Uganda walks a fine line when it comes to press freedom. At times, it is amazing the things that journalists are allowed to write or broadcast in criticism of the government. Then, suddenly, someone will cross that fine line and find himself or herself in jail, or worse. Many see a steady decline in press freedom in Uganda, particularly with the 2011 elections approaching.

International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) reported on two journalists beaten while covering a campaign rally in Lira in January:

Lira, 22/Jan/2011 - Michael Kakumirizi, a “Red Pepper” publications photojournalist, was mobbed by suspected supporters of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party while covering an opposition presidential candidate's campaign rally in the Lango sub-region.

Francis Tumwekwasize, a former WBS TV journalist now affiliated with the Inter-Party Cooperation (IPC) Press Unit, was also beaten. The IPC is a coalition of opposition political parties that nominated retired Colonel Dr. Kiiza Besigye as their candidate for the Ugandan presidency.

The journalists were roughed up by the suspected NRM supporters, who accused them of taking their pictures while they were allegedly bribing voters at the Aloi Police Post, in the newly created Alebeatong district, in an attempt to keep residents away from Dr. Kizza Besigye's 19 January rally in the area. When a camera flash went off, the NRM supporters realised that there were journalists among a group of residents they had called to the Aloi Police Post to receive money.

In a more recent release, Human Rights Watch and IFEX draw attention to 16 activists and journalists who have been arrested and harassed for spreading a petition asking the 330 Members of Parliament to return questionable payments of up to 20 million Ugandan shillings (about $9,000) they have received in the last two weeks from the ruling party to “monitor government programs.” Widely seen as a bribe, the money was released at a time when the Ugandan government has already spent 85% of its budget halfway through the fiscal year. About a quarter of the national budget was disbursed in January alone, the month before the elections.

Human Rights Network for Journalists (HRNJ-Uganda) published a statement from the Pakistan Press Foundation condemning an attack by Special Force Guards on a television correspondent who filmed an altercation at a campaign venue:

Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF), an independent non-governmental institution committed to promoting and defending freedom of expression, is concerned about the detention of Masaka based NTV Uganda correspondent Issa Aliga by the Special Forces Group (the bigger presidential protection unit SFG) for filming a scuffle involving Rwemiyaga area Member of Parliament Theodore Ssekikubo ahead of President Museveni’s campaign rally.

…While filming he was roughed up and man-handled by four Special Force Guards personnel who confiscated his camera. He was pushed here and there on accusation of filming an event without permission. He was taken to their bus and interrogated for some minutes. After interrogation, he was released and his pleas to get his camera back fail on deaf ears. He was then ordered to go through the usual security checks and attend a campaign rally like any other voters. His mobile phone was also switched off.

The Committee to Protect Journalists highlighted two incidents, in August and November of 2010, involving radio reporters being detained and harassed by the police:

On November 3, 2010, four armed men kidnapped Nzito, a 23-year old Radio Simba reporter who covered crime and occasionally opposition parties, and threw him into a pickup truck with tinted windows. “I spent 10 days locked in a dark room with my hands and legs handcuffed and remained on the floor. I was not given any real meals or food. The army men would come and scare me in the night,” he told CPJ. Assailants using the same truck eventually dumped Nzito outside the capital, Kampala, according to local journalists. His release came a day after HRNJ-Uganda filed a habeas corpus in court compelling the army commander, the attorney general, and the head of a security agency to produce the journalist. HRNJ-Uganda said its investigations determined that the journalist had been in the custody of Uganda's Joint Anti-Terrorism Task Force.

Nzito told CPJ he frequently experiences nightmares now. “I have been dreaming about dark rooms, beatings and being held at gunpoint.”

Frank, a reporter with the U.S.-based online station Radio Free Buganda, suffered a similar misfortune in August 2010 after covering the 17th anniversary of the coronation of Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, the ruler of Uganda's most powerful traditional kingdom representing the Baganda, the country's largest ethnic group…

…The government was not happy to hear that Radio Free Buganda was broadcasting the festivities. After the local newspapers Ggwanga and Buganda Post published stories about Frank's live broadcasts, he said he began to receive anonymous phone calls. Then, four men stormed Frank's home who took away his wireless Internet modem and computer. The next day, men Frank believed to be security agents detained him for six hours, seized his mobile phones, and pressed him to reveal whom he worked with and how much was paid. “I am scared for my life because all of my contacts were in my phones and other crucial information.”

