ви – ніхто.
Проекти авторства Тимофей Милованов та Tretyakova Galina не просто звужують права працюючих і профспілок. Вони порушують міжнародні стандарти праці та руйнують соціальні гарантії, що були напрацьовані протягом десятків років.
Головний аргумент “реформаторів”: у нас “радянський” КЗпП. Ок, в Польщі також користуються старим кодексом і права профспілок там захищені краще ніж у нас. Але при цьому Польща – це країна, що зробила економічний прорив, не перетворюючи власних працівників на худобу.
My general impression is as follows: the government isn’t just making a fool of us, it’s doing it rudely and cynically. In short: this government ‘reform’ means a smaller wage, less time off, less additional payments, no protection. Your boss is God and you’re no one. The draft laws by Timofiy Milovanov and Galina Tretyakova [head of the parliamentary committee on social policy] don’t just reduce the rights of working people and trade unions. They violate international standards of work and ruin social guarantees developed over decades. The main argument of the ‘reformers’ is that we have a ‘Soviet’ Labour Code. OK, in Poland they also use an old [Labour] code and the rights of trade unions are protected better than here. And Poland is a country that made an economic leap without turning their workers into slaves.
— Vitaliy Kopysh, Facebook, 5 January 2020
Artem Tidva, a Kyiv-based labour activist, suggested that the authors of the draft labour code might be rather distant from the daily realities of working Ukrainians:
Очевидно, що ні Мілованов, ні Третьякова ніколи не працювали і не проходили співбесід. Їм ввижається, що при прийомі на роботу працівник диктує працедавцеві умови свого найму. Як такі люди працюють у міністерствах? Їх просто ставлять на такі місця, як лобістів і пропагандистів певних економічних перетворень. Трансформації, які вони нам несуть полягають у спрощені процедури звільнення матерів з дітьми до 3 років, ліквідація поняття перерви на роботі, понаднормова робота вважатиметься звичайною роботою, скорочення додаткових відпусток у зв'язку зі шкідливими умовами праці, масовий перехід на короткострокові контракти і ще багато новорічних сюрпризів.
It’s obvious that neither Milovanov nor Tretyakova have ever worked nor gone to a job interview. They think that, during the employment process, it’s the worker who dictates the conditions of employment. How do these people work in ministries? They are just placed in these positions as lobbyists and propagandists of certain kinds of economic transformation. The changes they’re bringing us involve simplifying the process of firing mothers with children up to three years old, removing the concept of a break at work, overtime work will be considered normal working hours, removal of additional days off when working in dangerous conditions, a mass shift to short-term contracts and a whole bunch of other New Year’s surprises.
— Artem Tidva, Facebook, 27 December 2019
With further protests planned across the country, it is likely that labour rights will become a political flashpoint in 2020. In an open letter addressed to Zelensky, a metal workers’ union from Dnipro region turned the president's New Year's philosophical invitation into something rather more concrete: “Who are you with? And what are you for?” Ukrainian workers will soon find out.

author: Maxim Edwards


text:
This community library is changing the chaos narrative in Haiti’s Cité Soleil · Global Voices
Joseph W. Alliance

Community members in Cité Soleil in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, are building a community library brick by brick, dollar by dollar, transforming the chaos narrative in this impoverished area. Photo courtesy of Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy via Facebook.
Cité Soleil, an impoverished area in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, is often associated with urban despair, poverty, lawlessness and chaos.
Known as Site Solèy in Haitian Creole, the sprawling area has epitomized the ills that have plagued Haiti as a whole over the past three decades: illiteracy, joblessness, decaying infrastructure, poor sanitation, dysfunctional politics and gang violence.
Following the devastating earthquake of 2010, a generation of young activists, mostly born in Cité Soleil, started a social movement to challenge these tired narratives of defeat and chaos.
Their group, Konbit Soley Leve (By Working Together, Soleil Will Rise), aimed to tap into the post-earthquake momentum and the larger national discourse on reconstruction to rebuild and transform Cité Soleil.
This movement led to the formation of Konbit Bibliyotek Site Soley (KBSS), a community library project formed in November 2016. The library is rewriting and rebranding old narratives about Cité Soleil, shifting it from marginalized and volatile to community-driven and vibrant — as a profound example of how Haiti can rebuild itself.
