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Turkey: “A Tree Dies, A Nation Rises” · Global Voices
Rayna St.

The situation in Istanbul turned violent when police cracked down on peaceful protesters on Friday, May 31. The peaceful sit-in started five days ago where several tens of people gathered to oppose planned by the government urban reorganization of Istanbul's only green spot: the Gezi Park. The brutality used by police forces — teargas, water cannons, fists and batons — to expel protesters from the park generated a broad outcry, as images of people including children and elderly sheltering themselves from teargas started flooding social networks.
On Saturday morning, thousands started converging to the nearby Taksim Square in support. Reports of large gatherings in support in other Turkish cities such as the capital city of Ankara, and in Izmir followed. What started as a peaceful sit-in to protect a park from being turned into a mall evolved into a broad protest demanding Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to step down, as Zeynep Dagli wrote earlier:
What started out as civilians opposing the building of a shopping centre in one of our few remaining green corners, has turned into a strong voice against a government who is unable to listen to its citizens. Erdogan said “I have decided and that's that” which is what escalated the pressure that has been hiding in everyone all along. Police has been spraying tear gas for hours non-stop against its own citizens who are offering food to the sleepless police in return. What is even more interesting is that a young generation who deemed to be apoliticial are one voice one strength, sunnis, shias, armenians, leftists, nationalists, jews are all one voice against a government who turned deaf. The youth is one voice since they never really felt that they were different.
While more and more people were gathering in Gezi Park and nearby Taksim Square, countless calls for attention from international mainstream media were sent through social media as local coverage was suppressed. Zeynep Dagli continues:
We get ZERO coverage locally. Facebook and twitter are our only source. Even that is being blocked by jammers around the square. Local media is suppressed by the government.
They have stopped broadcasting CNN, AlJazeera, BBC on the local digital cable.
This massive state-supported suppression has already been discussed just a few days ago by Human Rights Watch (HRW) Emma Sinclair-Webb:
One of Turkey’s most fundamental human rights problems is in fact intolerance of free speech. Politicians regularly sue journalists for defamation.  Editors and publishers are mostly unwilling to permit much criticism of the government for fear of harming their bosses’ other business interests.
Juan Cole continues along the same line:
Turkey’s political tradition has never been particularly tolerant of dissent, and unfortunately the AKP [Turkey's ruling majority] is continuing in a tradition of crackdowns on political speech it doesn’t like.  Reporters without Borders ranks the country 154 for press freedom, and it has 76 journalists in jail, and “at least 61 of those were imprisoned as a direct result of their work.” Observers are astonished to find that Saturday morning’s newspapers in Turkey are virtually silent about the protests. Editors have clearly been intimidated into keeping quiet about these events.
Is it “just” for the trees?
Although Erdogan's government enjoys quite popular support, its plans for urban reorganization have become a major stumbling block. A very recent example is the inauguration on May 29, 2013, by PM Erdogan himself of a third bridge across the Bosphorus Strait. The bridge will require between 350,000 and 2,000,000 trees (different sources give different numbers) to be uprooted. During the inauguration, Erdogan referred to the occupation of Gezi Park: “It does not matter what you [the protesters] do. We made a decision… We will follow through with that decision.” This was perceived by many as a sign of despotism and nepotism as the privatization — for “renewal” — of Gezi Park is orchestrated by Erdogan's son-in-law.
A widely circulated image on social networks thus sums up the general feeling among protesters:
Image circulated on social network starts with “This is not about a park” and ends with “This is about democracy”.
“Everywhere is Taksim, Resistance Everywhere.”
The situation has been extremely hectic since the early morning of Saturday, June 1. Brutal repression did not prevent people from all political and social backgrounds to continue gathering in Taksim Square and elsewhere in Istanbul and Turkey:
@myriamonde: protestors are ridiculously diverse right now. ranging from ultra nationalist turks to kurds, extremely apolitical ppl, football fans…fun!
@stevenacook: This isnt just IST [Istanbul]. Calls for protests in Adana, Izmir, Ankara, Eskisehir, Anatalya, Izmit, Bursa, Fethiye, Samsun, Yozgat, etc #Turkey
@TCilterkaan28: The solidarity of the Turkish Nation Turkey News Taksim Doctors also for the public squares? #occupyturkey pic.twitter.com/8AEAeb078o
@sciencewitch: People are writing blood types on their arms in case if emergency #occupygezi #direngeziparkı pic.twitter.com/5CEocyrhUI (via @beyinbilir )
A widely circulated image shows the actor playing Suleyman the Magnificent taking to the streets on June 1, 2013.
Shortly before noon, PM Erdogan addressed the nation saying that “Turkey is well-functioning parliamentary democracy”, naming ongoing turmoil “serious provocations” and firmly condemning protests as “anti-democratic”:
@MahirZeynalov: Turkish PM Erdogan: All attempts besides elections are anti-democratic, illegitimate. #occupyturkey
@MahirZeynalov: Turkish PM Erdogan: Those who have problems with the government, they can deal with us in the ballot box. #occupyturkey
The speech was met with anger and irony online:
@YesimKitchen: @MahirZeynalov no LOL for this???
@ianbrealey: @MahirZeynalov Oh dear. He doesnt get it does he. For a peceful transition in a democracy he should incorporate opposition into policy.
@fhenriques: @MahirZeynalov So, he believes in a dictatorship of the majority instead of a democracy that represents everyone
@MaliciaRogue: Turkish Prime Minister's understanding of democracy is like Olympics: a 1-day election event organized every 4 years #occupygezi #Taksim
Unconfirmed reports of the use of agent orange, a chemical weapon used during the Vietnam War, emerged during the day, and were later denied. In addition, there were unconfirmed reports about the government blocking or being about to block internet and GSM communications within the country. Various sources reported 3G connection within Taksim Square seems to be misfunctional, which was later attributed to congestion rather than state-supported targeted blackout. Activists from Telecomix also denied internet blocking. Solidarity organizes despite communication breakdown:
@Bcdmir: #occupygezi I saw doctors, medical students, pharmacists sharing their mobile to help wounded people
@sciencewitch: Taxis carry people to Taksim without charge. Pharmacies hand out free masks. This is government against its own people. #occupygezi
To follow the ongoing events, check out hashtags #occupygezi, #Taksim, #OccupyTaksim, #OccupyTurkey, #Turkey on Twitter. The #OccupyGezi Tumblr is regularly updated with images, and Turkish Indymedia has set up a collaborative multilingual update of events. Meanwhile, a petition was launched on Avaaz calling for PM Erdogan to order the end of police brutality.

author: Rayna St.


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Istanbul Protests Through the Eyes of a Ukrainian Journalist · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Turkey has long been a popular vacation and business travel destination for hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians, but few of these visitors can boast much knowledge of the Turkish politics. Now, however, as the anti-government protests and police brutality in Turkey are making top headlines globally, many Ukrainians have started to follow the situation there with much interest, expressing support and admiration for the peaceful protesters, noting similarities with the 2004 Orange Revolution as well as with more recent events in Ukraine, and wishing for the political awakening of the Ukrainian people.
Tear gas used by the police against the protesters in Istanbul, Turkey. Photo by George Haddad, copyright © Demotix (01/06/13).
On Facebook, one of the primary sources of updates, photos and insight from Istanbul has been Osman Pashayev [ru, uk, tr], a Ukrainian journalist of Crimean-Tatar descent, the Istanbul bureau chief of the Crimean Tatar ATR TV channel. As journalist Kristina Berdinskikh wrote [ru],
The best news agency of the past few days is Osman Pashayev.
And Facebook user Iryna Panchenko wrote this [uk]:
It's good that Osman Pashayev is in Istanbul – we have access to relevant information on the events there, without having to wait for international news [outlets to wake up] and for [Ukrainian news outlets] to copy – and, possibly, distort – [the reports of their international colleagues].
Below are some of Pashayev's recent posts [ru, uk, tr].
Friday, May 31, 2013 – 6:50 PM (Istanbul time):
I've seen the crackdown on [left-wing activists] during the 2009 IMF summit in Istanbul, I've seen rallies of the opposition in Tbilisi [the capital of Georgia], a crackdown on the Arab protestors in Jerusalem, an anti-terrorist operation in northern Iraq, but I've never seen such a savage treatment of peaceful protesters before. I cannot get to [Taksim Square] – 100 meters, gas that [irritates] the eyes is everywhere. I bought two lemons and poured [juice] over myself and one Turkish girl. Eyes are itchy from lemon, but at least it makes breathing easier after a couple minutes. Many here are 18-25 years old. The police are waging a war against citizens.
7:24 PM:
Our country – Ukraine – even under [the regime of President Viktor Yanukovych] is almost an exemplary democracy. Today's Turkey resembles Russia a lot more, though not yet Belarus […].
Saturday, June 1, 2013 – 12:07 AM:
Do not pity Turkey. It is wonderful. And [PM Recep Tayyip Erdoğan] is like a virus in quantities sufficient for the immune system to finally start working. […]
2:28 AM:
I'm teaching the Turks some of the rules of the Orange Revolution – to chant “Police are with the people” [one of the popular slogans in Ukraine in 2004]. A few more resignations by police officers and the generals will stop giving antihuman orders.
4:02 AM:
First aid points to the injured on [Istiklal Avenue]. Hotels are letting the protesters inside, shop owners are giving out water for free and administering first aid. Cab drivers are transporting those with serious injuries for free. It resembles the unity in Kyiv [during the 2004 Orange Revolution].
4:52 AM:
A heartrending tweet [Pashayev's quick translation into Russian; the Turkish-language original, by Aykut Gürlemez/@aykutgurlemez, is here]. “Dear Prime Minister, you have no idea how grateful I am to you today. You have no idea what a good deed you've done for the country today. Today, for the first time, I've seen a fan of [Istanbul's Fenerbahçe football club] was helping a [rival Galatasaray] fan to get up from the ground after the police order “to kill” came about. Today, Turks and Kurds were sharing water and bread. Today, women you call prostitutes, walked out of the brothels to wash the wounds of the injured in their cheap hotel rooms in [Tarlabaşı]. Lawyers and medical doctors were distributing their phone numbers, offering help. Today, [stores and coffee houses located on ground floors] turned off their Wifi passwards, and hotel owners were letting the tired and the beaten ones in. Today, our eyes are filled with tears not because of your pepper gas, but because of our pride for our Turkey.” […]
5:27 AM:
In Turkey, 7.5 million users are watching the #TürkiyemDireniyor hashtag (“my Turkey resists”). Will Erdoğan have the guts to arrest them all? )))
5:51 AM:
[Fans of football clubs Beşiktaş], Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray. In the Ukrainian translation this will be “East and West together” [another popular slogan of the 2004 protests in Ukraine, referring to the political and cultural divide between eastern and western parts of Ukraine].
10:05 AM:
With great pleasure I've blocked everyone on Facebook who are being ironic about the violence taking place in Turkey. […] A whole bunch of wisecracks who point out that I've just arrived here and don't understand something ))). Maybe I don't understand anything at all, but I do understand that violence against peaceful people is evil. And I've seen it with my own eyes. I've worked [as a TV journalist] in Turkey dozens of times since 2002, and for the first time now I've seen police officers lowering their gaze, ashamed. If cops are feeling ashamed, it means they are indeed doing something that's not very good.
8:20 PM:
The most amusing pictures are of Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray holding hands. Hard for us to understand, but it's almost as if [Oleh Tyahnybok, the leader of the far-right Ukrainian VO Svoboda party] showed up at a gay pride parade wearing [a Jewish kippah cap].
Sunday, June 2, 2013 – 4:21 AM:
No more than 2,000 people remain at Taksim. Everyone is moving to [the Beşiktaş area], where clashes with police continue. The [Turkish] opposition is toothless and not interesting. Young people and non-political groups are much brighter. [photos]
8:30 PM:
If Erdoğan and other officials are being sincere, if they are telling the world that the protesters are part of a junta, the military's fans and other marginal scum, then why are the city's web cameras are turned off only at Taksim, while the rest are working? Let the Turks and the world see for themselves the faces of the protesters, their numbers, and their eyes. The real pictures says much more than a thousand words ))))
Pashayev continues posting his update on Facebook and filing his stories on the protests in Turkey for Ukrainian TV channels. Another Ukrainian journalist, Mustafa Nayyem [ru], has now joined him in Istanbul and is also posting reports, videos and photos (here and here) on his Facebook page.
Roman Shrike, the founder of a popular Ukrainian durdom.in.ua website, wrote this [ru] on his Ukrainska Pravda blog, linking to one of Pashayev's posts and re-posting some of the photos of the Istanbul protest:
A good revolution always begins suddenly.
In Istanbul, the police violently cracked down on the defenders of a park. No big deal, you'd think… But the last straw usually happens to be nothing but a very tiny straw. […]
Ukrainian politician and former journalist Volodymyr Ariev re-posted the photo of thousands of Istanbul residents crossing the Bosphorus Bridge early on Saturday on their way to Taksim, and wrote [uk]:
This is how people should defend their rights and freedoms from infringements of transitory authoritarian rulers. Way to go, Turkey!
Ukrainian activist Oleksandr Danylyuk wrote [uk]:
What do the events in Istanbul tell us? That it's enough for the Kyiv residents to drag their behinds off their couches for just a few days, and Yanukovych & Co. will come to them on their knees, bringing a capitulation document signed with their snot. But the majority [of Ukrainians] keep crying as they keep getting stung by this cactus they keep eating.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Serbian High-School Students Trade Prom for Charity · Global Voices
Danica Radisic

