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Lusophone Culture: Buala “Giving Voice” to Contemporary African Cultures · Global Voices
Manuela Tenreiro

“An interdisciplinary web portal for reflection, critique and documenting contemporary Portuguese-speaking African cultures” is how Buala is introduced. In an interview with Global Voices, Buala’s creators Marta Lança and Francisca Bagulho discuss the grounds and justification for a space that grapples with culture, history, politics, the arts in general and the city – the space par excellence of “constant change,” the living stage for playing out contemporary culture.
Buala.org
In 2010, two Portuguese women with years of experience in cultural production in Africa launched a “comprehensive project,” “[spreading] the will expressed by various African creators of culture,” which lead to their “discovering many other [creators of culture].” They introduced the project in Maputo, Luanda, studied Cape Verde and Portugal, opened a cultural association, secured seed money to start up operations and began collecting articles “in which quality and a certain thematic balance are essential.” “Subsequently, our job has been to maintain this same level of interest on a daily basis.”
So, they launched this “independent space” – Buala, a “place for long, in-depth articles that focus on serious, complex works that do not dispense with irony and with the urban cultures of an African youth and an African youth in the Diaspora that has much to say, with people who study Africa without historic blind folly and fantasy, who wish to contribute to reflections on (and with) the continent.” The site is available in Portuguese, French and English and is geared toward an international audience that may be getting to know contemporary Luso-African cultures and experiences for the first time. Yet, because it “seeks to foment mutual understanding and build bridges,” Buala is essentially bidirectional.
Because Buala establishes the text- and image-based contributions it receives as its geography, the web site visitor gets the sensation that all of Africa (not just Portuguese-speaking Africa) becomes lost in the world when it leaves its continental geographic limits. “The African continent is historically a continent of migrations. The impact of the slave trade to the Americas, of the late decolonization, is reflected in cultural and social frameworks that cut across various geographic contexts and that are worthy of discussion and reflection.”
Contemporary Africa is thus understood in transnational context.
Bwala, from the North Mbundu language, means house, village, a community where encounters occur. The orthographical shift to Buala was not for visual purposes, rather “to not focus solely on a specifically Mbundu word since we work within a more international context.”
Global Voices Online: Tell us about the Buala project. How did the idea emerge?
Buala: The idea arose from our noticing that there was a paucity of recording and exposure of interesting and current cultural happenings in Africa and in the African Diaspora that were not laden with the nostalgia or unilateral perspectives that had dominated the cultural scene for so many years. Moreover, we felt that the production of knowledge concerning Africa was not reaching the countries of Africa nor was knowledge circulating as it should among those most involved in its production. There are many topics, people, cultural phenomena that merit in-depth articles and that lack channels for dialoging and for cultural exchange among members the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP in Portuguese) and between members of the CPLP and the rest of the world. We thought the internet would be the most far-reaching tool to extend and expand all of this potential for exposure and dialogue, especially among the youth; we currently get 500 readers a day without incurring heavy costs.
GVO: In addition to the thematic diversity of the articles posted on Buala, there is a very notable presence of the Portuguese language, of Lusophone culture…
B: The Lusophone factor, widely disseminated in terms of discourse throughout all the Portuguese-speaking countries, does not mean an integrated awareness of these countries’ realities and cultures. Buala seeks to bring these people together to dialogue, but we do not wish to fall into that trap of Lusophone discourse, and certainly not emanating from Portugal, which frequently reverberates the past. Many people visit this space; we share a common language and realities that interconnect; we feel at home in any of these countries, but truthfully there is no overarching mutual understanding nor any notable self-promotion among the countries.
"It is important to communicate with the dynamic natures of the Portuguese-speaking counties and their particular features, to reinforce their unity, but not to treat at their unity  as a homogeneous block." Image: Antonio Ole in an article entitled "Lusophone culture, identity and diversity in web society"
The fact that we have general and particular view of these countries – of their frustrations and irritations, their trends, dependencies and desires, their cultural practices and the figures who comprise the cultural panorama of each, and precisely because we believe that there is a new generation that can live these realities by weaving in other elements and by internalizing and expressing a decolonized point of view, made us see the advantage of dialoging on the various perspectives in the interest of sharing.
It is with these new perspectives and new peaks that we are interested in working, in a demystified manner, without excluding a post-colonial approach in our analysis of past relations to understand those of the present. We are trying to revert the tendency of a “space for Portuguese language” as an isolated bubble separate from the rest of the world. We are interested in contributing to Portuguese-speaking countries’ observing and participating in what is happening in the rest of Africa, which sometimes does not happen; for example, Angola and Cape Verde communicate much more with Brazil and Portugal than with the rest of the countries of Africa. We could say the same about Africa’s and the world’s scarce interest in these countries as strong participants in the creation of culture.
On a linguistic level, we are interested in delving into the diversity of the Portuguese language, showing the variety of expressions, slang, lexicon, and variants of the language through Portuguese’s transformative capacity. We invite Mozambican, Brazilian, Angolan, Cape Verdean, Portuguese authors, and their way of writing enables us to understand the thinking and culture of their countries and reference points or, in the case of people who have may have one foot in more than one country, of the mix produced from the “constant Diaspora.” Many African authors and creators adhere to Buala as they see themselves part of an attempt to bring more visibility to good works that encourage youth to pursue the elements necessary for critical thinking.
GVO: Who composes Buala’s readership? Are you looking to expand this readership base?
B: Buala is an interdisciplinary web portal for reflection, critique and documenting contemporary Portuguese-speaking African cultures. We noticed there were similar projects in French, English, German, etc., but only minimal material published in Portuguese. Those projects include a special focus on French-speaking and English-speaking African countries and a dearth of articles on Portuguese-speaking African countries. We are interested in providing a current platform for articles that reflect and critique this contemporary culture within a “Portuguese-language space” and to do so in a way that is integrated and contextually connected to the reflections emerging from other countries and other authors. Thus, Buala proposes, on the one hand, to provide reflections and to translate them, for the time being, into French and English – the languages that seem to us the most important and most viable for translation – and, on the other hand, to translate into Portuguese some of the most relevant discussions on contemporary African culture.
This component of translation undoubtedly allows us to better disseminate knowledge of the articles written and the topics discussed at the international level. While it is always interesting to increase readership, currently it is not possible to expand the languages into which we translate our articles, and we believe that the three languages already provide significant scope.
Buala proposes “to create new views, free from prejudice and colonial judgment.” Photo: Sérgio Pinto Afonso in an article entitled “Luanda, a state of urgency” by Marta Lança
GVO: Is the Portuguese-speaking community in African countries still under construction, compelled to articulate its need for decolonization? Or would it be a contradiction to talk of Lusophone culture and decolonization, considering that the Portuguese language in Africa is a colonial legacy, the result of a colonialist process that was once called “civilizing”? To what extent has contemporary Africa been questioning this?
B: In the first place, it is indeed important to reflect on the meanings of this “community under construction, positively under construction and positively rejected at times, since there are many possible identities within these countries in addition to this feature of the Portuguese language (which also should be viewed in country-specific context). We have published various articles on Buala that take new approaches to question the concept of Lusophone culture, that seek out these cultural identities shared among the countries, that draw comparisons to other models of linguistic, economic and cultural spaces, for example the Francophone sphere (in terms of cultural endeavors  cultural and identification it is entirely different), and that pursues aspects that merit development in within this community.
We are well aware of this very dangerous “civilization” attribute that existed in colonial times and that remained in peoples’ minds for so long due to the manipulated idea of exception from Portuguese colonialism, couched in Luso-Tropicalia and other palliative theories. Lusophone culture depends on the narration of this certain history of Portuguese colonization, which justifies a certain present; for this reason we must recount alternative histories, expand our references and publish anti-colonial texts from resistance fighters, Negritude thinkers and leaders of the independence movements, from poets and philosophers and the entire cultural atmosphere of this period, from a perspective that is not only historic, but reflects on the current reality and that expresses the artistic views that subverts and takes new angles on old myths.
Image from the motion picture Mahla, by Mozambicans Mickey Fonseca and Pipas Forjaz, in the Buala blog “Dá Fala” (Giving Voice, pt), on African contemporary culture
Lusophone culture sometimes runs the risk of being this cover up of a violent past, a political correctness with the rhetoric of heady interculturality, which gives us the sensation of being in a space truly concerned with the fundamental questions of how to live with the Other. It is hypocritical when we know that there is still so much racism, and it is important to stress that this is not exclusive to Portugal. In Cape Verde, there is deep-seated racism against people from the African coast. In Angola, racism is directed towards the Congolese and the eternal poorly resolved questions between whites, blacks and mulattos. In Mozambique, complete dependence on foreign aid and neighboring markets provokes crises and desperation, like what we saw in September. São Tomé & Príncipe and Guiné-Bissau remain so unknown and urgently need greater cultural affirmation and positioning in the artistic sphere. Brazil exports its Brazilian culture to the entire world but is largely unfamiliar with the other Portuguese-speaking countries. Given the respective locations and preferential trading, these countries have other connections that also interest us.
Thus, aside from points of contact due to history and common migrations to/from these countries, we refuse to consider “Lusophone culture” as a single set, a sole block of countries. We believe in unity to strengthen the language and cultural exchanges, unity that needs to be better promoted (supporting more study grants and artists in residence, making the circulation of art/culture and the movement of peoples less bureaucratic, divesting ourselves of certain prejudices), but always taking into account the specific nature and diversity of each country. The internationalization that Buala seeks to create a space where Portuguese-speaking African countries are not hostage to the constraints of the dominant figures in each capital, to the cultural elite, to the lack of constructive criticism and opportunities for new voices to emerge. We are trying to move in the direction of expanding these biased and faulty visions with a more intergenerational, interdisciplinary and transnational approach.
Poster from a Capeverdean Creoule language course promoted in the Buala blog “Dá Fala” (Giving voice, pt), on African contemporary culture
Contemporary Africa flies in the face of the paternalistic views that have been the dominant trend in artistic production concerning Africa. We prioritize the new African generations that, despite having been beaten back by conflicts and wars in their particular countries, are less bound to a mentality of repression, that bring other experiences and ways of thinking and dreaming to the table. Children of the generation of nationalists and independence fighters have made this legacy a reference in their own fights, with the numerous challenges of the present. Africans who live abroad and maintain a connection to the continent, reflecting and positioning themselves in interesting ways. Contributions from various non-African writers who propose to take on Africa without the overtrod narratives of the past, in contact with the world in which they live, cosmopolitan cities, with genuine and expressive curiosity.
If the African countries, under construction and facing many privations – filled with opportunists, from the local government to foreign interests, eternal accomplices in underdevelopment – do not place their bets on culture and education, they will not take the basic steps for a veritable show of strength among equals. Buala seeks to contribute to this qualitative jump with the tools at its disposal and to promptly create a meeting and discussion space accessible to all.

author: Manuela Tenreiro


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Malawi: Our Malawi News · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Our Malawi News is Ushahidi based platform for stories & events around Malawi where & when they happen.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Maldives: No Plan To Combat Terrorism · Global Voices
Rezwan

Hassan Ziyau complains that a full proof plan to combat religious terrorism has been absent during the tenure of successive governments in Maldives.

author: Rezwan


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Nigeria: Opposition party gets ready for 2011 presidential election · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Chidi Opara reports that the presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in Nigeria Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) has appointed Mr. Yinka Odumakin as his spokesman as he gets set for his campaign for the 2011 presidential election.