Konbit Soley Leve collaborated with Flanm'Art Club Haiti, a Cité Soleil-based youth-led cultural group who came to Konbit with the hope to make their library dream turn into reality. They “wanted to have a space for young scholars to get together, research, read, write, and discuss books,” according to the library website.
In 2017 — in just seven weeks — a 12-person library coordinating committee collected 500,000 Haitian gourdes (about $5,000 United States dollars) from the community.
The community's strong support pushed KBSS members to envision an even more ambitious project.
They designated Place Fierte, a public park in Cité Soleil, as the ideal project location, and the committee established contacts with the mayor, various parliamentarians, and the Ministry of Homeland Security, who legally authorised the library construction on the designated site.
Cité Soleil-born architect, Jennifer Andou, designed the building in 2017, while Miyamoto Relief, a disaster engineering nonprofit, is supplying the know-how to make the facility earthquake-resilient, while the Digicel Foundation put solar panels in place. There are also accommodations being made to include water harvesting systems.
Geotechsol, a firm specializing in soil evaluation, gave the green light to start the construction of the building complex in 2017 and the library foundation was laid on January 30, 2018. ADCOSA, a construction company, is currently executing the project.
Community members actively fund Cité Soleil's library project. Plans for the library appear in the background. Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy often posts photos of donors to encourage transparency and more donations to complete the library. Photo courtesy of Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy via Facebook.
Originally built in the 1950s, the Cité Soleil was named Cité Simone after former president Francois Duvalier's wife. When a mass exodus of Haitians abandoned the countryside and moved to the area in search of better jobs, Cité Simone's low-cost housing could no longer contain the demand. By the 1990s, fewer factory jobs became available and shanty homes began to sprawl everywhere.
The state showed no interest in building infrastructure or providing social services in Cité Soleil. With approximately 500,000 people living in utter socio-economic despair within an eight-square-mile (21 square kilometers) area, Cité Soleil has degenerated into fertile ground for political violence and gang warfare.
In 2004, following president Jean-Bertrand Aristide's departure, the state, with the support of United Nations peacekeeping forces, tried to affront the gangs, which resulted in many civilian deaths. The number of deaths was never confirmed, but it is reported that during a 7-hour operation in Cité Soleil in July 2005, UN forces spent 22,000 bullets.
Nearly two decades later, Cité Soleil is still synonymous with crime and violence in Haitians’ collective psyche — an impression that was only solidified by the devastating effects of the 2010 earthquake the country suffered.
Community members of Cité Soleil pose while reading books in front of the construction site where their community-driven library is under construction. Photo courtesy of Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy via Facebook.
But Konbit Soley Leve projects — like the community library — contributes to a larger discourse around national reconstruction to transform the all-too-common perceptions about the area.
In a telephone interview, Louino Robillard, a founding member Konbit Soley Leve and lead library project coordinator, told Global Voices that post-earthquake aid in the area was not sensitive to conflict or development challenges.
Cash-for-work initiatives and other lucrative projects were controlled by gang leaders. Activists and other development agents in the community were excluded. In the end, those projects contributed to even more violence and despair.
In 2014, tired of this vicious cycle, Robillard and fellow activists launched the Site Solèy Peace Prize, “an annual initiative to honor ordinary young people that are doing extraordinary things to make life better for the neighborhoods in Cité Soleil,” according to Robillard.
The library project came as a surprise to Robillard, mainly because meeting immediate, basic needs — such as food and shelter — has been such a daunting challenge in Citè Soleil.
But KBSS library thrives because it is the antithesis of most development projects in Haiti, which are often marred by corruption and a lack of transparency. For one, the funding model is different, with 80 percent of the resources and money provided directly by the community.
Every single donation is shared through weekly reports posted either on KBSS’ Facebook page or Twitter account:
Rapò 153 semèn @kbsshaiti pic.twitter.com/eX3AIJ8dmD
— Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy (@kbsshaiti) January 5, 2020
Flash! #Hald_Saint_Hilaire fè yon donasyon  #100_Goud pou avansman konstriksyon pwojè Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy la.
