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Japanese Media Reports of Sagamihara Care Home Stabbings Overlook the Disabled Victims · Global Voices
Michael Peckitt

Untitled. Photo by Flickr user Hinata-sennin. License: CC BY 2.0.
On Friday 24 February, 2017, the Yokohama District public prosecutor's office issued an indictment for several charges, including multiple counts of murder and attempted murder, against Satoshi Uematsu. Uematsu, 27, a former worker at the Tsukui Yamayuri-en (‘Tsukui Lily Garden’) care home for the intellectually disabled in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, killed 19 residents of the home and injured 27 others in the early hours of Tuesday 26 July, 2016.  The indictment was issued after Uematsu was found mentally fit to stand trial on Monday 20 February.
No date has yet been set for the trial, although it has been reported that Uematsu may face a ‘lay judge’ trial. As the Asahi reported, “The seven-month investigation, including five months of psychiatric evaluations, resulted in: 19 murder charges; 24 attempted murder charges, two charges of illegal confinement causing injury; three charges of illegal confinement; one charge of unlawful entry; and one charge of violating the swords and firearms control law.”
The story has been reported by every major newspaper in Japan, but what is perhaps troubling is the way some, if not the majority of the Japanese press, have been covering it. Much of the focus has been on Uematsu’s mental illness—he has been diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD)—and on providing possible motivations to explain why he committed the crime. As the Yomiuri Shimbun reported in an editorial on February 25, “Prosecutors’ custody of the man for a mental evaluation continued for five months. This is probably because prosecutors took a more cautious approach given that the incident was unusually heinous.”
This incident, in terms of the number dead and injured, is the worst mass murder in Japan since World War II, so from that perspective it was indeed an “unusually heinous” crime. What is not clear is why an “unusually heinous” crime might require ‘a more cautious approach’. Surely the standard procedure of gathering evidence, questioning the suspect, and presenting the evidence to prosecutors in hope of a trial does not change just because so many were killed and injured. The only thing, in fact, that makes this incident unusual is that the majority of the victims were disabled. What I also find troubling is the media’s apparent need to find a deeper explanation for Uematsu’s actions, considering that he himself made his motivation quite clear. As he reportedly told a police officer upon giving himself up after committing the crime, “I did it…. It is better that disabled people disappear.”
I would not want to suggest that the Japanese media are completely wrong to use the incident to highlight Japan’s poor record on dealing with mental health. Uematsu was involuntarily committed to a hospital in late February 2016, and only stayed there a few days before being released. Hoping that this incident leads Japan to develop an effective ‘early intervention’ for the mentally ill is a sentiment to be respected, but focusing solely on the mental health of the suspect draws attention away the victims, many of whom will not be named, ostensibly at relatives’ request. There are, however, some in the Japanese media, such as Kazuhiro Nozawa, an editor for The Mainichi Shimbun, who thinks the tone of the coverage speaks to a Japanese stigma regarding having a disability, or having a child with a disability.
”The suspect in the Sagamihara case,” writes Nozawa, “saw the exhausted guardians of handicapped residents at Yamayuri En, came to think that disabled people “can only lead to unhappiness” and came to the conclusion that such people should be euthanized. Although his idea is absurdly twisted, there is no denying that his sympathy with the guardians of handicapped people forms part of the basis for his idea. News reports on the incident are also based largely on sympathy with the guardians of the victims.”
The media’s preoccupation with the suspect’s possible mental illness and sympathy for the victims’ families moves attention away from the disabled victims, as well as the management team at the Tsukui Yamayuri En care facility and their share of the responsibility for the killings. According to Kyodo News, an investigation by Kanagawa Prefectural Government into the incident concluded that the facility acted “extremely inappropriately” in failing to share knowledge that may have affected the lives of its residents. The report went on to assert that “if the information had been shared with the prefecture, the damage could have been avoided…. If the facility had reported to the prefecture, security equipment or security personnel could have been bolstered. There was a problem in its crisis management.”
Despite this damning report, the media does not seem to criticize how the facility was run, and the same principal management team in place at the time of the incident seems to have remained in their jobs, which is unusual. It is instructive to compare the way the Japanese media has covered Sagamihara to the ‘Dentsu incident’. Dentsu is a major Japanese advertising firm whose president, Tadashi Ishii, resigned in December 2016, a year after one of its employees, Matsuri Takahashi, committed suicide as a result of overwork. In that case the public outcry and media pressure played a part in forcing the president of a company to resign. No similar pressure seems to be have been applied regarding the management team at the Tsukui Yamayuri En care facility.
Ultimately, nobody wants to cause grieving families any distress. But if the Japanese government is sincere about improving the lives of disabled people after Sagamihara, attitudes towards the disabled in Japan need to change, and specifically the stigma towards the disabled needs to be removed. As Suzanne Kamata, a long term resident of Japan and mother to a daughter with a disability, says: “The first step toward normalization is visibility. How can we mourn those who are denied their humanity? Show us their faces. Tell us their names.”
The title of this article has been updated.
Michael Gillan Peckitt is an academic living in Kobe and author of the e-book “Gaijin Story: Tales of a British Disabled Man in Japan”.

author: Michael Peckitt


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These Light-Art Installations in Singapore’s Marina Bay Also Promote Energy Conservation · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

A light show at the Marina Bay Sands. The light festival is also located around the building. Source: Flickr / aotaro (CC BY 2.0)
Singapore’s annual Light Festival reopened on March 3 with 20-light-art installation made by artists from nine countries. This was the fifth time that Singapore organized the Light Festival in Marina Bay, a popular tourist destination that offers a panoramic view of the city state.
The festival, which is also known as “i Light Marina Bay,” is themed on “Light and Nature” to encourage Singaporeans to adopt sustainable habits in their everyday lives. In support of this objective, the art installations at the Marina Bay waterfront are made of energy-saving lighting or environmentally-friendly materials.
The festival is also getting the support of at least 79 building owners around Marina Bay to join the “Switch Off, Turn Up” campaign, which encourages residents and building owners to switch off non-essential lighting and to turn up air conditioning temperatures during office hours.
During the 2014 Light Festival, the organizers claimed they were able to save 269,000 kWh of energy or 140 tons of carbon dioxide for three weeks because of the “Switch Off, Turn Up” campaign. This is equivalent to providing electricity for more than a thousand housing flats for the same period.
This year’s Light Festival will also join the Earth Hour celebration on March 25 by switching off the lights of the art installations for one hour.
Visitors to the Light Festival are also being encouraged to exchange their incandescent light bulbs for energy-saving LED bulbs.
Since the opening of the festival, Instagram users have been uploading their photos of the art installations at the iconic Marina Bay waterfront. Take a look at how Singapore’s landmark buildings became even more stunning during the event:
A post shared by Stanley Chee (@stanley_chee) on
A post shared by Qing Jing (@qing.jing) on
Woohoo… no need to go overseas to see this type of art installations! It's all happening at #iLightMarinaBay! You gotta come and take a walk! #MarinaBay #ArtyFarty #iLightMarinaBay2017 #ArtInstallation #MediaPreview #ThePerfectFather
A post shared by Steven Teo (@theperfectfather) on
A post shared by Christina Tan (@sassychris1) on
Not your average skyscraper. #ilightmarinabay
A post shared by waiswords (@waiswords) on
A post shared by Christina Tan (@sassychris1) on
Beautiful #lightart installation by French compagnie TILT at #ilightmarinabay . . . #marinabay #yoursingapore #singapore #art #butterflies #publicart #traveldeeper #lifewelltravelled #ilight2017 #igsg #sgig #nightscape #nightphotography #cities #新加坡 #滨海湾 #シンガポール #lumiere #instaphoto #olympusomd #travelblogger
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source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Mong Palatino


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‘Whistle at Women No More,’ Say Construction Workers in Peru · Global Voices
Gabriela García Calderón

“At this construction site, we don't whistle at women and we are against sexual street hrrassment.” Image taken by the author.
It is a truth almost universally acknowledged that a woman will avoid walking by a construction site, especially if she is on her own. If a woman dares to defy that generally accepted rule, she will most likely be on the receiving end of unpleasant, rude comments and whistling by the men working at the site.
But there's still a place for hope.
In Miraflores, a traditional iddle-class neighborhood in Peru's capital, Lima, where construction sites abound, a group of construction workers decided to show they think and act differently. And the response has been positive.
Another view of the poster. Image by the author.
An image of their sign was posted on Facebook, on the fanpage Ni una menos Perú (Not one woman less Peru), and has so far been shared over 300 times and has 3,300 likes; the comments on the platform have mostly been positive:
Lu Necochea gran comienzo …woww pero q esperanzador ya no tener q pasar mas acosos, buena iniciativaa
Lu Necochea Great start… wow, it's encouraging not having to endure any more harassment. Good initiative.
Gisella Laynes Que bueno … aplaudo esto por que a jno le da miedo pasar por estos sitios …
Gisella Laynes Good. I applaud that because I won't be afraid when I walk by these sites…
Adriana Lucia Me encanta! recuerdo que siempre teníamos que cruzar la pista sólo para no pasar por una construcción
Adriana Lucia I love it! I remember we always had to cross the street just to avoid walking by a construction site.
Some men posted messages trying to explain the phenomenon:
Tito Surf Rock PARA LOS TRABAJADORES DE CONSTRUCCIÓN CIVIL , QUE LA GRAN MAYORÍA POR PROVENIR DE HOGARES DISFUNCIONALES ( MUCHAS VECES NO CULPA DE ELLOS , PERO SI DE SUS PADRES IRRESPONSABLES ) […] FALTAN EL RESPETO A LAS MUJERES EN GENERAL ; OLVIDÁNDOSE QUE TODOS PROVENIMOS DE UNA MUJER ( MADRE ).
Tito Surf Rock Construction workers – most of whom come from dysfunctional homes (most of the time it's not their fault but their irresponsible parents’). […] disrespect women in general and forget we all come from a woman (mother).
Others were less sympathetic:
Eduardo Antonio Cesti Jaja pero cuando eyas acosan nadie dice nada.
Eduardo Antonio Cesti LOL! But when women are the ones who harass, no one says a single word.
Liler Vasquez Jajaja un poco más y prohíben que se.mire a las mujeres en la calle
Liler Vasquez LOL! Wait and see, it will soon be forbidden to watch women as they walk down the street.
Global Voices had a brief talk with Juan Enrique Huamaní, who is in charge of security issues at the construction site, and he told us:
En la construcción, nos dan charlas de cómo portarnos. Nos hacen ver que todos tenemos mamás, hijas, hermanas y que a ninguno le gustaría saber que les dicen groserías solamente por pasar por la calle. Por eso, tomamos conciencia y queremos que todos lo sepan.
Here at the construction site, we get lectured about how to behave ourselves. This makes us aware that we all have mothers, daughters, sisters, and no one here would be pleased to know that they have to endure obscenities merely by dint of walking by the street. That's why we want to raise awareness and let everybody know [how we feel and act].
This beacon of light comes amidst a hard moment for women's rights in Peru. One of the latest high-profile gender violence cases happened on February 27, 2017, when a 27-year old lawyer and mother of two, Evelyn Corahua Fabian, was strangled to death in her house by her former partner. A month earlier, she reported that he tried to strangle her, but the authorities dismissed her report. Sadly, femicides grew 13% in 2016 compared to 2015 when 95 women killed and 198 suffered injuries.
But while the country still struggles with gender-related violence, the construction workers in Miraflores are modeling an example of respect.

