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Moldova: +1 Vote Campaign Buzz Ahead of Local Elections · Global Voices
Diana Lungu

Moldova’s capital Chisinau is set to witness another democratic exercise this Sunday, June 19, when the second and final round of the local election will decide whether the city will have a liberal or a communist mayor.
A group of bloggers has launched the +1 Vote online campaign to mobilize young people to go out and vote, regardless of their choice.
The bloggers are planning to do a mobilization dance on Sunday in Chisinau's National Square. They have a tune, they have the moves and with their bodies they will dance and write +1 Vote. To make sure it goes well, on Thursday, June 16, they held a rehearsal and were joined by many young people, including a newlywed couple (photo and video).
Bloggers have launched +1 Vote, an online mobilisation campaign
Launched on June 15, the +1 Vote campaign has seen a number of Facebook users change their profile photos to the +1 Vote logo and the campaign's Facebook page has already gathered more than 300 potential attendees.
The campaign has been largely featured in the mainstream media and has generated lively discussions in the blogosphere.
Katya Poclitari addresses [ro] her fellow citizens:
Each of us matters. Each vote matters and that +1 Vote will be the decisive one and will bring the change to us living in Chisinau – the people of this beautiful, rich and, hopefully, happy country.
PS: THE MOST IMPORTANT, before or after the +1 Vote dance, do not forget to go and vote.
Though the organisers have declared the campaign to be neutral, the blue colour used in the logo is the electoral colour of the liberal party. Eugeniu Luchianiuc does not agree [ro] to this and has made his own +1 Vote logo: red (communist party) and blue (liberal party), in order to be truly neutral:
I promote the idea that you have to go and vote. The choice is yours, that is why there are choices.
Nata Albot is going to join [ro] the +1 Vote campaign and here is why:
It is of interest to me, first of all because I will continue living in Chisinau; it interests me as an experiment to test the power of the internet and most of all because it harms no one.
“Let’s do it, CHIŞINĂU,” writes [ro] Andrei Fornea:
I believe in us more than never. Come on, mobilization!
Vadim Zgherea is taking part [ro] in the campaign, even though he has not yet reached the voting age:
I do not vote, I do not yet have the right age. I do not intend to justify myself, I just want to make a gesture. I want to encourage people to VOTE.
Alexandru Gurdila has reached the age allowing him to vote, but he chooses not to vote [ro]. Still, he has joined the campaign:
I know that I have made a fuss about not voting for the mayor. I will keep not voting. But this does not mean that you have to be like me.
Anna Antonoff has made her choice [ro]:
I am going to vote!!!
Are you?

author: Diana Lungu


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Pakistan: An Outsider’s View · Global Voices
Rezwan

Indonesian blogger Unspun recently attended Pakistan's first social media summit in Karachi and commented that Pakistan's greatest asset is its people.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Rezwan


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Puerto Rico: Disappointment, Frustration, and Laughs Over Obama’s Visit  · Global Voices
Firuzeh Shokooh Valle

On Tuesday June 14, 2011, United States President Barack Obama visited Puerto Rico, the Caribbean island described either as a commonwealth, a territory, or a colony of the United States since 1898. It was the first official visit of a US president since John F. Kennedy visited Puerto Rico in 1961.
Obama arrived at 11:30 am and left at 3:30 pm, although it had been informed that he would be in San Juan, the capital city, at least an hour and a half longer.
Obama – whose visit was supposed to commemorate the 50th anniversary of JFK's visit – offered a ten minute message, in which he mentioned his support that Puerto Rican's determine their political status, the sacrifices of Puerto Rican soldiers and veterans in US wars, the typical plate “arroz con gandules,” and the victory of basketball player JJ Barea of the Dallas Mavericks, the champion of the National Basketball Association finals, among other topics. Here is the official White House video of his brief address:
Obama payed a short visit to governor Luis Fortuño – a pro-statehood Republican – at La Fortaleza (the governor's colonial palace), ran through one of his fundraising activities (one of them cost about $35,000 per person, and Obama reportedly raised around $1 million), and finally had a “medianoche” (typical sandwich) at Kasalta, a landmark bakery-restaurant-cafe in San Juan, with the pro-commonwealth and Democrat senator and governor candidate for 2012 Alejandro García Padilla (Fortuño's contender). That was it. The implications of his visit, besides the obvious fundraising and political campaigning, are still being debated.
Thousands marched through Old San Juan protesting [es] against his policies and claiming the release of Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar López Rivera.
Since his visit was announced, Obama and his four hours in Puerto Rico have been the center of public discussion. His flash visit was heavily covered by mainstream media, with minute-by-minute accounts [es], special coverages [es], and livestreaming. The non-profit Centro de Periodismo Investigativo [es] and NotiCel [es] also covered the event. The online conversation developed under the hashtags #obamapr and #obamaenpr, where we can find a lot of humor.
The presenter of the radio music program Frecuencias Alternas [es] and member of the team behind the podcast #EnProfundo, Ezequiel Rodríguez (@eldifusor) tweeted:
Garcia Padilla: “..SI, ¡te traje a Obama eh! eh!” #ObamaEnPR #CaptionThis http://twitpic.com/5bkmiw
@detra83 joked about the famous “medianoche”:
Hoy voy a almorzar un #medianoche en honor a #ObamaPR
Journalist and editor of El Nuevo Día, Benjamín Torres Gotay (@torresgotay) was quite critical:
@torresgotay: Discurso genérico, Mr. Presidente, where's the beef? #obamaenpr
Bloggers have also reflected on Obama's visit, its meaning and implications. Global Voices author, poet and blogger Yarisa Colón Torres aludes to Obama's remark [es] that Puerto Ricans are as American as apple pie and “arroz con gandules”:
La visita del presidente de los Estados Unidos a Puerto Rico detuvo el curso de nuestros hechos, por los menos durante cuatro horas. “De nuevo estamos en el mapa” gritaban unos con orgullo. “Primero JJ Barea, ahora Obama. Qué honor, y todo en menos de una semana…Estamos pegaos…” gritaban otros. Pero a Enero tampoco le interesan los deportes ni los discursos en inglés, salpicados de español (algo así como ahora hacen en el hiphop); ni le sorprenden las comparaciones histéricas entre un apple pie y el arroz con gandules. Ahora resulta que uno y lo otro son igualmente americanos.
Speaking of brothas in the tropics, how about that classic moment when POTUS [President of the United States] removed his suit jacket in a 90-degree aircraft hangar in San Juan? Then proceeded to butcher the pronunciation of every prominent Puerto Rican politician. Well I guess they deserved it, right, for wanting statehood.
I don’t think I’ve seen one mention of the police brutality at the University of Puerto Rico, Oscar Rivera López, or the Gasoducto in any of the MiamiStreamMedia recaps of the visit so far.
In Palabra Latente [es], Angel Javier demonstrates his disillusion and anger [es]:
[…] ¿Tu padre no te ha visitado? 50 años. Sin pensar. Sin sentir. ¿Escuchó lo que has hablado? No. Hoy regresó. ¿Le reclamaste? No. En cambio, dócil. Sonrisas de suplica. Saliva de mediocres. Abofeteados por el protocolo. Disfrazados de asfalto. De pintura. De voces que callan amarguras. De silencio. De censura. El poder de la injusticia. De historia oscura. Reacciona. ¿Libertad? ¿Democracia? No me condenen la dictadura.  Aquí estamos encarcelados.
The online satire publication “El ñame” (The Yam)  had a feast with Obama's visit [es]:
Tras la absolutamente decisiva visita de casi cuatro horas de duración realizada el pasado martes por el presidente Barack Obama, miles de estadistas de la Isla se mostraron sorprendidos esta mañana con el hecho de que el país no se ha convertido aún en estado. Fuentes revelaron que a pesar de la confusión tras este no-resultado, los partidarios de esta fórmula de estatus mantienen la esperanza de que durante la tarde de hoy comience a caer nieve sobre Adjuntas, se hagan rubios los loiceños y que caiga un aguacero de mantengo sobre la nueva isla-estado.

author: Firuzeh Shokooh Valle


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Senegal: University women’s group helps the needy · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

On the blog dakar.bondyblog.fr, Mamadou Sané presented the initiative of a group of female students from the University Cheikh Anta Diop in Dakar. “The association called ‘Regard de femme [A Woman's Look]’ is aiming to collect as many foodstuffs as possible to distribute to those in greatest need through a project called ‘Calebasse d'Afrique [African Gourd]’.”

author: Abdoulaye Bah


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Taiwan: Saving Siraya · Global Voices
Portnoy Zheng

From the blog: “Saving Siraya is a blog dedicated to the protection of a Taiwanese indigenous tribe that is not officially recognized by the government and therefore denied of basic human rights. Due to the demands of Zhong Xing University and the Taiwanese national government, starting JUNE 29th, 2011 Siraya homes will be demolished and families already suffering from poverty will become homeless.”

author: Portnoy Zheng


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Trinidad and Tobago: Cruz de Mayo · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Guanaguanare blogs about this year's Cruz de Mayo celebrations in Trinidad.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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U.S.V.I.: Literary Reflections · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

A Nation or Nobody bonds with a fellow litblogger over “how two Trinidadian writers, Naipaul and Lovelace, have interpreted the infusion of North American cultural forms into the Caribbean”, saying: “It is my opinion that Afro-Caribbean, Indo-Caribbean, and Euro-Caribbean literatures are in fact reflections of each other, not categories that we should, or can, separate.”