Geplaatst door Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy op Donderdag 9 januari 2020
#Hald_Saint_Hilaire donate #100 _ gourdes for the construction of the Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy project.
Robillard said the goal is to have 10,000 people donating to the project, with the underlying message being that if 10,000 people can join hands to build a sustainable, state-of-the-art, disaster-proof library in Cité Soleil, 11 million people can come together to rebuild a nation.
In June 2019, KBSS invited prominent Haitian-born novelist Dany Laferrière to visit and lay a brick during its construction. Laferriere is the author of “Tout bouge autour de moi,” or “Everything is moving around me,” written in the aftermath of the earthquake. His visit signaled the library's commitment to engage Haiti and the rest of the world as a place of hope, creativity and development:
Vizit  akademisyen Dany LAFERRIERE nan Konbit Bibliyotek Site Soley
Dimanch 16 Jen Konbit Bibliyotek Site Soley te resevwa vizit akademisyen , Imotel Dany LAFERRIERE.
Geplaatst door Konbit Bibliyotèk Site Solèy op Maandag 17 juni 2019
Despite support from Miyamoto Relief and private companies such as CEMEX, E-Power or SOGENER, KBSS intends to remain a community-driven project.
Haitians all over Haiti and throughout the diaspora — as well as non-Haitians — are embracing the project and want to support the people of Cité Soleil to achieve their dream of building the largest modern library in Haiti.
More than that, though, a decade after the earthquake, KBSS wants to be seen as an alternative model of reconstruction, development and sustainability in Haiti, doing its part to rebuild an important discourse that never really took shape.

author: Joseph W. Alliance


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Despite legal threats and harassment, thousands join the ‘Run Against Dictatorship’ in Thailand · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Thousands joined the protest run in Bangkok. Photo from the Facebook page of ‘Run Against Dictatorship’
On 12 January 2020, an estimated 13,000 people joined the ‘Run Against Dictatorship’ in Bangkok, Thailand despite threats of arrest and police intimidation. Several fun run events with the same theme were also held in other provinces, and even in other countries.
It was the biggest protest against the government since the army grabbed power in 2014. Elections were held in 2019 but critics said the military continued to dominate bureaucracy. The incumbent Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha was the army chief who led the coup in 2014.
The event was organized to show the continuing public clamor for the restoration of democratic rights. Themed ‘Wing Lai Lung’ which means ‘Run to Oust the Uncle’, it refers to the Prayuth government which is accused of restricting the civil liberties of citizens despite the supposed end of military rule.
Since December when the event was launched, organizers said their members have been harassed by authorities across the country. In some provinces, permits were canceled by local governments. Activists suspected of organizing the event were interrogated by the police.
Days before the 12 January event, the Bangkok Post published an editorial criticizing the antagonistic response of some officials:
The reactions by the authorities and intimidation tactics are not just wrong but also absurd. Yet, it no laughing matter either. As the country has returned to democracy, no citizen should face such intimidation.
The Thai Lawyers for Human Rights released a legal primer defending the rights of the participants of the protest run:
Run Against Dictatorship is a legitimate expression approved by the Constitution. If the organizers of the event do want to arrange it in the form of rally or public assembly, they must notify the police. The police, however, have no power to prohibit the activity.
The Twitter hashtag #วิ่งไล่ลุง (#RunAgainstDictatorship) trended in Thailand on 12 January. Below are some photos of the event:
Thousands gather for ‘Run Against Dictatorship’ event in #Bangkok. #วิ่งไล่ลุง #RunAgainstDictatorship pic.twitter.com/oLyKEpO1CA
— Randy Thanthong-Knight (@siraphobknight) January 11, 2020
As a former protester, have to say this ‘Rid of Uncle’ event is extraordinary well run, the media access, the medical station, trash management, runners queue up door food, new generation success #วิ่งไล่ลุง #Thailand pic.twitter.com/uoM2QWgQex
— Rajprasong_News (@Rajprasong_News) January 12, 2020
Tank, rabbit and little kids join “#RunAgainstDictatorship” in central Bangkok #วิ่งไล่ลุง #Thailand pic.twitter.com/qsWTT2khHV
— Tan Hui Yee (@Tan_Hui_Yee) January 12, 2020
#Chiangmai and around #Thailand today, host the #RunAgainstDictatorship. The peoples take the streets in order to call for dictator gov't , #Prayuth to go & return country to real democracy and we demanding political participation, democracy, human rights and #developmentjustice pic.twitter.com/qjhmnCq2Xh
— Matcha Phorn In (@Matcha_Phornin) January 12, 2020
Meanwhile, pro-government supporters organized an assembly on the same day with the theme ‘Dern Cheer Lung’ (Walk-In Support of Uncle). Around seven to eight thousand people joined the assembly which was also held in Bangkok but in a different park.