As proof of the awareness and understanding of economic hardship that young people have today, a graduating high school class from the town of Pirot in southern Serbia made a deeply responsible and humane decision.
Back in October 2012, the 4th-year students of Pirot High School (Pirotska Gimnazija) calculated that they would have to spend some 500 Euros on average to buy dresses, suits and everything that goes with that for their graduating prom. They decided this was far too much to spend on one night that wouldn't mean a lot to them in the future. Together, and with the support of their teachers, parents and others, they vowed to wear plain black (for the boys) and white (for the girls) T-shirts to their prom and to give the money they would have spent to three children with disabilities in their community instead.
The graduating class of Pirot High School in front of their school on the day of their graduation. Photo courtesy of “Tvojih pet minuta sjaja – Nečiji ceo život”
They named their event Your Five Minutes of Glory – Someone's Entire Life and set out to raise funds for Predrag Potić, a 12-year-old with cerebral palsy, 1-year-old Mateja Lazarević who has had seven surgeries so far, and Čeda Tošić, a five-year-old who also suffers from cerebral palsy and, after a recent surgery, has begun to walk.
The exemplary graduates explain [sr] on their Facebook page [sr]:
Није нам било лако, нарочито када су одмицали дани и схватали озбиљност овакве организације. Настала је, истовремено, као жеља да се помогне некоме и бунт против кича који је захватио наше друштво. Новац је сакупљан уплатама ученика и запослених у Гимназији, захваљујући донаторима[…] као и неких добрих људи, и сакупили смо 310 000 динара.
It wasn't easy, especially as the days went by and we realized the gravity of this kind of organization. At the same time, there was a desire to help someone and a rebellion against the kitch that has taken over our society. Money was collected through donations from students and employees of the [Pirot] High School, thanks to donors […] as well as some good people, and we have collected 310,000 Dinars [approx. 2,800 Euros].
Serbian online media and social networks are, of course, overflowing with awe, respect and salutes for the extraordinary graduating class of Pirot High School. As Mondo webportal reports [sr], the graduates held a small ceremony at their high school on Friday to deliver the funds they raised to the three boys, Pedja, Matej, and Čeda, after which they proudly walked, hand-in-hand and in pairs, down the town's main street in the black-and-white T-shirts they promised they would wear to their graduating prom. A donor helped them have special T-shirts made for this occasion, with “Your Five Minutes of Glory – Someone's Entire Life” printed on them.
Applauded by so many in Serbia and other countries, the students remain humble and intend to continue their humanitarian efforts. In the same post from June 2 on their Facebook page, they say:
Нажалост нисмо успели да сакупимо планирану суму од 500 000 динара, али смо успели да измамимо сузе Матеиним родитељима, свима присутнима у свечаној сали Гимназије, па и нама самима… А касније смо се ипак сви смејали. :)
Пробајте и ви, измамите неком осмех, не боли. Не сматрамо себе неким великим људима, хуманитарцима, пуно је таквих који то заиста и заслужују. Ово је далеко одјекнуло(то нам није био циљ, нити смо се надали томе), али ће се заборавити генерација 1994 пиротских матураната. Верујемо да ће нас се некад сећати, уз осмех, само Матеа, Чеда и Пеђа, остало нам није ни битно.
Unfortunately, we weren't able to raise the planned sum of 500 000 Dinars, but we succeeded in bringing tears to the eyes of Mateja's parents, all those present at the Event Hall of the high school, and to our own eyes… And later we all ended up laughing. :)
You should try it too, bring a smile to someone, it doesn't hurt. We don't consider ourselves great people, humanitarians, there are many who truly deserve [to be called] that. This has echoed far (this was not our goal, nor could we hope for it), but the generation of 1994 from Pirot High School will be forgotten. We believe we will only be remembered sometimes, with a smile, by Mateja, Čeda and Pedja, we don't care about the rest.
1-year-old Mateja with his mother at the ceremony at Pirot High School. Photo courtesy of “Tvojih pet minuta sjaja – Nečiji ceo život”
The students who believe they “will be forgotten” also invite high school students from other Serbian cities to join their cause and follow in their footsteps. They have already become an Internet meme in Serbia and word is spreading fast to neighboring countries as well. User Leteći medvjedić on the Serbian meme site Vukajlija has created a poster [sr] on this site that is being shared massively on Facebook and Twitter. The poster shows a photo of the graduating class of Pirot High School walking down the main street – and this caption:
Oni su položili – ispit zrelosti
They have passed – the test of maturity
More photos and posts are available on their Facebook page and Twitter account.

author: Danica Radisic


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VIDEO: Brazilian Toddler’s Vegetarian Wisdom Goes Viral · Global Voices
Paula Góes

[All links lead to Portuguese-language pages.]
A YouTube video of three-year-old Luiz Antonio explaining to his mother why he does not want to eat octopus gnocchi for lunch has become the latest must-see worldwide.
The young Brazilian argues that he doesn't like to eat meat because “when we eat animals, they die,” and that he likes to see the animals “on their feet, happy”, and explains that we must “look after them, not eat them.”
The original video in Portuguese, uploaded to YouTube on May 15, 2013, has reached nearly 1,500,000 views in only two weeks. The English version was published on May 29 and has been seen over 900,000 times in only three days.
In a country where only a very small percentage of the population has opted for a vegetarian diet, the viral video has sparked a heated debate about vegetarianism on YouTube and Facebook. Carlos Augusto Andrade explained the reasons:
O vídeo viralizou ontem no Facebook, daqueles que todo tipo de gente compartilha: sua mãe, sua tia, seus amigos descolados, os contatos da época do colégio… E apesar de alguns grupos no Facebook e no Youtube terem usado o vídeo para discutir o vegetarianismo, a gente entende que ele viralizou pelo que é, mesmo: um vídeo fofo de uma criança sendo curiosamente eloquente pra sua idade e refletindo sobre algo que nem todos nós nos damos ao trabalho de parar pra refletir.
The video has gone viral on Facebook yesterday [May 29, 2013], it is one of those you share with all sorts of people: your mother, your aunt, your hipster friends, contacts from school times… And although some groups on Facebook and YouTube have used the video to discuss vegetarianism, we understand that it has gone viral just for what is: a cute video of a child being curiously eloquent for his age and reflecting on something that not everyone among us bother to stop and reflect.
Flavio Giusti, the chef at the forefront of VegetariRANGO – a YouTube show on “Vegetarian Cooking Without Fuss” – published an homage to “the little boy who has touched everyone on the internet” on his Facebook page. This banner alone has been shared more than 1,145 times:
Luiz Antonio's philosophy: “When we eat animals they die. I don't like it, I like them on their feet, happy. We must look after them, not eat them.”
Inspired by the simplicity of the child's argument, some people have decided to adopt a meat-free lifestyle, such as many of the friends with whom blogger Viviane Zandonadi shared the video. A food writer, she wondered about what she is going to do when her daughter starts to ask the same kind of questions:
Fico apreensiva. Quando chegar a minha vez, se a Cata questionar a lógica da cadeia alimentar, não faço ideia do que vou dizer. O Luiz Antonio derrubou meus argumentos.
I'm apprehensive. When my turn comes, if Cata questions the logic of the food chain, I have no idea what I will say. Luiz Antonio has overthrown my arguments.
At the end of the video, Luiz Antonio's mother, moved to tears, asks her son to eat just the rice and potatoes. Writing for Acerto de Contas blog, Guilherme Carvalho hoped that other parents start to respect the sensitivity of their children, and stop resorting to lies or simplistic arguments to force kids to change their minds:
Portanto, em pleno 2013, já é tempo de parar de enganar nossas crianças e abafar seu sentimento de compaixão quando demonstram inclinação para não comer animais. Respeitemos, e valorizemos, essa postura altruísta e compassiva. Ter um filho vegetariano não é um problema, e hoje há ampla literatura científica garantindo os potenciais benefícios desta opção à saúde. O vídeo de Luiz Antonio tem deixado muita gente emocionada — e esperançosa.
So, right in 2013, it is time we stopped deceiving our children and suppressing their feelings of compassion when they show no inclination to eat animals. Let's respect and value this altruistic and compassionate stance. Having a vegetarian child is not a problem, and today there is extensive literature showing the potential health benefits of this option. Luiz Antonio's video has left many people moved – and hopeful.

author: Paula Góes


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All Hail Russia’s Heroic Cop-Killers? · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

