Stories from 3 April 2014
Vybz Kartel Gets Life in Prison, Fans Question the Future of Jamaican Dancehall
Life with hard labour; no possibility of parole before 35 years: that's the sentence Jamaican dancehall artist turned convicted murder Vybz Kartel got today, sending the blogosphere into a flurry.
Environmental Emergency: Drought Kills Thousands of Animals in Colombia
More than 20 000 animals are reportedly dead due to the drought in Casanare, Colombia. Citizens and activists are using social networks to attract attention to this environmental emergency.
Ethiopians Mock National TV's ‘Lies’ for April Fools’ Day
"In response to allegations by activists that today is #ETVday, ETV announced today is the only day of the year that it does not own. #April1"
Cameroon Demolishes 3,000 Houses and Render 15,000 Homeless
Blogger Mathias Mouendé Ngamo gives an eye-witness account [fr] of the demolition of about 3,000 houses in the Nkomba neighborhood in the city of Douala in Cameroon. It is estimated that over 15,000 squatters live in this squatter camp established on land owned by the Industrial Zones Development and Management...
Mozambique Wants to Criminalize ‘Insulting’ Texts, Emails and Internet Posts
The proposed law, soon to be submitted to parliament, would criminalize text messages, emails and other types of online posts that "jeopardize the security of the state".
Quantifying Russia's Traitorous Media
A pro-Kremlin website says it has conducted a quantitative study that ranks Russian media outlets according to disloyalty.
Tribute to Malaysian Activist Irene Fernandez
The global human rights community is mourning the death of legendary Malaysian activist Irene Fernandez. One writer described her as Malaysian ‘Joan of Arc’ of maltreated migrants.
Powerful Quake Shakes Chile and Peru
Twitter users reported cellphone service collapsing and electricity cutting out in parts of Peru.