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Samsung Released An Optimistic Outlook on Korean Security · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

Samsung Economic Research Institute(SERI) released its annual report on Korean peninsula's peace in 2011. SERI speculated that the military tension between two Koreas is likely to subside. Read full report[en]. (click pdf icon right next to title)

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Singapore: National Authentication Framework project · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

techgoondu previews the National Authentication Framework project of Singapore which will go live later this year. Through a single log in, it allows netizens to carry out online transactions with government services and businesses

author: Mong Palatino


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Singapore: Online transgender beauty pageant · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Tru Me is Singapore's online transgender beauty pageant which will be launched next month.


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Singapore: Salary of foreign maids  · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

kaffein-nated from Singapore discusses the mandated increase in the salary of foreign maids while locals continue to wait for a pay increase.


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Singapore’s real economy · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Reacting to the high ranking of Singapore in the global index of economic freedom, blogger econospeak insists that the prosperous city state is actually a “curious mixture of socialism and state planning with innovative free market approaches.”


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St. Vincent & the Grenadines: New Art Mag  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Antilles and Repeating Islands blog about the launch of a new magazine “focusing on works by contemporary artists practicing in the Caribbean and its diaspora.”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Taiwan: Product placement and the petrochemical industry · Global Voices
Vergil Yeh

Not quite wumao, but also perhaps not far off: bloggers in Taiwan have reportedly been sponsored to blog on the development plans of the controversial Kuokuang Petrochemical Technology Co.
The news, first made public by the Taiwan Environmental Information Center, suggests that funding comes from the Industrial Development Bureau within the Ministry of Economic Affairs. Among those writing on this is Green Party convener Pan Han-Shen [zh]:
經濟部工業局為了在網路上營造出石化產業安全又環保的假象，透過行銷公司邀請近30位部落客及行銷公司員工參觀中油高雄煉油廠及奇美南科A廠，了解廠區的 工安及環保狀況，參與活動並寫文章的部落客不但有5000元車馬費可以領，還有高檔便當、下午茶及伴手禮，不含行銷公司收費就花了十萬元，根本是拿人民血 汗錢做變相的置入性行銷。
經濟部工業局當日立即澄清，年度預算並編列該項工作項目，而且並未有該筆活動支出，該體驗活動出完全由funP 瘋體驗辦理，屬單純之民間活動，工業局只負責聯繫及協助辦理。翌日在記者對照兩方說詞後，國光石化工會總幹事謝俊雄坦承他們的確實是主辦單位，錢也是他們出的，對照兩造的說法如下：
謝俊雄痛批綠黨要環保不要經濟，長期歪曲事實，是根本無法溝通的極端份子。石化產業難免有汙染，但國光石化每年可提高台灣的GDP達2%，石化業對居民健康會造成負面影響也不明顯。石化公會總幹事謝俊雄則坦承，該單位確實是主辦單位，錢也是他們出的，他痛批綠黨要環保不要經濟，長期歪曲事實，是根本無法溝通的極端份子。石化產業難免有汙染，但國光石化每年可提高台灣的GDP達2%，石化業對居民健康會造成負面影響也不明顯。
Nov. 2010 protest against Kuokuang, from Flickr user pcbirdtw
April 2010 photo from the Taiwan Environmental Information Association Flickr account
綠 黨召集人潘翰聲痛批，所有證據都指向工業局確實是收買部落客的共犯，工業局和石化公會一搭一唱政商分際蕩然無存，甚至抹黑反國光石化後面有金主、  支持者是環保流氓，「犯錯還嗆聲，應該立即向全國人民道歉！」潘翰聲也反批石化公會的發言，「不僅沒有環保知識，也沒有經濟學常識」，因為國光石化對  GDP的貢獻根本就非常微小，並沒有必要性。
Global Voices Online Taiwan editor Portnoy is among the many paying close attention to government policy, and his comments on the blogger product placement news read:
台 灣政府處理重大政策爭議時，常常認為政府「宣導不夠」是產生爭議的主因，而不是政策本身有問題，所以就卯起來宣導。這才是最大的問題。處理政策爭議，應  該納入審議民主，例如之前要求辦理的聽證會，但政府卻草率辦理聽證會，隆重辦理「部落客石化業體驗活動」，這才是問題所在。
Bloggers who were identified by media as having taken money from the government have received a lot of attention from netizens, and many harsh comments. Some bloggers deleted the articles immediately, but some used what they witnessed to fight back, such as Yam blogger huiko1012:
早 在半個月前，就看到了國光石化即將動工的新聞，不可避免的，當地民眾當然極為反彈與抗爭，但大多數人對石化重工的形象還停留在三十年前，換個角度想，若將 石化重工全逼往對岸，對方的空氣及水污染一樣會影響到台灣，最可怕的是，對岸的環保心態及科技，均遠遜於台灣，我們除了喪失眼前的就業率、中期的國家競爭 力，還要承受未來不可知的污染傷害，…如果，未來的石化工業，是個重視工安、與環保平衡的重工業，那麼，一個能提昇國家競爭力，促進人民就業的國家級 廠區的設立，應該是樂見其成才是！　–悅‧樂玩遊
Indifferent to sarcasm from netizens, 波特曼 whose work focuses on environmental issues, replied in a neutral tone:
「雖然自己也算半個環保團體的人，但我不覺得版主有不對的地方，因為你就是去報告活動，而這活動有5千元車馬費領而已。而且大多部落客都持玩樂心情去，就跟我們去參觀水壩、工研院、或市政府之類一樣。如果可議，矛頭也該指向主辦活動的那些人。」
「不 過我倒是對大家紀錄中的一個部份感到很莞爾。因為他們竟然安排你們去參觀五輕廠看”工安”與”污染防治”，高雄人應該都記得2008年高雄五輕廠半年三次 大爆炸吧。至於那些煙囪除了水蒸氣還會排放出什麼，這個去網路上查一下就好了。很多東西，不是有臭味的才危險。…」
Global Voices Online Lingua contributor HOW has also commented on the environment impact of Kuokuang Petrochemical:
對 於參觀石化廠這件事，就一個整天在化工廠和石化廠打滾的學習中從業人員而言，我才不相信你真的能看到什麼鬼。／但我也要說一點不中聽的：其實這些工廠還是 相當注意環保的，但不是注意環保是因為他們知道這些物質如果出去第一個死的會是自己人。但這一切的前提是他們知道排出來的是什麼。但問題也在於現在出現的 問題往往是不知道排出來的是什麼。
有些東西排出去以後一開始看不出有問題，但等到冷卻以後就麻煩了。例如戴奧辛的確可以被焚化塔燒成小分子出去，但一旦冷卻又會重新結合。這種問題才比較恐怖…
Back specifically to the Kuokuang Petrochemical construction project, petrochemical industry professional Sakula Yoko shares even further insight:
首 先，國內石化產業賣的多半都是一些泛用塑膠，量大，但毛利差，品質也都只到「堪用」的狀態，製程幾十年不變，應用的泛圍多半就是包裝袋、垃圾袋、湯麵  袋、包裝膜、化學纖維，垃圾桶、置物箱，電扇殼、電視殼這些很粗大的東西。
而國外的石化廠他們做什麼？
當然，泛用塑膠他們也做，但不是他們的主力。
國外的石化廠他們的產出重點，在於工業用油及民生用礦油，比方說機油、潤滑油、液壓油這些東西。
[…]
所以，當我知道，政府要推動國光石化時，一開始我還滿欣慰的，想說政府終於想通了，要帶領整個產業來個大躍進，沒想到，看完國光石化的簡介後我大失所望，因為，國光石化要做的東西，不過就是像現在台塑、奇美、台聚這些集團一模一樣的東西！
There have been many controversies of Kaokuang Petrochemical Project such as the location, industry strategy, and policies. Global Voice Online will continue to follow these issues and speak out for the truth that has been ignored by netizens. Welcome to join us on Facebook or Twitter!

author: Vergil Yeh


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The last rural village in Singapore · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The Long and Winding Road revisits the last rural village in Singapore


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Uganda: Does Uganda need the world’s third largest cabinet?  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Why does Uganda need such a large cabinet?: “The global average of Cabinet Ministers is 30. Uganda has 71. The only two countries in the world with a larger cabinet are North Korea and Kenya – definitely two models of good governance (ahem).”


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Uganda: Local web cache lessons · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Erik discusses local web cache lessons from Uganda: “Orange Uganda has seen local traffic jump from 3Mbs to over 30Mbs in just two weeks due to partnering and implementing Google’s Global Cache. One wonders how much business they’re starting to chip away at from their competition.”


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Video: Shoemakers of the World · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

Today's videos focus on the artisans around the world still making shoes by hand.  From Mexico to Japan: we'll take a look at how different shoes, slippers and sandals are made.
We start our journey with Mexico. The Rarámuri indian's name is said to mean those who run fast, and that has sparked the attention of runners who believe that by walking in the traditional Tarahumara's shoes, the huaraches, they may be able to tap onto their speed and resistance.
This previous video showed us a Tarahumara indian tying on his traditional huaraches: this next video shows a new incarnation of the huarache as readapted by the barefoot running page InvisibleShoe.
The Japanese also have their traditional sandals. These next videos show how to make zōri [jp], waraji(1 and 2)  and geta sandals (starts at 2:28) respectively:
The wooden clogs or klompen have been part of Dutch identity and image for years. Here, we see how they are traditionally made using hand tools:
This short note shows us one of 4 traditional Peranakan beaded slippers makers of Singapore:
But not only traditional designs are made by hand as we can see in this next video. In Sri Lanka, traditional cobbling skills are put to work making modern shoes:
And last but not least, a specialized shoe that is dreamed about by many little girls all over the world: the pointe ballerina shoe.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Zambia: Zambia is rich but poor · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Potpher Mbulo argues that Zambia is rich but poor: “mean, Zambia is greatly endowed with minerals, fertile land and fresh water yet it is gifted with bad culture.The reality on the ground is that more than 80% of Zambians live below the poverty datum line.”


