· December, 2012

Stories about Digital Activism from December, 2012

No Haven for Citizen Journalists in Bahrain

After Bahrain police “Slap” video went viral the Minister of Interior issued a statement in which he asked that “anyone who films such an event should report it immediately” to the authorities. Two days later, and in contrast with such statements, many were shocked at the news of the arrest of a photojournalist.

31 December 2012

Mauritanians Find a Voice Online in 2012

Few people know about Mauritania, that African state. Even fewer know that it is a member of the Arab League, thus part of the Arab World. But too much has happened in 2012 in Mauritania. Despite the low rate of internet penetration, young people and activists are resorting to social media platforms in an attempt to say: We exist and to draw the world's attention to their country.

29 December 2012

Looking Back at 2012 in South Asia – Part II

Pakistan's dismal human rights record just gets worse, India's rising rape rates have sent the society into a flux, Bangladesh rejected Myanmar's Rohingya refugees, the regions relatively stable country - Maldives- saw a spiraling political crisis, and protests in post-war Sri Lanka against price hikes were met with police brutality. It has been a rough year in South Asia. And we have been covering the bad and the good all year at Global Voices. Here are some highlights from this years coverage.

29 December 2012

Egypt: The People Demand Free and Open Source Software

A lot has been said about the liberating role technology has played in the Middle East uprising, yet there is more to be said about the mutual role the uprising is yet to play in liberating the technology in the region. Angered by an announcement that the Egyptian government agreed to spending $43.8 million to acquire licenses and software products from Microsoft, members of the Open Source community in Egypt are planning a silent protest outside the Cabinet on December 30.

28 December 2012

Online Petition for Oscar López

The online petition asking for the pardon of Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar López Rivera is rapidly getting close to its objective of 3,000 signatures. López was arrested in 1981...

28 December 2012

Africa's Tainted Global Media Coverage

The #Kony2012 campaign contained quite a few over-simplifications about Africa. African media itself is not immune from this sort of criticism either. Here is a summary of the gems, errors and other inaccuracies in media coverage of Africa.

27 December 2012

India Debates Capital Punishment for Rape

Shocked at the brutality of the recent gang-rape of a 23 year old woman in a Delhi bus, Indians are asking for stricter laws and harsher punishments for violence against women. There has been vigorous debates going on about capital punishment for rapists, started out by a member of Parliament, Sushma Swaraj.

26 December 2012

Syria: Negotiating Defection on Twitter

Following reports that former Syrian spokesman Jihad Makdissi had fled to the US, on 25 December activist Rami Jarrah, also known as Alexander Page, released private Twitter messages that show Makdissi had been in contact with him for months. This could be, as Twitter users have named it, “the first defection negotiation in history.”

26 December 2012

Macedonia: Nude Art Twitter Calendar for Charity

Twelve Macedonian women – regular Twitter users – took part in a humanitarian project organized by @IlinaBookbox, two photographers and one designer via the hashtag #ТвитерКалендар (Macedonian for ‘Twitter Calendar’)....

24 December 2012

Promoting Recycling in Macedonia

Continuing the tradition that started last year (en, mk, nl, es), the Macedonian Twitter community has erected a new Christmas Tree made of plastic bottles (mk, mk, photos 1, 2,...

24 December 2012

Iranian-Americans Seek Heros to Save a Life

Nasim, a young woman from Northern California of Iranian decent is in need of a bone marrow transplant. Several Iranian celebrities have stepped up to help spread the word to save her. They are using social media to find a hero to give a bone marrow donation.

24 December 2012

Who Supports Russia's Ban on American Adoptions?

RuNet Echo

A slight majority of Russian internet users support the ban on adoptions by Americans. 50% do not understand the motivation for international adoptions, and 60% think that such adoptions endanger children. Who are these people, and what are they saying?

24 December 2012