A group of unknown assailants is killing police officers in Russia’s Rostov region. In the last seven months, authorities have linked the same stolen weapons to the slayings of five officers [ru] (two active, three retired), in attacks that resemble a wave of cop-killings [ru] that swept Rostov in 2008 and 2009 and claimed twelve lives. Authorities report that the murderers employ guerilla tactics, often laying traps for their victims and firing from cover. The criminals’ pattern—targeting cops, attacking by surprise, and stealing their weapons—has led many to compare them to the infamous Primorsky Partisans, a self-declared “guerilla group” of six men who terrorized the police of Russia’s Far East in early 2010.
Still from the Primorsky Partisans’ public appeal, published to YouTube in October 2010, after their capture, hosted on nnm.ru/blogs.
While the Primorsky Partisans captivated Russia with overt talk of popular armed resistance against police occupation (famously conveyed in a public appeal [ru] posted to YouTube in October 2010), Rostov’s cop-killers (whose more recent activity has been in the town of Novocherkassk) remain anonymous, and have yet to attract international, let alone national, attention. Indeed, it’s possible that the five killings since last year are the work of an entirely different group than the one responsible for murdering a slew of Rostov police and their families years ago. After all, in that earlier killing spree, the assailants stabbed to death children as young as eleven and seven, and took the lives of several women. The five active and retired police officers to die in Novocherkassk since last September, on the other hand, have all been adult men.
When it comes to shocking the public with death tolls, however, seventeen is a better number than five, and the added intrigue of “reawakened cop-killers” could soon make Rostov’s criminals into national media stars. If the chatter on Russia’s most popular social network, Vkontakte, is any indication, clouds may already be gathering for a coming news storm.
In VK’s popular news-discussion group [ru], “Free News,” LiveJournal user vsevidyacheeoko’s post [ru] about Novocherkassk’s police murders drew over 400 comments, almost 300 shares, and over 650 “likes.” VK users debated the killers’ similarities to the Primorsky Partisans, and exchanged long, vitriolic remarks about the morality (or lack thereof) of fighting back violently against (presumed to be corrupt) police.
Vsevidyacheeoko, who wrote in his post that a “civil war” has begun against an “occupying regime,” prompted the following response [ru] from Elvira Pushchugina:
А почему гражданская война тогда, если из статьи понятно, что речь об организованной преступности?
And why [call it] a civil war then, if from the article it’s clear that we’re talking about organized crime?
Pushchugina’s refusal to see Novocherkassk’s assailants as anything but gangsters annoyed several of the community’s members, who in turn asked if she felt the same way about the Primorsky Partisans. When Pushchugina indicated that she did not know who they were, her critics released the proverbial hounds. Vitaly Kulikov assumed that her ignorance was due to a reliance on television for information, writing [ru]:
жесть – не знать приморских партизан- видимо зомбоящик делает свое дело
awesome — not [even] knowing [about] the Primorsky Partisans — clearly the boob tube is doing its job
Sergey Starovoitov “encouraged” her to learn more, commenting [ru]:
Гугл в помощь. И вообще, те кто служат этой власти – предатели народных интересов.
Google to the rescue! Generally speaking, those who serve this power structure are traitors to the people’s interests.
Undeterred, Pushchugina retorted [ru] that Kulikov and Starovoitov might warm to law enforcement, were they ever to find themselves threatened by outlaws:
[…] ну-ну. Посмотрим, куда ты побежишь, если тебя случайно ограбят или побьют.
Now, now! Let’s see where you run, if you’re randomly robbed or beaten.
Ironically, community members took this comment as an invitation to share personal stories about police brutality. VK user Pit Klimov wrote [ru]:
Эльвира, последний раз меня били и грабили менты. Бежать действительно было некуда! :-)
Elvira, the last time I was beat up and robbed, it was by cops. There really was nowhere to run! :-)
Moscow-based 59-year-old Marina Zolotova wrote [ru] that police once nearly beat to death her son. Like Starovoitov, she endorsed [ru] an open hunting season on police, rejecting the characterization of Novocherkassk’s assailants as criminals:
[…] Уверена, что это не стихийная или случайная акция. Скорее всего эти полицаи – и есть преступники. Те кто действуют против своего народа не заслуживают ни жалости ни сострадания. Собакам – собачья смерть !
[…] I’m sure that these acts are neither spontaneous nor random. It’s more likely that these policemen are the criminals. Those who act against their own people deserve neither pity nor sympathy. A dog’s death for dogs!
Also demonstrating that passions online run hot not just among the youth, 50-year-old VK user Alexey Khazov declared [ru] his readiness to take up arms against enemies of the people:
Не дай бог если бы началась гражданская война,я уж точно не был бы на стороне режима.Оружие в руках держать умею
God forbid, if civil war were to break out, I would certainly not be on the regime’s side. I know how to handle a weapon.
Russians’ enthusiasm for cop-killers is nothing new. In mid-2010, when the Primorsky Partisans were at the height of their celebrity, the liberal radio station Ekho Moskvy polled [ru] its listeners, asking whether they would offer the group assistance, if asked for help. Only a quarter of the audience said it would refuse to give aid. In a more scientific poll, the Levada Center later determined [ru] that only 37% of Russians thought the Partisans were criminals, and the nation was narrowly split 34:37, when asked who presented the greater public danger: cops or cop-killers.
Curiously, the VK group’s discussion about the “Novocherkassk Partisans” flows on the largely unspoken assumption that, of course, the officers killed in the attacks were members of a corrupt institution. Perhaps justifying that premise, news broke [ru] today, June 3, 2013, that internal investigators have charged 15 police officers in Rostov with falsifying case records to exaggerate their department’s efficiency. This news comes roughly a week after investigators accused another Rostov police division [ru] of similar corruption.

author: Kevin Rothrock


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‘Free My Internet’ Movement Rises in Singapore · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Singapore’s new licensing scheme for news websites announced by the Media Development Authority (MDA) was quickly denounced by many netizens as a censorship measure. A group of concerned netizens called the ‘Free My Internet’ movement has called on the public to join a rally this coming Saturday, June 8, 2013, to demand the withdrawal of the controversial regulation.
Under the new rule, news websites that report on Singapore and which have 50,000 unique IP views a month must secure a license. Further, they must put up a ‘performance bond’ of $50,000. It also has this provision which angered and worried many netizens:
The Licence also makes it clear that online news sites are expected to comply within 24 hours to MDA’s directions to remove content that is found to be in breach of content standards.
So far, the government has identified 10 websites, including Yahoo! Singapore, which are covered by the ruling.
The #freemyinternet movement thinks the license scheme will undermine internet freedom and free speech in Singapore:
We encourage all Singaporeans who are concerned about our future and our ability to participate in everyday online activities and discussions, and to seek out alternative news and analysis, to take a strong stand against the licensing regime which can impede on your independence.
A petition warned Singapore bloggers that they could still be affected by the ruling despite the assurance of the government that bloggers are exempted from the measure:
Even though MDA said that blogs do not fall under the licensing scheme, this is not reflected in the wording of the legislation. It leaves the door open for blogs or any other site to be forced to license in the future without any change in the law.
Socio political bloggers and commentators issued this joint statement:
As part of the community of websites in Singapore that provide sociopolitical news and analysis to Singaporeans, we are concerned about the impact of the newly-introduced requirement on fellow Singaporeans’ ability to receive diverse news information.
The new licensing regime has the very real potential to reduce the channels available to Singaporeans to receive news and analysis of the sociopolitical situation in Singapore and it is in the interest of all Singaporeans to guard against the erosion and availability of news channels that Singaporeans should rightfully have access to.
Responding to the barrage of criticism, the MDA insisted that the license scheme is fair:
An individual publishing views on current affairs and trends on his/her personal website or blog does not amount to news reporting.
…content guidelines are focused on core content concerns that would threaten the social fabric and national interests of our country. Examples include content that incites racial or religious hatred; misleads and causes mass panic; or advocates or promotes violence.
The framework is not an attempt to influence the editorial slant of news sites
visakan veerasamy notes that the MDA scheme has unified Singapore netizens:
Maybe a few years from now the MDA licensing thing will be remembered as the issue that got bloggers and alt-news agencies coming together against a common threat to have a national conversation of their own.
They propose a terrible idea, and then piss off the masses enough to inspire a co-ordinated response. Boom, active and engaged citizenry. This is great for Singapore.
It is a draconian measure, writes Jentrified Citizen:
The Government is well aware of the power of the Internet and how it is fast igniting the people’s conscience and socio-political consciousness. This is why they are trying to cut off our oxygen with more draconian measures. And they are in a position to do so as they have absolute power and control over almost everything in tiny Singapore.
Because of vague wording in the ruling, a popular news blog can still be ordered to apply for license. It all depends on the MDA. Jeannette Chong-Aruldoss is not happy with this authority given to MDA:
It is discomforting that the Minister has the discretion, the limits of which is still unclear, to decide whether and when a website should be licensed.
Z’ming Cik warns about the impact of the scheme on political blogging:
The new rules will serve to deter bloggers in Singapore from discussing social and political issues, and encourage people to blog about facial cream or their pet dogs instead.
This would presumably help create a ‘safe’ environment for the ruling party’s continual domination in Singapore, free from criticisms.
publichouse.sg argues why Singaporeans should oppose the measure:
…because this new rule affects not only moderators and contributors of online news sites but also their readers, all Singaporeans should fight to protect their rights and voice their opposition of the rule. It is most certainly not in the interest of the people to have what they read censored or controlled, especially when the primary purpose of online news sites is to provide alternatives to the mainstream media.
Siew Kum Hong fears that the regulation would further hurt the image of Singapore in the world:
This new regulation is a mistake, and reinforces the perception that Singapore is a repressive place — which is precisely the wrong message to be sending to a globalised and networked world, when you are trying to build an innovative and creative economy where freedom of thought is so essential.

author: Mong Palatino


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Human Rights Lawyers in West Papua · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

EngageMedia video about the situation of human rights lawyers in West Papua


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Kyrgyzstan: Rule of Law Versus Rule of the Mob?  · Global Voices
Shakhnoza Isakova