author: Gabriela García Calderón


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Young South African Woman Living With HIV Decides She’s Not Hiding Anymore · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

22-year-old South African woman Saidy Brown, who revealed her HIV-positive status on Twitter. Image: Twitter
Internet users around the world are praising Saidy Brown, the 22-year-old woman in South Africa, who used Twitter last month to publicize that she is HIV positive.
Brown has lived her entire life with the virus, which claimed both her parents, but it was only in her early teenage years that she learned she had been born infected.
Last month, she decided to make her survival story public, tweeting:
When I found out at 14 that I was HIV positive, I didn't think I would live to see 18,I am turning 22 this year. ❤❤ pic.twitter.com/drZDVCorPK
— Saidy Brown (@saidy_brown) February 24, 2017
According to Avert, a charitable organization that works to prevent the spread of HIV, South Africa is ground zero of the world's HIV epidemic. Two years ago, there were 380,000 new cases of HIV infection in the country, where the infected population had already reached 7 million people. As many as 180,000 people in South Africa were dying of AIDS-related diseases in 2015.
AIDS Foundation South Africa attributes the spread of HIV in South Africa to factors like poverty, inequality, social instability, widespread unsafe sex, the low status of women, sexual violence, migrant labor, limited and uneven access to quality medical care, and a history of poor leadership in response to the epidemic.
A study called “The People Living with HIV Stigma Index in South Africa,” completed by the Human Sciences Research Council, found that one in three people living with HIV experienced stigma from their communities — and women are stigmatized much more than men.
No wonder, then, that Brown's courage to be open about her status on social media has earned her many Twitter users’ praise. One Twitter user, “Wako Joel,” even suggested that she should be made Africa's ambassador for HIV/AIDS:
OPINION: I think @saidy_brown a #SouthAfrican should be made #Africa‘s ambassador for #HIV_AIDS to deliver speeches at international level.
— Wako Joel (@wakojoel) March 3, 2017
A recording Ugandan artist, Gitts Beats, said Brown's courage should be an example to others:
Sometimes We need to be original in everythin nd feel free 2 speak out our minds, If @saidy_brown said it yesterday then u can say it today pic.twitter.com/p3JPzH0Z3u
— GittsBeats (@gitts_beats) February 27, 2017
Sibusiso Msesiwe wrote:
@saidy_brown Just read your article.In tears as I'm burying my 2nd cousin due to the virus.
I'm so proud of you.
Keep rising.
Love you tons!
— Sibusiso Msesiwe (@SMsesiwe) March 2, 2017
Della Rovere thanked Brown for her bravery:
@saidy_brown you're my idol, girl!!! You're so amazing and powerful!!! Thank you for this lesson about life
— Della Rovere (@davies_kraft) March 3, 2017
Mark Gamanya considered Brown to be a champion of those living with HIV by helping to change the public's perception about the disease:
@saidy_brown no one is immune to HIV/AIDS you're a champion to those who live with the stigma, keep on educating to those who are clueless
— Mark Gamanya (@markgamanya) March 3, 2017
The inspirational ripple effects from Brown's post have been felt around the world:
@saidy_brown I read your story on the BBC website.
You must be an amazing human being!
I wish you much peace, health and success. ?????
— Tiago Freitas (@_tifreitas) March 2, 2017
If you're having trouble imagining the stigma HIV patients face in South Africa, consider the following question put to Brown by an anonymous Twitter user:
@saidy_brown if you became HIV positive in a carnal way, were you going to be as brave as you are?
— Scotch (@MMaenza1) March 3, 2017
And then have a look at her response:
Yes. Does how a person got infected matter? I mean HIV is HIV. https://t.co/DSthQSYPja
— Saidy Brown (@saidy_brown) March 3, 2017
Indeed, at least one Twitter user disputed the rationale of MMaenza1's question:
I am sorry @MMaenza1 but how is your question going to help the global #HIV problem? I agree with @saidy_brown does how you got it matter?
— Hondred Percent (@hondredpercent) March 3, 2017
Michael Très from the U.S. made the following remarks:
@Nala_RSA @saidy_brown God bless you ! I think we are trying to let the world know that there is STILL life even in the darkest situations!
— Michael Très (@mtrestates) March 2, 2017

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Despite a Military Mutiny, Côte D’Ivoire’s Government Says It Is Ready for UN Troop Withdrawal · Global Voices
Laurent Diawara

Screen capture of press conference from the barracks at Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Once one of the largest economies in West Africa, Côte d’Ivoire is finally back on track to peace and economic growth after a brutal conflict in 2011. The United Nations operation in Côte d'Ivoire, which at one time numbered 10,000 personnel, is scheduled to withdraw entirely from the former French colony this summer.
In preparation, the Côte d'Ivoire government last year adopted a first-of-its-kind military reform law and earmarked 2,000 billion CFA francs (3.8 billion euros) for modernisation and renewal of its armed forces, over four years. Now, some soldiers within the military are rebelling and demanding their piece of the pie.
Earlier this year, former soldiers in the central Côte d'Ivoire town of Bouaké seized weapons from police stations and closed off entry points into the city, demanding bonuses and housing from the government. Soon, negotiators for the government and the armed forces reached a breakthrough. “The military has agreed to return to its barracks and firing has ceased,” a local source in Bouaké told Global Voices in an email.
Then, during late February, in other towns across the country, soldiers and ex-combatants in the Ivorian military issued new demands, including bonus payments, salary increases and rapid promotions.
While clashes have ended, many Ivorians are wondering why the administration has surrendered to the soldiers’ wishes so readily. From the country's economic capital, Abidjan, social sciences expert Rodrigue Koné explains:
Il y a beaucoup de frustrations, les gens ont le sentiment que les fruits de la croissance ne sont pas bien redistribués. Alors beaucoup vivent mal que l’on donne autant à d’anciens rebelles. Ils y voient une prime à la rébellion.
There is a lot of frustration right now, people feel that the fruits of growth are not being redistributed properly. So many of us struggle to make ends meet and yet they gave so much to former rebels. They see it as a bonus given to the ones who rebels against authority.
Many of these soldiers were ex-combatants who helped the current president, Alassane Ouattara, secure power in 2011.
That 2010-2011 conflict was mired with accusations of human rights abuses, extortion and racketeering from combatants and soldiers. The Ivorian judiciary has made progress in investigating atrocities committed during the crisis, but the government has failed to prosecute forces loyal to Ouattara.
The conflict of 2011 largely gutted, then replaced the Armed Forces of Côte d'Ivoire (FACI) with ex-combatants. These ex-combatants helped President Ouattara secure power, but were also accused of human rights violations, such as torture, rape and murder. Many were brought into the military as non-commissioned officers (NCOs) after 2011; some continued to be accused of extortion and racketeering.
Côte d'Ivoire's army is bloated with non-commissioned officers. More than 14,000 of the army's 22,000 soldiers are reportedly NCOs. While the ratio for most armies around the world is one non-commissioned officer to four men, the Ivorian army has too many officers for few soldiers.
“It's a rookie army that eats up most of the national budget,” a retired military man confessed, saying that more than 12,000 men have been added to the nation's armed forces since 2011.
As part of the new military reform, Defense Minister Alain-Pierre Donwahi wants to reduce the number of officers in the armed forces. Salaries currently take up 90% of the military's budget.
But now, the soldiers — once combatants loyally fighting for power for the current president — aren't playing along.
When Côte d'Ivoire emerged from a decade of civil war and a rebellion centred in Bouaké, the Ivorian Army inherited a troubled organisational structure that's been accused of systematic abuses.
According to army experts’ analysis,  the systemic abuse of the current structure within their ranks can be traced to a lack of resources and training. These issues could be solved with new reform that will provide added resources to re-train soldiers and ex-combatants in their ranks.
Arthur Banga, an Ivorian specialist researcher on defense matters, says:
There are efforts that have been made by the Ivorian government in terms of improving the living environment and means of members of the military, but […] you have to understand the sociology of those who are demonstrating today. They are former soldiers with the FAFN [Forces Nouvelles de Côte d'Ivoire] who feel they have contributed more than others to the accession to power of Alassane Ouattara and who now consider themselves poorly rewarded at the level of remuneration. […] The officers who have come out of the new Forces […] have experienced a rise in status. Some of them are lieutenant-colonels, colonels, whereas the soldiers have not experienced this rise.
As early as 2014, protesting members of the military won better salaries and changes to the army's promotion system.
To understand the causes of these sudden clashes between the government and the military, you need to understand the conflicts that have plagued Côte d'Ivoire.
After a coup attempt in 2002, rebels seized control over northern Côte d'Ivoire, while forces loyal to the former president, Laurent Gbagbo, held power in the south. In January 2003, after a year of civil war, Gbagbo and the rebel leaders signed a peace deal, but the peace was fragile and fighting would break out again seven years later, when Gbagbo refused to accept his defeat in elections by Ouattara. Gbagbo's armed forces subsequently went to war with combatants loyal to Ouattara.
The Second Ivorian Civil War in 2010-2011 would claim roughly 3,000 lives, and was a conflict between forces loyal to Gbagbo, who was the country's president since the year 2000, and supporters of the internationally recognised president-elect, Alassane Ouattara.
The post-election crisis then evolved from a targeted campaign of violence by Gbagbo forces to an armed conflict in which armed forces from both sides committed grave crimes. Six months later, at least 3,000 civilians were killed and more than 150 women were raped, according to Human Rights Watch.
The United Nations (UN) and French forces also got involved, arresting Gbagbo at his residence in April 2011 and ending the conflict.
With the UN forces preparing to leave the coffee-growing former French colony, there is an urgency for the military to reform. In response, Ouattara's government drafted the ambitious legislation last year and passed several resolutions designed to improve soldiers’ living conditions.
According to Bruno Nabagné Knoé, the government's spokesperson:
The president has instructed the high command to initiate meetings with all the components of the country's security forces to see that their living conditions are improved.
According to the defense ministry, the government has also paid all bonus payment arrears. Commenting on the departure of UN operation, Defense Minister Donwahi says that everything has been done “to ensure a correct transfer of responsibilities.” “We are completely ready for it,” he assured.
But the success with which rebels in the military have been able to muscle the government suggests otherwise.