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Zimababwe: How to get money for public sector wages · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Tips on how to generate money for public sector wages in Zimbabwe: “Maybe sell some of Chombo’s houses or farms acquired by Zanu PF chefs? Or swing a bit of cash from diamonds towards salaries? Turn in the Mercs and Prados and buy more modest vehicles? Quit the trips and stay home for awhile?”


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Armenia: A pointless conversation and environmental waste · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

The Armenian Odar, a Dutch expat blog, recounts a visit to a local supermarket in Yerevan, the Armenian capital, and a pointless conversation with a security guard who refused to allow her to take a canvas bag into the store in order to avoid needlessly using plastic carrier bags.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Armenia: Not so spiritual remedies abroad · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Unzipped comments on news that the spiritual leader of Armenia, Catholicos Garegin II, has undergone medical treatment in the U.S. However, the blog concludes, traveling abroad for a simple procedure might seem more like a damning indictment of the Armenian medical system.


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Bangladesh: Fast Food Culture Spreading · Global Voices
Rezwan

Tithe Farhana at Pickled Politics writes about the social transformation seen in Bangladesh, which includes eating out and dining out, including fast food.


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Brazil: Protest for quality transportation is a crime? · Global Voices
Raphael Tsavkko Garcia

While Leonardo  Sakamoto  wonders [pt] if  protesting for quality transportation is a  crime, Conceição Lemes interviews [pt] one  of the organizers of the demonstration against  the  price increase of bus tickets in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The student protester was brutally  repressed  [en] by  police last week.

author: Raphael Tsavkko Garcia


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China: Better metrics for measuring Asian happiness · Global Voices
John Kennedy

With Spring Festival just around the corner, Tsinghua University economics professor Andrew Sheng proposes a more enhanced approach to measuring quality of life: We need Stiglitz Report 2.0, with more Asian input.

author: John Kennedy


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China: Waiting for Google’s next move · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Now that it appears former Google CEO Eric Schmidt‘s end of tenure began with split views between him and founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin over the company's future in China, what, asks raventhorn2000 at Hidden Harmonies, comes next?


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China: What about Chinese dads? · Global Voices
John Kennedy

If you found yourself following the Amy Chua affair, you might want to check out this latest post from Jocelyn Eikenburg, American wife of a Chinese man: Chinese (and Asian) Interracial Wedding Dos and Don’ts.


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D.R. of Congo: Interviews of main presidential candidates · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Jason posts videos of recent interviews of main contenders in the presidential election in the Democratic Republic of Congo.


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Eritrea: Isaias Afwerki  comes out dead last in African Presidents Index!  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Asmarino reacts to first annual “African Presidents Index” released by the Nation Media Group: “Obviously our own totalitarian leader Isaias Afworki didn’t disappoint us. Not only did he make it to the “Morgue” category with flying colors, he also ended up dead last within that category…”


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Russia: Why Skype Worries The FSB? · Global Voices
Ashley Cleek

While Russian President Dmitry Medvedev urges government officials to get hip to technology, the FSB (Russia’s Security Service) has begun to clamp down on officials’ use of email and Skype to stop – some argue – possible ‘leaks’ of governmental information.
Last week, the Russian newspaper “Nezavisimaya Gazeta” (NG) ran an article that the head of Sverdlovsk region, located in the Ural Mountains, had circulated a letter under the direction of the FSB prohibiting government agents from using Skype or free internet-based email for work purposes or during work hours.
The document, signed by Sergei Kozlov, head of staff of the Sverdlovsk regional government, states that government workers should take four precautions when using the Internet:
«1. Использовать только сертифицированные в РФ программные продукты и аппаратные комплексы. 2. Проводить консультации с компетентными органами при приобретении зарубежного программного обеспечения и аппаратуры. 3. Запретить использование сервисов бесплатной электронной почты, а также сервиса бесплатной интернет-телефонии Skype для служебной переписки и иных форм делового общения работников. 4. Обеспечить гарантированное закрытие корпоративных сетей при переходе на систему электронного документооборота, включая предотвращение возможности удаленного доступа к ним через сеть Интернет».
In the posting, re-posting, and commenting after the NG story, Russian bloggers’ reactions ranged from “so what?” to “typical.”
After popular Russian blogger Oleg Kozyrev posted the news on his page, comments ranged from “This is a totally concrete and normal method of regulating those who work with secret information” to arguments that the FSB’s directive is illogical: “the traditional methods of communication (like average telephones) that are available and used by our officials – and are hundred times less protected than Skype and Gmail.”
"Chatter – Helps The Enemy" : A Soviet-era poster has new meaning, illustration by V.Korecki
Most bloggers, however, seemed to agree that the ban was directly connected to the WikiLeaks documents published a few months ago.
Blogger Texas-88 headlined his re-posting: “In fear of WikiLeaks, officials ban Gmail and Skype,” and shimkozavrik agreed with the NG article that this is the government’s attempt to ward off the possible information leaks.
So far, the directive seems to have only been sent around to officials in Sverdlovsk region. But limiting officials’ use of technology seems at odds with the Kremlin’s, and specifically Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s urging that government officials start websites, blogs, and open Twitter accounts. The President has created an image of himself as somewhat of a techno-buff, welcoming foreign officials – like California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger – to Russia via Twitter.
It seems that technology as a new political frontier has not been fully embraced by members of United Russia – Medvedev’s party. Aleksei Chadayev, head of United Russia’s political department, has said that politicians shouldn’t have blogs because it “makes them look like they are simple, like every one else.”
One explanation, put forward by Nezavisimaya Gazeta, as well as blogger Oleg Kozyrev, is that the past few months WikiLeaks-fueled state drama has Russian security agents panicked that government officials will leak state documents, private meetings, etc., or that roving hackers will be able to access private government conversations.
The idea of a Russian Julian Assange hacking into Skype conversations seems unlikely since Skype calls are supported on a peer-to-peer, closed-source protocol – meaning the software’s code is not public, so users or server administrators cannot view, analyze, or edit the program’s code – making hacking Skype conversations or duplicating the Skype software notoriously difficult.
Though maybe, as an unnamed source told Russian popular daily Kommersant, the FSB is fearful of Skype, not because outsiders could hack into shared government files, but specifically because Russian intelligence agency themselves cannot monitor conversation that happen over Skype. It's possible that the FSB’s monitoring of internal conversation among regional officials has been complicated by the introduction of new platforms for communication, like Skype and Google chat. Without the ability to monitor conversations, the FSB loses the ability to understand and control what is going throughout Russia, which would be a significant worry for the organization.
And Russia is by no means the first country to forbid government employees from using Skype for work communication – in 2005 the French government banned university administrators from calling their co-workers through Skype.
So, the Russian government and the FSB are just now coming around to worrying about the uncontrollable, un-monitor-able aspects of technology, which have been perplexing and aggravating western governments for years.
Kozyrev says the FSB:
Oказалась не готовой к технологическому рывку и вместо того, чтобы учиться, пошла по самому нелепому пути – пытается загнать всех в каменный век. Лишь потому, что сами фсбшники, видимо, с интернетом не в ладах.
Though is it possible that an additional goal could be to promote a domestic Skype-like service? One commenter on Kozyrev’s blog notes that there is an alternative to Skype, a VoIP (Voice over Internet Provider) called SIPNET. As opposed to Skype, SIPNET is based in Russia. Additionally, SIPNET is an open-source program, meaning the code is published and can be read and shared by users, companies, and governments, which may be the reason why SIPNET’s website pushes the new platform as a trans-Russia service – and, curiously, between Russia and China. (While Skype and other VoIPs still function in China, media outlets have been reporting recently that the government is debating banning such services.)
Or maybe, as a host of Russian publications assume, it is a WikiLeaks-spawned attempt to keep government documents and discussion within authorized circles.
One commenter on Kozyrev’s blog, “Opinion from Germany,” writes that he understands the Russian government’s decision.
Именно потому, что Skype является закрытой системой, и никому доподленно не известно, что делает эта программа. Для передачи рецептов между домохозяйками он вполне годиться, но не для комерческого или государственного документооборота!
As Kommersant notes, the head of Yandex Mail, Russia’s largest search engine and one of the largest providers of free internet email in Russia, Anton Zabanny, doubts the Russian government can provide a comparable email service to officials, but says that losing a few government offices will have no effect on Yandex’s revenue.
While the detriment to workers may not be huge, it does seem confusing that the government would forgo a free and simple method of communication between offices – both city-wide and regionally – especially in a Russia, where is it often only slightly cheaper to call from Moscow to Irkutsk than to call the U.S.
While the directive has yet to be implemented, it seems like the Russian government has not yet to fully balance the pros and cons of technological freedom and make a uniform decision, it remains to be seen whether twittering officials or fearful security agents will be able to tip the scales to one side or the other.

author: Ashley Cleek


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Russia: Will Russian Language Be More Popular Online? · Global Voices
Vadim Isakov

Blogger oleg-kozyrev writes [RUS] about the future of Russian language online initiating discussion in blog comments. The blogger concludes that the future of Russian language is strongly connected to the future of Russia's influence in the world.

author: Vadim Isakov


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Venezuela: The Feast of the Divine Shepherdess · Global Voices
Laura Vidal

