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Massive Fraud Haunts Cambodian Elections · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

As expected, Cambodia’s ruling party was declared winner in the National Assembly elections but the opposition has rejected the results and accused the government of committing widespread fraud.
The Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) led by Prime Minister Hun Sen has been in power in the past 28 years. It won 68 seats while the opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) managed to get 55 seats.
Perhaps Andy Brouwer’s Twitter post reflected the overall impact of the elections:
Election fever is over, the results are out and nothing changes afterall, despite massive gains by the opposition.
— Andy Brouwer (@AndyBrouwer) July 29, 2013
Writing for the Bangkok Post, popular Cambodian blogger and Global Voices author Kounila Keo recognized the active participation of young people in the campaign:
…it cannot be denied that there has been an active participation of Cambodian young people on the internet and social media. And, they are hungry for change in their lives and that of their next generation.
It does not matter who has won this election. Despite election irregularities, younger voters have overcome fear to make their voices heard through the ballots. And they want change.
As a young voter, I was really moved by young people's willingness to actively participate and show their courage for the first time.
During the 30-day electoral campaigns, hundreds of thousands of youth took to the streets in Phnom Penh and used social media to express their thoughts and convictions without fear. I suddenly felt empowered to discuss political issues in depth freely, knowing I would no longer be alone doing that.
Tharum observed that social media became a more reliable source of election updates than mainstream media:
Thanks to poor TV coverage and on/off radio broadcast, my father starts watching news report on YouTube on smartphone. #electionskh
— Tharum Bun (@tharum) July 29, 2013
But Tith Chandara lamented the unethical behavior of some Internet users:
The engagement of some social media users in Cambodia in supporting their favorite party is on some ways unethical and violent while harsh words, aggressive responses and fake graphic designs are discovered since the campaign started. Users share pictures, graphics without checking for confirmation on sources, though they know sometimes the information is not (yet) official.
Jinja analyzed the election results and mentioned some voting irregularities
Anecdotally speaking: this is the first time I’ve had Khmer friends come to me and note that their name was not on the voter rolls, or that it had been voted by someone else. International monitoring organizations concur… mostly.
Election Day. Photo from Facebook page of CPP Cambodia
Casey Nelson discussed how the ethnic Vietnamese was vilified during the campaign:
The Vietnamese are the Khmer’s ethnic Other, the first minority group onto which blame falls during times of political and social tension.
The relationship between Vietnam and Cambodia is complicated, and traditional ethnic antagonism is deeply intertwined with historical and political animosities which are not completely unjustified, but when things turn bad in Cambodia, it is often if not always the poor, powerless ethic Vietnamese that take the violent brunt of it.
Writing for the Asia Times Online, Sebastian Strangio reminded the opposition to use its good showing in the polls to wield greater political influence:
As the country enters a brave new political world, the opposition, flushed with success, will have to perform a delicate dance if it is to transform electoral returns into real reforms and practical power.
But Caroline Hughes, who contributed an article for the Asia Sentinel, doubts if the opposition has a real alternative that it can offer:
…it is hard to gauge from opposition party pronouncements how they might produce a development strategy for Cambodia that would significantly differ from that over which the CPP has presided. In terms of development, Cambodia has simply followed its more advanced South East Asian neighbors in pursuing a strategy of asset stripping the countryside and soaking up the dispossessed rural poor into low-wage manufacturing and services employment in the towns.
Brad Adams of the Human Rights Watch mentioned the proliferation of fake election documents that undermined the voting process:
Senior ruling party officials appear to have been involved in issuing fake election documents and fraudulently registering voters in multiple provinces. And people from the party seem to have been turning up in places where they clearly don’t live and insisting on voting – not to mention the many other claims of fraud around the country.
The multiple voting scheme suggests the possibility of systematic election fraud by the CPP and raises serious questions about the credibility of the election.
But other international observers described the recent Cambodian elections as ‘free, fair, and transparent’:
…a triumph of popular will and a victory of the Cambodian people in their quest to build a better future based on the supremacy and sanctity of the ballot.
For Nikitung91, a coalition is needed to improve the situation in the country:
I still think a coalition would be a good solution…but no parties really agree so…
At the end of the day, I really don’t care who will lead the country, all I want is a healthy and strong improving country. No war within the country will happen if we listen to the population, no need to fraud the elections, to manipulate the media.


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Nuclear Opponents in Taiwan Work to Change ‘Unfair’ Referendum Law · Global Voices
I-fan Lin

Lawmakers exchanged punches in Taiwan's parliament on August 2, 2013 ahead of a vote on whether or not to hold a referendum on the island's controversial fourth nuclear plant.
The plant, which has been under construction for more than a decade, is a divisive issue for Taiwan and has been met with large-scale protests because of safety concerns. The next round of debate regarding the referendum controversy [zh] will take place on August 6, 2013. Legislators from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) will continue to try to delay the vote, while ruling party Kuomingtang wants to pass the referendum by end of August.
The question of letting the people vote on the plant's fate has thrust Taiwan's tough referendum requirements into the spotlight. Lawmakers from the DPP oppose a referendum, calling the mechanism unfair.
The Referendum Act in Taiwan, which was was passed [zh] in November 2003, requires 50 percent of voters to participate in the referendum or else the proposal in the referendum will be rejected. In the last ten years, six national referendums have been proposed, but none of them was passed.
As the act requires a referendum to meet the participation threshold of half of the electorate, even if the majority of the voters reach a consensus, the referendum will become invalid. Since the voting rate in Taiwan is about 75 percent, the mobilization of 30 percent of voters to boycott the referendum will override a consensus reached by a majority of the voters.
Protesters demonstrated outside the Legislative Yuan against the fourth nuclear plant and the referendum. Photo taken by 陳逸婷, coolloud.org. Non-commercial use.
For example, in 2004 two referendums [zh] did not pass even though more than 90 percent of the voters had reached a consensus.
The first one was on whether Taiwan should acquire more advanced anti-missile weapons if mainland China refuses to withdraw the missiles it has targeted on Taiwan. 45.17 percent of the electorate went to vote, and 91.8 percent of them voted yes.
The second referendum was on whether the Taiwanese government should engage in negotiations with China on President Chen’s proposed “peace and stability” framework for cross-strait interactions. 45.12 percent of the electorate went to vote, and 92.05 percent of them voted no.
Both of them failed to pass. In short, passing a referendum is more difficult than winning a presidential election in Taiwan.
Lin Yi-Hsiung, a member of DPP and a devoted advocate against nuclear power since 1989, is currently working on amendment to the Referendum Act, described [zh] why the current Referendum Act cannot reflect the opinions of the citizens:
習慣專制的國民黨政權，為了阻遏這種人民做主的公投潮流，所以在2003年制定了所謂的「公民投票法」，以非常不合理而嚴苛的規定，使公民投票幾乎不可能舉辦或通過。十年來，除了總統及國、民兩大政黨外，沒有人有能力提案公投。而所有成案的公投案，也都沒有一個通過，可見這個公投法阻遏公投的威力有多大。
依照目前的公投法來辦理公投，不是政治人物的政治遊戲，就是在開人民的玩笑。所以，公投法制定以後，我所參與的核四公投促進會，就不再談核四公投，而只要求補正公投法。因為公投法如果不做合理的補正，依該法舉辦公投事實上不會有任何意義。
As a result of the unreasonably high threshold for passing a referendum, the advocates of a referendum prefer the wording of the question to be against their own position. For example, considering the dispute of the fourth nuclear power plant, the government and the ruling party prefer the question to be set as, “Do you want to stop the construction of the fourth nuclear power plant?” On the other hand, the opposition party prefers the referendum question to be set as, “Do you want to continue the construction of the fourth nuclear power plant?”.
The wordplay in referendum questions is not favorable to the opposition party because the government-appointed referendum committee holds the power to reject a referendum before it goes to the voting process. For example, a referendum was proposed in 2009 regarding the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement. The referendum was initiated by a joint-signature of more than 109,000 Taiwanese [zh] but eventually rejected by the referendum committee because the wording of the referendum question was against the referendum proposer’s stand. After the referendum proposer made an appeal to the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court ruled that the rejection issued by the referendum committee is not consistent with any requirements stated in the Referendum Act in 2012.
Last but not least, in the current Referendum Act, if a referendum is not passed it cannot be proposed again for another eight years. Blogger Otto Hsu was [zh] very anxious about the fourth nuclear power plant referendum:
在核四這種重大政策案，一旦公投了，不論結果怎樣，接下來八年都不能再提同樣的公投。
這種限制，在投票人數夠多的情形下，固然有維持安定的正面功能。但如果只有小貓二三隻出來玩[…] 也要拘束公民全體八年內不得再提同種公投，實在也是不合理。
這方面，有待修法來解決了！（或者，我們應該先公投一個新的「公民投票法」！）
This is unreasonable. We need to amend the Act to solve this problem! (Or we should have a referendum for a new Referendum Act!).

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: I-fan Lin


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Taiwan: Don’t Stop Rabies by Killing Animals · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

An animal right activist locked himself in an animal cage outside Council of Agriculture against the killing of stray dogs and cats to prevent the spread of rabies. He advocates for vaccination. Photo from 張敬偉 Facebook.

author: Oiwan Lam


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TNW Announces Latin American Startup Awards Winners · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

In the lead up to this year’s The Next Web Conference Latin America, we’ve been running Startup Awards competitions in Peru, Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Brazil in search of the hottest startups and investors.
[…]
The result has been absolutely amazing – in just under a week 18,448 people have cast a total of 31,000+ votes. We’ve seen finalists create beautiful social media campaigns, adding calls-to-action to their websites and we’ve even heard of finalists flying to other cities to strengthen their leaderboard position.
Wytze De Haan in The Next Web (TNW) announces the winners of the Latin American Startup Awards in each category: Best Consumer Startup, Best B2B Startup, Best Investor, and Best co-founder(s).

author: Silvia Viñas


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What Is Behind Lusaka Township Names · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

In commemorating Zambia's capital city’s centenary this year, Gershom discusses the origins of Lusaka township names:
Obviously, a number of other writers have written about some of the names of some of the townships and residential areas such as John Laing, John Howard, Kuku and others having been farms belonging to those people and Kuku having been a cooks’ quarters. I will not talk about these names.