At the same time as the #วิ่งไล่ลุง #RunAgainstDictatorship, a crowd has also built in Bangkok to support Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha with hashtag #เดินเชียร์ลุง Crowd not nearly as big as the other event but definitely over a thousand here. pic.twitter.com/sUReBCA8I4
— Matthew Tostevin (@TostevinM) January 12, 2020
Emboldened by the success of the ‘Run Against Dictatorship’ event, organizers said they are now preparing for the next run which will be held in Chiang Mai, north of Thailand, on 2 February.


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From Indonesian exile to Czechoslovakian pop star: An interview with Rony Marton · Global Voices
Juke Carolina

Rony Marton in one of his performances in front of the Czechoslovakian public. Photo from Marton's private collection, used with his permission.
Rony Marton may not be a well-known name in Indonesia but in 1970s Czechoslovakia, Marton could draw crowds.
He was an Indonesian scholar studying in Europe when General Suharto grabbed power from President Sukarno in 1965. The new government banned hundreds of pro-Sukarno scholars like Rony from returning to their homeland. This triggered the worst brain drain in Indonesian history. Suharto ruled for 32 years under his New Order regime, which was later accused of committing widespread corruption and human rights abuses.
After his studies in Czechoslovakia, Rony became a pop singer in the 1970s.
It only became possible for Rony to return to Indonesia after the downfall of Suharto in 1998.
Juke Carolina from Global Voices Indonesia interviewed Rony who shared his journey from Asia to Europe and how he found fame in his adopted country.
Global Voices (GV):
Rony Marton (RM): Nama saya Jaroni Surjomartono, lahir di Kudus tahun 1943 tapi dari sejak balita hidup di Solo, Jawa Tengah. Setelah lulus SMA sempat kuliah di Universitas Gajah Mada (UGM) jurusan ekonomi perusahaan. Setelah kuliah di kampus UGM di Bulak Sumur Jogja, saya menulis permohonan ke PTIP (kementerian Perguruan Tinggi dan Ilmu Pengetahuan). Awalnya sebagai mahasiswa ke Jepang, namun ternyata program beasiswa ke sana sudah ditutup. Saya kemudian ikut ujian dan pelatihan selama dua bulan sebelum akhirnya menerima telegram bahwa saya memperoleh beasiswa ke Cekoslowakia.
Rony Marton (RM): My name is Jaroni Surjomartono, I was born in Kudus in 1943 but grew up in Solo, Central Java since I was a toddler. After graduating from high school I went to Gajah Mada University (UGM) majoring in corporate economy. After attending studies at Bulak Sumur campus in Yogyakarta, I wrote an application to the Ministry of Higher Education and Science (PTIP),  initially as a student to Japan, but the scholarship program ended. Later on I attended exam and training for two months before receiving a telegram which announced that I obtained a scholarship to Czechoslovakia in 1963.
Rony Marton (front row, second from the left), photographed here with the Indonesian Student Association (PPI) alumni, active members of PPI Republic Czech chapter, and Yenny Wahid, politician and daughter of the late President Abdurrahman Wahid. Photo from Marton's private collection, used with his permission.
RM:Together with about 35 Indonesian students, we attended a Czech language course for 10 months. Upon completion, we entered our chosen university respectively. I went to the University of Economics in Prague (Vysoká Škola Ekonomická VŠE). In 1965 I was elected chairman of the Czechoslovakia PPI – the Czechoslovakia chapter of Indonesian Student Association. Following the 30 September 1965 coup against President Sukarno by Colonel Suharto and his entourage, all PPI members had their passports revoked around mid-1966. The Indonesian Embassy in Prague didn’t extend expired passports. Around 100 out of 200 PPI students decided to leave our student association and joined the group established by the Indonesian embassy in Prague, which happened to be named PPI as well. Those who aligned themselves with the embassy had their passports reinstated.
