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Radio Licences in Zambia Cancelled Because of Opposition’s Access  · Global Voices
Gershom Ndhlovu

The truth is out.
Since 1991, when Zambia enjoyed a liberalised business–and by extension, media–environment, consecutive governments have promised the freeing of radio and TV for private stations to compete with state-run Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC), which runs both radio and TV channels. But they have dragged their feet in opening up the airwaves apparently for fear of opposition having access to them.
As the ruling government ramps up pressure on online publications by blocking some citizen media websites and arresting independent journalists, more fear factor was unwittingly brought out by President Michael Sata on October 28 when he lambasted Information and Broadcasting Permanent Secretary Emmanuel Mwamba for issuing national broadcasting licences to two private radio stations and granting operation licences to non-Christian radio stations.
Emmanuel Mwamba, recently dismissed as Information and Broadcasting Permanent Secretary. Picture used with permission from the Zambian Eye.
In the last 22 years, several radio and TV stations have opened, but have mostly been restricted to particular regions, with some submitting applications to expand their coverage nationally. These applications have been pending with hope for approval increasing with the new Patriotic Front (PF) government, whose manifesto promises the “opening up of airwaves”, especially given that President Sata, as an opposition leader, was never given any positive coverage, if covered at all.
Last September, Sata brought on Mwamba, from the restive Western Province where part of the population is fighting for secession, as the head of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
With gusto, Mwamba, a journalist better known for his role as press aide for Zambia’s second president, the late Frederick Chiluba, went into overdrive cancelling his predecessor’s projects such as the digital migration tender, and announced major changes in the public media. Among his accomplishments in the short time he was civil service head of the Information Ministry was granting the wishes of the some radio stations to broadcast nationally. He also allowed some Muslim-affiliated radio stations to start test transmissions. Notably, he pushed for state-controlled media to have a strong online presence.
Mwamba however burnt his fingers on the issue of licences.
He was told off by President Sata for thinking that he was cleverer than previous permanent secretaries who never approved any of the controversial applications, least of all allowing private stations to broadcast nationally. He said:
You Mr. Emmanuel Mwamba, do you think all the Permanent Secretaries before you were stupid not to issue the licence to Radio Phoenix? You want [opposition United Party for National Development Hakainde Hichilema] HH to be using the same radio station while sitting… Are you the only clever permanent secretary? Was the previous government foolish? […] Do you know why they [applications] were pending? Are you aware that Radio Phoenix has been bought by outsiders and that can endanger national integrity? Do you know why previous government had only allowed ZNBC to be the only national broadcaster?
After Mwamba was lambasted by President Sata, who also cancelled national licences of Radio Phoenix and QFM and operating licenses for non-Christian radio stations, a statement followed shortly that he had been transferred from the Information Ministry to Cabinet Office in the same capacity but in an unspecified role. Two days later, he was fired from the civil service altogether.
Civic organisation Operation Young Vote, through its executive director Guess Nyirenda, issued a statement condemning Sata’s stand:
The directive by the President to have the licenses revoked less than a month after the PF Government issued them through PS [Permanent Secretary] Mwamba is not only retrogressive but also a confirmation of the PF’s desire to keep Zambians starved of the much needed information that would ensure media growth and democracy […] The President’s categorical expression of fear for the opposition and Hakainde Hichilema (HH) in particular on being on Private National Media is testimony that the PF stands ready to disregard their manifesto when it suits them and further not to allow Zambians access rich, correct and true information on which to base their decisions now and in the future.
A reader on citizen journalism website Zambian Watchdog questioned the reasoning behind the cancellation of the radio licences, saying:
But w[h]at is wrong with the issuance of nationwide broadcasting licenses? I remember when President Sata was still in the opposition, he perpetualy [sic] complained about the limitation of both RADIO and TV coverage. Could it be that he was speaking purely out of ignora………… [ignorance].
The whole affair, including Sata's utterances on the cancelled licenses, explains why the Freedom of Information Bill, renamed Access to Information Bill, has never been enacted into a substantive law for years and also why the ZNBC and Independent Broadcasting Acts (IBA) have not been fully operationalized or just recently operationalized in the case of the latter.
The Freedom of Information Bill or the Access to Information Bill as it is now known, once enacted into law, is supposed to allow citizens in general to access publicly held information on any matter in writing and where this information cannot be released, a reason is supposed to be given to the person requesting it. Subsequent administrations have given security as one of the reasons to delay its passing.
On the other hand the ZNBC Act, which has only been partially operationalized, is supposed to make the national broadcaster into a public institution running independently with board members not being answerable to government. To date, ZNBC is still directly controlled by the ministry of information through the permanent secretary who is also a member of the institution's board.
The IBA Act provides for the establishment of an independent board to look into matters of broadcasting through licencing and monitoring of compliance of laws and regulations of all broadcasting stations but, incidentally, government still controls most of the functions of the Independent Broadcasting Authority.

author: Gershom Ndhlovu


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Young People Revel In Halloween Fun in Kyrgyzstan · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

Young people celebrate Halloween by joining the “zombie walk” in Bishkek. Image by Alexey Schatz, October 30, 2013, used with permission.
While debates over the appropriateness of participating in Halloween fun rage in Tajikistan, young people in the neighboring Kyrgyzstan revel in Halloween festivities. The country's most popular blogging platform has published [ru] a map of all venues organizing Halloween festivities in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan's capital. Dozens of people dressed up in zombie costumes took part in the “zombie walk” in central Bishkek. A photo essay published by a Kyrgyzstani blogger shows that schoolchildren too joined in celebrating the holiday by carving pumpkins and improvising costumes.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Alexander Sodiqov


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“Driving is Dangerous for Saudi Women”  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Women and Driving Don't Mix – in Saudi Arabia. Photo credit: Blue Abaya
On Blue Abaya, Layal writes a satirical piece on Saudi Arabia's ban on women driving. http://www.blueabaya.com/2013/10/26th-october-the-day-the-world-almost-came-to-an-end.html
She notes:
A new road sign was designed to spread awareness and remind any forgetful females that driving was not allowed. Clerics tweeted about the adverse affects of women driving cars which no doubt would place her in a dangerous unlawful situation. She might have to interact closely with males, much like her driver. Women might also go out of control when given control of cars which causes the entire society to weaken.
She adds:
The result of the crackdown was that all in all 12 out of the alleged 67 female drivers were caught wheel-handed. The traffic department was satisfied with the successful capturing of women drivers.
And continues:
The females were taken to the police station where they had to sign a pledge stating they will “never, ever, ever drive again”. They were fined for the traffic violation “driving without a license” because there was no law stating that women were not allowed to drive.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Egypt: Virginity Soap?  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Egyptian activist Nelly Ali exclaims:
While #egypt is busy… Shit like this is on the shelves ruining lives "Virginity Soap" (Alpha Market) #women pic.twitter.com/IXplFn2kY7
— Nelly Ali (@nellyali) November 1, 2013
In response, she gets this reply:
@nellyali it has been on shelves allover the Arab countries like Saudi Arabia and Dubai for more than 5 years and having high profits too
— ميس انشييراح (@eb_hab) November 1, 2013
Apparently, virginity soap is big business in Arab countries.


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Facepalm Politics in the Russian Parliament · Global Voices
Daniel Alan Kennedy

“Facepalm politics.” Images mixed by Kevin Rothrock.
It's been a bad two years for Russia's political parties. The ruling United Russia lists from scandal to scandal, as high profile members are implicated in everything from plagiarising their college dissertations, to drunkenly delaying airplanes, to conspiring to shoot their political rivals with surface-to-air missiles. Vladimir Zhirinovsky's LDPR looks increasingly defensive, as “nationalist democrats” like Alexey Navalny gain clout and experience. Meanwhile, the Communists wage a losing war against demography, as their base (elderly pensioners nostalgic for the glory days of Brezhnev) dies off.
All of these factors should have been an opportunity for Russia's third biggest political party, A Just Russia, to build on its success in the 2011 Duma elections. Instead Nikolai Levichev, who up until last weekend was the party's Chairman, took a miserable 2.85% of the vote in the September mayoral elections in Moscow. The party has always been a motley crew of nationalists, communists, erstwhile liberals, and social democrats, stitched together back in 2006 from a variety of ailing Kremlin-backed political projects. In recent weeks however, the fissures in the party have been coming to the fore as prominent members such as Oksana Dmitrieva and Ilya Ponоmarev have clashed with the party’s leadership. Dmitrieva represents the party’s more anti-Kremlin wing, which has been increasingly at odds with the party's status as Putin's “loyal opposition.”
A Just Russia's Party Conference – “A can of spiders, toads and adders.” Screenshot via Youtube.
This tension came to a head аt the party’s conference on the weekend of October 26-27, 2013, as Dmitrieva’s faction attempted to oust Levichev. Though ultimately unsuccessful, the attempt demonstrated the growing dissent among the party’s rank and file, with Dmitrieva gaining the votes of approximately one third of the party’s 439 delegates.
Much of the conference focused on dissecting the party’s disastrous showing in mayoral election and debating what its relationship to the “non-systemic opposition” should be. Levichev claimed [ru] that the non-systemic opposition “could not present any threat to the authorities” and “could not present a coherent program.” Anxious to excuse his own poor showing against this very same non-threatening opposition, Levichev declared at the conference that Navalny and his campaign were “a Kremlin project, curated by the security services with krysha from law enforcement agencies.” Elena Mizulina, author of Russia’s (in)famous “Gay Propaganda” law, claimed the party required more discipline and unity, if it is to compete with Navalny.
Many found Levichev's assertions and prevarication bizarre or even laughable. Alexander Zalessky [ru], a member of the Opposition “Party of the 5th of December,” joked on Twitter that the origins of Levichev's own party were hardly free from Kremlin intervention.
Начали Справедливую Россию как кремлёвский проект – так она им и останется, не изменить. Дмитрий @gudkovd, вам об этом говорили много раз.
— залесский (@igiss) October 27, 2013
A Just Russia was started as a Kremlin project—and it's stayed one, without any change. Dmitri @gudkovd has spoken about this many times.
Dmitri Gudkov was forced out of A Just Russia in March 2013, after refusing to stop associating with the oppositionist Left Front. Ilya Yashin, a prominent member of Russian non-systemic opposition, was similarly nonplussed.
Левичев на съезде СР не согласился с тем, что его последнее место на выборах мэра Мск это неудача, и раскритиковал своих критиков. #facepalm
— Илья Яшин (@IlyaYashin) October 26, 2013
At the Just Russia conference, Levichev disagreed that his coming last in the Moscow mayoral elections was unsuccessful and criticised his critics. #facepalm
Aleksei Knedlyakovsky [ru], an anti-Kremlin blogger and friend of the controversial punk rock band Pussy Riot, had this to say.
Когда читаешь новости про съезд СР, на ум приходят лишь банка с пауками, жабы и гадюки.
— Повар Войны (@noliquid) October 27, 2013
When you read the news about the Just Russia conference, you envision a can of spiders, toads, and vipers.
Not everyone agreed that A Just Russia were wrong to position themselves against Navalny. In a Facebook post, Ekaterina Vinokurikova [ru], a reporter at the Yekaterinburg newsportal Znak.com [ru], argued that the party was better off following its current course.
Во-первых, СР себя позиционировала как “партию второго выбора” – ту, которая на участке собирает голоса неопределившихся. Условно говоря – шел голосовать за кого угодно, кроме ЕР, а за коммунистов рука не поднялась. Есть в тех же городах большая группа людей, для которых ЕР является неприемлемой, но тот же Навальный слишком радикальным.
First of all, A Just Russia has positioned itself as “the second choice party,” which depends on the votes of the undecided. Those who, relatively speaking, go and vote for anyone they want, apart from United Russia, but who won't go for the Communists. In the cities, there are big groups of people who consider United Russia to be unacceptable, but also think Navalny is too radical.
Vinokurova predicted that Just Russia's anti-Kremlin faction would soon leave the party altogether. Indeed, she didn't have to wait long until the defection of one of the party's most prominent Duma deputies, Ilya Ponomarev, who announced his departure on October 30.
A Just Russia was designed as a Kremlin project to keep nationalists and social democrats under the Kremlin’s “big tent,” granting the illusion of multi-party parliamentary democracy, thereby preventing a genuine opposition from wrecking things in the Duma. Despite this, the party has contained some of Duma's most vocal critics of United Russia, like Dmitry Gudkov and Ilya Ponomarev.
A Just Russia benefitted from the protest vote in December 2011, but is unlikely to see a repeat of that again. (Its candidate in the March 2012 presidential election, Sergey Mironov, finished last in the polls with less than four percent.) If the party wants to have a fighting chance and maintain any semblance of relevance in future elections, it will have to become a more convincing alternative to United Russia. At its conference last weekend, however, this priority was muddled in internal squabbling. Rather than address the future, party members are too busy fighting each other and attacking Alexey Navalny, a man whose July 2013 felony conviction now bars him from running for elected office.

