Stories about Citizen Media from February, 2012
Mexico: Group Looks for Independent Citizens to Run for Congress
Amidst a presidential election year, a group of young people is driving a series of changes that would allow independent citizens to run for Congress. Currently, in Mexico you need to belong to a political party to be elected for a position in Congress.
Russia: Bloggers’ Photo Reports and Reflections on Pro-Putin Rally in Moscow
On Thursday, February 23, ten days before the March 4 presidential election, the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin addressed thousands of people at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow. A number of Moscow-based bloggers attended the event, too. Below is a selection of their photo reports and observations, along with some of the remarks from their audiences.
Haiti: Prayers & Priorities
The Millikan Daily meets a “beach head for incoming Methodists to Haiti” and is less than impressed with her “mission”, saying: “I for one, am touched that there are people so kind and devout in their servitude to God that they would drink his blood all night on Ash Wednesday...
Trinidad & Tobago: Fashion over Festival?
Rishi Sankar explains why he will not play mas with one particular Carnival band ever again.
Cuba: Bejerano Against Corruption
“Eliot Ness and his group in Chicago…[have] a female version in Cuba”: Iván's File Cabinet blogs about the country's “Iron Lady”.
Cuba: Prisoners’ Rights
Uncommon Sense republishes a statement by Amnesty International about “former prisoner of conscience Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia [whose] whereabouts are unknown following his alleged arrest in central Havana, Cuba, on 21 February”; Pedazos de la Isla, meanwhile, reports that “the political prisoner on hunger strike, Ernesto Borges, was taken from...
Barbados: CLICO Conflict of Interest
Barbados Underground has it “from a usual reliable BU source” that the CLICO scandal is about to take a new twist.
Liberia: “Kill the Gays” Bill Spreading
Former Liberian first lady Jewel Howard Taylor has introduced a bill making homosexuality liable to a death sentence. Homosexuality is outlawed in 38 African countries.
Peru: A Conversation with Rafael Salazar of Creative Commons Peru
Oscar Montezuma Panez from the blog Blawyer [es] spoke to Rafael Salazar, one of the leaders behind Creative Commons Peru. In the conversation, Rafael explains what the local Creative Commons chapter is currently working on. Oscar also invites readers to visit the group's new website: http://cc.pe/ [es].
Puerto Rico: Blogosphere Denounces Proposed Cybergag
The Puerto Rican blogosphere reacted to a measure undertaken by the mayor of the city of Mayagüez, José Guillermo Rodríguez, that would have been used to investigate and prosecute people who criticize his administration on social networks. Even though the Mayor has since decided not to enforce the resolution, he warned that more regulations will come soon.
Chile: Aysén Region and the Call for Decentralization
Protests, road blocks, and clashes between protesters and police continue as citizens of Chile's Aysén region demand change. For many, the conflict in Aysén boils down to one problem affecting the whole country: centralism. Chilean bloggers weigh in on the issue.
East Timor: Cats, Monsters in Pre-Election Video Humor
Less than one month to go for the presidential elections in East Timor, and one of the most original uses of citizen media in the anticipation of the elections is not serious at all - user Slogheinn on Youtube, has uploaded a series of humorous videos that mock four of the best known presidential candidates.
Colombia: Citizen Journalist Threatened Over Viral Video
Citizen journalist Bladimir Sánchez has already received threats for posting a video showing the forced evictions of farmers and fishermen protesting the construction of a hydroelectric dam in the department of Huila, Colombia. In less than three days, more than 600,000 people have watched it.
Haiti: Students in Sheds
Haiti Grassroots Watch explores the issues surrounding the non-reconstruction of the state university in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake.
Barbados: A Woman's Worth
Free Logic is concerned about the tweets from “little girls and ignorant women extolling their love for Chris Brown, in spite of his ‘misdeeds'”, saying: “It made me feel sick inside. That there are women out there who think so little of themselves. For the record, no man will ever...
Iran: Letter from Jailed Blogger Details “Blue Sky of Pain”
Dr. Mehdi Khazali, a jailed Iranian blogger and publisher, wrote a letter this month from prison describing a “blue sky of pain” of his first-hand experience with the injustice of jails in Iran, where prisoners face torture and arbitrary death sentences.
Chile: Twitter Users Share Images of Aysén Protests
A social movement that demands better quality of life and lower costs has gained strength in the Aysén region in the Chilean Patagonia. The people of Aysén are uploading their photos to Twitter to show the marches, blockades and confrontations that have occurred in recent days.
Georgia: Online Campaign Targets Russian President's Facebook Page
With Russian soldiers stations in Georgia's breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, hundreds of Georgians called for their withdrawal on the Russian president's Facebook page.
Russia: Pro-Putin Rally in Vladivostok Causes Controversy
Pro-Putin rallies, also known as Putings, took place in many Russian cities last weekend. One such Puting caused a scandal in the Far Eastern city of Vladivostok, which is renowned for its strong support of the opposition and for anti-Kremlin moods in general. Masha Egupova reports.
Russia: Navalny vs Kadyrov
At Jamestown Foundation Blog, Valery Dzutsev reports that Ramzan Kadyrov, the President of Chechnya, has called politician and anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny “a real chatterbox” – and Navalny retaliated by publishing (here and, later, here; ru) “the results of his investigation of the Chechen police’s car inventory acquisitions, naming and...
Brazil: Quilombo Community in Bahia About to Be Evicted
One of the oldest slave descendent communities in Brazil, Quilombo Rio dos Macacos, has a date for its eviction: March 4, 2012. The claim for the land comes from the Navy of Brazil, that intends to broaden a condo for its officers in that territory, in the state of Bahia.