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Venezuela’s Prison Crisis · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

A riot on Sunday, June 12, at El Rodeo prison left at least 22 inmates killed [es], according to the government's report –other reports raise that number to 30 [es]. The Devil's Excrement, criticizes the way the Chávez administration has handled the country's prison problem, and today updates his blog with the latest news coming from the prison: “This morning five thousand National Guardsmen were sent into the El Rodeo jail to restore the law and order that the Government failed to impose over  the last few years […].”

author: Silvia Viñas


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Zimbabwe: A Golf Day For Members of Parliament · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Is Wednesday a gold day for Zimbabwe's parliamentarians?: “Sadly, there were only three Ministers in the House during the session, namely; Deputy Prime Minister Professor Arthur Mutambara, the Minister of Finance Hon. Tendai Biti and the Minister of Public Works Hon. Joel Gabbuza. As a result, all questions with written notice were deferred.”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Bulgaria: Soviet Army Monument “Keeps Pace With Time” · Global Voices
Ruslan Trad

Bulgarian blogger Peio Popov posted photos [bg] of the Soviet Army monument in Sofia, parts of which have been “updated” by unknown street artists to resemble heroes of American comic books, as well as Santa Claus and Ronald McDonald. Bulgarian newspaper Sega (“Now”) reports [bg] that Sofia city authorities are investigating the incident and intend to clean the monument eventually.

author: Ruslan Trad


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China: Farmers shot in protest · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Boxun has released a short documentary on anti forced land acquisition protests in Guanxi Fangsheng back in April 2011. In the protest, a number of farmers were shot by police gunfire.

author: Oiwan Lam


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E Day: Discovering Celebrities’ Favorite Words · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

What do singer Shakira, actor Gael Garcia Bernal, chef Ferran Adria and writer Mario Vargas Llosa have in common? They are all part of the group of 30 celebrities who have shared through video their favorite word in Spanish as part of the celebrations for ‘E Day’ by the Cervantes Institute.
The Cervantes Institute of Spanish has set out to celebrate the Spanish language in a series of cultural and educational events held all around the world at their institutes on the weekend closest to the Summer Solstice; this year, that date will fall on June 18, 2011.
Ready to celebrate E Day
Through their website they have managed to catch the interest of Spanish speakers around the world, who have voted for their word video and played crossword games with other visitors to the site in the chance to win a trip for two to Andalucia in Spain.
The videos of celebrities saying their favorite words have become one of the main attractions to publicize the event and even in countries where there won't be any Cervantes Institute celebrations, the videos have been shown on television:
En esta tercera edición, contamos con el apoyo y participación de treinta personalidades de los más diversos campos del saber, que han compartido con nosotros lo que supone para ellos hablar español. Por ello, animamos a todos los hispanohablantes a que participen en esta iniciativa eligiendo una de las palabras de nuestra lengua que nuestros más ilustres han considerado su favorita.
All videos are captioned in Spanish: if you wish to read the captions in another language, please click on the translate captions option in the YouTube video.
Colombian artist Shakira has become famous around the world for her singing and dancing; most recently for the world cup in which the Waka Waka song became the companion to Vuvuzelas in stadiums and homes all over the planet. In this video, she explains why “mellifluous” is her favorite word in Spanish.
People might remember Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal as el Che in Motorcycle Diaries, or as eccentric Stéphane in Michel Gondry's film “The Science of Sleep”: in this contest, his favorite word “Querétaro” has won him the support of users who have cast thousands of votes in his favor.
Spanish chef Ferran Adria has been considered the world's best cook and his restaurant El Bulli topped the charts with its innovative approach to food and cuisine, through deconstruction of elements and the transformation of textures while maintaining taste. His chosen word seems to reflect his approach to food and cooking: Soul.
Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2010, after decades of being constantly nominated. In accordance to his political career and aspirations, his chosen word for the Cervantes Institute was “liberty”.
Other personalities such as actor Antonio Banderas, singer Alejandro Sanz, singer Chayanne, writer Isabel Allende,  among others have also weighed in with their favorite word.
You can see the entries and vote on your favorite by following this link to Vote Your Word. Pictures of the prep work to the celebrations on June 18, as well as the events of past years can be seen on their Flickr page.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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India: Hungry For Power · Global Voices
Rezwan

Srishti Chauhan asks “why is India stepping on the nuclear bandwagon?”


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Malaysia: Hacktivist Group Attacks Government Websites · Global Voices
Jerrenn Lam

International ‘hacktivist’ group Anonymous, responsible for many hacks of prominent websites around the world, has carried through on its threat to attack the Malaysian government’s main website www.malaysia.gov.my over the government’s proposed censoring of several file sharing websites, including the Pirate Bay and Megaupload.
A few days ago, the group posted a YouTube video about its intentions to carry out the attacks at 3.30am (local time) on Thursday.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6BHYPqmDyyM
At least 50 other government websites were attacked, including the state of Sabah’s tourism website, and the Tourism Malaysia website. The websites of the Royal Malaysian Police, the Malaysian Parliament, the Ministry of Finance as well as the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism, which were restored before 9 am (local time).
Twitter has been abuzz with conversations, with many Malaysians finding the incident amusing. Adi Adzfar tweeted:
Operation Malaysia; legit! Hackers are cool
Shawn Loong tweeted:
Operation Malaysia- Get your popcorns ready! It’s going live at 3.30am!
Aida Ghafar showed her scepticism in the government’s ability to track down Anonymous, comparing it to the recent acid-splasher criminal that has yet to be arrested:
Cops want to track down who anon is? They can’t even track down one acid splasher!
Zarul Shahrin expressed caution:
I hope Malaysians who got involved with Operation Malaysia know what they are doing- Hopefully won’t get escorted to jail after the thrill
KahMun, too, expressed her doubts on the motives of the attack:
The name Operation Malaysia sounds noble, but will the outcome benefit us all?
Before the attacks, Crankster blogged that he hopes that the attacks would be successful:
I support the effort by Anonymous in hacking into the official portal and dishing out a denial of service (meaning that no one can access that site).
However, I can't see it being a big deal. I don't think many people log on to that site anyway!
Online news portal Malaysiakini also reported that some user data from the Sabah tourism website have been compromised:
Despite the police assurance that no data has been compromised in the attacks on government websites last night, a set of user data allegedly leaked from Sabah tourism official website has been published over the Internet.
A posting on a free anonymous web hosting portal, has exposed the data of 392 user accounts. The details include user email, user name, first and last name, as well as their encrypted passwords.
The portal claimed that more than 3,456 accounts are at risk but had released details of only 392 so far.
A list of affected websites can be found here.

author: Jerrenn Lam


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Maldives: Privacy Act Required · Global Voices
Rezwan

How would you feel seeing your personal data divulged in a public website? Iru Veli highlights a few recent incidents of privacy breach of personal data of many Maldivians and stresses the need for a privacy act in the country.


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Saudi Arabia: Women Behind the Wheel  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

This post is part of our special coverage Global Development 2011.
Several Saudi women took the wheel yesterday to break the siege on driving in Saudi Arabia, where women are banned from driving cars. The campaign to drive was announced on Facebook, and fueled by conversations on other social media platforms, such as micro-blogging site Twitter.
Laila Sindi, from Jeddah, shares her experience in a series of tweets [ar].
She starts saying:
طبعا كان إعلان المكان والتوقيت مجرد تمويه.. لم نخرج الساعة ٥ فجرا ولا كنا في منطقة العوالي.. #women2drive
Instead, they left at 9am:
Accompanied by her cousin and a friend, Laila drove. They all wore the head cover (Hijab) but had their faces showing.
The roads were clear, but not empty:
Laila sums up the reactions of passers-by as follows:
Ten minutes into the drive, the unexpected happens:
At the checkpoint, an officer and a soldier asked them to stop the car and step out of it. Laila explains:
She adds:
And continues:
While outside, the soldier spoke on the phone:
نزل وتكلم بجواله ثم عاد وأخذ حقائبنا وخرجبدأ في تفتيشها خارج السيارة.. أعترف أنني بدأت أصرخ وأشتم وصديقتنا انهارت وتبكي #women2drive
About 15 minutes later, the soldier returned to the car, handing the girls back their bags, but keeping their mobile phones so that they don't record any footage or call their relatives.
Laila explains:
هددته بالفضيحة والمقاضاة فلم يرد وقالت له سناء بنت عمي أن والدها سيرفع دعوى فلم يرد وقاد السيارة الى طريق العابدية وقلقنا جدا #women2drive
She then continues:
And adds:
Laila tweets that the soldier said that he was there to help them.
وقال انه من “عيال مكة” وان لو قبض علينا راح يصير لنا شيء مو طيب ابدا فقرر يساعدنا.. طبعا ما صدقته واصريت اكلم والدي #women2drive
She notes:
And continues:
Laila says they decided to trust him and let them return them home.
The girls stayed in the back of the car for around two hours. Laila writes:
and continues:
After an hour, the soldier told them that he would return them home during the noon prayer, when the roads were empty. She explains:
وفعلا جلسنا في سيارته اكثر من ساعتين وبعد اقامة صلاة الجمعة بدا في السواقة في اتجاه بيت بنت عمي والجندي يسوق سيارتنا #women2drive
The officer turns out to be a good Samaritan.
The officer however kept their mobile phones:
وصلنا بيت عمي ونزلنا وشكرناه وراح هو والجندي وطبعا صادر الجوالات احتياطا واعتذر وقال انسوا جوالاتكم #women2drive
She concludes:
Many videos were uploaded on YouTube, showing women driving their cars in the Kingdom. Estimates show that between 20 to 50 women challenged the ban on driving and got behind the wheels. The news was relayed on social networks, where even husbands showed off their wives driving skills.
Aziza134 shares this video showing a woman driving:
On Storify, PaulTOwen shares this collection of Twitter reactions to women driving in Saudi here.
For more reactions on Twitter, follow the hash tag Women2Drive
This post is part of our special coverage Global Development 2011.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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South Korean Troops Shoot at Passenger Jet, No One Injured · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

South Korean troops shot at passenger jet on June 17 after mistaking it for a North Korean military aircraft near the border with North Korea. No one was hurt from the incident, but South Korean net users from public forum sites are demanding more thorough explanations [ko].

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Sri Lanka: The Challanges Of A Homosexual Person · Global Voices
Rezwan

Sri Lankan Male describes what is it like to be a gay in Sri Lanka today and the increasing use of social networking to find a partner.


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Syria: Al Assad’s Cousin Quits Business for Charity Work · Global Voices
Lulu Ahmed

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.
On 16th June, at the eve of another Friday of protests in Syria, Syrian State Television announced that 41-year-old businessman Rami Makhlouf will quit his businesses to take up charity work.
On Twitter, Nasser H. Al-Shaikh was the first to report the news quoting Al Arabiya news channel:
AlArabiya: Syrian businessman Ramy #Makhlouf gives up his properties to the state #Syria #Assad
In another tweet, he explained:
#Makhlouf is a cousin of President #Assad & according to FT he's thought to control up to 60% of #Syria's economy. http://is.gd/c9zF3v
Immediate reactions have followed.
RevolutionSyria, one of the main Twitter sources for Syrian revolution news, commented:
I would laugh if this wasn't so disgusting. #Makhlouf says he'll devote profits from his business to charity…. http://fb.me/TdWulPXB
Skepticism has also been manifested by tweep MagdyBasha123, who wrote:
#somebodytellmewhy #daddysays #wakemeup whn Rami #Makhlouf is prosecutd 4 corruption & not given red carpet trtmnt as #philanthrapist #SYRIA
Others have welcomed the decision but pointed that this is not enough to meet the protesters’ demands. Lasyrie tweeted:
Rami #Makhlouf, steals us and now wants to give us back our money, great, but stealer must be judged. #syriatel #syria #syria #liban
On Friday 17th the protesters, who have taken the streets of Syria all across the country as during every Friday for the past three months, have responded to Rami Makhlouf` decision to give up to his businesses.
On You Tube, user Rola8881 has uploaded a video allegedly shot in Zabadani area and which carries a banner which reads “A message to Rami Makhlouf from Zabadani in the Friday of Salah al Ali” (referring to the hero of Syrian resistance against the French to whom this Friday the 17th protests have been dedicated)
Makhklouf has been accused by the protesters of corruption and monopoly over every kind of businesses in Syria, from telecommunications to media to real estate. He has also been accused of direct involvement in the heavy crackdown and repression on the protesters.   Rami's brother, Colonel Hafez Makhlouf, is the deputy director of the General Security Directorate and Intelligence chief of the Damascus branch.

author: Lulu Ahmed


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Bangladesh: Welcoming Argentina & Nigeria · Global Voices
Rezwan

Faisal Tanim informs that  soccer fans are delighted to learn that full strength Argentinian and Nigerian soccer teams are coming to Bangladesh for friendly matches.


