Stories from 28 November 2012
Spotlight on China's ‘Re-education Through Labour’
Ren Jiayu, a former village official in Chongqing, who was sentenced to re-education through labour for criticizing the government was released and put under the spotlight of state-controlled media. Many believe it is a showcase for upcoming reform in China after the 18th National Chinese Communist Party Congress.
The Lives of Hui Muslims in China
China’s Hui Muslims is second-largest ethnic minority, ChinaFile shoot a video about the lives of Hui women and what the religion means to them.
Mauritania: February 25th Movement says “No to Guardianship” of France
Mauritania is undergoing a period of great political uncertainty due to the evacuation for medical reasons of President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz after he was shot on October 13, 2012. While Mauritania was preparing for his return, many citizens were left wondering what political role France would play in the current situation.
Anti-mining Protesters Converge in Greece's Second Largest City
More than 6,500 protesters from around Northern Greece converged in Thessaloniki on Saturday, November 24, 2012 to warn the inhabitants of Greece's second largest city about the environmental fallout caused by gold mining.
Impunity Prevails over State of Law in Guinea
Arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture, rigged trials and executions are not difficult to find in Guinea's history. The impunity enjoyed by the officials guilty of these crimes is reviewed by different observers from Guinea.
Worldwide Protests for Brazil's Indigenous Guarani-Kaiowá
Threatened with expulsion from their land, with their waters poisoned, and ready to resist to the death, the Guarani-Kaiowá indigenous community of Pyelito Kue / Mbarakay, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, finds on social media and on the streets worldwide support from activists.
Japan's Live Streaming Platform to Host Cross Party Talks
Japan's popular live streaming platform Nico Nico Douga will host cross party talks on November 29, 2012. Niwango, the company that runs Nico Nico Douga invited the presidents of 14 different political parties. At the venue, nicofarre [ja], LED monitors which surrounds 360 degrees will show real-time comments made by online viewers. The...
Mozambican Newspaper Wins Innovation Grant to Develop a “Citizen Desk”
Global Voices partner in Mozambique, @Verdade newspaper, is one of the winners of the African News Innovation Challenge, ICFJ announced today, November 28, 2012. The innovation grant will be used to implement a “Citizen Desk” in partnership with Sourcefabric: “a tool that allows news organisations to create a mobile-optimised platform for...
Television Network Telecinco Sues Blogger in Spain
Pablo Herreros, the blogger who a few months ago successfully got sponsors of a television show to pull their advertising until TV executives committed to more ethical behavior, was sued by the TV channel Telecinco. After an uproar surfaced mainly through social media networks, Telecinco has withdrawn their suit.
Angola's Sophisticated Censorship
The 37 years of independence of Angola don't translate into more press freedom. Rather, the model of Angolan censorship is getting increasingly sophisticated. The most recent attack was against the "Semanário Angolense" (Angolan Weekly), condemned to the fire for reproducing a critical speech by Isaias Samakuva, the President of the opposition party, UNITA.
Is Meles Zenawi's Ghost Haunting Ethiopians?
Although Meles Zenawi, the late Ethiopian Prime Minister, was formally declared dead three months ago after months of speculation about his whereabouts, his ghost shows no sign of loosening its grip over Ethiopians.
Trinidad & Tobago: Losing My Accent
What does an accent have to do with it? Outlish investigates.
China: Top 10 horrible figures of 2012?
This week, Chinese internet users come up with their own list of the “10 Most Horrid People of 2012.” The list was shared on Sina Weibo by “Weekly Commentary” [zh] (每周评论), but was deleted on Nov 26. China Media Project translated the deleted post.
Are Zambia's Miners Paying More in Taxes than Mining Companies?
A podcast (Taxcast) by Tax Justice Network titled 'Zambian miners paying more tax than mining company' has been posted online claiming that miners pay more tax than the multi-national mining companies they work for.
A Glimpse of the Human Moment of Chinese Leaders
A Chinese micro-blogger, Wang Dongdong tweeted the above image on Sina Weibo, China’s Twitter on November 23, which has been retweeted over 103,000 times. The blogger [zh] said, I really like this picture. Why doesn’t our media give us more images of leaders like this one, instead of always making them look...
In Russia, Fake News Sounds Real
A Russian version of The Onion wreaks havoc on unsuspecting bloggers. Could it be a Kremlin plot? That's probably a hoax!
China's “Great Global Thinkers” for 2012
Samuel Wade from China Digital Times introduced the six Chinese civil society leaders – Chen Guangcheng, Ai Weiwei, Yu Jianrong, Ma Jun, Wang Jisi, Kai-fu Lee – who are listed in the Foreign Policy's 2012 Great Global Thinkers.
Captivated by Japan's ‘Daidougei’ – Street Performance Art
Charmed with “Daidougei”, a type of street performance, an amateur photographer has spent years capturing images of the art form. His blog is titled “ I shoot nothing but Daidougei, I myself don’t know why.” Let’s take a look at his work.
Trinidad & Tobago: Parang, Parang!
In the spirit of the Christmas season, Outlish posts a list of its Top 10 Parang songs.
China: Model Sentenced for Posing in a Police Uniform
A model who posted a risque photo of herself in a police uniform was sentenced to 9 months in jail and one-year probation upon court review. Beijing Cream believes that the punishment is more about her mentioning “government leaders” in her micro-blog attached to the picture: I am under great...