Stories from 21 November 2011
Egypt: The Revolution is Back!
Up to 100,000 people are said to be in Tahrir Square now, as police and the army continue to battle with protesters calling for an end to Egypt's military rule. Protesters have had running battles with the armed gunmen serving the Egyptian government since Friday.
Iran: Ahmadinejad's top adviser under pressure
Iranian judiciary officials raided, government's official newspapers’ building and tired to arrest Ali Akbar Javanfekr,top aide to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, on Monday.Here is a film showing this attack in You Tube.
Chile: Domestic Workers Protest Demanding Dignity at Work
Domestic workers protested demanding dignity at work on Sunday, November 20, in Santiago. The blog Centros Chilenos en el Exterior [es] posted a video of the march produced by Prensa Opal [es].
El Salvador: Calle 13 Performs for Rice and Beans
Puerto Rican music duo Calle 13 performed in El Salvador on Saturday, November 19; the ticket fee, as Voices from El Salvador reports, “was a donation of rice, beans or other grains that will be distributed to flood victims.” Hunnapuh [es] blogged about Calle 13 and the controversy around their...
Peru: Rain Causes Flooding in Iquitos
Rains have once again caused flooding in the city of Iquitos in the Amazon Rainforest. The blogger behind De la Selva [es] attributes the flooding to sewage works and posts Facebook pictures of the flood.
Peru: Iquitos Against the Chaos Caused by Sewage Works
The beautiful and warm city of Iquitos, in the Loreto region, is going through several problems; the most worrying and annoying for the inhabitants is the chaos caused by controversial sewage works. Citizens are using social networks to organize and demand a solution.
Chile: Citizens Fight to Save Valparaiso's Emblematic Elevators
Valparaíso’s 130-year-old elevators are teetering on the brink of extinction and locals are taking to the streets and social media to fight for them. The World Monuments Fund has named them one of the world’s 100 most endangered historical treasures.
The Netherlands: A Holiday Season of Festivities, Costumes… and Racism?
In recent years "Zwarte Piet" (Black Pete), the dark-skinned companion of Saint Nicholas during the winter holiday season in the The Netherlands, has become part of a recurring debate as some take offense at costumes including black painted faces.
Egypt: Revolutionaries Shrug at Cabinet Resignation
The Cabinet of Dr Essam Sharaf has just asked if it could resign and the Supreme Council for Armed Forces (SCAF) is yet to decide whether it would accept their resignation or not. For activists and protesters battling police and the army for the third day in and around Tahrir Square, the news does not bring anything new to the table. Their main demand is for SCAF to leave power and hand over authority to a civil government.
Madagascar: Population Grows Tired of Power Outage
For the past week, Antananarivo, the capital city of Madagascar, has experienced scheduled daily power outages [fr] that lasted on average 2h and 30 minutes in the evening and it seems that it could get worse [fr]. Several bloggers have expressed [fr] increased frustration [mg] with the ongoing situation that was...
Nigeria : Homes made of Plastic Bottles
In the village of Yelwa — North of Nigeria — a new style of construction intrigued the curiosity of the locals. Noorinfo publishes photos of rounded huts [fr] built with plastic bottles. These new constructions look like a potential alternative to the old-fashioned bricks.
Tanzania: How Not to Launch a Data.gov
Mbwana Ally explains how not to lauch a Data.gov: “Checking my twitter stream I saw that the Tanzania Government had launched a Open Data website initiative (Kiswahili)…The complaints on twitter started mounting and I gladly participated. Where is the data? The SMS no. set up does not work. The site...
Africa: Open Doors 2012: Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa
Open Doors 2012 focuses on Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa: “Following on from India in 2011, the next edition of Open Doors, the Festival del film Locarno’s co-production lab, will be devoted to francophone Africa…Application forms for Open Doors 2012 are available on www.onopendoors.pardo.ch and are restricted to projects from francophone Sub-saharan...
Morocco: Online Debates Rage Days Ahead of Parliamentary Elections
Moroccan are using the Internet extensively to discuss the upcoming legislative elections. Part of the discussion is revolving around the electoral programs of the competing parties, the question of whether to boycott or participate in the poll and the role played by the pro-democracy youth movement, February 20.
Kenya: Africa’s Story of Mobile Conquest
Africa’s story of mobile conquest & why utility beats ‘coolness’: “Why was MPESA [mobile-phone based money transfer service] such a success? Simply put – it was a necessity. Pre-MPESA (sounds like when someone asks ‘how did we ever survive without Google?’), people still had to do all the things that...
South Sudan/Sudan: Refugee Narrates Her Emotional Story
Amanda Hsiao talks to Miriam, a Sudanese refugee in Ethiopia. The post is part of a series based on Enough interviews with Blue Nile refugees in Sherkole refugee camp and Kurmuk, Ethiopia. Details of these testimonies are impossible to verify, but accounts Enough heard have been generally consistent.
Georgia: Photoblogger Reports on Presidential Elections in South Ossetia
Russian photoblogger Mitya Aleshkovskiy publishes [ru] pictures taken during the South Ossetia presidential election that took place on 13 November 2011. He writes on his impressions after visiting the region and points out: “There will be a new president here, but the regime will stay the same.”
Tanzania: The Faces That Rocked Swahili Fashion Week
Missie Popular shares photos of models who rocked Swahili Fashion Week in Tanzania: “Swahili Fashion Week 2011 provided quite an experience! We witnessed all types of walks and poses on the runway….”
Malawi: The President Talks Better in English Than Chichewa
Gregory Gondwe argues the Malawian president talk better in English than Chichewa, a Bantu language widely spoken in Malawi: “Whether it is a piece of fortune or a curse it is not for me to say. I believe there is evidence that two of our three Executive Heads that have...
Cuba: Ladies Detained Again
The Ladies in White were once again attacked this weekend as they tried to attend Mass, babalu reports; two of the group's members are allegedly “still being held in a Castro prison.”
Trinidad & Tobago: The Blame Game
Plain Talk is “flabbergasted” by a statement made by the Minister of Works calling for “an end to what he calls the ‘blame’ game because there is…critical work to be done”, saying: “No Jack sorry, we cannot put an end to the ‘blame’ game, it's the only game we have.”