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Brazil: “SlutWalk” Throughout the Country in Images · Global Voices
Mariana Freitas

This post is part of our special coverage Global Development 2011 and SlutWalks 2011.
Two hundred women and men have marched through the streets of several cities of Brazil on June's Saturdays to put an end to exploitation of the female body as an object and the culpability of women for being sexually assaulted.
Holding banners, posters and catch up slogans, they rocked São Paulo on June 4, Recife on June 11, Belo Horizonte and Brasília, the Federal Capital, received the feminists last Saturday, June 18, and made society think a little about gender oppression. In this article we share the best moments in images by brazilian citizens.
[All links in this post lead to Portuguese language pages.]
"SlutWalk" in Recife. Photo by Adalberto Rodrigues (@Rodriigues_jr) on Twitpic
The initiative was inspired by the “SlutWalk”,  that began in April in Canada, after a policeman declared that women  should stop dressing themselves like sluts to avoid being victims of  rape. The statement caused an outrage and a huge movement on the Internet, which started in early April with the protest in Toronto and has happened in more than 20 North American and Australian cities until now.
On June 4 it also occurred in Los Angeles, Chicago, Edmonton, Estocolmo, Amsterdam, Edinburg, and the first one in Brazil was in São Paulo.
Protesters holding posters. At least 200 people attended the SlutWalk in São Paulo, inspired by a protest in Canada in April with women fighting against violence and for the right to use the kind of clothes they want. Picture by Andre M. Chang, copyright Demotix (4/6/2011)
The calls to march were made on Facebook. In Sao Paulo, though 6000  people confirmed they were going to attend the event on the social  network, the real number of participants was around 300. Concerning  Recife's March, Jesus Toic, one of the creators of the event on Facebook, wrote:
A Marcha das Vadias Recife reuniu cerca de 400 pessoas  interessadas em expressar sua indignação contra o histórico controle  machista sobre o corpo das mulheres. Frases que culpabilizam as  mulheres, e não os estupradores, advinda de um imaginário doentio, foram  rechaçadas com inteligência lúdica.
Rape is not a joke, it is violence. SlutWalk Brasilia 2011. Photo by rogeriotomazjr on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)
The comments of the comedian Rafinha Bastos were remembered by the protesters, who ended up the walk in front of his Comedian Club and put banners on the doors. Rafinha, from the Brazilian CQC, created a controversy when he said in  Rolling Stone magazine that ugly women should be thankful for being raped.
Thank you for letting us be exposed to cruelty –   SlutWalk São Paulo. Picture by Leandro Pena on Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Another member from CQC was remembered. The actor and journalist Marcelo Tas was booed for attacking Lola Aronovich, one of the most famous feminist bloggers of the country, when she published a text where she criticizes a report made in his program  about the #mamaço (#breastfeeding) in São Paulo.
Tas and his colleagues satirized the attitude where mothers were breastfeeding in public saying they should cover their breasts. The women were protesting because a mother was prevented from breastfeeding in a bank.
SlutWalk, Sao Paulo. Picture by Marcel Maia in Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
In reaction to the first Brazilian SlutWalk, Lola Aronovich, said:
(…) a sexualidade de uma mulher é dela, não é pública,  não é do homem ou da sociedade, e que deve ser respeitada. Respeitada de  todas as formas, desde não ser julgada (sim, queremos a mesma liberdade  sexual a que os homens têm direito) a não ser invadida, seja através de  estupros, seja através de “passar a mão” (que, assim como as grosserias  verbais na rua, funcionam como uma espécie de terrorismo sexual).
Bingo #Slutwalk: Make your bets! Examples of verbal rudeness towards women. Image by @slutwalkbr shared on Twitpic by @umadeboravieira
On Twitter, the hashtags #MarchaDasVadias and #MarchaDasVagabundas were widely shared and user @slutwalkbr spread awareness and updates on the events.
If the body is from the woman, she gives it to whom she wants. SlutWalk Brasilia. Photo by @josipaz on Twitpic.
The Federal Deputy from the Workers Party, Erika Kokay(@ErikaKokay), on June 11, called:
Chega de sermos culpadas pela violencia que sofremos! Estarei na marcha das vadias.Vamos todas! #marchadasvadias
The reasons of the Brazilians are the same as other women around the world: respect. The blogger  Lia Padilha wrote about it:
Nós brasileiras nos deparamos cotidianamente com o controle da sexualidade feminina. A concepção conservadora-religiosa é repressora e dita que a mulher deve esconder o corpo ante a sociedade e se resguardar para o marido. Por outro lado, a voracidade do capitalismo tem interesse pelo corpo feminino descoberto, e nesse caso expõe, banaliza, explora e agride a sexualidade feminina.
This post is part of our special coverage Global Development 2011 and SlutWalks 2011.

author: Mariana Freitas


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China: Attack on a #netfreedom Blogger · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Well-known tech blogger William Long writes on everything from circumvention tools to where military secrecy in China meets Google Earth. Over the weekend while away from the computer, Long's QQ account was compromised and used to contact his peers [zh], and his profile picture on the platform was altered with the superimposition [zh] of the word “shooter”.
After some tests, Long discovered two flaws in Tencent's authentification procedures which likely allowed his attackers to crack his QQ password. The attacks didn't stop there, but escalated on Sunday [zh] to included a DDoS attack on servers for his blog, williamlong.info, large amounts of spam sent to various e-mail addresses of his, constant harassing phone calls from people who answer his callbacks but won't speak, and attempts to guess his mobile phone PIN. For the time being, Long is blogging between his Sina blog and QZone.
A gallery of Honker website defacement trophies.
Long says the attacks come in response to a blog post he published on Saturday. In the post, he doesn't touch on any of the things which typically Honkers off, but he does launch some heavy criticism their way, calling them, among other things, the cyberspace equivalent of Boxers.
Long writes:
话说几天前，我在腾讯网看了一则新闻《中国黑客元老9月推自律公约 欲重拾黑客精神》，我当时在腾讯微博里针对该新闻的评论是：“我不看好所谓‘黑客自律’，所谓的黑客早已经商业化，形成了一条黑色产业链，通过挂马、病毒来威胁网民的利益，这种环境和条件下，一个商业化的安全卫士软件比‘黑客自律’更有现实意义，更有可操作性，网民的利益是通过斗争获取到的，不是那些黑客施舍的。”
之后有些黑客界人士进行反驳，说黑客有很多种，有的是Hacker，有的是Cracker，我的看法是，没有所谓的“好黑客”，无论是骇客、黑客、红客，以及所有利用系统安全漏洞进行攻击破坏的群体，都是坏的，在美国这些人早就进了监狱，中国因为法律不完善，观念落伍，很多人以为“窃书不是偷”，才导致现在中国黑客的嚣张，肆意通过安全漏洞攻击他人以获取经济利益，这些黑客本质和小偷强盗没有区别。
所谓的“红客”更是一个怪胎，是极端民族主义和无政府主义的结合体，其本质与早年的“义和团”没有什么区别，成事不足，败事有余。从技术上讲，红客的所谓战绩，基本上没有什么拿得出手的，几乎没有攻破任何一个美国商业网站（例如Google、Youtube、Twitter等），而名不见经传的伊朗黑客在2010年1月12日成功让百度停止服务至少一个上午（通过攻击百度域名服务商实现）。美国黑客就更别说了，我们用的美国思科入侵检测系统IDS没准都有后门呢。
[…]
以前所谓的黑客精神，应该是建设性而不是破坏性的，是一种专注和执着的精神，是对技术近乎疯狂的追逐；是善于独立思考、喜欢自由探索的一种思维方式。这种精神如果在国外，我相信是可能有的，但在中国，目前看是没有的，中国的所谓黑客大多数是无脑的“义和团”和“网络黑社会”，根本没有独立思考能力，他们对网络的只有破坏没有贡献，在任何民主国家，这些人都应该在监狱里接受惩罚。
实际上，目前国内的媒体对于黑客圈子的负面批评也一直络绎不绝，从各式各样的盗号木马，到恶意的熊猫烧香病毒，还有那些以支付宝、网银为目标的恶意攻击，直到最近中国黑客竟然针对国外从事政治目标的网络钓鱼，引发了国际社会对中国的谴责，给我国的外交带来重大的麻烦，美国甚至立法规定，网络攻击威胁到美国国家安全，将不惜动用军事力量进行反击。这一切的一切都证明目前的中国黑客已经失去了自制力，演变为以自身“高超”的技术为手段对网民进行要挟和攻击的恶意群体，成为一个不折不扣的“麻烦制造者”，稍有独立思考能力的人都会对黑客群体产生负面印象，而一旦黑客们遇到媒体或网民对他们恶行的揭露，就会像小孩掐架一般的幼稚和歇斯底里地进行反击，从另一方面，这类举动正好应印了人们对黑客流氓本性的指控。
On a lighter note, when Long reached out to his Twitter followers for methods to fend off a DDoS attack, the suggestion most people gave him was: just get your site blocked [zh].

author: John Kennedy


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India: Failure Of Democracy · Global Voices
Rezwan

Atanu Dey thinks that democracy is failing in India and things must change. The blogger comments: “the change has to come from a section of the population that has the capacity to appreciate the need for change and the ability to organize themselves into a voting block”.


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India: The Monsoon Legend Of Kerala · Global Voices
Rezwan

Why there is so much rain in the Indian state of Kerala? Maddy describes a legend behind it.


