Stories about Digital Activism from April, 2021
Herself a victim of cyberbullying, Lindsey Kukunda fights online violence against women in Uganda
Uganda media “promotes violence against women …. stories of ‘revenge porn’ are not written in support of the victim but as entertainment and blame.”
Digital discourse: How going online is keeping Kadazan and other indigenous languages alive in Borneo
"The indigenous languages don’t have to stay in dusty cabinets. We can use technology to have our languages and cultures available online."
Should there be Shona-language versions of Google and social media sites? This Zimbawean technologist says yes
"Native speakers should be at the forefront of researching and producing these tools as they better understand their own language."
Serbian freelancers protest new taxation law that threatens to push thousands into poverty
Told for years that their line of work was not regulated by law and had no framework for taxation, digital workers are now expected to pay hefty taxes in retrospect.
Kenyan activists intimidated as irked citizens stage online protest against IMF loans
Using hashtags #StopLoaningKenya and #StopGivingKenyaLoans, Kenyans expressed frustration at the IMF for approving additional debt intended to fund a response to COVID-19. State intimidates social media users to quit dissent.
Algerians’ speech freedoms strained by media laws passed under COVID-19 pretext
As Hirak protests continue to protest unmet public demands, Algerian government uses the pandemic to restrain independent media platforms and people's digital rights through suppressive laws.
For stateless and scattered Tibetans, a new online tool helps voters make an informed choice
The reliable online platform, created by a group of Swiss Tibetans, allows candidates and voters to communicate effectively, and although it overcame some challenges, others are work in progress.
Jamaicans agonise, politicians seek solutions after another young woman is killed
News of a young woman's murder comes against the backdrop of record murder rates in Jamaica which, according to one 2020 survey, is the highest in the region.
Thierry Henry quits social media and calls for platforms to act against racist online attacks
Popular public figures are quitting social media as an increase in virtual racial attacks against football players prompts fresh calls for social media platforms to do more.
Ghanaian digital activist pushes for more online visibility for the Dagbani language
Sadik Shahadu: "Even though there are offline Dagbani resources and learning materials in most public libraries in some schools from the north, getting access to them is somehow difficult."
Israeli phone hacking firm stops sales to Belarus and Russia
Cellebrite, an Israeli software company known for making tools used to extract data from smartphones, has announced it will halt sales to Russian and Belarus state bodies and law enforcement.
Fact-checking in Nepal in the time of pandemic
"There's a tendency to cherry-pick facts and present them to suit a particular agenda."
Digital resources are the key to saving the ‘definitely endangered’ Nepalbhasa language
Community efforts recently led to the launch of an online dictionary containing close to 30,000 entries, making it the largest repository of linguistic data for the Nepalbhasa language to date.