A week-long wave of regional unrest, ostensibly due to disagreements over the fate of a key gold mine, has sent Kyrgyzstan into a state of disorder that looks all too familiar for citizens of the republic.
Beginning with a road block in the northern Issyk-Kul province on May 28, protests against the mine's operations there culminated in riots in four separate villages of the province's Jeti-Oguz district on May 31, 2013. During the evening of the same day, a crowd of protesters occupied a local government building in Jalalabad some 500 kilometers away demanding the nationalization of the Kumtor gold mine – currently owned by a Canadian company, the government and private shareholders – and the release of three jailed MPs.
Tensions began to rise on the night of May 30, as a group of horsemen in Jeti-Oguz temporarily cut power [ru] to the mine amid loud cheers and obscene remarks. Protesters complain the mine, worth up to 12% of the country's GDP, damages the environment and does not contribute to local infrastructure. Its Canadian directors say the reverse is true.
On May 30, as protesters clustered round the substation that powers a generator at the mine, an interesting exchange occurred between Dastan Bekeshev (@bekeshev), an MP, and another Twitter user, @Neka_Buyuklyan. Linking to a tweet by local news agency K-News, Bekeshev tweeted [ru]:
This is very bad. RT @knews_kg: The number of people blocking the substation in Tamga [Jeti-Oguz district] has increased to around 1000 http://t.co/hB2JHuuyWN
@Neka_Buyuklyan replied in shock [ru]:
более того, они обесточили рудник!!! Что дальше?
They have cut power to the mine!!! What is next?
@bekeshev's grim response [ru]:
Дальше маргинализм и полный застой.
Next is marginalization and complete stagnation.
@Neka_Buyuklyan [ru]:
по-моему и то, и другое уже давно наступило. А какие-нибудь меры?
To my mind both of these things came long ago. But how about some measures [against the protesters]?
@bekeshev reacted [ru]:
А какие меры? Милиция не будет предпринимать меры, а вдруг потом ещё за это накажут, а захватчиков – наградят.
But what measures? Police will not take measures, because they will be punished for doing so, while the protesters will be rewarded.
The supply of electricity to the mine was subsequently restored [ru], but violent clashes took place from the early hours of May 31 in nearby villages such as Barskoon, where a Spec Ops bus was burned [ru] to cinders by disgruntled protesters. In response, riot police used [ru] stun grenades. The Ministry of Health has reported [ru] 63 casualties from the Issyk-Kul province clashes.
After the Kyrgyz revolutions of 2005 and 2010, when two successive governments were overthrown and acts of mass vandalism and looting were committed in the name of national liberation, protests have now become a regular fact of political life in the republic. Many observers argue that such uprisings are rarely grassroots movements, and are usually backed by interested elites, whose own political goals may differ significantly from those of the protesters.
Tashiyev supporters march through Jalalabad town on June 1. (Photo taken by author)
An example of this could be the case of three jailed MPs from the nationalist Ata-Jurt party, Kamchibek Tashiyev, Sadyr Japarov and Talant Mamytov. The three MPs were originally arrested and jailed on October 4, when an initially peaceful political rally – also for the nationalization of the Kumtor Gold mine – turned into a mini-scrum between police and protesters. Tashiyev then led some of the more athletic protesters over the gates of the parliament, recalling the power of Ghengis Khan in what a local judge decided was an attempt to seize state power. In a bizarre defense of his actions, Tashiyev (leading the crowd in a purple tie in the video below) said he was just trying to get to work.
But while politicians are often accused of manipulating ordinary citizens, “professional protesters” have grown in number over the years since Kyrgyzstan's first revolution. The country remains one of the poorest in the former Soviet bloc, and a volatile political scene has ensured opportunities for political entrepreneurs at all levels.
A resident of Tamga village in Jeti Oguz, Aida Ishmuhamedova, said [ru] in an interview with news outlet Kloop.kg, that protesters in Barskoon received cash payments for participation in the riots:
Про то, что демонстрантам дают деньги мне рассказали жители, которые туда ходили. Там по одной тысяче сомов раздают.
People who participated in the riot told me that the demonstrators are given money. They were given one thousand soms [20 USD] each.
Another internet user aaa comments [ru] on the Vecherniy Bishkek newspaper's website:
Бедный голодный народ продаются за мясо и водку,неужели мы такие сволочи
Poor hungry people sell themselves for meat and vodka, are we such scum
On June 1 Kyrgyz Prime Minister Jantoro Satybaldiev visited [ru] Jeti-Oguz to meet with protesters. The protesters promised not to block the road to Kumtor in the near future.
However, by that time, media focus had already shifted [ru] to Jalalabad in southern Kyrgyzstan. The protest there was organized by Meder Usenov – a coordinator from Tashiyev's Ata-Jurt party, who was later “elected” as a “People's Governor” by protesters that seized the regional government building on the evening of May 31. On June 2, he mysteriously disappeared [ru].
The political meeting in Jalalabad was a fairly routine affair until protesters seized the governor's building. (Photo by Evgenny Pogrebnyak for Kloop.kg, used with permission).
The State Committee for National Security of the Kyrgyz Republic has since published [ru] information about the arrest of Usenov under Articles 295 (forcible seizure or forcible retention of power) and 297 (public incitement to violent overthrow of the constitutional order) of the Criminal Code of the Kyrgyz Republic. Meanwhile, on the evening of June 2, supporters of Usenov blocked the Bishkek-Osh highway, parking vehicles and setting up yurts on the major transport link between the country's north and south, demanding the release of their self-proclaimed governor, the three Ata-Jurt MPs, and the nationalization of Kumtor. As a result, hundreds of cars accumulated on both sides of the road. Law enforcement officials are still trying to negotiate with the protesters.
Yurts, heavy goods vehicles and men and women from Kyrgyzstan's south form part of a formidable roadblock disconnecting Kyrgyzstan's geographical halves.
(Photo by Evgenny Pogrebnyak, Kloop.kg, used with permission)
Long-time human rights campaigner and current state Ombudsman Tursunbek Akun spoke [ru] for many citizens on June 3 when he said:
Право на митинги имеют все граждане. Но устраивать беспорядки и пытаться захватить государственную власть не имеет права никто.
Every citizen has a right to participate in meetings. But no one has a right to create disorder and try to seize state power.

author: Shakhnoza Isakova


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Artists Dodge Censorship in Myanmar · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Artist and former political detainee Htein Lin talks to Art Radar Asia and discusses Myanmar's current art scene and politics:
For visual art exhibitions, there are still some censors. Some artists [have stopped] inviting the censors from the Information Ministry, so now there are some art exhibitions without censorship but some art galleries keep inviting them. I am disappointed that they are still doing this.


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Bolivia’s Water War Hero · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

“We didn’t just recuperate our water; we broke an economic model that not only expropriated resources but also our spirit. We broke with authoritarianism. We forced them to understand that we make our own decisions.”
Oscar Olivera helped organize a resistance movement that stopped the privatization of water in Cochabamba, Bolivia in 2000. In Narco News, Chen Blanc tells the story behind Olivera and the “water war” in Bolivia.

author: Silvia Viñas


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Report Reveals South Korea’s Elite Stash Billions in Tax Havens  · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

An investigation by a group of independent journalists have discovered that a number of high-profile figures in South Korea, including the ex-president's son and major corporate moguls, are allegedly evading taxes through a paper-company scheme in offshore tax havens, such as the British Virgin Islands in the Caribbean and the Cook Islands in the Pacific.
South Korean independent journalism site NewsTapa together with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) unveiled 245 names of South Koreans who allegedly have founded paper companies in the islands to avoid paying taxes. Among those listed are executives of Samsung Group and a former executive at conglomerate Daewoo Corp and the total amount of wealth hidden amounts to [ko] 870 trillion won (770 billion US dollars).
The latest report [ko], published on June 3, 2013 disclosed that the eldest son of former South Korean President Chun Doo-hwan is also suspected of tax evasion. Chun, who served as president from 1980 to 1988, is notorious for suppressing democracy and press freedom for over a decade and directing the Gwang-ju massacre. Chun famously said [ko] in 2003, when asked to pay massive fines associated with the multiple murder charges and bribery allegations he was facing, that all he had was 290,000 Korean won (about 260 US dollars) and a Korean Jindo dog.
Web users have flooded online venues calling for tough actions against those suspected of tax evasion and praising the investigative journalists who made this revelation possible.
Journalist @welovehani highlighted and summarised [ko] a part of the NewsTapa report:
@welovehani: 뉴스타파 “전두환 아들 전재국씨가 2004년 7월 28일 버진아일랜드에 페이퍼컴퍼니 설립. 이 때는 전두환 차남 전재용씨에 대한 검찰의 비자금 수사가 이뤄진 시기와 일치”
@welovehani: NewsTapa reported “Chun Doo-hwan's son Chun Jae-guk founded a paper company in the British Virgin Island on July 28, 2004. It is when the prosecutor's office investigation on the slush funds of Chun's younger son, Chun Jae-young was underway.”
Influential Twitter user @mettayoon‘s tweet [ko] has been retweeted more than 100 times:
@mettayoon: 뉴스타파 최승호 앵커의 클로징. “부디 정부가 전두환씨의 모든 재산을 찾아 추징하고 이땅에 정의가 살아있음을 보여주길 바랍니다.”
@mettayoon: This was NewsTapa anchor's closing comment: “The government needs to prove that justice is still alive in this country by unearthing all of Chun Doo-hwan's [hidden] property and charging taxes on them.
Net users have filed an online petition [ko] on Daum Agora, calling for severe punishment for those suspected of illegal tax evasion. More than 1,000 people have signed as of June 3, 2013:
재벌들은 세금을 안내도 버젓히 목에 힘주고 돌아다니는 이상한 나라! 버진아일랜드에 재벌들이 숨긴 870조를 국민의 손으로 환수합시다 […] prairie 서명합니다. 떳떳하게 세금내는 사람만 바보가 되는 현실 바꿔 봅시다.
This is ridiculous that chaebol conglomerates, even after refusing to pay taxes, still roam free, holding their heads up high. We the people need to take back [the total of] 870 trillion Korean Won (770 billion US dollars) worth of chaebols hidden in the Virgin Islands. […] [net user ID] prairie commented below: I signed this petition. We need to change this situation where people who pay their taxes as they should are being treated as idiots.
Lawyer Lee Jae-hwa (@jhohmylaw) [ko] wrote that authorities should not delay looking into the revelations:
@jhohmylaw: 뉴스타파가 조세피난처에 페이퍼컴퍼니를 설립한 명단을 공개했다. 조세포탈범행의 결정적 수사단서다. 검찰과 국세청은 더 이상 머뭇거리지 말고 뉴스타파가 공개한 대상기업과 임원의 조세포탈 및 국외재산도피죄에 대한 수사에 착수해야 한다.
@jhohmylaw: NewsTapa unveiled a list of names who built paper companies in a tax haven. This can be critical evidence in an investigation. The prosecutor's office and the National Tax Service should no longer be procrastinating and forge ahead investigating those companies and corporate executives suspected of tax evasion and check whether if the “offshore tax evasion charge” can be applied to them.
Twitter user @sinbi2010 slammed [ko] corporations for stashing their millions while ordinary people feel the economic pinch:
@sinbi2010: 뉴스타파 기사를 보면 조세피난처 버진아일랜드에 돈을 숨긴 약 245명의 870조 중 많은 부분이 IMF 금융위기 때 빼돌렸다. 국민은 금을 모아 나라를 살리고자 했으며 노동자들은 명퇴 조기퇴직 구조조정을 감수 해야 했다.재벌들은 돈을 꼼치고 있었다.
@sinbi2010: According to NewsTapa's article on the 245 people who hid 870 trillion won (770 billion US dollars) in a tax haven, they stashed that money in the haven during the IMF Crisis [note: the term refers to the 1997-1998 Asian Financial Crisis during which South Korea was both rescued and supervised by the International Monetary Fund] While ordinary citizens sold their gold to help the country in crisis and laborers were forced to leave early and became victims of mass layoffs, corporations have hoarded and stashed the money.
Lavish praise has been heaped on NewsTapa, or Korea Center for Investigative Journalism, which is a non-profit, independent investigative journalism site founded by journalists dismissed from network TV for taking anti-government stances during the Lee Myung-bak's administration from 2008 to 2013.
NewsTapa Editor-in-Chief Kim Yong-jin (@kbsmuckraker) tweeted [ko] after uploading its video report on YouTube:
@kbsmuckraker:뉴스타파 조세피난처 탐사리포트 유튜브에도 올렸습니다..기자 27년하면서 비밀기록 많이 봤지만 이런건 처음입니다. 많이 공유해 주시길.
@kbsmuckraker: I've uploaded NewsTapa's investigative reports on tax havens on YouTube. Even for me, who has seen numerous confidential documents while working as a journalist for 27 years, this is something I've never seen. Please share it with many others.
* NewsTapa Content contents are CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 protected. English subtitles are not yet unavailable.
Twitter user @ariul202  criticized the mainstream media [ko] for keeping silent while this revelation was made by a young, small news site:
@ariul202:비영리 독립언론 “뉴스타파”가 연일 조세피난처에 페이퍼컴퍼니를 운영한 파렴치한들 을 발표하건 만, 메이져 언론사란 작자들과, 국세청은 뭐하는가?[…]
@ariul202: While a non-profit, independent journalism site, “NewsTapa”, releases names of those bastards who run a paper company in a tax haven, where were the mainstream media and the National Tax Service? […]