RM: The challenges we faced included requesting living permits for those who no longer had passports, arranging permits so that we could conclude our studies, and arranging student accommodations. Those were our three requests to the Czechoslovakian government. A few weeks later we got a very satisfying answer, which frankly, was above and beyond our hopes. First: our residential card was extended (even without a valid Indonesian passport) until our studies were completed. Our living permits in the student dormitory were also extended. Second: upon completion of our studies, we could choose to remain in Czechoslovakia, or move to another country (for those who wished to move, the Czechoslovakian government would arrange a travel document in accordance to the UN Law. In Czechoslovakia, we got protection as refugees under the auspices of the Czechoslovakia chapter of the International Red Cross). For those who wanted to settle in Czechoslovakia, they were granted a permanent residence permit. These conditions were very positive and enabled us the peace of mind to finish studying and go on with our lives. I personally feel indebted and grateful to the Czechoslovakian government at that time, who did not forget their historical tradition since the 1930s, when the Republic of Czechoslovakia gave asylum to Jewish citizens and all who rose up against the atrocities of Hitler’s Nazism in Germany.
RM: Immediately after our passports were revoked by the end of 1966, our contact with the Indonesian embassy was terminated, and we were shunned by other Indonesians in Czechoslovakia. The pro-Suharto students didn’t mingle with us, the anti-Suharto bloc. (My) parents in Indonesia only heard about my plight two or three years after September 1965. They were sad and heartbroken but they were slightly comforted after learning that we could stay and continue studying (they assumed Suharto would be deposed within 5 to 10 years and replaced by a democratic government). On her way home from her pilgrimage to Mecca, my mother visited me in Prague and asked me not to return to Indonesia for a while due to what Suharto family’s doing in our hometown Solo. She (claimed that she) accepts my absence, as well as her grandkids, as long as we are safe until the New Order is deposed. My mother is an apolitical person, yet she’s able to assess how brutal and greedy the New Order regime was.
RM: Sejak dari Indonesia saya berkecimpung di seni musik, main gitar dan menyanyi. Di SMAC 4 Solo saya memimpin band sekolah dengan kelompok koor berjumlah 8 orang pemudi. Di rumah, saya memimpin band gambusan (yang sepopuler dangdut zaman sekarang) dan band lagu hiburan. Waktu saya masuk UGM, saya diplonco ikut kontes nyanyi, saya ikut dan menjadi juara satu. Setelah itu saya direkrut jadi penyanyi Band Gama yang waktu itu sangat populer diantara mahasiswa.
RM: I had been into music, playing the guitar and singing even as a student in Indonesia. In high school (SMAC) in Solo I was the school band leader, leading a chorus of eight girls. At home, I led a gambus music band (it's more known as dangdut nowadays) and a variety band. When I was a student in UGM, there was school hazing which involved a singing competition. I joined it and won. I was recruited as a singer in a band called GAMA, at that time the band was very popular among students. Even though there were a few Czech personalities in the early 20th Century who lived and were inspired by the Indonesian archipelago, like the poet and author Konstantin Biebl, the Czechoslovak public’s knowledge of Indonesia was fairly limited. So whenever I performed, I took the time to tell them about Indonesia and its history. One of the most memorable things during my career happened at my concert in summer 1975, when 4,000 students sang with me while performing a Batak song called Sing Sing So in an open-air venue. I also collaborated with notable Czech and Slovakian singers to record some singles in vinyls. Since 1986, I've been performing less in concerts. Now, I sing just for charity events or for plain fun.
