Stories from 20 May 2013
Russian Sociology Under Assault
Science isn’t safe in Russia today. That, anyway, was Lev Gudkov’s message in a public statement today, announcing that prosecutors in Moscow contacted him five days ago, to issue an official warning that the Levada Center is operating in violation of a recently minted federal law requiring politically-active NGOs receiving funds from abroad to register with the government as foreign agents.
The Eccentrics and the Women Who Run for President in Iran
Hundreds of hopeful Iranians, including thirty women, have registered as candidates to replace President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the forthcoming election even though they have no chance whatsoever of being elected.
Indian Army is now on Facebook
Prasant Naidu at Lighthouse Insights reports that after a successful start on Twitter, the Indian Army has recently joined Facebook. This is a welcome move as last year the Indian Army had issued orders asking all personnel — both officers and other ranks — to stop using social networking sites...
Nicaraguans Defend Law Against Violence Towards Women
In April a campaign entitled "I Support Law 779" began on social networks demanding that the "Integral Law Against Violence Towards Women" be respected before numerous reforms that religious leaders and members of the Supreme Court of Justice proposed.
Are Indian Companies “Land Grabbing” in Africa?
As foreign companies and governments buy or lease land in countries across Africa, the debate continues as to whether this will encourage development or is simply land grabbing. The Hindu's Addis Ababa correspondent Aman Sethi has taken part in a Q&A session on Facebook on the issue of Indian "land grabs" in African countries.
10.6 Endless Seconds in Football History
On Orsai » Blog [es], author Hernán Casciari narrates, as suspended in time, 10.6 seconds [es] that have gone down in football history and that remain in the memories of each and every person who lived through them, directly or indirectly: Less than eleven seconds earlier, when the Argentinian player...
China: Online Social Management
David Bandurski from China Media Project explained the idea of “online social management”, a set of tactics to increase the capacity for channeling online public opinion, put forward by Fu Siming, a professor at the Central Party School.
Mozambique: Medical Professionals Announce Strike
Medical professionals in Mozambique have announced they will strike. They consider that they were “humiliated, insulted and disdained” in their last meeting with government. This current strike follows a strike earlier this year by doctors. The video announcement is available with subtitles in English, and a number of languages.
Bermuda: House & Senate Accountability
The Bermudian government has introduced a set of reform initiatives; Vexed Bermoothes puts forward one of his own – “mak[ing] MPs accountable for their vote.”
Mauritania Through a Portuguese Artist's Eyes
Portuguese artist Isabel Fiadeiro lives in Nouakchott, Mauritania, where she paints and runs an art gallery. Fiadeiro also sketches from observation, filling her blog Sketching in Mauritania with images of daily life in the West African nation. Global Voices spoke to her about how her art has helped her get to know the country.