author: Laurent Diawara


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Frustrated by US Anti-Ballistic Missile System, China Punishes Korean Retailer Lotte · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Political cartoonist @badiucao depicts the Lotte boycott campaign as “New Boxer Rebellion”. Image from @badiucao.
The conflict between China and South Korea over the United States Army's anti-ballistic missile system has escalated in the past week with widespread boycotts of Korean retailer Lotte.
Lotte announced in November that it had agreed to give up a golf course it owns in South Korea for the storage of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery. The anti-ballistic missile system is purportedly meant to deter attacks from North Korea, but Chinese officials fear it could one day be turned on them.
State news agency Xinhua News was the first Chinese media outlet to start calling out Lotte for assisting in the deployment of THAAD, and has continued to publish criticism since mid-February. Its commentary on February 27, for example, read:
如果说部署“薩德”是在中國背后“捅刀子”，那樂天此次不計后果的草率決定，無異於為虎作倀。對於這樣的樂天，中國不歡迎！
The deployment of THAAD is stabbing a dagger in China’s back, Lotte’s irresponsible decision is like assisting a bloodthirsty Tiger [which is threatening to human security]. China will not welcome Lotte.
Echoing Xinhua, China nationalist tabloid Global Times called for a boycott in its Chinese editorial commentary, titled “Slam Lotte and Punish South Korea, China Has No Other Option.” The English version of Global Times reported on netizens’ reaction and highlighted angry comments directed at Lotte, including the followings:
China did not welcome you, please get the hell out of here and go back home
It's a very simple logic…Lotte is making lucrative profit from Chinese consumers yet they are standing against us and supporting the South Korean government. In other words, the group is actually using our money to put us in danger. How can Chinese tolerate that?
It didn't take long for words to become action. Following the call for boycott, Chinese authorities took steps to punish Lotte. Thus far, four Lotte retail stores in China have been closed upon inspection. In addition, several online shopping platforms, including JD.com and Jumei Youpin, have removed Lotte brand products.
The boycott is not confined to the web. Small-scale protests have sprouted across China. Reportedly, a number of Korean brand vehicles were crushed in Shangdong province. And below is video showing a boycott demonstration outside a Lotte retail store in Jilin.
While Chinese social media outlets are flooded with nationalistic comments, beyond the Great Firewall Wu Zuolai, a famous blogger, argued on Twitter that the boycott is meant to cover up China's diplomatic failure to keep North Korea — which launched four ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan just on Monday, March 6 — under control:
政府外交无能，就怂恿老百姓出来闹事给外国人看，这与当年慈禧利用义和团没什么二样，只是现在多了一个叫团中央的机构，闲的蛋疼，发散各种内部通知，要求团员青年反韩反乐天，乐天是韩国企业，当然得服从韩国国家利益，这怎么可能改变呢？抗议乐天，只会使合资乐天受损害，乐天的中国就业者首先受害。
— 吴祚来 (@wuzuolai) March 1, 2017
With the government's failure in diplomacy, it incites people to protest. The intention is similar to the Boxer Rebellion during the Qing Dynasty. Now there is a centralized authority which hand outs internal notices to all government and party branches, asking members of the youth league to participate in anti-Korea and anti-Lotte protests. Lotte is a Korean corporation and it has to serve the country's interest. You can't change its nature. The protest will only do harm to Lotte's Chinese partner.
Twitter user @redfireage also mocked the Xinhua commentary:
为虎作伥 中国不欢迎这样的“乐天”。
是韩国的萨德威胁大，还是三胖的核弹威胁大？朝鲜又是VX化学武器又是核武器，不是更威胁国家安全？脸面被金三打的啪啪的，共产党屁都不敢放一个，只敢对着南韩喷口水还挑动民族仇恨抵制一个南韩企业，真的是个low逼政府。 pic.twitter.com/TTMOBpob33
— Red Fire Age (@redfireage) March 1, 2017
Assisting the tiger. China cannot welcome Lotte. Which is more destructive, South Korea's THAAD or North Korea's nuclear bomb? North Korea has VX nerve agent and nuclear bombs, aren't these more threatening? Kim III keeps slamming China to its face, but the Chinese Communist Party doesn't even dare to fart back but keep cursing South Korea, inciting hatred, boycotting Korean corporations, such a government is so low.
A Radio France Internationale writer collected some of the critical comments found on Chinese social media:
我突然想到了一个逻辑，不知道对不对，大家抵制了这么多天的韩国乐天超市，无非是因为美国在韩国部署了萨德威胁中国的安全，然后大家还想打砸韩国车之类的，那问题来了，源头是美国啊，为什么不一起抵制买苹果手机呢？
Suddenly a logical question pops up. We have boycotted Lotte because the American THAAD system deployed in South Korea has threatened China's national security and this makes us want to crush Korean brand vehicles. The question is, the source of the threat should be the US, so why don't we boycott Apple phones?
这是奇特的社会现象，人们既极度关心政治，又极度不关心政治：一开口就是民族、国家和政府的安危、盛衰和荣辱，但对自己的基本权利、自由和尊严，却从不思 考，对于身边的各种不公和无数无辜、无助的弱者，却漠不关心。身边的小偷不敢抓，老人不敢扶，却一天到晚嚷着要灭日本、打美国…
This is a very strange social phenomenon. People seem to care about politics, while at the same time be extremely indifferent to politics: they keep talking about national, state and government interests, security and honor, but do not think about their individual rights, freedom and dignity. They don't care about the injustice, the poor and the weak surrounding them. They dare not chase after thieves, help old people, but they keep saying they would eliminate Japan and fight the US…
瞎起哄抵制这个那个，瞎起哄去街上砸几台韩国车，其实都是做亲者痛仇者快的事情，敌对分子还没有开始进攻，我们就自乱阵脚，就对自己同胞痛下狠手，你砸的车不是同胞的血汗钱买的吗？
Follow the call and boycott this and that. Follow the call and crush a few Korean vehicles. All these actions only make our enemy happy. The enemy hasn't launched the attack and we are attacking our own people. The vehicles you crushed belong to your people, right?
In reaction to Chinese boycotts, the South Korean government-subsidized media outlet Korea Times published an editorial titled “Grow up, China,” calling China a spoiled kid and urging:
…we Koreans should tough it out and respond to Chinese provocations with a cool head _ finding ways to reduce Lotte's losses, reducing our reliance on China for exports and bringing unity to our political voice, until China sees reason.

author: Oiwan Lam


text:
Going to University in Paraguay Can Be a Life-or-Death Decision · Global Voices
Kurtural