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Macedonia: Pro-Government Media Promote Protest Impostors · Global Voices
Filip Stojanovski

This post is part of our special coverage Macedonia Protests 2011.
On the eve of the big protest against police brutality scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Skopje, several pro-government media outlets tried to manipulate the public by showing an anti-opposition announcement by a fake group of protestors.
The Sunday protest involved a concert [mk] and a march [mk]. Vnukot informed about the preparations the day before:
Protesters in Skopje used the pause on Saturday to coordinate ahead of tomorrow's big protest. People from all over the country said that they will attend.
So far, the protesters have managed without formal leadership hierarchy or PR representatives, by forming working bodies for specific tasks and taking turns when making media statements. Thus, the reported “appointment” of a “protest leader” – of a certain Biljana Todoroska – as presented by online outlet Kurir and TV channels Kanal 5 and Sitel (directly tied to ruling party apparatchiks/coalition partners) – runs counter to the whole spirit of the protests and was quickly debunked.
Other media relayed the statement by the real protesters, denying the impostors’ claim that “the protests will continue on Monday” in front of the offices of the main opposition party which allegedly tried to manipulate them (i.e., nothing will happen on Sunday).
Barabass reminded readers [mk] of a warning [mk] he had given – that sending counter-protests is a favorite tactics of the government a few days ago (June 15, the tenth day of the protests):
Come on!? How come this much time has passed without counter-protests?
[Last time], when the architects spoke out, they sent a horde of crusaders who beat them up, as good Christians full of love. What kind of beast will they send next?
For a while, the Twitter community brewed with outrage via #protestiram and #Martin, which soon turned to ridicule, using the hashtag #Biljana by the first name of the designated [mk] “avatar of the spokesman of the ruling party”.
While nobody recalled seeing her or her associates serving as decor at the protests, the “wisdom of the crowd” soon discovered that the young woman was a supporter of the ruling party – by discovering her Facebook profile.
Also, it turned out that Ms Todoroska had been used as the ‘voice of youth’ in another media event – a staged “news item” [mk] about “young people voting in the excellently organized free and fair elections,” aired a few weeks ago on the pro-government Kanal 5.
Photo comparison by Zuberot.
At the Sunday protest, a new banner appeared, saying “Even Biljana cannot launder your responsibility” – making a joke on the name, because “Biljana” is also a domestic brand of a detergent.
Even Biljana cannot wash away your responsibility – photo by vldmrk
Later, on the Sunday evening news, the two television stations owned by the government coalition partners provided widely different coverage of the day.
Sitel TV (allegedly designated [mk] as the “government mouthpiece” in a leaked US Embassy e-mail) continued with the montage [mk], interposing footage from the press conference of the impostors with information about the ongoing protest, continuing the blatant manipulation.
On the other hand, Kanal 5 informed [mk] quite objectively about the protest, and aired the participants’ statement denying ties with the impostors.
This post is part of our special coverage Macedonia Protests 2011.

author: Filip Stojanovski


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Nigeria: On an Explosive Projectile? · Global Voices
Nwachukwu Egbunike

It was like a Nollywood premiere, but this time there were neither props nor digital effects. It was stark cold; Nigeria has joined nations under terrorist threats. Bola Akinbode captures the initial shock of the bomb explosion that pierced the Nigerian Police HQ in Abuja on June 16, 2011. His expression could not have been more apt:
Another close to major bomb explosion has been reported at the Louis Edet House, the Nigerian Police headquarters in the early hours of today by suicide bombers. What used to be a movie scenario or better still a news report from countries like Iraq, Gazza, Afghanistan, and other war zones is gradually becoming the order of the day in Nigeria. This is the 3rd major explosion in Abuja metropolis within the last one year with the first one on the Golden Anniversary celebrations of Nigeria’s independence and another blast was reported at one of the military barracks in the Federal Capital city of Abuja.
Who is responsible? This is no longer an issue for speculation, Boko Haram; an Islamic fundamentalist sect has assumed guilt for the first suicide bombing in the country’s history. Here goes their chant:
“We are responsible for the bomb attack on the police headquarters in Abuja which was to prove a point to all those who doubt our capability… It is unfortunate that we could not accomplish our mission because our target was the Inspector-General of Police, Hafiz Ringim,” the group said in a statement distributed anonymously in the north-eastern city of Maiduguri where the sect is believed to be based.
How the Boko Haram lone suicide bomber struck was narrated by Naijan.com:
The Nigerian Police Spokesman told reporters that the lone suicide bomber and a traffic policeman were blown to death by the explosions. He said the bomber drove and carried the bomb inside a car suspected to be a Honda Civic. He drove into the complex barely ten minutes after the Police Chief arrived. The suicide bombers car was headed for the car park where the IGP’s car was parked before it was directed to the general car park by the traffic policeman who died in the explosions.
Hafiz Ringim had only on Tuesday during a visit to Maiduguri vowed to finish off Boko Haram. Many policemen were injured in the stampede that followed the blast. The injured were taken to various hospitals. More than 30 cars were burnt beyond recognition while about 40 other vehicles were shattered by the explosions.
The devastation left hues that are certainly not palatable. The Nigeria Police Watch said that:
The Nigeria Police have confirmed that eight persons were killed while an unspecified number of persons were injured in the massive bomb blast which rocked its highly fortified but porous headquarters on Thursday morning… The police spokesperson had blamed the explosion on Boko Haram, the militant Islamic sect with aversion for western education, believed to be responsible for the spate of bombings in Maiduguri in Nigeria’s northeast.
“Definitely, we suspect those that go by the name Boko Haram who have been issuing threat upon threat,” Mr. Amore said. He added that investigation into the incident had commenced, and that forensic experts had been called in to help.
Naturally Nigerians are angry about the insecurity that has been hoisted on the land. Asked by elombah.com what he feels about the escalation of this particular crime pattern, Mr Ugwuonye said:
“I am greatly disturbed by this escalation, though not surprised. Given the consistent failure over the years by the Nigerian law enforcement agencies, it was only a matter of time for Nigeria to get to this extremely alarming point in criminality. And there could be worse coming and we must all brace ourselves to a deepening and accentuated level of criminal violence in the land.
Prince Charles Dickson places the blame on the foot of the security agencies especially the police:
Can someone provide the figures for the number of bombs and explosives that have gone off in an eighteen month period, how many arrests, and convictions? What happened to the Iranian bombs saga, how far has the Charles Okah matter gone? No arrests for the Mogadishu Barracks, Jos Bombs, how about the recent ones in Suleja, Zuba and Bauchi? How safe is the Nigerian life?
Bombs are not sold off the shelves, who are those behind the high level of insecurity, the bombs game is not one played by just alamajiris or some uneducated insolent idiots.
We have a state security agency that cannot be proactive; the best is some walkie-talking-carrying-running-shielding-boy wearing bullet proof and dark glasses. The agency is run based on quota system, just like every other thing Nigeria, full of intrigues of promotion exams, state of origin, secondment and postings.
The Police is only a luxury for the rich as escorts and on the roads as toll services, apart from receiving cars and gadgets from state governors and recruiting personnel with baptism certificates, they have been overwhelmed by the situation.While the army seems to be more-like watching and saying we remain loyal, anyhow una want am.
President Jonathan Goodluck posted this on his Facebook wall with a promise that “Justice WILL be done”:
Dear countrymen and women, this is not a time for too many words, however, let me say that the unfortunate event that occurred yesterday in Abuja is a turning point. About two months ago, I addressed the nation and said “enough is enough”. I meant what I said and the Federal Government will with level headedness but urgent priority take appropriate steps to bring justice to those behind the dastardly attack. I promised an era of transformation and I will not waver in that commitment nor allow any force hamper that resolve to bring about those positive changes that the common man in Nigeria desires and has patiently waited for.
I commiserate with the families of the victims and assure them that justice will be done and that their loved ones did not die in vain. Finally, let me say that EVERYTHING that needs to be done to fish out the masterminds of the recent bombings will be done. GEJ
However not all Nigerians are optimistic with the president’s promise. In an op-ed, Chude Jideonwo sums up the cynicism and difficulty of accepting Mr Goodluck’s oratory:
We really have to ask Goodluck Jonathan what he's up to. The truth is that it is very difficult to look at our state of affairs at the moment and deliver a vote of confidence. Just take the simple matter of the youth corps members who were kidnapped. More than 10 days after, and no one seems to have a clue.
Yes, government officials will have us believe everything is being done behind the scenes – but governance is not a matter of faith; governance is not religion. It is a matter of fact. We can't just trust that this president has good intentions, and knows what he is doing. He might have a different philosophy of leadership and willingness to think differently from his predecessors; but that, unfortunately, cannot be enough.
You see, government doesn't just have to work; government has to be seen to be working. People cannot just have faith in a government; the government must earn the trust of its people. A leader cannot afford to amble on, assured in his sense of destiny; without giving the followers that same sense of confidence. It is a leader's duty to lead.
…it's time for the president to sit up. If he loses even the trust of these ones, then he will have no one but himself to blame. Because even those who love him, love their country more than they love him.

author: Nwachukwu Egbunike


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Venezuela: Arguments For and Against the Smoking Ban · Global Voices
Laura Vidal