RM: Brain drain adalah hal positif untuk pihak yang memanfaatkan dan negatif untuk negara asal. Berkaitan dengan situasi yang kami alami tahun 1965, situasi dan kondisi serta sebab dan akibatnya sangat berbeda. Orba melarang kami pulang karena alasan politik dan seandainya kami pulang tentu setidaknya kami akan dipenjara atau dipetruskan (catatan redaksi: penembak misterius, sebuah operasi rahasia binaan Orde Baru) dan kami diluar negeri relatif jauh dari bahaya penghilangan ekstrajudisial. Saya melihat brain drain ini dari kaca mata positif bagi. Bagi saya luka itu masa lalu sudah terbalut oleh waktu dan harapan masa depan.
Bagi generasi muda Indonesia, saya harap agar generasi muda berpandangan kritis terhadap apa saja yang terjadi di Indonesia, supaya giat merangkum informasi dan terbuka untuk berdialog sebelum memutuskan pendapat. Jauhkan diri dari fanatisme dan radikalisme apapun bentuknya. Belajarlah dari sejarah bangsa, agar tidak mengulangi kesalahan-kesalahan generasi tua. Sensitiflah terhadap fenomena-fenomena yang ingin memberangus dan merevisi demokrasi dan humanisme.
RM: In relation to our experience in 1965, there were various factors that led to multiple outcomes. The New Order’s politics banned us from coming home, if we did (come home), we would end up in jail or shot by snipers [author’s note: During Suharto’s New Order, there’s a group of elite snipers known as Petrus. They were deployed by the regime to silence critics under the pretext of “safeguarding the public peace”] and by being abroad we were safe from extrajudicial actions and forced disappearances. I see brain drain through a positive mind. To me, the past wounds are healed by time and hope for the future. For the young Indonesian generation, I hope they will be able to keep a critical mind towards things that unfold in Indonesia, and are able to gather information and open to dialogue before making up their mind on things. Distance yourself from any form of fanaticism and radicalism. Learn from our nation’s history so you won’t repeat the mistakes made by the previous generation. Be sensitive towards any phenomenon that seeks to destroy and revise democracy and humanity.

author: Juke Carolina


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New privacy law in Mozambique threatens freedom of expression, activists say · Global Voices
Dércio Tsandzana

Social Networks in Mozambique. Photo: Brough Turner, Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)
New amendments to the Mozambican Penal Code introduced to protect privacy could threaten freedom of expression, activists say.
The law, passed by the parliament in July 2019, criminalizes all types of invasion of privacy via mobile phones, as well as the publication of images or videos without authorization by the people recorded or photographed.
The President of Mozambique Filipe Nyusi promulgated the amendments in early December 2019, local newspaper Jornal Visão reported.
The new provisions punish by up to one year in jail and a fine those who “without consent and with the intention of invading people's private lives, namely the intimacy of family or sexual life: intercepts, records, writes down, uses, transmits or divulges conversations, telephone communications, images, photographs, videos, audio, detailed billing, e-mail messages,” Jornal Verdade says.
An equal penalty could also be imposed against whoever “captures, photographs, films, manipulates, records or disseminates images of persons or of intimate objects or spaces”, as well as on whoever “secretly observes or listens to persons who are in a private place”, and also those who disclose “facts concerning the private life or serious illness of another person”.
This legislation came in the aftermath of a video that caused anger in Mozambique. The video was recorded and posted on Facebook five months ago by a young man in Maputo City man identified as Patrick Manuel. The video shows scenes of a car accident, victims lying on the ground and people asking for help, while Patrick films the situation, amused.
Mozambique already has a press law, and a law on the right to information that regulates the right to honour, good name, reputation, and the defence of image. Additionally, since 2017 the country has a law on electronic transactions which penalizes slander. Following its adoption in November 2017, the Director-General of the National Institute of Information and Communication Technologies said that the law has come to “fill in a gap” in cases of users disseminating “offensive content’’ and “insulting and denigrating others.”
A number of activists welcomed the new amendments as a ‘’timely’’ measure to protect privacy.
Víctor Fazenda, an activist with the Mozambique Youth Parliament, told Global Voices:
The legislation is timely and relevant. There is a lot of invasion of the private domain through social networks, which allows neither peace, nor security for users to keep more intimate details on various electronic media.
Punishing those who produce and disseminate videos, images and audio of private life without asking is, in my opinion, organising what has been disorganised and preventing the harmful consequences of leaking private life into public space, especially when such an action is done without public interest.
