Stories about Digital Activism from July, 2011
Iran: A blogger was sentenced to 17 months in prison
Peyman Roshan Zamir, a blogger and political activist from southern city Ahwaz was sentenced [fa] to 17 months of prison. He was accused of insulting Islamic republic's Leader and propaganda against regime.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Sex Education
The public reaction to Abeni‘s T-shirt, emblazoned with the words “Sex nice, but de AIDS ting…”, leads her to conclude “that HIV education has to overcome so many prejudices. The reluctance to talk about sex in a holistic way forces the young and not so young to accept myths as...
South Korea Aims to Regulate Bloggers Getting Paid by Companies
South Korea's Fair Trade Commission has decided to regulate incentives given to influential bloggers who write favorable reviews for companies. Francis Tan of the Next Web site commented on the purpose of the regulation and its possible side effects.
Turkmenistan: Explosion of online activity
Joshua Foust comments on the recent news about the emergence of new social groups forming online in Turkmenistan, and argues how effective they can be at gathering information.
Tunisia: Campaign to Free Government Critic Samir Feriani
A group of Tunisian bloggers and activists have launched a campaign to free Samir Feriani, a former senior official in Tunisia's Interior Ministry who has been detained since May, 29, 2011.
TED Talk by Global Voices Co-Founder Rebecca MacKinnon
In a TED talk on July 12, 2011 Rebecca MacKinnon describes how the internet has become a primary communication channel between citizens and governments, but warns that there is a corporate layer of “internet sovereigns” between the two. Let's take back the Internet," she says.
Russia: Kremlin Critics Threatened With Travel Ban
On July 6, 2011, leading political opposition activists Boris Nemtsov and Vladimir Milov suddenly found themselves banned from leaving Russia by the country's Federal Bailiff Service. The concept of a travel ban has a special place in the hearts of people who lived during the Soviet Union.
Belarus: Vkontakte Social Network Blocked by the Providers
Update: Access to the Vkontake site is now restored. Vkontakte, Russian social network, is unavailable for Belarus Internet Users. The network hosts “Revolution Through the Social Network” [ru] group used to organize non-violent protests, telegraf.by reported [ru]. Individual Belarus-based users told GV that the page loads only header but the...
Russia: Anti-Cop Blogger Is Granted Political Asylum in Estonia
Savva Terentyev, blogger from Syktyvkar who was accused of inciting hatred towards policemen in 2008, was granted a political asylum in Estonia, BBC's Russian Service reports [ru]. Terentyev decided to emigrate because he couldn't find job in Syktyvkar after the trial. “All the doors were shut for me due to...
Russia: Wednesday Clapping Protests Organized Online Spread from Belarus
Anonymous Facebook group RusFlash (@RusFlash) [ru] that copies Belarus model of non-violent clapping protest has been created, Echo Moskvy reported [ru]. Organizers invite everyone to come out to the central squares of their cities every Wednesday at 19:00. “We're fed up. With thieves and crooks! With lies and lawlessness!” So...
Macedonia, Tunisia, Egypt: Comparing Experiences
SlavicaI compares the features of Macedonian protests with those in Egypt and Tunisia, based on shared experiences by participants of the Summer University at Universitat Rovira i Virgili (Tarragona, Spain).
Bermuda: Urgent Need for Governance Legislation
Five years have passed since Bermuda “agreed to extend the UN Convention Against Corruption ‘at the earliest opportunity'”; Vexed Bermoothes thinks action is long overdue.
South Korea: Skin Problems Occurred by Tear Gas Solution
More than seven thousand protesters clashed with the police on July 10 in a rally against unfair layoffs at Hanjin Heavy Industries. The Wiki Tree site consolidated photos of protesters who reported skin problems after exposure to tear gas solution the police fired at them.
Russia: Potential of e-Government
Adriel Hampton of Adriel Nation posts impressions of great potential for Russian e-Government after discussions with a Gov 2.0 advocate, pointing to various projects within the sector in Russia.
Portugal: Research on Literacy, Media and Citizenship
The Research Center on Communication and Society from the University of Minho, in Portugal, has made available for download the proceedings of the First National Congress on Literacy, Media and Society. Among more than sixty papers on several topics, there is one dedicated to “Perspectives on info-exclusion in the lusophone...
Spain: More Information on tomalaplaza.net
The website tomalaplaza.net [es] now offers sections (labeled with the names of cities) with information on all the local civic movements that have developed in Spain since last May 15 (15M).
Macedonia: First All-Women Hacker Night
Jovanka Gulicoska informed [mk] on her blog about the upcoming All-Women Hacker Night, scheduled for Wednesday, July 13, in the KIKA Hacklab in Skopje (FB event). According to the official announcement [mk], “all girls interested in Free and Open Source Software, GNU/Linux, but also in technology, computers, hacking (not cracking),...
Syria: Bloggers Rally for Anas Maarawi
Anas Maarawi is the latest Syrian blogger to have been imprisoned. He was detained on Friday July 1, 2011, in his neighborhood of Kafarsouseh in Damascus, and nothing has been heard of him since. Bloggers are rallying for his release.
Angola: Human Rights Activist “Partially” Released
The Angolan human rights activist Agostinho Chicaia has been released from jail, though he is “still without his passport, thus unable to go back home”, reports [pt] the blog Branqkituma. Chicaia was “arbitrarily arrested” at the airport of Kinshasa (D. R. of Congo) on June 20 “under an international arrest...
Trinidad & Tobago: New Media; New Politics
Plain Talk says that “politics as usual” is irrelevant “in these times of new media, real time information and an empowered and politically active electorate.”
Portugal: Getting Funded by the Crowd
MassiveMov, the first crowdfunding platform in Portugal was launched on July 7.