author: Daniel Alan Kennedy


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Former Bosnian Refugee Running for US Congress · Global Voices
Danica Radisic

Anesa Kajtazovic. Official campaign photo.
Anesa Kajtazovic, currently a member of the Iowa House of Representatives, was born in Bihać, Bosnia, then a part of the former Yugoslavia. Anesa and her parents and sisters fled the war-torn Balkan country in 1992 and settled in the US state of Iowa. After a few years in politics, Kajtazovic is now running for a seat in the US Congress [ba], and after kicking of her campaign in the summer of 2013, has started receiving endorsements from labor unions and celebrities alike.
It seems her past experiences as an immigrant child of parents who worked to build a future for their family in a new country is making quite the difference in her relationships with voters. Bleedingheartland.com says:
The United Food and Commercial Workers Locals 431 and 1149 decided to support Kajtazovic because “she understands better than anyone the concerns of Iowa's working families,” and “She shares the experience of arriving to Iowa as an immigrant with many of our members.”
Kajtazovic was the youngest woman ever to be elected to Iowa's state legislature and, if elected to Congress, she will be the first Bosnian-born member of Congress. She calls herself proof of the “American Dream”, but Kajtazovic, who runs an active Facebook fan page sharing both professional and some personal moments, seldom forgets that she has friends, family and support both in the US and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
In the past year or two, her professional successes have become a regular fixture on Bosnian news sites, and her homeland seems to be following her career in the US with great interest and celebration.

author: Danica Radisic


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Social Media Guidelines for Election Campaigning In India · Global Voices
Rezwan

Citing certain violations of the Electoral Law in the social media, the election commission of India has issued some guidelines for the use of Social Media for election campaigning. Nikhil Pahwa at Medianama analyses the guidelines.

author: Rezwan


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Hong Kong: Facebook Privacy, Anonymous Sources, Political Censorship  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

A team of reporters working for a local Hong Kong newspaper, the Hong Kong Economic Journal, have jointly shared a Facebook account, Keyman.hk, to exchange views with readers since 2010. They also opened another Facebook page, Keyman Page, in 2012. Their user account have accumulated thousands of friends and followers and is more popular than the public page.
Recently, the team has decided to quit the newspaper, but the management demanded that they transfer their user account password to the company before they leave the newspaper. The deadline of the account transfer is at around 8 p.m. on November 1.
As the journalist team has been very critical of the Hong Kong government in their newspaper column, their collective resignation has been interpreted as a kind of political censorship, even though they publicly explained that they have other plans. However, because the Facebook account has been used by the reporters as a platform to connect with sources of information, the account transfer has become a sticking point for the reporters.
Below is Keyman's report on the situation published on their Facebook status on October 31:
After the user account transfer, who exactly is your friend? Photo by Flickr user Angscopy. CC: BY-SA.
紀曉風是信報的資產, 故團隊離開, 不帶走任何東西, 公司也已經多次提出, 提醒團隊要在離開時, 同時交出紀曉風facebook的登入資料, 好讓公司派人接手管理。
老紀對有關安排並無異議, 但同時也有另一考慮, 正是「保護消息來源」這「3個字」。
歷年之間, 有數之不盡的網民並消息人士與被訪者, 透過facebook跟老紀聯繫交流, 紀曉風對「保護消息來源」責無旁貸, 故曾反建議公司另立專頁及帳戶, 而把現時的永久停用, 惟公司拒絕了有關建議。
雙方最後同意, 在把現時帳戶與專頁的資料備份後, 再刪除所有私訊內容才交出登入資料。
Keyman is the property of Hong Kong Economic Journal, so when the team leaves, we should not retain any company property. The management has reminded us many times that we have to hand over the login details for Facebook accounts so that the company can take over.
I am not against such arrangement. But my worry is the “protection of sources of information “.
In the past few years, a number of netizens and sources have communicated with Keyman through our Facebook account, and we have the responsibility to protect all these sources. So we put forward a counter proposal to the company by suggesting them to set up another page and account, and we will suspend our account and page forever. But the company turned down the suggestion.
Eventually both parties agreed to backup the account and page timeline and then delete the private messages before turning in the login information.
Because the company turned down their request to suspend the account rather than transfer it, Keyman asked their friends to “un-friend” the account:
有關做法其實亦有不妥的地方的, 例如紀曉風的個人帳戶, 跟網友成了朋友, 就能讀取及獲得對方的個人資料, 但未來紀曉風面書由誰管理, 紀曉風團隊仍全不知情, 換言之, 未來或由陌生人士, 又或由非新聞工作者管理的, 當中涉及極其複雜的私隱問題, 而事實上, 也有消息人士跟老紀表明, 不接受這個交接模式, 認為做法仍有讓他們身份曝光的可能。對於消息人士提出的憂慮, 紀曉風曾向公司反映, 回覆是由於對方選擇以此方式聯繫, 對方似乎也需要承擔風險, 但老紀已對此明確表示不能接受。
紀曉風視「保護消息來源」為天條, 但同時也面對需要交出面書帳戶的現實, 故此在此將作24小時倒數, 任何對此安排感到不安的網友, 請自行中斷過去跟紀曉風的聯繫, 而老紀亦會把表明了不接受此安排的網友unfriend, 以保護你們的身份。
It is highly inappropriate to transfer the account. In particular, Keyman's account has made many friends, and it can read all the private information of its friends’ network. In the future, we don't know who exactly will manage this account. In other words, the future account may be managed by stranger or someone without a journalistic background. Privacy is involved here. Some Keyman sources said that they opposed to a transfer because it would expose their identity. We raised such concerns with the company, but the reply was that the risk is for the sources to take as they have chosen the communication tool. This is unacceptable to us.
We consider the “protection of sources” to be our prime principle. At the same time, the situation forced us to hand over the account password. That's why we are doing a 24-hour countdown here. If anyone cannot accept the account transfer arrangement, please un-friend Keyman and Keyman will also un-friend those who disagree with the above arrangement in order to protect your privacy.
However, many of Keyman's friends pointed out that the “un-friend” strategy won't work. In the comment thread following Keyman's status, Terry Chan looked at the issue from a technical angle:
私訊好似刪除唔到，就算刪咗，只要之後再同果個人聯絡，之前d msg會show返晒出嚟
You cannot eradicate private message. Even if you un-friend the person, once the users start to communicate with each other again, all the archived messages will show up.
Steve Chan dug up Facebook's legal terms of use:
You will not share your password (or in the case of developers, your secret key), let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account.
You will not transfer your account (including any Page or application you administer) to anyone without first getting our written permission.
Shing Leung, also in the comment section urged Keyman's friends to take action:
請大家一齊檢舉依個acc，保護消息來源！
Please report Keyman's account [to Facebook admin] so as to protect news sources.
Ip Iam Chong shared Keyman's status and asked them to  make a moral decision instead of a legal decision over the matter:
請delete咗個account，咁樣可能係毀壞公司「財產」，係犯法。但係，如果咁樣係為左公共利益最好的辦法，都要公民抗命，合乎道德。
Please delete the account, even if means destroying company property or breaking the law. If such an action is the best means to protect public interest, you have to disobey. It is a moral choice.
Citizen media platform inmediahk shared Keyman's status and suggested that friends of Keyman file a report to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, an office dedicated to the individual privacy, against the Hong Kong Economic Journal.
It is important to remember that Keyman is an account, not a fan page. The matter is not simply about protecting sources, but also about the privacy of the journalists’ friends who would become known to the new owner of the account. A compromise could be to hand over the page to the company and delete the user account.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Life in Kyrgyz Prisons Through Camera Eyes · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

Screenshot from YouTube video featuring Eric Gourlan's photographs. Uploaded September 30, 2013, by “Freedom House KG”.
Photographer Eric Gourlan spent over a month in prisons in Kyrgyzstan, documenting the life of both inmates and guards. Photographs he took there provide a rare “view from the inside” the country's prison system. Kloop.kg publishes some of the remarkable photos that are now displayed at a museum in Bishkek.
The documentary film below also features Gourlan's photographs, offering a unique glimpse into the life of children, women, and men behind bars in the Central Asian nation. The film is mostly in Russian, but has English subtitles.


