Stories about Technology from May, 2011
Jamaica: Garvey's Good Name
Diaspora litblogger Geoffrey Philp has begun an online movement to clear Marcus Garvey's name – his aim is “to get 10,000 signatures and to deliver the petition to President Barack Obama.”
CEE Bankwatch Network campaign against EBRD practices
The CEE Bankwatch Network, an NGO monitoring activities of international financial institutions, has just released a video sharply criticizing the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's 20th anniversary of activities in former Soviet Bloc countries, and its intentions to extend to north Africa. “The EBRD has in fact a poor...
Bhutan: Perspectives From The Villages
Bhutanese blog Whatever Matters provides some perspectives from the villages on some contemporary issues of Bhutan including the wedding of the Bhutanese King and the controversial tobacco control act.
Philippines: Online campaign to defeat Reproductive Health measure
The Catholic Church has turned to cyberspace in its bid to defeat the proposed Reproductive Health bill now pending in Philippine Congress.
India: New Internet Rules – Unregulated Power To The Government
Law And Other Things debates the proposed new Internet Rules in India, which grants unregulated powers to the Government.
Mexico: ‘Información Cívica’ Summarizes Week in Civil Society
David Sasaki in Información Cívica explains they will “begin publishing weekly summaries of what Open Society Foundation partners in various countries around Latin America are sharing via their websites, blogs, and social media accounts.” Their first summary focuses on their partners in Mexico.
Togo: 8 digits phone numbers coming soon
“Starting August 7, 2011, at 00.00 GMT, a new 8 digits telephone dialing system will be implemented in Togo.” Louis Bararmna on African News details what this will change for users [Fr] when calling landlines and mobile phones in Togo.
Tunisia: Deputy Minister Slim Amamou Resigned
On May 23, Tunisian blogger Slim Amamou announced [fr] on Twitter his resignation as Secrétaire d'état [deputy minister] for Sports and Youth. Amamou was known to livetweet cabinet meetings on his personal Twitter account @slim404 [fr]. He explains why he has resigned here and here [fr].
Philippines: Digital Media Wiki
A wiki page provides a rich source of information on the state of digital media in the Philippines.
Cuba: On Emails and Blogs
Due to limited acces to the Internet in Cuba, blogger Yasmín Portales Machado has decided to publish on her blog En 2310 y 8225 [es] the comments on her posts that have been circulated through email, which is more easily available in Cuba.
Russia: Famous Sci-Fi Writer's Blog Removed for ‘Anti-Semitism’
Following President Medvedev's speech on extremism in the Russian Internet, security services began a campaign against online neo-Nazis and vocal nationalists. On May 28, 2011, the campaign against racial and religious extremism found an unusual enemy – Leonid Kaganov, one of Russia's oldest bloggers, a poet, and a science fiction writer.
Azerbaijan: Twitter as a tool for activism
Global Voices co-founder Ethan Zuckerman comments on the use of Twitter in last week's campaign by Amnesty International to call for the release of prisoner of conscience Eynulla Fatullayev. Although the imprisoned journalist was released, argues Zuckerman, several questions have been raised by the online action and not least in...
Morocco: Tracking Protests
Moroccan blog Mamfakinch has prepared an interactive map which tracks protests happening in Morocco this weekend.
Egypt: Mubarak Fined for Internet Blackout during Revolution
An Egyptian court has fined ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak and other officials 540 million Egyptian pounds ($90m) for disconnecting the Internet and mobile phone services during the revolution. Mubarak's regime first shut down access to Twitter when protests started, then Facebook, before turning off the Internet on January 28.
Arab World: Ibn Khaldun Gets Doodled and Tweeted
Considered the greatest Arab historiographer and historian, the philosopher Ibn Khaldun was born in present-day Tunisia in 1332. He is also known as the father of cultural history and modern social science. Google's Doodle sparked the Twitter hashtag #ibn5ldoon, reminding us of this great scholar and his work.
Pakistan: TEDx Karachi Inspires Pakistanis
The second TEDx Karachi event took place on the 27 May, 2011, and it included speakers like Mukhtaran Mai, Raja Sabri Khan, Fasi Zaka and Imran Khan. Pakistani netizens share their opinions about the event which inspires to 'Make the Impossible Possible'.
Bangladesh: Wi-Fi And Digital Campus
Mahfuzur Rahman Manik writes about the present state of Wi-Fi networks in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh and whether students can access them.
Sri Lanka: The Best Twitter Feeds
Are you interested in following news from Sri Lanka? Groundviews posts two Twitter lists containing the best Twitter feeds on and from Sri Lanka.
France : The “Civilized” Internet According to President Sarkozy
As a prelude to the G8 summit in Deauville, chaired by France, the e-G8 forum of the Internet was held in Paris on 23 and 24 May 2011. To the dismay of supporters of civil society, the interventions on the forum were limited to government agencies and large companies.
North Korea Claims They Developed Their Own Computers
North Korean state media claimed the country is developing it own PCs by showing the insides of a computer manufacturing facility. But technology experts found out that one of the laptops appeared on the news is actually a low-cost netbook already on the US market. Martyn Williams wrote about it...
China: Netizens Declare Candidacy In Upcoming Elections
Their chances may not be good, but a small and growing number of Internet celebrities and microbloggers have decided to run in grassroots elections this coming September in constituencies around the country.