Every January 14, the Catholic culture of Spanish origins in Venezuela celebrates the feast of the Divina Pastora (Divine Shepherdess), one of the names by which Mary, the mother of Jesus, is known. This celebration reaches its most important point in the city of Barquisimeto, in the state of Lara, located in the northwest of the country. During these days, many Venezuelan bloggers remembered and shared the origins of the tradition and the stories that turned it into an important cultural celebration. At the same time, social media sites like Twitter and Facebook were filled with pictures and blessings, but the political discussion that is present in the daily life of the country could not be set aside.
Every January 14, 1.5 million believers gather to venerate the Divine Shepherdess in one of the largest processions in Venezuela. Photo by Joaquín Ferrer by Demotix under copyright.
According to Wikipedia [es]:
Los larenses la veneran con especial cariño y devoción, regalándole  sombreros y trajes de telas preciosas, algunos de ellos encargados a los  modistos más afamados del mundo, motivo por el cual muchas personas  comentan que no hay mujer en Venezuela que tenga un vestuario más lujoso que el de la Divina Pastora de Barquisimeto
The blog Simplemente Venezuela [es] (Simply Venezuela) describes the origins of the Venezuelan tradition:
Para 1736, el párroco de Santa Rosa encargó a un famoso escultor que le hiciera una estatua de la Inmaculada Concepción. Sin embargo, por equivocación, en lugar de la Inmaculada, llegó al pueblo la imagen de la Divina Pastora. El párroco quiso devolverla, pero por mucho que lo intentaron, no pudieron levantar el cajón donde habían colocado la imagen. Desde ese momento se considero lo sucedido como una señal de que la Divina Pastora quería quedarse entre ellos.
Profeballa in the blog Venezuela y su historia [es] (Venezuela and its history) tells us how the Lady’s miraculous attributions became stronger in 1856 during a cholera outbreak in the city.
El mismo 14 de enero, al terminar la procesión y entrar la imagen a la Iglesia; el curita Macario exhortó a la multitud que le pidiera a la Divina Pastora que terminara la peste (…)
La imagen recorrió en los días posteriores todos los templos de la ciudad (hoy se hace lo mismo en dos meses), y al finalizar este recorrido el padre Macario Yépez cayó enfermo del cólera, y su muerte marcó el fin de la epidemia.
On the very 14 of January, at the end of the procession, the Lady entered the church, the priest asked the multitude to pray and ask the Divine Shepherdess to end the plague(…)
The statue went on to visit all the other temples in the city (this is now done in 2 months), and at the end of the tour, father Macario Yepez fell sick of cholera, and his death marked the end of the epidemic.
Joaquín, in Venezuela de Antaño [es] (Venezuela of old) tells us a little about the dynamics of the celebration:
A las cuatro de la mañana del día 14 desde el Obelisco sale un grupo de trotadores, para estar presentes a las cinco de la mañana en el inicio de los oficios religiosos con varias misas que culminan a las once, para luego salir en la majestuosa procesión de las mas concurridas del mundo en dirección a la Catedral
Photo by Joaquín Ferrer for Demotix under copyright.
Also through Twitter, believers continued participating in the tradition:
@williammorles (William A. Morales):
Hoy pasa la Divina Pastora por mi casa.
@AdrianitaMendez (Adriana Mendez):
Divina Pastora en tus manos lo dejo!
@yancarlopez (Yancar Lopez):
Hoy es el dia mas maravilloso de mi vida,GRACIAS DIVINA PASTORA por el favor concebido… (sic)
@francescaaa1995 (Francesca Ramirez):
buenos dias! :D estoy feliz feliz feliz!!! divina pastora gracias por escucharme!
The political debate also had its place with the visit of some public figures from the opposition to the government, which was announced by the TV station Globovisión [es]; some peopled followed it, but others disapproved of it:
@laurelisaferrer (Laurelisa Ferrer):
Q buenas las entrev a los politicos de oposicion q visitaron a la divinapastora, q diferente el discurso, se percibe tanta paz! @carlaangola
@dalpac (Daniel Pabón):
+1 RT @silmaririvas: Da náuseas el empeño de politizar la procesión de la Divina Pastora por parte de @buenasnoches
@WilfreddyBarco (Wilfreddy Barco):
@carlaangola La procesión de la DivinaPastora no es algo político, muy bien que asistan pero para la proxima ponganse limites.
A good portion of the celebration was carried out on the Internet with pictures and videos that have captured it in the last few years. With this, a celebration that has brought believers for around a century continues to grow beyond a movement that combines faith and technology, and that also attempts to expose beliefs and practices that characterize the country's plurality of cultures.

author: Laura Vidal


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Afghanistan: A journalist attacked with acid · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Suffering City, an Afghan blogger, writes that Afghan journalist and author Abdul Razaq Mamoon, who wrote a book about Iranian security forces in Afghanistan, was attacked by acid. The blogger adds now the journalist must live with a scar.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Algeria: On the Mauritanian Self-Immolation · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Algerian-American blogger Kal, from The Moor Next Door, comments on a self-immolation in Mauritania.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Bahrain: A Mistrial?  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Bahraini Mahmood Al Yousif discusses the trial of 25 Bahrainis, among them blogger Ali Abdulemam, who are “accused of crimes against the state, everything from sedition through to terrorism and incitement against the regime, all of which carry rather heavy sentences.”


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Bahrain: A Visit to the Corniche  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Bint Battuta in Bahrain takes us on a tour of the corniches of Doha, Qatar, Beirut, Lebanon, Alexandria and Cairo, Egypt, and Bahrain.


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Bahrain: Our Arabian Homeland  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Bahraini Sabeeka questions the meaning of “our Arabian homeland” in this post.


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Bangladesh: An Analysis Of The Recent Municipal Elections · Global Voices
Rezwan

Rumi at Unheard Voice Blog provides an analysis of the recently concluded municipal poles in Bangladesh and the standings of the political parties.


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Bangladesh: Chobi Mela VI Started · Global Voices
Rezwan

“The biggest Asian photography festival Chobi meal vi kicked off in Dhaka with a vow to fight against injustice around the world,” informs photo-blogger Monirul Alam.


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Bhutan: Submit Short Stories for Mountain Echoes Anthology · Global Voices
Rezwan

Siyahi at Writers Association Of Bhutan calls for unpublished original works from Bhutan to compile a significant collection of short fiction by emerging and established writers from Bhutan.


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Egypt: Will January 25 be the Day of the Egyptian Intifada?  · Global Voices
Tarek Amr

This post is part of our special coverage of Egypt Protests 2011.
What is going to happen in Egypt on January 25? People are calling for demonstrations and sit-ins everywhere. Who is going to participate, and where? What are their demands? Isn't it possible that some people are against the whole thing? We just need to pay the Egyptian blogosphere a quick visit to find out answers for all our questions.
Egyptian Wish, who lives in the US,  wrote calling people to participate in the demonstrations and sit-ins that are going to take place in Egypt on January 25:
Thanks to the events in Tunisia that forced former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to flee the country, as it seems that the Tunisian syndrome is being spread across the Arab world, and some might consider Tunisia as the first tile in the domino effect.
Egyptian Wish continued:
Freedom to Egypt, on the 25th of January.
Zeinab Samir, like many Egyptians, is still not sure what will happen on that day.
Many groups and events are scheduled on Facebook for the demonstrations. More than 78,000 Egyptians have so far confirmed their participation in the event created on “We Are All Khaled Said” group there. Zeinobia wrote here to sum up the participants so far. Even outside Egypt, people are calling for demonstrations in front of the Egyptian embassies in London and Washington.
Zeinobia wrote:
But why this specific date? Zeinobia sees it is a reminder to the Egyptian people and to the police that on that day, the police stood with the Egyptian people against the occupation forces there at that time.
While now, especially after the murder of “Khaled Said”, the situation is not the same.
Zeinobia explained:
Zeinobia then listed the requests of the callers of the demonstrations.
The question now, where is presidential hopeful Mohamed ElBaradie and the heads of the opposition movements from all this. Nawara Negm quipped:
Although the “Salafists Movement for Reform” aka “HAFS” announced that it is going to participate [Ar], yet normally most of the other Salafy movements are against the whole thing. Also some bloggers are suspicious and not sure if this calls might end with uncontrollable riots and unrest. Amira Bahhy El Din wrote here about her fears.
Finally, we have to wait an see what is going to happen in the next few days. We have to wait and see who really is going to participate, what will they do, and how will the regime react. And then days will prove if Tunisia is really the first tile of the domino effect in the region, or the situation in Tunisia is totally different than that in Egypt, Algeria, and in the other Arab countries.

author: Tarek Amr


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India: Invasion Of The American Chain Restaurants · Global Voices
Rezwan

Santosh at Uber Desi  opines that American chain restaurants are taking India by storm.


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Iraq: “My Twitter Account was Hijacked!” · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Iraqi Layla Anwar complains that her Twitter account was hacked. “This person not only hijacked my name but is selling it on Twitter and Facebook. The only follower this new laylaanwar has on Twitter is a PORN site,” she says.


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Israel: Trouble in the Arab World  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

From Israel, YMedad takes note of trouble brewing across the Arab world and exclaims: “But this isn't my fault. The Arabs’ responsibility is all their own. And they've “earned” it.”


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Israel/Palestine: Reacting to the Palestine Papers · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

Today, Al Jazeera English released the first of more than 1,600 internal documents from a decade of the Israel-Palestine Peace Process, dubbed the “Palestine Papers.”  The papers released today make public a number of secret negotiations between Chief PLO Negotiator Saeb Erekat and the Israelis, including what Al Jazeera called “unprecedented compromises on the division of Jerusalem and its holy sites.”
Doha-based journalist Blake Hounshell (@blakehounshell), reacting to the first releases, stated: “I think today may be remembered as the day the two-state solution died #palestinepapers.”  The reactions that followed from around the region were no less strong.
Jordanian @Mayousef would likely agree, but is nonetheless unsurprised by the content of the Papers:
So we know those people on PLO are traitors I thought they are gonna come up with new stuff not details for old news #PalestinePapers
Italy-based @majdal, like Hounshell, sees this as the end:
What a disgusting situation. The PA won't last too long after this. #palestinepapers
While most of the criticism coming from Twitter is being levied broadly at the Palestinian Authority, in the opinion of many, Saeb Erekat deserves most of the blame:
@KonWomyn (location unknown), has this to say about Erekat:
Saeb Erekat now backtracking like he never made offer to Israel. Clearly amnesia's an essential disease in politics. #palestinepapers
Sudanese @simsimt, alluding to Erekat's assertion that the only thing he cannot be made into is a Zionist, believes Erekat's days as a politician are numbered:
The non-Zionist Saeb Erekat is a finished man. Who's next? #palestinepapers
Some individuals note that the blame goes beyond the Palestinian Authority.  @Elizrael, based in Israel, has another point:
#PalestinePapers make the Palestinian leadership look bad, but think about how Israeli leaders come across – refusing peace time after time.

author: Jillian C. York


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Jordan: Message to the Rulers · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Jordanian Qwaider shares his thoughts on Tunisia in this post. “I'm puzzled and surprised of how happy “other” Arab citizens. From the Atlantic to the Arabian sea, the simple Arab citizen is rejoicing as if it was his mother who got liberated! I couldn't but wonder…Is this the message that the people are sending to their rulers?” he remarks.


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Kenya: A blog featuring Kenyan jobs · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Jobs in Kenya is a blog with up-to-date career information, advice and current Kenyan jobs. Featured fields includes : Accounting, finance, Banking, Health, Hospitality, IT,Telecommunications and many more

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Kenya: African Digital Art makes it happen for Nairobi Designers · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Kenyan poet attended a meetup under the theme ‘Connect, Share, Collaborate’ organised by African Digital Art (ADA). ADA is an online forum started by one Ms. Jepchumba who prides herself as digital artist.


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Kenya: Caught red handed peeing in the streets · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Clay witnesses an incident whereby an Indian was caught red handed by the cops peeing in the streets of Nairobi.The indian was rushed to a police car and before they drove off.


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Kenya: Notes from the ICC demonstration · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Moreen's notes from a demonstration organised by Kenyans supporting The International Criminal Court: “Chantingand weaving their way round Freedom Corner carrying placards and wearing t-shirts with slogans like ‘Yes to the ICC’ ‘Defending Suspects Not with my Money’ ‘Yes to the ICC! No to Impunity!’”