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Proposed Law in Pakistan Would Pave Way for Human Rights Violations · Global Voices
Arslan

Human rights activists are blasting a new bill in Pakistan backed by the president and prime minister that would deem suspected terrorists to be an enemies of the state, allowing law enforcement officials to perform searches without a warrant and strip anyone arrested of the right to bail.
Hundreds of cities and towns throughout Pakistan, especially in the Sindh region, have erupted in protest against the bill.
On October 20, 2013 Pakistan President Mamnoon Hussain approved the Pakistan Protection Ordinance, as the bill is called, following advice from the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. It will next be forwarded to the parliament for enactment. The bill, which has not been released in full to the public, is said to declare all peace-disrupting elements as enemies of the state, and states that security of life, property and dignified living of Pakistanis should be the prime goal for the state.
A widow protesting with her orphan children at the Karachi Press Club against the murder of her husband. The victim's family demanded that police arrest the killers and provides them peace and justice. Image by Ayub Mohammad. Copyright Demotix (29.9.2013)
Earlier this month, the President had promulgated a number of amendments into the Anti-Terrorism Ordinance, which proposed longer detention for suspects and accepted electronic evidences and trials by video links.
Pakistan's widely read English-language newspaper Dawn, quoting official sources, has voiced concerns about its potential human rights violations. Under the Pakistan Protection Ordinance, law enforcement authorities – including police, military and para-military forces, Pakistan rangers, Frontier Corp and Frontier Constabulary – would be able to enter and search any premises without warrant. The arrested suspects would not be entitled to bail. These forces, on suspicion, can confiscate property, arms, and other household goods without permission from any lawful authority. And anyone found guilty of resisting enforcement of law or legal process will spend 10 years behind bars.
Separate police stations would be designated for professional and expeditious investigations of specified crime. The cases would be prosecuted by federal prosecutors – a new force of prosecutors will be created, parallel to the existing prosecution branch. And special jails will be designated to detain hardened criminals. The government has been authorised to create a parallel judiciary through these ordinances. Anti-Terrorist Courts and special prosecutors for terrorist crimes are already in operation. However, through the ‘Pakistan Protection Ordinance’, the government will make “special courts and special prosecutors” to protect the country.
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has called the bill a “draconian law” that would provide legal cover to disappearances, extrajudicial killings, torture, and unfair trial:
The ordinances are also against the Article 24, which guarantees the rights of property and denies the right of the government to confiscate any lawful property.
Article 10 of the constitution, providing safeguard to arrest and detention states:
In light of this, the government of Pakistan must withdraw the ordinances and bring the bills before the parliament for open debate. The government must respect the process of fair trial and rule of law rather than resorting to making draconian laws which curtail the fundamental and constitutional rights of the people. It must also understand that by making draconian laws terrorism cannot be overcome. Rather it will generate more terrorism in different forms. The ordinances are not lawful.
A lawyer, Saleemullah Khan Advocate, who is also a retired inspector general of the police, has challenged the Protection of Pakistan Ordinance in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), saying some of its sections are against the fundamental rights of the citizens as enshrined in the constitution.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of the ruling party wants all political parties to vote in favour of the Pakistan Protection Ordinance 2013 when it is tabled in parliament for approval. The opposition Pakistan Peoples Party has made its intentions clear. Senator Raza Rabbani has said:
PPP would oppose it when the government brought it to parliament in the form of a bill. the ordinance in its present form was unacceptable as it was against people’s fundamental rights.
Sindh and Baloch regions are concerned about the bill because there have been separatist movements going on in these regions, especially in Balochistan.
Activities of Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM) holds a rally from Qasimabad to Gul Center for the freedom of Sindh. Hyderabad, Pakistan. Image by Janali Laghari. Copyright Demotix (6/7/2013)
Nationalist organisation of Sindh Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM) show their grave concern over the new ordinance, calling it a conspiracy to conduct genocide of Sindhi and Baloch people.
On October 29, a large advertisement was published in major Sindhi newspapers, in which JSMM chairman Shafi Burfat said [Sindhi Language]:
Recently, the state introduced the “Pakistan Protection Ordinance”, and the Sindhi nation considers it as death warrant of innocent, suppressed Sindhi and Baloch nations. It’s a plan for the mass genocide of both nations. Through these laws, this state conspires to silence the political say of the national struggles of Sindh and Balochistan. We consider these laws to be a political assault and an encroachment on oppressed Sindhi and Baloch nations. The Sindhi nation and JSMM announce a shutter-down and wheel jam strike (no vehicle will move and no shop will be opened) against these anti-Sindh laws on October 30 across Sindh.
On October 30, some parts of Sindh observed a general strike on the call of JSMM against the Pakistan Protection Ordinance. The strike paralysed routine life in many towns of Sindh, government offices, private schools, and some business were closed. JSMM officials said that least 102 people associated with the group have been arrested in different towns of Sindh, more than 12 went missing during the strike. BBC-Urdu marked [ur] this strike as the first political reaction against the bill. More than 140 cities and towns observed strike against the new ordinance, local website Indus Tribune reported.
Freelance journalist Saba Imtiaz wrote on her blog:
Imagine the scenario: Security officials enter your home, arrest you without a warrant, search your property, keep you in detention, the trial is held in a different place from where you lived and you are considered guilty of waging war until you can prove you are innocent. This may be the worst-case scenario. Or there could be worse. You may never get a chance to prove you are innocent because the security officials may have used force against you already.
On Twitter, Sherry Rehman (@sherryrehman), a former Pakistani ambassador to the United States, said:
The “Pakistan Protection Ordinance” is an outrage. It cannot remove right for arrest warrants, everything. Worse than the Patriot Act.WakeUp
— sherryrehman (@sherryrehman) October 24, 2013
Muttahida Qaumi Movement‘s member of the provisional assembly, Heer Soho (@HeerSoho), asked:
Is Pakistan protection ordinance protect to innocent /common people or against ? Let see and observe
— Heer Soho (@HeerSoho) October 30, 2013
JSMM chairman Shafi Burfat (@ShafiBurfat) called this law a sin against Sindhi people:
This so-called state has raised these laws (PPO) against Sindhis on account of their crime for the claim of historical Heir-ship of #Sindh.
— Shafi Burfat (@shafiburfat) November 1, 2013
News anchor, journalist and blogger Shoukat Zardari (@ShoukatZardari) criticized:
if you want to protect #Pakistan than be Just to all otherwise #Protection ordinance is nothing But a Peace of Paper on the will of #Estabmt
— ShoukatZardari (@ShoukatZardari) October 29, 2013
Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N)'s Mian Javed Latif pushed back:
#PMLN‘s Mian Javed Latif: Pakistan Protection Ordinance is not aimed at targeting any political worker #Pakistan
— CNBC Pakistan (@CNBCPAKISTAN) October 30, 2013

author: Arslan


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Russian Internet Surveillance: Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss · Global Voices
Andrey Tselikov

Nikolai Nikiforov, Russia's young Minister of Communications. Nikiforov's appointment in 2012 was supposed to usher in a new era of effective internet policy.
In the latest news from Russia's slow but inexorable march to tighter control over the Internet, the Russian security apparatus is now expanding its surveillance requirements for Russian ISPs. The newspaper Kommersant recently published an article [ru] detailing a complaint made by Vympelkom (the owner of the mobile network Beeline) to the Ministry of Communications about a new decree that is due to come into force next year. The decree (PDF found here [ru]), which was jointly developed by the Ministry and the FSB (Federal Security Service), will require ISPs to monitor all Internet traffic, including IP addresses, telephone numbers, and usernames. Not only that — the traffic will have to be stored for 12 hours after collection. Vympelkom argues that the decree runs contrary to several articles of the Russian Constitution, including the rights to privacy and due process.
Some bloggers were rightly scandalized by the news. Journalist and blogger Matvei Ganapolsky argued [ru] that the new regulations will be used to target members of the opposition, and that any arguments to the contrary will be explained away with the needs of the War on Terror. Ganapolsky also conspiratorially noted that the recent Volgograd suicide bombing coincides with the news of the new law:
Россия устроена так, что предложение подобного приказа удивительным образом совпадает со взрывом автобуса в Волгограде. И если я сейчас начну возражать, то тут же выпрыгнет господин Бастрыкин. И он скажет, что если бы могли читать всё это раньше, то теракта, возможно, не было бы, террористку засекли бы.
Russia is made in such a way that the suggestion of this decree miraculously coincides with a bus exploding in Volgograd. And if I start complaining, then Mr. Bastrykin (head of the Investigative Committee) will appear. And he will say that if only they could monitor it all before, then maybe there would be no bombing, the terrorist would have been caught.
Of course, as some bloggers cynically pointed out, the FSB already monitors the Internet, and already requires ISPs to place duplicating “black boxes” on their servers, routing all internet traffic through FSB offices in real time. ISPs are also already required to keep track of IP addresses and user IDs. These regulations already in place, called SORM –the System for Operative Investigative Activities — are just as bad in violating the Constitution as the new decree, argues [ru] exasperated LiveJournal blogger Daniil Lazoukov. Lazoukov also wondered why Vympelkom didn't protest when the surveillance system was first implemented in 2008.
According to Echo Moskvy blogger Eldar Murtazin [ru], an analyst at the Mobile Research Group, the explanation lies in the game-changing requirement that ISPs store all internet data for 12 hours. Currently the FSB simply does not have the resources or the technology to effectively monitor all Internet traffic in real time, especially because the volume of data has grown “exponentially” over the years. The 12 hour clause will allow the security apparatus a buffer, essentially outsourcing initial data collection and storage to the ISPs. The FSB would then be able to request any part of this data, provided they did it within the 12 hour window. This, in turn, says Murtazin, means that a large part of the cost of monitoring the Internet will be shifted to the ISPs, which is what they are really up in arms about.
Regardless of whether Murtazin is correct in ascribing purely pecuniary motives to Russia's ISP, the new SORM, while certainly similar to the old SORM, promises to be more effective at monitoring the Internet. The difference, to Habrahabr user shifttstas [ru], is in the spirit and the scope — the current SORM, while it does provide a small stream of data to the FSB for analysis, isn't concerned with “mass surveillance.” With the new SORM, everyone is a target.
It remains to be seen if the new regulations will change the experience of the average Russian Internet user, but the trend is clear. More control, less freedom.