I just think that the legislation needs to be more widely shared so that it does not leave people surprised.
Similarly Minelda Maússe, an activist with Olho do Cidadão, said this is a good measure for discipline in using social networks in Mozambique:
For me this is a good measure. Good because it will penalize people who use/record intimate/improper moments to slander or blackmail somebody. It is a way to discipline the use of social networks by users.
Cidia Chissungo, another activist, expressed her concern that the implementation of the new amendments could bring with it challenges to the right to access information.
The biggest challenge will be for people to access new information and take more caution. It's good and fun when something happens to others, but at the end of the day we don't want anyone to invade [our] privacy.
Several other activists expressed concerns that the law will greatly restrict freedom of expression, press freedom and internet freedom.
Global Voices spoke to Rafael Machalela, a journalist from the Portuguese outlet Lusa, who voiced his concern about the new law:
The change made to criminal law on recordings, images published on [online] networks without the consent of those concerned is worrying. It is not an amendment to press law, but to penal law, [and] it is no less worrying that this is to be penalised with sentences of up to one year in prison.
[We live in] a country with a history of more than 40 years of press freedom in which the interpretation of the law has not been that repressive when it comes to public figures.
The scrutiny of these [people] is greater than for an anonymous citizen. And these same figures must protect themselves. This is a wake-up call, because apparently this change in criminal law was not even news, but it is clearly a new potential restriction on the right to inform, and on press freedom.
Local Youtuber Arcénio Amoz, also known by the moniker “Beleza em Pessoa,” uploaded a video criticizing the law:
During the video, he says:
Não sei como eles vão conseguir isso. Se um dia eu for incriminado por isso, ajudem-me a pagar as acções judiciais, porque não quero fazer uma comunicação vazia ou escrever sobre suposições.
I don't know how they will manage it. If one day I get incriminated for this, please help me to pay the lawsuits, because I don't want to make a blank communication or write about assumptions.
Kelvin Mike, another Youtuber and Vlogger, expressed concerns about the law's “hasty’’ approval:
Ya de facto, penso que essa lei teve uma aprovação muito precipitada.
— Belmiro Inlinha (@BInlinha) December 18, 2019
In fact, I think that law has had a very hasty approval.
Txeka, a civic organization of young people who use the internet as a form of political engagement, also expressed concerns on Twitter:
O Presidente da República promulgou a revisão do Código Penal aprovado pela Assembleia da Republica pela lei Nº 35/2014, de 31 de Dezembro
Esta lei coloca em causa a liberdade de expressão e de acesso à informação e poderá permitir que a impunidade continue.
Confira. pic.twitter.com/3kVgqQTvl5
— Txeka (@TxekaMoz) December 18, 2019
The President of the Republic promulgated the revision of the Penal Code approved by the Assembly of the Republic by law No. 35/2014, of 31 December.
This law undermines freedom of expression and access to information and may allow impunity to continue.

author: Dércio Tsandzana


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CGNet Swara is using Bluetooth to source content and share news with Indian villages · Global Voices
Rezwan

Shubhranshu Choudhary, founder of CGNet Swara. Screenshot from YouTube Video by National Geographic
Chhattisgarh state, located in the centre-east of the country, has the lowest internet penetration in India, making it hard for people to access traditional media online — but an online citizen journalism portal led by Shubranshu Choudhury has, since 2010, been helping to solve the problem. In a region that is typically ignored by mainstream media, CGNet Swara makes it possible for the indigenous people of Chhattisgarh to share local news using basic mobile phones.
Thanks to the innovativeness of CGNet Swara, villagers in central Gondwana are now using Bluetooth, which doesn’t require internet or mobile network, to connect and share news, music and other entertainment files with people in their communities:
When @CGnet_Swara’s team learned that villagers in #India’s remote Maoist region were using Bluetooth to share music, an idea clicked — could they also use it to share news? So they created an app & recruited #citizenjournalists to do exactly that. Read: https://t.co/I7VHfSo9hZ pic.twitter.com/LQqjjzWoxC
— ICFJ (@ICFJ) January 17, 2020
As the South Asia producer for BBC TV and Radio during the 1990s and early 2000s, Shubhranshu Choudhary realised from his travels in the region that frustration with issues like poverty, lack of health care, unemployment and crime was leading people in his home state, Chhattisgarh, to join the communist Naxalite–Maoist insurgency. Far-left radical communists accused authorities of not addressing their demands and engaged in armed conflict with the state governments, persuading discontented villagers — who wanted to be heard and taken seriously — to join them.