It is no secret that smokers and non-smokers argue over issues regarding health, air and the freedom of choice. However, many people have used different modes of citizen media to comment, protest and debate the reasons behind the Venezuelan government's recent introduction of a new anti-tobacco law, which had been repealed in February.
The law is viewed as a necessary step by those who recognize the risks of passive smoking. Others consider it to be a new form of repression and claim that other priorities and urgent matters are being neglected.
Image by Huseyin Emre Tazegul, copyright Demotix (15/07/09).
In his blog Sin Gasolina [es], Horacio says there are valid reasons for making environments 100% smoke free. They:
* Disminuyen el riesgo de infarto del miocardio, cáncer del pulmón y asma
* Reducen 30% el consumo de cigarrillos y son un estímulo para dejar de fumar
* Garantizan el derecho de la población trabajadora a un ambiente laboral saludable
* Son fáciles de implementar y cuestan muy poco
* Reduce the risk of heart attacks, cardiovascular diseases, lung cancer and asthma.
* Reduce the sale of cigarettes by 30% and encourage people to give up smoking.
* Guarantee the working population's right to a healthy working environment.
* Are easy and cheap to implement.
In contrast, Naky [es] strongly opposes the law, describing it as a way of restricting and influencing an individual's free will:
¿Cómo interpretar favorables, leyes que “piensan por mí”? Antes fue la ley contra videojuegos y juegos violentos, que se suponen más nocivos que la formación deniños en “guerrillas comunicacionales” o la de jóvenes como miliacianos. Le siguió otra que prohíbe la transmisión de narco-novelas. Hoy es una ley anti-tabaco, aprobada antes que una anti-desarme a pesar que las armas representaron 19.000 muertes violentas en 2009
Jesús, on the other hand, has a different opinion [es]:
Estoy plenamente consciente de que todos tenemos derecho a elegir algo (y a sufrir las consecuencias de nuestra decisión), al igual que podemos elegir nuestro bien, no debemos limitar a la gente que elija su mal. Tratar a la gente como limitados mentales que necesitan de la eterna ayuda del Estado o de un ente externo que les diga que hacer y que no (sin dejar derecho a réplica o de participar en la legislación de dichas normas) es harto insultante para alguien que se asuma como libre. Lo lamento, pero una sociedad libre no se construye con cultos a la mendicidad ni con tratamientos infantiles ni con disposiciones arbitrarias. Los vicios no son crímenes.
Blogger «lenguaeniple» uses the collective blog Panfleto Negro [es] to reflect upon the State's right to dictate the behaviour of its citizens:
El Estado tiene la atribución, potestad y facultad de prohibir fumar en Registros, Notarías, Alcaldías, Ministerios y/o cualquier otra dependencia de su propiedad, lo que definitivamente es una aberración es que ese mismo Estado sea quien decida que a usted, dentro de su negocio, le está prohibido fumar.
The comments on Twitter also showed differing points of view. Fewer words expressed more complaints, and they all expressed disbelief regarding the respect (or lack thereof) many people have for the Law. Robert M (@robert7772), Adrian (@AdriianRz) and Sabrina Baroni (@Sabrina_Baroni) said:
Esperemos que la Ley Antitabaco si es que llega a ser ley se cumpla, porque aquí en Venezuela rara vez se cumplen las leyes.
En este país (Venezuela) ninguna ley se cumple, que te hace pensar que la “Ley Antitabaco” sera la excepción?
Mientras [Chávez] candanga hace campaña, todos enloquecen por la LeyAntitabaco. A veces pienso que Venezuela tiene el presidente que se merece…

author: Laura Vidal


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Zambia: Netizens Shocked by Death of Former President · Global Voices
Gershom Ndhlovu

Waking up in the morning of Saturday June 18, 2011, I was greeted by social network buzz that Zambia’s second president Frederick Chiluba had died. It was shocking news to all and little wonder it was received with utmost caution on Twitter and Facebook where it broke out first.
The caution this time around was understandable because just over two years ago, when Zambia’s third president, the late Levy Mwanawasa was hospitalised in France after suffering a stroke while  visiting Egypt, an announcement was made about his death which was broadcast all over the world later turned out to be false. Mwanawasa died two weeks later.
Zambia’s second president Frederick Chiluba. Photo courtesy of Zambia Chronicle
According to information oline, Chiluba died around 00.05 hours. The first tweet that came on my list was posted slightly more than hour after his death from geshgroove:
Reports out of Zambia are saying that 2nd Republican President FJT Chiluba passed away in Lusaka a few minutes ago.awaiting further details.
An hour later, another tweet followed from ZambiaOnline:
Former President FJT Chiluba has died http://fb.me/103B1UIvl
The following tweet came from a private radio station QfmZambia:
Information reaching Q-FM is that former president Dr FTJ Chilua dead shortly after mid night. Details will follow as soon as we get them.
An online radio tweeted the death with a question mark:
FORMER PREZ FTJ DEAD?
Tweep and blogger MissBwalya also sought confirmation for the death of Zambia’s second president:
Can anyone confirm or deny reports coming in that #Zambia‘s former pres, FTJ, has died?
Another tweep, responded to MissBwalya:
@missbwalya I went to Muvi TV website and there is nothing about that news. (The website was later updated with the news)
MissBwalya also tweeted about how she could not get any news on state-owned radio stations:
Listened to Q-FM, Radio Phoenix, Radio 1 & Radio 4 for last half hour. No one has mentioned anything of FTJ death. #Zambia
What appeared to be definite confirmation of Chiluba’s death came through the following tweet:
@NKabalata my newsroom people are saying it is confirmed.
Munshyamunshya wondered if it could just be a rumour:
@missbwalya could it be a rumour?
MissBwalya responds with her distaste for rumour mongering which sometimes is a pastime for Zambians:
@munshyamunshya It could be a rumour. I don't like people spreading such stories without citing their source.
It is common in Zambia for radio and TV stations to suspend playing of secular music in favour of gospel music after the death of a politician who has held high political office. This appeared ominous to missbwalya:
Radio Phoenix & Q-Fm have started playing gospel music. Is this a sign? #FTJ #Zambia
The finality of Chiluba’s demise on my Twitter list came with this tweet:
I am listening live to Emmanuel Mwamba, the late President Fredrick Chiluba's spokesman confirming on QFM that he has past on.
Elsewhere on the Internet, the Zambian Watchdog broke the story some five hours after Chiluba’s death and within two hours there were more than 170 comments expressing a dichotomy of views of the man whose reign will be remembered more for his criminal conduct while in office for which he was controversially cleared. Chiluba was acquitted through what is largely thought to be the intervention of President Rupiah Banda who made Chiluba his political consultant.
Here are some of the comments left by readers [the site does not have permanent link for individual comments]. BossMan said:
MHSRIP. THIS IS INDEED A SAD DAY FOR ZAMBIA. WE HAVE LOST A GREAT LEADER AGAIN
WATERSHED 2011 wondered if Chiluba is canonised in death.
In death, he is a saint? Indeed REST in Peace.
In very few words, reflecting on what great things Chiluba would have achieved during his presidency, Legal Crime takes away with a caveat below:
Condolences to Mrs. Chiluba. Suffice to say that chiluba had a great opportunity to go into the annals of history as one of the greatest african statesmen…whatever went wrong!!!
BossMan was not happy with the comments by others:
BE SERIOUS SOME OF YOU BLOGGERS, GROW UP! ARE THESE THE KIND OF COMMENTS YOU CAN BE POSTING WHEN YOUR FRIENDS ARE MOURNING? HAVE RESPECT THAT MAN FOR TEN YEARS TOOK CARE OF YOUR ***
BossMan was quickly countered by Lamborgini:
No BossMan, he took care of your ass and screwed the rest of us. You idiot nigga!
However, the general feeling in the nation was summed up by a contributor called Chocked:
Its extremely sad but no one can turn back death when time comes. We all had mixed feelings about his political career but this is the time to unite as a nation. MHSRP.
The Lusaka Times website went further than just announcing the former president’s death by doing an obituary of his rise from humble beginnings to the highest political office in the land. As usual, the story attracted comments commending the man and those condemning him.
Mushota said:
The man is dead let us not sensationalise this news. The man embezzled millions and millions of pounds. He is not a hero, he is a villain! Making this too much news worthy and bringing your crocodile tears on this blog will not bring any sympathy from me, or anyone who is smart and intelligent like me
Its unfortunate he is died, but let him go away. Let us talk about better life, X factor, Cheryl Cole.
Grow up and go back and improve the country and have some breakfast. He died a pain free death, unlike Mr Mwanwasa. If you want to mourn, mourn Mr Mwanwasa. Use your brains. Thanks
In reference to the forthcoming elections in which the ruling MMD is facing serious challenge in its 20 year reign from the opposition Patriotic Front,  Nubian Princess had this to say:
Chiluba’s death is symbolic to the end of the MMD Era…
Please donate those 300 pairs of booties to the street children. The money used to purchase them in the first place should have improved their living conditions
A more sober analysis came from Kwandangala says:
Chabipa kamudala (sad, little man). But your iniquities will overshadow the good you did.
Munshya remembers Chiluba with a post titled “A Short Man who Walked Tall: Life and Times of Frederick Jacob Titus Chiluba (1948—2011)”:
Here a man without High School education worked hard as a bus conductor to read a few A Level courses which he later admitted to have flanked. Additionally, not to be outdone by his many challenges, Chiluba went as far as Tanzania looking for opportunities. When he came back to Zambia in his twenties, he translated the knowledge he acquired while working in the Tanzanian Sisal industry into good use. He used his courageousness and his fearlessness to become a defender of his fellow workers. Through the trade union, a diminutive Chiluba had found an opportunity to talk and walk the tallest.
When Kenneth Kaunda legislated that all trade unions would be amalgamated and controlled from one umbrella body, little did he know that one of the leaders that would use this umbrella body to oust him was Frederick Chiluba. Indeed Chiluba used and enjoyed the visibility that his stature gave him. And as an outspoken member of the unions, it was just natural that the Zambia Congress of Trade Unions would appoint him its leader. The leadership position he held until 1991 when he was elected president of the Republic.
Whatever one’s views on the death of Chiluba, it closes a political chapter in which citizens regained their social, political and economic freedoms denied under the one party, socialist-like system of his predecessor, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, now 87.
One question remains:
How will Chiluba be remembered? That is the question.

author: Gershom Ndhlovu


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Argentina: Demonstrations in the Borda Psychiatric Hospital  · Global Voices
Fanny Rahmouni

