22 March 2012

Stories from 22 March 2012

India: Tweet Fuels Communal Tensions in Kolkata

Earlier this week, certain areas of Kolkata in West Bengal, India, were brought to a grinding halt by protesters protesting against a certain tweet, allegedly posted by an Indian model, which was in turn published in a leading English daily. Netizens reported from the ground and also discussed the incident on social networks.

22 March 2012

Pakistan: Killing of Ahmadis To Be Made Legal?

The Horizon reports that a religious party in Pakistan demanded in an anti-Ahmadiyya conference held in Lahore that “those considered apostate by the Muslims clerics should be put to sword,...

22 March 2012

Cape Verde: Calling Out Creative Writers

Cape Verdean blogger and journalist Odair Varela has launched a creative writing competition [pt] that will last for one month. The first of four weekly challenges consists of writing about...

22 March 2012

Italy: Protests Blaze Over High-Speed Rail to France

The last few weeks have been particularly important (and controversial) for the "No Tav" movement, which, since 1981, has opposed the construction of a high speed train line between Turin and Lyon. Alongside on-going protests, suppression and legal disagreements, activism and discussions blossom online.

22 March 2012

Australia: Mining Magnate's Bizarre Claim of CIA Coal Conspiracy

In a “bizarre” outburst, mining magnate Clive Palmer joined the ranks of the CIA conspiracy theorists this week during the Queensland State election campaign. Australian bloggers have revelled in his accusations that the CIA funds Green candidates and organisations such as Greenpeace.

22 March 2012

Mali: Citizens Stunned by Sudden Military Coup

Rengade soldiers have announced that they are seizing power in Mali, after taking over the state television building and presidential palace. They say the government failed to adequately support their troops in an increasingly violent struggle with a Tuareg rebels in the north of the country.

22 March 2012

Puerto Rico: An Archipelago of Indie Music

The music blog Puerto Rico Indie has launched their first video series titled Archipiélago (Archipelago). The series aims to document the local independent music scene on the island. Global Voices presents Archipiélago's three first recorded sessions with the bands Campo-Formio, Mima, and Tach.dé.

22 March 2012

Ecuador: The ‘March for Life’ Approaches Quito

The March for Life is approaching the Ecuadorean capital of Quito without any major delays. As we reported in a previous post, indigenous communities and organizations of civil society have organized this march to protest large scale mining in the country. Here are a collection of citizens reports and reactions from the Ecuadorian blogosphere.

22 March 2012

Global Voices in Greek Celebrates 1,000 Posts

Launched in March 2011, at a time of increasing hardships and intense international criticism for Greece due to the financial crisis, Global Voices in Greek has reached 1,000 published translations. A team of more than 20 volunteer translators have been working together to bring to Greek speakers a selection of news from around the world.

22 March 2012

Ukraine: Oksana Makar's Gang Rape Case

RuNet Echo

Foreign Notes, EUobserver.com, and Ukrainiana write about Oksana Makar's horrible gang rape case. Media mentions, updates and fundraising info [ru, uk] is here (support site), here (Vkontakte page), and here...

22 March 2012