Stories from April, 2018
Netizen Report: Around the World, Activists Demand Answers From Facebook
The Advox Netizen Report offers an international snapshot of challenges, victories, and emerging trends in Internet rights around the world.
PHOTOS: Celebration as High Court Deems Trinidad & Tobago ‘Buggery’ Law ‘Unconstitutional’
"In the end, whether or not the court's ruling managed to change anyone's mind, LBGT+ and religious activists stood side by side on the steps of the Hall of Justice..."
Will Tanzanian Bloggers Pay Up or Push Back Against ‘Blogger Tax'?
In Tanzania, where media historically holds strong ties to government interests, blogging opened up possibilities for individuals to establish private news outlets that proved immensely powerful.
#KnowYourDictator: Political Emigres and Their Hashtags Haunt Azerbaijan's Re-elected Strongman
Having largely suffocated opposition at home, newly-elected President Ilham Aliyev is finding ways to hurt activists living abroad.
Forced Onto Live TV With Her Employer, a Migrant Domestic Worker in Lebanon Recants Claims of Abuse
One group for migrant domestic workers demanded after the episode that Lensa be removed from her employer’s house "to a place where she is no longer in fear of retribution."
#GirlsOnBikes: Women Ride Bicycles To Reclaim Public Spaces in Pakistan
"We wish to encourage each other to participate in this collective movement to assert our right to navigate public spaces on our own terms."
New Sexual Harassment Accusations Against Professor Jorge I. Domínguez Spark Heated Online Debate
"...it seems incredible that, at this point, our testimony is still put into question."
Ugandan Government Plans to Tax Social Media Users for Too Much Gossip
"Uganda wants to profit where it did not invest. Social media owners gave it out for free and you wanna tax it?"
Brazil's Black Population Dominates Popular Politics, But Remains Left Out From Government
Brazilian scholar Flávia Rios reflects on achievements and challenges in the struggle for racial and gender equality.
Confrontation and Disruption in a New Exhibition by Chinese-American Artist Xiaoze Xie
"Subjects with conflicts, struggles, and some intensity always compel me to paint, because I think they are important."
No Laughing Matter: China Shuts Down Popular Joke-Sharing App
"A country, a government, a supervision department. They are all scared of a joke-sharing application."
‘Great March’ for Palestinian Refugees’ Right of Return Endures Bloody Crackdown
"Almost eleven years of siege on #Gaza, and they are still protesting in the thousands the right to return, the right to live in dignity and freedom."
Trinidad & Tobago's LGBT Community Speaks Out as Court Decision on ‘Buggery’ Law Approaches
"Religion must not trump reason when it comes to basic human rights."
By Attempting to Curb Disinformation on Slain Politician Marielle Franco, a Brazilian Judge Hands Facebook Censorship Powers
The order could set a dangerous precedent for freedom of speech online in the country.
What Were Global Voices’ Readers up to Last Week?
During the week of April 2-8, 2018, our stories and translations attracted readers from 209 countries. Number 53 on the list? Thailand. And number 182? São Tomé & Príncipe.
Amid Crackdown on Dissent, Six Vietnamese Human Rights Activists Are Dealt Long Prison Sentences
“I will continue the struggle and if I must sit in jail, others on the outside will fight on for me and they will never stop.”
Russian Newspaper Closes After Years of Tense, Often Violent Confrontation with Security Services
In an op-ed announcing the newspaper’s closure, the acting editor Yuri Grozmani said he had little hope for domestic prosecution of FSB officers complicit in the act of censorship
How Nationalism Played a Role in Preserving Orthodox Christian Cultural Heritage During the Soviet Union Era
Some of the artistic legacies of Orthodox Christian religion were used to promote patriotic pride during the Soviet Union era.
On World Health Day, African Nations from East to West Struggle to Improve Basic Health Care
Whether it's psychiatric illness and stigmatization in Somalia, the rising drug abuse epidemic of Nigerian youth or the exodus of Nigerian doctors, the state of health across Africa remains precarious.
A Rural-Born Peace Movement Turns Heads Amid the Carnage of the Afghan War
"The only aim of the sit-in is to stop fighting from both sides. The Taliban should not send bombers and the government should not drop bombs on them."