It seems that the reductions in freedoms may also ripple out beyond the mainstream media outlets. According to AllVoices, Uganda's Assistant Inspector General of Police, Asan Kasingye, has announced that the police will be monitoring social media such as blogs, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter during the elections:

[Asan Kasingye] said that it is possible that hate messages and inflammatory statements could be exchanged on Facebook and Twitter and so the police are monitoring them to guard against riots.

Kasingye claims that during the 2009 Buganda riots, some social media were used to stir up the population and cause widespread unrest.

Kasingye doesn’t explain the extent of the monitoring or how it will guard against infringement on personal rights of expression and privacy.

This is the first election in which social media has played an important role.

Political parties and candidates used Facebook to fundraise for campaigns and the Internet to raise their profiles locally and internationally.

This increasing harassment of journalists in Uganda has the potential to greatly impact coverage in this election season, and closer monitoring by the police may make it hard for the voices of citizens to be heard through social media. A free press is one of the hallmarks of a healthy democracy, and as that pillar erodes, it will weaken every other aspect of this nation.

This post is part of our special coverage Uganda: Walk to Work Protests.

Written by Mark Jordahl · comments (9)
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Greek blogger mindstripper posted the view from her balcony on Saturday evening on the scratch blog:

‘Ωρα Αθήνας 8μμ

Κι εγώ θέλω να φύγω από το σπίτι μου.

A day later, London-based photographer mlazopoulou posted a photo taken from an airplane:

She commented, “Just can't describe this with words…”

Live views of the fire

On Sunday night, a webcam in the forest of Schinias recorded snapshots of advancing fires until the camera temporarily went out of order (it is now working again).

Schinias webcam image on Aug 24 at 1:53 AM in Greece

The New Athenian chronicled the events of early Sunday, when the fire reached the Pendeli suburb of Athens:

Many local residents had spent the night protecting their homes. On Sunday morning they were still doing what they could to put out small fires near their homes, beating them with olive branches and shovels, or forming human chains to relay buckets of water filled using yard hoses. The air was thick with acrid smoke, and people were covering their faces with T-shirts, kerchiefs and towels to work. [..]

Many Pendeli residents were waiting until the last moment to evacuate their houses. The roads were still lined with parked vehicles in late morning. Many people were waiting outside their homes, faces covered, their dogs beside them on leashes. From the invisible depths of the smoke explosions were audible – natural gas tanks, perhaps, or cars exploding.

On Twitter, people referred to a Google Maps mashup, with data from the fire information agency FIRMS, to monitor the fires and quickly settled on a hashtag (#grfires) to aggregate tweets related to the fire. Most messages repeated information broadcast on TV, as well as media and political criticism, with little actual firsthand reporting.

Twitter user @savvakos provided some firsthand reports of advancing fire fronts, complete with Google Maps coordinates:

Ενεργό μέτωπο της φωτιάς στην Σταμάτα, λίγο πριν από την πλατεία #grfires http://bit.ly/t38Z5 http://twitpic.com/ezarv

Also on Twitter, @kyanoun posted a real-time video with commentary using Qik from his car while he drove down a smoke-clouded Attica highway.

Flickering lights in the dark

Sunset is a dreaded time during times of fire, because aircraft are grounded and firefighting efforts are severely hampered. Eric Parks described this dramatic moment on Twitter:

@erictparks: Sunset & we're watching daring air crews make final drops in little light. Darkness reveals hundreds of points of fire on the mountains.

Greek web designer Dimitrios Doukoglou posted this photo on Twitpic on August 23:

The view from my roof, yesterday night. #grfires

Several people posted mobile phone photos on Twitter using the Twitpic application, and a Greek software developer provided an auto-refreshing web service to aggregate them, using the #grfires hashtag.

Politics in times of fire

Teacher Dude, a citizen photo-journalist based in Thessaloniki focused on the political connection between wildfires and national elections:

Although Greece regularly has wildfires a study carried out by the Athens University of Economics suggested that there was a direct link between their destructiveness and national elections. According to Spyros Skouras and Nikos Christodoulakis half of the forest lost through fires in the last 54 years took place in the 16 years in which elections were held.

