Stories about LANGUAGES from April, 2013
Campesino Resistance in Honduras
Chavelo’s voice was quiet but unwavering as [he] expressed his gratitude that we traveled all the way from the U.S. and Canada with the human rights and solidarity organization Rights...
Yemeni General Apologizes for 1994 Civil War on Facebook
Waving flags of a country that once existed, thousands assembled in former cities that used to make up South Yemen on 27 April 2013, to commemorate the day the north declared war on their people and occupied their land, nineteen years ago. The same day, the President's chief military advisor issued an apology on Facebook for all "unjust wars" declared by former President Saleh's regime.
Cartoon: Girls Prevented from Leaving Kyrgyzstan
A father had a bad dream which now troubles him. So, he decides that his daughter will not travel anywhere. He takes away her passport and air tickets while she is sleeping, but the daughter takes the documents back. Finally, the father decides to lock his daughter at home to prevent her from leaving.
Potty-Mouthed Russian Blogger Faces Prison for Ethnic Slurs
A blogger from the Republic of Bashkortostan (a small autonomous republic neighboring Tatarstan in southern Russia) was recently charged with hate speech for a post she published on her Facebook account late last year.
Pakistan: Sorry Mobile Users, No Service!
Pakistan-based Internet access advocacy group Bolobhi releases a timeline with details of the 12 times mobile services were suspended in the country since April 2012.
EU Seal Ban Maims Indigenous Way of Life in the Arctic
A European Union court in Luxembourg has upheld its ban on the commercial trade of seal products despite a challenge from Canada's Inuit and several Canadian lawmakers that it cripples the indigenous people's ability to make a living.
Brazil: Police Condemned for the Carandiru Massacre
Over 20 years after the rebellion in São Paulo’s Carandiru Penitentiary, ending with the deaths of 111 inmates, 23 military police have been condemned to 156 years in jail for a total of 13 fatalities.
Pavel Durov, Russia's Zuckerberg, Fights for Control of His Creation
Something strange is happening with Vkontakte, Russia’s homegrown version of Facebook. In the last couple of months, the company’s founder and current head, Pavel Durov, has suffered three very public “kicks in the teeth,” one of which might even lead to criminal charges.
Ukraine's TVi Saga: 31 Journalists Resign
On FT.com's beyondbric blog, Graham Stack writes [en] about the “murky takeover” and “a tangled history of offshore ownership” of the Ukrainian TV station TVi, 31 of whose journalists resigned...
Lenin Paladines: Science Fiction from Ecuador
We talked to the young writer from Loja, Ecuador, Lenin Paladines, author of a blog about science fiction with which he hopes to promote reading among young people.
Open Letter to Blogger Yoani Sánchez
Journalist and Global Voices author, Leila Nachawati, writes an open letter [es] to Cuban blogger Yoani Sánchez, who has been touring the United States, Latin America and Europe talking about Cuban...
Marijuana in China
Chengdu Living has an interesting post on the potential disappearance of relatively free weed smoking atmosphere in China as the police has recently started to crack down on Marijuana trade.
China Earthquake Donation Protected by Spell
Hong Kong based inmediahk.net's Facebook page shared an image circulated widely on Chinese social media which shows spells written on money, that says, “This is a donation for a Ya'an...
Do All Miss Korea Contestants Look Alike?
The web was abuzz over the photo of 20 of South Korean pageant contestants who all look uncannily alike, and jeering comments were made against South Korean women's beauty standards....
Ukrainian Lawmakers Propose to Ban Abortions
In early April, three MPs from the opposition political force “Svoboda” registered a bill that would ban abortions in Ukraine. Tetyana Bohdanova reports on the online reactions to this legislative initiative.
Brazilian Cartoonist Inspires Kissing Protest
Images of people kissing went viral on Facebook, blogs and Twitter in Brazil, under the hashtags #beijaço (protest by kissing) and #Laerte. Strips by Laerte published on Folha de São...
Impartial Justice Wanted in Côte d'Ivoire
Human Rights Watch reports that there is still work to do to achieve impartial justice in the post-2010-11 elections crisis in Côte d'Ivoire: The ICC’s one-sided approach has legitimized the...
Surprise Candidates for Madagascar Elections
Update: Here is the full list of the 49 candidates [fr] for the presidential elections. It does not include the current president of the transition. As the deadline to submit candidacies...
To Cut or Not To Cut College Subsidies in the Bahamas?
Education, democracy and societal priorities are being called into question as Bahamian bloggers address the government's recent decision to reduce the subsidy it provides to the College of The Bahamas.
Kazakhstan's First Ever Lesbian Wedding
This was a real wedding. With limousines. With friends and guests. With champagne. With congratulatory speeches. You might ask, "but what about the law?" You see, love does not recognize the law. This is why the wedding took place. However, it was not [registered by the state]. Same-sex marriage are not allowed [in Kazakhstan].
Russian Conspiracy Theories About Boston Bombings Abound
"Bush blew up the Twin Towers, Putin blew up [the towns of] Buinaksk and Volgodonsk. Obama blew up the marathon." The RuNet, just like the Internet at large, has always had a penchant for conspiracy theories.