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Saudi Youth Arrested for Allegedly “Insulting Religion” · Global Voices
Guest Contributor

Two young Saudi men were arrested in the capital Riyadh by the Committee of the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice  (CPVPV) for allegedly insulting religion. Bader Al-Rasheed @BAlrasheed and Abdullah Al-Bilasi @3bdlla shared their story on Twitter.
According to Al-Rasheed, they were sitting outside a cafe when a CPVPV's car passed by to call people to leave the area to perform evening prayers. He said he argued with the CPVPV member whether sitting at public places at prayer times was illegal.
Al-Rasheed later tweeted [ar]:
@BAlrasheed: لأني أول مرة أسمع بهذا النظام ولعلمي بأن الهيئة ومعظم الأجهزة الأمنية أحياناً يتصرفون حسب مزاجهم ويختلقون لك قوانين غير موجودة
رحت للجمس وسألت: هل هناك قانون يمنع الجلوس في الأماكن العامة وقت الصلاة؟
“@BAlrasheed: Because it was the first time I hear of this law and the heya’ (what CPVPV is informally referred to) acts arbitrarily sometimes, I went to their car and asked: is there a law that bans sitting in public places at prayer times?”
The employee’s answer was that it’s haram (religiously forbidden), but Al-Rasheed interrupted saying:
@BAlrasheed: قاطعته وقلت: لا تقول لي يقول الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم، فيه قانون؟ الحديث نصيحة وأنا حر أعمل بها أو لا و(لا إكراه في الدين) أما القانون فهو عقد اجتماعي بين المواطن والحكومة وهذا الشي اللي أنا ملزم به فقط.
“@BAlrasheed: Don't tell me what religion says, is there a law? Religion is a matter of personal choice. It's the law that I have to abide by.”
According to Al-Rasheed, the employee was irritated and asked for his and his friend's identification cards.
Then, the CPVPV member started threatening them and inciting the police official to take action against them. Minutes later, another CPVPV car and a police car came to arrest them and took them to al-Sulaimaniyah police station.
Al-Bilasi talked about the inhumane conditions in the cells: “It was small and overcrowded. There weren't any beds or mattresses,” he says. “We slept on the floor. I asked an officer to let me sleep in the hallway but he just cursed me,” he adds.
The next morning, they were taken, handcuffed, to the Investigation and Prosecution Bureau. Upon arriving there, they were taken to a small room where they waited for hours before they were called separately for investigation. The investigator told Abdullah that CPVPV members and police officers are “not to be argued with but obeyed.”
Their nightmare came to an end when they were released after their parents bailed them out even though the investigator called what happened a “misunderstanding.” Religious police were not satisfied and demanded that the two men get tried.
More absurdly, al-Bilasi and al-Rasheed reported a strange story about a Lebanese man they met in al-Sulaimaniyah police station who was arrested for a “religiously illegitimate smile”!
من أظرف القصص في التوقيف.. لبناني يعمل في السواني في الفيصلية محكوم عليه بخمس أيام. التهمة: “ابتسامة غير شرعية”
@balrasheed: One of the more bizarre stories we came across during our detention was of a Lebanese salesman who was sentenced to five days imprisonment. His crime: “A non-Sharia compliant smile.”
The incident happened on March 25, 2013.

author: Guest Contributor


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Two Ugandan Newspapers Reopen After Days-Long Closure by Police · Global Voices
James Propa

Uganda has allowed two newspapers to reopen after an 11-day standoff between the government and the media houses over a controversial letter they had obtained that referred to a plot to groom the eldest son of President Yoweri Museveni to succeed the 27-year leader.
Police shut down the Red Pepper and the Daily Monitor on 20 May, 2013 after they reported on a letter written by the country's coordinator of intelligence services to the head of the counter intelligence agency asking for an investigation into the succession plan, known as the Muhoozi Project, and allegations that opponents of the plan are targeted for assassination.
The closure of the Daily Monitor also affected two radio stations, 90.4 Dembe FM and 93.3 KFM, which are located in the same building in the Namuwonga suburb of Uganda's capital city of Kampala.
While the newspapers were shuttered, there were demonstrations throughout the country in support of media freedom. Ugandan police reacted by using tear gas and arresting some protestors.
On 26 May, 2013, the president met with management of the Nation Media Group, which owns the Daily Monitor, to discuss the matter. The government released a statement afterwards saying that the Nation Media Group “highly regretted the story that led to the closure of the Monitor newspaper and KFM and Dembe Radio stations,” and that had agreed to “only publish or air stories which are properly sourced, verified and factual.”
Five days later, the media houses were reopened and allowed to resumed their work.
Head of security at Daily Monitor opens the door after the reopening. Photo from Daily Monitor official Facebook page
After the media houses were opened, the Daily Monitor said in an editorial that they were delighted to be back as the closure caused difficulties for staff, families, distributors, vendors, and many others. They emphasised that a free press is essential if a country hopes to grow peacefully.
However, many people still think the government mishandled the situation and the closure of the media houses set a bad precedent for the future of press freedom in the Uganda.
Ugandan journalist and blogger Mugumya wrote on his blog that the 11 days the media houses were shut down were the darkest period ever for media in Uganda:
But I would like to make a few things clear. Contrary to what many have said on social media, the undertakings made by the several media organizations do not weaken the media in Uganda.
The siege weakened the media but the damage is largely financial and is not fatal.
It’s not situations like the Media Siege that kill companies, it’s the lack of them and the failure for those affected to learn lessons.
I am confident there is no media house that will find it financially difficult to recover quickly from the hiccup.
The undertakings with government on the other hand give the media a new life, they don’t weaken the media in Uganda at all.
I have read all the undertakings and there is nothing that wasn’t in the editorial policies already.
He noted:
The police has too much power and the courts are almost powerless.
This was very clear during the siege.
What I found very strange is not that the police sealed off our offices.
The Police Act gives them the powers, the authority to do just that.
What I found very surprising, very strange indeed and very disturbing is that the police can seal off a facility for close to two weeks, do an intensive search and not prefer any charges against anyone and then walk away like nothing happened and that is very acceptable in our country.
Commenting on the Daily Monitor website, Mukiibi Mugerwa wanted to know whether the Daily Monitor was forced into submission by the government:
I have read this whole thing and to be honest, for the very first time I don't know what you are trying to say!. Is the blurring of messages part of your new editorial policy?. Have you been so beaten into submission that you can only communicate in hidden messages? . You should have been very bold and stated the “For 11 days and 11 nights, the Monitor and the Government stared each other in the face, and yes, it is the Government who blinked”
Another reader, Charles Kintu, expressed his doubt:
“We will remain fair and accurate” I doubt it not with the draconian and stringent conditions you have signed.
On Twitter, user @twsgy wrote:
@twsgy: #mediasiege come to thinK [about] it, #monitor&pepper committed crimes under the #officialsecretsAct dont police know that they [are] repugnant
Official Secrets Act of 1964 is a piece of legislation that, among other things, make it difficult for government sources to release information to journalists. A World Bank report shows that the Official Secrets Act poses major challenges to the Access to Information Act in Uganda.
The question still remains, as Ugandan journalist Mugumya asked on his blog while discussing the siege, “Could this be the new normal in Uganda?”

author: James Propa


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What are Citizens’ Main Concerns in Benin ?  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

Tite Yokossi unpacks a poll by the Zinsou Foundation that asked the citizens of Benin what are their main concerns today [fr]. The first concern listed was the low purchasing power of public servants. The other main concerns are access to education, access to clean water, health care and electricity, civil protection and aid for farmers.

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Brazilian Transvestites Pump Up with Silicone to Attract World Cup Clients · Global Voices
Pública - Agência de jornalismo investigativo