The last serious fires to hit the country in 2007 took place just weeks before parliamentary elections and most political analysts consider the announcement of new elections within the next few months a certainty.

Teacher Dude reminisced on Twitter about an earlier firefighting effort in which he himself took part:

I keep on remembering what happened here in Saloniki in 1997. I volunteered to help fight the fires. Scary how fast they can move.

… and also commented wryly that:

The New Democracy [governing party] logo has new meaning now. http://tinyurl.com/m4mafa #grfires

Written by Asteris Masouras · comments (2)
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As Bermudians continue to react - unfavourably for the most part - to their government's acceptance of former Guantanamo Bay detainees as full citizens of the tiny island, bloggers comment on yesterday's protest and what the public outcry could mean for the nation's Premier.

The Devil Island, known for being a cartoon blog, says:

Didn’t have anything written, but I wanted to doodle SO bad. There’s tonnes of blogs talking about it. I’ve spent the afternoon and evening bitching about it and talking about it and reading about it. I’m going to wait for the next step.

I HOPE that he [the Premier] doesn’t wriggle out of this, but I’m not holding my breath. I can’t find it in myself to put anything past him. One of his “supporters” actually compared this to Dr. King. Sickening.

I WOULD however like to welcome these Uighur gentlemen to my home. If the vetting turns out copacetic and you guys are cool, we’re cool.

Breezeblog actually posts a video of the protest, which features “the moment Janice Battersbee told Premier Dr. Ewart Brown what many Bermudians think of him.” While the racial divide in the island's politics was evident, the blogger writes:

It took great courage as a PLP supporter to stand in front of her country’s leader and deliver that – and credit to Brown, he stood there and took it with dignity, even if he must have been seething and humiliated inside.

There’s been a lot of internet and radio chatter about how the crowd was overwhelmingly and depressingly white – no surprise there – and sadly Hott 107 almost seemed to dismiss the protest because of the racial imbalance. But the pro-Brown support was noticeable by its absence.

It was encouraging to see Bermudians willing to stand up and be counted and as such it was a good day for democracy. The people told their elected Premier in no uncertain terms what they thought of him without fear of arrest or police brutality. If nothing else, it will have impressed the four Uighurs who can only dream of such freedoms back home.

Photo courtesy Max Kehrli.

Catch a fire takes notice of “a counter-demonstration” that was carded for the same time of the original protest action:

This demonstration is being billed as supporting the decision to bring the Uighurs here.

This blog takes the position that it encourages active and critical participation in Bermuda’s politics, and to that degree I hope that there is a good turn-out for today’s demonstrations, as such activity is to the credit of our democracy.

This blog is, without hesitation, in the support of those who are critical of how this decision was made. I feel that the decision was made not on humanitarian grounds and that describing it as such is a red herring and emotionally manipulative deflection. I believe that the way this was done was contrary to the Constitution, and unnecessarily so.

Now that the Uighurs are here they should stay, but the way the decision was done needs protested. Either way, everyone have fun, be careful, confront ignorance and generally exercise your democratic rights, either for or against the decision.

Meanwhile, the Premier's reaction to the protest does not sit well with Vexed Bermoothes:

Don’t expect much from Dr. Brown. His comment on the protest: ‘As some of you might know, I grew up in the protest era. This is nothing new to me. I have seen them larger and longer.' Be careful what you ask for Dr. Brown.

Know we know why the Sally Bassett statue was placed in front of the Cabinet building: so the Premier can stand in front of it whenever he is in hot water to try and shift the dialogue to one of racial martyrdom. Nice try.

“Between the Signs”, photo by Max Kehrli.

Vexed Bermoothes is also focused on the irony of the entire deal…

On the day that the PLP seeks to wrap itself in laurels of humanitarianism, their Government admits that there are still no funds to replace the decrepit and wholly inadequate homeless shelter in Bermuda.

I encourage all those international groups who are puffing up Dr. Brown for solving their problem, to feel free to encourage and assist the Bermuda Government in finally fulfilling its obligations to its own people.

…not to mention the safety issue:

Premier Ewart Brown stated in the House of Assembly on Friday that Police Commissioner Jackson had done a thorough security check on the Uighurs.

Well, maybe not. As it turns out – like everyone else in Bermuda, the Police only learned about the uighurs on the radio news on Thursday morning.

