Stories about Digital Activism from January, 2012
Costa Rican Blogs Protest SOPA and PIPA
Ticoblogger [es], a network of Costa Rican blogs, has joined the global protests against the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect-IP Act (PIPA). Ticoblogger blogs like Ciencia Ficción [es], Carepicha [es], and El Infierno en Costa Rica [es] posted a message against the U.S. bills and “censored” part...
Macedonia: Hoax About Facebook and Google SOPA Blackout
Macedonian blogs and independent sites IT.com.mk, Fail.mk, and Radio MOF [all mk] attempt to debunk the misinformation copy-pasted by a number of local commercial media (employing professional journalists) that Facebook, Google, Yahoo and other sites will join SOPA blackout, probably based on incompetent translation of a CBS article stating the...
U.S. Bills Could Threaten the Global Internet
Ignoring the warnings of citizens and technologists, United States lawmakers are considering two bills, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA), that are a real and dangerous threat to the openness of the web everywhere in the world. In response, the Global Voices community has decided to join websites such as Wikipedia, Reddit and BoingBoing in “going dark”, and will black out the Global Voices Advocacy site for 12 hours on January 18, and display a banner on other Global Voices sites that provides more information about the proposed laws.
South Korea’s Richest Conglomerate Criticized for Environmental Pollution
An activist organization, Public Eye Group nominated Samsung, South Korea's richest and most powerful conglomerate, for the People's Award 2012. The award is given to raise public awareness on corporation's decades of environmental pollution, trade union repression, corruption and tax flight.
Brazil/Portugal: “Word of Mouth” Launches Online Channel
On January 16, Portuguese-Brazilian independent media collective Passa Palavra (Word of Mouth) [pt] launched the website PassaPalavra.tv – an online channel that brings together independently produced audio-visual materials. Through sharing video, audio and image, the website aims to collaboratively report on “social struggles and denounce oppression and abuse by public...
Venezuela: Interview with Luis Carlos Díaz on Cyber Attacks
The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas [es] has published an interview with journalist and Global Voices contributor Luis Carlos Díaz, who has been repeatedly harassed and threatened by hackers.
Bulgaria: Protests Against Shale Gas Exploration
On Jan. 14, some 15,000 protesters came out in the streets of at least 12 Bulgarian cities, as well as in London, Paris and Copenhagen, to call for a moratorium on shale gas tests through hydraulic fracturing and to demand a new law that would ban this potentially dangerous practice....
Cuba: Citizen Media Workshop
Crossing the Barbed Wire blogs about a recent workshop “about the basics of citizen journalism and what could be done with the new information technologies”, adding: “The importance of what we now refer to as ‘citizen journalism’ gives human rights activists, social promoters, and dissidents in general a push…”
Cuba: Tackling Racism
Iván's File Cabinet profiles “two of the most lucid and coherent voices on the map of Cuban opposition”, who are fighting for democracy and “racial integration for the those of African origin in all social strata in Cuba.”
Russia: Choosing Blogger of the Year
LiveJournal started online voting [ru] in several nominations trying to identify the most important events in the Russian blogosphere. Voting, however, couldn't avoid controversy, as “Blogger of the Year” nomination [ru] didn't include many activists, Alexey Navalny among others. Sergey Muhammedov decided to start alternative voting [ru] that included much...
Madagascar: After the Land Grab Affair, Is Daewoo Back in the Country ?
Sam posts an open letter to Andry Rajoelina written by Mamy Rakotondrainibe that demands more transparency on the return of Daewoo Logistics in the economy of Madagascar [fr]. Mahefa Rakotomalala provides more context on this return [fr]. The South Korean company is notorious for an attempted land grab deal that provoked...
Three trends on China’s internet in 2011
China Media Project translated Beijing University Professor, Hu Yong's article regarding three major trends on the development of China internet in 2011.
Ukraine: Wikileaks Transcripts Published
Ukraine Today draws attention to a new blog – Wikileaks Ukraine – where the leaked cables of the US Embassy in Kiev during the Yushchenko era are published.
Russia: Overview of Top RuNet Trends and Events in 2011
At the end of this turbulent and inspiring year, Global Voices RuNet Echo editors present you with the list of events that had a profound impact on the Russian Internet and will serve as important steps in the development of the country's online community.
Video Highlights: Activism, Freedom of Speech, Identity and Culture
A selection of Global Voices' recent and interesting stories including video from Middle East and North Africa, Sub Saharan Africa, Western, Eastern and Central Europe, East Asia and Latin America, selected by Juliana Rincón Parra.
Morocco: Activist Rapper Freed
Mouad Belghouat "Al Haked" (The Indignant), a 24-year-old Moroccan rap artist and outspoken critic of Morocco's monarchy, was released on Thursday from prison where he had been held since last September. The announcement of Mouad's release spread like fire on Facebook and Twitter as several supporters rushed to the prison to welcome him.
Brazil: Student Protests Against Bus Fare Increases in Piaui
Since the beginning of the year, thousands of students have been protesting against the increase in bus fares in the capital of the state of Piaui. The demonstrators are forcefully kept down by the Military Police. They have reacted by setting fire to at least one bus, and dozens of students have been arrested.
Ukraine: Gasprinsky Crimean Tatar Library
Back in Nov. 2011, Peace Corps volunteer Barb Wieser guest-blogged about her work at the Ismail Gasprinsky Crimean Tatar Library in Simferopol, Crimea, at Uncataloged Museum blog.
Global: Pictures Not for Free
Edmond Terakopian, one of the UK's leading press photographers, comments on the tendency for some publications to expect photojournalists to supply images for free or for a token payment. The ethnic-Armenian World Press Photo Award winner is also using a Twitter hashtag, #picturesnotfree.
Cuba: Prison Conditions
Pedazos de la Isla posts a letter by dissident Ivonne Malleza who, along with her husband and another citizen, have been imprisoned for over a month, ever since being arrested during a protest.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Time for a Slutwalk?
CODE RED calls the comments of the deputy Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines “particularly dangerous in the context of such high levels of violence against women and murders of women…for the millionth time, clothing does not invite nor excuse violence against women.”