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Bangladesh Court Disqualifies Jamaat-e-Islami Party from Elections · Global Voices
পান্থ রহমান রেজা (Pantha)

Bangladesh's high court has declared the registration of Islamist political party Jamaat-e-Islami illegal, a move praised by some who consider the party extreme and condemned by others as harmful to democracy.
The verdict handed down on August 1, 2013 comes as the final decision on a petition from 25 people, including members of other Islamist parties, which challenged Jamaat’s registration in January 2009.
In 2008, the country's election commission made it mandatory for political parties to register if they wanted to participate in elections. This ruling means Jamaat cannot participate in the upcoming January 2014 parliamentary elections.
The party was already widely criticized for its opposition to Bangladesh’s independence. But the call to limit Jamaat-e-Islami recently intensified during the massive Shahbag protest movement which began in February 2013 (see Global Voices special coverage) and called for capital punishment for war crimes committed during the country’s liberation from Pakistan in 1971. Many of the accused were high-ranking Jamaat members, and in March 2013, top Jamaat-e-Islami party leaders Delwar Hossain Sayeedi and Ali Ahsan Mohammed Muojaheed were sentenced to be hanged by a special war crimes tribunal for their involvement. Several other party officials were found guilty of crimes against humanity and the trials are underway.
Jamaat activists attacked law enforcers in Dhaka during a protest against trial of their leaders accused of war crimes. Image by Rehman Asad. Copyright Demotix (28/1/2013)
Jamaat, as a political party, has a large and ideologically motivated cadre base across Bangladesh and is currently allies with the main opposition BNP. However, many Bangladeshis are skeptic about their use of religion in politics as evident in Bangladesh general election 2008, where it got only 4.6% votes and only 2 seats out of 300 constituents (39 contested). Blogger Jyoti Rahman posted a deeper analysis of the Jamaat factor in Bangladesh politics a few months ago. He talks about Jamaat's financial and ideological ecosystem:
In the quarter century since the party’s relaunch, the Jamaat has made considerable inroads in several non-state sectors as well. Islami Bank, whose management is affiliated with the Jamaat, has become the third largest bank in the country. Jamaat-supported hospitals and coaching centres provide affordable health care and education to urban, working and the lower middle classes. The party has particularly strong financial ties with countries in the Gulf, which helps with these enterprises. Funding and ideological support also comes from the radical Islamic discourse among the diaspora Bangladeshi community in the UK.
The petition, in its argument against Jamaat's registration, listed four main points about Jamaat that violate Bangladesh's constitution:
1) Jamaat in principle does not recognize the undisputed power of the people’s representatives to make laws.
2) Election Commission prohibits registration of communal parties
3) Discrimination on ground of religion or gender: Jammat's charter does not allow any woman or non-Muslim to hold its top post
4) Not locally registered – the Jamaat is a chapter of a foreign organization born in India with units all over the world.
Bangladesh Jamat e Islami protesting HC rule cancelling their registration in capital Dhaka. Image by Mehedi Hasan. Copyright Demotix (1/8/2013)
On Monday, 5th of August the vacation bench of the Appellate Division turned down the plea of Jamaat-e-Islami seeking a stay on the operation of the High Court (HC) verdict declaring illegal its registration as a political party. However Jamaat can appeal to the Appellate Division on the HC verdict when the court resumes from vacation. The party has declared a nationwide 48 hour strike from 12th of August, 2013 protesting the High Court verdict.
Meanwhile, the High Court has summoned Jamaat-e-Islami leaders, asking them to explain why calling strikes against its verdict should not be treated as contempt of court.
Many netizens expressed their satisfaction after hearing of the cancellation. Saqeena Quashim (@SaqeenaQuasim) wrote on Twitter:
#Jamat loses registration in #Bangladesh.Can't contest in forthcoming elections. Good riddance!
— Saqeena Quasim (@SaqeenaQuasim) August 1, 2013
Blogger Kazi Mamun compared Jamaat with gangrene and mentioned on Facebook:
‘ইনহিউম্যান’ বলেন আর যাই বলেন, আই ডোন্ট কেয়ার! জামাত হলো একটা গ্যাংগ্রিন এর মতো। কেটে সমূলে উৎপাদন না করা হলে কোনো লাভ নেই!
Call it ‘inhuman’ or not, I don't care. Jamaat is like a gangrene. You can't stop the degradation if they can't be uprooted.
Diaspora Twitter user Zara Kadir (@zarakadir) could not accept the cancellation of Jamaat's registration, arguing that this will be a hindrance to democracy:
And those who are rejoicing that Jamaat is banned, is this still about war crimes? You've damaged democracy. Slow clap. #SaveBangladesh
— জারা কাদির Zara (@zarakadir) August 1, 2013
Rozob Ali (@RozobAli) reminded people that almost 89 percent of Bangladeshis are Muslims, so Islamist politics cannot be stopped by banning Jamaat-e-Islami:
Banning an Islamic party will not stop Muslims from being politically active. It will only reinforce the clash of civilisation concept.
— Rozob Ali (@RozobAli) August 1, 2013
Azad Ali (@azadaliCCM) noted that the petition for Jamaat's registration to be canceled was indeed moved by a number of Islamist parties:
So in #Egypt it's the Salafi Nour party that helped coup & in #Bangladesh it's some Sufi group who didn't want Jamaat in Politics!?
— Azad Ali (@azadaliCCM) August 1, 2013
The cancellation of Jamaat's registration with the election commission had many confused as if Jamaat has been banned as a political party. Blogger and activist Kallol Mustafa cleared this confusion in a Facebook post:
জামাতে ইসলামিকে নির্বাচন কমিশনের দেয়া নিবন্ধন অবৈধ ঘোষণা করা আর জামাতের রাজনীতি নিষিদ্ধ করা দুইটা কিন্তু একেবারে ভিন্ন বিষয়। হাইকোর্টের রায়ে নির্বাচন কমিশনে জামাতের নিবন্ধন অবৈধ ঘোষিত হওয়ার পর, হাইকোর্টের রায় অনুযায়ী নির্বাচন কমিশন জামাতের নিবন্ধন বাতিল করলে, দল হিসেবে জামাতে ইসলামি নির্বাচন করতে পারবে না কিন্তু জামাতের দলীয় রাজনীতি কিংবা রাজনৈতিক কর্মকান্ড কিন্তু তাতে নিষিদ্ধ হয় না।
The declaration of Jamaat's registration illegal with the election commission and banning Jamaat's politics are totally different things. After this high court ruling, if the election commission indeed cancels Jamaat's registration, it will not be able to participate in future elections. But it does not deter them from carrying out party politics.
Depiction of Jamaat leaders accused of war crimes in street art during Shahbag protests. Image from Flickr by Mehdi Hasan. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Some argue that Jamaat uses Islam for their own benefits. In 1971, during the Bangladesh Liberation war, members used religion to justify their purge of Hindus and carrying out killings, rape and destruction on Bengalis. Renowned singer and blogger/activist Maksudul Haque wrote on Facebook:
‘নিবন্ধন বাতিল’ নিয়ে চতুর্দিকে যখন ‘চেতনার’ জয়গান তখন আমার কোনো আনন্দ নেই। নিষিদ্ধ করুন… তাতেও আমার কাছে নো বিগ ডিল… এদের পাপ ক্ষমার অযোগ্য… ইসলাম থেকে এই হায়েনাদের খারিজ করুন, বুকে ইমান রাখুন মজবুত এবং বীর দর্পে বলুন… ‘এরা মুসলমান না এরা কাফের’ সেদিনই শহীদানের আত্মা শান্তি পাবে… সেদিন বাংলাদেশে ইসলাম কলঙ্কমুক্ত হবে…
When everybody is celebrating the cancellation of registration of Jamaat, I do not rejoice. Ban them.. that won't be a big deal for me…Their sin is unforgivable… Purge these hyenas from Islam, keep faith in you and boldly say, “They are not Muslims, they are disbelievers”.. Only then those who gave their lives will rest in peace… that day Islam in Bangladesh will be free of sins.
The Islamist political party has previously been banned a number of times since its birth in 1941. They were banned in Pakistan in 1959 and in 1964 and in Bangladesh in 1972. In 1979 they were again allowed to work as a political party. Lawyer and Twitter user Shah Ali Forhad (@shah_farhad) observed:
If #Jamaat gets banned now, this will not be the 1st time they get banned, but rather the 4th time! #SaveBangladesh pic.twitter.com/YJjXQijMiE
— Shah Ali Farhad (@shah_farhad) August 2, 2013

author: পান্থ রহমান রেজা (Pantha)


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Do FEMEN’s Topless Protests Advance Women’s Rights or Jeopardize Them? · Global Voices
Marie Bohner

