Stories from 8 January 2012
Africa: ICTs for Refugees and Displaced Persons
In Africa and elsewhere, ICTs have become an important tool at times of crisis with technologies such as SMS, VOIP, and mobile phones becoming especially invaluable for refugees and displaced persons.
Russia: Pictures from the Rocket Factory
Blogger Lana Sator publishes [ru] pictures from NPO Energomash, a rocket factory situated near Moscow that specializes on producing liquid propellant rocket engines. Sator with her friend, had been sneaking into the factory for 5 nights in a row, due to a ‘complete lack of security.’ Pictures remind us one...
Mauritania: Terror Grips Town
Terror grips city of Kiffa in Mauritania: “Poet and filmmaker Mohamed Ould Idoumou, a Kiffa native, told Magharebia that that the city has never seen cases of terrorism before because of its isolated location in the desert.”
Zimbabwe: The “E” Word and Future of Democracy
Beven Takunda talks about the “E” word and the future of democracy in Zimbabwe: “Election continue to haunt Zimbabweans to the point that when any politicians mention the “E” word, people start to quiver and shake. There is no sense of celebration that should come with exercising our democratic rights....
Nigeria: Meet the Organiser of Occupy Nigeria in London
MyWeku interviews the UK organizer of Occupy Nigeria movement: The removal led to petrol prices doubling overnight and triggered a spate of protests that seem to be gathering momentum. The demonstrations are being led and organised by Occupy Nigeria under the globally recognised “Occupy Movement”.
Japan: Year 2011 for the Art World
“It’s been a traumatic year for Japan and the Tokyo art world” – William Andrews rounds up what the art world went through in the year 2011 on the Tokyo Art Beat blog.
India: #IFeelUp Tweet-a-thon Is Underway
Sandeep Varma reports that @theviewspaper, in partnership with 7up, is hosting an interesting virtual conference during 8-10 January 2012. The #IFeelUp Tweet-a-thon is said to be the World’s largest online conference.
Philippines: Environment Disasters Linked to Mining, Logging Operations
Massive floods and landslides hit many parts of the Philippines in the past three weeks which killed more than 1,500 people and affected hundreds of thousands of poor villagers. Netizens are probing the causes of the disasters and the accountability of government officials in issuing permits to logging and mining firms.
Singapore: Minister's Comments Spark Internet Meme
Find out why this phrase ‘When I made the decision…' became an internet meme in Singapore involving a comment made by a senior state minister. It follows the recent decision of the government to slash the salary of politicians who are among the highest paid in the world
CEE: “Spotted by Locals”
Spotted by Locals: Experience cities like a local features a few dozen locations, including CEE cities of Belgrade, Bucharest, Budapest, Krakow, Ljubljana, Prague, Riga, Sofia, Tallinn, Vilnius, Warsaw, and Zagreb. A random sample post from Zagreb, Croatia: Hrelić Flea Market – The Aleph of Zagreb; from Bucharest, Romania: The Haunted...
Venezuela: Netizens Threatened, Hacked
Naky Soto Parra, in her blog El Zaperoco de Naky [es], posts a message by Global Voices contributor Luis Carlos Díaz, who has been receiving threats for his online activity. Luis Carlos explains that the threats and cyber-attacks come from hackers who target netizens that criticize the government. He calls...