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Kuwait: MPs Expose More Police Torture · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Desert Girl on Kuwait draws our attention to police torture in this post. “My heart goes out to the families of the victims.  Imagine being a mother and reading about how this happened to your child? In their own country,” she writes.


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Lebanon: Fears of Escalation · Global Voices
Moussa Bashir

“So again I tell you, I am not a political analyst nor a fortune teller; however, I am strongly pessimistic when it comes to our political situation. In the end, it makes me sad to say I am almost certain that the current “cold war”, which has been crippling the country for so many years, and which is now being escalated, will soon turn into a real armed confrontation: a new civil war!” writes Free Thinking Lebanon.

author: Moussa Bashir


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Lebanon: Fears of Instability · Global Voices
Moussa Bashir

“I want the stress of my day to revolve around how much heart-clogging saturated fat was in my lunchtime sandwich, not around whether there are going to be a few armed thugs shooting at each other in the streets tonight. Or whether a car bomb is going to go off in my neighbourhood,” writes Nasri Atallah , stating his position and fear of what may happen as a result of the collapse of the government.


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Lebanon: Kuntar Remembers Prison Days in Israel · Global Voices
Moussa Bashir

“Just wait another week and you will realize that the Lebanese Resistance is playing ATARI with Israel “defense forces”.”  Adonis quotes Samir Kuntar's response to the warden, at Hadarim prison, who was boasting that Hezbollah will be crushed in a couple of days during the 2006 war. Kuntar was released from Israeli jails after 28 years. Adonis posts excerpts of Kuntar's new book.


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Lebanon: Twitter 101 · Global Voices
Moussa Bashir

Nadine Moawad posts a beginner's guide to Twitter in Lebanon starting from signing up for an account passing through building connections and ending with useful tips.


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Mali: Cars « Made in Mali » to Be Sold on the West African Market  · Global Voices
Abdoulaye Bah

Ouestafnews writes  (fr) that : ” A factory capable of producing 2000 cars a year will soon be inaugurated near Bamako. The first Hyundai cars  «made in Mali» are expected for June 2011.”

author: Abdoulaye Bah


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Mauritania: Yacoub Ould Dahoud – A Hero  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Mauritanian blogger Nasser Weddady writes about his country's own Bouazizi – Yacoub Ould Dahoud, who died yesterday after burning himself in front of the presidential palace in Nouakchott on January 17.


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Morocco: Social Protests Continue · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Moroccan blog Alwandida (Ar) zooms in on ‘social’ protests in Morocco. Here, he posts a video showing a woman speaking out against housing problems.


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Pakistan: Lessons From Tunisia · Global Voices
Rezwan

Adnan Bashir at Pak Tea House writes what the meltdown in Tunisia means for Pakistan.

author: Rezwan


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Saudi Arabia: Online Activism in the Middle East  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“The only way anyone in this region is going to remain in power, is by adapting to this new internet age rather than sticking to the traditional methods of suppression; more transparency, more freedom of speech and above all more power to the people,” writes Saudi Woman.


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Somalia: Those with guns should be allowed to govern · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Ken Opalo reacts to a story that Somali transitional government is reported to be soliciting for help from the American security firm Blackwater: “My position on Somalia remains that those with power – guns and the majority of the people’s (revealed) hearts and minds – should be allowed to govern, regardless of their ideological leanings.”


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Tunisia: A Human Revolution · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“By all Tunisian accounts, WikiLeaks had little–if anything–to do with the protests; rather, the protests were spurred by unemployment and economic woes,” blogs Jillian C York.


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Tunisia: Change is Possible · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Tunisian Ahmad (Ar) says the title of the next era in Tunisia is “Change is Possible.” “It is a mercy from God that our political parties were too weak to organise an uprising which is this strong and effective,” he adds.


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Tunisia: The Looming Darkness  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Arab-American group blog KABOBfest discusses Tunisia in the aftermath of its uprising in a post entitled Tunis…and the Looming Darkness.


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World: Humor from around the world · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

George shares with his readers favourite jokes from around the world from an article he read in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from an article written by Joris Luyendijk in “Startwo: Lifestyle”: “Here are some that I as visitor from Africa and any other developing country found so amusing, as it relates to what we know so well.”


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Yemen: Before Tunisia, there was Sudan  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Before Tunisia, Sudan had a popular uprising against Ja'afar Numeiry in 1985, reminds us Out of Hadhramout, from Yemen.


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A Korean Vessel Rescued from Somali Pirates, Worries of Retaliation Grow · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

Last Friday, South Korean special forces successfully rescued its 21 crew members who had been held as hostages by Somali pirates in the Arabian Sea. During a military raid, eight pirates were killed and five captured. When the news was heard, most Koreans cheered and joined the festive atmosphere. Prudent net users raised concerns over possible retaliation from pirates and complained about the mainstream media who, too busy praising the government's feat, neglected important domestic issues and belittled the efforts of individuals who have actually saved the crews.
Image by Andymangold, Originally posted to Flickr, Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0
Many Korean news shows played a live video and related images of the rescue mission on the hijacked Korean freighter, ‘Samho Jewelery’, for more than 20-30 minutes of their regular 50 minutes news segments. It was fairly interesting to watch on day 1. But as the pirate news continued throughout the next day and the next, all the praise seemed to be going to the President who ordered the mission, prompting audiences to say ‘enough!’.
In a public discussion forum site, net user ID:Larry Diamond criticized the KBS (Korea Broadcasting Station, one of three major broadcasting stations in Korea) for ignoring severe domestic issues, such as the foot-and-mouth disease. South Korea is facing its worst foot-and-mouth outbreak and almost two million cattle have been culled.
저 역시 청해부대가 기분 좋은 소식을 전해줌에 있어 큰 박수를 보내는 입장입니다. 그러나[…]어제 토요일! KBS 9시뉴스는 20여분동안 온통 이번 사건으로 도배했고, 국내뉴스전달은 없었습니다. […] KBS뉴스는 해외언론의 반응과 이명박정부의 신속한 대응이라는 귀결문구로 결국 나는 관영매체다!라고 전국민을 상대로 선포한것이나 다름없습니다. […]이제 정도껏합시다. 토요일 KBS뉴스에서 사라진 구제역 뉴스! 정말 심각합니다…. 구정을 앞두고 차라리 고향내려가지 않기! 캠페인방송하는게 구제역 막는 지름길인지도 모를 갈림길에 서 있는 상태입니다.
On same public forum site, Daum's Agora,  net user ID: BaeksuBaeksu posted an article blaming mainstream media for overselling the current administration's accomplishment.
무엇보다 이번 피랍사건을 해결한 청해호 일원과 UDT 대원들에게 격려와 박수를 보넵니다. 근데 현재의 언론이나 일부 몇몇 아고라인들의 MB의 업적만들기적 칭송에 정말 고개를 젓지 않을수가 없네요. 일단 이일 자체에 있어서는 MB가 잘못한 것은 아닙니다. 잘한 일이지요.[…]하지만 이것은 한 국가의 통수권자이자 통솔자로서 자국민을 보호하기위한 어떠한 대통령이라도 내릴수 있는 결정입니다.[…] 이번작전의 성공은 MB에 결정에 따라 잘된 것이 아니라,작전 자체를 사상자가 없이 성공적으로 치루어낸 각부 관계기관과 현장의 대원들의 몫이 되어야 마땅한 것입니다.
What concerns Koreans more than bugging news reports is the fact that there are still other Korean crew members who held as hostages by Somali pirates. Net users have filed an online petition[ko] urging the government to rescue seamen from the Guemmi, a Korean vessel hijacked last October.
Blogger Cyberbong 75, even though he titled his post as ‘Extremely Amazing Rescue’, called for caution about possible revenge.
하지만 문제는 이제부터입니다. 90년대 중반 말라카 해협에서 일본의 S사 상선을 공격했던 해적들이 그 배의 선원들에게 진압을 당하여 체포된 이 후 S사의 배가 지나갈 때 마다 해적의 위협에 특히 더 시달려야 했습니다. 해적들에겐 자신들만의 마케팅이라고 할까요. 특유의 리번제 성향이 있기 때문에 당분간은 우리나라 상선에 대한 위협이 더욱 거세일 것입니다. 물론 이런 작전을 몇 번만 더 성공적으로 수행하게 되면 ‘감히 건들어선 안되는 나라의 배'라는 인식을 심어줄 수 있습니다.
In line with this speculation, Reuters reported this morning that Somali pirates have threatened to kill any South Korean seamen that they take hostage in future to pay back the death of their fellow pirates. Pirates from two bases on the Somali coast said they were taking hostages further inland to block future rescue attempts, the report added.
However, some bloggers, such as Nest of pnix, reasoned that it is implausible to expect killings from pirates. The blogger explained that since the Somali pirates share a very basic level of camaraderie, the weak emotional bond between pirates will not prevent them from obtaining ransom from countries, which is their top priority.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Afghanistan: Journalist attacked with acid · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Nasim Fekrat reports that Afghanistani journalist and novelist Razaq Mamoon was attacked by an unknown assailant who sprayed acid on his face.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Africa: Dear First Ladies of Africa · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

First Ladies of Africa, you have failed us!:”As Africans, we know of our individual First Ladies. It is either their eccentricities, extravagance or total lack of decorum that reminds us of their continued presence.”


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Africa: The 2011 Diageo Africa Business Reporting Awards · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Bankelele announces the launch of The 2011 Diageo Africa Business Reporting Awards – DABRA in Nairobi, Kenya. Entries are invited from all African countries for the winners to be announced in London later this year.


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Bahamas: economic “Bahamianisation”? · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

Rick Lowe of Weblog Bahamas responds to those who argue that “all economic activity” in the Bahamas should be “reserved exclusively for Bahamians” by pointing to a 2003 paper on foreign investment.

author: Nicholas Laughlin


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Brazil: Chief of Police assaults man on a wheelchair · Global Voices
Raphael Tsavkko Garcia

A physically disabled lawyer was assaulted and threatened with a gun by a chief of police in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, after having complained that the officer had left his car in a reserved parking lot for the disabled, reports [pt] Renato Rovai.


