Stories about Digital Activism from February, 2013
Brazilians Push Back Against Porto Alegre Bus Fare Increase
A fight is brewing in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre over an increase in bus fares.
Bulgarian Police Attack Anti-Government Protesters
GV Author Ruslan Trad has posted a video from the Feb. 19 anti-government protest in Sofia, Bulgaria: There were provocations and police violence. Police beating everyone. They did not want to arrest provocateurs, and people shouting, “These are provocateurs,” but police beat anyone on the street. Attack of the police...
Russian Opposition, What Are You Doing? Stahp.
The Coordinating Council of the Russian Opposition has been a fascinating eDemocracy experiment, conducted in the shadow of Russia's competitive authoritarian status quo. Yet, a recent decision not to nominate candidates for any elections—local or regional—has intensified doubts about the KSO, making it a target for one of the RuNet's more vicious attack memes.
Citizens Document Extreme Water Pollution in China
As the effects of China’s toxic smog problem in mid-January reverberate through the country, severe water pollution is documented by online campaigns calling for a reality check on the state of rivers across China.
Brazil: Newspaper and Satire Blog Battle
The main clash is between the version of Folha, which practices censorship under the guise of brand protection, and the version of Falha, which evokes freedom of expression. Brazilian journalist Lino Bocchini informs [pt] that the case of Folha de São Paulo newspaper against the satirical blog Falha de São...
Spanish Parliamentarians Tweet Secret Mario Draghi meeting
El Presidente del Banco Central Europeo (BCE) Mario Draghi pidió que su intervención en el Congreso español se realizara a puertas cerradas. Pero dos diputados desobedecieron la petición de Draghi y transmitieron en tiempo real en Twitter las intervenciones de Draghi bajo la etiqueta que ellos mismo crearon #OpenDraghi.
With Corruption All Too Common, Brazil Pushes Back
More and more cases of corruption are reported all the time in Brazil. However, after the histicoral judgement of those involved in one the largest scandals of corruption in the country, the situation may be changing.
High Energy Bills Keep Bulgarians Protesting
On Sunday, February 17, tens of thousands of people in Bulgaria's capital Sofia and other cities continued to protest against high electricity and heating bills. Ruslan Trad reports.
Bangladeshi Artists Capture Shahbag Protests in Cartoons
The protests in Shahbag square in Bangladesh's capital city, where thousands of people have gathered to demand death for war criminals, rage on for a 12th day. Several artists have put pen to paper to capture the movement in cartoons.
One Billion Rising Flash Mob
Kristin Boekhoff writes how the trainees and workers of Panigram resort organized a dance flash mob in their village as part of the One Billion Rising campaign.
Truthloader: New YouTube Show on Citizen Journalism
Truthloader is a new daily YouTube show, produced by UK-based ITN in partnership with YouTube, that brings investigative and citizen journalism together, focusing mostly on under-reported news stories from around the globe. They also host a weekly live debate on Google Hangout. Yesterday's show asked “Can citizen journalism change the...
Sina Weibo to ‘Great Firewall’ Architect: Get Lost
More than 10,000 Weibo users returned Fang Bingxing's new year greeting with a forward message: Get lost. Fang is the notorious architect of the Great Firewall (internet filtering system) in China. Beijing Cream has the full story.
Bangladesh Unites at Shahbag for 42-Year-Old War Crimes
Drop by drop, the Shahbag intersection in Bangladesh's capital city Dhaka has become an ocean of people, demanding justice for the atrocities committed during the country's 1971 liberation war and death penalty for war criminals.
Under Pressure, Spain Opens Door to Foreclosure Reform
The Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca (PAH), joined by an impressive social movement, fought for Congress to change mortgage legislation in Spain. In the end, the Popular Party bowed to intense public pressure mobilized via the #ILPescrache hashtag.
Is Senegal's Government Spokesman Selling Out?
The reputation of former investigative journalist turned government spokesman Abdou Latif Coulibaly as a champion of Senegal's citizen protest movements took a serious blow after he forcefully distanced himself from the movements during a political speech.
Crowdmapping Ukraine's Wheelchair Accessibility
At BiggggIdea.com (uk; “Velyka Ideya” – “a platform where people present their projects, and the community funds them”), Oleksandr Telyuk draws attention [uk] to Wheelmap.org, a crowdmapping project that allows users to evaluate and mark wheelchair accessibility of various locations worldwide. Telyuk notes that 96 percent of public places in...
Students to Protest Constitutional Amendment
The Hungarian Student Network and the Hungarian High School Network posted a declaration [en] “about the rule of law” in Hungary – and are planning yet another protest rally [hu] in Budapest on Monday, Feb. 11: Today’s proposal for a constitutional amendment has made it obvious – even for those...
#Shahbag in a 140 Characters
As the #Shahbag movement of Bangladeshis is gaining its momentum, more and more Bangladeshis are using social network services like Twitter and Facebook to organize the movement. Shopan Awalin provides an in depth analysis on the activity of the hashtag #Shahbag in Twitter regarding the people, what they are talking,...
Bureaucracy and Motherhood in Serbia
Marija Janković's photo of her 3-month-old baby sleeping peacefully next to the 52 medical and administrative documents has received 942 ‘likes’ and 826 ‘shares’ on the Facebook page of Status Magazin [sr], a Belgrade monthly, and was awarded the first prize in a photo contest run by the publication. It...
Hong Kong Activist Jailed for Burning Chinese Flag
A Hong Kong activist was sentenced to nine months in prison on Thursday for burning and defacing the Chinese flag and the Hong Kong flag during two separate demonstrations against the mainland's communist government, sparking many web users to upload their own desecration of the Chinese flag in protest of the heavy-handed sentence.