Whether the feminist movements in Europe and France rally behind them or not, the controversy surrounding feminist protest group FEMEN continues. Triggering a barrage of criticism and attacks on social media, in the press and within some political circles, the members of FEMEN–using their bare breasts as simple yet radical weapons–seem to serve as a symbol of protest for women facing difficulties all over the world.
When a man sets himself on fire in protest, no one thinks to accuse him of harming any social justice movements. So is FEMEN jeopardizing women's rights with the radical nature of their actions?
Following FEMEN's shows of support for Tunisian FEMEN activist Amina Tyler, who had been threatened by Tunisian leaders for posting topless political photos on her Facebook page and was arrested for painting the group's name on a cemetery wall in Kairouan in protest at a planned meeting of radical Sunni Muslim Salafists, Karima Brini [fr], founder of Tunisian association Femme et citoyenneté (Women and citizenship), wrote that such radicalization can be damaging [fr]. Three FEMEN activists were later arrested and imprisoned for protesting topless in front of the Justice Ministry in Tunis in support of Tyler:
Les raisons de leur combat contre l’exploitation des femmes sont respectables. Mais ce qu’elles ont fait ici en Tunisie va nous porter préjudice parce qu’on aura tendance à associer les organisations qui travaillent pour les droits des femmes à leur action.”
The reasons for their fight against the exploitation of women are honourable. But what they have done here in Tunisia will adversely affect us because people will be inclined to associate their actions with organizations working for women's rights.
FEMEN's trade secret
There are likely many circumstantial reasons that the FEMEN movement has been experiencing so much media success. With unceasingly white-hot Twitter [fr] accounts (nearly 7,000 followers for FEMEN France) and passionate Facebook [fr] pages for every country (nearly 40,000 likes on the FEMEN France page), as well as a content-filled website, it is clear that FEMEN activists know how to use all the means at their disposal to make some noise–and they do.
It seems their key to success lies simply in their radically innovative means of protest: a simple, powerful, effective, iconic, popular, universal, and age-old gesture, a huge kick in the hornet's nest. A gesture that Olivier Ciappa [fr] wanted to reflect in the new French stamp he designed, bearing an image of the country's national emblem Marianne inspired by prominent FEMEN activist Inna Shevchenko:
Elle incarne le mieux les valeurs de la République, liberté, égalité, fraternité. Le féminisme fait partie intégrante de ces valeurs. Et la Marianne, au temps de la Révolution était seins nus, alors pourquoi ne pas rendre hommage à cette fabuleuse Femen ? “
She best exemplifies the values of the French Republic: liberty, equality, fraternity. Feminism is an integral part of these values. And Marianne was topless during the Revolution, so why not pay tribute to this fabulous FEMENist?
It is also a gesture for which Tunisian FEMEN activist Amina Tyler has been both celebrated and condemned. Charged with “immoral conduct” (gestes immoraux [fr]) by the Tunisian Ministry of Justice, it is this very gesture that Sami Adleeb defended on his blog [fr]:
En aucun cas son geste est impudique ni symptomatique d’un quelconque trouble psychologique. C’est un cri d’indignation et de colère contre la bondieuserie […]. Elle voulait attirer l’attention de l’opinion publique mondiale sur les atteintes au droit des femmes, sur la banalisation du viol et l’impunité dont bénéficient les violeurs en Tunisie post 14 janvier 2011. […] En recourant à ce mode d’expression politique inédit en Tunisie, Amina n’a pas enfreint les tabous ou un quelconque ordre moral […], elle n’a justement rien à dissimuler, c’est pourquoi elle revendique en toute dignité et liberté.”
In no way is her act indecent or symptomatic of any psychological disorder. It is a outcry of indignation and anger directed towards sanctimoniousness […]. She wanted to draw global attention to the violations of women's rights, the trivialization of rape and the impunity being enjoyed by rapists in post-Revolution Tunisia. […] By using this unprecedented method of political expression in Tunisia, Amina has not violated any taboos or moral order […], she rightly has nothing to hide, that is why she makes her demands in complete dignity and freedom.
“Free Amina” (Libérez Amina): Show of support for Amina in Montreal posted on FEMEN France's Facebook page, courtesy of FEMEN France
Nudity, particularly that of women, as a form of protest against societal violence in public space had been mentioned before by Rue 89 [fr] in 2011 in relation to the Tibet-China conflict:
En septembre, à Shanghaï, une autre femme âgée de 77 ans, médecin, avait eu recours à un autre mode de protestation : elle avait manifesté, nue et à genoux devant le siège du tribunal local.”
In September, in Shanghai, another woman–77 years old and a doctor–used another form of protest: she demonstrated, nude and on her knees, in front of the local court.
An unclear but “sextreme” message
If FEMEN's actions are clear, the message attached to them seems to be harder to understand. After posting a problematic tweet about Islam and Ramadan, Inna Shevchenko [fr] defended herself from the charges of islamophobia in the French daily newspaper Libération [fr] :
S’agissant des accusations d’islamophobie, Inna Shevchenko les balaie d’un revers de la main, préférant le terme « religiophobe » et insistant sur le fait que les Femen n’ont « pas peur de souligner les aspects liberticides de cette religion ou d’autres religions ».”
Inna Shevchenko brushes off accusations of Islamophobia, preferring the term “religiophobe” and insisting that FEMEN is “not afraid to point out draconian aspects of that religion or of other religions.”
FEMEN's website has recently evolved, it seems, to take a more radical turn, combining highly connotative symbols like the swastika with battle poses and anti-male sentiment:
FEMEN – is the new Amazons, capable to undermine the foundations of the patriarchal world by their intellect, sex, agility, make disorder, bring neurosis and panic to the men's world.
In India, other women have moved from an imagined battle of the sexes to a real one with the Pink Sari gang [fr – see also on English Wikipedia]:
Elles ont choisi le rose comme emblème de leur combat et peuvent compter dans leurs rangs, plusieurs centaines de militantes et de militants. Elles sont armées de lathi – les bâtons traditionnels – qui servent à battre les hommes qui ont abusé de leurs épouses ou les ont abandonnées, et aussi à “tabasser” les policiers qui ont refusé d’enregistrer des plaintes pour viol.”
They chose pink as the symbol of their struggle and count hundreds of activists among their ranks. They are armed with lathi–traditional sticks–used to beat men who have abused or abandoned their wives, and also to “beat” police officers who have refused to register rape complaints.
FEMEN seems much more moderate on their site's info page:
The word “national” in the last sentence could raise some eyebrows, however.
Neither for or against
The FEMEN movement's identity is very much under construction, constantly evolving along with the news that it generates. It arouses hatred that seems to come from another era, but also a lot of misunderstandings, in particular from feminists. The site Egalité et réconcilitation [fr], for example, states:
« Ce n’est qu’une simulation de féminisme » […]. Femen « nuit à l’image de l’Ukraine autant qu’au vrai mouvement féministe », renchérit Marianna Evsioukova, une responsable à Kiev de l’ONG internationale La Strada, qui défend les droits des femmes. D’autres assimilent les Femen à un projet commercial […].”
“It is only a simulation of feminism” […]. FEMEN “is as damaging to Ukraine's image as it is to the real feminist movement,” adds Marianna Evsioukova, an official in Kiev at international NGO La Strada, which defends women's rights. Others liken FEMEN to a commercial project […].
But FEMEN does have its gesture, this gesture that connects it to the world, especially to women. A group of Greek women posted the following video on FEMEN France's Facebook page as a show of support to Amina and following the temporary censorship of their Facebook page.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ir2nqu9ufDo
If there is so much discussion about FEMEN, it is probably because, whatever is said, the issue of women's rights is far from being resolved both in France and abroad. Thus, it seems that the question is not about being for or against FEMEN, but rather about seeing the light shed on this archaic injustice as an opportunity for feminist movements in general to change and evolve. According to Femmes pour la paix's website [fr]:
Tout militantisme demande du courage car d’une certaine manière nous nous mettons à nu devant une masse uniforme. Il est plus facile de rester chez soi à regarder le monde évoluer sans nous que d’y participer.”
All activism requires courage because in some sense we are laying ourselves bare before an undifferentiated mass. It is easier to stay at home and watch the world go by without us than to get involved.

author: Marie Bohner


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Iran: Bye, Bye President Ahmadinejad · Global Voices
Farid

Ahmadinejad's departure. Source: Twitter user @Aatehranii
Iran's most divisive president since the 1979 revolution left office on Saturday, August 3, 2013. His successor, Hassan Rouhani, is now tasked with undoing the damage Ahmadinejad wrought at home and abroad.
Netizens published photos, posts, messages and tweets in to celebrate his departure. Some remembered the 2009 protest movement after a controversial presidential election that elected Ahmadinejad to a second term. #AhmadiByeBye is the slogan and hashtag. Several photos and cartoons of the former president are shared on Twitter.
Many Iranians and non-Iranians say Mahmoud Ahmadinejad lied about different issues for eight years.
Hadi Nili, an Iranian journalist and a former contributor to Global Voices shared the same thought:
“Tonight #Iran loses one of its bests; the best in lying. #AhmadiByeBye“, writes @rezayekhali
— Hadi Nili (@HadiNili) August 2, 2013
Salar tweeted [fa]:
تو این ۸ سال هیچ سوالی رو مستقیم جواب نداد. همیشه با تمسخر سوال کننده رو پیچوند. #AhmadiByeBye
— Sallar (@sallar) August 2, 2013
In 8 years he did not answer a single question, always with mockery he skipped the questions.
The ghosts of the previous election and the Green Movement is still present in today's messages.
Mehdi Saharkhiz tweeted:
Today right now he is moving out of where he should have moved out of 4 years ago. But what matters is he is gone #AhmadiByeBye #iranbrief
— Mehdi Saharkhiz (@onlymehdi) August 2, 2013
Mehdi Saharkhiz reminds us about controversial presidential election when many claim the election's result was rigged:
He is an ex. Just an ex. I can't say president. The real president is still under house arrest. #AhmadiByeBye is what he is #iranbrief
— Mehdi Saharkhiz (@onlymehdi) August 2, 2013
Several Iranians shared their happiness of Ahmadinejad's departure.
Tara Aghdashloo tweeted:
My boyfriend walking around the house singing #AhmadiByeBye — and he's not even Iranian.
— Tara Aghdashloo (@taraaghdashloo) June 18, 2013
Josh Sharyar shares the same joy and says:
Can't be too happy about Ahmadinejad leaving. Too many journos, activists, lawyers, citizens still in jail because of him. #AhmadiByeBye
— Josh Shahryar شهريار (@JShahryar) August 2, 2013

author: Farid


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Macedonians Protest Clearing of Trees in Skopje · Global Voices
Danica Radisic

As workers began cutting down trees over the first weekend in August in downtown Skopje Bristol Park to clear a portion of the land for the construction of the Macedonian National Broadcast Council's new baroque-style building, citizens of Macedonia's capital gathered to protest. Like in nearby Turkey and Serbia, the protest that seemed to revolve around a few trees brought up other legislative and political questions in the country.
Skopje authorities secured a perimeter of some 300 meters around the site that cars were not allowed to pass as workmen armed with saws began to do their work on Saturday, August 3, 2013, due to previous alerts and smaller protests by activists. While some protesters managed to gather in the park, citizens living nearby were reportedly not allowed to leave their buildings, which authorities explained was a sort of safety precaution.
An article in Libertas, titled “About the Massacre at Bristol” describes the details and includes pictures of the morning in question, as well as specifically points out some of the alleged illegalities of the act. Author Nicholas Naumoski lists:
Пристапот со кола беше забранет во радиус од 300 метри.
Луѓе што сакале да се приклучат на протестот одејќи низ Градски Sид биле запрени од полицијата и задржувани со потреба од претрес. На крајот не ги пуштиле да поминат.
Ниту полицајците ниту дрвосечачите немаа никаков документ (наредба, овластување или решение) за сечење на дрвјата. Наспроти тоа, Советот на Општина Центар на првата своја седница ја прифати иницијативата на Плоштад Слобода за зачувување на парковите околу Бристол со што се искажа политичка волја за нивно опстојување и обновување. Прикажаниот документ со печатот на општината и потписот на Градоначалникот и Претседателот на Советот не му значеше ништо на командирот затоа што тој примил „усна“ наредба.
Access to cars was not allowed in a radius of 300 meters.
People who wanted to join the protest by way of the City Wall were stopped by police and detained for searches. In the end they were released.
Neither the police nor the loggers had any documents (work orders, permission or resolution) for the cutting of the trees. In contrast, the Council for the Center Municipality, during its first session, accepted Freedom Square's initiative to preserve the parks around Bristol, expressing political will for their survival and recovery. The provided document which included the seal of the municipality and signature of the Mayor and President of the Council did not mean anything to the [police] commander because he received “verbal” orders.
The next day on Sunday, netizens took to social networks to organize further protests at Bristol and report [mk] on the gathering of protesters at the site.
Trees being cut down at the park in Skopje; photo by @blagdusha on Twitter, used with permission.
Although the protests were much smaller than expected, many Macedonians on social media sites have compared them to Taksim Square and Gezi Park. Twitter user Gotze wrote:
Далеку е #Бристол од Таксим, и ние од турски демонстранти… на денот кога требаше да има најголем одзив едвај 250-300 луѓе дојдоа…
— Gotze (@Gordiev_jazol) August 4, 2013
#Bristol is far from Taksim, and we from Turkish protesters… on the day when there should have been the largest response barely 250-300 people showed up…
— Gotze (@Gordiev_jazol) August 4, 2013
The protest brought together some 300 people, while police barricades were set up around the location again. Macedonian Plus Info site provides a photo gallery [mk] of the barricades and protests from Sunday, while Libertas provides photos and video [mk] of the initial cutting at four a.m., strangely, on the night between Saturday and Sunday, calling the midnight act “cowardly”. Some social media users noted that the protests were indeed peaceful, that there was little police presence at the protest site itself and that police forces present mostly remained on the sidelines [mk].
The park at Bristol is seen by Skopje citizens as one of the favorite landmarks of the city's center. Although some were disappointed by the low turnout on a Sunday protest, many are saying that this is the beginning of something bigger as Macedonians seem fed up of such arbitrary decisions by government institutions. The trees in the park, however, have been cleared and construction of the new National Broadcasting Council building is now underway.
Construction site where the trees at Bristol Park used to stand; photo by @blagdusha on Twitter, used with permission.