This post written by Andrea Dipp, was originally published as a report entitled “I'm Going to Pump Up So I Can Charge More During the Cup” [pt] and is part of investigative journalism agency Pública's special #CopaPública [pt] coverage on the 2014 World Cup. This post is the first in a series of three articles that will be published on Global Voices Online.
Long before the coastal Brazilian city of Fortaleza was confirmed as a host for the World Cup 2014, transvestites Carla and Luana (fictitious names) were already working in the vicinity of the impressive Castelão Stadium, historically an area of prostitution on the city. On the streets that surround the stadium and run through the poor neighborhoods in the area, they share the sidewalks with other prostitutes where clients come in search of tricks costing from five to 50 Brazilian reais (about two to 25 United States dollars).
During a hot, dry afternoon typical of April in northeastern Brazil, I accompanied the work of the people from Associação Barraca da Amizade (Friendship Tent) [pt], a non-governmental organization which has cared for and sheltered street children and adolescents for 26 years and has developed projects to combat sexual exploitation at the request of boys and girls since 2009. But the action wasn't all that much — two prostitutes and three transvestites slinked off into what little shade was offered by the high walls of a large company, close to a traffic circle, hiding from the heat.
Carla and Luana were resting up from a night out. Without madams to answer to, the two can make their own work schedules. Those who were on the street were approached by the Friendship Tent educators who distributed condoms and lubrication gel in the hope of reducing the risks and as a means of getting close. Paulinha, as the assistant is affectionately known among the transvestites, explained:
Hoje, além das mulheres e adolescentes, trabalhamos com 30 travestis aqui da área, levando insumos, marcando exames nos postos de saúde, oferecendo cursos profissionalizantes e atendendo a algumas demandas delas. Há pouco tempo nós conseguimos, após articulação com orgãos oficiais, a transferência de um médico que fazia piadas homofóbicas com as travestis de um posto de saúde da região. Esses resultados ajudam a fortalecer essa confiança no nosso trabalho.
Today, in addition to women and adolescents, we work with 30 transvestites here in the area, distributing materials, scheduling exams at the health clinics, offering vocational courses and attending to some of their requests. A short time ago, after coordinating with official agencies, we were able to force the transfer of a doctor who made homophobic jokes with the transvestites at a regional health clinic. These results help to strengthen their trust in our work.
Because they trust Paulinha, Carla and Luana opened the doors to their house near the stadium and let me in to speak about their expectations and fears regarding the arrival of the World Cup, and also about a growing phenomenon among transvestites as the mega event draws near.
The silicone trip
With an eye on the World Cup, transvestites are traveling south from the northeastern Fortaleza to São Paulo in order to get silicone implants in their breasts, buttocks, and other body parts.
Carla, 25 years old, has prostituted herself for ten years in the area of the Castelão Stadium. Naming the parts of her body she intends to enhance, she said:
Eu vou agora em julho para São Paulo botar silicone no peito, 450, 500 ml em cada. Também vou bombar de novo [por mais silicone industrial no corpo]: bunda, quadril, perna e joelho. Aí na Copa eu vou cobrar mais… O silicone industrial dói demais, você fica pra morrer! A mulher injeta e vai fazendo uma massagem para ele espalhar. Mas é a dor da beleza, né?
I’m going this June to São Paulo to put more silicone in my breasts, 450, 500 ml in each one. I’m also going to pump up again [inject more industrial silicone in the body]: bottom, hips, leg, and knee. Then at the Cup I’m going to charge more…. Industrial silicone hurts badly, you feel like you’re going to die. A woman injects it and massages it to spread it around. But pain for beauty, right?
Carla asserted that she turned to sex work when she was 15 because she wanted to, just like her friend 22-year-old friend Luana, who said she began sex work at 17 by choice:
Eu fui uma das primeiras a chegar aqui no Castelão. Hoje a coisa está feia, tem muita postituta fumando pedra e isso queima nosso filme. Ao mesmo tempo que a gente espera que a Copa aumente o movimento, tem medo que a polícia queira limpar a área. Você acha que o prefeito vai querer mostrar isso para os gringos?
I was one of the first to arrive here in Castelão. Today things are ugly, there are lots of prostitutes smoking crack and this gives us a bad rap. While we hope the World Cup increases the action, at the same time we are afraid the police will want to clean up the area. Do you think the mayor will want foreigners to see this?
Luana´s eye problem doesn't seem to get in the way of her work or her plans and is never mentioned. Between one commentary and another about a rerun of a soap opera on TV, she said:
Mas a gente é atrevida, se me tirarem daqui vou para ali!…Peitão e bundão chamam a atenção aqui. Em São Paulo não, porque as mariconas sabem que trava que é muito bombada, é mais rodada, preferem as com carinha de menino. Mas aqui no Ceará quem tem peitão é mais procurada.
I am determined, if they remove me from here I will go there!… Breasts and butts attract attention here. Not in São Paulo, because the gays know that a transvestite who is more pumped up is used more, and they prefer them with a boyish face. But here in Ceará, those with big breasts are more in demand.
With an eye on the Cup, transvestites travel from Ceará to São Paulo in search of silicone. Image by Juliano Rocha for Agência Pública. Used under Creative Commons license.
Luana, who already went to São Paulo to get implants, explained how it works:
Tem as cafetinas que levam a gente, pagam a passagem e a operação em uma clínica clandestina. Deve sair uns dois mil reais para elas. Aí ela cobram o dobro ou o triplo e mais uma diária de 30 a 50 reais para a gente morar na casa delas, e a gente vai trabalhando para pagar. Trabalha muito, muito mesmo.
You have the madams who take us, who pay for the fare and the operation in a clandestine clinic. It costs them about 2,000 reais (about 1,000 US dollars). Then they charge double or triple plus a daily rate of 30 to 50 reais (between 15 and 25 dollars) for us to stay at their house, and we work to pay it off. You work a lot, a whole lot.
Carla added:
Eu já fui fazer programa em São Paulo. É bom porque você ganha mais, mas por outro lado você tem que trabalhar de qualquer jeito, mesmo se estiver doente, não importa. Ninguém vai te dar um remédio. Eu já vi umas travestis apanharem de pau de uma cafetina.
I already worked in São Paulo. It’s good because you earn more, but on the other hand you have to work anyway, even if you are sick, it doesn't matter. Nobody helps you out. I've seen transvestites take beatings by a madam’s stick.
According to the two, the traffic between the two cities is increasing each day. Luana commented:
Só essa semana, fiquei sabendo de quatro que foram. Mês que vem sei de mais cinco. É muita travesti botando peito.
Just this week I found out about four who went. Next month I know of five more. That’s a lot of transvestites getting breast implants.
She stated that she paid 3,000 reais (about 1,400 US dollars) for her 400 ml implants because she was an acquaintance of the madam and she stayed eight months working in São Paulo to pay off her debt. Many end up staying because the become addicted to cocaine — which helps them put up with the intense work and is more accessible in the city — and aren't able to pay their debts. One of them fled the house where she was staying and is now missing, as Marcela, another transvestite who I already knew in São Paulo, would tell me later.
Lídia Rodrigues, another educator from the Friendship Tent, recounted that some transvestites turn up to 30 or 40 tricks a day in São Paulo and the educators have noticed that this traffic to São Paulo is intensifying. Lídia explained:
Não dá para afirmar que é somente por causa da Copa, mas elas sabem que virão muitos turistas e muitos homens para a área. Ao mesmo tempo a gente tem medo de uma higienização massiva. Provavelmente o termômetro disso vai ser a Copa das Confederações [pt].
You can’t say it’s just because of the Cup, but they know that many tourists and many men will be coming to the area. At the same time we fear a massive cleaning operation. Probably the thermometer for all this will be the Confederations Cup.


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Cuba: Yoani Returns · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

I’m back now. Beginning to feel the peculiarities of a Cuba that in my three months absence has barely changed.
High-profile Cuban blogger Yoani Sanchez talks about returning home after her first trip abroad in years.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Extreme Anti-immigrant Groups Spread Throughout Europe · Global Voices
Lourdes Sada

*All links lead to texts in Spanish unless otherwise noted.
The 1929 stock market crash produced an economic crisis that put millions of people in financial straits. The economic collapse meant large-scale job loss, and consequently, misery for millions of families. The situation became the perfect storm for the rise of fascist movements, which came to power in Germany [en] and Italy, and whose sinister effects we all know well.
Plagued by one of the worst economic crises in recent history, fascist parties are once again on the rise in 21st-century Europe. Flourishing parties are preying on the social discontent felt within the quintessential welfare states as citizens are being striped of rights that took generations to win. As stated in the European Antifascist Manifesto [en]:
Extreme right protesters in Spain. Photo taken from Xavier Casals’ blog [es].
By exploiting the fears of the well to do of the risks of a social explosion, the radicalization of middle classes destroyed by the crisis and sweeping austerity measures as well as the despair of marginalized and impoverished unemployed people, extreme right and most of all neo-Nazi and neo-fascist forces are growing everywhere in Europe. They are gaining mass influence in the poorer layers of society turning this influence systematically against traditional and newer scapegoats (immigrants, Muslims, Jews, LGBT, disabled people,…) as well as against left wing organizations and trade unions.
Extreme right political parties have been gradually appearing across Europe in recent years. Belgium's Vlaams Blok, created in the 1970s and previously outlawed, has recently resurfaced as Vlams Belang. France's National Front, founded in 1972, has emerged as the country's most viable third party option in recent presidential elections. In Norway, the Progress Party received more than 22% of the vote in the 2009 elections. Anders Breivik, convicted of the Utoya Island attacks, spent several years climbing the Party's ranks.
In Switzerland, the Swiss People's Party pulled 29% of the votes in the 2007 elections. When the Austrian Freedom Party entered the country's government in 1999, European Union (EU) member states were forced to file sanctions against its neighboring alpine republic. Similar examples can be found in Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Holland, Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria and Greece, all of which have extreme right parties that hold parliamentary representation.
The percentage of parliamentary representation held by extreme right groups throughout Europe, 2012 (by percentage of votes). Image from Ignacio Martín Granados’ blog.
In other countries, like Spain, such parties have not succeeded in entering the lower houses of government, but they have made their way into other institutions. In the last municipal elections, the Catalonia Platform Party (PxC) secured 67 spots in varying munincipalities within Catalonia. The following video, posted by alpujarradelasierra on YouTube, is from PxC's recent campaign and unequivacally expresses their political stances:
The aforementioned political parties share similar ideological premises. All are profoundly Eurosceptic, hostile towards immigrants and minorities, and purport doctrines of racism and radical nationalism, to name a few. They also support populist rhetoric, proposing simple solutions- which are only simple in appearance- and are often contrary to human rights.
Arguably the most well known Eurosceptic party is the UK Independence Party, UKIP, who according to the blog Territorio Europa [es]- amongst others- promotes the following:
The mass influx of immigrants during the economic boom, which has worsened current employment figures, has spurred ultraright parties’ racism and xenophobia largely directed towards the Muslim community. They have used the emergence of radical Islam in Europe- perceived by many Europeans as a threat to western values- to incite hate and win votes. The blog Territoires de la Memoire [fr] summarizes some of Vlaams Belang's stances:
[…] refuser de reconnaître l’islam comme une religion: «[…] L’islam n’est pas une religion comme le catholicisme, le judaïsme ou l’hindouisme, c’est une religion-droit-culture-civilisation, intrinsèquement ‘intégriste’ […] ». L’islam est aussi systématiquement infériorisé: c’est «[…] une religion rétrograde […] », «qui maintien les femmes musulmanes sous un statut de quasi-esclavage », avec des «[…] mentalités aussi primitives que barbares […]», et des adeptes «[…] fanatiques ignorants et barbares […] ».
(…) they refuse to recognize Islam as a religion: «(…) Islam isn't a religion like Catholicism, Judaism, or Hinduism, it is a religion-law-culture-civilization that is intrinsically fundamentalist (…)». Islam is also systematically belittling: it is «a retrograde religion (…)», «that keeps Muslim women at a nearly slave-like status» with «(…)  mentalities as primitive as they are barbaric (…)» and followers that are «(…) ignorant and barbarian fanatics (…)».
Minorities are also subject to the affronts of these ultraright groups. The Hungarian party Jobbik that made lists of  “dangerous” Jews in the country, the animosity showed to Roma by the National Front [fr] in France and the Attack Party in Bulgaria are prime examples of these groups’ ideologies.
Greece's Golden Dawn party is but another example as its activists have been the culprits in a number of recent attacks on migrants workers and whose spokesperson left little doubt on the group's ideological beliefs after attacking two female politicians in a televised debate which was posted to the RussiaToday YouTube channel:

author: Lourdes Sada


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Hong Kong: Tiananmen Massacre Anniversary · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Tonight is the annual Hong Kong candle light vigil for commemorating the June 4 Tiananmen Massacre in 1989. “Hong Wrong” have written a summary of controversies over the theme of this year's vigil at the eve of the 24th Anniversary.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Inclusive Citizen Reporters in Ecuador · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Earlier this year, Ecuadorian journalist Christian Espinosa [es] offered workshops for citizen journalists with disabilities on how to cover the presidential elections. Jacinto Lajas Portillo highlights the initiative in Periodismo Ciudadano [es].