Leaving the BBC to go and work in Chhattisgarh, Choudhary joined a Knight International Journalism Fellowship to address issues of media disenfranchisement in the region. He immediately saw the need to develop strategies to overcome the slow internet connectivity and reach the local tribal population, many of whom were illiterate and only spoke their native languages.
This is how CGNet Swara was born. Choudhary developed the cell phone-based news and current affairs portal with technical expertise from Microsoft's Principal Researcher Bill Thies, and Microsoft Research India launched the service in 2010.
Choudhary trained people from the local community to produce audio news reports using their mobile phones; since then, thousands of articles have been produced, especially in local languages. Users themselves decide on the topics, which range from local land issues, sanitation and health, to crime and human rights:
In the eight years since its launch, CGNet Swara, a voice portal for internet-bare rural India, has logged over a million calls and published more than 10,000 reports. https://t.co/wAtkrmcR6W
— Manish Singh (@refsrc) October 22, 2018
To use the interactive voice response (IVR) service, users call a toll-free line and record their message by responding to prompts like “Press 1 to record a new message”. Afterwards, a group of professional journalists accesses the system, using a web-based interface to review and verify the report. Once approved, the reports are made available for playback over the phone, as well as on the CGNet Swara website for a wider audience.
Once the IVR system was well entrenched, it was time for the next phase of development. In 2014, Krittika D'Silva, then a student at the University of Washington in Seattle, USA, envisioned the interactive CGNet Swara app. As low-end android smartphones became cheaper and many villagers could afford them, this mobile application was designed to support interactive voice forums in which users could record their own messages (and listen to messages from other users). Useful features include the ability to upload photos via the internet and the offline playing of messages, which can also be shared by Bluetooth or via an SD card.
Screenshot via Youtube Video by CGNet Swara
The success of the voice version of the CGNet platform put the service in a financial crunch, as there were substantial monthly phone bills being incurred on the toll-free line.
One winter morning in 2015, Choudhary discovered that children were exchanging audio and video files via Bluetooth on their mobiles. When asked, they said that they were carrying out ‘Bultoo’. It was a breakthrough moment.
Bluetooth technology was the perfect mobile connectivity option to revolutionise local data transfer, using mobile phones. It is affordable, uses low power, operates in low proximity (usually 10 meters), and two devices can be easily paired to transfer files and data.
With the help of the Chhattisgarh government, Choudhary piloted the ‘Bultoo’ radio or ‘Voicebook’ programme in 2016, which encouraged users to record news on their phones, and to go to trained citizen journalists in their locality to transfer content via Bluetooth. Voice call submissions were no longer necessary, minimising costs. Messages were verified and then converted into internet-based radio programmes, and uploaded to the CGNet Swara website, where they could be downloaded for free. Once the programmes are downloaded and available as an audio file, a community media vendor (CMV) collects them, then goes house to house to deliver ‘Bultoo’ radio to each customer’s phone.
An improved interface was later launched, enabling the recordings to be easily shared via the app, using Bluetooth.
CGNet Swara also came up with an incentive scheme for the community media vendors to be compensated for their efforts, by enabling them to be credited with five Indian rupees (seven US cents) for every story they share through the app via Bluetooth, which they could later redeem.
In 2019, despite the country having only 31 percent mobile phone internet penetration, India experienced the highest number of internet shutdowns, with more than a hundred monitored cases. Because alternative Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-based communication apps and channels are increasingly being used by activists and other communities that want a voice, CGNet Swara's successful use of Bluetooth to share content can be widely replicated.
There is still a long way to go, however. The Android app is not yet available in the Google Play store nor is there an iOS version; you have to download it from the CGNet Swara website — but the NGO is currently researching whether this increased connectivity can help create a sustainable economic model.