author: Danica Radisic


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Russians Wary of Snowden Asylum · Global Voices
Daniel Alan Kennedy

After spending six weeks ensconced in Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport, Edward Snowden was finally permitted to leave the airport “transit zone” after he received temporary asylum in Russia for the period of one year. Slipping past the media circus and apparently departing in a taxi, Snowden managed to keep his ultimate destination a secret. His Russian lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, stated that Snowden is “the most wanted man on planet earth” [en] and therefore his safety is not guaranteed. This lack of information hasn't prevented netizens from contemplating Snowden's new life as a Russian resident.
Snowden's Asylum Documents. Youtube screenshot. August 2, 2013
Snowden has become a divisive figure in Russia — his decision to hitch his wagon to Putin's makes opposition and human rights activists uneasy, while his status as a defected “spy” alienates many of Putin's supporters. Some of Snowden's detractors took obvious pleasure in imagining him failing to find happiness in his new home.
LiveJournal user AlexThunder [ru] had a particularly dark vision [ru] for Snowden's future as a liability to the Russian government:
Сейчас пошумят в новостях, найдут другую “сенасацию” и забудут все про него как про все прошлые “Oh my gosh is that really true!” Потом он небрежно оступится на лестнице где-то и упадёт неудачно, сломает себе шею. Ничего подозрительного – просто небрежность. И решительно никто по этому поводу не содрогнётся от ужаса.
There'll be a song and dance in the news, [then] they'll find another “sensation” and forget all about [Snowden] like in every other case of “Oh my gosh is that really true!” Then he'll absentmindedly lose his footing in a stairwell, fall down and break his neck. Nothing suspicious – simply carelessness. And absolutely no one is going to shudder in horror when this happens.
Another blogger, commenting [ru] on news of Snowden's successful asylum application on the Echo Moskvy website, seemed to pity, rather than gloat:
Ну Эдик-то России не видел, он видел лишь обложку впутенкратии. Надеюсь что ему интернет поможет разобраться … если конечно не обрезали провода вместе с языком – мы же не знаем соглашения, по которому ему разрешили поменять тюрьму ТАМ, на “свободу” (под колпаком) ТУТ
Well, Eddie hasn't really seen Russia, he's seen only the facade of the Putinocracy. I hope the internet can help him figure it out … that is of course if they haven't cut off his internet access along with his tongue – we don't know the agreement which allowed him to swap imprisonment THERE for “freedom” (in a fishtank) HERE
At least one prominent Russian appears to believe that Snowden has a brighter future. Pavel Durov, founder of the Russia's most popular social networking site VKontakte, posted [ru] on his own VKontakte page that he would be happy for Snowden to come and work at his company:
В такие минуты чувствуешь гордость за нашу страну и сожаление по поводу курса США — страны, предающей принципы, на которых она некогда была построена. Приглашаем Эдварда в Петербург и будем рады, если он решит пополнить звездную команду программистов ВКонтакте. В конце концов, нет более популярной европейской интернет-компании, чем VK. Думаю, Эдварду может быть интересно заниматься защитой личных данных миллионов наших пользователей.
At this time one feels pride for our country and regret for USA, a country betraying the principles it was founded upon. We're inviting Edward to St. Petersburg and would be glad for him to decide to join our stellar team of programmers at VKontakte. At the end of the day, there is no more popular internet company in Europe than VKontakte. I think Edward would be interested in protecting the personal data of millions of our users.
Durov has had a tempestuous relationship [GV] with Russian authorities and has maintained a low profile since he was accused of a hit-and-run against a St. Petersburg traffic cop (the charges were later dropped [GV]). His offer could be an attempt to ingratiate himself with the Russian elite, a genuine ideological sympathy with a fellow libertarian (Durov supports internet freedom initiatives), or a simple publicity stunt.
Perhaps the most biting reaction to Snowden's successful asylum application came from Roman Dobrokhotov, a young journalist and long time member of the opposition who had previously noted [ru] the similarity of PRISM to Russia's SORM internet-monitoring system [GV]. Dobrokhotov penned an “Open letter to Edward Snowden” on his Facebook, which was re-published on the Ekho Moskvy [ru] and Novaya Gazeta [ru] websites, and later translated into English [en] on Index on Censorship. Dobrokhotov's letter is veritably dripping with sarcasm:
Вчера я узнал о том, что тебе удалось все-таки получить в России временное убежище. Поздравляю тебя от лица всей прогрессивной мировой общественности. Теперь ты, наконец, в безопасности. Здесь, в России, никто и не подумает преследовать тебя за какие-то там разоблачения спецслужб, прослушивающих телефоны и читающих чужие письма без решения суда. Ибо у нас, слава богу, правовое государство – российские спецслужбы еще с 2008 года имеют полное законное право прослушивать телефонные разговоры и читать электронную почту, всем это известно и разоблачать нечего…
Yesterday I learned that you have managed to gain temporary asylum in Russia. Congratulations on behalf of progressive people everywhere. At last, you are safe. Here in Russia no one would dream of harassing you for exposing the security services when they listen to telephone conversations and read others letters without a warrant. Russia, thank God, is a law-abiding state and ever since 2008 our security services have had a legal right to listen to whatever people are talking about on the phone and to read their e-mails. Everyone is aware of this, and there is nothing to expose…
Dobrokhotov ended the letter with a few sardonic pieces of advice:
[…] не нарушай правила дорожного движения пока не станешь депутатом, не трать деньги на покупку квартиры (просто познакомься с Рамзаном Кадыровым), учись играть в бадминтон, а если предложат выдвигаться в мэры Москвы – не соглашайся, это разводка!
[…] don't break any traffic laws until you become an MP, don't waste money buying a flat (just become friendly with Ramzan Kadyrov [en]), learn to play badminton [en] and if someone offers to run for Mayor of Moscow — do not agree, it’s a trap!
Snowden's future in is uncertain. He is a guest of the Russian state and will almost certainly be expected not to abuse that hospitality by making statements critical of the Russian government. His status is temporary and will presumably be up for review when it expires, and it is unclear if he will be able to leave Russia in the meantime to travel to one of the other countries that have offered him asylum. If he wishes to avoid a long prison sentence back home, Snowden will have to maintain a low profile and hope that a diplomatic thaw between US and Russia doesn't lead to an extradition.

author: Daniel Alan Kennedy


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Saudi Activist Released After Two Years in Prison · Global Voices
Anas Soliman

Since March 2011, prominent human rights activist Mohammed al-Bjadi, has been in prison after taking part in a peaceful protest in the absolute monarchy. Earlier today, August 6th, he called his family to inform them that a release order was issued for him. A few hours later, he was finally released. al-Bjadi is a co-founding member of the leading independent human rights organization in the country, Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA).
On March 20th, 2011, al-Bjadi participated in a protest in front of the Interior Ministry in the Saudi capital Riyadh. He was secretly tried before a state security court and he was sentenced to four years in prison for charges that include establishing an unlicensed association, and possessing illegal books. During the past two and half years, al-Bjadi was held in prisons in Riyadh and Jeddah and has undergone several hunger strikes to demand justice.
The news was received by overwhelming happiness throughout the Saudi Twittersphere. His followers rose quickly from 4,000 to around 22,000 [at the time of publishing this post] within a few hours.
His brother, Medad al-Bjadi, broke the news at 5.06am and tweeted [ar]:
#محمد البجادي. خبر عاجل تم الافراج عنه الحمدللله انا الان متوجه للتوقيع
@t3aun: Mohamad al-Bjadi..breaking news he was released, thanks God. I'm there to sign.
ACPRA member Abdullah al-Saidi explained:
اتصل #محمد_البجادي وأفاد بخروجه غداً بإذن الله تعالى وطلب من أشقائه الذهاب الى سجن الطرفية للتوقيع المصدر ابن عمه
@abdulllah1406: Mohammad al-Bjadi called and informed [his family] that he will be released tomorrow. He asked his brothers to go to the Terfiya prison to sign. Source: His cousin.
At 8.36am, his brother Medad tweeted:
تم خروجه النهائي الان الف مبروك للجميع
@t3aun: He is finally out now. Congratulations everyone.

author: Anas Soliman


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Spain: Catalan Water Polo Player Quits Twitter After Harassment · Global Voices
Violeta Camarasa

