Stories about Weblog from November, 2010
Cablegate: Lessons on tech for transparency
Wikileaks' release of over 250,000 United States embassy cables is one of the hottest subjects in media and government right now. Renata Avila looks at what Cablegate can teach us about technology for transparency.
Russia: Leading Activist Blogger on How Internet Changes Politics
Marina Litvinovich, is one of the most influential activist bloggers in Russia. In an interview with Gregory Asmolov, she shares her vision of the future role of the Internet in Russian politics.
Pakistan: The Desperation Cards
There has been a lot of mismanagement of the donations collected for flood relief in Pakistan. The methods of distribution of reliefs and utilizing those funds for other purposes have also been questioned. One such controversial project is the "Watan Cards" project.
Africa: Cablegate: Does the US care about Africa this much?
Bloggers react to documents published by WikiLeaks (Cablegate) that disclose classified communication between the US State department and its embassies worldwide. The documents make reference to African countries and its leaders.
Caucasus: Revelations & Confusion over Cablegate
As the media worldwide reveals revelation after revelation with the gradual release of over 251,000 leaked U.S. Embassy cables over the coming weeks, there were also some items of specific interest in the South Caucasus.
Russia: Competing Models of Internet Politics
RuNet becomes an arena of the competition of at least two concepts of the usage of the cyberspace: "United Russia"'s formula "Internet instead of democracy" and independent, grass-roots formula "Internet as a free environment for civil society initiatives." Alexey Sidorenko analyzed the recent trends of the role of the Internet in contemporary Russian politics.
China: “Hang the Slaves of the West”
A new website that vilifies Chinese political liberals, including 2010 Nobel Prize winner Liu Xiaobo, has caught the attention of the Chinese internet for its extreme views. Why has it not been removed by censors?
Fiji Water closes the tap and leaves Fiji
After squabbling with Fiji's government, the US-based premium water company Fiji Water closed its bottling plant and canceled its contracts. While the company's leaders hope to strike a deal with Fiji's military government, an estimated 4,000 people are affected by the closure. Fiji's bloggers and commenters provide their take on the matter.
Central & Eastern Europe: Initial Reactions to WikiLeaks’ Cablegate
While other regions feature a lot more prominently in the collection of U.S. embassy cables published by WikiLeaks thus far, a few countries of the CEE region do appear in the kickoff edition of Cablegate. Below is a small selection of initial reactions from the region's bloggers.
Australia Waking to Cancún
In the lead up to Cancún (the COP16 meeting of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol) online discussion in Australia has finally spiked. Here are sample blog reactions
Cambodia: Lessons from the Water Festival stampede
Cambodians are still mourning the death of 347 people in the stampede tragedy which happened last week at Koh Pich Bridge in Phnom Penh. Cambodian netizens share their reactions and recommendations on how to improve disaster management in the country
Philippines: Student unrest over education budget cuts
Students from various public universities in the Philippines held massive protest actions against the budget cuts imposed by the government. Students documented the 'campus strikes' by using the internet.
South Asia: The Morality Of Exposing Others’ Secrets
WikiLeaks, an international non-profit media organization has created waves around the world by publishing 251,287 confidential documents, which detail correspondence between the U.S. State Department and U.S. embassies around the world. Some South Asian bloggers were quick to publish their opinions on this issue.
Jordan: Wikileaks’ “Cablegate” Raises Questions
The recent Wikileaks release, known as "Cablegate," featured several quotations from Jordanian officials, as well as large numbers of cables from the U.S. Embassy in Amman. Jordanian tweeters had varied initial reactions to the latest leak from the whistle-blower site.
Middle East: The Not-So-Secret US Embassy Secret Cables
While mainstream media across the Arab world gave the secret US Embassy cables released yesterday the cold shoulder, bloggers and Twitter users from the Middle East found much needed material to chew on.
Panama: Asylum for Former Colombian Security Director Creates Controversy
The Panamanian government's decision to grant asylum to former director of the Colombian Administrative Department of Security -who is accused of illegal phone wiretapping- has sparked reactions on social networks in both countries.
Take Back the Tech to Eliminate Violence Against Women
The global campaign Take Back the Tech! started on November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. This year it is focused on developing actions that defend women's right to freedom and expression and information. Global Voices interviews Erika Smith, the Association of Progressive Communications Women's Networking Support Program communications coordinator.
East Timor: Rains threaten food shortage and disease
Without a dry season and heavy rains all year in East Timor, crops have been destroyed and farmers have planted less, threatening a scenario of food shortage. In addition, rains can cause an increase of disease in the country.
Guinea: Three days of post-election violence
Guinea recently experienced three days of violence resulting in at least seven dead, after the declaration of the results of the presidential elections that have seen tension brewing in the country for the last month. The second round of the vote, held on 7th November, saw long-time opposition leader Alpha Condé (RPG) brought into power with 52.52% of the votes compared with the 47.48% share obtained by Cellou D. Diallo (UFDG). The declaration of these results triggered renewed civil unrest.
Pakistan: Aasia and Aafia – The Tale Of Two Pakistani Women
Some Pakistanis find themselves concerned over the case of Aasia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy, the same way as they are distressed over the detention of Aafia Siddiqui, who was sentenced for 86 years imprisonment in America.
Liveblog: Citizen Media on Haiti Elections 2010
Today (November 28, 2010), Haiti goes to the polls in an election that has been fraught with controversy and affected by the ongoing cholera epidemic. We're curating tweets and other citizen media about the events.