Christian Quiñónez and Éver Pereira go to a private university Monday through Thursday in Vallemí. To get there, they must cross a river in a small boat. Photo by Nicolás Sáenz, borrowed from the Kurtural website with permission.
The series Cows That Fly, Schools That Crumble, published by Paraguayan economic and cultural news site Kurtural, explores the ways in which Paraguay's education system fails students. Below is the latest installment, written by Patricia Benítez. It will be republished on Global Voices in two parts.
Monday through Thursday, between 7 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon, Christian Quiñónez works as a secretary in the court system in Puerto Casado. The city shows up as La Victoria on Google Maps, but its real name comes from Carlos Casado del Alisal, a Spaniard who, in 1889, became the owner of practically the whole region after buying 5 million hectares of public land; an area larger than Costa Rica, Slovakia, Switzerland or Belgium.
It was here, near the Brazilian border, where Casado established the first tannin extraction company in the Americas. Back then, tannin was a coveted substance, due to its role in the leather-making process. The source of this powerful natural astringent was found in the bark of the quebracho tree – a group of species native to South America that in those times covered a significant portion of the territory acquired by Casado. A territory he acquired with both Paraguayans and indigenous peoples living inside.
In the first decades of the 20th century, the exploitation of the quebracho forests helped Puerto Casado to grow like never before. The town even got electricity before Asunción, the country's capital, thanks to a self-sufficiency system: the ground sawdust from the quebrachos fed fires to boil water and produce the electricity that the factory required. The surplus energy was distributed to the homes in town of high-ranking employees and foreigners from Argentina, Germany, Hungary and other countries.
The whole town, or at least a large part of it, worked for the company. According to Valentina Bonifacio, an Italian anthropologist who has been studying the town's history for years, Paraguayans filled the lower ranks of the company's hierarchy. Although they did not hold leadership roles, they did acquire administrative and accountancy skills. Below them, at the very lowest level, natives from various ethnic groups from other parts of the region (which makes up part of the Paraguayan Chaco), who had moved to Puerto Casado served as laborers and factory workers.
Today, the majority of Puerto Casado's 7,000 inhabitants are descendants of the old company's workers. Among them is Christian Quiñónez, who, when the clock strikes 3 p.m., prepares to leave his white-walled house with its large patio. The house is held up with massive columns; trunks of a tree whose wood is so strong it breaks axes. This is where it gets its name: quebracho, Spanish for axe-breaker.
Christian grew up under this roof, and he still lives there today, together with his family. The house is the legacy of his father's labor and a period of abundance in the land. But, unlike his father, an ex-blacksmith for the old company, Christian didn't grow up knowing tannin and never watched the trains run on the railway built by the company in 1927 to move the timber bolts from forest to factory.
Today in Puerto Casado, there is neither a public nor a private university. This means that for Christian, a staff member of the city's court of peace and a third-year law student, the only hope he has for obtaining a degree is on the other side of the river, in the city of Vallemí, in Concepción, the next province over. To get there, he crosses the river four days a week—Monday through Thursday—along with Éver Pereira, a friend of his since high school. Both of them attend the Vallemí branch of the María Serrana University, a private institution founded in 2009 whose degrees are still not accredited by the National Agency of Higher Education Evaluation and Accreditation.
If he had had the option, Christian would have gone to a public university. “Everyone who wants to be a professional dreams of going to the National University of Asunción,” he says as though stating the obvious. But in his experience, dreaming is almost never the same as doing. The public university closest to his town is the National University of Concepción, located in the city of the same name, a little more than 200 kilometers away.
The availability of higher education in Paraguay is limited. There are seven public universities in the entire country, with satellite campuses in a few cities. Meanwhile, there are 47 private universities with a very high number of subsidiaries all over the country. Additionally, the majority of the population, generally speaking, cannot study in public universities for a variety of reasons. The tuition costs are high, and the timetables for some degrees prevent students from being able to work while they study, something vitally important for those who need to earn money to support themselves.
Crossing in his own boat costs Christian Quiñónez one dollar. The alternative would be a taking a ferry owned by a private company which costs 15 times more than public transit would in Asunción. Photograph by Nicolás Sáenz, taken with permission from the website Kurtural.
On a nice, sunny day, clear skies on the horizon, the trip to Vallemí takes at least an hour and a half. Even when the weather is favorable, the sheer immensity of the Paraguay River at its confluence with the Apa River doesn't make the trip a pleasure cruise. The deafening sound of the boat's motor echos off the magnificent hills and renders conversation impossible, leaving the travelers alone with their thoughts, observing the environment that, while fascinating for a first timer, grows dull once it becomes routine. “We sit down and with tovasy, jagua canóaisha (serious faces, like dogs in a canoe) we strike out for Vallemí,” Christian jokes in the Guaraní language.
Éver, an accounting student, has always liked mathematics. He is also the father of two small children, who he supports through his exhausting job in the middle of the woods cutting down trees to be turned into posts.
It was in this open-air office, which he has very much enjoyed, where he decided one day in 2015 to go back to school.
Up until June 8, 2016, neither Christian nor Éver had ever been in a wreck. That day, the air was still, but very cold. As had become their habit, they crossed the river just like they had been doing since March. This time, they were accompanied by Éver's 19-year-old brother, Luis, who was also studying at the university, as well as Ramón Paredes and his son Blásido, neighbors looking for a lift to Vallemí to buy some spare motorcycle parts. It was not the first time Paredes, a mechanic, had made the trip with them. Nobody suspected that it would be the last.
On that chilly, late fall afternoon, the outbound trip went by without hassle. The return, perhaps due to the extra weight of the motorcycle parts, did not. Twenty minutes after casting off, terror overcame the crew members. It was nearly 10 at night when the little boat began to sink, more than six kilometers off the Vallemí port. Guided by a single flashlight, the five men tried to empty the water flooding into the boat, but it didn't work well. Christian's attempt to run the boat aground did not work either, which someone — Christian doesn't remember who — suggested as they all shouted at each other desperately. With the motor completely submerged, the only option was to jump into the darkness. None of them had life jackets.
“I jumped into the water. I couldn't see a thing. I swam a few strokes, grabbed onto some camalotes (large, floating water plants) and got myself out of the water,” Christian says, remembering this fateful moment. But he had not come ashore in Vallemí or in Puerto Casado. Instead, he found himself on a small island between the two towns. The Pereira brothers, who had grown up around fishing boats and were expert swimmers, had made it as well. But there were no signs of Ramón Paredes or his son Blásido.
Christian and the Pereira brothers shouted their names for a few minutes, but no one responded. Wet and on the verge of hypothermia, they made their way to the interior of the island in search of help, and only after half an hour of walking found a group of fishermen who gave them first aid and helped them look for their friends. The lifeless body of Blásido was found a few hours later. The body of his father would be found three days later in a search carried out by the military.
“We were aware that something like this could happen, but not that it would be so serious. We boarded the boat with this risk every day. Being on the water is still a risk. So is life itself, but being on the water is just a little more dangerous,” Christian says of the accident on that wintry June night that claimed two of his friends. But this was not the first time studying had brought tragedy into his life.
In the second part of this series, we can see more of the difficulties and risks faced by Christian Quiñónez and others aspiring to follow through and finish a university degree.

author: Kurtural


text:
Silicon Valley Giant Uber Caught up in Kazakhstan Wooden Stool Scandal · Global Voices
Akhal-Tech Collective

Facebook photos shared by Facebook user Darya Catch and subsequently reposted by social media users and Kazakh media outlets.
When a mother and daughter in Kazakhstan's largest city Almaty ordered an Uber taxi on March 6, they probably weren't expecting a glove-wearing chauffeur to show up behind the wheel of a limousine. But the idea that all the furniture inside the vehicle might actually be attached to it shouldn't have been too much to ask.
A photo taken by one of the pair and subsequently posted onto the Facebook account of daughter Darya, who uses the name Darya Catch on the social media service, shows two wooden stools passing for upholstery inside the minivan of their designated Uber driver.
Darya and her mother were seated opposite the shifting stools in regular car seats.
“But what if there had been four of us?” Darya asked in comments sent via Facebook to Global Voices. “Would two of us have had to sit on the stools?”
Darya's mother Marina said that the chairs “rattled around” during the ride, posing a safety threat. The driver joked that he could even fetch them a table if they wanted.
The post did enough to interest both Russian media hub TJournal and privately-owned Kazakh news agency Tengri News.
Uber's local press service told Tengri that “measures had been taken” regarding the driver, to ensure the “unfortunate” free-floating stool scenario did not repeat itself.
The press-service did not confirm whether the driver, who had a five-star rating, had been formally dismissed from the Uber network.
Uber is new to the Central Asian country, arriving in both the capital Astana and Almaty last summer. The app-based service “relies on smartphone tech as its dispatch and fee manager“.
In Kazakhstan it offers a happy medium between the most common means of getting a taxi in the country — flagging down literally any car and negotiating a fee with the driver on the spot — and the more expensive, but ultimately safer method of calling up licensed commercial cab firms.
For this reason the service has grown rapidly alongside its Russian app-based competitor Yandex in Kazakhstan's two richest cities, where smartphone use is ubiquitous.
But the wooden stool scandal is a spot of bad local press for the company at a time when its global reputation is under siege, due to public relations gaffes and accusations that it exploits its workforce.
Many Kazakhstani readers of Darya's post shared her astounded initial reaction:
Uber
Вы вообще чтоли охренели?!
Это реально калифорнийский стартап?!
Uber. Are you completely nuts? Is this what a Californian startup looks like?

author: Akhal-Tech Collective


text:
Small Hands and Big Burden for Child Workers in Syria’s Idlib · Global Voices
Syria Untold

Hamed al-Beyoush at a car repair shop in Kafranbel in rural Idlib. Taken on January 30, 2017. Source: Huda Yahya/SyriaUntold.
This story was originally written for Syria Untold by Huda Yahya, a journalist and activist from Idlib's countryside who holds an Islamic degree (ijazah) in History. It was translated by Naziha Baassiri. It is republished here as part of a partnership agreement.
It wasn’t easy for Masaab al-Bakur, 12 years old, to take the decision to quit school and find a job in order to help his widowed mother with the ever-growing living expenses in their home town of Maarat al-Numan in southern rural Idlib.
Masaab, who lost his father in 2015 after he was hit by shrapnel during an air raid, is just one of many Syrian children who have gone into the work at an early age. Coming from poorer households, these children usually lost the main breadwinner in their family at a time when the living conditions radically changed in Syria due to the ongoing war. As a consequence, they were gravely affected in terms of a limited education and an unhealthy personal development.
Masaab – who works at blacksmith’s workshop – told SyriaUntold: “The [high] cost of living is what made me get this job. Although it’s hard and is low-paid, it’s still better than nothing.” The 12-year-old with a tired but innocent face added happily: “I can buy two bags of bread everyday with my daily pay.”
Masaab, who works for eight hours a day, is responsible for turning the generators on and off as well as for welding metal pieces together. His daily pay is 250 Syrian Pounds (SYP), roughly $0.5. Like him, many of the children have to put up with the injustice of being paid lowly wages that do not reflect the hard work they put in every day. Their employers often take advantage of their young age and their inability to fight for their rights.
Abu Ahmad (pseudonym), 40 years old, is the owner of the workshop where Masaab and other children work. He explained to SyriaUntold that Masaab’s low per diem is due to his young age and the fact that he is still learning the ins and outs of the profession. “Masaab’s desire to work here and his need for a job are [the reasons] I hired him. I will double his pay as he becomes more proficient and can perform well at work.”
14-year-old Hamed al-Bayush at a car repair shop in Kafranbel in rural Idlib. Taken on January 30, 2017. Source: Huda al-Yahya/SyriaUntold
Umm Masaab, 35 years old, is sad to see Masaab quit school, in which she said he was a top student. However, she explained that Masaab’s work is worth it given it helps with the family’s living expenses. She added that, at the end of the day, he would have apprenticed for a good job. Yet given the harsh reality of being a mother of four children with no degree and no work experience to help her keep her family, Umm Masaab found no other solution to her dilemma. Masaab is her eldest and Muhammad, her youngest, is only three-years-old.
The family’s monthly living expenses amount to $100 at least. Umm Masaab is not able to afford the additional costs of Masaab’s school expenses — from stationary, clothes and a daily allowance that would amount to $100 per year — even when the school fees themselves are low. With four children to support, things look bleak indeed.
The low numbers of students enrolled at schools in rural Idlib is mainly due to regime and Russian air raids that target educational institutions. Consequently, the rates of child labor in the area spiked as the war raged on, with the Russian interference only adding to the misery.
Hamed al-Bayush, 14 years old, who also quit school, explained to SyriaUntold: “There is no way I could still be in school and that’s for two reasons: first, I need my own allowance for which I can’t ask my poor father. Secondly, schools are not what they used to be.” What Hamed meant was that many teachers usually dismiss class as soon as they hear a jet fighter flying over, in light of the massacre that happened at schools in Hass and many other villages. According to the 14-year-old, there is no point to education in the midst of fear and worry of yet another massacre. For him, work places are now considered safer, given that the regime is targeting schools.
Hamed works at a car repair shop. Despite it being a hard job, he says he is happy and content because, at least, he is now able to keep himself and sometimes even pitch in for his siblings. Children in rural Idlib have taken up many jobs, either selling on pavements, raising stock, farming, or apprenticing to be electricians, carpenters, and barbers.
Omar, 13 years old, and Zayd, 12 years old, are two brothers who sell houseware door-to-door. They are the sole breadwinners in their family of five after their father was arrested by the regime in 2014.
Their mother, Mariam al-Hasan, 39 years old, is saddened by her children working but said: “What can a woman like me do but send her sons to work?” referring to her back problem. “I can’t find any appropriate job in these harsh conditions, and if it weren’t for the money my children bring in, we wouldn’t survive.”
14-year-old Hamed al-Bayush at a car repair shop in Kafranbel in rural Idlib. Taken on January 30, 2017. Source: Huda al-Yahya/SyriaUntold
Without a doubt, there are now more job opportunities for children than there are for adults. Children accept less pay in comparison, and so, it has become commonplace to see child labor all over rural Idlib.
Amjad al-Salim, 31 years old, is a sociology graduate and currently works as a teacher. He told SyriaUntold that “this phenomenon has negative repercussions on society as a whole, but specifically on children.” He condemned the abuse of children, mainly by giving them jobs they are not physically and psychologically ready to perform. These jobs, he said, put a lot of strain on the child and threatens their health and safety; these are occupations that do not help evolve the child and get in the way of their education.
On the other hand, al-Salim said he has no problem with children taking on simple and easy tasks that do not strain the child and would still bring in a healthy income. “We are living hard times. It is war and it is merciless. Many women and children have been burdened with supporting families that have lost the main breadwinner. They have no choice but to work, and therefore, it is normal to see an increase in child labor in light of the absence of the concerned authorities.”
Ammar al-Suweid, 29 years old, is an engineer and a member of the local council in Kafranbel. He talked to SyriaUntold about what the local councils and civil society organizations could do to help with the increasing levels of child labor.
“There are some associations and organizations that provide some help to orphans to help them financially. But at the same time, poverty and need are aggravated with inflation and war. There is no way to absorb all the families that really need help.”
Psychological counselor Faten al-Suweid, who works for Syria Relief and Development, told SyriaUntold that child labor is destructive to the child on all levels. “A child loses their ability to distinguish between right and wrong, and they are increasingly aggressive due to the employer’s maltreatment […] When a child quits school, they lose their opportunity to an education and training that would ultimately negatively affect their creative abilities.”
According to the counselor, one can’t limit this phenomenon unless parents are aware of the long-term dangers of child labor on both the child and the society. To raise awareness, she suggested holding seminars, conferences and educational sessions such as those given by UNICEF in many regime-controlled cities, including Aleppo. Although not enough, al-Suweid said it would be an important starting point to fight against the widespread child labor epidemic in Syria.
Until UNICEF is successful in its efforts to end child labor, this phenomenon only seems to be on the rise in Syria. It threatens a whole generation with ignorance and a multitude of physical, psychological and social problems, which should bring the Syrian relevant actors together to tackle and stop the issue at hand.