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Brazil: Salary increase for parliamentarians in discussion · Global Voices
Raphael Tsavkko Garcia

Cherge de Amarildo, used with author's permission
As every end of the year, the  Brazilian federal deputies legislated for themselves and approved another  salary increase, causing an extensive discussion among Brazilians and reaction in the blogosphere.
Today, a Congressman  receives [pt*] R$ 16.512,09 [R$ = Real, Brazilian currency – GV note] only in salary (15 installments per year), which can  reach up to R$ 166,512.09 considering the several amounts of extra payments to which he or her is entitled.
Just in terms of salary,  excluding additional payments, a parliamentarian earns a little more than 52 times the minimum salary (R$ 510.00) of Brazil, the lowest value that an employer is allowed to pay  to its employees, in which the largest part of the Brazilian population can be found.
As a comparison, in 2009,  56.8% of Brazilians lived up to minimum salary and now the parliament  discusses the difficulties in raising the minimum to an acceptable  level.
Still if we compare the salaries of the Brazilian deputies with the ones of other more developed countries, we  see how big the problem is. In the UK, a  Parliamentarian earns per year £ 65.738, or about R$ 175 thousand reais, while in the U.S. the same parliamentarian costs $ 174 thousand per year or R$ 292 thousand reais to state coffers.
It is worth noting that  the almost 170 thousand reais paid by Brazil for each Federal Deputy (totaling 513) come pretty close to the 175.000 paid to British parliamentarians, who  legislate in a country which even by far has not the economic disparities  and extreme poverty of Brazil. As for the U.S., despite the  considerably higher salary, the Chamber of Deputies (or Representatives) counts on 435 members.
Cristina Rodrigues, from the blog blog Somos Andando [We Are Walking], is  straightforward by analyzing the  causes and proposing solutions:
É evidente que deputados, como qualquer categoria (ainda que cargos  eletivos não sejam exatamente uma categoria profissional) devem ter seus  salários reajustados vez que outra. A grande armadilha, por qualquer  ângulo que se olhe, está no fato de serem eles mesmos a concederem o  reajuste para os próprios salários.
[…]
Para evitar o desgaste de cada votação de aumento e não incorrer em  excrescências, o ideal seria vincular o reajuste dos cargos do  Legislativo e também os do Executivo, como presidente, ministros,  governadores e secretários de estado, ao percentual de reajuste  concedido a alguma categoria profissional. Ou, para simplificar, ao  valor da inflação. Nesse caso, não seria propriamente um aumento, mas um  reajuste apenas para cobrir as perdas.
It is clear that deputies, like  any  category  (although  elective  positions are not exactly a professional  category) should have their salaries adjusted from time to time. The big pitfall, from any  angle  you  look at it, is the fact that they give  themselves the  re-adjustment  to  their  salaries.
[…]
In order to  prevent wear of every salary increase voting and not  incur excrescences, the ideal  would  be to link the adjustment of the  positions  of  the Legislative and also the Executive, as  president, ministers, governors and  secretaries  of  state, to the percentage of adjustment granted  to some professional category. Or, for  simplicity, to the  inflation  rate. In this case, it would not  be exactly an increase, but only  an  adjustment  to  cover  the  losses.
The Federal Deputy Ivan  Valente, whose entire party  –  PSOL  – voted  against  the proposed increase, via Twitter, agrees  and  adds an alarming data:
@Dep_IvanValente: Nossa idéia é  apresentar um projeto p/indexar o aumento à média do reajuste do  funcionalismo público. P/ isso é preciso maioria no Congresso
@Dep_IvanValente: Vale lembrar que o  aumento, que fomos contra, não foi apenas p/deputados, mas também  p/senadores, ministros, presidente e vice-presidente
@Dep_IvanValente: Our idea  is  to present a project which indexes the increase  to  the  average adjustment for civil servants. For this, it is necessary to be majority in Congress.
@Dep_IvanValente: It's worth remembering that the  increase, to which we were against, was not only for deputies, but also for  senators, ministers, president  and  vice-president.
Robson Fernando, from the blog Arauto da Consciência [Herald  of Consciousness], ironically congratulates the Deputies:
Parabenizo vocês pela estupenda atitude de aumentar seus salários em  mais de 60% em tempo recorde e impor ao Poder Executivo um salário mais  de 130% maior. Enquanto o povo sofre pra ter aumentos acima da inflação  em seus salários, vossas senhorias, que têm o privilégio de controlar  seu próprio salário mesmo contra a vontade do patrão (Presidente),  esticam como querem suas remunerações.
Vossas senhorias são um exemplo para o mundo: um exemplo de como se  pode governar em prol de interesses particulares e boicotar o interesse  público, fazendo o povo sofrer em prol de um bando de marajás.
I congratulate you for  your wonderful attitude of increasing your own salaries  by  more than 60% in record time and  impose to the Executive a salary of more than 130% higher. While  the  nation suffers to have salary raises above  inflation,  Your  Lordships, who have the privilege of controlling their own salary even against the will of the  boss  (the President), increasing their salaries as you wish.
Your lordships  are  an  example  to the world: an example of how to rule  in  favor  of special interests and boycott the public interest, making  the  people suffer for the sake of a bunch of  Maharajas.
He also posted the e-mail of all parliamentarians who voted for the increase of their own salaries, and the blog Pragmatismo Político [Political Pragmatism]  published a list containing each federal deputy's vote.
Leonardo Sakamoto, in his blog, harshly criticizes the  increase, stating that  parliamentarians should  earn  just the enough to “fulfill with dignity the  office  for  which  they have been elected”  and, if  the  intention  is  to enrich, they should “move into the  private  sector”:
Sabe o que me deixa mais tiririca da vida do que aumento salarial no  apagar das luzes do ano, feito a toque de caixa? É que os nobres  parlamentares não usam a mesma celeridade para discutir temas que  parecem não ser do seu interesse. Se pelo menos tivessem o mesmo empenho  que têm por si, pelos amigos ou por seu pequeno grupo social,  poderíamos dizer: “ah, eles ganham, mas trabalham para a sociedade em  geral”.
André Raboni, from the blog Acerto de Contas [Settlement of Accounts], repudiates the salary increase indicating its percentage, and calls one's attention to the “ripple  effect” on other powers:
Os congresso brasileiro aprovou hoje um aumento  salarial que é um verdadeiro escárnio contra o País. O decreto  tramitou numa velocidade estonteante ao longo do dia, e foi aprovado com  regime de urgência na Câmara e depois no Senado. Os salários dos  parlamentares foram reajustados de 16,5 mil para 26,7 mil Reais (um  aumento de 61,8%), e também terá o mesmo valor os salários do  presidente, do vice-presidente e dos ministros (aumento de 133,9%).
[…] O efeito cascata deverá  vir logo: aumentos para deputados estaduais,  vereadores, governadores,  prefeitos, juízes federais, desembargadores, et cetera.
The Brazilian  Congress approved today a salary increase which is  a  true  mockery  against  the  country.  The  decree  proceeded  at  a breakneck pace throughout the day, and  was  approved  within an emergency regime in the House and  then in the Senate. The  salaries  of  legislators  were  increased from 16.5 thousand to 26.7  thousand reais (an increase of  61.8%), and the salaries of the president, vice-president  and ministers will also have the same value (increase of 133 9%).
[…]  The  ripple  effect shall come soon: increases  for  state  deputies, city councilors, governors, mayors, federal  judges, appellate court judges, et cetera.
Eduardo Guimarães from the blog Cidadania [Citzenship], on the other hand, agrees with the raise:
Ora, é óbvio que um político detentor de mandato eletivo passa a ter um  orçamento doméstico e pessoal maior, pois seu padrão de vida sobe até  pela importância do cargo, situação que não se coaduna com a necessidade  de poupar para que não morra de fome se ao fim do mandato de quatro  anos não for reeleito. E até para ter como bancar a própria campanha  eleitoral seguinte sem recorrer a dinheiro de origem duvidosa.
[…]
Os baixos salários oficiais dos políticos acabam se tornando “razão”  para que alguns caiam na tentação de se resguardarem contra a  possibilidade de não conseguirem se reeleger, para que não voltem à  planície do setor privado tendo que recomeçar a vida do zero.
It is  obvious  that  a politician holder  of  an elective office will have from now on a personal and household  budget increased, as their  standard of living rises to the importance  of  the position, a situation that is inconsistent with  the  need  to  save  so  they do not starve if at the end of the  term  of four years they are not reelected. And  even  afford their own very next election  campaign without resorting to money of  dubious origin.
[…]
The  low  official  salaries of politicians eventually  become  “reason” for some to fall into the temptation  to  guard  against the possibility of failing  to be reelected, not to return  to  the private sector having to  start  life  from  scratch.
Writing for the blog Trezentos [Three hundred], Uirá replied to Guimarães’ post, opposing  his arguments.
In another post, Raboni calls the population to protest and asks for transparency regarding the expenses of parliament and judiciary members.
Se o nobre leitor se dignar a contestar o aumento, envie um e-mail, uma  mensagem, um tweet, qualquer coisa, para o seu deputado, e questione-o  sobre o aumento.
[…]
Que cada parlamentar dê transparência a tudo o que gasta (de  preferência sem notas frias…) usando a internet (que barateia custos e  aproxima os cidadãos) e que preste contas não apenas aos seus eleitores,  mas a todas as pessoas.
E que isso sirva também ao judiciário,  que foge da publicidade de seus custos como a diplomacia norte-americana  foge de Assange. Cobre de seu parlamentar não apenas uma explicação  sobre este aumento: cobre exija que ele cobre transparência de todos os  gastos de dinheiros públicos.
If  the  noble  reader has the kindness to oppose the raise, please send an e-mail, message, tweet, anything, to your  deputy, and  question  him/her about  the  raise.
[…]
That  each  parliamentarian give transparency to all  that she/he expends (preferably without fake notes…) using the  Internet (which lowers costs and brings the  citizens together)  and be  accountable not only to their constituents, but  to everyone.
And that this also happen to the judiciary, which flees from the  advertisement of their  costs  as  American  diplomats flees from Assange. Demand of your parliamentarian not only an explanation for this raise: demand, require that he demand transparency of all public funds expenses.
In  2011, the  expected  ripple effect of  wages  has  been confirmed. At least 26 state  legislatures have already pledged to increase  its  members’ salary, based  on the federal assembly increase. Meanwhile, parliamentarians fight like cats and dogs to  increase the minimum wage from R$  510.00 to R$ 540.oo. In the meantime, few  citizens mobilize in the streets.


