· July, 2011

Stories about Digital Activism from July, 2011

Russia: Bloggers Find Street Shooter

Bloggers across the Russian Internet were quick to respond with posts and information after well-known photo-blogger Dmitry Ternovsky was shot at recently on a highway in the southeast of Moscow. Ashley Cleek details the story.

Tunisia: Time to Register for Elections

Registration for electoral lists in Tunisia started on July 11 and will be closed on August 2, but statistics have shown that Tunisians are reluctant to register on the lists. A group of Tunisian bloggers have launched an online campaign to urge people to register for the October elections.

Norway: Courtroom Doors Will be Closed

  25 July 2011

More than 70,000 people joined a Facebook event over the weekend advocating for the first court hearing of mass-murderer Anders Behring Breivik on Monday, July 25, 2011 to be held behind closed doors. Today it was confirmed [no] that no press or members of the public will attend. Breivik does...

South Korea: Women-Only Subway Car Meets Strong Opposition

  22 July 2011

As the subway sexual harassment is on the rise, especially during rush hours and late nights, Seoul city government has decided to launch women-only subway compartment to cut down the crime rate. However, the move has prompted fierce debate amongst South Korean netizens.

Portugal: “Junk” National Debt Rating Provokes Online Demonstrations

  21 July 2011

The “junk” rating given to Portugal’s ability to pay its public debts by independent American financial analysis corporation Moody's, has provoked numerous demonstrations of exacerbated nationalism on the social networks. It has also brought to the blogosphere further analysis on the economic crisis and the country's bailout.

Azerbaijan: Release Jabbar Savalan Campaign

Amnesty International has launched an online campaign calling for the release of Jabbar Savalan, a young activist in Azerbaijan who made calls on Facebook for pro-democracy protests in the oil-rich former Soviet republic. Those wishing to join the campaign can sign an online petition here.

China: Bring Your Books to Rural Villages

  21 July 2011

A prominent Chinese scholar is encouraging netizens to "bring their books to the villages". Now a number of centres have been set up in cities across the country to handle the book donations and collect funds to go towards building libraries in rural areas.

Brazil: Blogger Censored and Sued by Businessman

  20 July 2011

Journalist Paulo Cezar Prado's Blog do Paulinho [pt] has been blocked by the Brazilian Justice, reports the Blue Bus [pt]. Businessman Franck Henouda's lawyer has sued the blogger who had also criticized other public figures related with sports: Ricardo Teixeira, the president of the CBF and Andres Sanchez the president...

Russia: Online Effort to Discredit Environmentalists Exposed

Suren Gazaryan, Russian environmentalist, publishes [ru] the scan of the document that describes the strategy of discrediting local environmentalist organizations protesting against the development of the Tuapse oil terminal. The “plan” includes prices for the paid posts in the blogs, forums, media outlets, as well as a list of possible...

St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Violence vs. Women

  20 July 2011

Abeni quotes statistics which suggest that “St Vincent and the Grenadines is the OECS state with the most female homicides between 2010-2011″, and asks: “Do we even have the will to come up with solutions?”