A peculiar kind of music festival took place on June 11, 2011, in the gardens of the neuropsychiatric hospital Borda, located in the neighbor of Barracas, Buenos Aires.
The festival, organized by a collective of associations linked to the hospital (the hospital-based radio La Colifata, the section 17 of the hospital and the association of defense of psychiatric patients Cooperanza [es]), aimed to collect clothes for the patients and interns, as gas has been cut in the hospital since the middle of April.
The blog Oniriciclos [es] spread the text of the convocation, which explains the purpose of the event:
A raíz de la falta de gas (más de 50 días), entre otras carencias, creemos que entre TODOS podemos hacer algo para sobrellevar la situación por la que está atravesando los internos del Hospital José T. Borda.
Photo of the Borda psychiatric hospital by freelance photojournalist Francesco Pistilli, copyright Demotix (11/10/2008)
The hospital, which currently accommodates around 700 patients affected by mental disorders, used to be the largest and most notable psychiatric hospital in Argentina. Yet in April of 2008, the Head of the City's government, Mauricio Macri, announced the construction of ten new psychiatric centers of confinement, and the closing down of the current neuropsychiatric centers.
The plan [es] was later abandoned and the City's government now rejects the allegation that it wanted to close down the Borda, as explained by Amie Tsang in the The Argentina Independent:
The government eventually withdrew its plans, perhaps as a result of protests and an adverse reaction from health officials and possibly because they came up against the economic crisis and had funding problems. The reasons remain unclear.
Indeed, on April 22 the hospital's staff and the city's Minister of Health, Jorge Lemus, signed a pact [es] with the trade unions of the medical sector binding him not to close down the hospital. Nevertheless, it seems that the situation in the hospital Borda has been deteriorating for the last three years, as, according to Amie Tsang:
Although the plans are no more, some have noticed a deterioration in the hospital in the last two years. Olivera has noticed that there are fewer patients and he hears that they increasingly end up in private clinics after being discharged from El Borda.
The blog SOS Caballito [es] shares the ‘SOS’ message of Norma Monardini, one of the members of the Borda's staff:
VECINOS Y AMIGOS: NUEVAMENTE LES PIDO AYUDA PARA SALVAR LOS HOSPITALES NEUROPSOQUIATRICOS. AHORA MACRI AND CO, ESTAN CONTRA EL HOSPITAL BORDA.
In a similar way, Protagonistas [es] and other blogs, posts the story of Marcela Guzmán, a graduate in Occupational Therapy and member of the Borda's medical staff:
Hace 20 años que trabajo en el hospital Borda en el área de internación y nunca en este largo trayecto profesional me sentí tan impotente por no poder trabajar las actividades de la vida diaria (incumbencias de mi profesión) como desde el 20 de abril que cortaron el gas en el hospital. Los pacientes tienen frío, el edificio es muy grande, las salas dormitorio muy amplias, las ventanas no cierran herméticamente… Es muy dificultoso para los pacientes recibir un baño diario con agua caliente, en el Servicio donde trabajo no nos han puesto termotanque eléctrico, los pacientes se deben trasladar a un Servicio vecino…
Photo of the hospital by freelance photojournalist Francesco Pistilli, copyright Demotix (11/10/2008)
On May 23, the Association of Professionals of the Hospital Borda (Asociación de Profesionales del Hospital Borda) called for a “White March” of protest in downtown Buenos Aires. On its Twitter account (@AsocProfBorda), the Association denounces what they consider an attempt to close the Borda:
NO AL CIERRE DEL HOSPITAL PUBLICO. CONVOCAMOS A TODA LA CIUDADANIA A ACOMPAÑARNOS EN ESTA LUCHA CONTRA EL DETERIORO DE LA SALUD PUBLICA,
Marcela Guzmán calls [es] for political action in response to the situation the hospital is going through:
Por qué un ciudadano que recurre a un Hospital Público para recibir atención o que se lo ” aloje” temporariamente debe soportar semejante maltrato ? El Dr Garralda y otros funcionarios del Gobierno de la Ciudad dicen que con la Marcha Blanca, las protestas y reclamos estamos haciendo “política”.Sí , la estamos haciendo. Yo pido que la hagan ellos, que tengan políticas comprometidas para una salud igualitaria , solidaria y digna para t@dos.
On Twitter, reactions and stories about the Borda are mushrooming.
Maria Acatpicheu (@picheu) expresses her indignation:
Es una verguenza lo q pasa el hospital Borda!!! falta de todo x favor hagan algo las autoridades!!!!
Photo by freelance photojournalist Francesco Pistilli, copyright Demotix (11/10/2008)
Paula Siri (@Pauulasiri) shows her support to the staff and patients of the hospital:
”Hospital borda, 50 dias sin gas” en grave situación, necesitan apoyo de la comunidad.SI al hosp publico gratuito y solidario.
Mariano Onega (@marianoonega) prefers to tackle the topic with a touch of dark humour:
#Macri desmintió que quiera cerrar el Hospital Borda. Sólo le cambiaría su nombre uno más cool: “The crazy house”.
At the heart of the conflict is the implementation of the Health Plan of Law 448, that was questioned in a 2009 report [es] released by a legislative commission of the Parliament. According to that report, the number of services in mental health (consultations and therapeutic practices) fell 16% in the last three years in the city of Buenos Aires.
For Maria, in the blog Arte y Política [es], the case of the hospital Borda is an example of the malfunctioning of the city's management:
¿Quienes són los que “más necesitan” del estado en la ciudad? ¿Qué podemos hacer para mejorar su vida, lo más rápido posible? ¿Cuáles son los saberes técnicos y las relaciones de poder políticas que harán posible llevar estos cambios a cabo? Estas son preguntas sustantivas y concretas, con respuestas sustantivas y concretas… Los que más necesitan son, por ejemplo, los enfermos del Borda, que están sin gas hace un mes.

author: Fanny Rahmouni


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Argentina: Puyehue Volcano Ash Unstoppable in Argentine Territory   · Global Voices
Laura Schneider

On June 4, 2011, the Puyehue volcano in Chile began erupting, spewing huge ash clouds that affected a considerable part of the zone. But that day was not the end of this story.
The eruption has affected a considerable part of the mountain region in Argentina and it will probably become one of the greatest natural disasters that the country has gone through in recent years.
Bariloche and Villa La Angostura, two major common tourist destinations during winter vacations, were also affected by this volcano eruption.
Cancelled flights in Buenos Aires by Patricio Murphy. Image by Patricio Murphy, copyright Demotix (13/06/11).
In the blog 101lugaresincreibles [es], Matias Callone described what happened:
La erupción del volcán Puyehue desde hace más de una semana en el sur de Chile,  tiene a maltraer a los habitantes y turistas del entorno a ambos lados  de la frontera. Por los efectos del viento, las cenizas del volcán, que  hoy mismo se elevan como una columna de 7,5 kilómetros, continúan cayendo  con intervalos en el área de la paradisíaca Región de los Lagos, en Argentina. Bariloche, Villa Traful y Villa la Angostura son algunas de las localidades más afectadas.
Nevertheless, the problem does not only have an impact on those regions, since ash that is in the atmosphere has traveled due to the wind, resulting in cancelled flights every day in international airports, not just in Argentina, but in other countries.
On June 8, blogger Fabio Baccaglioni shared [es] a link [es] with photos that he took in Bariloche –all under a Creative Commons license. On June 16, Daniel Barrios Laumenière uploaded more photographs to Fabio’s blog [es]. He explained:
Fallen ash. Photo by Fabio Baccaglioni (CC BY-NC-SA 2.5)
Después de la primer arena que cayó tuvimos unos días de  calma y después una tormenta de lluvia que aplacó la arena y convirtió  todo en una gran masa húmeda. En la última semana ha caído una ceniza  más fina en tres oportunidades, lo que en sí resultó más molesto que la  primer arena porque no se asienta nunca. Por fortuna cada dos por tres  llueve algo y aplaca y lava esta ceniza fina permitiendo seguir  trabajando en la limpieza de calles, techos, autos, etc.
Daniel, who lives in Bariloche, has been following the eruption in his Danbat [es] blog, posting photographs and up-to-date information every day since June 4 [es].
The site Cadena3 [es] informs about an interview with Government Secretary Ariel Domingo regarding the situation in Villa La Angostura:
“La situación es compleja, teniendo en cuenta que tenemos  acumulada 30 centímetros de cenizas. Está prevista para hoy la  actividad del volcán, por eso esperamos la llegada de más cenizas y  chaparrones”, aseguró a Cadena 3 el secretario de gobierno, Ariel Domínguez.
En otro sentido, el funcionario afirmó que las clases continúan  afectadas, aunque aclaró que no hay inconvenientes por ahora con el agua  potable.
“It is a complicated situation if we take into consideration that we have 30 centimeters of ash accumulated. It is announced that the volcano is going to erupt today, therefore, we expect more ash and rain” asserted the Secretary of the Government, Ariel Rodriguez, to Cadena3.
In addition to that, he affirmed that school is still suspended, but he did not clarify the current problems with drinkable water.
The article continues:
Si bien un importante sector de la población permanecía  sin energía eléctrica desde hace varios días, la lluvia y la ceniza  caída este martes, descripto como el peor día desde que comenzó la  emergencia, hicieron que salieran de servicio las tres fuentes que  alimentan la villa turística.
On Twitter, the @visitingarg account informs:
Se sigue trabajando para minimizar el impacto en distintas áreas, se continua la limpieza. #LaAngostura sufre la peor parte
Nahuel G. Abregú confirms the tough situation that Villa La Angostura is going through with this tweet:
recién recibí info de gente que está llevando alimentos a #LaAngostura y por el estado de las rutas no puede entrar, #Puyehue #Cenizas
A rumors started circulating about the possible suspension of the highly anticipated ‘Copa América‘ scheduled to start on June 1, because several flights had been cancelled. However, the Argentine Football Association [es] denied this by issuing a press release:
Ante consultas periodísticas respecto de la realización,  desarrollo y calendario sobre la Copa América “Argentina 2011”, el  Comité Organizador cumple en informar que dicho evento se realizará tal  como estaba programado, entre los días 1 y 24 de julio de 2011, con los  horarios y sedes establecidos según resultara del sorteo realizado en  diciembre de 2010.
Las circunstancias naturales que ocurren no son motivo para ninguna modificación a lo claramente informado.
To answer journalists’ questions regarding the development and calendar of the Copa America “Argentina 2011”, the Organizing Committee informs that this event will take place as it was scheduled, from July 1 to July 24, 2011, with the schedules and stadiums that were already agreed according to the previous draw in December 2010.
The facts regarding the natural disaster are not a reason to change what was clearly informed.
Photo by Sebastián Criado (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
President Cristina Fernandez [es], informed about the creation of a monitoring group through her Twitter account @CFKArgentina. She also expressed her support for the affected regions:
Como patagónica, saben que siempre voy a estar allí, siempre
Queremos llevar tranquilidad a todas las zonas afectadas, que estamos  trabajando fuertemente, y midiendo las cosas que sean necesarias
Creamos un grupo de seguimiento de la situación en la región afectada por las cenizas del Volcán Puyehue.
As someone from The Patagonia, you know that I’ll always be there, always.
We want to bring peace and calm to all of those areas, we are working hard, and gathering information about the needs at this time.
We created a monitoring group for the region affected by the ash of the Puyehue Volcano.
Last June 15, the Minister of Agriculture Fishery and Food [es] declared a state of emergency through different resolutions that were published in the Official Bulletin for the regions in La Patagonia, Argentina.
Recent images are worth a thousand words.
Image by Daninofal (CC BY 2.0)

author: Laura Schneider


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Bangladesh: A Blog On River Pollution · Global Voices
Rezwan

River Pollution In Bangladesh blog chronicles pollution in different rivers of Bangladesh.

