Stories about Digital Activism from March, 2009
Cuba: Open Mic Night
Cubans Generation Y and Octavo Cerco blog about “an unforgettable night” in front of open microphones.
Haiti, U.S.A.: Immigration Reform
Haiti's jmc strategies is very interested in U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden's statements on immigration reform: “Biden did not specifically say that the Administration was backing away from a legalization program....
Cuba, Trinidad & Tobago: At the Summit
“It seems far-fetched to think that the summit’s news coverage would be dominated by the one country in the region that is absent from the event” – but The Cuban...
Puerto Rico: Murder Rate
“We. Don't. Give. A. Damn. Because it isn't really ‘Us’ getting killed, it's ‘them.’ We don't see the obvious. There is no ‘them’ on an island. There's only Us”: Puerto...
Indian Elections 2009: The Impact of Socially Conscious Corporate Campaigns
In my previous posts for the Global Voices special coverage on the 2009 Indian general elections, I have analyzed how Indian politicians and political parties are using internet and mobile tools for election campaigning and civil society groups in India are using digital tools to run voter registration and transparency campaigns. In this post, I'll analyze the impact of three election-related socially conscious ad campaigns: Jaago Re by Tata Tea, My Idea by Idea Cellular and Lead India/ Bleed India by The Times of India.
Morocco: Different Names, Same Story
Despite outward progress, Morocco has faced a number of setbacks for press freedom over the past few years. Most recently, it was reported that Ali Anouzla and Jamal Boudouma, managing editor and publishing director of Moroccan newspaper Al-Jarida Al-Oula (الجريدة الأولى) have each received two-month suspended sentences and fines of MAD 200,000 (approximately USD$23,800) for "defamation" and "insulting the judiciary."
Macedonia: Student Protest Ends in Violence
Recently, the Macedonian government decided to build an Orthodox church with public financing on the main square of Skopje, a decision that the citizens of the city disapproved of. On March 28, a peaceful protest against the construction of the church turned violent when a group of counter-protesters attempted to prevent it. Elena Ignatova reviews the reactions in the Macedonian blogosphere.
Afghanistan: Scandal with the Attorney General
Azar Balkhi writes that Abdul Jabar Sabit, Attorney General of Afghanistan and a Muslim, has been caught dancing drunk at a party in Kabul.
Water: One Take International Video Contest
“Is access to clean, safe water for drinking a basic human right? Why? or Why not?”. That is the question One Take is asking for you to answer in your own language, recording it on a video no more than 2 minutes long, uploading it on their site and on DotSub and having it subtitled in at least 1 other language. Just this month, world leaders met in Istambul, Turkey at the World Water Forum to have this discussion, and although they aren't sure what the result will be, it is our chance to show what we believe about this issue, and make our voices heard.
Trinidad & Tobago: Identifying the Problem
Blogging from Trinidad and Tobago, This Beach Called Life thinks that the biggest problem with UDECOTT “isn’t that the public thinks it is a corrupt organization…[it's] that the masses who...
Barbados: Animal Cruelty
Barbados Free Press republishes a letter from an “irate hiker” whose group discovered the body of a dog that was hanged from a tree: “The RSPCA was notified. Their response...
Jamaica: Going to Calabash
Jamaican Geoffrey Philp and Life, Unscripted, on the Rock are pleased to report that the Calabash International Literary Festival is back on.
Armenia: Blogger Interview
The DOTCOM project which brings together Armenian, Azeri and U.S. teenage bloggers has now updated its interview with Arzu Geybullayeva with one conducted with Global Voices Online's Caucasus Regional Editor...
Africa: African Bloggers at G20 Summit
Nigerian blogger, Sokari Ekine is one of African bloggers who will cover G20 summit: “My plan of action is to try to cover both the G20 summit and the Alternative...
UAE: Call for censorship feedback
A censorship watchdog is encouraging Internet users in the UAE to submit their feedback over the blocking of photo sharing site Flickr, reports the UAE Community Blog.
Sri Lanka: New Dissent Voices
ICT For Peacebuilding (ICT4PEACE) blog features two new dissent websites, which are voicing critical perspectives on the current affairs of Sri Lanka.
Azerbaijan: Blogger Interview
Dotcom, an online project which has participants from Armenia, Azerbaijan and the United States, has published an interview with Azerbaijani blogger Arzu Geybullayeva on blogging and citizen media. In particular,...
Digital Civil Society Campaigns in the 2009 Indian General Elections
In my first post for the Global Voices special coverage on the 2009 Indian general elections, I had analyzed how Indian politicians and political parties are using internet and mobile tools for election campaigning. In this post, I'll detail how civil society groups in India are using digital tools to run voter registration and transparency campaigns in the run up to the elections.
Latvia: Data Inspectorate vs Penguin Movement
Free Speech Emergency in Latvia reports that “the Latvian Data State Inspectorate has summoned the administrator of the website of the so-called Penguin Movement to explain what it claims were...
Sudan: Chilling Account of the Arrest of an Online Activist
Sudanese Internet activist and lawyer Abdel Hakim Abdel Rahman Nasr was arrested in a raid on his house on the night of March 5 - and released March 11. Nasr was detained only a few hours after he expressed his support for the International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on the online International Forum for Nubia, where he is a moderator. In this chilling post [Ar], on the forum which is now open to members only, Nasr details his arrest.
Jamaica: Curtains for Calabash?
Diaspora blogger Geoffrey Philp is part of a group that has written an open letter to the Jamaican Prime Minister expressing disappointment over the news “that the 2009 Calabash Festival...