author: Syria Untold


text:
Egypt’s Revolution: Between Lost Hopes and Growing Apathy · Global Voices
Salma Essam

A cartoon featuring the Egyptian revolution of 2011 that toppled Hosni Mubarak's regime. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
The retelling of historical narratives requires someone with a good knack for storytelling, a silver tongue, if you will. The way you deliver a story can make a powerful difference in the listener’s imagination.
I have always dodged casual conversations about the Egyptian revolution from people who know little about it, fearing that words would fail me. So while I carry the memory of that event wherever I go, I rarely speak of it.
It was on the night of February 11, six years ago, that the course of Egypt's history drastically changed, signaling a bright future after years of recession and darkness. The overthrow of former President Hosni Mubarak was met with cheers and chants in the heart of Tahrir Square. A short-lived euphoria dominated the scene; a one-of-a-kind feeling that still gives me goosebumps when I think of it today. It was the end of a myriad of tyrannical regimes and the start of a promising new epoch.
Or that is how it seemed.
In the years since, Egypt has experienced political unrest and economic disarray, first under the leadership of Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, followed by the military-backed Abdelfattah El Sisi. Crackdowns on political dissidents, flagrant corruption, and the illegal trade of land have become the norm. The zeal for change morphed into extreme frustration as the situation did not seem to hold promising prospects.
Young people, especially, began striving for a chance to leave the country, having no expectation of brighter days to come.
To many, January 2011 is no more than a memory. And a distorted one at that.
However, and until recently, the one thing that quenched one's thirst for basic justice was the knowledge that Mubarak and his retinue had been sent to jail. Knowing that popular power had succeeded in overthrowing a long-term dictatorship was a feeling that sporadically revived hope. To put it simply, Egyptians could tell themselves that, at the very least, one of the main goals of January 2011 was an enduring success.
But this straw of hope does not seem to be there anymore.
Protester waving the Egyptian flag on January 25, 2011. Source: Zeinab Mohammed.
A few days ago, Egypt's court of cassation cleared Hosni Mubarak of the 2011 killings of protesters in a final ruling, leaving no room for appeal or retrial.
Mubarak, who was sentenced to life in 2012 for inciting the deaths of around 900 protesters in the 18-day uprising, was found innocent in March 2017. “The court has found the defendant innocent,” announced Judge Ahmed Abdel Qawi after a day-long hearing at the court. “It was a telling moment that sealed the fate of any chance of justice being meted out for those killed during the Arab Spring and the millions who participated,” as Cairo-based journalist Farid Y Farid explained.
Overthrown by a popular uprising, Mubarak had been the only Arab head of state left to face justice for mass murder, even after corruption charges against him and his two sons had been dismissed.
Today, the world can see one of its dictators walk free. History, however, will remember him as nothing but the embodiment of a military rule that oppressed a nation by resorting to conspiracy theories to mask its greed for power.
Gone are the days of ignorance, the days when Egyptians blindly endorsed the ruling of the courts when the laws were tailored by the culprits themselves. Listen to the court's defense or follow the case—one does not need a law degree to understand that there's something wrong with the verdict. Something terribly wrong.
Blame the timing.
A few years ago, Egyptians would have taken to the streets if such a verdict had been laid down. I can certainly vouch for that.
Blame the timing.
Today I came to realize that a lack of interest in what's happening and what is to come is a reality, and that the overwhelming desire for change has ceased to exist. It is something that I have sensed for quite some time, but had refused to make peace with.
On social media, however, there were angry reactions to the court's decision from  activists, politicians, and human rights campaigners.
Egyptian Activist Hawa Rehim tweeted:
سلاما علي “شهداء يناير” يرقدون بكرامة أرواحهم الطاهرة
براءة مبارك خزي وعار لشعب هانت عليه دماء اولادهم #براءه_لهم_وقمع_لنا
— ثــــــــــورةحرة⚡ (@Hawa_Rhim) March 5, 2017
Peace be upon January martyrs who rest in dignity of their pure souls. Mubarak's acquittal is a big shame for a nation indifferent about the blood of their brothers.”
Another Egyptian Twitter user said:
كان نفسي اسِفّ واهَزّر في حوار براءة مبارك بس ماعرفتش، الله يرحم اللي ماتوا..
— Rasputin (@EvanRasputin) March 2, 2017
I wanted to make a laugh out of Mubarak's verdict but I swear I couldn't. May God have mercy upon those who died.
Algerian presenter Wassila Awlamy ridiculed the judgement by tweeting a photo of Syrian President Bashar El Assad saying: “I want to face trial in Egypt.”
بعد #براءة_حسني_مبارك .. pic.twitter.com/hy1vbnQvZT
— وسيلة عولمي (@wassilaoulmi) March 2, 2017
#AfterMubarakInnocence
Blame the timing.

author: Salma Essam


text:
Latin Americans Hit the Streets to Strike on International Women’s Day · Global Voices
Laura Vidal

Sign reads, “No to sexist violence.” Photo: Emergente. Published with permission and under CC 2.0.
Latin America is expecting a rush of street actions and activist initiatives on Wednesday, following promises by an array of civic groups to join a labor strike on International Women's Day. Organizers expect the work stoppages and protests to spread like two movements last October, #VivasNosQueremos (We Want Ourselves Alive) and #NiUnaMenos (Not One Less).
Este 8 de marzo volvemos a las calles.
Foto: Marcha Ni Una Menos – junio 2016#8M #Nosotra… https://t.co/1K7n7ptK8b pic.twitter.com/xLbd6GqNOl
— Emergente (@emergentemedio) March 7, 2017
This March 8 we'll be back to the streets. Photo: The NotOneLess protest in June 2016.
The protests last year started in Argentina in response to a series of brutal femicides that took place weeks earlier in different parts of the country. These demonstrations quickly spread to other parts of the region. Within days, there were protests in cities across Chile, Uruguay, Peru, Bolivia, and Mexico, with demonstrators chanting the same slogans, and campaigning on the same issues.
This year, numerous organizations throughout the region, both online and offline, have waged public-education initiatives and invited people to planned demonstrations, also asking women to join an international strike.
This Wednesday, people across Latin America will protest the fact that their region has some of the highest rates of femicide in the world. In Uruguay, for example, protesters are denouncing state officials’ failure to institute better protections for women, and speaking out against the rise of religious groups and the invisibility of populations of African descent:
A pesar de determinadas políticas públicas que podrían considerarse progresistas, denunciamos […] las barreras existentes para el acceso a la interrupción voluntaria del embarazo [Exigimos también] Reconocimiento de derechos específicos para la población afrodescendiente: Asumir en la lucha feminista la lucha contra el [racismo]. [Se necesitan] políticas descentralizadas para la población afrodescendiente reconociendo a las mujeres rurales con sus carencias particulares por el medio donde se encuentran, donde opera fuertemente la hegemonía de poder clases, raza y sexo.
In spite of certain public policies that could be considered as progressive, we denounce […] the limitations that exist in the access to voluntary pregnancy interruption. [We demand also] specific rights to be considered for Afro-descendants: that the feminist struggle takes on the struggle against [racism]. Decentralized policies [are needed] for the Afro-descendant population, recognizing rural women with their particular needs due to their surroundings, where hegemonies of class, race and sex act strongly.
In Chile, activists on Facebook are sharing ways to join the strike:
El grupo internacional sugiere una forma abierta de paro y nuestra labor es decidir cómo lo haremos en las distintas ciudades de Chile:
– Paro total – paro en el trabajo o en las tareas domésticas y en los roles sociales como cuidadoras durante la jornada completa
– Paro de tiempo parcial parando la producción/trabajo por 1 o 2 horas
– En caso de que no puedas parar tu trabajo: usar elementos de negro como ropa negra, cintas negras o cualquier elemento que decidas
– Boicotear las empresas que usan el sexismo en sus propagandas o en su enfoque hacia las trabajadoras
The international group suggests an open strike. Our work is to decide how we'll do it in the different Chilean cities: A total strike — at work or at home and also in social roles, like carers, during the whole day. A partial strike — with a one- or two-hour strike. In case you can't join the strike by not going to work: use black clothes, or a black ribbon, or any other element you decide. Boycott companies that use sexism in their advertisements or in their treatment to female workers.
In Argentina, the group Emergente will be publishing updates about the strike and street protests on Facebook and Twitter. On Tuesday, Emergente reported that some demonstrations kicked off early, beginning with protests staged by activists demanding more visibility and respect for the LGBTQ community.
#ParoNacionalYa “Unidad de los trabajadorxs, y al que no le gusta se jode, se jode” pic.twitter.com/qzNm8SuFRs
— Emergente (@emergentemedio) March 7, 2017
#NationalStrikeNow “Worker's unity, and those who don't like it can go f* themselves”
In Paraguay, the civic-media organization TEDIC is joining the strike. In a statement published online, the group argued that violence against women can occur on the Internet, where it's not a given that technology automatically empowers women, the organization said:
En América Latina, hombres y mujeres, aunque tienen acceso de igual a igual a computadoras y a Internet en el hogar, se diferencian en el uso […] En la industria tecnológica, la situación de las mujeres se caracteriza por la desigualdad, la sub-representación, la discriminación y el acoso sexual. […] La Web es un espacio de violencia contra [las mujeres] En Paraguay, el caso más reciente y notorio de violencia machista a través de las redes sociales […] se dio a raíz de una grave denuncia hecha por una periodista. Según ella, en la conversación un número no identificado de hombres hablan de violarla para “corregirle“ la orientación sexual. Estas son muestras de violencia que forman parte de una “cultura de la violación“. Esta cultura, que se vive cotidianamente en Internet, promueve y normaliza conceptos y actos que atentan contra la integridad de mujeres y minorías LGBTQI.
In Latin America, men and women may have equal access to computers and the Internet at home, but it is the use that makes the difference […] In the tech industry, women's situation is characterized by inequality, under-representation, discrimination, and sexual harassment […] The Web is a violent space for women. In Paraguay, the most recent and notorious case of sexist violence through social media […] took place following a serious complaint made by a woman journalist. According to her, an unidentified number of men spoke about raping her to “correct” her sexual orientation. These are ways that violence creates a “rape culture.” This culture, which permeates the Internet, promotes and normalizes concepts that undermine the integrity of women and LGBTQ minorities.