author: Andrey Tselikov


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Saudi Arabia Arrests Writer for Supporting Women Drivers · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Tariq Al Mubarak – a Saudi writer in jail for supporting women in his country to drive. Photo credit: Eman Al Najfan @Saudiwoman
Saudi journalist and high school teacher Tariq Al Mubarak has been arrested – for lending his support to a campaign to allow women to drive in the absolute monarchy.
Activists had penciled in October 26 to challenge a driving ban imposed on women by encouraging them to drive.
According to reports, police checkpoints were set up on roads across the country to ensure that all drivers were men. For a long time, the ban on women driving was blamed on social and traditional peculiarities of Saudi Arabia. After October 26, and the detention of women who attempted to drive, the government's hand in the ban has become more evident.
Reporters without Borders has called for the immediate and unconditional release of Al Mubarak, who is being held at the Criminal Investigation Department since October 27, reportedly for articles he wrote criticising his country's ban on women drivers.
On Twitter, a hashtag #أطلقوا_طارق_المبارك [ar], which translates to Release Tariq Al Mubarak, has been gathering support.
Saudi blogger Tamador Al Yami asks readers to sign an online petition for his release:
A journalist & teacher was detained for supporting #women2drive https://t.co/JwG5XtQspI #FreeTariqAlmubarak #أطلقوا_طارق_المبارك
— تماضر اليامي Tamador (@TamadorAlyami) October 31, 2013
She adds [ar]:
#أطلقوا_طارق_المبارك لا هو طلع خالف قانون ولا هو اعتصم عند الديوان ولا هو طالب بأي مصلحة شخصية! قال رأيه في شأن اجتماعي! معقول اللي بيصير!
— تماضر اليامي Tamador (@TamadorAlyami) October 31, 2013
He has not broken any laws. He did not protest in front of the governor's court or ask for personal favours. He just voiced his opinion on a social matter. Is what is happening even possible to comprehend?
Ebtisam says:
#أطلقوا_طارق_المبارك طالب بحقنا واعتقل لذلك والآن يأتي دورنا لنطالب من اجله
— євтιѕαм (@ebtisam_mi) October 31, 2013
Release Tariq Al Mubarak because he demanded our rights and got arrested for that. It is our turn to make demands on his behalf
Dr Waleed AlMajed notes:
#أطلقوا_طارق_المبارك الذي اعتقل في قضية قالت فيها الحكومة أنها شأن مجتمعي لا سياسي :)).
— Dr.Waleed AlMajed (@WaleedMjd) October 31, 2013
Release Tariq Al Mubarak who was arrested for an issue which the government said was social and not political
And Madeha Al Ajroush asks:
By detaining Tariq does this mean one can't b part of a progressive way of thinking #أطلقوا_طارق_المبارك #FreeTariqAlMubarak
— madeha al ajroush (@madehaAlajrous) November 1, 2013
Abo 3asam concludes:
#أطلقوا_طارق_المبارك سجون هذه البلاد مثل قضبان الرئتين تحبس «الأوكسجين» النقي وتفرج عن «ثاني أكسيد الكربون» المضر!
— أبوعسم (@abo3asam) November 1, 2013
The prisons of this country are like lungs: they imprison the clean Oxygen and release the dangerous Carbon Dioxide
According to the RSF's Press Freedom Index, Saudi Arabia is ranked 163rd out of 179 countries.


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UAE Police Reward Drivers for Good Driving  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Saudi Amani Al Awami's tweet on a Lebanese female driver getting a reward from UAE police for good driving is making the rounds online.
She tweets:
أوقفت الشرطة الإماراتية زميلتي اللبنانية اليوم، وأعطتها 1000 درهم مكافأة لها لالتزامها بقواعد المرور!#الإمارات pic.twitter.com/5xjeMIy8F5
— أماني العوّامي (@Al_Awami) October 30, 2013
The UAE police stopped my female Lebanese colleague today. They have her a 1,000 Dirham [272 US Dollars] reward for following traffic regulations
This tweet has been retweeted more than 3,000 times so far.


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Unchecked Violence Continues in Michoacán, Mexico · Global Voices
J. Tadeo

In May 2013 Global Voices tackled the topic of the disproportionate violence that afflicts Michoacán de Ocampo, a state in the central-west zone of Mexico. Sadly, 5 months later, crime and attacks against the population continue to be in the news in the region.
Alberto Nájar from the BBC [es] recently referred to the wave of violence in Michocán territory in this way:
El estado vive una nueva ola de violencia que según especialistas y autoridades es parte de la disputa entre dos carteles de narcotráfico, a la que se añade el surgimiento de grupos de autodefensa civil.
El gobierno federal aplica en la zona una nueva operación que incluye el despliegue de cientos de soldados, infantes de la Marina y Policías Federales.
Hasta ahora su presencia no ha logrado evitar el enfrentamiento entre los grupos, ni tampoco los ataques a convoyes de policías.
The state is experiencing a new wave of violence that according to specialists and authorities is part of the dispute between two drug-trafficking cartels, to which is added the emergence of civil self-defense groups.
The federal government is implementing a new operation in the area which includes the deployment of hundreds of soldiers, Marine infantry and Federal Police.
Until now its presence has not managed to prevent conflict between the groups, nor attacks on police convoys.
For his part, the Mexican journalist Carlos Loret de Mola [es] gave a brief account of the events of the past few days in the state:
Grupos de autodefensa decidieron ir a manifestarse a Apatzingán [municipio ubicado en el oeste de Michoacán] con el argumento de que la gente de ahí les pedía gestionar más seguridad ante el asedio del cártel de Los Caballeros Templarios. El Ejército y la Policía Federal les dieron autorización para marchar siempre y cuando lo hicieran desarmados. En la plaza central, presuntos integrantes del crimen organizado los recibieron a balazos. Imágenes han comprobado que simpatizantes de los grupos de autodefensa también iban armados, a pesar de la advertencia oficial.
Self-defense groups decided to go and demonstrate in Apatzingán [municipality located in the west of Michoacán] with the argument that the people there asked them to provide more security against the harassment from the Caballeros Templarios cartel. The Army and the Federal Police gave them authorization to go ahead on condition that they did it unarmed. In the central plaza, they were met with gunshots from suspected members of the organised crime. Images have confirmed that supporters of the self-defense groups also went armed, despite the official warning.
Carlos continues:
Aparentemente en represalia por la coordinación de las fuerzas federales con las guardias comunitarias, criminales al parecer vinculados con Los Caballeros Templarios atacaron instalaciones de CFE [compañía de electricidad] y PEMEX [la corporación mexicana más grande, dedicada al petróleo]. ¿El saldo del fin de semana? Cinco cadáveres afuera de Apatzingán y versiones de que fueron hasta 23.
Ostensibly in retaliation to the coordination of the federal forces with the community police force, criminals who appear to be connected with the Caballeros Templarios attacked CFE [electricity company] and PEMEX [an oil company, and the largest company in Mexico] facilities. The weekend account balance? Five corpses outside Apatzingán and reports that there were up to 23.
This same number of deaths was reported by Blog De Izquierda [Left Blog] [es] on the October 29:
El Consejo de Policías Comunitarias de Tepalcatepec, Jospe Manuel Mireles, señaló que van 23 muertos por los enfrentamientos en Tierra Caliente en las últimas horas.
La violencia en México sigue fuera de control desde que Enrique Peña Nieto llegó al poder.
Tepalcatepec Community Police Council's, Jospe Manuel Mireles, pointed out that 23 are dead because of the conflicts in Tierra Caliente in the last few hours.
The violence in Mexico has been out of control since Enrique Peña Nieto came to power.
Héctor Tenorio, as guest author of Homozapping [es], pointed out:
La administración de Enrique Peña Nieto ya replanteó su estrategia en conjunto con el Gobierno michoacano, hará uso de la fuerza del Estado, se reforzó la seguridad en la entidad con 5 mil elementos del ejército ¿Será el nuevo modelo en la lucha contra el crimen organizado? ¿Es el reconocimiento que en muchas parte del país hay un Estado fallido?
En este contexto se debe entender que La Familia Michoacana, Los Zetas, Nueva Generación y los Caballeros Templarios, se disputan la entidad mientras las fuerzas federales no han sido capaces de descubrir las casas de seguridad del crimen organizado y hasta la fecha no hayan liberado a nadie cuando se cuentan por decenas las personas levantadas. ¿Será que no saben o no quieren? ¿Omisión o complicidad?
Enrique Peña Nieto's administration has already reconsidered its strategy together with the Michocán Government, it will make use of the State force, it has strengthened the security in the state with 5 thousand army members. Will it be the new model in the fight against organised crime? Is the acknowledgement that in many parts of the country there is a Failed State?
In this context it must be understood that La Familia Michoacana, Los Zetas, Nueva Generación and los Caballeros Templarios [cartels] compete for the state while the federal forces have not been capable of finding the organised crime safe houses, and to date they have not released anybody when those who have been abducted number in the tens. Is it because they don't know or don't want to? Omission or collusion?
As well as having used the delicate term “Failed State”, the author explained [es] the recent violent acts that have caused commotion:
Ahora bien, las imágenes del enfrentamiento armado en Apatzingán parecían escenas de una guerra civil, francotiradores dispararon y lanzaron una granada contra grupos de autodefensas cuando éstos realizaban una manifestación la cual se pactó con el ejército; en respuesta, los guardias comunitarios quemaron al menos seis camiones. Hubo un herido de bala y tres más de esquirlas.
So, the images of the armed conflict in Apatzingán would seem to be scenes from a civil war, snipers were fired and a grenade was thrown at self-defense groups when they carried out a demonstration which had been agreed upon with the army; in response, the community police burnt at least six trucks. There was a gunshot wound and three more were wounded by splinters.
On Twitter, the legislator of the conservative Partido Acción Nacional (National Action Party), Ricardo Anaya, shared the following message among his followers:
Lo ocurrido en Michoacán pinta de cuerpo entero las consecuencias de décadas de descuido, frivolidad, corrupción, complicidad y negligencia.
— RicardoAnayaC (@RicardoAnayaC) October 29, 2013
What has happened in Michoacán paints a full portrait of the consequences of decades of neglect, frivolity, corruption, collusion and negligence.
In a tone perhaps of resignation and with a bit of sarcasm, the user valentin lpz expressed the following:
algun dia te hare el amor bajo una balacera en #Michoacan
— valentin lpz (@valentin_lopez) October 30, 2013
one day I will make love to you under a shootout in #Michoacan
In the following message, Mire García explained who are the most affected by this situation:
Hay un colapso total en la gobernabilidad de #Michoacán y los ciudadanos son los únicos lo enfrentan y lo padecen día a día.
— ♕MireGarcía (@MireGarciaa) October 30, 2013
There's a total collapse in the governability of #Michoacán and the citizens are the only ones who face it and endure it day-to-day.
Cockgrinding Post expressed his solidarity with the Michoacán citizenship:
Nuestra solidaridad desde el #DF para toda la banda de Michoacán que sufre por la inoperancia del gobierno de Fausto Vallejo #EstadoFallido
— Cockgrinding Post (@cockgrinding) October 30, 2013
Our solidarity from the #DF for the Michoacán people who suffer because of the ineffectiveness of the Fausto Vallejo government #EstadoFallido (Failed State)
In the presence of this climate of violence and absence of security and minimum guarantees for the citizenship, all eyes are on the various orders from government (local and federal) searching for a solution and a ceasefire which, it looks like, will be a long time coming while the number of victims contines to rise.

author: J. Tadeo


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Watch Movies for Free in The Dialog of Cultures Film Festival · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The on-demand film streaming site MUBI is hosting the 2nd Dialogue of Cultures International Film Festival, whose mission is “to unite nations, cultures and religions by jump-starting a dialogue through the universal language of cinema.”
The online festival features 20 films from Morocco, Portugal, Argentina, Philippines, Spain, Egypt, France, United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Austria and Kazakhstan, which can be viewed for free from November 1-14, 2013.
Budding filmmakers can also enter the DCIFF's short film competition, where the film that best captures the festival's themes will win a US$3,000 prize. The deadline is February 1, 2014.