author: Rezwan


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Bermuda: Responding to Corruption  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Corruption happens in every country around the world,” says Politics.bm, adding: “What shows your character and values is how you respond to it, not how you respond to those who want to root it out.”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Caribbean: Thanks, Dad! · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Father's Day, that worldwide celebration honouring dads and their important role in the family dynamic, is marked in the Caribbean on the third Sunday of June and regional bloggers posted en masse yesterday for the occasion.  From the eloquent to the irreverent, here's what they had to say…
Jamaican diaspora blogger Geoffrey Philp noticed that the “rain lilies had once again bloomed after the long, dry season that we’ve had in South Florida”, explaining that those particular flowers had a special significance for him because they reminded him of his dad:
I did not know my father, Sydney George Philp, very well. I was his tenth child from four marriages, so the time that I spent with him was always important to me. In the brief times that I spent with him…I realized that he was a charming, brilliant man…
Our family started Philp get-togethers which were prompted (sadly) when we found out that our father was ill.  My favorite memory of that time was sitting on the verandah with my father and eating roasted corn, smelling the mixture of rain and earth before the showers came tumbling down Long Mountain, watching him fall asleep as the rain fell, and realizing in that moment that even though he might soon not be with us, that everything was irie.
All was not forgotten, but forgiven. I was walking with him in the lane at the back of the house, he pulled up a rain lily, handed it to me, and said, ‘There, you can’t say I never gave you anything.’ And he laughed. The old devil laughed. And all I could do was laugh and tell him that I loved him. He said, ‘I know.’
So, whenever the rain lilies bloom at my front door, I remember my father and those brief moments we had together—which were as brief and miraculous as the appearance of rain lilies—and I give thanks.
Another Jamaican living in the U.S., Dennis Jones, who admits his parenting skills are “a work-in-progress”, used the opportunity to acknowledge the efforts of his own father:
As I comb through my memories, I can see vividly the many things my father did for me, but I will try to synthesise them into a few lessons, on to which I try to hold in my efforts to be a good father.
He showed me that fathers and mothers should be equal partners in raising a child.
I thank him for showing me the value of consistency in parenting.  I thank him for always keeping his word. He never promised more than he could deliver.
He explained to me that discipline is learning what is the right thing to do; it is not imposed.  He explained that being a parent is a lifetime occupation…Thank you, Daddy.
In stark contrast, Annie Paul reported on Jamaica's “own brand of incomprehensible Father’s Day exuberance when popular singjay @MrVegasMusic saluted the day with: Big up to all a the fathers dem inna prison weh kill a man fi dem yute. I would too.”
Girl With a Purpose, meanwhile, called fatherhood “a very special period in a man's life where he truly learns to give of and extend himself outside of himself to other human beings that he brought into this world”, and went on to interpret several Biblical passages on the role of husbands and fathers, saying:
To truly understand what God expects of fathers, we need to go to the human race's owner's manual – the Bible.
Father's Day greetings from members of the Cuban diaspora were imbued with calls for freedom.  El Cafe Cubano thanked his father “for always being there…and for setting the example of the importance of family”:
One of the reasons I do this blog is for you. I cannot FREE Cuba for you, but I will do everything I can to try to FREE Cuba.
Babalu‘s thoughts were also “with the incredible Cuban fathers who have done so much and sacrificed everything for their children to live in freedom”:
There are too many Cuban fathers who are not with us today because they gave their life struggling for the freedom of their country and liberty for their families and all Cubans. Let us remember them and thank them on this day, offering a special prayer for their families. They gave their lives not only so their children would have an opportunity to live in freedom, but so their countrymen could as well.
Over in Barbados, rainy weather that was a thorn in the side of “who were dreaming about a day on the beach or at a fancy restaurant”, made B.C. Pires‘ day:
Too wet to do anything remotely rewarding or character-building, my kids and I watched Batman Begins, the necessary first step to watching The Dark Knight, the blu-ray of which I’ve had since Christmas, but not the opportunity to press gang the little ones into a forced viewing of Part I. The daughter whose starting position was it was bound to be ‘too scary’ and my son, whose every waking moment is filled with football, gave me the present of two hours on the couch with the old man.  It was great.
Blogging from St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Abeni revealed that she had been estranged from her father as a young girl, but was immensely grateful that they were able to reunite and forge a meaningful relationship:
I am my father's daughter in so many respects.
There is nothing left to say but thanks for the love and support even when obstacles were put in your way. We may not always see eye to eye and truth be told at times you drive me up a wall. I guess I do too and would have disappointed you many a time. However I think it is fair to say that we have grown to respect our differences. Happy Father's day and if I have learnt one thing from you it is that forgiveness is a beautiful thing.
Finally, Karen Walrond and her daughter spent Father's Day in Trinidad, away from their husband/dad, but sent this message to men everywhere:
To all of you men out there who have ever loved, guided, cared for, or protected anyone else, Happy Father's Day, whether you have children or not.  May the people who love you treat you in grand style today.


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Chile: ‘Riding the Ramal’, a Photo Essay · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Margaret Snook in Cachando Chile posts a photo essay of a the ‘Ramal’, a “rural branch-line train that runs 80 km (50 mi) from Talca to  Constitución, from the foothills of the Andes to the shores of the  Pacific.”

author: Silvia Viñas


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Colombia: Satisfaction and Scepticism for the Victims’ Law · Global Voices
Cati Restrepo

On June 10, 2011, the 1448 law, or the Victims’ and Reinstatement of Lands in Colombia law, which, as described in Periodismo Humano, aims “to reinstate stolen and abandoned lands to internally displaced Colombians, as well as offer reparation, including indemnification to victims of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law,” was approved.
The law seeks to make amends [es] with victims affected since 1985, and the restitution of lands will cover deeds that occurred since 1991.
Atrabilioso discusses whether the law should affirm that an armed conflict actually exists in Colombia (one of the  characteristics of the law is to recognise that it does indeed exist).  Additionally, the economic restitution, one of its main points, is  criticised, because according to the author [es]
se están convirtiendo a los muertos de la guerra en Colombia en cheques al portador; es decir que la barbarie se esta convirtiendo en moneda transaccional, lo cual deshumaniza aún más un proceso que ya de por sí era el más inhumano de todos.
'What about the missing bodies?' Photo by ElAlisPruz on Flickr (CC by 2.0)
Sofia Buendia dedicates a post [es] to the law and makes the following reflection:
Para algunos quizá esas dos millones de hectáreas que serán devueltas a las víctimas no significan más sino un trámite en el congreso. Pero resulta que este acto –suponiendo que los beneficios de la norma funcionen realmente- podría llegar a ser un primer paso para intentar sanar el dolor de muchos colombianos que han vivido el conflicto (Por favor aceptémoslo ya, en Colombia HAY CONFLICTO, hay guerra). Un país NO es viable mientras un gran número de sus habitantes no vivan, sino que sobrevivan cada minuto cargando rencor, odio y dolor.
Some of the opinions on Twitter revolve around the question of how applicable the law will be due to issues like the reinstatement of lands, which can arouse greed and selfish interests.
Ariel Ávila, (@ArielArcoIris) writes:
Uno de los principales riesgos de ley de víctimas es que institucionalidad local y regional se encuentra penetrada por mafias que impedirán restitución
Emiro Marín (@EmiroMarin) posts a link to a declaration by the National Board of Victims of Colombia, which affirms that:
La Ley de víctimas es insuficiente http://goo.gl/fb/RHxbk
However, there have also been positive opinions, like that of Luis Manuel Rivas (@RivasRegal):
Con la Ley de víctimas, de llegar a cumplirse, se podrían recuperar las regiones, ya que se renovaría la confianza en una paz duradera.
Links of interest:

author: Cati Restrepo


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Georgia: Government 2.0 · Global Voices
Mirian Jugheli

Various agencies and officials in the Georgian government are increasingly embracing social media and Web 2.0 tools in order to communicate with the country's computerized population. As the technology develops and more Georgians join social media sites, it becomes clear that the government intends to directly connect with its citizens. The leading reformer in the region, Georgia follows a world-wide trend of digitization and e-government by taking concrete steps online.
For example, citizens can download the driver's license preparation test from the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, register and declare their property on the Revenue Service's website and, in February this year, Transparency International Georgia, with the support of the Eurasia Partnership Foundation in Georgia, launched Chemikucha.ge, a local version of the British FixMyStreet.com, an online platform enabling citizens to report problems such as potholes or garbage collection.
Chemikucha.ge – chemi kucha means “our street” – is designed to help and encourage residents of Tbilisi to report local problems on their street to City Hall. The reports are located on a map and can be viewed and discussed by residents, stakeholders and representatives of the competent government authority. The platform, launched through a year-long project, enables the public to monitor the competent authorities reaction to a reported issue of concern. Chekikucha is an adaptation of the open-source FixMyStreet concept and can also be accessed at FixMyStreet.ge.
[…]
The goal of www.chemikucha.ge is to create an online platform that facilitates direct communication on local problems between citizens and the city of Tbilisi's administration. Furthermore, we want to encourage citizens to report issues in their neighborhood they are concerned about by lowering the barriers to get active, share and discuss problems with others and monitor the authorities’ reactions.
Consequently, the project aims to create more public awareness and debate about dangerous problems on the streets of Tbilisi. By bringing people's concern about local problems into the public sphere, we hope that competent authorities will be able to address and solve those issues more quickly and effectively.
Reports of problems on the streets of the capital will make Tbilisi City Hall officials more responsive to problems that are reported by citizens.
Reports are directly sent to the Tbilisi Municipality and 556 problems have been reported so far, with 344 already fixed. As mentioned above, the Georgian government has been active with social media for some time. Most recently, on 9 June, Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava held a live conference via LiveStream. Citizens were able to ask questions through the Mayor's official Facebook page. Around 500-600 people watched the live conference, the first of its kind in the country with similar events promised in the future.
Ugulava has a Twitter account too. Launched in May, 113 tweets have been sent and there are 194 followers at time of writing.
Ugulava is not alone on Twitter either. The Prime Minister, Nika Gilauri, and the Minister of Education and Science also have  Twitter accounts. Georgia's first lady, Sandra Roelofs, was also one of the first to use social media, couple of days ago she posted this humorous photo on Facebook.
"You know I am promoting ROAD SAFETY, but last Sunday, when I saw this on the highway between Gori and Tbilisi I got confused….. A COW IN A LADA 07 !!"
Ministries and governmental agencies also have their own Facebook pages and Twitter accounts and although it appears many of them have same administrators based on the content shared, they are updated daily. Most of these accounts don't encourage discussion, however. One of the youngest faces in Georgian government, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Vera Kobalia also posts job announcements on her Facebook profile, where she has 4143 friends and 907 followers on Twitter.
@VeraKobalia: At the UN climate change conference. No wifi anywhere on site! but lots of smart minds :)
It has to be noted that Facebook pages of governmental officials are actively advertised under sponsored links:
David Bakardze, the chairman of the Georgian Parliament.
It is unknown why the President, Mikheil Saakashvili, does not follow an example of his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, and open either a Twitter or Facebook account, but given the popularity of social media in the region this might change. With 621,640 Facebook users in the country, Georgia boasts the largest penetration for the social networking site in the region. Facebook is the most popular site according to Alexa.com with Twitter the 13th. Internet penetration is also believed to stand at more than 40 percent although most of the users live in the capital Tbilisi.

