Stories about Digital Activism from October, 2011
Russia: Pre-Election Scandals, YouTube Videos and Semi-Anonymous Protest
Anna Arutiunova at Russia Profile covers recent pre-election RuNet scandals (see also this week's GV coverage here and here). “RuNet has become an essential platform for the dirty business of political campaigning. It’s just that unlike the press or television, where pseudonyms are not the order of the day, the...
Brazil: Is the Ruling Party an LGBT Ally?
Marcelo Gerald published a series of posts (part 1, 2 and 3) [pt] on the blog Eleições Hoje (Elections Today), that analyses the position of the ruling party in Brazil, PT (Worker's Party), towards the LGBT community.
Bahamas: “War” Against Women & Children
“The war against women and children in the Bahamas rages on,” says Womanish Words, adding: “This war that was dismissed for years as ‘domestic’ violence is by far the biggest and most damaging social problem we have and it is destroying us all.”
Russia: Author of “the Barracks Blog” De-Anonymized, Allegedly Threatened
Vasiliy (@sosigusyan [ru]), military conscript and the author of “the Barracks Blog,” a Twitter-account telling about the life in the army (see transcripts of his tweets here [ru] and here [ru]) had been de-anonymized by the military authorities. The content of the micro-blog had been deleted and someone else started...
Russia: Site of Political Phone Pranks Launched
politicprank.ru, website dedicated to the phone pranks with politicians has launched on October 26, 2011. The first prank [ru] has been conducted allegedly with the head of the security of Vladimir Putin. Authenticity of the recording, however, is not proved yet.
Russia: Hacked Mailbox of Anti-Corruption Blogger Published Online
Private mailbox allegedly belonging to Alexey Navalny, famous anti-corruption blogger, has been hacked and published at navalnymail.kz by an attacker nicknamed onenavnav [ru]. Navalny hasn't confirmed the authenticity of the leaked e-mails yet. Observers suggest that the leak might be connected to the plan of Navalny's discreditation.
Syria: Blogger Hussein Gharir “Missing”
Prominent Syrian blogger and activist Hussein Gharir, has been missing since yesterday and is presumed to have been arrested by Syrian authorities. A #FreeHussein campaign has been launched on Twitter and Facebook, and a statement [AR] has been issued in the name of Syrian bloggers calling for his release.
Pakistan: Political Satire Becomes Internet Sensation
A recent song released on YouTube, by a group of young men from Lahore, has become an Internet sensation. The songs lyrics are heavily loaded with political satire, something that is rarely witnessed in Pakistan in recent years.
Mexico: President Signs Law Two Years After Daycare Centre Fire
On June 5, 2009, a fire in a daycare centre claimed the lives of 49 children and left 76 injured. The childrens' parents campaigned for a bill to improve the country's daycare centres, which has just been signed into law by the Mexican President.
Azerbaijan: Twitter Diplomacy
The British Embassy in Baku, Azerbaijan, has announced that newly arrived Ambassador Peter Bateman will take questions via Twitter on Thursday 27th October.
Photos: Flash Mob Encouraging Youth to Vote, South Korea
South Korean citizen media Wiki Tree posted [ko] a video and photos of flash mob encouraging South Korean young voters to participate in the coming election on October 26, 2011.
Hungary: Live-Blogging Oct. 23 Opposition Protest in Budapest
The Contrarian Hungarian live-blogged Sunday's opposition rally in Budapest, which had been organized through Facebook (hu; en) and drew “many tens of thousands” of protesters.
Egypt: Catch the Former Regime Remnants
Last April, an Egyptian court ordered the dissolution of the political organization that ruled the nation for decades. Its members are however reinventing themselves, joining the lists of candidates vying for November's parliamentary elections. See how netizens have joined hands to expose them.
Honduras: Blogger's Facebook Account is Shut Down
‘La Gringa’, from La Gringa's Blogcito, says her Facebook account was disabled because someone filed a complaint about her username (‘La Gringa’, her internet pseudonym) after she published a series of posts on crime in Honduras. She explains why she uses a pseudonym and points out that an online petition...
East Timor: Petition to Keep the Country Debt-Free
The Movimento Kontra Deve (Movement Against Debt) and East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) have launched a joint petition to “For a Debt-Free Timor-Leste”. The Government of Timor-Leste is currently free of debt. Despite current substantial income from petroleum resources, the government has announced plans to begin borrowing.
Cuba: Recounting Repression
Pedazos de La Isla posts two accounts of Cuban dissidents being beaten and detained, allegedly “just for trying to travel within their own country” and “for demonstrating peacefully”.
Trinidad & Tobago: Making Anya the Fan Favourite
The deadline for voting for the Project Runway Fan Favourite is this Wednesday, October 26, at midnight – and Trinidad Carnival Diary is drumming up support for local designer Anya Ayoung-Chee in this post, complete with instructions as to how to upload tweets in bulk.
Haiti: Enough of Occupation
The Haitian Blogger has had enough of the United Nations occupation of Haiti, saying: “All Haitian's [sic] will start respecting the U.S. and it's [sic] proxy the UN MINUSTAH military force when they begin to put a value on Haitian life.”
Russia: President's Visit to Journalism Department Under Attack of Social Media
The New York Times explores the role of social media in exposing staged nature of Dmitry Medvedev's visit to the Moscow State Univerisity. The Twitter hashtag #журфак (shortened for Journalism department) as well as many posts on LiveJournal and Facebook made the controversy a trending topic and forced the president's spokesperson...
Turkey: Online Relief Efforts for Van's Earthquake Victims
Eastern Turkey was hit by a large earthquake of magnitude 7.2 yesterday. Kubra sums up some of relief efforts that were spearheaded online, pushing for humanitarian and rescue efforts on the ground.
Egypt: Man Jailed for Three Years for Insulting Islam on Facebook
Egyptian Ayman Youssef Mansur has been sentenced for three years with hard labour in Egypt for “insulting Islam” on Facebook, reports Brian Whitaker in Al Bab.