author: Georgia Popplewell


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Workers Launch General Strike in Indonesia · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Workers in Indonesia have launched a two-day general strike aimed at pressuring the government to raise the minimum wage. In Jakarta, workers are demanding the government to set the minimum wage at 334 US dollars per month.
Thousands of workers left production in a Sanyo factory. Photo from Facebook page of Tia Claudia E. Mboeik
According to organizers, two million workers in 20 provinces have joined the strike. Workers across the country have launched a series of protests in the past month in preparation for the October 31-November 1 strike. There were factory shutdowns, union visits, and rallies to recruit workers to join the strike. On October 21, unions gathered 20,000 workers for a national dialogue.
Aside from salary hike, workers have issued the following demands:
1. 50% increase in minimum wages
2. Universal healthcare
3. Abolition of outsourcing
4. Abolition of an anti-labour law (Presidential Instruction No. 9/2013) that not only suppresses the minimum wage but also instructs the police force to “monitor the process to set a minimum wage and the implementation of minimum wage policy”.
5. Pass a law to protect domestic workers.
Outsourcing refers to the casualization of labor and contract system:
Making sure that government is not implementing “modern slavery” working system in Indonesia, in other words, the eradication of Outsourcing and Casualization/Contract Employment System, including the eradication in State Owned Enterprises and make all outsourced employee in state owned enterprise as permanent workers.
Protection of domestic workers is also being pressed by human rights groups. Matthew Rullo explains:
Indonesia, like many other countries in Asia and the Middle East, excludes domestic workers — or pembantu rumah tangga — from its national labor laws. This leaves their work largely unregulated and denies domestic workers access to basic rights enjoyed by other workers, such as a minimum wage, weekly days off, and overtime. Their exclusion from key labor protections is exacerbated by the unique isolation domestic workers face in the private homes of their employers — where they are often subject to an array of exploitative conditions and criminal abuse.
The Joint Labor Secretariat accused the government of conniving with big business to further drive down the living conditions of workers:
Even in our workplaces, although there is a mountain of profit for the business owners, there is not even a drop for us, except cheap wages, just enough to keep us alive for work the next day.
We should already have fair and prosperous lives. What a pity that justice and prosperity is only owned and controlled by a minority of rich people in this country. All this cannot be seen as separate from the economic system that is carried out by the current government that is clearly not devoted to the interests of the people.
But not everybody believes that holding a strike is the right approach to increase the minimum wage. PakMB comments:
Increasing wages force the companies to become more efficient, which is needed in the long run. In the end wages tend to be settled by supply and demand, not so much by unions and employers.
SiangMalam warns that investors will leave if Indonesia will raise the minimum wage:
Cost of labour normally comprises about 40% of manufacturer's total cost if high wage does not come with high productivity or results, investors will go elsewhere… the unions are being irresponsible in organizing strikes without working on worker's productivity…
Below are some reactions on Twitter:
This rhetoric on the general strike is just incomprehensible. Most Indonesians would agree that inequality is a major problem in Indonesia.
— Atria Paramost (@sapratama) October 31, 2013
No operator, no production. No work, no pay. #MogokNasional #LoyalitasItuMahal pic.twitter.com/ThaIsvs3i2
— Eben Osvaldo Silaen (@Eben_Silaen) October 31, 2013
#nurses and hospital #workers in #jakarta join the #mogoknasional with black ribbon! pic.twitter.com/AthHRTeV5r
— indah budiarti (@indahbudiarti) October 31, 2013

author: Mong Palatino


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Alexey Navalny Will Not Attend Nationalist “Russian March” · Global Voices
Kevin Rothrock

Orthodox activist attends Russian March, 4 November 2011. YouTube screenshot.
Every year in Russia, ironically on the “Unity Day” holiday, the country’s nationalists stage a march in Moscow. Alexey Navalny—Russia’s most prominent blogger and oppositionist—attended every one of these rallies between 2007 and 2011. Last year was different. Navalny stayed home on Unity Day, claiming to have come down with a cold. It was the first “Russian March” since the anti-Kremlin protests of the 2011-2012 winter season, and many speculated that Navalny feared risking his new dissident credentials by parading alongside skinheads and masked hooligans (staples of the event). Earlier today, November 2, 2013, Navalny announced outright that he will not attend this year’s Russian March, scheduled for November 4.
Navalny revealed his decision in a LiveJournal post [ru], describing his inability to participate in the nationalist rally as his “own political failure.” In the post, he laments that the march has not transformed, as he hoped, from a “gathering of marginal characters and sieg-heiling schoolchildren” into an “ordinary procession of conservative citizens.” Citing his experiences on the mayoral campaign trail this autumn, Navalny says Muscovites still fear nationalist street demonstrations, and explains that he now bears “a great burden of responsibility” to “observe the political balance” that won him second place in the election.
While insisting that his absence at the march reflects a new “balance,” Navalny also praised the event’s organizers (applauding three—Konstanin Krylov, Aleksandr Belov, and Vladimir Tor—by name), and promised to continue promoting nationalist activism in the future. Navalny even calls the nationalist Russian Social Movement [ru] “an excellent example of a new kind of human rights organization.” Responding to a reader’s comment, Navalny also pledged [ru] to “see through to the end” his online petition initiative to introduce a visa regime against immigration from Central Asia and the Caucasus. Indeed, he concludes his post with the clarion call:
Участие в РМ важно. Все, кто раздумывает идти или нет – приходите.
Participating in the Russian March is important. Everyone who is thinking about whether to attend—come!
Are statements like this what Navalny means when he talks about managing “burdens” and showing “balance”? More likely, Navalny has in mind the need to outmaneuver Kremlin operatives, who have used his past participation in the Russian March to argue that he is a racist and an extremist. Specifically, Navalny says he will not supply his enemies with footage of him standing next to “sieg-heiling schoolchildren.” He even singles out the need to thwart pro-Kremlin television journalists Evgeny Kiselev and Vladimir Solovev, who have compared him to fascists before.
Additionally, Navalny writes that he is not the only nationalist politician to suffer repression under the Putin regime, citing the authorities’ refusal to register political parties [ru] organized by nationalists like Krylov, Tor, and Valery Solovei. The Kremlin, Navalny says, refuses to recognize these factions, but finances “marginal stooge groups that use violence” and supports mass media that make nationalists into “boogeymen.”
Most heartfelt in Navalny’s blog post is his disappointment in many of his own followers. The text begins with a description of a man who confronted Navalny at a non-nationalist rally last month, carrying a sign that read, “Navalny, will you be going to the Russian March, too?” Though other demonstrators soon dragged the man away, convinced apparently that he was a hired provocateur, Navalny had his doubts, writing, “I don’t think he was a provocateur (in the sense that he’d been paid). He was just a fool.” Where anti-nationalists aren’t fools in Navalny’s post, he portrays them as cowards. “Liberal-democratic society,” he writes later on, “is unwilling to assume any responsibility for the civilized development of nationalism.”
Clearly, Navalny does not intend to renounce nationalism, but he is eager to finesse his views on Russia’s “ethnic question.” For instance, mere hours before publishing his Russian March LiveJournal post, Navalny shared the link to a YouTube video [ru], where a young Chechen boy is depicted being encouraged to “kill Russians.” In his tweet [ru], Navalny does not comment on the video, except to quote bits of the dialog. He carefully leaves it to his readers to draw their own conclusions about the boy’s curious upbringing.
In Internet parlance, Navalny’s decision to avoid future Russian Marches seems calculated “not to feed the trolls” like Kiselev and others, who would “unfairly” use images of Navalny beside skinheads to attack his reputation and undermine further the effort to bring nationalism into Russia’s political mainstream. In this respect, Navalny shows a growing appreciation for television media, where visuals, more than written arguments, carry the day.

author: Kevin Rothrock


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Egypt: Satirist Bassem Youssef’s Show Censored following Lawsuits · Global Voices
Victor Salama