Roser Tarragó, one of the nine Catalan players of the Spain women's water polo team that won the gold medal at the 2013 FINA World Aquatics Championships, closed her Twitter account (@rutarrago) on August 5, 2013 after being bullied for showing a Catalan separatist flag on her Twitter profile.
On Sunday, after winning the gold medal with the Spanish team in Barcelona, Tarragó received the corresponding congratulations. But soon some websites, such as eleconomista.es [es], noticed she was showing a Catalan separatist flag made with typographical characters ||*|| on her Twitter handle and a picture wearing the Catalan team suit instead of the Spanish one. She then became the target of a barrage of disparaging comments through the social network.
The region of Catalonia has long had a movement for independence from Spain, but in recent years it has seen a surge of support. Netizens supported Tarragó with hashtags #totssomrosertarrago (we all are Roser Tarragó) and #totsambrosertarrago (everybody with Roser Tarragó).
Among the comments written below the article [es], some called her names, such as “son of the b****”, “stupid”, “scum” or “mercenary”. Other comments, like one signed by a reader identified as “Spanish” which was marked by other readers with 186 negative votes, claim that she shouldn't have been admitted into the Spanish team because she feels Catalan:
Lo que no entiendo es porque antes de selecionarlas por ser buenos o buenas en su deporte , antes no se les pregunta por su condicion como español o española, cualquier español sentimos los triunfos de los nuestros se se sienten españoles, sino prefiero que no jueguen aunque no ganemos nada.
El orgullo no es solo la victoria sino las personas que nos representen al margen del puesto que ocupen.
Yo no selecionaria a ningun catalan o vasco que antes no se identifique con la selección con la que juega en este caso españa.
Hay algunos que solo lo hacen por dinero.
Y esto me dirigo tambien al Real Madrid con el vasco que ha fichado.
I don't get why [the national teams] don't ask [the athletes] if they feel Spanish before selecting them for being good at certain sports, we the Spanish feel the victories of our teams if they feel Spanish, if not I prefer that they don't play even if we don't win anything at all.
Pride is not only victory, but those people who represent us, doesn't matter which position they achieve. I wouldn't select any Catalan or Basque person if they cannot identify with the team they play with, in this case, Spain.
Some of them only do that for money.
And I am also addressing Real Madrid for the Basque player that has been signed.
On Twitter, some users including some Catalan users insulted or criticized Tarragó for advocating for Catalan independence and playing with the Spanish team at the same time.
Isabel María (@Isabelbmisa) [es], a journalist at Diario de Sevilla, and José M. CM (@35metros) [es] tweeted:
Yo lo único que digo es que si Roser Tarragó es independentista ¿que hace representando a España?
— Isabel Maria (@Isabelbmisa) August 5, 2013
I'm only saying that if Roser Tarragó is a separatist, what is she doing representing Spain?
RT para que no vuelva a estar en la Selección Española Roser Tarragó con el trapo independestista pic.twitter.com/yeZEoSHZCp
— José M. CM (@35metros) August 3, 2013
RT so Roser Tarragó won't be playing again with the Spanish team with the separatist cloth pic.twitter.com/yeZEoSHZCp
On the other side, users like Manel (@srmanel) critized [ca] the athlete for playing with Spain:
La Roser Tarragó no serà tan independentista quan juga amb la selecció espanyola avantposant diners i prestigi a la seva ideologia, eh?
— manel (@srmanel) August 5, 2013
Roser Tarragó must not be such a big separatist if she plays with the Spanish team, putting money and prestige ahead of her ideology, isn't it?
However, support messages have been published using the hashtags #totssomrosertarrago [ca] (we all are Roser Tarragó) and #totsambrosertarrago [ca] (everybody with Roser Tarragó). Supporting tweets and reasonable comments defending Tarragós’ rights to choose the best options for her professional career while freely expressing her identity and political opinions have flooded the net. Sara Díaz (@SaritaDiaz_93), editor on synchronized swimming at vavel.com.es, Ariadna Bassols [ca] (@aribassols), artistic gymnastics coach, and Cl.J.León (@tirant_el_blanc) [ca] tweeted as follows:
@AleixUrzay @RuTarrago y como digo. No lo comparto pero lo respeto. mientras se dejen todo cuando juegan con la sele como si se siente china
— Sarita (@SaritaDiaz_93) August 5, 2013
@SaritaDiaz_93 @RuTarrago comments like this one are worth reading, not those that insult. She quitted [Twitter] after being insulted
@AleixUrzay @RuTarrago As I was saying, I don't share her opinions, but do respect them. As far as they give it all for the Spanih team, I don't care if she feels Chinese
@delmoralo para mi criticable seria si no rindiera al maximo. Si rinde, fuera de la piscina que piense lo q quiera. Mi humilde opinión.
— Ariadna Bassols (@aribassols) August 4, 2013
@aribassols Insults are out of place, but I find her attitude very reproachable
@delmoralo For me it'd be reproachable if she wouldn't be productive to the max. If she is, outside the swimmingpool she can think whatever she wants. My humble opinion
Suport a la @RuTarrago pels insults rebuts i respecte per si vol continuar jugant amb la selecció dels espanyols !! #TotsSomRoserTarragó
— Cl.J.León Ii*iI #DUI (@tirant_el_blanc) August 4, 2013
My support for @RuTarrago for the insults she's getting and respect for her if she wants to keep on playing with the Spanish team!!
Though the Madrid 2020 committee (@Madrid2010ES), which supports the Spanish capital's bid for the 2020 Olympic & Paralympic Games, uses an image of Tarragó for promotion purposes, nobody has stood up for the player.
Tarragó has never hidden her Catalan identity. In April, after playing with the Catalan team, which is not allowed to compete at the Olympic Games, she declared [ca] that “it was a very special game, I could finally defend my colours”.
This is not the only case of anti-Catalan attitudes in Spain against athletes. Another relevant case is that of Àlex Fàbregas, a Catalan Olympian who mentioned in July 2012 that he felt more Catalan than Spanish and only played for Spain because “he has no other option” (there is a Spanish law penalizing athletes who refuse to join the Olympic team). A storm of violent comments towards Fàbregas — including death threats — led the athlete to delete his Twitter account. Sympathetic users created the hashtag #TotsSomÀlexFàbregas  (We're all Àlex Fàbregas) [ca] in response.

author: Violeta Camarasa


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Syrian Pianist Malek Jandali: “We Need Freedom for True Art” · Global Voices
Syria Untold

This post is cross-posted from Syria Untold.
When Syrians took to the streets in March 2011, they rebelled not only against the ruling Assad family, but also against the obscurantism that had been imposed on them for decades. Art as a whole, and music in particular, have played a crucial role in the paradigm shift that has accompanied the revolution, as Syrians discover their voices for the first time.
Syria Untold spoke to renowned composer and pianist Malek Jandali about the emergence of new forms of art and music in Syria. Jandali, who composed the song “Watani Ana” (My Homeland) at the start of the revolution, told us what he considers to be his personal contribution to his country: Music for freedom and justice, music for a new Syria.
Syria Anthem of the Free
Jandali’s latest work, a song called “Syria Anthem of the Free,” is something he described as “an anthem by the people, for the people.” He collaborated with the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra and the Cairo Opera House Choir to produce the song, as he thought Syrians deserved an anthem that represented the people.
The anthem tells the story of the millions of Syrians impacted by the current uprising; the martyrs, the women, the children and the refugees. “There are so many stories, and we artists, especially musicians, are so lucky because we can cut through the social political limits, and geographical boundaries, and go right into humanity, into the hearts of those children,” Jandali said. “We can be the voice, rather than the echo of these kids. Music, as this universal language, can tell the story and put a human face to the sacrifices and the story of those courageous kids.”
The current Syrian national anthem, “Humat al-Diyar” (Guardians of the Homeland), was first adopted in 1938. It was replaced briefly in 1958, when Syria joined the United Arab Republic with Egypt, but has been the symbol of the country since 1961.
Syrian pianist and composer Malek Jandali. Source: Malekjandali.com
Jandali said he did not write “Syria Anthem of the Free” with the intention of it being the new national anthem, but would be honored if the Syrian people chose it to be so. It starts off with the words Syria and freedom, two references missing from the current anthem:
Syria, Syria! Homeland of the free and land of freedom. Syria, Syria! Land of the golden grain
Jandali was born in Germany, but went to school in his home town of Homs. “Every morning, we were forced to chant and memorize regime slogans,” he said, adding that the Assad regime connected the flag, the country and the national anthem to the regime and Assad family,” and that Syria was “Assad’s Syria.” He said he grew up feeling like a hypocrite; praising the Assad dictatorship while at school, and returning home to a family that was against the brutal regime.”
Suppressing art and culture
“[Dictators, in general] are fearful of art and music, because it’s the search for truth and beauty. If I spoke my truth then, I would be killed, tortured or deported,” he said, adding that portraits of dictator Assad are on our stamps, walls and notebooks and in our schools in a way that has colonized Syrian spaces, our culture and even our history.
“Most references in the anthem are to the military. Why don’t we talk about Syrian inventions like the alphabet and music, instead of military forces and war?” Jandali said.
Syria’s coast is home to the world’s oldest music notation, and the Ugaritic alphabet, which is thought to the civilization’s first alphabet. But instead of paying homage to the country’s rich history, the national anthem begins with a reference to the military, the “guardians of the homeland.” Ironically, the Syrian Arab Army, in reality the Assad thugs, has been the cause of the destruction of my homeland Syria and committing war crimes against humanity over the last 29 months.  More than 185 thousand civilians have been kills, over 6 million refugees inside Syria and million outside Syria and the entire world is watching!”
Two years ago, Jandali produced an album called “Echoes from Ugarit,” in an attempt to bring back to life Syria’s forgotten music. He returned to his home country after an absence of 10 years and presented the project to the Ministry of Culture and the Syrian Symphony Orchestra, but was met with rejection. Jandali said he eventually was forced to to go to the Presidential Palace to seek permission.
“It took about eight months to get security clearance and all the approvals to perform Syrian music in Syria,” he said. “That shows how corrupt the system is, how they forced expats like you and me to be demonized or disrespected.”
Because his performance went against the wishes of the Ministry of Culture and the symphony, Jandali said they accused him of being a spy. “They wanted to keep me from being involved in such projects in the future. They were fearful of knowledge and fearful of exposing the truth.”
The musician feels that it is not only Syria that has suppressed the expression of art; rather, the entire Arab world has. He gave the example of the Suez Canal in Egypt and commissioning Italian composer Verdi for an opera “Aida” for the opening ceremony. “Why didn't we have an Arabic opera composed by an Arab musician to celebrate the opening of the Suez Canal? Didn't our ancestors invent music?” he said.
“That’s insulting as an Arab musician,” he said. “Where are our symphonies, our operas? We are the inventors and yet we don’t have a voice.”
A new generation of Syrian artists
Jandali said dictators fear the soft power that can transform people’s mind, which is why they target artists and intellectuals. He has personally suffered this persecution. Though he left the country years ago, regime forces have repeatedly ransacked his Syrian home and severely beat his parents in retaliation to his anti-regime activity. But the revolution has allowed for the birth of a generation of artists, breaking away from the decades of official propaganda present in art production.
“That was not art,” Jandali asserted. “You need freedom to produce. You need freedom for true art, for knowledge and culture, for innovation and progress. Without freedom, there is nothing.”
All of Jandali’s work since the start of the start of Syrian revolution has been self-funded. He generously donated his time and music to help suffering Syrian children in his benefit concerts worldwide. As the artist wondered, “When are Syrian organizations going to step up and support the very few real Syrian artists who stood with the people in their quest for freedom and human rights?”
The translated lyrics of his latest song, “Syria Anthem of the Free,” are:
Syria, Syria! Homeland of the free and land of freedom
Syria, Syria! Land of the golden grain
Oh my country, cradle of civilizations, Its heritage inspired scribes
Homeland of the honorable, resting place of the martyrs
Our sun shines bright, our eagle soars the highest skies
Oh my country, river of virtues
Its glory is engraved in tablets and stones
Homeland of the Prophets, the alphabet and music
We pray to God, never to part from my country, my family
The olive groves of my grandfathers, and the children's hands
Land of the free and home of freedom
Syria, Syria! Homeland of the free and land of freedom.
This post is cross-posted from Syria Untold.

author: Syria Untold


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Tchip: The “Shaking My Head” Meme from Africa  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Nadéra Bouazza explains what being “tchippée” [fr] means for french speaking black communities. Tchip is the sound one makes when he/she disapproves of the behavior/action of someone else (roughly similar to the “shaking my head” internet slang). The “Tchip” sound is used across most black communities and has become an internet meme:
Will Smith as the animated illustration of the sound “Tchip” by the blog La Tchipie – Public Domain