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Chile: Citizens respond to natural gas crisis in Magallanes · Global Voices
Paulina Aguilera Muñoz

On Tuesday January 11th, the government of Chilean President Sebastian Piñera announced a 16.8% increase in natural gas prices in Magallanes, the southernmost region of Chile. Natural gas is a vital resource in Magallanes, [es] whose mean yearly temperature is 9ºC (48.2ºF) [es], and where natural gas is used in electric energy production [es].
The measure generated an immediate response. Protests [es], barricades [es] in the streets supporting the movement #noalalzadelgas [es] (Say NO to raising gas prices) and  criticisms [es] were vented against the historic-tendency toward Chilean centralism [es].
Lorena Francisca in El Alma en la Pluma Virtual [es] explains the strong reaction of that region:
Por favor, compárenos  permanentemente con una familia del resto de  país, compare cuánto nos  cuestan los alimentos en especial la fruta y  la verdura, cuánto nos cuesta viajar, cuánto nos cuesta la vida en  Magallanes y, después,  súbale los precios a todo el resto del país por  pagar tan poco por la comida, por comprar 1 caja de tomates con lo que  nosotros compramos 1  kilo. Compare qué significa darles a nuestros  hijos una educación ya  que no contamos aquí con todas las  universidades, qué significa buscar  una mejor atención de salud, ya que  no contamos con la cobertura necesaria.
In the middle of the protests a Citizen Assembly [es] formed in Magallanes [es] and rebelled against the high cost of the mandated prices of natural gas and decided to go out into the streets to reject the government measure.
Fernando Olmos G. (@FerOlmosG) announced on Twitter:
qé pasa q los medios no informan sobre la crisis del gas q se vive en #magallanes ? @tvn_gonzalo , @tvn_consuelo @mxperez @SoledadOnetto
Carola C. (@vemi) said:
Cabros, tienen que escuchar esta: No al alza del gas, Magallanes protesta http://bit.ly/fBjavL
On January 10th the music group Inti-Illimani (@inti_illimani) denounced the repression being suffered by the area:
Gobierno no descarta reforzar contingente policial en Magallanes  http://bit.ly/fTSKKs || [Ministro de Interior] Hinzpeter y su “pacificación” de Magallanes
Fernando Lecaros (@Yoshimatsu_san) explains the impact that the citizen protest had on tourism in the area:
Turistas aislados y aislados, se toman la calle en Magallanes y comienzan a protestar. (@mapardo live on http://moi.st/e5797 )
The Twitter user @MiriMiriChan puts a tragic face on the situation, with the death of two young women during a day of protest [es]:
Por respeto a las dos chicas q fallecieron durante las protestas en #Magallanes, no podemos dejarnos vencer. GOBIERNO escucha a #Magallanes!
Finally, on January 18th an agreement was reached between the Minister of Mining and Energy Laurence Golborne and the Citizen Assembly to reduce the increase in gas prices to 3%, matching Chilean inflation, and increasing the aid for families in need.
Time for Analysis
Alexis Meza in the newspaper El Ciudadano [es] analyzes the situation:
La reciente crisis del gas, que movilizó a la región de Magallanes,  concitando una amplia y extendida simpatía ciudadana en todo el país,  deja en evidencia una vez más la frágil relación entre el aparato del Estado (expresado en el gobierno central) y las regiones.
Patricio Contreras in the news portal Medioamedio [es] relates the emergence of urban social movements, citizens and territories in Chile:
Hay que destacar el rol clave que tienen en el desarrollo de los  movimientos de hoy las redes sociales como twitter, facebook y la web en  general, que logran contrainformar o convocar llegando un cierto grupo  de medios de comunicación, especialmente a los “alternativos”.
Mauricio Zanotti on the website Guioteca [es] compares the citizen reaction in Magallanes with the past year's response to the thermoelectric energy project Barrancones:
Entre las redes sociales, si bien el conflicto en Magallanes no fue tan  potente como Barrancones, también tuvo acontecimientos interesantes,  como un sitio en Facebook que acumuló más de 1.400 seguidores en sietes días, mientras que en Twitter el biministro Laurence Golborne fue un Trend Topic el día que se logró el acuerdo y finalizaron las manifestaciones.

author: Paulina Aguilera Muñoz


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China: American tweets for Chinese net freedom · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Hidden Harmonies blogger DeWang looks at New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof's attempt this weekend to challenge Chinese Internet regulations with his microblog: “Look, Chinese people all over believe in Internet freedom. Your version of “freedom” is very much about subversion of state, which the Chinese people understand breaks their law.”


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China: Domestic national image film · Global Voices
John Kennedy

If you found China Red irresistible, check out the kind of Chinese national image film that gets played to a domestic audience, via Joel Martinsen at Danwei.


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China: Wind power drive target of complaints · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Do China's massive state-backed efforts at ensuring energy security constitute a violation of WTO trade rules? United Steelworkers seems to think so, and Angry Chinese Blogger looks today at the nature of the American union's complaints.


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Cote d’Ivoire: Who are the fools in Ivorian crisis?  · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Novis identifies “the fools” in the political crisis in Cote d'Ivoire:”The basic fact is that Ouattara's claim of victory is no less disputable as that of Gbagbo. on the other hand, Gbagbo's claim of electoral fraud by his opponent is no more credible than that of Ouattara. So there's clear dispute!!! ‘simple, tie-tia, short’. Where then lies the sense in claiming Ouattara won?”


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Cuba: Obama Eases Several Embargo Restrictions · Global Voices
Ellery Roberts Biddle

On January 14, US President Barack Obama signed into law a series of small legislative reforms to the US embargo on Cuba. The reforms, detailed here, expand opportunities for travel from the US to Cuba, and will allow US residents to send remittances to “non-family members” on the island, provided that they are not senior government officials or senior members of Cuba’s Communist Party. The reforms will make licenses for academic, journalistic, and religious travel easier to obtain, and they will give US colleges and universities greater freedom to engage with universities in Cuba than they have at present.
Many in the US-Cuba blogging community hailed this as a small but significant step in improving relations between the two countries. The Havana Note’s Anya Landau-French, who has been following progress on the reforms closely, wrote:
As long as this isn’t the end of the road but a new beginning – as President Obama promised in April 2009 – these new travel rules offer hope for that elusive progress in U.S.-Cuban relations.
Landau-French also noted that advocacy by constituencies ranging from agricultural, to academic, to religious organizations, helped make these reforms happen. The statement issued by the White House emphasized the President’s goal of strengthening “people-to-people contact” between independent citizens in Cuba and the US. Phil Peters at The Cuban Triangle applauded this move. He wrote:
The increase in contact between Americans and Cubans will expand the flow of information and ideas, and it will increase the income of Cubans in the country’s expanding private sector.
Jose Marti International Airport, Havana, Cuba. By DanishWolf (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0
Other influential voices on US-Cuba policy criticized the reforms, anticipating that their economic impact will only help to strengthen the Castro government.
To underline this point, Capitol Hill Cubans [en] compared the reforms to a “bailout” of the Cuban government, which is undergoing a severe economic crisis.
New Florida Senator Marco Rubio adamantly opposed the measures, describing them as “weakening” U.S. policy towards Cuba. He wrote:
I was opposed to the changes that have already been made by this administration and I oppose these new changes…It is unthinkable that the administration would enable the enrichment of a Cuban regime that routinely violates the basic human rights and dignity of its people.
Commenting on Rubio’s remarks, El Yuma said:
Though he's just 39, on Cuba policy he seems committed to an approach of punishment and isolation that's been in place, and ineffective, since before he was born…I say: Instead of focusing solely on the ‘enrichment of the Cuban regime,’ why not focus on the empowerment of the Cuban people.
Across the Florida Straits, Cuban authorities and pro-government bloggers were skeptical of the intentions behind the reforms. Yohandry’s Weblog [es] opined that while they demonstrated that US residents want to engage with Cuba, they also reflect historically entrenched paradigms of paternalistic dominance over Cuba.
[La reforma es] expresión…del reconocimiento del fracaso de la política de los Estados Unidos contra Cuba y de que busca nuevas vías para lograr sus objetivos históricos de dominación de nuestro pueblo.
[…]
Aunque las medidas son positivas, se quedan muy por debajo de esos justos reclamos, tienen un alcance muy limitado y no modifican la política contra Cuba.
[The reforms are] an expression of recognition of the failure of US policy against Cuba, that finds new ways to achieve its objectives of historical domination of our people.
[…]
Although the measures are positive, they remain well below what is fairly deserved, they will bring very limited gains, and they do not change policy towards Cuba.
But other voices from the island have pressed for just such measures in recent months. In June of 2010, numerous bloggers, independent journalists, and civil society leaders in Cuba signed a letter urging the US Congress [es] to eliminate the travel ban and allow for agricultural trade between the two countries, arguing that this would help to improve the Cuban economy, and to strengthen relationships between people on and off the island.
The letter stated:
Compartimos la opinión de que el aislamiento del pueblo de Cuba beneficia a los intereses más inmovilistas del gobierno [cubano], mientras que la apertura sirve para informar y empoderar a los cubanos y ayudar a un mayor fortalecimiento de nuestra sociedad civil.
In a June 2010 post, blogger Claudia Cadelo [es], who was among those who signed the letter, wrote:
Quizás sea ingenuo pensar que estas flexibilizaciones promoverían la democratización de Cuba, sin embargo, lo contrario termina por ser -cuando se le mira fríamente- igualmente naif.
Voices on all sides of the debate acknowledge that these policies will have some impact on the island’s economy overall, as they will increase the flow of US dollars to Cuban people. Any improvement in Cuba’s current economy will likely benefit common citizens, government leaders, and everyone in between. But whether these will have any impact on political or human rights issues in Cuba, or help to improve US-Cuba relations on a greater scale, has yet to be seen.  Cuba Central commented that a change in in the United States’ approach to Cuba policy might be the only way to proceed, if the US truly wants to move towards a more open and mutually respectful relationship between the two nations. They wrote:
The U.S. needs to get out of the business of trying to overthrow or undermine Cuba’s government and to normalize the relationship through direct engagement.  Cuba is undergoing significant changes in its own right.  So should we.

author: Ellery Roberts Biddle


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Egypt: Live from Tunisia  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Egypt-based Issandr El Amrani, writing at The Arabist, is in Tunisia, and blogging from the ground. “I'll be reporting from here for various publications, but most of it won't be news — it will be long pieces to try and dig deeper into the Tunisian revolution and where it's headed, also providing some historical perspective. I hope to have the time to discuss some of the day to day developments and snapshots of life here,” he explains.


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Egypt: What to Pack for the January 25 Demonstrations · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Egyptian Alyaa Gad suggests what demonstrators should carry in their backpacks for demonstrations planned across Egypt tomorrow (Ar): “Your backpack: food and candy/clothes/a blanket/a phone and card/water/tissue/bandage/disinfectant/Aspirin/cotton/plastic gloves/paper and pencil/swimming goggles (against tear gas).”


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El Salvador: Transparency Law Stalled · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

A law that, “would have required government institutions, and private entities tied to the state, to make information available to the public without, necessarily, a formal request, by establishing an accessible database of information,” is stalled, as reported by Voices from El Salvador's Weblog.

author: Silvia Viñas


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Ghana: 10 Do’s  and Don’ts of Accra · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

10 do's and don'ts of Accra, Ghana: “Don’t shake hands with the left hand. Also, don’t eat with the left hand. Always use the right hand when dealing with people and showing directions, Don’t be a fan of taxis in general whiles staying in Accra rather, opt for the cheapest mode of transport which is; Tro-tro (shared buses plying majors town routes within Accra).”


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Ghana: Environmental consciousness through photography · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

You can team up with Ghanaian photographer and blogger, Nana Acquah, to create serious social, environmental consciousness through photography.