Just a week after the airing of the first episode of the third season of his popular show “Al Bernameg” [The Programme], Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef has seen his show taken off from air. The decision was made a few minutes before the broadcast of the second episode last night, sparking outrage among netizens.
Bassem youssef show cancelled tonight due to public outrage at last show and not sticking to CBC's editorial values #Egypt
— Claire Read (@clear_red) November 1, 2013
The news was greeted with disbelief, irony and vehement critics to the perceived censorship from the army, and to what some called self-censorship.
When censorship happens, people come up with ways to circumvent blocks. Egyptian blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah shares a solution [ar]:
عايزين الحلقة على يوتيوب يا باسم @DrBassemYoussef
— Alaa Abd El Fattah (@alaa) November 1, 2013
“Bassem, I want the episode on YouTube”
In fact, Youssef rose to fame after starting his programme online, and broadcasting its episodes on YouTube.
Abd El Fattah adds:
دانا صلحت الدش مخصوص
— Alaa Abd El Fattah (@alaa) November 1, 2013
“I repaired the satellite receiver especially for this [show]”
Blogger Mostafa Hussein notes:
ده باسم هو اللي مصبرنا ع الحظر :(
— Mostafa Hussein (@moftasa) November 1, 2013
“Bassem was the reason we could endure the curfew”
A nightly curfew has been imposed on Egypt since the ousting of Muslim Brotherhood president Mohammed Morsi in early July.
Sarah Carr is angry:
Do these mothafuckers not know about the existence of Youtube?
— أبو كار (@Sarahcarr) November 1, 2013
And a Twitter campaign against CBC, the channel which hosted the show, has also started, trending on #Delete_cbc.
The obvious suspect behind taking the show off the air was the army, and it's head General Abdelfattah Al Sissi, who would want to ban the show due to last week's sarcastic comments on the regime and it's “fans.”
Hala Gamal tweets:
بقي تتحدي أمريكا وتخاف من باسم ؟؟؟؟ عجبت لك يا زمن !!!
— hala galal (@halagalal66) November 1, 2013
So you challenge the USA and yet you're afraid of Bassem? What a weird world!
Others link to channel to AL Sissi:
قلنا من زمان، اسمها سي بي سيسي @CBC_EGY
— Amr Gharbeia (@gharbeia) November 1, 2013
“We've said it long ago: It's CCBC” – a play on words between CC and Al Sissi”
The TV channel management has issued a statement  on why they suspended the show. The CBC said the administration was surprised to find the content of last night's episode was in “violation of what had been agreed upon.”
Rumours started regarding whether the episode would be available on YouTube or not.
#ريتويت عشان الكل يعرف #الحلقة_الممنوعة_من_العرض #ريتويت انتظروا حلقة اليوم الممنوعة من العرض #برنامج_البرنامج #باسم_يوسف علي اليوتيوب
— برنامج البرنامج (@albrnameg) November 1, 2013
A fake “Al Bernameg” account declared that the episode would be available soon and asked for massive retweets.
But there could be repercussions:
السي بي سي بتهدد باسم يوسف باتخاذ إجراءات قانونية لاحتكارها حق العرض في العقد لمنع رفع الحلقة ع اليوتيوب
— Mohamed Waked (@mohamedwaked) November 1, 2013
“CBC is threatening Bassem Youssef with lawsuits if there are any infringements on the broadcasting contract in case he decides to upload the episode on YouTube”
People who attended the show, on Wedensday (it's not live) said that there weren't any explicit attacks against the army or Al Sissi. The sarcasm was pointed at CBC and it's management of the crisis related to the first episode.
People who attended taping of #bassemyousef show on Wed say no mention of Sisi at all, episode mocks CBC post show statement & other media
— Carina Kamel (@Carina_bn) November 1, 2013
1- Just spoke to friend who attended taping Bassem Youssef's latest episode, says show barely mentioned Sisi or government, bashed media&CBC
— Bassem Sabry باسم (@Bassem_Sabry) November 1, 2013
Some pointed out that it's the same old game, played again and again.
To be fair Bassem Youssef's 2nd episode under Morsi didn't air either #Egypt
— Gert Van Langendonck (@gert_lang_) November 1, 2013
On Facebook, Hannah Aboualghar writes:
الأسبوع الجاى تلاقوا باسم طالع عادى بعد ما ستعمل فيلم ان السيسى تدخل و منع وقف البرنامج،ما هو الفيلم ده شوفناه قبل كده مع ابراهيم عيسى ايام مبارك، عموما أليوتيوب موجود و القناوات اللى بتبث من الخارج موجوده و محدش حيعرف يسكت حد. تسلم الايادى اللى قفلت برنامج ساخر خوفا من قوة الكلمة
“Next week we'll find Bassem Youssef back on air as if nothing happened after we discover that Al Sissi had intervened to stop the censorship. We've watched this movie before. We've seen it with Ibrahim Issa during Mubarak's reign. Anyway, YouTube is here as well as international channels and no one will manage to silence us. Blessed are those hands the shut a sarcastic programme because they're afraid of words!”
The debate on media freedom, and to what extent can such a decision alter it's fragile existence in Egypt, was lively.
Honestly, if Basem had twerked Haifa Wehbe on his show tonight he wouldn't have gotten this much PR. CBC need a crash course on management.
— Rawah روعه (@RawahBadrawi) November 1, 2013
The real test for freedom in #Egypt with Bassem Youssef is not whether one channel fires him, but whether another hires him.
— salamamoussa (@salamamoussa) November 1, 2013
… and actually, other channels such as Al Nahar, showed solidarity with CBC.
@Zeinobia pic.twitter.com/z6odVX54zN
— Amãdö (@OffTheHookPain) November 1, 2013
Naguib Sawiris, Egypt's billionaire and Bassem Youssef's former employer on ONTV, seems unimpressed:
يعنى إيه أهم…محاكمة مرسى أو منع حلقة باسم يوسف و لا ” هنبنى مصر إزاى؟ و نقضى على الفقر و نبقى دولة قوية تعتمد على نفسها و تصون كرامتها ؟
— Naguib Sawiris (@NaguibSawiris) November 2, 2013
“What's more important? Morsi's trial, a banned episode of Bassem Youssef's show, or how are we going to rebuild Egypt? How are we going to eradicate poverty and become a strong, self-relying and respected country?
If there was no hope from local media, maybe international ones would react.
pic.twitter.com/C1k3CjcM3p
— حازم بركات (@7azem122) November 1, 2013
“If your regime isn't strong enough to take a joke, then you don't actually have a regime”
Waiting to hear from Jon Stewart now. @bassemyoussef
— Hoda Abdel-Hamid (@HodaAH) November 1, 2013
The irony of it all: Censoring humor and sarcasm in a country which has built a reputation on it's sharp sense of humour. Cartoonist Doaa Al Adl shares this caricature on the censorship of Youssef's show:
Forbid Laughter.. a cartoon by Egyptian Doaa Al Adl in solidarity with Youssef
Bassem Youssef “didn’t realise” he wasn’t supposed to satirise the other side as well http://t.co/bXY1b45TAs #BassemYoussef #elbernameg
— Pan-Arabia Enquirer (@arabiaenquirer) November 1, 2013

author: Victor Salama


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Pakistani Taliban Leader’s Death by Drone Triggers Relief, Anger and Fear · Global Voices
Qurratulain (Annie) Zaman

Hakimullah Mehsud, the chief of the Pakistani Taliban has been killed  in a US drone strike in North Waziristan, according to Pakistani intelligence officials and militant commanders in the Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA). Mehsud's driver and bodyguard were also reportedly killed in this strike.
The killing comes a day before the Pakistani government was sending a team to hold peace talks with Mehsud's Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and just a week after Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif met with US President Barack Obama at the White House and expressed his strenuous opposition to drone strikes.
Naz Bloch, spokesperson of Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehkrik-i-Insaf or PTI, a political party that has been pushing for peace talks with the Taliban and campaigning against US drone strikes tweets Imran Khan's response to the news:
Why doesn't US let the peace process initiate? Drones sabotaged the dialogue & derailed the process yet again. pic.twitter.com/ohGRHmd8KC
— Naz Baloch (@NazBalochPTI) November 1, 2013
PTI's chief Imran Khan later demanded the government to immediately block Nato supplies going through the country to Afghanistan. PTI is the ruling party in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which shares borders with the tribal areas and has been the most brutally affected by Taliban violence in Pakistan.
Zahid Hussain, a Pakistani journalist and author of The Scorpion's Tail: the relentless rise of Islamic militants in Pakistan was surprised to see Imran Khan's reaction:
I have not seen Imran Khan so angry and upset when the TTP was killing innocent people as he is now on the death of Hakimullah.
— zahid Hussain (@hidhussain) November 1, 2013
He adds:
IK was almost on verge of crying when talking to reporters when commenting on Mehsud's death. Just to remind him the TTP killed 3 PTI MPs.
— zahid Hussain (@hidhussain) November 1, 2013
Blogger and PTI's social media head Dr. Awab Alvi tweets:
Glad #Mehsud was Killed today does that stop the terrorism or emergence of a new leader to fill vacuum – NO it only creates more miltnt ldrs
— Awab Alvi (@DrAwab) November 1, 2013
Supporters of Jamat-ud-Dawa chant slogans during a protest demonstration against the U.S. drone attacks outside the Hyderabad Press Club. Hyderabad, Pakistan. Image by Rajput Yasir. Copyright Demotix (1/11/2013)
Zarlasht Faisal, (@ZarlashtFaisal) , a fashion designer and a PTI supporter, questions the future of the war.
So following the death of Mehsud…is the war over now? Are we victorious now? Will the violence stop? Will there be no more TTP leaders?
— Zarlasht Faisal (@ZarlashtFaisal) November 1, 2013
Usama Khilji, a Pakistani activist fears a backlash by Taliban:
Security forces around Pakistan must prepare to secure citizens from the mayhem the Taliban may plan to inflict to avenge Hakimullah's death
— Usama Khilji (@UsamaKhilji) November 1, 2013
Beena Sarwar, a blogger and human rights activist questions the role of TTP.
Taking a moralistic, principled stand against #drones would be fine if their target was innocent civilians -who are the TTP #Fasadis‘ [anarchists] target
— beena sarwar (@beenasarwar) November 1, 2013
Renowned Pakistani lawyer and judicial activist Athar Minallah reacts:
Hekeemullah Mehsud had proudly claimed killing innocent Pakistanis. Never killed an American. Ppl r declaring him Shaheed. Hypocricy
— Athar Minallah (@MinallahAthar) November 1, 2013
Omar Quraishi, an op-ed editor of the English daily, the Express Tribune believes drones are not a hindrance to peace talks.
Note to apologists: drones have not sabotaged any peace talks, ever — that is a fact
— omar r quraishi (@omar_quraishi) November 1, 2013
Patron-in-Chief of Pakistan People's Party or PPP, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari tweets:
If there are good Taliban and bad Taliban are we allowed to say there are good drones and bad drones? #JustAsking
— BilawalBhuttoZardari (@BBhuttoZardari) November 1, 2013
There are some funny tweets and jokes in Urdu being circulated on Twitter about Hakimullah Mehsud's killing:
اگرامیر حکیم اللہ محسود صاحب نے برقعہ پہن کے فرار اختیار کیا ہوتا تو وہ آج حوروں کے جھرمٹ میں لڈو نہ کھیل رہے ہوتے- آنٹی عزیز لال مسجد والی
— Che™ (@FarrukhHussaini) November 1, 2013
Had Hakilmullah Mehsud escaped wearing a Burqa, he would not be playing ludo [Pakistani bord game] with Hoors [virgins]. Aunty Aziz Lal Masjid wali
Hakimullah with Hoors in heaven
condolence étiquettes
Obituary and condolence etiquette: This is a request to those coming for condolence,  the wives of Hakimullah Mehsud – Madam Imrana Khanum and Munawar Begum – are in Iddah [mourning in solitude]. That is why, condolences will be received by his other women, Eliya and Ansaran from Murree [city]. Because these two were not his wives, they were just his sleeping partners.

author: Qurratulain (Annie) Zaman


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South Koreans in Europe Protest Spy Agency Scandal · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

Protests have continued against South Korea's spy agency who allegedly interfered with the latest presidential election and manipulated public opinion to tip the scales in favor of current president Park Geun-hye. Ahead of Park's official visit to Western Europe, Koreans living in France held candlelight vigils denoucing the allegations and more are planned next week in the United Kingdom and France. @wjsfree posted a nice roundup of protest photos and links.