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Uruguay One Step Closer to Legalizing Marijuana  · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Uruguay's House of Representatives has approved a bill to legalize and regulate the production, distribution and sale of marijuana. If approved by the Senate and signed by President Jose Mujica, Uruguay would become the first country in the world to legalize marijuana.
Under the bill approved by the House, “the government would be allowed to sell marijuana,” as BBC News reported on August 1, 2013:
The state would assume “the control and regulation of the importation, exportation, plantation, cultivation, the harvest, the production, the acquisition, the storage, the commercialisation and the distribution of cannabis and its by-products”.
Buyers would have to be registered on a database and be over the age of 18. They would be able to buy up to 40g (1.4oz) per month in specially licensed pharmacies or grow up to six plants at home.
But the bill faces “fierce opposition”, as The Economist explained in a piece titled “The Experiment“:
A poll last month found 63% against, and opponents claim that consumption will rise. But its supporters argue that drug prohibition has caused more problems—in the form of organised crime and the risks of clandestine consumption—than the drugs themselves.
The Economist also published an article explaining the bill.
Photo shared by @CannabisMagazin on Twitter.
The debate started last year, when the Uruguayan government unveiled its plan to decriminalize the controlled sale of marijuana.
The debate has continued online, as citizens and analysts from Uruguay and abroad consider the implications of legalizing marijuana.
On Twitter, Seba Sánchez (@SebaSanchezuy) [es] referred to recent moves by Uruguayan lawmakers on abortion and same-sex marriage:
Te recuerdo que sos parte de un momento único. Leyes sobre la interrupción del embarazo, el matrimonio igualitario y la marihuana. Pasa acá.
— Seba Sánchez (@SebaSanchezuy) August 5, 2013
I remind you that you are part of a unique moment. Laws on abortion, same-sex marriage and marijuana. It happens here.
While Alejandro Figueredo (@afigue2010) [es] pointed out public opposition to the bill:
Algo hay que destacar en los que impulsan y votan el proyecto de ley de regulación de marihuana. Poco les importó la opinión de la gente.
— Alejandro Figueredo (@afigue2010) July 31, 2013
Something should be noted about those who push for and vote for the bill regulating marijuana. They cared very little about the peoples’ opinion.
Carlos Aloisio in the blog Razones y personas: repensando Uruguay [es] (Reasons and people: rethinking Uruguay), wrote that the regulation of marijuana is “a solution, not a panacea.” Carlos looked into the national debate over the bill and argued [es] that many Uruguayans don't support the bill because “it puts us in the uncomfortable situation of choosing between two evils”:
Por un lado, esto implica aceptar que tenemos un problema, y que estamos en la peor situación. Por otra parte, también implica reconocer que la regulación es una solución, pero está muy lejos de ser una panacea. La literatura internacional sobre el tema reconoce la ausencia de soluciones o recetas universales al problema, y admite de hecho que no hay diseños óptimos. La solución para Uruguay será algo que iremos descubriendo juntos a medida que ganemos conocimiento y experiencia en el problema. Pero, para hacer esta búsqueda posible, el primer paso es regular.
On the one hand, this means accepting that we have a problem, and that we are in the worst situation. On the other hand, it also means recognizing that regulation is a solution, but it is far from a panacea. The international literature on the subject recognizes the absence of universal solutions or prescriptions for the problem, and admits that indeed there are no optimal designs. The solution for Uruguay will be something that we will discover together as we gain knowledge and experience about the problem. But to make this search possible, the first step is to regulate.
In Asuntos del Sur [es], Chilean analyst Eduardo Vargas wrote about Uruguay's bill and what it means for drug legalization in the region. He concluded [es]:
El desafío para Uruguay es grande. Ser pionero no es fácil. Sin embargo, el éxito de esta política también depende del resto de América Latina. Urge que el resto de países inicien revisiones profundas a sus leyes de drogas y tomando la experiencia uruguaya, junto con la de los estados de Colorado y Washington, finalmente piensen, diseñen y ejecuten políticas de drogas más humanas, serias y responsables. Es el momento para que nuestra región se sume a la visión y pragmatismo que llevará al país de Pepe Mujica a liderar con responsabilidad, con una regulación responsable.
The challenge for Uruguay is great. Being a pioneer is not easy. However, the success of this policy also depends on the rest of Latin America. Other countries need to initiate major revisions to their drug laws taking into consideration the Uruguayan experience, along with that of Colorado and Washington states, to finally think, design and implement more humane, serious and responsible drug policies. It's time for our region to join the vision and pragmatism that will lead the country of Pepe Mujica to lead responsibly, with responsible regulation.


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Congolese Teacher Pushed Out of Moving Police Van in Morocco, Dies  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

The death of Toussaint-Alex Mianzoukouta, a french teacher in Tanger is symptomatic of increasing brutality towards sub Saharan immigrants from the Moroccan police, Afrik Online reports [fr]. Mianzoukouta was not given the opportunity to  present his immigration documents before he was taken into the van, the report says. He died from multiple head injuries and leaves behind a wife and two children.


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Madagascar Agency Suspended from Network Tracking Money Laundering  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Malagasy Ariary currency and Euros via Teraka Randriantsoa blog – Public Domain
Lambo T. reports [fr] on the website of La Gazette de La Grande Ile that Samifin [mg], the agency in charge of cleaning up the financial sector and combat transnational illegal operations in Madagascar has been suspended from the Egmont Group of financial intelligence units. Egmont is an international network that helps tracks money laundering or terrorism financing. Lambo T. explains that the current administration's failure to move forward on a Bill against terrorism and transnational organized crime that led to Samifin's suspension.


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Referendum on Taiwan’s Fourth Nuclear Plant Suspended · Global Voices
I-fan Lin

Under the immense pressure from anti-nuclear activists, the lawmakers from the ruling Kuomingtang (KMT) party and opposition party the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) decided to suspend moving forward with a referendum on the island's fourth nuclear power plant until September 2013, according to local news report on August 6.
The ruling party was determined to solve the controversy over the fourth nuclear plant by means of a referendum because opinion back in February showed that those opposed to the plant were less than 50 percent across Taiwan. And hence, the Executive Yuan proposed the referendum on the nuclear power plant on February 25, 2013.
But some argue Taiwan's tough referendum law is unfair, requiring 50 percent of voters to participate in the referendum or else the proposal in the referendum will be rejected, even if those who have voted reach a majority consensus. In the last ten years, six national referendums have been proposed, but none of them was passed.
Anti-nuclear activists responded by mobilizing citizen campaigns in major cities for a nuke-free Taiwan. This latest development is a temporary victory for anti-nuclear activists.
March 9 anti-nuclear rally in Taipei city. Photo taken by 孫窮理, coolloud.org.tw. Non-commercial use.
Outraged by the government's referendum proposal, on March 9, 2013, around 200,000 250,000 protesters [zh] rallied in Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung, and Taitung, demanding the government stop the nuclear plant without going through the referendum. The number of protesters has broken the record of all previous mobilization on environmental issues. The mobilization has some visible effects on public opinion. As cultural critic Chang Tie-chih pointed out, the anti-nuclear effort has developed into a citizen-initiated movement [zh] for a nuke-free Taiwan.
Since the island-wide mobilization in March, anti-nuclear activists has started gathering outside the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in the centre of Taipei city every Friday, inviting university professors to deliver talks about nuclear power, singers to perform, and poets to recite poetry as well as holding citizen forums to plan for future action. In addition to the weekend face-to-face gathering, activists and concerned citizens created a large number of groups and pages devoted to the anti-nuclear campaign. To name a few here:
Anti-nuclear flash mob via Facebook group Anti-nuclear army
Disregarding people's wish for a nuke-free Taiwan, on April 26 the government submitted the referendum proposal to the Legislative Yuan for a second reading and lawmakers had one month for internal discussion and negotiation. Anti-nuclear groups responded with a rally in Taipei city on May 19. When the one-month negotiation period came to an end on May 26, activists surrounded the Legislative Yuan [zh], demanding the lawmakers put an end to the nuclear plant project.
On August 2, the referendum proposal was submitted to the Legislative Yuan for a second and third reading but lawmakers from the opposition Democratic Progressive Party occupied the chairperson's stage and stopped the vote.
Protesters demonstrated outside the Legislative Yuan in August 2 against the fourth nuclear plant and the referendum. Photo taken by 陳逸婷, coolloud.org. Non-commercial use.
Anti-nuclear activists are prepared with two strategies. On one front, they protested outside the Legislative Yuan and explained to the public the problem of existing referendum law. On another, they also prepared to mobilize and win the referendum despite the rule of the game being unfair to them. By August 1, a survey conducted by a marketing company on “The Trend of Taiwan Society” [zh] showed that 70% of the opinion is against the development of nuclear plant.
Before the second reading, the Anti-Nuke Action Coalition  reinstated their position [zh] against the referendum:
我們認為，停建核四已獲絕大多數民眾的支持，立法院作為全國最高民意機關應善盡職責、充分反映民意，作出停建核四的決議，不必再勞師動眾，舉辦全國性公投。
我們認為國民黨立委若執意要舉辦核四停建公投，則應滿足以下兩個條件後，再處理公投提案，否則，核四停建公投將是玩弄人民、為核四續建備書的技倆：
一、提出核四工程品質現況檢驗報告，證明核四值得投入預算、繼續興建。
二、修正公投法，降低公投案通過之投票率門檻，以正確反映民意。
我們要求立法院在完成上列條件後，再處理核四公投提案，不應貿然在本次臨時會予以表決。
我們呼籲支持非核家園的立委們全力反對核四公投提案之表決。
Several organizations have prepared for the worse case scenario that the referendum be passed in the Legislation Yuan, as reported [zh] by Taiwan independent media coolloud.org:
綠盟秘書長崔愫欣[…]強調反核的民眾已經準備好面對公投，將會透過組織化動員，正面迎戰。
The placard said: “If you don't vote for the referendum, you vote for nuclear disaster.” via Facebook 洪雅書房. Public photo.
Now that the Legislative Yuan has agreed to suspend voting on the referendum proposal, the anti-nuclear activists will continue to pressure the government to stop the fourth nuclear power plant from operating with its administrative power.


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Robert Mugabe Wins Re-election in Zimbabwe Amid Claims of Fraud · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