author: Laura Vidal


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Nyango Star, the Apple-Shaped Mascot Who Drums for Japan’s Tohoku Region · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

Nyango Star drumming to a song by popular Japanese “idol”/metal fusion band BABYMETAL. Screencap from official Nyango Star YouTube channel.
A tweet featuring a Japanese apple-shaped plush mascot banging on the drums has gone viral at the start of March.
So far, the video of cult superstar Nyango Star playing the drums to the “Anpan March,” the theme from a popular children's television show, has been retweeted 91,000 times and has received 113,000 likes.
Xの紅など激しい曲ばかりではなくて、ここで1曲お子さん向けの曲を…！と始まったアンパンマンのマーチですが、、、
段々激しくなっていく2番からの演奏をご覧下さい。 pic.twitter.com/MjL74UAaa2
— 綺 (@ak1225_062708) March 4, 2017
He doesn't just rock out to tunes like ‘Crimson’ (Kurenai, 紅) by X Japan, here's Nyango Star playing for the Anpan March for kids!
Here's the second song he did. Take a look. The drumming just gets more and more intense.
Nyango Star is a ‘yuru-chara’ mascot from Kuroishi, in the middle of Aomori Prefecture, in northeastern Japan. The term ‘yura-chara’ is a combination and abbreviation of the Japanese words for “light-hearted and gentle” and “character”, or mascot. All regions of Japan boast one or more such mascots.
According to a comment on Reddit:
Please know that Nyango star is a yuru-chara mascot from Japan representing Aomori prefecture that's part of the Tohoku-region which was devastated by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami in March 11th, 2011. So, anytime Nyango star makes public appearances it is to promote the region and help it recover from the tragedy. It isn't drumming for its personal gain but for its beloved home.
Nyango Star gets its shape from the apples that have made Aomori famous in Japan. Apparently, the mascot is also part cat. Combine the sound a cat makes in Japanese (nyan) with the Japanese world for ‘apple’ (ringo), and you get the name Nyango. The Aomori mascot gets the rest of its name from famed Beatles drummer Ringo Starr.
In this video, Nyango Star plays the drums in time with the “insanely difficult” song “Crimson” (Kurenai, 紅) by popular rock band X Japan at a university student culture in Aomori Prefecture.
More of Nyango Star's drumming videos can be found on the official Nyango Star site, and on his Twitter, Instagram and YouTube pages. More explanation in English about Nyango Star can be found on Japanese pop culture blog Grapee.

author: Nevin Thompson


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Palestinians Mourn ‘Intellectual-Activist’ Killed in Gun Battle With Israeli Forces · Global Voices
Marwa Fatafta

Widely shared photo of Bassel Al-Araj on Facebook. Source: Facebook
Update (March 8, 2017, 12:07 pm GMT): Information about sources and other minor details were added to the story.
Palestinian media outlets and activists are reporting that a young Palestinian political activist and intellectual was ‘executed‘ by Israeli forces in the early hours of Monday, March 6, 2017 at his hiding place in Ramallah, Occupied West Bank after a two-hour-long gun battle.
Bassel Al-Araj was on the run for almost seven months from Israeli authorities who accused him of “planning attacks against Israelis“. This was soon after he was released by the Palestinian Authority (PA), the semi-governmental body ruling the West Bank, who had detained him with two other Palestinian men, Haitham Siyaj and Mohammad Harb, without charge. According to a Ramallah-based prisoner and human rights group, Al-Araj, along with five other members of ‘al-Harak al-Shababi youth movement’ imprisoned with him, went on hunger strike to protest against the PA's participation in Israel's illegal administrative detention, maltreatment and torture of Palestinians. The Israeli government labeled their group a ‘terrorist organization‘.
Al-Araj, Siyaj, and Harb were detained by the Palestinian Security Forces on April 10 in Ramallah after their families reported them missing for ten days. After their release, Siyaj and Harb were arrested by Israeli authorities and Al-Araj went on the run.
The PA, which regularly comes under heavy criticism from Palestinians for doing the ‘dirty work’ of Israel and detaining Palestinian activists resisting the Israeli occupation under ‘security coordination’ agreements with Israel, is now widely being accused of complicity in what would happen to Al-Araj. Indeed, as Al Jazeera reported, “shortly after the men were arrested, Mahmoud Abbas, president of the PA, spoke proudly of his government's coordination with Israel in arresting the young men.”
A native of the West Bank village of Al-Walajeh in the District of Bethlehem, al-Araj was a political activist, an intellectual, and a researcher who wrote about the history of Palestinian revolution and resistance. Images of books drenched in blood on the floor where he was reportedly killed were shared among Palestinians on social media, praising him as an ‘intellectual-activist’.
Widely shared photos showing Bassel's books drenched in blood. Taken by Hisham Abu Shaqrah. Source: Facebook
Al-Araj left behind a chilling final letter in his house:
Hundreds of Palestinians took to the streets of Ramallah to mourn al-Araj's death and protest the Palestinian Authority's security coordination with Israel, political arrests and prosecutions of Palestinian activists.
The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) issued a statement mourning the death of “one of the most prominent young Palestinian strugglers… He was a revolutionary intellectual who put all of his cultural and intellectual energies in the service of the resistance together with his own actions on the ground, confronting security coordination and collaboration.”
The PFLP condemned the security coordination with Israel and called for putting an end to the 1993 Oslo Accords, the set of agreements between the government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), largely represented by the PA, that is widely perceived as having failed Palestinians, and which al-Araj himself was against.
But the PFLP wasn't the only one calling for an end of security coordination between the PA and the Israeli government. Father Manuel Mussallam, a Catholic priest from Gaza, said in a video that went viral:
Today, we speak of the death of such a hero and martyr. This man fell as a martyr as he was fighting the Israeli occupation. Where were his people? Why wasn't his people with him? Why are his people absent? Who was those that were supposed to protect him? Who was supposed to hide him? We now are afraid of Hamas over the PA, and the PA over Hamas, and both the PA and Hamas over our people. And this is something that must be rejected completely. But that is the situation in which we find ourselves in today. It's shameful. It's repulsive. This situation, shame on the Palestinian people who is living it. Oh brothers from the Palestinian authority, we love you because you are our people. But we reject the ‘security cooperation’ (with Israel) completely. We are one entity, one body under the occupation. We reject all forms of ‘intelligence’ cooperation with the Israelis. I am making this urgent call for civil disobedience until the fall of the authorities and Israel and the occupation. The people must take the decision to launch a revolution. The people are the strength, for we do not stay strong we will disappear.
Palestinian cartoonist ‘Sabaaneh’ portrayed the PA as traitors that gave up al-Araj to the Israeli occupation:
#Israeli #army assassinated #Palestinian in #RAMALLAH #باسل_الأعرج pic.twitter.com/flI0MkwSwU
— Sabaaneh (@Sabaaneh) 6 March 2017

author: Marwa Fatafta


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Russian Socialists Celebrate International Women’s Day With Guerilla Ads on the Subway · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

Photo: Russian Socialist Movement
On Tuesday, a day before millions of Russian men will rain down flowers on the ladies in their lives for International Women’s Day, activists in the Russian Socialist Movement broke with the tradition of bouquets and instead plastered the St. Petersburg subway with faux advertisements highlighting women’s issues like domestic abuse, unequal pay, and sexual harassment. The banners double as announcements for an unsanctioned protest the group is planning on Malaya Sadovaya Street at 3 p.m. on March 8.
According to the movement’s website, more than 10,000 women die every year in Russia because of domestic violence. The group doesn’t cite this claim, but it’s likely credible. In 2003, Amnesty International thought the number of Russian women killed by domestic violence was even higher.
“Instead of creating crisis centers and shelters, or introducing protection mechanisms like restraining orders, the state recently decriminalized domestic violence,” the activists write online.
One of their “advertisements” displayed in the St. Petersburg subway featured a woman hiding behind a bouquet of roses. In the image, she has a black eye and the caption reads, “Flowers are done to death!” In Russian, the phrase plays on the word izbito, which means both “overdone” and, literally, “beaten up.”
Photo: Russian Socialist Movement
The socialists’ posters also took aim at discrimination in the workplace, where Russian women earn roughly 30 percent less than men, and women remain legally barred from more than 450 professions — including, for example, subway engine driver. In this spirit, another poster showed a woman measuring her waist, along with the slogan “Loose some weight! Be tiny like your salary.”
Photo: Russian Socialist Movement
Another poster addressed sexual commodification, showing a woman with prostitution street advertisements taped to her face, and the caption, “Be beautiful! They appreciate you.”
Photo: Russian Socialist Movement
According to the activists, this image was partly inspired by a scandal at the airline Aeroflot, where several employees recently accused the company of discriminating against older, larger stewardesses on international flights — charges Aeroflot has denied unconditionally.
If St. Petersburg’s socialists won any converts with their subway stunt, they’ll need them immediately in the battle for women’s rights and respect in Russia.
An openly sexist advertisement on International Women's Day for plastic ties.
Just as these progressives were unveiling their subway ads on Tuesday, a local company that manufactures plastic ties ran a commercial on its website featuring a woman in a bikini, tied up, turning blue, and unable to free herself. The advertisement’s URL includes the words “Clara Zetkin burn in hell,” presumably referring to the German Marxist who helped launch International Women’s Day more than a century ago.

