· July, 2008

Stories about Protest from July, 2008

China: Olympic protest zones

  23 July 2008

Jeremy Goldkorn at Danwei.org translates the news that the Beijing Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games has designated three special demonstration zones for protesters who show up at the Games.

Cuba: Cyber-Citizens?

  22 July 2008

“Never having become citizens in the real world, it is hard for us to behave as citizens on the web”: Yoani Sanchez at Generation Y shares her thoughts about the virtual Cuba.

China: No “Go China!” banners at the Olympics

  22 July 2008

Those attending the Olympics this year will be subject to the standard rules: no outside food or drinks, no sporting of commercial logos of any kind…but among all those is one rule which seems to have struck a nerve among many netizens, as evidenced by it having become the featured...

Brazil: On authoriterrorism and online surveillance

  20 July 2008

Over 60 bloggers attended the blog carnival against censorship [pt] this Saturday, most of them posting especially about the new cyber crimes proposal for Brazil. The bill has now proceeded to the House of Representatives, where a request for it to be handled urgently was put forward last week, leaving bloggers on red alert. Over 70,000 signed an online petition against it.

Taiwan: Observations on Yahoo! Taiwan's search filter

  20 July 2008

We hear about issues on censorship a lot on Global Voices Online and our Advocacy Project, and most of the cases come from Government policies or business self-censorship because of Government policies. However, fierce business competition can sometimes result in censorship...or a kind of.

Israel: Change the Government

“(W)e must change our government now – and change the way we deal with the issue of our kidnapped soldiers and the terrorists we have in our prisons,” writes Chik-Chat from Jerusalem, in response to the prisoner swap conducted between Israel and Lebanon.

Argentina: Senate Rejects Tax Hike on Agricultural Exports

  18 July 2008

The Argentinean Senate recently rejected the proposal to increase taxes on agricultural exports. The poll ended with a tie of 36 votes, and the country's Vicepresident broke the tie with his vote against the retentions. Such decision is a victory for the sectors linked to the so-called “countryside." This continues the internal political crisis of unpredictable consequences for the Kirchner's Government, which still has three more years to govern.

Environment: Updates from African Bloggers

  18 July 2008

In this edition of Global Voices environment we check in with the African environment bloggers, who have fascinating pictures to share, discussions on solar technology, concerns about forest re-allocation and updates on past stories.

Iran: Bloggers campaign to save wetlands

The great and diverse Iranian wetland ecosystems could disappear in the near future. To increase public awareness of the problem, several green bloggers launched a campaign, which run from July 5 through 10, to show people the beauty of these places in contrast to the critical condition they face.

Brazil: Urgency requested for Cyber-Crime Bill

  18 July 2008

Sérgio Amadeu [pt] raises an alert related to the 13 new cyber-crimes bill: it has been requested that the bill was treated as urgent. “Approving this request means that the project will be voted by the House of Representatives soon”, while bloggers call for a debate. More info in Portuguese...

Brazil: Bloggers question the 13 new cyber-crimes

  17 July 2008

In the small hours of last Thursday, July 10, the Brazilian Senate passed the 'Digital Crimes Bill', which typifies the cyber-crimes punishable by law and stipulates the corresponding penalties. The proposal will now be proceeding to the House of Representatives. Meanwhile, bloggers campaign for more debate and an online petition has been signed by over 60,000 citizens in just one week.

Brazil: Calling for investigation into Brazilian Supreme Court

  16 July 2008

Hélio Paz [pt] calls everyone to be part of a peaceful rally for investigations into Gilmar Mendes, the president of the Brazilian Supreme Court, over allegations of corruption. “We will make history with the second postmodernist resistance movement in Porto Alegre”. The gathering takes place at 10 am next Saturday,...