author: Lee Yoo Eun


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Thailand Amnesty Bill Sparks Protest · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Thailand’s Amnesty Bill is supposed to promote reconciliation in the country but opposition to the measure threatens to intensify political conflicts.
Bangkok protest against the Amnesty Bill. Photo by George Henton, Copyright @Demotix (8/7/2013)
The bill was originally proposed to give blanket amnesty to those who committed political offenses since 2006, specifically ordinary individuals (and not leaders) who joined rallies and political protests.
But an amended version has expanded the scope of the measure. Critics warned that politicians, military generals, and police officials accused of corruption and human rights abuses will be given amnesty as well. In particular, the opposition said the bill will ‘whitewash’ the crimes of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra who fled the country after being found guilty of plunder by a local court.
Thaksin was deposed by a coup in 2006. His younger sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, is Thailand’s prime minister today. According to Thaksin’s critics, the bill will allow the former leader to return to the country and recover his wealth which was sequestered by the government.
Interestingly, the Amnesty Bill is also being rejected by the allies of the government, namely the Red Shirts. The group feels ‘betrayed’ since the bill will also grant amnesty to former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva (now leader of the Democrat opposition party) who is accused of ordering the bloody crackdown of anti-government protests in 2010. Almost a hundred Red Shirt members died during the violent dispersal in 2010.
In other words, the bill is being criticized by both the opposition groups and government supporters.
Bangkok Pundit described several provisions in the measure as too broad:
…it is so broad and could include so many different times of crimes. It is impossible to have perfect clarity, but specifically including certain crimes which are applicable and specifically excluding certain crimes would make it much clearer who is included and who is not.
The bill will have dire political consequences, said Anuthee Dejthevaporn:
If the ‘Amnesty for All’ bill is passed, then consider the consequences that may come. What will our children say, if one day they also get killed in a future political conflict and they have to fight for the justice all over again by themselves? What will our children say, when they realize that we, their parents, could have done some big things to create the true justice in this land for them, but sadly we didn’t?
The Nation, Thailand’s leading daily, explained why the bill is divisive
Thailand has enough real problems without the added burden of a political move that will only worsen the national divide.
Why is it that a “reconciliation” plan advocated by the ruling party is threatening to tear the country apart? The answer is simple: The government's legislative moves do not seek to rectify the root cause of Thailand's strife, but are amplifying it instead.
Twitter users reacted by highlighting the controversial features of the bill
Amnesty Bill leads to reconciliation? Far from it – even Govt supporters have different opinions on blanket amnesty.
— veena T. (@veen_NT) October 27, 2013
House has passed 2nd reading of altered amnesty bill, which could bring Thaksin home and allow him to get money back.
— tulsathit (@tulsathit) October 31, 2013
By passing a whitewash blanket #amnesty bill, Pheu Thai Party turns #Thailand into pariah state that doesn't respect justice & human rights.
— Sunai (@sunaibkk) November 1, 2013
Letter from Ministry of Interior ordering provinces to put up signs supporting Amnesty: pic.twitter.com/QOnjolL6g3" via @LiShuhui & @ThePongk
— teamkorn (@teamkorn) November 1, 2013
After a 19-hour debate, parliament approved the bill on November 1. As expected the opposition walked-out of the session. The senate will tackle the measure next week.
A protest was immediately organized which was attended by an estimated 10,000 people. Curiously, the Bangkok local government vowed to assist protesters by providing mobile toilets and extra lighting in the event.


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VIDEO: Saudi Man Beats Worker for “Talking to his Wife”  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

A video of a Saudi man beating and insulting a foreign worker is making the rounds online.
In the video, a Saudi man is seen repeatedly slapping the worker, from South Asia, accusing him of speaking to his wife. He calls the man an animal and a son of a dog, while spitting at him. He then starts kicking and whipping the man, who is heard screaming of pain.
On Twitter, netizens react to the video with outrage.
Ahmad Sabri writes:
Violence against expat workers in Saudi isn't just isolated cases. The sponsoring system “opens the door to violence” http://t.co/dm8TOXPiJj
— Ahmad Sabri (@radicalahmad) November 1, 2013
Laila Rouass notes:
Watched footage of Saudi Man beating worker. Absolutely horrific. Calls worker an animal in Arabic. I think he should look at himself 1st
— Laila Rouass (@lailarouass) October 29, 2013
And Ari Akkermans says countries should not allow their citizens to work in Saudi Arabia:
That video of Saudi beating the foreign worker is just so so so horrifying. Countries shouldn't allow their citizens to go there…
— Arie Amaya-Akkermans (@Dilmunite) April 6, 2012
Such incidents are not new to the region, where expatriate workers are abused and denied basic human rights.
Previously, this video of a Saudi man, slapping and hitting a Bangladeshi went viral.
The Saudi is seen slapping and insulting the Bangladeshi man, also calling him an “animal.”
Another video, this time in the neighbouring United Arab Emirates, shows a local beating up an expatriate driver, after they got into a road traffic accident. Passers by try to stop him:
According to Human Rights Watch, while the Middle East depends heavily on domestic workers, it fails to protect them.
A recent report reads:
As Human Rights Watch, the IDWN, and the ITUC have documented, domestic workers in the Middle East – many of them migrants from Asia and Africa – experience a wide range of abuses, including unpaid wages, restrictions on leaving the households where they work, and excessive work hours with no rest days. Some may face psychological, physical, or sexual abuse and can get trapped in situations of forced labor, including by being trafficked.
The report adds:
Almost every country in the Middle East and North Africa region excludes domestic workers from the protection of labor laws, though, and subjects them to restrictive immigration rules, granting inordinate power and control to their employers under the “sponsorship” or kafala system.


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Women’s Magazines in Korea Don’t Show Korean Cover Girls · Global Voices
Lee Yoo Eun

It took ten years for women's magazine Allure's Korean edition to finally have a Korean cover model. James Turnbull explains in the Grand Narrative blog that the reason lies in Korean readers taste who prefer foreign, Caucasian cover models.


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Funny Money for Russia’s Winter Olympics · Global Voices
Nina Jobe

The new 100 Ruble Olympic bank note being presented. YouTube screenshot.
Less than 100 days remain until the 2014 Winter Olympics opening ceremony. As the date gets closer more and more scandals are coming to light. The most recent one [ru] involves a new 100-ruble Olympic-themed banknote that the Central Bank released last week.
At first Russian bloggers were enthusiastic about the new bill. Coins are often released to commemorate Olympic games, but this is one of the few times a note has been dedicated to the Olympics (China issued one for the Summer games in 2008). Unusually, the image is vertical rather than horizontal. On one side of the note there is a snowboarder, pictured in mid-jump. The image came from a contest sponsored by Russia’s Central Bank. The winner, whose drawing best represented the Olympic Games, was a student at Saint Petersburg’s Academy of the Arts, Pavel Bushuyev [ru].
Blogger Pavel Protasov congratulated Bushuyev on his victory, and commented [ru]:
Надеюсь, банкиры таки договорились с автором и даже ему что-нибудь заплатили.
Hopefully, in the end the bankers made an arrangement with the author and maybe even paid him something.
However, it did not take long for Russian bloggers to discover [ru] that this winning snowboarder image, now found on the new banknote, came from an Internet stock photo, StockExchange — the result ostensibly being plagiarism.
Screenshot of snowboarder photo on StockExchange.
Blogger Andrey Malgin compared it [ru] to a similar incident [ru] that took place when the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow was being remodeled a couple of years ago.
Эпик фейл можно сравнить только с известным случаем, когда Юрий Грымов нарисовал для Большого театра роскошный высокобюджетный логотип, а потом люди нашли эту красоту в старом каталоге изображений Aridi, где он продавался всем желающим за 99 долларов.
This epic fail can only be compared with the notorious case when Yuri Grymov drew a luxurious, hugely expensive logo for the Bolshoi Theater, and then later people found the pretty picture in an old image catalog called Aridi, where it was sold to anyone who wants it for 99 dollars.
However, photo blogger Ilya Varlamov defended Byushev and his sketch, saying [ru] that it's not that big of a deal, since the original is a photo:
Я вообще не понимаю, в чем проблема, что фигура сноубордиста срисована с фотографии? Как по мнению критиков надо было рисовать сноубордиста? Из головы придумывать? С натуры сидеть рисовать?
In general I don’t understand what the problem is, that the figure of the snowboarder was drawn from a photo? How, in the opinion of the critics, should a snowboarder be drawn? From imagination? From a model?
He added, criticizing the critics:
Вы вообще понимаете, как дизайнер работает? Ничьи права не нарушены, более того, если совместить 2 фигуры, то видно, что рисунок на банкноте не 100% копия… Совсем что-то граждане с этой олимпиадой тронулись. Такое впечатление, что где-то проходит конкурс, “найди больший позор для России”.
Do you even understand how a designer works? Nobody’s rights were violated, in fact if you combine the 2 images, you can see that the picture on the note is not a 100% copy… People are going downright crazy with these Olympic games. It seems like somewhere there is a competition to “find the bigger shame for Russia”.
As the Sochi Games edge closer, and the scandals keep piling up, is Varlamov right? Are Russian bloggers simply looking for an excuse to complain, or will Russia's hosting of the Olympics be a disaster?

author: Nina Jobe


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Nine Maps to Understand World Trends · Global Voices
Gerda

NASA/NOAA map showing world vegetation (public domain)
A series of maps shared by Goodnet show how more than 200 countries deal with social issues including freedom of the press, maternity leave, and attitudes towards foreigners.

author: Gerda


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No More ‘Monkey Business’ in Jakarta · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

‘Masked Monkey’ in Jakarta. Photo from Flickr of rizky-kitsuneramen (CC License)
Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo or Jokowi has vowed that there will be no more “topeng monyet” (masked monkey) shows in the streets of Jakarta in 2014. The campaign called ‘Jakarta Bebas Topeng Monyet 2014′ (Jakarta Free of Masked Monkey Performers 2014) is aimed primarily at protecting animal welfare.
The monkeys will be transferred to a one-hectare field at Ragunan Zoo and owners will be compensated. The government will also provide skills training and alternative livelihood opportunities to monkey trainers. There are about 700 people in East Jakarta alone who will be affected by the government’s new regulation.
One of the supporters of the new initiative is Jakarta Animal Aid Network. The group elaborated on how animal abuse is done through these topeng monyet shows:
This is a particularly cruel practice where juvenile macaques are forced to perform (dance, ride bikes) in the crowded and busy streets of Jakarta.
Each year, thousands of long tailed macaques are bred and captured from the wild for sale in Jakarta where they face a life of exploitation and cruelty.
The macaques can be seen kept on short chains, on the street and often in front of the owner’s house. While growing up to adulthood, the chain often grows into the skin, leading to horrific infections and tetanus. Macaques are highly social creatures and in need of social contact. Macaques also form potential health hazards in urban areas due to the likeliness of disease transfer.
There are several YouTube videos which show how these topeng monyet street performances are organized for entertainment or begging:
At the 3:00 mark, this video reveals how the monkeys are abused during the training:
The government campaign to ban topeng monyet was greeted by many Twitter users:
Jakarta governor Jokowi to buskers whose monkeys are seized by city: “Poor monkeys. They are even thinner than me.” http://t.co/9jregJ9Crx
— Yenni Kwok (@yennikwok) October 24, 2013
damn i can't stand watching how those people train those monkeys for topeng monyet :(
— JUNGAH (@u_na_mean) November 3, 2013
I'll gonna miss the topeng monyet. It's an adorable entertainment for me from my childhood. Good Bye Topeng Monyet… :”)
— rizqi adji pramudia (@rpramudiaa) October 31, 2013
quiet impressed with the new policy of jokowi to save monyet2 dari topeng monyet.
— veny veronika (@venyveronika) October 29, 2013
Animals don't have anyone to protect them. If we don't stand up, the people who are harming animals will never get stopped #TopengMonyet
— A|C|K|Z|O (@ackzo) October 29, 2013
As i said before, i hope there's special place in hell for people who abussing animal #topengmonyet
— edi subagiyo (@edi_subagiyo) November 3, 2013
But Indonesian Street Life is urging the government to address child labor first before protecting the monkeys:
My point is simple: Children before monkeys.
The monkey show is not actually a performance, but just a begging strategy. The lovely friend with a long tail is exploited and I also believe the current situation should be improved.
The greatest concern of me is the possibility of worsening exploited kids’ life by just getting rid of monkeys. Who can say that the guys who used to have monkeys is not going to use alternatives? You know what, the most likely candidates are kids.
In my view, the concern of the governor is mainly on international image.