President Robert Mugabe won Zimbabwe's presidential election on Saturday 31 July, 2013, beating his closest rival, the former Prime Minister in the coalition government Morgan Tsvangirai.
The peaceful elections were the first since the formation of a coalition government between Mugabe's Zanu PF party and Tsvangirai's The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). The coalition was formed following the last disputed and bloody elections in 2008.
Mugabe, who is 89 years old and has been in power for 33 years, will continue to rule the country for the next five years. Election observer missions from the African Union (AU) and Southern African Development Community (SADC) have endorsed Mugabe's victory amid claims of massive electoral fraud coming from the opposition.
Botswana, however, is the only African country that has called for an independent audit into the election. Some SADCC members have qualified their endorsements by arguing that the election was free “but not necessarily fair.”
President Robert Mugabe is the oldest leader in Africa. Photo released to the public domain by the U.S. federal government.
The election took place despite protests from Mugabe's coalition partners and Zimbabwean citizens after he unilaterally declared 31 July, 2013 as the date the country will hold elections. The Constitutional Court ordered Robert Mugabe to hold elections by 31 July following a successful application by Jealousy Mawarire, director of the Centre for Elections and Democracy in Southern Africa (CEDSA).
Using the hashtags #ZimElections, #ZimbabweDecides, #ZimDecides and #ZimbabweElections, Twitter users from different parts of the world react to Mugabe's victory.
A Zambian based in the the UK and the founder of CrossFire Radio, Mueti Moomba (@Muweight) wondered who voted for the 89-year-old leader:
Before I sleep I call out to all #zimbabweans , who in their right mind among you voted for a man on deaths door? #zimbabwedecides my foot
— mueti moomba (@Muweight) August 3, 2013
Zimbabwean social entrepreneur Sir Nigel (@SirNige) has not not given up hope:
I was once again reminded that there are things I/we can do after #ZimElections ie participate in the process starting NOW #263Chat #Twimbos
— Sir Nigel (@SirNige) August 6, 2013
Andiva (@AndyAndiva) from Kenya blamed the opposition MDC for participating in a flawed election:
so why did MDC participate in the elections with knowledge it was flawed from the onset? #Zimbabwedecides
— Andiva (@AndyAndiva) August 3, 2013
South African author and brand advisor Thebe Ikafaleng (@ThebeIkafaleng) quoted Tendai Biti, the Secretary General for MDC, making fun of those arguing that the presence of two million dead people on the voters’ roll did not cost the opposition:
“They admit there's 2m people who are dead on the voters’ roll, but ‘because they're dead, they can't vote’.” Tendai Biti. #ZimbabweDecides.
— Thebe Ikalafeng (@ThebeIkalafeng) July 31, 2013
Zim Elections (@ZimElections) showed the seriousness of dead voters’ problem:
75% of the 59 ID discovered at Polling stations in Chegutu town since last week Wednesday belong to dead people. #ZimElections
— ZimElections2013 (@Zimelections13) August 6, 2013
rakim allah (@LDaviano) commented on the same issue of “dead voters”:
Might be traumatising to hv more dead people voting than the living#zim elections
— rakim allah (@LDaviano) August 6, 2013
Al Jazeera's Azad Essa (@azadessa) questioned the African Union's assessment of the election:
There were 9700 polling stations. The AU [African Union] visited 350. Is that an acceptable sample size to pass judgement? #zimelections
— Azad Essa (@azadessa) August 3, 2013
Investigative journalist and film maker Stanley Kwenda (@stanleykwanda) noted that participation of police could have intimidated illiterate voters:
#Zimbabwedecides involvement of police & electoral officers in assisting illiterate voters could have intimidated voters
— stanley kwenda (@stanleykwenda) August 2, 2013
South African businessman Another_craig (@@Another_craig) tweeted about reports of a 135-year-old soldier who “voted” in the election:
So apparently, a 135 year old soldier actually voted in #Zimelections last week. Ah, the benefit of regular exercise.
— Craig (@Another_craig) August 6, 2013
Replying to @Another_craig, South African entrepreneur Sello Rabele (@sellorabs) wrote that he wishes to be a soldier when he grows up:
@Another_craig @chrishartZA #Zimelections I want to be a soldier when I grow up, over 130 yrs, that is
— Sello Rabele (@sellorabs) August 6, 2013
arnold chamunogwa (@chamunogwa) was not surprised that the ruling party rigged. He is surprised by something else:
Its not surprising that ZPF rigged but its surprising tht MDC is actually surprised by the extent of rigging #Zimelections #Zimbabwedecides
— arnold chamunogwa (@chamunogwa) August 2, 2013
Akuzike Polela (@Mulengi) from Zambia noted that Morgan Tsvangirai has one African friend:
Botswana speaks different word on Zim elections. Morgan has ONE African friend so far.
— Akuzike Polela (@Mulengi) August 6, 2013
Zimbabwean Kudzai (@shuestrait) would like to see Zimbabweans living in the country decide what is good for their country:
Only Zimbos [Zimbabweans] know whts gud for Zimbabweans..Resident Zimbabweans nt ppl in the diaspora & some state secretary from the US or UK..#ZimDecides
— kudzai (@shuestrait) August 5, 2013
Kenyan David Ogara (@david_ogara) came to a bitter conclusion about elections in Africa:
So MUGABE 89 is President elect Zimbabwe…..Presidential elections are meaningless in Africa……
— David Ogara (@david_ogara) August 2, 2013


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Taiwan: Online Dictionary for Aboriginal Peoples · Global Voices
I-fan Lin

The first online dictionary of the native language used by the aboriginal peoples [zh] in Taiwan had its debut on August 5, 2013. The first stage of this online dictionary includes the native language of the the Bunun people, the Tao people, the Truku people, the Saisiyat people, the Thao people, and the Tsou people. This dictionary is planned to includes 16 languages in the future.


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The Politics of Language in St. Lucia · Global Voices
Matthew Hunte

In Saint Lucia, the election of former Tourism Minister Allan Chastanet as political leader of the opposition United Workers Party has brought issues of language, culture and class to the fore.
Chastanet's perceived lack of fluency in creole (also known as “Kweyol” and “Patois”) has been deemed by some to be a major liability for his political career. The discussion of this issue in the Facebook group St. Lucians Aiming for Progress (S.L.A.P) was vigourous:
Wilson Jn. Baptiste felt that many of those criticizing Chastanet had problems just mastering English:
Some of you all cannot even write a complete sentence in English but you are the same ones complaining that Allen Chastanet cannot speak patois.
Poet Kendel Hippolyte believed that the situation of creole needed to be placed in a wider context:
The discussion could broaden out and have a better context perhaps if it took on board a few FACTS: (1) that Kweyol is an international language – Martinique, Guadeloupe, Cayenne, Dominica, Haiti, Seychelles, Mauritius and among small sections of the population in Trinidad, Grenada and Venezuela (someone also told me Brazil but i've never verified that); (2) that in terms of number of speakers, it is second in the Caribbean – after Spanish; (3) that all languages – English included – begin as purely oral and take on the component of literacy to the extent that the society responds to the initiative, from whatever source, to popularise literacy in it. Wales is an outstanding example. No one else in the word speaks Welsh, so it is not an international language. And a generation ago, it was considered a dying language. Now, due to the initiative to systematise and teach the writing system, written Welsh is everywhere: road signs, newspapers, textbooks etc. And not at the expense of English either. In fact, there's the unusual phenomenon of the younger generation being fluent and literate in the language that some parents cannot speak, much less write. And i'm not writing of what i've heard or read, but what i've seen. There's a far better case for this happening with Kweyol than there was for Welsh. The reasons it's not happening has much more to do with our pathetic, second-hand U$A notions of development than anything else.
Uriah St. Juste thought that anyone seeking to hold such high political office in St. Lucia should be fluent in creole:
Personally I think a person putting themselves up to be prime minister of Saint Lucia should be fluent in patois. There are many folk in our the nation who are functionally illiterate in English. While they may understand a few basic sentences in English, complex ideas expressed in English are beyond them. They are usually left in the dark when leaders only communicate in English. This is why in 1997 the Labour Party changed the rules of parliament to include creole as well as a means of communicating when doing the people's business on their behalf especially when they could now listen and watch, a thing they could not do before and a significant number of persons were left in the dark. Do we really want to go back to those days?
Amatus Edward was of the opinion that people who can only understand creole would be unlikely to grasp such complex issues anyway:
If you come across anyone who can't understand English and only understands Kweyol; they are still doomed to the knowledge level of basic english as the kweyol that they know does not capture the complex issues that you referred to. For example, if your grand dad does not understand the word ‘computer’ and does not understand what it is in english, he would not know it in Kweyol as his kweyol vocabulary would not have a word for it.
So the people whom you all claim can only understand kweyol would still be lost as there are (sic) quite bit that you can't translate to them in the kweyol that they know, not the new kweyol vocab that only the readers of english know.
Urban Dolor suggested that the issue was more about cultural awareness as opposed to language skills:
I don't think this is all about whether Mr. Chastenet can speak/understand/ Kwéyòl. I think more of it has to do with whether he has the experiences that would have allowed him to speak (or at least understand) that language. Now if he has not been exposed to the experiences that allows a person to become a Kwéyòl speaker I think it would be extremely difficult for him to understand the lives of Kwéyòl speakers. If he has the experience but chose not to learn the language then that may well be saying something else – he is either unable to learn [languages] quickly or he is condescending – I don't think either of these augers well for him.
Dolor continued:
The Corollary of what I have offered is that even if Mr. Chastenet were to take crash courses in speaking Kwéyòl he would still be handicapped without an ability to understand the experiences that would have shaped the lives of the Kwéyòl speaker. Why should we have a leader who is incapable of empathizing with a significant portion of the electorate?
Ian Charles wondered if there might be a double standard:
Sigh, this ‘can the white Saint Lucian man speak patios’ argument is a very pointless argument. I know MANY people, MANY PEOPLE who are black Saint Lucians and cannot speak more than patois cuss words. How many northern kids can speak a word in Patois?Juk bois has on occasion, gotten upset with his guests for not being able to speak patois! For me, the important issue is whether AC can identify with the circumstances, realities and challenges of the people he seeks to represent. If no, and if that is critical, then what of the argument that persons who did not hail from a community cannot or should not run that constituency in an election? I thought the reason for the latter was that those persons did not know the people or could not identify with them. Lastly, I think the unability of AC to speak fluent patois is excellent. It has placed an important cultural issue on the front burner. But if speaking creole is integral to our claim to true lucianism, then shouldn't we ALL be able to? And if Chastanet decides to take classes, what of the other black Saint Lucians who can't speak patois? Also, if AC learns Patois, would that then satisfy our requirements for representation? I see this as a case of be careful what you wish for!
Jan Lawrence took the position that ultimately all that matters is results:
You don't necessarily have to be poor to empathize wii (sic) people and most importantly work to change things, you don't have to speak patois for your message to get across. Less talk, show me what you have done and a plan for what you can do. And a PM is not a standalone figure, let the reps go out to their constituents passing along the message in whatever ‘language’ bet (sic) suited but again it's…in the doing. Anyone with a platform can promise anything but shoe (sic) me results and then we have reason to talk. And results can be understood in any and every ‘language’.

author: Matthew Hunte


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Bangladesh Housing Project Flattens Flora and Fauna in Gazipur · Global Voices
Rezwan