author: Kevin Rothrock


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The Heartbreaking Digital Search for Migrants Who Go Missing Crossing the US-Mexico Border · Global Voices
Mercedes Matz

A migrant trying to climb over the US-Mexico border fence at the Tijuana-San Diego point. The crosses remind of those who died attempting to pass. Photography by Tomas Castelazo, taken from Wikimedia Commons, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.
Desperate migrants currently pay thousands of dollars to smugglers so they can trek 50 to 80 miles along remote dangerous desert corridors between Mexico and the US that are designed to kill.
Every year, thousands risk the journey to improve their lives or flee the violence in their home countries.
Over the years, thousands have gone missing, leaving their families searching for clues online of what went wrong.
The US south-western frontier is a “vast graveyard of the missing,” according to the No More Deaths / No Más Muertes, an Arizona-based advocacy group.
A spokesperson for the group says that tens of thousands of people have disappeared since the 1990s. More than 6,000 people have been found dead over the past 16 years attempting to enter the US from Mexico along the desert, according to US border patrol agents.
These migrants face potential risks from their smugglers, US border patrol agents, kidnappers, armed American anti-immigration activists and lethal snakes, spiders and scorpions. They could also die from dehydration in a desert that reaches 110°F (43°C).
The migrants that die often leave trails of clues behind, like the clothes they were wearing, or the few possessions they had on them. Here are examples of a digital platform and a Facebook page that are connecting families of missing migrants in Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala to digital photographs of these clues.
I Have A Name/ Yo tengo Nombre is a database that seeks to facilitate relatives of missing migrants. The database can help families figure out if their loved ones were victims of crime in Central America, whether they were kidnapped in the south of Mexico, detained in the north, or were able to reach safety.
Case 0409: “Brown T-shirt with a Guinness logo. White Nike brand shoes 8.5 US size. Red underwear, Funk brand, size XL. Found on Dos Palmas Ranch.” The contact information can be found by following the link. Photograph taken from the website and used with permission.
The digital project contains photographs of personal items discovered among the belongings of migrants found in south Texas. This is the initiative of the Austin-based nonprofit news organization Texas Observer, which, with the permission of forensic experts, photographs clothes, rosaries, jewelry, belts, shoes, combs, bracelets, hats, backpacks, buckles, and anything that could help identify who these people are.
Since the 1990s, most of America’s 2,000-mile frontier with Mexico has been increasingly aggressively defended by drones, cameras and sensors, a 700-mile fence and a heavily militarized US border patrol. The official border patrol strategy created in 1994, ‘was to create conditions that would cause more migrants to die in hostile terrain, in order to deter other migrants from making the trip,’ according to the Guardian.
When migrants make the difficult physical and financial decision to cross the desert border, they usually rely on smugglers to help them navigate dangerous desert trails. Many times, smugglers deceive their “customers” by telling them that the passage is safe, but in reality, the terrain is treacherous, there are vigilant border patrol agents, extreme weather conditions and water shortages.
The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) has pointed out that the increase in migration is a humanitarian crisis, not a threat to the US national security.
Case 0419. “Blue handkerchief, toothpaste and toothbrush. The remains are thought to have been found in Jim Hogg County but buried at Sacred Heart Cemetery in Brooks County and exhumed on 23 May 2013.” The contact information can be found by following the link. Photograph from the website used with permission.
There is also a Facebook page called “Desaparecidos y sin reclamar en la frontera” (“Missing and unclaimed at the border”) with the same aim, and it includes photographs of tattoos that facilitate the identification of bodies. On the Facebook page timeline you can find  messages like this:
FAMILIA LOCALIZADA. MIL GRACIAS POR COMPARTIR!! (…) Cuerpo encontrado el día martes 3 de enero de 2017 en Río Grande, Hidalgo, Texas. El cuerpo mostraba signos moderados de descomposición, y determinaron que se trataba de un varón en edad adulta, de aproximadamente entre 30 y 40 años”.
FAMILY MEMBER LOCATED. THANK YOU FOR SHARING !! (…) Body found on Tuesday, 3 January 2017 in Rio Grande, Hidalgo, Texas. The body showed moderate signs of decomposition, and it was determined that he was an adult male, about 30 to 40 years old. “
Searching for clues, families often share photographs and information of their missing loved one on this Facebook page. This testimony can be found at the end of one of the cases:
Un caso más se cierra, y una familia se encuentra plenamente agradecida con todos ustedes por haber compartido este caso, y que llegará hasta Mexicali, Baja California.
En el mes de octubre por medio de las fotografías que se publicaron, pudieron identificar algunos tatuajes de su familiar, tuve la oportunidad de hablar con ellos, y lamentablemente todo coincidía, pero esperamos a que la familia hiciera el trámite y lo pudiera identificar, durante ese mismo mes nos confirmaron que se trataba de Emilio Hipólito, pero nos pidieron tiempo, para el duelo y tiempo para esperar recibirlo de nuevo. En el mes pasado se comunicaron y nos confirmaron que sus restos ya están descansando en su natal Mexicali, y que querían dar el caso por cerrado agradeciendo a toda y cada una de las personas que compartieron el caso, ya que si no fuera por eso, tal vez hoy aún se preguntarían donde está.
One more case closes, and a family is grateful to all of you for sharing this case so that the remains of their relative will reach Mexicali in Baja California (Lower California state).
In October, through the photographs that were published, the family was able to identify some tattoos of their relative, and I had the opportunity to talk to them, and regrettably everything matched, but we waited until the family finished the formalities and could identify him. During that same month they confirmed that it was Emilio Hipólito, but they asked for time to mourn and to wait until they receive his remains. In the last month they communicated and confirmed that his remains are already resting in his native Mexicali, and they wanted to give the case closure by thanking to each and every one of the people who shared the case, since, if it were not for them, maybe today they would still ask where he is.
And it concludes:
Emilio Hipólito salió de su casa con un sueño pero jamás regresó, su madre aún albergaba la esperanza de que el volviera pero al pasar de los días se preguntaban que le habría pasado.
Hoy el ya descansa en paz pues fue plenamente identificado y sus restos ya fueron repatriados a su natal Mexicali. Sus hermanos y familia se encuentran encuentran muy agradecidos, en especial su madre, pues el vivía con ella. Le sobrevive una hija, descanse en paz Emilio Hipólito.
Mil gracias amigos! Todo es gracias a ustedes, sigamos compartiendo casos, su ayuda es imprescindible!
Emilio Hipólito left his house with a dream but never returned, his mother was still hoping that he would return, but, as the days went by, they wondered what had happened to him.
Today he rests in peace because he was fully identified and his remains were already repatriated to his native Mexicali. His brothers and family are very grateful, especially his mother, because he lived with her. He is survived by his daughter, rest in peace Emilio Hipólito.
Thank you, my friends! It's all thanks to you, keep sharing cases, your help is essential!
Emilo's family was grateful to find out what happened to him, and to be able to bury him and his American dream in Mexico.

author: Mercedes Matz


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We the Governors of the Russian Federation Would Like to Wish You a Happy International Women’s Day · Global Voices
Isaac Webb

Source: YouTube
According to sources in the Kremlin, the order came from the very top: Russian governors were to celebrate International Women's Day “creatively.”
On March 7, the newspaper Kommersant reported that the Presidential Administration had instructed the leaders of Russia's regions and republics to take creative license with their March 8 celebrations, and by the time Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had gotten around to denying the reports, a handful of governors had already taken their marching orders: though most regional leaders recorded relatively bland videos wishing their constituents happy International Women's Day or gave addresses at local celebrations, some governors had a little more fun with the rumored decree.
Valery Shantsev, the governor of Nizhny Novgorod Region, recorded a “mannequin challenge” video to express his gratitude towards women. Or something. Near the end of the video, Shantsev says that a woman “is a mystery and a secret behind seven seals” but that men are “ready to solve you every day.” He concludes with: “Shine! Enchant! Inspire! Happy International Women's Day!”
Alexander Levinthal, the governor of the Jewish Autonomous Republic, had a slightly more empowering message in his recorded congratulations, which featured falling flower petals and a prop guitar.
Дорогие женщины! Вы способны творить чудеса. Вы покоряете горные вершины и опускаетесь на морское дно. Вы сочиняете прекрасные симфонии и ставите мировые рекорды. Вы строите дома и разрушаете все преграды. Вы пишите гениальные романы и совершаете научные открытие. Вы для нас неиссякаемый источник вдохновения. И только ради вас мы становимся отважными героями и неисправимыми романтиками…
Dear women! You can work miracles. You climb mountains and dive to the bottom of the sea. You compose beautiful symphonies and set world records. You build homes and break down all obstacles. You write brilliant novels and make scientific discoveries. You are an inexhaustible source of inspiration. It's only because of you that we become brave heroes and incorrigible romantics…
One official, however, was evidently not creative enough to comply with the presidential order: Igor Vasilev, the governor of Kirov, plagiarized a poem he claimed to have written about women from his region. Vasilev's final stanza read:
У нас и снег белее всех снегов
И я могу сказать вам без оглядки
В России все красивее всего
Но всех красивей женщины на Вятке!
We have the whitest of white snow
And I can tell you without reservation
In Russia, everything is the most beautiful
But all the more beautiful are the women of the Vyatke!
As the website kirov-portal.ru noticed, however, this poem is a little-altered version of a poem written by Aleksandr Vulykh, which Vasilev himself shared on his VKontakte page in 2014.
Vulykh's original poem reads:
У нас и снег белее всех снегов,
У нас и дождь сильнее всех по силе.
В России все красивее всего,
Но всех красивей женщины в России!
We have the whitest of white snow
We have the strongest rains
In Russia, everything is the most beautiful
But all the more beautiful are the women of Russia!
But it wasn't just governors celebrating creatively: Even Putin got in on the action, quoting a poem written by Konstantin Balmont in a statement delivered today:
Женщина – с нами, когда мы рождаемся,
Женщина – с нами в последний наш час.
Женщина – знамя, когда мы сражаемся,
Женщина – радость раскрывшихся глаз.
A woman – with us when we are born
A woman – with us in our last hour,
A woman – the banner with us when we fight
A woman – the joy of clear eyes.

