Stories from 12 November 2013
Social Movements of Portugal Get Together to Debate Massive Protests
“What is the purpose of the massive protests?”, a question that many Portuguese citizens have repeated since the economic crisis started, has become a motto for a Laboratory of Democracy organized by the non-profit association Academia Cidadã (Citizen Academy). The “informal debate about the occupation of the public space in...
‘Censorship is Censorship': Brazil's Writers and Artists Spar Over Biography Rights
A controvery has ignited in Brazilian popular music, with artists on one side and editors and writers on the other. Should required authorization for the publication of biographies be kept?
An Alternative Guide to Colombo for CHOGM 2013
The prestigious Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2013 is taking place in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo and the government ensured an expensive makeover of the city for the distinguished guests. Groundviews posts a guide to the other sides of the city which are apparently invisible to the guests.
Bolivian Twitter Users Arrested For Photographing Historic Building
Two Bolivian Twitter users were arbitrarily arrested by the police for taking photographs of historic buildings. Bolivian netizens came to their defense immediately after being alerted by a tweet.
Iran: Changing Facebook's Filtering Model
Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Mahmoud Vaezi, says [fa] that his Ministry proposes that Facebook's filtering model be changed. He proposes content based filtering for internet sites and Facebook because there are “useful pages” in Facebook that Iranians can read.
#GVMeetup Karachi: Finding Family in an Unexpected Place
"Global Voices may raise hidden voices across the globe, but it is a voice within itself. A family you can trust," Ismail Vohra writes about his first encounter with GV.
PHOTOS: Philippine Typhoon Survivors Desperate For Food, Water and Aid
Hungry and weary, some typhoon survivors are looting grocery stores and government warehouses to look for food, water, and other basic necessities.
New Knight Center MOOC on Media Project Development
The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas [es], with the support of Google [es], will be offering a free Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) in Spanish for journalists and student interested in learning about creating new online projects and generating audiences and revenue. Furthermore, as the announcement about the course...
Social Media in Tajikistan's Election: A “Milestone” or Just “Noise”?
There was an unprecedented amount of social media buzz around the recent presidential polls in Tajikistan. There is little agreement, however, about whether the buzz made any real difference.
An Investigation into the World of Prostitution in Burundi
Cedric Soledad Urakeza from Burundi reports on his investigation into the world of prostitution in Bujumbura [fr], published on the community blog Les voix du Burundi: Notre enquête montre trois catégories de prostituées. Il y a celles filles qui viennent de l’intérieur du pays pour chercher du travail domestique...
200,000 Dominicans of Haitian Descent are Stripped of Citizenship
A myriad of NGOs and social activists have demonstrated against a sentence which has denationalized almost 250 000 Dominicans of Haitian descent.
Spanish Archbishop Publishes Book that Orders Women to “Get Married and Be Submissive”
Constanza Miriano, a journalist and married and mother of four, first published her book in Italy in 2011 where it sold 70 000 copies.
Puerto Ricans Demand Oscar López Rivera's Release From Prison
The Movimiento Independentista Nacional Hostosiano (MINH), a Puerto Rican pro-independence movement, is organizing a peaceful protest on November 23 to demand the liberation of Oscar López Rivera. López Rivera is the longest-held political prisoner in the western hemisphere, charged with “seditious conspiracy” for his struggle for Puerto Rico's independence from...
Can a Foreigner Becomes a Chinese Communist Party Member?
Marco Loglio, a long-term Shenzhen expat from Italy, attempted to apply for Chinese Communist Party Membership to help protect the environment and conserve the culture. But he found out that has to give up his or her nationality and become a Chinese national first. Nanfang Daily has the story.
Bachelor's Day Sets Online Shopping Record Again
November 11 is the Bachelor's Day in China and a time for online shopping. Yesterday the online e-commerce platform Alibaba set a world record when it processed more than $5.75 billion in online payments. More from China Digital Times.
How to Have Fun With Nuclear Negotiation
When "making progress" during nuclear negotiations still means no deal, Iranians on Twitter share jokes about the comical side of things.
14 Inspiring 1-Minute Films About the Environment
TVE (Television for the Environment) presents the videos of 14 finalists in its global environmental film competition. Participants from around the world have produced 1-minute long movies on topics related to climate change, sustainable development and biodiversity. Everyone can vote their favorite film until December 19, 2013.
Global Voices Meetup in Cairo, Egypt
The next Global Voices Meetup is scheduled for November 16 to take place in Cairo, Egypt. Please join members of our GV community for this special gathering.
Pakistani Newspaper Dawn's Taliban-Sized Typo is Shared Widely
An acronym mix-up between Imran Khan's popular political party and the Pakistani Taliban raises questions on Twitter - was the typo a genuine mistake, propaganda or a Freudian slip?
Russian Artist Pavlensky Nails His Scrotum to Moscow's Red Square
One of Russia's most infamous artists has staked his scrotum to the cobblestones outside Lenin’s Mausoleum in Red Square. How have Russians reacted?
North Korean Tablet Debuts on eBay, But Under Suspicion of Pirating Angry Birds
North Korea’s recently-launched Android-based tablet, Samjiyon appeared on eBay, listed by a Canadian account with a shipping location of Yanji in China. North Korea Tech blog also reports that the worlds's one of the best-selling applications, Angry Birds, was included on the tablet without proper permissions from the game maker.