The latest controversy in land expansion in Bangladesh is a government housing project called Purbachal new town near Dhaka. Locals say that the projects expansion destroyed the greenery and the ecology of 1,600 acres of crop land, forests, orchards and water bodies in central Gazipur district, ignoring recommendations from the environment department.
Bangladesh capital Dhaka is considered as one of the world's fastest growing megacities. Between 1990 and 2005, the city doubled in size — from six to 12 million. By 2025, the UN predicts Dhaka will be home to more than 20 million people.
The significant features of this growth is rapid urbanization, mass migration from rural areas, problems like pollution, congestion, decreasing ground water level and a lack of adequate services due to the rising population. The megacity cannot afford the burden of 14.4 million people on its 360 square kilometres of land.
Nearly 1,600 acres to be flattened in government housing project. Image by Sanaul Haque. Copyright Demotix (5/8/2013)
The government has already unveiled its plan to expand the area of Dhaka. According to the plan the surrounding municipalities of Narayanganj, Tongi, Gazipur, Savar, Kadamrasul, Siddhirganj and Tarabo will be incorporated into Dhaka City Corporation. The Dhaka city corporation has been divided into two – North and South zones – for better administration.
According to World Bank statistics, the urbanized area in Dhaka city stands for 48 percent, but a large part of that is occupied by rural settlements and scattered built-up (18%) surrounded by specific class of groves of trees. A large portion of the non-urbanized area is dominated by agriculture land. The victim of rapid urbanization is those forest areas and agricultural lands.
The website of Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK), the Capital Development Authority of the Government of Bangladesh, provides details about the Purbachal new town project:
It is the biggest Planned township in the country. The Project area comprise of about 6150 acres land located in between the Shitalakhya and the Balu River at Rupgonj thana of Narayangonj district and at Kaligonj Thana of Gazipur district, in the north-eastern side of Dhaka. [..]
The Development works have been going on in 4500 acres (Narayangonj part) since 2002-2003 fiscal year and in rest 1500 acres (Gazipur part) development works have been started from January, 2013.
Gazipur is noted for its unique coppiced Sal forest and is home to the Bhawal National Park. It has been kept under IUCN Management as a protected landscape. A land survey by the RAJUK reported that 42.46 percent of the area is covered by forest, 39.47 percent by cultivable land and 9.75 percent by homesteads. Newspaper reports [bn] say that a huge forest area containing Sal trees and a wide range of flora and fauna are being flattened as a part of the development work for the Purbachal new town project.
The environmental department suggested that RAJUK should develop settlement plots avoiding forest area which were actually not followed. Not only the land projects, the Sal forests are bulldozed for a lot of reasons – to build a bombing practice ground for Bangladesh army, to plant invasive alien species ‘acacia’ trees under social forestry scheme uprooting existing trees, etc.
A local citizen shouts at the governments decision to flatten the land destroying trees for a housing project. Image by Sanaul Haque. Copyright Demotix (5/8/2013)
Faisal Rahman writes in UNB Connect, an online news site, after returning from Gazipur:
The people of the villages affected by the land development that include Barcow, Bashabashi, Kalikuthi, Purba Talna and Parabarta showed the team the signs of a huge number of recently cut down and rooted out trees – mostly the jackfruit, mango groves, bamboo and Sal patches – in the area. [..]
About 150 acres of the rice fields, situated in the Padarir Beel, has already been filled with dirt. The beel area comprises about 800 acres of land and is a source of natural fish during the rain.
Blogger Biplob Biswash lives in a village in the development sites. He writes in Bangla blogging platform Amar Blog how the locals, who are forcibly being evicted, are losing out in the land acquiring process:
যেখানে এখন জমি দাম হচ্ছে বিঘা প্রতি ১ কোটি থেকে দেড় কোটি টাকা সেখানে রাজউক ৯৫ সালের ভুয়া দলিল অনুসারে জমির দাম দিচ্ছে মাত্র ১ লাখ টাকা বিঘা। শুধু কি তাই, কোন গ্রামবাসী যদি বিল আনতে যায়, সরকারি ও রাজউকের কর্মচারীরা ঘুষের জন্য প্রায় তার পুরো বিলের টাকাই রেখে দেয়। যদি সে বলে যে তাহলে আমি কি পেলাম?, আমার জমি-জমা, বাড়ি-ঘর সবই সরকার কে দিয়ে দিলাম, আমি তাহলে কি পেলাম?, আর আমি এখন কি নিয়ে থাকবো, আমার ভবিষ্যৎ চলবে কি করে?
Where the current market rate of land is 1 to 1.5 crore Bangladeshi Taka (130,000-195,000 US dollars), RAJUK is compensating at an old rate of 1 lakh Taka (1,300 US dollars) per Bigha (0.33 acre). Not only that when a landlord goes to collect the bill, the corrupt officials of RAJUK keep a large portion as bribe. So what have we got? We have handed over our agricultural land, our home, all to the government. What have we got in return? So how will we survive in the future?
The blogger also writes that those who refuse to leave their livelihood, are being harassed by police and local goons as they are being accused in false criminal charges.
A writ petition was filed by Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association saying that the Purbachal housing project has no environment clearance certificate from the Department of Environment for earth filling and constructing structure in Borakau and Parabath areas of Gazipur. On 1 August, 2013 the High Court directed the authorities concerned to stop activities of Purbachal housing project in Gazipur until further order.
Wetlands and fauna are filled with sand for land development for government housing project. Image by Sanaul Haque. Copyright Demotix (5/8/2013)
A number of advocacy organizations including Paribesh Bachao Andolon, Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon, and Institute of Architects of Bangladesh visited the development sites in Gazipur [bn] and demanded the following:
১. রাজউক এর পরিবেশ বিধ্বংশী কার্যক্রম অবিলম্বে সম্পূর্ণ বন্ধ করা।
২. পূর্বাচল প্রকল্পের নামে পরিবেশ বিধবংশী কর্মকান্ডের ক্ষতি নিরূপণ করতে একটি তদন্ত কমিটি গঠন করা।
৩. পূর্বাচল প্রকল্পের নামে এরূপ বিধবংশী এবং অমানবিক কর্মকান্ডের জড়িত রাজউকের কর্মকর্তাকে দৃষ্টান্তমূলক শান্তি প্রদান করা।
৪. নিরীহ এলাকাবাসীর বিরুদ্ধে মিথ্যা হয়রানিমূলক মামলা নি:শর্তভাবে প্রত্যাহার করা।
1. Immediately stopping the developments by RAJUK which are destroying the environment
2. Create a committee to assess the damages so far.
3. Punish those scrupulous RAJUK staffers who are engaged in corrupt and inhuman practices.
4. Drop all false charges/lawsuits against the locals.
Blogger Biplob Biswash writes in another post:
বাহিরের মানুষ সবাই খুব মজা পাচ্ছে এখানে পৃথিবীর আধুনিকতম শহর হবে, সেই শহরে বসবাস করবে অতি সুখের সাথে। কিন্তু তারা কি একবারও সেই মানুষ গুলির অনোভূতি টুকু অনুভব করেছেন, যাদের চৌদ্দ পুরুষের সঞ্চিত শেষ সম্বলটুকু জোর করে কেড়ে নিয়ে এই শহর বানানো হচ্ছে, যে মানুষ গুলির শিকড় উপড়ে তুলে আস্তাকুড়ে ছুড়ে মারা হচ্ছে, যে মানুষ গুলিকে সর্বস্য হারিয়ে খোলা আকাশের নিচে গিয়ে দাড়াতে হবে। জানি না, কেউ তাঁদের এই কষ্টের সামান্যতম অংশও অনুভব করতে পেরেছেন কি না।
Outsiders may be rejoicing with the news that here a modern township will be built, where people will live happily. But have they ever felt the emotions of the locals, who are being evicted from their ancestral land to clear the housing plots. Do they know that these people are being uprooted and being sent to oblivion, soon they will be forced to live under open sky. I don't know whether any of them have ever felt a bit of those pains.
The world average of forest area is 26% whereas Bangladesh has got only 18 percent [bn]. If the remaining forest areas are not protected, the country will face severe environmental consequences in the future.

author: Rezwan


text:
Ethiopian Muslims Arrested, Beaten During Eid al-Fitr Protests  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

An aggressive crackdown on protests against the country's mistreatment of Muslims ended in hundreds, including women and children, reportedly beaten, tear gassed and arrested by police on Thursday 8 August, 2013, the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
Ethiopian Muslims have been protesting online and offline for over a year and a half against alleged government's interference in their religious affairs.
One of the issues they are opposed to is the election of the Islamic Council that took place in October 2012, which they argue the government influenced the process in favor of government-friendly members. They also accuse the government of trying to promote a more liberal form of Islam known as al-Abhash.
Ethiopian Muslims protesting early this year during the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa. One of the t-shirts reads, “Stop Abhashism in Ethiopia.” Photo source: the Awolia School Support Page Facebook Page
Muslim cyber-activists have been using Facebook pages such as DimtsachinYisema [amh] (Let Our Voices Be Heard) and EthiopianMuslims to coordinate and share information about the protests.
Last year, Ethiopian Christians supported their fellow citizens in online messages of unity, which went viral in the Ethiopian digital space. Many Ethiopian Christians changed their Facebook status in July 2012 to announce their allegiance to Ethiopian Muslims in their quest for non-interference from the government.
Following the crackdown on Eid protests, Amnesty International released a statement calling on the Ethiopian government to end repression against Muslims. The statement takes note of an incident last week related to the protests that reportedly ended in the deaths of an unconfirmed number of people in the town of Kofele in Oromia region.
Reports of police brutality and arrests after Eid prayers are trending on Twitter under the hashtags EidDemonstration and EthioMuslims.
Mahlet (@faantish) was sad for the treatment of peaceful Muslims:
It is very sad to see peaceful #Muslims to be threatened like a criminal. #EthioMuslims #Eiddemonstration #Ethiopia #Sad
— Mahlet (@faantish) August 8, 2013
@faantish wrote that most of those who were beaten and arrested were women:
Among the arrested & beaten Muslims, many were #Women. it is an embarrassment. #EthioMuslims #Eiddemonstration #Ethiopia #Sad
— Mahlet (@faantish) August 8, 2013
Human rights activist Soli (@Soliyee) saw one female detainee with a new baby boy:
Z women i mention earlier demonstering with her new baby boy is now one of z detainees. #Eiddemonstration #Ethiopia
— Soli ሶሊ (@Soliyee) August 8, 2013
An online network of Oromos, Oromo Network (@OromoRT), wondered how one can trust the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF):
How can you trust EPRDF to address much bigger demands when it is unable to address the simplest of demands of Ethio Muslims? #Ethiopia
— Oromo Network (@OromoRT) August 8, 2013
StunningHabesha (@stunningHabesha) shared photos showing the extent of police brutality:
Pics taken by a brave brothers and sisters. #EidDemonstration #Ethiopia #Injustice pic.twitter.com/sf80LQaXfe
— StunningHabesha (@stunningHabesha) August 8, 2013
The Africa desk of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) (@africamedia_CPJ) reported the alleged censoring of coverage of Eid prayer service:
#Ethiopia‘s state TV reportedly censoring coverage of #Eid service to mute #EthioMuslims #EidDemonstration via @HaletaYirga & @woliif
— africa @pressfreedom (@africamedia_CPJ) August 8, 2013
Given the country's treatment of Muslims, @atnemac wrote that it is as if being Muslim is an offense in Ethiopia:
Today I witness that being Muslim by itself is a crime. May God be wiz u sisters & brothers. #Ethiopia #EthioMuslims
— Atnaf Brhane (@atnemac) August 8, 2013
Soli (@Soliyee) and her friend Faantish (@faantish) were lucky because of their non-Muslim dressing code:
Me and @faantish was escaped from z detaintion coz we had trousers and didn,t cover our hair, they let is go.#Eiddemonstration #Ethiopia
— Soli ሶሊ (@Soliyee) August 8, 2013
Despite massive condemnation from Twitter users in Ethiopia and around the world, there were some who were supporting the crackdown.
EthioZagol (@EthioZagol) considers the protest part of the spread of Islam extremism in Ethiopia:
#EthioMuslims No to the spread of Islam Extremism in #Ethiopia in the name Of religious freedom !!!!
— EthioZagol (@EthioZagol) August 8, 2013
Ethiopian human rights activist and writer Kiflu Hussain (@HussainKiflu) responded to the “extremism” accusation by asking:
Let's say there are religious extremists in #Ethiopia.How do you deal with them?By taking extreme measures such as indiscriminate killings?
— Kiflu Hussain (@HussainKiflu) August 8, 2013
An Ethiopian student in Finland, Henok (@henoksheger), asked Muslims to respect the law:
Public demonstrators need a license required by law!! #Ethiopia #Respectthelaw #Extremism
— Henok (@henoksheger) August 8, 2013