Is it not a crime to ‘bend the truth' in a statement to the House of Assembly?

The crowds at Parliament at lunch today – which spilled onto the surrounding streets – were noisy and fed up particularly compared to the meagre team of Brown supporters that gathered in his stage-managed appearance. It will be untenable for the PLP to retain support for the Premier in the face of such public displeasure. The constant circus surrounding him has become a debilitating distraction for Bermuda.

This leads the blogger to turn his attention to the opposition party's call for a vote of “No Confidence” in Premier Brown:

Typically a motion such as this would be voted upon two weeks after being tabled. Understandably, the Premier’s team are pursuing all options to keep that from happening.

It is clear that there is considerable public discontent regarding the leadership of Dr. Ewart Brown. The Speaker (although currently drawn from the PLP ranks) has a strong responsibility to be impartial in conducting the affairs of the House. He must facilitate the debate of this motion as soon as possible, so that Bermuda can clear the air and get our Government back to work.

Photo by Max Kehrli.

Finally, he has a few words of wisdom for “international groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch [that] are freely tossing around humanitarian plaudits driven by their deep concerns about Guantanamo Bay and everything that it represents”:

They are incorrect if they assume that the backlash towards Dr. Brown is based on the Uighurs alone. It is not. The backlash is based on the accumulation of ‘unethical but not necessarily illegal' acts under his tenure. If there is no respect amongst our top leadership for the Constitution, then there is no Rule of Law. And if there is no consistent rule of law, then there are degrading and unreliable human rights for Bermudians.

In short, it is fundamentally wrong to undermine the Bermudian Constitution so that the American Constitution can retain its lustre.

Written by Janine Mendes-Franco · comments (0)
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One bone of contention is how easily full Bermudian status was granted to the former detainees. Vexed Bermoothes says:

That’s right. All you expats who contribute for years to Bermuda’s community and economy, term limits for you and don’t let the door hit you on the ass when you leave.

But come on down you Xinjiang Uigher suspected terrorists … you’ll fit right in!

Breeezeblog echoes his sentiment:

On a purely selfish note, I’d like to know how come ‘the Uigur Four' get given Bermuda status and yet someone like myself, who has lived and worked here for more than 26 years, is denied this privilege?

This is not to say that bloggers do not have some level of empathy for the former detainees. Catch a fire notes that:

I am sympathetic to the cause of Uigur autonomy and rights. I worked and lived in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) for about six months, living in Nanjing, just north of Shanghai. While there I became quite friendly with some of the Uighurs living there – they are not allowed to leave the PRC, but travel more or less freely within it.

I have also long opposed the US policy of Gitmo detainees which I see as contrary to international law and a de facto concentration camp. I have also opposed the US policy of rendition flights, and also put forward the fact that our airport has apparently been used to facilitate such renditions.

Breezeblog adds:

The four have long been declared a non-threat to the West and imprisoned unfairly by a paranoid and over-zealous US system and clearly could face torture or worse if they were sent back to China.

But they're still not sold. Catch a fire continues:

The thing is, the US government has assured Bermuda, in the form of Dr. Brown, that these four Uighurs are considered innocent. That's fine. I am not necessarily going to dispute that. But the detainee problem is a US problem. It is US made, and as a result there should be a US solution. Pawning the problem off to smaller countries is a load of bull. If these detainees are innocent, and if the US is not willing to repatriate them to the PRC for the legitimate reason of fearing their resulting persecution there, then the US should take care of them.

The blogger even dismisses the move as a humanitarian action:

There are those who will defend this action as a humanitarian action. That is false. Under international law (caveat – I am not a lawyer) as I understand it, the detainees are a US problem and they are obligated to take them in if they are not secure in repatriating them to the PRC.

In fact, many bloggers smell a rat:

But something clearly doesn’t smell right here, as it usually does around Premier Ewart Brown. The fact that the UK Government and the Governor knew nothing about this is disturbing and the Premier’s insistence that there was no quid pro quo just doesn’t ring true. The self-serving Dr. Brown doesn’t seem the type of politician to go out on a humanitarian limb without something in return. If not, why would the US ask tiny Bermuda to take them when there are bigger countries that could far more easily absorb the men? The Bermuda public have a right to know what deal, if any, was done.