author: Isaac Webb


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Controversial Sentence Highlights Mozambique’s Problems Prosecuting Domestic Violence · Global Voices
Dércio Tsandzana

Josina Machel. Image: YouTube
A case of domestic violence is causing some debate in Mozambique, where in late February a businessman named Rafael Licuco was sentenced to three years and four months in prison for hitting his girlfriend Josina Machel, the daughter of former Mozambican President Samora Machel. As a result of the attack, she lost vision in one eye. Controversially, the sentence was later commuted to a compensation payment of 200 million meticais, or around 3 million USD.
Some said the fine is too high, while others are indignant that the attacker isn't going to prison. Critics who think 200 million meticais is an unreasonably high penalty have argued that the case was rushed unfairly, and perhaps influenced by the victim's high-placed family. Many highlighted that there are thousands of other similar cases in Mozambique which are forgotten, although others thought that the outcome could serve as an example to possible future attackers.
In late 2015, Josina Machel (who is also the daughter of activist Graça Machel and stepdaughter of Nelson Mandela) publicly described the attack she suffered in Maputo on Oct. 16, 2015, saying her boyfriend of two years attacked her in a parked car during an argument, striking her twice in the face. Josina ran from the car, staggering from her injuries, and later passed out. She says she woke up in a hospital, where doctors told her that she'd never see again in one of her eyes.
Despite a law passed in 2009 to raise prison sentences for domestic violence convictions to 12 years, Mozambique has struggled to lower its crime rate in this area. Last year, there were 25,000 cases of domestic violence across the country, according to public officials. The Health Ministry has already declared domestic violence to be a matter of public health.
Another significant case occurred last December, when Valentina Guebuza, another daughter of a former Mozambican president, was shot and killed by her own husband, Zófimo Muiuane, who is now behind bars awaiting judgement.
Meanwhile, Internet users in Mozambique have reacted differently to the decision to spare Josina Machel’s attacker any prison time. Facebook user Joselina Caetano found the compensation amount charged to the accused exorbitant:
Mas porque esse todo valor? Será que a justiça moçambicana quando julga alguém olha para o apelido? Por me ficavas na cadeia esses 3 anos por bom comportamento acho que irias ficar só um em vez de enriquecer essa dai…Justiça moçambicana as vezes não vale para nada
But why all that money? Could it be that when the Mozambican courts judge someone they check their name first? If it was up to me, he would stay in jail for those 3 years, and for good behaviour he would only stay one year, rather than enriching that one… Sometimes Mozambican justice is not worth anything
Tomás Machava questioned the usefulness of the court's fine, given the thousands of Mozambicans abused every day:
Em Moçambique TODOS somos iguais perante a lei, porém, a lei não é igual perante a TODOS..Quantos não são mortos e não são pagos nem a metade dessa fortuna às suas famílias!!! Agora pergunto onde esta a igualdade social????
In Mozambique EVERYONE is equal before the law, however, the law is not equal for EVERYONE..How many are dead while their families are not paid even half of that fortune!!! Now I ask where is the social equality????
In Deutsche Welle‘s Portuguese edition, the president of the Order of Lawyers of Mozambique, Flávio Menete, explained that the court determined the size of the compensation payment by “taking into account the attacker's degree of culpability, his economic situation, the injured party's economic situation, and also the circumstances of the attack.”
In the same article, Maria Paula Vera Cruz, president of the Women’s Forum, an organization advocating women’s rights in Mozambique, said that the large size of the penalty risks “distraction,” focusing the public's attention on the money, and not the case or the larger national problems it represents.
On Facebook, Dioclésio Ricardo, though, said that all those thinking of the money reveal how Mozambican society suffers from a serious social problem:
Não mais disfarçam! A intolerância, a violência e a imoralidade são, cada vez mais, notórios na nossa sociedade. Não há pudor. Revelam-se em plena luz do dia. Deseja-se a morte, crucifica-se a vítima, humilha-se e devassa-se a vida privada. É recorrente!
Patrícios, o nosso sistema jurídico é de uma família que não se verga ao precedente. Se uns obtiveram uma indemnização de X porque morreu o menino, não legitima que o olho de uma (presumível) vítima de violência doméstica valha menos a título compensatório. Não é obrigatório que o juiz fixe igual ou menos. Pode fixar mais e mais!
(…) Urge uma auditoria moral à sociedade. Estamos imorais demais. Aliás, criamos uma moral na imoralidade. Não mais respeitamos a dor do outro. Comparamos tudo e mesmo o incomparável.
They’re not hiding anymore! Intolerance, violence, and immorality are, more and more, prevalent in our society. There is no modesty. They show themselves in plain daylight. They wish them death, crucify the victim, humiliate them and invade their private lives. It happens all the time!
Compatriots, our judicial system is one of those that does not rely on precedent. If some people obtained X amount of compensation because a boy died, it does not justify that the eye of a (presumed) victim of domestic violence is valued less in terms of compensation. The judge is not obliged to set the same or less. They can set more and more!
We need a moral evaluation of society. We are too immoral. Meanwhile, we create a morality in the immorality. We no longer respect the pain of the other. We compare everything and even the incomparable.
Mauro Paulo, on the other hand, celebrated the case's outcome, calling it a victory against domestic violence:
Parabéns à VÍTIMA de violência doméstica que conseguiu punir bem mesmo seu agressor. Que as outras tenham feeling de denunciar seus agressores também. Se a justiça não funcionar para vocês, culpem os advogados, promotores e juristas, que não sei para que existem neste País ou a quem servem, e ao cidadão comum que é corrupto e condiciona o espírito da corrupção no dia-a-dia e a todos os níveis.
Congratulations to the VICTIM of domestic violence who managed to punish her attacker well. Hopefully others will also be more inclined to denounce their attackers. If the courts do not work for you, blame the lawyers, prosecutors and jurists, who I do not know the reason they exist in this country or who they serve, and the common citizen who is corrupt and develops a spirit of corruption in their daily routine and at all levels.
Josina Machel has already promised to use any court-ordered compensation to help other abused women, and she's established the “Kuhluka” (“Stand Up”) Association to spearhead this initiative.

author: Dércio Tsandzana


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‘Girls To The Front’: Celebrating International Women’s Day 2017 in Australia · Global Voices
Kevin Rennie

Girls To The Front on triple j – triplej screenshot of YouTube video
Many events were organised across Australia for International Women's Day 2017 in order to celebrate victories and highlight struggles that are still ongoing.
Even before March 8, one media empire copped criticism from another for its plans. The national broadcaster, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), scheduled female presenters for the day.
Moreover, Triple J, one of the ABC's digital radio stations targeted at listeners between the ages of 18 and 25, featured  music ‘made by women and programmed by women’ on IWD.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper attacked the ABC as ‘patronising’. Pedestrian.tv explained:
[Daily Telegraph] national political editor Sharri Markson has taken issue with the ABC's apparently “patronising” and “tokenistic” push to promote gender equality in the workplace by announcing its male presenters will take a backseat to female talent tomorrow, on International Women's Day.
Twitter user Chris Mac blamed the paper's owner:
At least one commercial radio station doing same thing. @dailytelegraph‘s drivel yesterday was part of @rupertmurdoch‘s anti ABC campaign. https://t.co/5niIvCi3lu
— Chris Mac (@ChrisMac1270) March 7, 2017
#IWD2017 #internationalwomensday and #girlstothefront all trended down under on Twitter. The 2017 theme #beboldforchange was also a popular hashtag.
Traditional concerns such as sexism, the pay gap and lack of women in management roles were just some of the issues raised under the hashtags.
For me #BeBoldForChange means calling out casual sexism and questioning entrenched practices that favour male dominated decision-making #IWD
— Rhiannon West (@West_Rhi) March 7, 2017
Yesterday's take on the Glass ceiling by @GlenLeLievre #IWD pic.twitter.com/3v2MAOygzZ
— Crikey.com.au (@crikey_news) March 8, 2017
Today we honour #internationalwomensday, from #equalpay to workplace safety. @unionsaustralia support women. @CFMEU @vanbadham #auspol pic.twitter.com/IhRCcawMMB
— The Delegate (@solotolo68) March 7, 2017
Domestic violence has been high on the agenda in Australia. ‘We say no more’ is a campaign with a particular focus on the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in this area:
International Women's Day #IWD2017#BeBoldForChange & speak out against the silence of violence
#wesaynomore https://t.co/CzYzFEJcTV pic.twitter.com/1M3wlx3jle
— wesaynomore (@wesay_nomore) March 7, 2017
The business world was keen to trumpet any good news on social media:
#construction sector lobby group appoints first women CEO read more at @HerCanberra https://t.co/Df7ag21QGa
— Master Builders (@MBA_Aust) March 8, 2017
To drive gender equality, we need bold ideas. That's why we're introducing our new recruitment initiative #IWD17 https://t.co/Zs70coMVTR
— Andrew Penn (@andy_penn) March 7, 2017
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) achievements were popular on Twitter:
It's #internationalwomensday Big shout out to all #womeninstem changing the world! You are amazing! #BeBoldForChange pic.twitter.com/GVcyEf1iNW
— Li Kheng Chai (@MsLiChai) March 7, 2017
Wish #InternationalWomensDay was everyday! Love #GirlsToTheFront @triplej & #womeninSTEM posts making microscope work fun! #DressLikeAWoman pic.twitter.com/DM2weWajea
— Monique Smith (@MoniqueSmith01) March 7, 2017
In 1887, these seven young women fought hard to be admitted into the Melbourne Medical School, 25 years after the course had begun #IWD2017 pic.twitter.com/0Tqah6X4pN
— UniMelb MDHS (@UniMelbMDHS) March 8, 2017
Prominent feminist Anne Summers published The Women's Manifesto for IWD. Its four equality goals for 2022 are:
There were marches across the nation. At the Melbourne rally, the ‘sign says it all':
#IWD2017 march with the @PlanAustralia crew in Melbourne – sign says it all! pic.twitter.com/SvvEUrHyJY
— Susanne Legena (@susannelegena) March 8, 2017
Finally, volunteer lawyers carried on the struggle at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre well into the evening:
7.53pm on #IWD2017 & our brilliant @ASRC1 women lawyers going strong running Wednesday Night Human Rights Clinic to #KeepThemSafe. What ?? pic.twitter.com/ITaH5U4UyZ
— Kon Karapanagiotidis (@Kon__K) March 8, 2017

author: Kevin Rennie