· March, 2013

Stories about Digital Activism from March, 2013

Trying to Get Through: Hungarians Send Video Messages to Prime Minister

Young Hungarians are shocked by the government's stubborn refusal to acknowledge their protests and their demands for a more democratic decision-making. To get their message across, four young people launched a new blog on March 22, asking fellow citizens to send short video messages to the Prime Minister with their thoughts on his governance.

31 March 2013

As Liberal Russia's Secret Superhero ‘KermlinRussia’ Unmasks, Some See Evil

RuNet Echo

Arseny Bobrovsky, the owner of a Russian PR firm called “Daily Communications,” would be a thoroughly typical example of Moscow’s “creative class” liberals, were it not for one thing: Bobrovsky has a secret identity. At least he did, anyway, until March 25, 2013, when he and his accomplice Katya Romanovskaya outed themselves to the world as the authors of KermlinRussia, one of the most popular accounts on Russian Twitter.

30 March 2013

Europe for the People, Not the Markets

From March 11 to 17 European citizens organized a week of protests against austerity measures imposed on the countries of the European Union, know as the European Counter Summit. People from different countries have protested in the streets and commented on the events through Twitter under the tag #EuropeanSpring.

29 March 2013

Dream a Little Dream in China

My Chinese dream: Judicial fairness. Give back the life of my son. While China’s new leader Xi Jinping likes to talk about his “Chinese dream”, a group of Chinese petitioners...

28 March 2013

Venezuela Gears Up for Upcoming Elections

After the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, online conversations are focusing on the country's next political episode: the April 14 presidential elections. Although electoral campaigns have not officially kicked off, candidates and their supporters are already on the move.

27 March 2013

South Koreans Blast Authorities Over Hack Attack Handling

Nearly a week after a massive cyber attack against major websites in South Korea, the identity of the attackers remains unknown. Frustrated South Koreans have slammed authorities in their comments online for their incompetence in blocking such attacks and for taking political advantage of the situation by blaming North Korea.

26 March 2013

Google's Bangladeshi Independence Doodle

Aminul Islam Sajib reports that Google featured Bangladeshi National Flag as a Doodle on the occasion of the Independence Day of Bangladesh (26th March, 1971) which was a long time...

25 March 2013

Shades of Communism in New Russian Registration Law

RuNet Echo

On the evening of March 18, 2013 group of around 12 people [ru] unveiled a long black-and-white poster in the Red Square, reading “Go f*ck yourself with your registration”. They set off flares and shouted slogans, among which were “Down with the Chekist government!” and “Putin will be executed!”

25 March 2013

Saudi Arabia Threatens to Block Skype and WhatsApp

Saudi Arabia, an Enemy of the Internet, is threatening to block a number of popular communication tools, such as Skype and mobile messaging service WhatsApp, unless the operating companies agree to infringe on the privacy of users and monitor them.

25 March 2013

Digital Freedom: Principles and Concepts

Advox

The Egyptian Institute for Freedom of Thought and Expression issued its first statement on digital freedom, a simplified research paper to propose definitions for digital rights and related principles which the paper summarised as: universal access, freedom of opinion and expression, the right to privacy, and the right to creativity, development and innovation.

25 March 2013