24 October 2012

Stories from 24 October 2012

Cuba: Four Years Jailtime for Angel Carromero

  24 October 2012

The Cuban Triangle reports that Angel Carromero, the Spanish Popular Party leader has been sentenced to four years in prison for vehicular manslaughter in the deaths of Cuban human rights advocates Oswaldo Paya and Harold Cepero. Carromero was at the wheel when the vehicle, carrying Paya, Cepero, and Swedish national...

Cuba: Cell Phone Use on the Rise

  24 October 2012

Puertasabiertas [es] reports that thousands of Cubans are purchasing cell phone service for the first time because of a new plan offered by Cuba's cell phone company, Cubacel, that began offering a new low rate for users last week. Cubacel centers in Havana and Santiago de Cuba have been reportedly...

Kyrgyzstan: Child Abduction Caught on Tape

  24 October 2012

A spine-chilling video caught on a CCTV camera in a small provincial town in Kyrgyzstan appears to depict an abduction of an 11-month-old child in a crowded market place. The video has become a focal point for discussion among Kyrgyzstani netizens, with many blaming the child's mother for neglect and even complicity in the abduction.

Mexico: Central American Mothers in Search of Missing Migrants

  24 October 2012

In the last six years around 70,000 migrants have disappeared in Mexico. Central American mothers of abducted and missing migrants are traveling in a caravan all over Mexico looking for their sons and daughters who have disappeared on their way north. The women also hope to capture the media's attention and raise awareness on this issue that has been largely ignored.

Grenada: Remembering a Revolution

  24 October 2012

October 19 marked the 29th anniversary of the bloody military coup in Grenada which ousted leader Maurice Bishop from government and prompted the United States-led invasion of the country. Two bloggers marked the occasion with detailed posts about what happened and how it forever changed the course of Grenada's history.

Brazil: Rethinking Drug Policy

  24 October 2012

Rio Real blog wrote about the launch of Pense Livre (Think Free) [pt] in September 2012, a network to urge a rethink of Brazil’s drug policy. The author stresses that drug decriminalization would remap Rio de Janeiro, and links to an interview [pt] to Pedro Abramovay, a lawyer and law professor who...

Portugal: Initiative Against Proposed State Budget

  24 October 2012

The interest rates on the public debt are “the only expenses that can be cut without recessive effects, bringing benefit to the liberation of resources for investment and job creation”, states [pt] the Democratic Congress of Alternatives on an online public petition [pt] to reject Portuguese government's Proposed State Budget...

Arab World: Salafi Awkward Moments

  24 October 2012

Recognised by their long beards, and short garbs (thobe), Salafists, who follow a strict interpretation of Islam, were the butt of jokes on Twitter under a new hash tag #SalafiAwkwardMoments. While the West ponders on how to deal with them, let's tune into Twitter to see how funny netizens think they are.

Competition to Use Civic Apps Before U.S. Election

  24 October 2012

Race for Reuse is a competition launched by the Code for America Brigade to implement one of four civic applications in a local community in the United States before the presidential election on November 6, 2012. The apps are: Adopta, Textizen, LocalWiki and Shareabouts.

FIFA Approves Use of Goal-Line Technology

  24 October 2012

Yesterday, 23 October, international football association FIFA announced that Hawk-Eye and GoalRef goal-line technology can be used, starting with the Club World Cup championship in December. Read blogger responses to the news.

Ukraine: Homophobic Bill Considered Ahead of Election

  24 October 2012

Shortly after scrapping the infamous defamation bill in early October, Ukrainian MPs passed another scandalous proposal in the first reading, aimed at “defending children from the propaganda of homosexual lifestyle and the HIV/AIDS infection associated with it.” Tetyana Bohdanova reports.