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87 Migrants Die of Thirst in Northern Niger  · Global Voices
Lova Rakotomalala

On 0ctober 30, 87 people trying to reach the Mediterranean sea died after being abandoned in the Sahara Desert when their drivers left them stranded to seek for help. The harrowing story of one the survivors, 14-year-old Shafa, highlights the plight of many migrants trying to reach Europe and the obstacles they face. In an article entitled “dying at the gates of Europe”, Philippe Rekacewicz, a french cartographer,  illustrates with a series of map the story of the migrants struggle from Africa to Europe [fr]:
“Dying at the gates of Europe” by Philippe Rekacewicz on Le Monde Diplomatique

author: Lova Rakotomalala


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Abuse of Workers and Our Daughter From Nepal · Global Voices
Rezwan

Indian blogger Kiran Kumar Karlapu tells a real life story of the plights of a Nepali girl, who was pushed back by her employer from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. She was left stranded in Mumbai airport with not enough money to buy ticket to go back to home and some fellow passengers helped her secure a ticket.


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PHOTOS: Shia Mourners Tear-Gassed in Bahrain · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Shia mourners, commemorating the beginning of the Islamic month Muharram, have been tear-gassed in Bahrain, say activists, who accuse the Bahraini regime of attacking religious freedom in the restive Arab state.
Bahraini Human Rights activist Maryam Al Khawajah writes [ar]:
في انتهاك للحريات الدينية, النظام الحاكم يعتدي على شيعة يحيون شعائرهم الدينية في قرية المعامير#البحرين http://t.co/sz96wmZf6k #Bahrain
— Maryam Alkhawaja (@MARYAMALKHAWAJA) November 4, 2013
In a violation to religious freedom, the ruling regime attacks Shiites performing religious rituals in the village of Maameer.
The Month of Muharram is a month of mourning for Muslims of the Shia faith. The 10th day of Muharram, or Ashoora, commemorates the martyrdom of Imam Hussain bin Ali, Prophet Muhammed's grandson in the Battle of Karbala, which took place in the year 680, in Iraq. The occasion is marked by processions across towns and villages, as well as readings in congregation halls for members of the Shia faith. These rituals have been held for centuries, and passed down from one generation to the next.
Quiet Bahrain-i shares another photograph from the same “incident” saying:
This is an evidence of the war the regime is running against a sect in #Bahrain 4Nov2013 pic.twitter.com/ETeHOWxYVg
— Quite #Bahrain-i (@QuiteBH) November 4, 2013
And Ahmed Ali has another one:
#Bahrain attacks religious procession with tear gas. pic.twitter.com/WXQwbIJC7r
— Ahmed Ali احمد علي (@ahmedali_) November 4, 2013
Al Wefaq Society, the largest opposition group, posts another photograph:
Regime forces attack citizens while preparing for annual religious spiritual event in #Bahrain pic.twitter.com/WPsTwJHfWx
— AlwefaqEN (@AlWefaqEN) November 4, 2013

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Goodbye “CUC”, Unification of Dual Monetary System Begins in Cuba · Global Voices
Elaine Díaz

Three CUC. Image taken from Hola Cuba.
The official Cuban newspaper Granma announced [es] the beginning of the monetary unification process within the country. Cuba is the only country in the world where two currencies circulate: the Cuban peso (CUP) and the convertible peso (CUC).
According to the newspaper:
la unificación monetaria no es una medida que resuelve por sí sola todos los problemas actuales de la economía, pero su aplicación es imprescindible a fin de garantizar el restablecimiento del valor del peso cubano y de sus funciones como dinero, es decir de unidad de cuenta, medio de pago y de atesoramiento.
According to an article [es] published in Cubainformación by the French investigator and professor Salim Lamrani:
En 1993, ante la grave crisis económica que golpeó la isla tras la desintegración de la Unión Soviética, las autoridades de La Habana decidieron legalizar la circulación del dólar estadounidense en el país. Era necesario encontrar las divisas indispensables al funcionamiento de la economía y del comercio y subvenir a las necesidades de la población, particularmente en el sector alimentario. Así, dos monedas circulaban en el país: el dólar y el peso cubano (CUP).
En 1994, además del peso cubano y del dólar, el Banco Central de Cuba creó el peso convertible (CUC) con un valor igual al dólar, lo que hace de Cuba el único país del mundo que imprime una doble moneda. El CUC se usa particularmente en el sector del turismo y para adquirir productos de importación. Así, de 1994 a 2004 circularon tres monedas en Cuba, hasta la desaparición del dólar en 2004, tras las nuevas sanciones económicas que impuso la administración Bush. Ahora, el peso cubano circula con el peso convertible con una notable diferencia de valor: hacen falta 25 CUP para conseguir 1 CUC.
In 1993, confronting the great economic crisis that struck the island after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, authorities in Havana decided to legalize the circulation of the US dollar in the country. It was necessary to find indispensable foreign currencies for the functioning of the economy and commerce and provide for the necessities of the population, particularly in the food industry. So, two currencies circulated in the country: the dollar and the Cuban peso (CUP).
In 1994, along with the Cuban peso and the dollar, the Central Bank of Cuba created the convertible peso (CUC) with the same value as the dollar, which makes Cuba the only country in the world that prints two currencies. Thus, from 1994 to 2004, three currencies circulated in Cuba, until the phasing out of the dollar in 2004, due to new economic sanctions that the Bush administration imposed. Now, the Cuban peso circulates with the convertible peso at a significant difference in value: it takes 25 CUP to obtain 1 CUC.
Three Cuban pesos. Image taken from Wikipedia under a fair use license.
The official note from Granma announces that “the main changes in this first stage will take place in the juridical person (corporate personhood) sector”, with the aim to encourage “conditions for an increase in efficiency, the best evaluation of economic developments, and a stimulus to the sectors that produce goods and services for export and replacement of imports.”
The phasing out of the CUC has received significant attention from the international press, blogs and economic analysts. In an interview granted to the magazine Espacio Laical [es], the Cuban economist Pavel Vidal warned:
El Gobierno debe manejar con inteligencia dos brechas que aparecerán en el proceso de eliminación de la dualidad monetaria. La primera es la brecha temporal que existe entre los costos y los beneficios de la devaluación del tipo de cambio oficial. Los costos son ciertos y se manifestarán en el corto plazo generando estrés en los balances de las empresas e inflación. Mientras que los mayores beneficios se apreciarán en el mediano plazo y son beneficios potenciales que deberán aprovechar las empresas estatales, sobre las cuales siempre pesa la duda en cuanto a su capacidad para reaccionar ante un nuevo marco de incentivos, en particular en una economía centralmente planificada y donde la burocracia ha venido rezagando la reforma.
La segunda brecha se encuentra entre las expectativas que tiene la población sobre la eliminación de la dualidad monetaria y los resultados que verdaderamente se pueden alcanzar. La reforma monetaria evidenciará que la dualidad monetaria no es la principal responsable del bajo poder adquisitivo del salario ni de las desigualdades como erróneamente se tiende a pensar. Estos son asuntos con determinantes estructurales y no solo monetarios. La baja productividad del sector estatal es la causante última de los bajos salarios y, en correspondencia, la que provoca las desigualdades en relación a otras fuentes de ingresos familiares.
In the blogosphere, Gisselle Morales, in her blog Cubaprofunda, summarizes [es] some of her main worries:
Dejando a un lado los problemas de la macroeconomía, demasiado complejos para mi aritmética básica, lo que más me preocupa es el efecto de semejante cambio para el cubano común: ¿en qué moneda se valorará el esfuerzo?, ¿cuál será el poder adquisitivo real del salario?, ¿saltará algún día, de los manuales marxistas a la realidad, aquello de “a cada cual, según su trabajo”?
Several commenters pointed out [es] the absence of references to wages in this first official communication. According to Javier Soler, author of Porque Cuba [es], “the note is simply a reminder that this path must be taken but that it is not yet even traced.”

author: Elaine Díaz


text:
Halloween’s Three Black Maids Stir Racism Debate in Lebanon · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

The Instagram photograph of three Lebanese women dressed up as black maids. Blogger Joey Ayoub calls out racism
For Halloween, people don different costumes. Lebanese blogger Joey Ayoub stumbled upon revelers, who decided to dress up as black maids.
Ayoub calls out their racism in a post on his blog Hummus for Thought saying:
Three very sophisticated Lebanese women clearly thought this was an appropriate costume for Halloween. After all why not? Why not dress up as black maids? It’s not like trying to dress up as Lebanon’s quasi-slaves can’t have some entertainment value. ‘Heik heik’ [Eitherway] they’re already degraded to the level of sub-human, why not at least get a laugh?
The blogger tries to find a reason for this behaviour:
I’m just trying to figure out what could have possibly gone through their minds, but I can’t seem to find anything remotely sensible.
[…]
Dehumanizing, disgraceful and just pathetic. The good news is that Filipinos didn’t seem to be the main target here. But I guess they had some black makeup around and simply had to use it, so Ethiopians and Sri Lankans were the lucky winners. I don’t know which nationality was the target here, but anyway our racists use “Sirlankyyeh” (literally: Sri Lankan woman) for all female migrant workers – No, I’m not kidding.
For good measure, Ayoub adds:
Now I know that it’s very likely that at least one person reading this would know who these three women are. I don’t want their names. I don’t really care. Just let them know that their faces have now gone viral.
In comments on the post, Nathalie Derderian writes:
This is a shame!! Its not enough that these people put up with workin nonstop for a salary that is meaningless, its not enough how much they go thru away from their families. But this is pity!! a shame !!! that 3 young girls could be soo emotionless about them! these are people too!
Tamam Tawk adds:
You should note that the use of black makeup or black face is steeped in racism. It dates back to when white people would put on black face and act out .. incredibly racist and offensive stereotypes. So this is racism compounded with racism. These people make me sick.
And Bassem Deaibess concludes:
It is RACISM when you consider it COMMON that maids are always Black.
But nicocohayek has another opinion. He explains:
I can’t really find what’s the big deal, and i never support racism acts especially in our country, but what they did is nothing of the sort! What if someone showed up as Michael Jordan or Barack Obama? Would you have the same reaction? They’re both as real as you and me; but one is a more common sighting in lebanon.