Stories from 2 September 2011
Macedonia: Authorities Keep Ignoring Protesters’ Demands
The legislative and executive branches of the Macedonian government continue to ignore the demands of protesters against police brutality, but those who have participated in the protests during the past three months claim that the actions will continue.
Iran: Smile, the Regime is Reading Your Emails
A growing number of Iranian bloggers have expressed their anxieties after learning that their Gmail inboxes may have been an open book for the Iranian state to read and target dissidents for the last two months.
China: Guangdong Model Making a Comeback?
Back in July this year, the two ‘cake theories’ articulated by the Communist Party of China (CPC) chiefs of Guangdong province and the Chongqing municipality stirred a public debate about different social development models in China.
Zimbabwe: Changing Young Lives Through Theatre
Boyce Chaka is a 27 year-old poet and stage actor in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second largest city. Since last year, he has been investing his time towards teaching high school kids about Shakespearean works and poetry as part of what he says is an attempt to “keep them off the streets.”
Honduras: Artists and Intellectuals Sign Declaration on Violence in Bajo Aguán
Honduran artists and intellectuals have come together to sign a statement on the violence taking place in Bajo Aguán. Adrienne Pine translated the declaration into English. You can also read the original version in Spanish.
Iran: Protect Iranian Users
Protect Iranian Users is a campaign to raise awareness of Iranian netizents dangerous situation especially after Diginotar scandal. Read more here.
Venezuela: Judge Lifts Ban on Weekly ‘6to Poder’
“A judge in Caracas, Venezuela, lifted an injunction against the weekly 6to Poder prohibiting its publication and distribution […] The publication had been closed since Aug. 20 after publishing a photo montage portraying high-ranking female government officials as cabaret dancers on the magazine's cover”, Natalia Mazotte reports for Journalism in the Americas....
Madagascar: Wikileaks Cables Reveal Foreign Diplomatic Divergence after Coup
Sam Ganegie analyzes the dozens of newly published wikileaks cables related to Madagascar. He notes that the former mediator of the Madagascar crisis Mr Chissano believed that France unilateral support for the Rajoelina-led government [fr] after the military takeover prevented an exit to the crisis.
South Korea: Police Detained Dozens of Activists and Villagers in Jeju Island
Police have detained about three dozen activists and villagers who have been protesting against the construction of a naval base at the scenic Jeju island on September 1, 2011. Twitter user @duddus58 posted photos of crackdown on protesters.
Malaysia: Video salutes Generation 709
Following the formation of Generation 709 by young Malaysians to call for free and fair elections in the country, the Cantonese-speaking Malaysian music group EVYbody has created a video (with Chinese and English subtitles) to salute everyone who dares to stand up for their rights.
Blog Carnival: Mexico – Is There a Solution to This Violence?
Our final summary of the 'Blog Carnival: Mexico - Citizenry, Violence and Blogs', focuses on what bloggers think about the solutions the government and citizens are presenting to try to put an end to this violence.
Lebanon: Saad-eddine Al-Hariri the Cab Driver
Salman Andary interviews (Ar) Mr. Saad-eddine Al-Hariri in Beirut! But this interview is with Mr. Saad-eddine Al-Hariri the cab driver and not the ex-prime minister of Lebanon (who is known as Saad Hariri and who has not been in Lebanon for months now).
Lebanon: “Live For The Moment” Attitude?
“The only thing that came to my mind is how can we be labelled as people who live for the moment, while at the age of 22-23, the young Lebanese is compelled to think about buying an overly expensive house which he/she has to pay in installments for, for 20...
Sing Out from Japan
Musicians from the earthquake-hit areas united and gave life to a project called Sing Out From Japan [en,ja]. They have released two songs so far: Let's go home/lawblow and One love/I shall walk looking up, which are both cover versions of popular songs. The videos were shot in the regions...
Myanmar: Human Rights Report
Tomas Ojea Quintana, the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar, released a statement which recognizes the positive steps taken by the government to improve the human rights situation in the country; but at the same time reminds the government to be more aggressive in fulfilling its...
Myanmar: Monitoring of Parliament Sessions
Altsean-Burma releases a summary of what transpired in the parliament sessions of Myanmar which resumed this month. The report cites the questions, issues, and proposals raised by Parliament members.
Thailand: Lese Majeste Trial of Webmaster
CJ Hinke of the Freedom Against Censorship Thailand or FACT writes about the resumption of the Lese Majeste trial of Chiranuch Premchaiporn, webmaster of Thailand’s independent news website Prachatai.
Myanmar Train Crash
Blogger Htootayzar posts pictures and videos of a train crash which took place near Hledan in Myanmar.
