Stories from 4 April 2011
Ukraine: Entrepreneurs, Tax Code and Civic Initiative
GV Author Tetyana Bohdanova of Good Girl Gone Ukrainian sums up the situation with small and medium business in Ukraine in the aftermath of the Tax Code protests of 2010.
Japan: SOS from a city near Fukushima nuclear plant
The mayor of Minami Soma, a small city next to the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, asked for help through a video [en, ja] posted on Youtube. The mayor launched an appeal to the world saying the people are isolated, there is a lack of supplies and the government is...
Maldives: Democracy Failing
Maria Mohamed explains why she thinks that Maldives is a failed democracy.
Iran: Protests for a Drying Lake
Dozens of protesters were arrested on April 2, 2011 in Iran's Azerbaijan region in the cities Tabriz and Urmia (northwestern Iran). This time protests were not for democracy and freedom, but instead demands for the government to protect Lake Urmia, one of the world's largest salt water lakes.
Nepal: Frustrated Undercurrents
Last week, Nepal's Finance Secretary Rameshwor Khanal was apparently forced to resign. Known for his straight forward working style and exemplary work ethnic, the news of his departure came as a surprise to many. Netizens are demanding his reinstatement.
Announcing the Newest Rising Voices Grantees
Rising Voices, the outreach arm of Global Voices, is pleased to announce the five newest members to join its global community of citizen media grantees. Each of the selected projects will receive microgrants to implement their proposed project to teach others how to use various citizen media tools. Please join RV in congratulating and welcoming the five projects from the countries of Guinea-Bissau, Greece, Brazil, India, and Mali.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines:
Abeni blogs about a “heinous crime [which] came on the eve of Child Awareness month…”, using the opportunity to make a statement about a society in crisis.
Cuba: Exiled Voice Awarded
“Unmasking the penitentiary system on the island from within its insides was the goal, despite all the limitations attached with being imprisoned”: Pablo Pacheco Avila remembers how his blog was born; Pedazos de La Isla is thrilled that the blog “was awarded a 2011 Mandala Communication Prize.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Laughlin's “Small Husband”
almostisland posts links to the poetry of Nicholas Laughlin; Pleasure reviews his work, saying: “Laughlin's poetry is also a deeply Caribbean meditation, in its concern with the geography of self-actualisation and in its subtle echos of processes known so well by those who are scattered throughout the Caribbean diaspora.”
China: Ai Weiwei Detained, Initial Twitter Reactions
China’s best known artist and dissident, Ai Weiwei, was detained in Beijing as he tried to board a flight to Hong Kong on Sunday 3 April, 2011. Ai is the latest to join a long list of human rights activists, lawyers and writers who have been arrested, detained or gone missing in the country. Here is a selection of initial reactions by Chinese users on Twitter.
Trinidad & Tobago: PSC Chair Removed
Trinidad and Tobago News Blog posts a release from the Office of the President, confirming that he has revoked the appointment of the Chairman of the Police Service Commission, following the latter's controversial statement about an ethnic imbalance in the service; meanwhile, B.C. Pires republishes a friend's Letter to the...
Jamaica: Senior Citizens Ill-treated
“The accomplishments of a nation meaningless if the weakest of its citizens cannot expect be treated with dignity, be treated as a human, the most basic of rights”: Beyondbee is saddened and angered by news that a senior citizens’ home was mistreating its charges.
Nigeria: Bloggers React to Parliamentary Non-Polls
Polls or non-polls? Nigerian bloggers respond to the postponed parliamentary elections that were supposed to be held on Saturday April 2, 2011.
Brazil: Making the web accessible to the hearing impaired
Leonardo Leite, on the blog Stoa, writes [pt] about Poli-Libras – a software developped in the University of Sao Paulo that translates contextualized sentences in Portuguese language to 3D graphics in “Libras” – the Brazilian Sign Language. According to Leite, the goal of this tool is to promote web content...
Peru: Poll Results One Week Before the Presidential Election
Peru will hold presidential elections next Sunday, April 10, and Bloggings by boz posts the latest poll results: “The only accurate prediction you can make today is that there will be a second round. Everything else is just educated guessing.”
Russia: Starting the Moscow Metro
Metro Dream by Russos writes about [RUS] the initial construction work on the Moscow Metro and posts pictures from the period.
Ukraine: How to reform the country
Leigh Turner, British ambassador to Ukraine, recounts expert advise on economic reform in the country.
Côte d'Ivoire: Humanitarian Aid Via Twitter Hashtag
In the midst of the current political turmoil in Côte d'Ivoire, the Twitter hashtag #civ2010 has been providing an essential source of information in the country. However, many Twitter users have complained that it is becoming too confrontational. A new hashtag, #civsocial, has been set up to provide an outlet for humanitarian information.
Azerbaijan: Opposition leader's son sent to frontline
whatwaswritten says that the son of an opposition leader in Azerbaijan serving in the army has been sent to the front line following this weekend's protests in Baku, the capital. The post notes that some are alleging the move is part of an attempt to warn the opposition not to...
Cuba: US Contractor Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison
According to the Cuban daily newspaper Granma, US citizen Alan Gross was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Cuba on March 12, 2011, upon being convicted of illegally distributing information technology equipment to Cubans. Under the court ruling in Cuba, this constituted an “[act] against the independence or territorial integrity of the state.”
South Korea: Women's Ministry Gaming Clampdown Backfires
The South Korean government's Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Affairs has come under fire for proposing a law clamping down on the online gaming industry. Net users and gaming enthusiasts react to the news.