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Jamaica: Environmental Dangers · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

‘Hold down an tek weh.’ That’s exactly what it is.
Jamaican Woman Tongue blogs about some pressing environmental issues.


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Saudi Prisoners On and Off Hunger Strikes · Global Voices
Guest Contributor

Last week, the Twitter account dedicated to Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA ) member, Mohammed Al-Bjadi, @FreeAlbjadi, published two letters written by Mohammed Al-Bjadi in prison last year.
The account explained their decision to publish the letters [ar]:
@freealbjadi: لماذاسننشر هاتين الرسالتين؟ لأن وزارة الداخلية السعودية ممثلة بالمتحدث الرسمي لها نفوا أن #محمد_البجادي أضرب عن الطعام بينما الرسالة تثبت ذلك
Why publish the letters? Because Ministry of Interior through its official spokesperson has denied that Mohammed Al-Bjadi went on a hunger strike.
The account was referring to this statement by Mansour Al-Turki, Spokesperson for the Saudi Ministry of Interior, where he denied the hunger strike and confirmed that Al-Bjadi is in good health.
The First letterwas translated by @aliasaffar as follows:
“In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
After a hunger strike that lasted 30 days, I appeared before the judge al-Abdullatif on Tuesday 18/05/1433 AH (10/04/2012) in the judicial office #7, to be sentenced unjustly and arbitrarily for 4 years in prison and a 5-years travel ban afterwards, knowing that I didn’t acknowledge the legitimacy of the court, nor its procedures since that my representatives were not allowed to attend and I was not allowed to choose a representative freely. Also, the court did not allow for a public trial as required by laws and regulations, but rather the trial was held secretly with the attendance of soldiers wearing their military uniform. The soldiers were : undersergeant Fahad al-Shammari, corporal Majid al-Qahtani, a private first class that I don’t know his name, and a General Major nicknamed Abu Misfer, in addition to a civilian-clothed person who claimed to be representing the Human Rights Council, which made the judge say that the trial is held publicly and in accordance to laws and regulations. The judge pointed to the office’s door, saying “here is the office’s door open and anyone can attend the trial. We do not disallow from attending,” noting that he refused to answer my repeated question in the previous sessions of why my representatives are not allowed to attend the trial, or why I was not permitted to hire another ones in case he [the judge] didn’t accept them as representatives. My charges were, first, collaborating in establishing a society for human rights; second, distorting the state’s image in media; third, challenging the judiciary independence; fourth, calling on the families of political prisoners to hold protests and sit-ins; and fifth, possessing prohibited books like “al-Arab Dhahira Sawtiya” by Abdullah al-Qassimi, “Kifahi” by Adolf Hitler, and “Naqd ala Naqd” by Abu Bilal [a fellow Saudi human rights activist Abdullah al-Hamid who was sentenced for 11 years in prison earlier this year]. For that I decided not to respond to these charges and described the court as phoney and the trial as a comic play directed by the executive branch (Ministry of Interior), whose hero is the judiciary branch (Specialized Criminal Court) and its representatives (Public Prosecutor and assigned Judge al-Abdullatif), and the victim is the defendant, Mohammad al-Bajadi. I note to you that I have not received the verdict record (‘saq al-hukm) and I’m not aware of what procedures they are going to carry out [against me] after I leave the court.”
Here is the translation of the second letter:
“In the name of Allah, the most gracious, the most merciful.
From Mohammad Al-Bjadi (Abu Turki) to Dr. Mohammad Al-Qahtani (Abu Abdullah) and to my fellow representatives and association colleagues.
Peace and Allah's mercy and blessings be upon you.
I want to inform you that I am still on strike and refusing food, visits and calls since 18-4-1433 (12-3-2012) until this moment. On Tuesday 27-4-1433 (21-3-2012), however, I was taken to the prison hospital for a check up and was force-fed through an IV line in the presence of 5 soldiers and the ward's officer (Abu Rashid). Also, I was taken to the prison hospital again on Saturday 1-5-1433 (24-3-2012) for a check up and was told I will be force-fed through nose tubes. I fought with one of the officials whose name I don't know, which led them to back away from doing so. But I might be taken and force-fed at any moment, because I lost almost 10 kilos of weight and my blood sugar is dangerously low and I have lost enzymes, as they have told me.
Finally, I wish you would ask to meet me in prison considering that you are my representatives.
Thank you for your efforts,
4-5-1433 (27-3-2012)
Al-Hair Prison
Ward 5 – Room 10
Prison Number 2/888″
Mohammed Al-Bjadi was detained on March 21, 2011. He last called his family on September 19, 2012, to tell them he was going on a hunger strike for the third time. They haven't heard from him since.
Both Amnesty and Gulf Center for Human Rights have protested banning Al-Bjadi from contacting his family and lawyer and demanded the immediate disclose of his whereabouts and his health condition.
After the two letters were published and circulated on Twitter, the Ministry of Interior called Al-Bjadi's wife to tell her they won't allow him to contact his family until he breaks the hunger strike.
Mohammed's brother tweeted:
@t3aun اليوم إتصلت وزارة الدخليّة على زوجة #محمد_البجادي تفيد بمنع الزيارة أو حتى الإتصال بسبب إضرابه!
على أساس إنها تقدر تزوره أو تكلمه قبل؟
Today, MOI called Mohammed Al-Bjadi's wife to tell her that he's not allowed visits or even phone calls because he's on strike!
As if she was allowed to visit or call him before!
Also, a video of his mother was uploaded on YouTube where she says:
Minister of interior, where is my son Mohammed? It's been nine months. We don't know if he's dead or alive and you won't return our calls.
Al-Bjadi's lawyer and current Vice-President of ACPRA, Fowzan al-Harbi, has submitted continuous requests to meet Al-Bjadi but has not received any reply.
In a similar story, Sayyed Aqeel Al-Shakhouri has gone on two hunger strikes demanding a trial. Sayyed Aqeel was detained on October 2011 from his work place for his participation in the peaceful protests that stormed Qatif, after the so called Arab Spring.
When he was first detained, he faced physical and psychological torture and was kept in solitary confinement for months. He went on his first hunger strike in September 2012 and ended it after authorities promised to charge and try him, but those turned to be empty promises.
He went on a hunger strike again on April 30, 2013, and ended it on May 29.
According to his wife, he ended his hunger strike after he faced harassment from Security forces guarding him at the hospital he was moved to. “He was chained to the bed at all times,” his wife told me. “When he asked to pray, they would ignore him. It bothered him to delay prayer,” she said.
Sayyed Aqeel Al-Shakouri has been in jail for over 19 months without being officially charged or tried.
“I will not give up. I'll keep calling here and there and gather some more promises, even if they are false one, to put him on trial,” his wife vows.


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Snowfall in the Tropics  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

The tropical Island of La Réunion experienced a relatively rare snowfall on the top of the volcano, Piton de la fournaise on June 3. Linfo.re explains that [fr] the first snowfall on the island was observed in 1988 and the latest was in 2007.


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Trinidad & Tobago Writer Wins Lit Prize  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Trinidadian writer and blogger Sharon Millar is co-winner of the 2013 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, reports the Bocas Lit Fest Blog.


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Tunisian FEMEN Activist Faces New Charges · Global Voices
Afef Abrougui

The trial of Tunisian FEMEN activist Amina Tyler, who was arrested on May 19 after she graffitied the word FEMEN on the wall of cemetery in Kairouan, 184km from the capital Tunis, will resume on June 5.
On May 30, a court fined Amina 300 Tunisian Dinars (150 euros) over the “non-authorized possession of an incendiary object” — pepper spray. Amina's lawyers argued that she had the pepper spray for self-defense reasons, following the death threats she received last March, after she posted topless photographs of herself on Facebook. Though she avoided a six-month jail-term for this charge, Amina remains in custody and now faces new charges: “undermining public morals”, “desecrating a cemetery” and “belonging to a criminal organization” [FEMEN]. These charges could land the 19-year-old in jail for several years.
On 31 May, Amnesty International called upon the Tunisian authorities to release Amina. The organization described the charges as “politically motivated and targeting her [Amina] for her activism on women's rights”.
Silence of the so called “Democrats”?
The secular Tunisian opposition's lack of support to Amina, was met with criticism. Fearing to lose the future votes of the conservative electorate, it seems that leftist politicians have preferred to remain silent. This is not the first time political parties from the left faced accusations of letting down their own “progressive” values. For instance, they were also accused of adopting a weak stance on the case of Ghazi Beji and Jabeur Mejir, who were convicted to seven and half years in prison last year, over the publication of online content deemed offensive to Islam.
In the  Avaaz petition demanding the release of Amina, the support committee for the young FEMEN activist said [fr]:
Retour à la case prison pour Amina !
Nous avons toutes et tous été leurré(e)s par l’annonce de la relaxe d’Amina pour détention d’explosif. Amina, la prisonnière de l’hypocrisie politique tunisienne, du mutisme de celles et ceux qui veulent s’affirmer démocrates, mais qui n’osent prendre part à la lutte qui se joue actuellement.
Amina is back in prison!
We were all deluded by the announcement that Amina was released over the possession of an incendiary object. Amina is the prisoner of the Tunisian political hypocrisy and the silence of those claiming to be democrats but do not dare to take sides in this ongoing battle.
Tunisian writer Gilbert Naccache also criticized [fr] the proclaimed democrats’ stance:
La démocratie a vraiment du mal à se frayer un chemin jusqu’à nos cerveaux ! Les mêmes qui se disent prêts à se battre jusqu’au bout pour les libertés (…) hurlent à l’intolérable provocation quand Amina s’exprime(…)
Les justifications de la condamnation d’Amina, même par ceux qui l’accusent de donner un prétexte à détourner l’attention des vrais problèmes, de contribuer à diviser davantage les Tunisiens, ne sont en fin de compte qu’une façon de ne pas assumer son devoir qui est de défendre Amina contre la calomnie et les mensonges (…) et de défendre le droit de tous à s’exprimer à sa façon…
It is really hard for democracy to make its way to our brains! Those claiming to be ready to fight until the end for freedom, (…) are denouncing an intolerable provocation when Amina expressed herself(…)
The pretexts used to condemn Amina, even by those who accused her of distracting [public's] attention away from the real problems or further dividing Tunisians, are in fact only finding a way not to assume their duty which is supporting Amina against slander and lies,(…) and supporting every individual's right to express him/herself in his/her own way.
Three other FEMEN activists, two French and one German are also set to stand trial on June 5. They each face a six-month imprisonment after they staged a topless protest outside a Tunis-based court on May 29 in support of Amina.

author: Afef Abrougui


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Turkey: A Social Media Chronology of Occupy Gezi · Global Voices
Baran Mavzer