Vexed Bermoothes agrees:

The key question is: What did we trade for doing this? What deals were made? How does this fit in Bermuda’s national priorities?

Catch a fire has his suspicions:

It's hard not to conclude that Bermuda was either threatened (perhaps as regards our ‘tax haven’ status) or ‘encouraged’ (which would mean bribed) to take these people. That’s not good enough.

Vexed Bermoothes also speculates:

Did we get money to fill some of the big gaps in Bermuda’s coffers? (News reports say that Palau is getting $200 million for taking 17 of the Uighers).

Are we counting them as air arrivals for Tourism?

Does he think this is cheap PR – getting Bermuda’s name in the news worldwide? Americans, come to Bermuda for some Pop and Sizzle! And Boom!

Hey maybe the US will stop hassling us about all the piddly tax stuff? In which case, you can expect Cayman to adopt a bunch of Afghans any minute.

Then he gets serious, writing a series of follow-up posts about likely repercussions on the island's tourism industry, the link between the decision to take in the detainees and the island's poor governance and the opposition party's reaction to the news, addding:

The decision still must have sign off by the UK via the Bermuda Governor. They must be scratching their heads. Perhaps this is another stab by the Premier to create a constitutional crisis should the UK overrule the move. You see, the Doc is supposed to make decisions impacting foreign policy and security in concert with Government House. Technically, he had no right to do this without consultation.

Catch a fire, who posts a second entry after he “had some time to sit and think about the situation”, has the last word:

I think its increasingly clear that there is going to be a huge negative public reaction to this move. The full extent of it at this moment is hard to make out, and whether this will lead to a no-confidence motion in the House of Assembly are just add to a growing sense of resentment and simmering anger towards Dr. Brown I cannot tell.

Public anger should be vented at Dr. Brown and the US Consul, and even at Government House in as much as it represents the UK. The Uighurs should be offerred our compassion as the pawns they are. Save your anger for those who made the decisions, not those who are victims of it.

Written by Janine Mendes-Franco · comments (5)
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Based on our monitoring of the Iranian blogosphere on election eve, it looks like Mousavi has broader support in the online blog community than Ahmadinejad. (For a broader understanding of the different attentive clusters in Iran check out our new online interactive Iran blogosphere map). The below maps show who is linking to websites associated with the candidates. It’s pretty interesting to see the contrast between Ahmadinejad emtedadmehr.com), whose links are very concentrated in the Conservative Politics cluster, and Mousavi mirhussein.com), whose links come from all over the map, not just the reformist politics group.

We are particularly struck by how many links come from the poetry cluster, which rarely links to political sites. Also, Moussavi has even more links from the CyberShi’a than Ahmadinejad.

This online interest doesn’t necessarily translate to the offline world, but it may indicate a broader level of excitement about Mousavi in the electorate, particularly among those outside his expected base of supporters, which could ultimately lead to higher voter turn out for Mousavi.

As Hamid Tehrani wrote earlier this week, YouTube is being used a lot by Iranians in this election. Here is one of the YouTube videos most linked to by reformists.

And here is the video most linked to by conservatives, which Hamid pointed to earlier in the week as an example of conservatives trying to discredit Khatami, who has supported Mousavi since he dropped out of the race himself.

Iran experts caution against trying to predict election winners Iran (because we’ve been surprised before), and we’d caution against predicting a Mousavi win just on this analysis, but it is certainly interesting to see the larger level of online support for Mousavi on the eve of the election. We’ll have to leave it to the voters at this point.

Some additional data and analysis on Iran’s election eve blogosphere is posted on Morningside Analytics Shifting the Debate blog. You can also catch an interview and find all of Hamid Tehrani’s posts on the Internet and the Iranian election on the PBS Web site.

Check back here next week for the big release of our Arabic blogosphere paper and accompanying event at USIP.

Written by Fred Petrossian · comments (6)
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When Omar Bongo was admitted in Barcelona's Quirón clinic earlier in May, a comment by Akin a the African Loft predicted his death away from his subjects:

The greatest indictment of his lamentable regime of 42 years is that Gabon does not have hospitals that could treat either himself or his wife.

What kind of leadership is one that cannot bring any appreciable benefits to its people whilst the leaders jet off to foreign lands for the slightest sign of discomfort?

This is an indictment that applies to probably the whole of African leadership, the inability to raise the standards of infrastructure, education, health and opportunity.