author: Mirian Jugheli


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Ghana: 1975 Work Song From Ghana postal workers  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Listen to a unique 1975 song from Ghana: “The song in question which is accompanied by melodic whistling is simply called “the work song”. It was created by postal workers at the University of Ghana in 1975.”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Ghana: Let Them Be Gay · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

The Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) in Ghana has begun investigations into the growing rate of homosexuality in the Western and Central regions.
About eight thousand homosexuals were registered by a non-governmental organization at a workshop in the Western and some parts of the Central regions. This has prompted a heated debate in the Ghanaian blogosphere about homosexuality.
In a post titled “Debating Homosexuality in Ghana”, Kajsa said that there is very little public debate about the issue:
Under Ghanaian law male homosexual activity is officially illegal. Photo: Holli's Ramblings blog
Homosexual acts are forbidden by law in Ghana and there has been very little public debate that would suggest Ghanaians in general would like to change the status quo.
“Let them be gay,” said Ghanaian blogger Ato. Ato began his post by saying that he finds it difficult to understand why a virile man will want to have anal sex with another man:
With that in mind, I don’t give a toss who is having sex with whom, where and how. Mostly. When I hear a story of a pastor desecrating the inner sanctum of teenagers in his congregation, of course, that gives me cause for concern. But I don’t care if Kwaku Mensah in Fanteakwa, a full-grown man who works hard to feed himself, decides to have anal sex with Kwabena Bonsu of Atonkyini, another full grown man.
What they do in their bedroom is entirely their business and I don’t see why anyone should hate them for choosing how they derive sexual pleasure. It’s like hating someone who enjoys watermelons, simply because I don’t like watermelon.
Much as I don’t understand why people become gay, I also don’t understand all the hatred being spewed on people in this country who have chosen to be gay.
So, what’s all the fuss about men having sex with men?
One reader commented on his post by quoting Bible verses suggesting that homosexuality is a sin. Ato responded:
Why? You think everyone reads and believes in your bible?
Another reader, Rasta, said:
Ato,if a moral deficiency is at it peak in our dear country Ghana,and all that you can attribute this uncouth and unruly behaviour to, is to liken it to some class preferring watermelons to oranges and apples,then its a shame on your path as a journalist to come out with such pronouncements!
Ato's response:
Shame on you too! What is moral decay? People having anal sex or people stealing our money, spending it on worldly pleasures while the whole nation wallows in abject poverty? I will choose a gay man over a thief parading as a politician any day.
On June 8, 2001, Ato wrote Let them be gay part II. He used various Bible verses to add flesh to his original post. According to the Bible, he said, we are all sinners:
With this in mind, when an adulterer was brought before Jesus by stone-wielding men and women ready to pelt him to death, our Gracious Saviour looked around at them all and said: “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7).
At that moment, the stones fell to the ground. We are all sinners. None of us can decide that our sins are less grievous than the other. The man who has regular virginal sex is as sinful as the one who has anal sex. God will not punish the gay man any more than he would punish the heterosexual man.
Christians should be the first to embrace homosexuals, he noted:
God is not homophobic. He loves us all. He loves the gay man and he loves the straight man. He loves the armed robber and he loves the prostitute. He loves the priest and he loves the cheat. And he enjoins us to love one another. Christians, therefore, should be among the first to warmly embrace gay people.
That’s what God wants us to do. Anyone who professes to be a Christian but is filled with hatred for homosexuals and discriminates against them is failing in his duty as a believer. It’s that simple. Therefore, even though I don’t like going to church and I feel there is a place already prepared for me in hell, I am glad that in my heart I harbour no hatred for any man who enjoys anal sex with another man. My willingness to embrace gay people and my failure to condemn them might just be my saving grace. But then, it’s not for me to decide. God decides – out of His abundant, amazing Grace and his infinite mercies.
He has also carried the same debate on Facebook:
Baaba Andoh Ato, nobody really cares what happens in someone’s bedroom and I certainly don’t think it’s a BNI issue. But it goes beyond apples and melons. Yes, all these societies have things we want but they have many others that we can live without. We should focus on the positive things that developed countries have. If someone wants to be gay they can go ahead, but I reserve the right detest what they do.
Ato Kwamena Dadzie No, you don't! How does what they do affect you? Who said that being gay is from the developed countries and that 1000 years ago, African men were not gay?
Sammy King Baiden Ato, the problem is that the community in which we are has already declared their stand on this issue and will see those who have contrary views as opposed to the “norm”
Adolph Addison Righteousness exalt a nation and sin is a reproach – Proverbs 14: 34
Philip Arthur Most of these things start from the secondary schools boarding houses.
Edmund Amarkwei Foley Ghana, there are other things to focus on at this point in our lives than on this!
Abusuapanyin Kwesi Aikins They need to be confined at a place and be delivered of this evil thing that they are doing…
Graham dissects 8 dumbest arguments against homosexuality in Ghana:
Animals don’t do it
This is my favourite argument. It attempts to define what is natural by using animals as an example. Animals are taken to define nature and, ipso facto, the natural. They argue that animals don’t do it, it’s therefore not natural and therefore human beings shouldn’t do do it.
These zoological experts could have done a simple internet search to discover examples of homosexual behaviour in over 1,500 species. Alternatively, they could come round my yard and watch the two male dogs in my house attempting a bit of bum fun! So as animals do it, does that now mean it is natural and it’s OK for humans?
It’s not our culture
This is at root an argument that claims “nasty things” come from the “Whites”. African culture (whatever that is) is seen to be pure, therefore homosexuality and I suppose adultery and child abuse must have been taught to Ghanaians (who are clearly helpless) from outsiders. It lumps all white people and all African people into two homogeneous groupings and presumes they all have the same values – the bad ones of the Whites and the good ones of the Africans.
It also assumes that homosexuality is a culture as opposed to an activity that takes place within all cultures. People are very quick to condemn their own culture when it suits them, such as the ‘evil’ of their traditional religion or some practises that are seen to be abusive to women or children, yet, on this issue, pretend they must be slaves to cultural traditions which must never change.
Graham's conclusion:
Ironically the loudest voices on homosexuality come from those opposed to it. They claim “gayists” are lobbying for special rights yet where are the voices of homosexuals in Ghana? They want us to believe they are secretly calling for special rights and converting more people to their “cause” resulting in the breakdown of society.
The truth is that the breakdown in traditional culture has created a space where individuals can choose their own path in life and where people have become less concerned with the private details of other peoples’ lives.
Ghana’s future depends on rational thinking and the challenging of mob mentality.
Kajsa hopes that this is only the beginning of a wider debate about homosexuality in the country:
Coming from a liberal standpoint, I feel odd about living in a country where homosexuality between consenting adults is illegal (although female homosexuality seems to be allowed?) and hope that the above blogposts are just a start of a wider debate. I believe the Ghanaian blogosphere can begin to discuss this Ghanaian taboo, but also examine the arguments against homosexuality – and the advantages of legalization – and maybe even challenge the status quo.
Back in 2009, Hollis discussed the issue in post titled, “When love is illegal – Homosexuality in Ghana today”:
Under Ghanaian law, male homosexual activity is officially illegal. Criminal Code 1960 – Chapter 6, Sexual Offences Article 105 mentions unnatural carnal knowledge – and homosexuality is included in this description.
This topic can spark heated debates if ever broached with Ghanaian colleagues in my office – though I am usually a lone warrior for the cause, inevitably against a tirade of Christian rhetoric about the evils of homosexuality and the belief that it is an illness that can be cured, or at least prayers can be said to cure a person of it.
She observed that homosexuality will not be decriminalized in Ghana but the lifestyle will continue to exist:
Again, I find it amazing that homosexuality is so abhorred by Ghanaians, when – if any Ghanaian will be honest with themselves – they know all about a common practice called ‘Supi’ – which is basically a condoned (or conveniently ignored) form of lesbian relationship that develops in boarding schools between older girls and the ‘freshers’. It is seen as a way for girls to develop their sexuality, but not viewed as homosexuality outright, despite the physical relationships that develop between the girls. I would love to discuss this particular topic further and encourage my Ghanaian friends and readers to contribute…
The bottom line is that no matter what the law states, or whether outside pressure will convince Ghana to decriminalize homosexuality, it will continue to exist, despite any raging debates in Ghana and beyond about whether being gay is chosen or genetic, cultural or contrived… and individuals will continue to struggle with their identities, mostly in private.
Update June 21, 2001:
Did Ghana register 8000 homosexuals? The facts behind the hype:
On May 30th a strange story circulated in the Ghanaian media. It claimed that 8,000 homosexuals, many with HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, had been registered by an NGO. The figures also included students in junior and senior high school.
A few days later a group of Muslims tried again to lobby the government to bring the ‘homosexual crisis’ under control before Allah destroys Africa.
The original story should have raised questions that challenged its authenticity. In a country in which an open declaration of homosexuality will result in stigmatisation and intolerance, it seems hard to imagine that 8000 men would voluntarily register as homosexuals. What responsible NGO would keep such a list?


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Haiti: Preserving Architectural History · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Throwing Down the Water is concerned that “the historical houses of Haiti are mostly being left to rot, to fall into disrepair or – worse – to be lived in happily and well, until some landlord comes along and decides that a cement box would look better in their place and, with no law, organization or advocacy groups to stop him, comes in with sledgehammers and knocks down in one morning 120 years of history that is never going to be able to be replaced.”


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Honduras: Guns, Drugs and a Family Feud · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

“Today I witnessed a scene right out of a Pablo Escobar film. There were at least ten guys just a block from my house standing guard at one of the houses known to be involved in narco-trafficking”: writes Blogging Honduras in a post that summarizes a ‘family fued’ tied to drug trafficking. “And just as I am writing, two shots went off right outside my window. Time to moving further inside the house to avoid any stray bullets…”


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Indonesia: Prostitution in a cemetery · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

EngageMedia uploads a video by Ucu Agustin who features the lives of women workers living near Mount Bolo in East Java, Indonesia. Many of them are also working as sex workers in the evening.

author: Mong Palatino


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Jamaica: Court Date Set for “Dudus” · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Jamaica Salt notes that a trial date has finally been set for Christopher “Dudus” Coke, and takes a look at “how are things on the outside in Tivoli Gardens, West Kingston” since his extradition to the United States on drug and arms trafficking charges.