Did News Story on Riches of China's Premier Weaken Reformists?

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabo’s final days in office have been tainted by allegations that his family has used their power and influence to amass a personal fortune. The scandal also prompted China’s netizens to speculate on the internal struggle within the Communist Party.

Canadian Awaits Death Penalty in Iran Since 2008

Canadian citizen Hamid Ghassemi was jailed in Iran and sentenced to death on espionage charges in 2008. His family, friends and neighbors in Toronto are still campaigning for his return.

Outrage as Facebook Post Leads to Arrests in India

Police detained a 21-year-old woman after she posted a Facebook a status update protesting the total shutdown of Mumbai city following the death of the founder of the Shiv Shena party. Her friend, who ‘liked’ the update was also arrested. Both were later released on bail.

Misreading Magnitsky & Congress From Russia

Russian opposition bloggers were ecstatic on Saturday, after the United States House of Representatives passed the so-called Magnitsky Act with bipartisan support. Unfortunately for supporters of the Act, it is still far from becoming law.

Saudi Arabia: Peaceful Protesters to Be Flogged, Judge Rules

Last September, we wrote about an unprecedented 24-hour sit-in for families of uncharged prisoners. The protesters were finally tricked and arrested. Last night, Saudi journalist Iman al-Qahtani published the court ruling on 19 of those protesters on Twitter. Suspended 50-90 lashes and varying jail sentences were handed to 14 of them, including the person who brought food for the protesters. The sentences are to be executed if they participate again in any protest. The other five are to be tried later.

Hurdles in Making Italy's Illegal Workers ‘Legal’

The results of the legislative decree passed this summer in Italy to regularise thousands of illegal workers by regularisation of their undeclared employment, have not lived up to expectations. Here's a review of online reactions and analysis.

What is the Role of the Army in Africa Today?

The army has often played a determining but ambiguous role in the African political process. Between 1950 and 2000, 53 African countries were subject to military coups leading to regime change. After a period of respite in the 1990’s, the African continent was once again the scene of many military coups in the first decade of the 21st century, with 27 attempts at takeover. Being both a factor in the consolidation and the destabilisation of regimes, the army is regarded with suspicion in most countries and does not seem to know how to adapt to changing mindsets.

An Invitation to Discuss Reforms to Costa Rica's Cybercrime Law

Ticoblogger invites [es] netizens to discuss [es] proposed reforms to Costa Rica's Cybercrime Law. The site calls on bloggers, Twitter users and blog readers to analyze and report any errors...

Chad: A Petition to Fight Impunity

Makaila ‘s blog published [fr] a petition cosigned by several human right organizations in Chad that bemoans the absence of investigation regarding war crimes. In addition, the petition notes [fr] that : We would like to...

Iranian Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh on Hunger Strike in Prison

Iranian human rights activist, lawyer and Sakharov Prize winner Nasrin Sotoudeh has been on hunger strike for more than four weeks in reaction to the restrictions imposed on her family and the mistreatment of political prisoners by the Iranian authorities.

Spanish Constitutional Court Upholds Same Sex Marriage

The Spanish Constitutional Court approved by a large majority the law passed in 2005 that guarantees equal rights to same sex marriages. Social media buzzed with reactions.

Slovak “Decent Life” Protesters Burn EU Flag

About 100 people took part in a follow-up “Together for a Decent and Safe Life” protest [sk, images, videos], co-organized by Oskar Dobrovodský, in Bratislava on Nov. 10 (more about...

Philippine Child Labor Data Portal

The Philippine government, in partnership with several child and labor groups, has launched a web portal on child labor “to share relevant data, foster communication, improve program monitoring and automate...

Call For De-weaponization of Karachi

Journeys To Democracy reports that some Pakistani activists have sent out a petition for peace and de-weaponization of Karachi city to the Chief Justice of Pakistan. The brutal violence, armed...

Lurkmore or Lurkless? The Russian Internet Blacklist In Action

A new Russian law that threatens Internet censorship came into effect on November 1. This week, netizen outrage followed the blocking of one particularly popular website by Russian ISPs. The site in question was Lurkmore, a Wikipedia-like compendium of articles on Internet culture and memes, written in an irreverent style with heavy use of Internet jargon.

New Hard Times for Russian Journalism

This week, one of the RuNet's biggest bloggers, Rustem Adagamov, posted a letter from Yevgenia Albats, the chief editor of The New Times, one of Russia's most prominent weekly magazines. In her letter, Albats announced a new subscriptions initiative, the fate of which will decide the journal's future, and set an important precedent for political journalism in Russia.

“Self-Defence is No Offence”: Nigerian Student on Trial in Ukraine

On Nov. 5, 2011, Olaolu Femi, a Nigerian student in Ukraine, was attacked by a group of young people in the city of Luhansk; he was detained the next day,...

Tajik Police Explained

We can criticize the law-enforcement agencies as much as we want and argue that police is not doing its job properly and that police officers are not to be trusted... But problems with the police are just a reflection of problems in our society as a whole.

An Online Project for Monitoring the State of Russia's Roads

The RosYama project is a method of monitoring the state of the roads and their compliance with latest government standards. Anyone who notices a roadway that fails to meet these standards can use RosYama's service.

More Camps to Accommodate Detained Asylum Seekers in Israel

In June 2012 Israel began implementing the amendment to the Anti-Infiltration Law according to which all asylum seekers who cross the Israel-Egypt border are automatically jailed for a minimum period of three years without trial. Citizens of ‘enemy states' (such as Sudan) are jailed indefinitely. Elizabeth Tsurkov shares blog reactions as more prison camps are erected to receive the influx of refugees.

Concern over Subterranean Water in the Sahel

We are told that miners do everything to waterproof the soil and ensure that waste does not contaminate subterranean water. But it must be recognized that there is always a...