This post originally appeared on the author's own blog, Azadolu.
On April 10, 2013 a hashtag on the Turkish twittersphere proclaimed #ayagakalk (which translates to “stand up”). The call came from a small group of activists trying to preserve the standing park, Gezi Park in Taksim Square, against plans to build a mall in the area. Nobody expected this little incident to turn into the biggest protest in the country’s republican history. In the words of Twitter user Ezgi Medran, who was trying to collect signatures on April 10 for the initial protest slated for April 13 [tr]:
@egedenizz Taksim Gezi Parkı'nı kurtarmak için, imzalarınızı bekliyoruz! http://taksimicinayagakalk.com/ #ayagakalk@ayagakalktaksim aracılığıyla
We are in need of your signatures in order to save Taksim Gezi park!
The protests started as a festival, held on April 13. Environmental activist Barış Gençer Baykan wrote:
@yesilgundem Taksim Gezi Parkı'na binlerce kişi sahip çıkıyor #ayagakalk@ayagakalktaksimpic.twitter.com/X6dek5HvnG
Thousands are protecting the Taksim Gezi Park.
Thousands gather at Taksim's Gezi Park. Photograph shared on Twitter by @yesilgundem
No clashes were recorded between security forces and protesters at that time. On May 27, another protest was held for the same purpose. This time, a few activists occupied Gezi Park to stand against the construction crew. Social media team 140journs shared a picture of the activists with these words:
@140journs Taksim Gezi Parkında dün gece başlatılan yıkım çalışmalarına karşın geceden itibaren nöbet tutuluyor. #ayagakalkpic.twitter.com/1ZVUpkgxkX
There are patrols since last night at the Taksim Gezi Park despite the demolition works.
Protesters camping in Gezi Park. Photo credit: @140journos
Things started to get out of hand after two incidents that went viral on social media. The first was a picture of an unarmed woman protester attacked by the police using tear gas, taken by Reuters photographer Osman Orsal. Later, in a dawn operation, the police burned down the activists’ tents. The incident was captured on YouTube.
The popular hashtag transformed into #direngeziparki (resist Gezi Park), which was followed by growing support for the protests. Memet Ali Alabora, a Turkish actor, was at the park and was one of the first of a few celebrities who actively joined the resistance. He said on his Twitter account:
@memetalialabora Mesele sadece Gezi Parkı değil arkadaş, sen hâlâ anlamadın mı? Hadi gel. #direngeziparkı
This is not only about Gezi Park, my friend, don't you get it yet? Come on, come here.
Police commenced attacks on protestors with tear gas and water cannons. The amount of the tear gas used was excessive. Onlookers reported that police targeted protestors’ bodies when shooting tear gas capsules. Twitter user Alper Orakci shared the amazing amount of the tear gas capsules on Istiklal Caddesi, the biggest street in Taksim Square:
@alperorakci Gaz bombasi kapsulleri!!! pic.twitter.com/pEmVk9ZBcY
Tear gas capsules!
Excessive amounts of tear gas was used to disperse the protesters. Photograph shared on Twitter by @alperorakci
Osman Orsal, the Reuters photographer who took the iconic photo of the protester woman in red, was injured by a tear gas capsule. Benjamin Harvey, bureau chief of Bloomberg Turkey, wrote:
@BenjaminHarvey Osman Orsal, photographer. This is a photo he took in Istanbul yday: http://bit.ly/11GaGa1  This is him today: pic.twitter.com/8aU1vRZGjX
Osman Orsal injured by a tear gas capsule. Source: pic.twitter.com/8aU1vRZGjX
Protesters organized on Facebook and Twitter, as the mainstream media was apparently ignoring the protests. There were reactions on social media against to mainstream media channels. Twitter user Faruk erman shared a picture that illustrated the silence of Turkish media:
@farukerman şu anda tv kanalları pic.twitter.com/DsfhVnz0CZ
Right now the TV channels.
TV channels during clashes. Source: pic.twitter.com/DsfhVnz0CZ
Benjamin Harvey was exasperated with CNN-Turk for showing a documentary about penguins during the clashes:
@BenjaminHarvey Seriously, CNN-Turk is airing a show on penguins.
The supporters of AKP (Justice and Development Party), the ruling party in Turkey, blamed the protesters for the clashes. They commented under the hashtag of #oyunagelmeturkiyem (“do not get tricked, Turkey”) on Twitter. Twitter user Canan Kumas wrote:
@Canan_Hasret Tayyip has done nothing but help the country grow over the past years and now they want him impeached over a park #oyunagelmetuerkiyem
Countering comparisons of Turkey with the Arab Spring, another user, Bunyamin Hakimoglu said:
@Benj_Kobsch Don't imagine a spring in Turkey. The government is elected with a democratic election. Be aware of the difference! #OyunaGelmeTürkiyem
On the other hand, there were some critics between some supporters, too. For example, AKP (Justice and Development Party) senator and ex-minister of culture and tourism, Ertugrul Gunay was angry about his party's fierce politics on protesters:
@ErtugrulGunayFethin yıldönümünde Istanbul'da AVM yapmak için 75yıllık ağaçları kesmeye kalkanlar, ne Fatih Sultan'ı anlamışlar, ne de Yaradan'ın emrini!
People who try to cut down 75-year-old trees on the anniversary of the conquest of Istanbul to build a mall cannot understand the Sultan Fatih nor God's order!
Even as the protests and clashes continue across the country, Prime Minister Erdogan does not seem willing to back down. He said on his own Twitter account:
@RT_ErdoganMuhalefetin 100 bin kişi topladığı yerde biz 1 milyon kişi toplarız ama bizim böyle bir derdimiz yok.
We can bring one million people together, where the opposition gathers a hundred thousand people around, but we are not into that kind of business.

author: Baran Mavzer


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Video: Thousands Rage Against Iran’s Regime at Funeral for Ayatollah · Global Voices
Farid

Ayatollah Taheri Esfahani's funeral procession in Isfahan. Screenshot from YouTube
Thousands of people in Isfahan, Iran took part in funeral procession for Ayatollah Jalal Al-Din Taheri on June 4, 2013. He was a senior religious figure and a critical voice against regime hardliners. They chanted slogans in support of the two main opposition leaders under house arrest, Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hussein Mousavi. They also chanted “Down with the dictator!” and “Shame on the dictator!”
Ayatollah Taheri shocked many Iranians in 2002 when he resigned from his position as the Friday prayer speaker in the major city of Isfahan. In his resignation letter he  wrote that he could not close his eyes to “tangible realities, and witness the stifling pain and unbearable suffering of people who were seeing the flowers of virtue being trampled, values collapsing, and spirituality being destroyed.”
Down with the Dictator
@Adagio tweeted  that the presence of the huge crowd bearing radical slogans to mark his death is happening just in time before the election in mid-June.
Setad Salam tweeted  that people were also calling for political prisoner to be released.

author: Farid


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Bermuda: Pension Tension · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

It’s our retirements!
Vexed Bermoothes is amazed that people aren’t making more of a fuss about the state of pensions in Bermuda.


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First LGBTI Parade in Lesotho · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Leila Hall blogs about the first-ever gay parade in Lesotho:
The event has been organised by MATRIX Support Group – a Lesotho-based NGO working to advocate for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) individuals in the country. The organisation, which only received legal recognition in 2010, is – like this year’s parade – the first of its kind in Lesotho.

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Iran: Jokes about Presidential Debate · Global Voices
Farid

Several netizens tweeted about the second presidential debate and made laugh of candidates. Potkin Azarmehr tweeted “Pres Candidates may be asked to play musical chairs next.”


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Japan Qualifies for World Cup, Cop’s Crowd Control Performance Goes Viral  · Global Voices
Keiko Tanaka

Japanese football fans are often called the “the polite hooligans.” They peacefully give each other high -fives while chanting “congratulations.” But for Japan's authorities, the risk of riots and mishaps in any crowded area is always imminent.
And it was no different on the night of June 4, 2013, when football fans were celebrating Japan becoming the first team to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. During the celebrations, one police officer came under the spotlight for his persuasive microphone performance in marshaling a large crowd at Tokyo's popular Shibuya district.
This video by YouTube user yuuhei1987 captures the scene with lingering excitement:
At the popular Shibuya crossing where hundreds of police officers were deployed to man a barricaded pedestrian crossing, this officer in the following video took his loudspeaker to pacify the large crowd.
Many witnessed the scene via Japanese live-streaming platform NicoNico Live [ja] and praised the way the officer spoke to the spectators. On the Internet, people started calling him “the DJ police” like an eloquent radio host. He eventually became became a viral topic.
@Simon_Sin: DJポリスがいい仕事しすぎだｗ 「皆さん同じサポーターですね。ルールは守りましょう。日本代表はマナーとルールを守るチームです。私も嬉しいんです。日本代表応援したかったんです。でも仕事ですからね、皆さん交通ルールを守りましょう」
This police officer talks like a real MC. Let me transcribe what he says to the crowd;
“We are all supporters of the Japanese team. You know that all the players follow the rules and have good manners. So let's together follow the rules! I am happy for Japan to be qualified to World Cup. I was rooting for them in my heart but you see I have work. Now let's follow the traffic rules!”
@t_miya_1214: 渋谷のＤＪ警官、「けがをするとＷＣ出場の後味が悪くなります。皆さんのチームワークで道を広く開けましょう。駅の方向に流れを作っています」
Here you go, the DJ police officer talks the talk again. “I don't want anybody to get hurt here today. Causalities makes you feel bad despite all these wonderful results we had today in football. Let's try to keep everybody safe with our team play. Now let's clear the way and move over to the station!”
While television news emphasized the chaos and fanatic hooligans, social media users highlighted this police officer [ja] and emphasized cooperative supporters and peaceful scenes.
@KS_1013:
本当に日本は平和。勝っても負けても暴動が起こる国も多いけど、日本のこの群衆管理は他の国にまねできないだろうなぁ。
I can't help but to think Japan is really a peaceful country. In other countries, they riot win or lose. I think the way authority manages the crowd is peculiar to Japan and no other nation can imitate.
@t_miya_1214: ＤＪ警官「警察官も心の中では出場決定喜んでいます。こんな日に怒りたくありません」もうｗｗｗなにこの平和な日本ｗｗｗ
The DJ police says “See, all the serious-looking officers here are in fact happy inside to find Japan qualify for the World Cup. We don't want to yell at you on such a wonderful day.”
It's making me laugh given how peaceful this country is.
@tarareba722:ワイドショーでは繰り返し「渋谷は大混乱」を繰り返していたが、実際は「共感」を利用した暴動（？）の完全なコントロールに成功。こんなことが出来るのは世界中で日本だけだ。凄い。
Variety shows on TV repeatedly reported about Shibuya being in turmoil. But in reality, the crowd was fully under control by emphasizing empathy. Amazing job of Japanese police.

author: Keiko Tanaka


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Latin American Investigative Journalism Award · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Transparency International (TI) and the Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (Press and Society Institute, IPYS), with the kind support of the Open Society Foundations, are organising a new edition of the Latin American Investigative Journalism Award. The prize will award US$30,000 to the highest quality journalism published in the press, on the radio or television, or in any online medium, in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2012.
You can find more details at the Transparency International website.