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Guatemala: Challenges for First Female Public Prosecutor · Global Voices
Renata Avila

Women, Panajachel by Marlin Harms under a Creative Commons attribution license version 3.o
In a country where only 32% of women [es] finish high school, where gender equality is low, where only 8% of members of the Parliament are women and where no women have presided ever the most important chambers of commerce and industry, recent appointments of women to public  administration and key political positions could shake the political scene.
The newly appointed Director  of the Criminal Public Defense Service, the Comptroller General,  the General Prosecutor and the Secretary of the National Council for  Migrant Services are women, as the blog Central American Politics explains:
Guatemala had made important strides in recent weeks as it relates to women occupying positions of power.  In the last few weeks, women were appointed to the critical positions of Public Prosecutor and Comptroller General Claudia Paz y Paz was named Public Prosecutor and head of the Public Ministry for four years and will be in charge of the agency for criminal investigation and prosecution, while Nora Segura is the new Comptroller General, with a five-year term and will be in charge of auditing government expenditures, beginning with the 2011 budget, of 6.8 billion dollars. Paz y Paz and Segura join Blanca Stalling who President Colom reappointed as director of the Criminal Public Defense Institute, an institution that oversees the legal defense of accused criminals, and Heydi Gordillo, the secretary of the National Council for Migrant Services.
In Guatemala, where women of all social and ethnic groups are brutally murdered or harmed, the appointment of Claudia Paz y Paz as Public Prosecutor was especially welcomed by different sectors, especially the Human Rights community –as evidenced in the Blog Fundación de Sobrevivientes [es] (Survivors Foundation Blog).
The blog Breaking the silence congratulated and celebrated the appointment of the first woman as general prosecutor in Guatemala last December:
Dr. Paz y Paz has worked tirelessly for Human Rights and particularly  for Women’s Rights, as an academic, activist and lawyer. She was the  Director of the UN High Commission for Refugees Legal Office and as the  National Consultant for the UN Mission for Guatemala. Dr. Paz y Paz also served as Director of the ICCPG, the Institute for Comparative Studies in Criminal Sciences in Guatemala.
However, the challenges are enormous. According to the blog Asociación por tí mujer [es] (Association for women), in 2010 alone, up to 680 women were killed by fire arms or stabbed in Guatemala City, and 48,000 complaints of domestic violence were filed. In Guatemala, hiring an assassin can be as cheap as $150.00 USD and impunity fuels violence against women.
Just last December, sociologist and researcher Emilia Quan was brutally murdered [es] in the Guatemalan mountains, near the border with Mexico. She worked for the Center for the Study and Documentation of the  Western Border of Guatemala (Centro de Estudios y Documentacion de la Frontera  Occidental de Guatemala; CEDFOG [es]). She was found blindfolded and hand-tied with a rag stuffed in her mouth, as the blog Guat's going on describes. A Mayan ceremony was organized in the locality and a prayer was elevated to ask for strength to fight violence and impunity in the country, as reported in Radio Santa Cruz Blog [es].
The case of Emilia Quan offers an opportunity for the newly elected prosecutor to carry out an investigation and prosecute the murderers. But this is not the only problem that needs to be solved, as pointed out by the blog Gender Across Borders:
Emilia was an amazing woman and a friend to many, who deserves the memoriam she has received.  But this is also a moment to recognize the thousands of women whose names never grace the pages of our newspapers and magazines. It’s not just that in a country with such a violent past one woman a day is killed, or that scarcely 2% of crimes against women are solved.  That would be horrendous enough. But it’s also that the bodies of women who have been kidnapped and murdered often show extra brutality – sexual violence, torture, mutilation – reflecting a societal disdain for women.  The fact that many of these crimes are never even investigated reflects a insidious contempt and apathy for the lives of women by the Guatemalan government.
The challenges are as big as the hope of Guatemalans who still believe in change and in fighting impunity through the rule of law and institutions where women can make a difference.

author: Renata Avila


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Guatemala: Former President on Trial on Embezzlement Charges · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Central American Politics writes about the trial of former Guatemalan President Alfonso Portillo, “currently on trial in Guatemala on embezzlement charges.”


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Guyana: “real” men · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

The Signifyin’ Woman contemplates Caribbean homophobia and notions of what it means to be a “real” man vs an “anti” man.


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Jamaica: following Junot Diaz in Jaipur · Global Voices
Nicholas Laughlin

Jamaica-based blogger Annie Paul, following the Jaipur Literature Festival online, reports on an appearance there by the Dominican-American writer Junot Díaz.


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Kenya: Webcomic based on pre-independence Kenya · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Emergency Webcomic is a miniseries written and illustrated by Chief Nyamweya. It is based on pre-independence Kenya as seen through the eyes Chege Karobia and Kim (Dedan Kimathi).


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Malawi: Connecting tourism and music industry · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Gregory discusses the need to connect tourism and music industry in Malawi: “Taking advantage of the fact that music pulls and attracts people and their world the tourism industry which sells our places out there would intensify promotion of the varieties at their places.”


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Malaysia: Hindu Festival Celebrated Amid Protest · Global Voices
Jerrenn Lam

The Hindu festival of Thaipusam, a public holiday in Malaysia, was celebrated as devotees thronged the famous Batu Caves to fulfil their vows. According to Wikipedia, the festival ‘commemorates the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan a spear so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman’.
The Malaysia.com blog provided a brief summary of the celebration of the festival in Malaysia:
Traditionally, it is believed that Lord Murugan’s preferred choice for a home is either in a hill or a mountain. It is no wonder that the final destination for devotees in the Klang Valley during Thaipusam is at Batu Caves, where they will carry the image of Lord Murugan and climb up the 272 steps that leads to his abode in the cave’s temple. As one approaches the temple grounds, a gold statue of Lord Murugan measuring approximately 42.7 metres in height greets its guests. In Penang, the devotees will trek from Georgetown with their kavadis and carry offerings of milk, water and fruits on their shoulder all the way to Nattukottai Chettiar Temple along Jalan Waterfall.
To the devotees who are involved in the procession and the festival, preparations for it has already commenced days before Thaipusam. Most of the time the devotees present a kavadi to Lord Murugan as a way of keeping with their vow, in exchange for requests of help for a favourable turn in business or for better health. Generally, there are certain rules that need to be observed before he takes up the kavadi during the procession. The devotees will need to purify and cleanse themselves through prayer and fasting. Strict dietary requirements are to be observed – only pure Satvik food must be taken, once a day, while continuously keeping God in their thoughts. Abstinence from carnal pleasures is another aspect that requires observation from the devotees. Some believe that by denying themselves the pleasures of the world, like sleeping on the hard floor for a week or walking barefoot during the procession, when it is time to fulfill their penance it will please the gods even more.
Besides the usual crowds of devotees, photography enthusiasts also turned up for the festival, many of them posting some of the photos on their blog.
A Malaysian Hindu, Love2Cook, was thankful for the opportunity to visit Batu Caves as well as taking photographs.
It's been years since we went to Batu Caves for Thaipusam. The crowd is sometimes so unbearable especially if you are with kids. We always go there during normal days. Even at that day, many tourists will be around. The place is just so happening!
Batu Caves has 272 steep steps! We loved the 42.7 metres statue of Lord Muruga (World's Tallest Lord Muruga Statue) and 15 metres high Jai Hanuman statue!
My biggest ever fear in Batu Caves are those macaque monkeys! Goshhhh…I dare not carry any food bags in my hand! There was one time, I was so afraid that I threw my mineral water bottle at a monkey!!! My Hubby had a difficult job chasing the monkey away, it didn't wanna budge at all…hahaha.
Another photography enthusiast Robin Wong was glad that he had the opportunity to experience the culture of his Hindu countrymen.
Today is the Thaipusam festival, a huge celebration for the Hindu community, and I decided I should take this chance to learn, witness and immerse myself into one unique culture that shaped up this unique nation of Malaysia. I was really glad I did, because what I saw today was beyond what I have imagined and expected.
It was truly a joy to be able to witness something fresh, a celebration that I have not encountered before. It was different from hearing stories and reading articles, or seeing photographs by others. Being there, blending into the crowd, walking with the masses, to be able to see, touch, and smell the atmosphere, everything felt so alive and real. I wanted to be in the celebration, and I wanted to be able to bring that bit and reproduce them in my photographs.
A Canadian couple, Dave and Deb, were elated that they managed to witness this festival for a second time.
We didn’t think that we would ever witness another Thaipusam, but we find ourselves back in Malaysia at the very time it is happening again. Tomorrow we are witnessing our second Thaipusam in our lifetime.  This time in Penang.  We hear that it is quite different here than in KL (Kuala Lumpur) and we look forward to making the comparison between the two places.
This is by far the most fascinating festival we have ever taken part in and we look forward again to being observers in the Mighty Hindu Festival known as Thaipusam.
However, it was reported that several activists were arrested on this sacred day when they protested the use of a controversial novel in the Malaysian syllabus for secondary schools. The Malay-language book,  “Interlok”, contains a reference to the caste system which is deemed offensive to the ethnic Indian community. Nantha Kumar, wrote in online news portal Free Malaysia Today that the issue does not portray the ‘respect and unity’ that the government boasts about.
Interlok was first written by a Malay author, Abdullah Hussein, in  the mid-1960s. The novel tells the story of Malaysia’s three major  races, namely Malays, Chinese and Indians.
The story is set during the era before and after the Japanese occupation.
In the novel, the author has introduced the Indians to the Malays as  the “pariah” caste. Herein lies the problem in modern Malaysia.
The term “pariah” has angered Indians in this country much like the  derogatory word “keling” did years ago when Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka  bulldozed the community’s views and sanctioned it as “an acceptable”  word.
At the outset, allow me to establish that Interlok is not a record of history. There are factual errors in the novel.
The author himself has admitted Interlok to be merely a work of fiction and not meant to be a footnote on history.
My hope is that the ministry (the Education Ministry) will justify to the parents and explain the benefits of reading Interlok to the students.
Whether these students, who incidentally will become future leaders  in multiracial Malaysia, will be united after reading this book is  subjective.
My opinion is that Interlok offers a warped perspective and will only create a deeper wedge between the races in Malaysia.
The book and its running theme does nothing to encourage unity and respect between communities.
Photos of Thaipusam can also be found in the blogs of J.C. and Shaiful Rizal.

author: Jerrenn Lam


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Mexico: The Passing of Indigenous Rights Supporter Bishop Samuel Ruiz · Global Voices
Silvia Viñas

Bishop Samuel Ruiz passed away this morning. Tim Johnson explains: “Ruiz […] started the Fray Bartolome de las Casas Human Rights Center out of his  diocese, and played an instrumental role in keeping the Zapatista  uprising  that erupted in 1994 from flaring into broader violence.  Ruiz’s work on behalf of indigenous peoples caused his renown to spread  around the hemisphere.”