My name is Alice Backer. I am founder and former team leader of GV Lingua, which amplifies Global Voices in languages other than English. I used to be Francophonia Editor. I was once an editor of New York University School of Law's Review of Law & Social Change. I have been blogging about Haiti, Haitian-Americans and the Caribbean for 5 years at kiskeácity and I tweet from @kiskeacity. I am also a lawyer and campaign consultant.
Latest posts by Alice Backer from April, 2007
Martinique: Breakup Blues
Le Blog de [Moi] had a fit of anguish [Fr] at the news that a 20 year same-sex relationship recently ended. Says the blogger: “I have a hard time with lesbian breakups … As if we owed ourselves to make it against all odd … And I can't help but...
Gabon, Guadeloupe: Circumcision and HIV
Guadeloupe Attitude posts [Fr] an article by Maité Mapangou, Executive Secretary of OPDAS-Gabon [Organization of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS in Gabon] concluding that “circumcised or not, any man who does not protect himself is a potential agent of the spread of the virus“. The article comes in response to...
Eritrea: Female Genital Mutilation Outlawed
Addax posts an article in English announcing the Eritrean government's decision to outlaw female genital mutilation. Adds the blogger [Fr]: “Note that this practice is now condemned by the African Charter of Human Rights in its Article 5.”
Rwanda: Commemorating a 14-Year-Old Genocide
April 7th marked the 14th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide and was an official day of remembrance in Rwanda. At Pour Une Afrique Plus Ambitieuse et Volontaire Ravel Thombet wrote [Fr]: “Rwandan youth should free itself of this heavy heritage, born of human stupidity… In my upcoming book Interrogations Troublantes...
Rwanda: Good Hotels
Rwanda-based expat Guillaume posts [Fr] a guided tour of his favorite hotels and guest houses in the Rwandan cities of Kigali, Kibuye, Gisenyi, Butare and Cyangugu. It is a greatest hits list so even if you don't read French, know that the cited hotels come recommended by a knowledgeable traveler.
Guadeloupe: New Solar Energy Installation in Le Moule
Guadeloupe Attitude posts [Fr] a picture of a solar installation in the town of Le Moule that should help lower carbon dioxyde emission into the island's environment. The blogger explains that the installation was inaugurated March 30th and joins a wider project encompassing 2000 square meters of solar panels in...
DRC: Local Elections Pushed Back to 2008
UDPS Liège is disappointed [Fr] that local elections in the DRC have been postponed to 2008. The blog regrets that they did not take place before presidential ones as was apparently discussed in international community negotiations in South Africa.
DRC: March in Manchester Against Kabila
Le Rénouveau Congolais posts [Fr] pictures of a diaspora march that took place in Manchester, U.K. March 28 against recently elected DRC president Joseph Kabila.
DRC: Recent Attacks on Bemba
Le Blog du Congolais posts an article by Freddy Lokolongo stating [Fr]: “The events of Bas-Congo and more recently attacks on the homes of ex-Vice President Bemba … with the complicity of [United Nations Mission to the Congo] MONUC, do not even begin to display the extent of the plot...
Haiti: GEDIMEX and the Expired Food Scandal
Commenting on a news story about GEDIMEX, a food distributor who refuses to halt its alleged sale of rotten rice, Collectif Haiti de Provence writes [Fr]: “One wonders how one can store food to its rotting while thousands starve … No investigation by authorities will uproot GEDIMEX. Favors here, resounding...
Tunisia: IMF Evaluation of Banking Sector
Zizou from Djerba points to [Fr] an IMF report evaluating the Tunisian banking sector and adds: “To my knowledge, no Tunisian press organ has mentionned it.” The blogger echoes the report in expressing concerns about the credit sector.
Congo-Brazzaville: Florence Arthaud, Tourism and Corruption
Vous Reprendrez Bien Un Peu d'Humanisme is upset [Fr] that veteran sailor Florence Arthaud has accepted the Sassou-Nguesso government's offer to participate in a sailing event there in less than 2 weeks for an event that is designed to boost local tourism. Says the blogger: “Are French sailors naive? Does...
Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea: Tell-all Biography of Slain Activist Félix Moumié's Widow
Says Le Pangolin [Fr]: “Marthe Moumié is the widow of Cameroonian nationalist Félix Moumié, assassinated in Geneva by the French Secret Service in 1960. Marthe writes a book prefaced by [Algerian President] Ahmed Ben Bella… In the book, Victime du Colonialisme Français [ i.e “Victim of French Colonialism”], Marthe explains...
Tunisia: Dailymotion Censored April 1st
Tunisian blogger Astrubal writes[Fr]: “Tunisian blogs and sites have been censored, then those of civil society, then those of LEGITIMATE political parties, now the stupidity of Ben Ali's regime is attacking Dailymotion, one rare remaining space of freedom for Tunisians… Yesterday (April 1st), the Ben Ali dictatorship decided to behead...
Africa, France: Suing African Leaders for Embezzlement
Demain le Congo Brazzaville posts [Fr] a complaint lodged in the French accusing of embezzlement African leaders such as Omar Bongo of Gabon, Denis Sassoun Nguesso of Congo-Brazzaville and Blaise Compaoré of Burkina Faso. The complaint acknowledges that a French judge cannot adjudicate on salaries of African dictators but emphasizes...