When would we be able to make all leadership really accountable for their years of disservice?

[…] The morale of this sordid tale is unAfrican in its context, the king shall not die in his palace surrounded by his subjects who “adore” him but in a non-descript expensive hospital room surrounded by strangers.

A king that fails to rule with probity will die in a distance in disgrace with everyone breathing a long sigh of relief - Good riddance! To them all.

Togolese blogger Rodrigue Kopgli, of Jeunesse Unie pour la Démocratie en Afrique [Fr], called Bongo “one of the last crocodiles of Françafrique“:

Ami de tous les gouvernements français depuis De Gaulle, Albert-Bernard Bongo devenu El Hadj Omar Bongo puis Ondimba (le peuple lui réclame du changement démocratique, il lui offre des changements de nom personnel), n’a jamais cessé d’être l’Agent des Services secrets français qu’il était à sa prise du pouvoir. Fort de sa longévité et de la fortune amassée au sommet du Gabon, Le Hadj s’octroie le luxe de financer des campagnes électorales en France notamment celle de François Mitterrand comme l’a écrit Pierre Péan dans « Affaires africaines ». Il laisse aussi un gigantesque parc mobilier et immobilier en France et des comptes bancaires secrets qui bien évidemment font et feront le bonheur des paradis fiscaux qui les hébergent. Le peuple gabonais pendant ce temps manque de tout. Avec un tel bilan, la terre ne lui sera pas légère du tout. Et les Africains qu’il prétendait cyniquement représenter ne se mettront pas en deuil, non plus.

Citing Togo's experience, Kopgli doubts Bongo's death will bring change:

La mort de Bongo n’apportera rien de salutaire au peuple gabonais, car les héritiers Ali et Pascaline Bongo sont déjà positionnés et portés par Bolloré – ami personnel de Sarkozy – et de Christophe de Margerie de TotalFinaElf et de bien d’autres vampires pour capter le pouvoir, comme ce fut le cas du Togo où les fils du défunt Gnassingbe ont été portés au pouvoir sous le double poids du viol et des violences.

Ivorian blogger Théophile Kouamouo [Fr], who also mentions Togo, ponders about what will happen after Bongo's death and wonders about the future of the Françafrique:

Maintenant que le “patriarche” n'est plus, l'on entre dans l'ère des incertitudes et des questionnements. Le schéma constitutionnel - remise du pouvoir à la présidente du Sénat puis élections - sera-t-il respecté ? Va-t-on vers un schéma de bataille fratricide à la togolaise […]? L'armée gabonaise, totalement invisible, entrera-t-elle en scène ?

Puis profondément, quel est le bilan d'Omar Bongo Ondimba ? Après sa mort, la Françafrique, dont il était le pilier, s'affaiblira-t-elle ? Pour ma part, je pense que oui - mais peut-être que je m'avance trop. Ce système-là était trop centré sur un certain nombre d'hommes, de petits secrets, de règles de départ qui n'existent plus, pour perdurer éternellement.[…]

La Françafrique s'affaiblira, mais la démocratie avancera-t-elle ? L'Afrique se retrouvera bientôt face à son destin et aux contradictions de son Histoire. Personne ne l'aidera à en démêler les noeuds. Mais observons d'abord ce qui se passera dans les prochains jours au Gabon.

Emmanuel Bellart of Cameroon [Fr] expressed his relief:

Dieu merci, car un autre est parti, l'afrique commence à respirer petit à petit, il ne fallait plus que ça pour que l'afrique puisse finalement ouvrir les yeux, monsieur omar bongo qui a mit 41 ans au pouvoir, ce qui est iraisonnable nous a montré combien ces vieux de la france voulaient vraiment detruire l'afrique, c'est claire que personne ne doit souhaiter la mort d'un être humain, mais d'un côté, c'est un soulagement pour le peuple gabonais, sauf qu'il y'avait une chose que monsieur bongo devait faire, c'est organiser le pouvoir et non de le preparer pour ses enfants […]

adieu le doyen, laissons le pouvoir au peuple et non à une personne, quand tu t'accapare du pouvoir , tu meurs et on t'oublit

At the newsportal Gaboneco [Fr], a Gabonese reader named Ogwera left a comment asking for democratic elections:

Je suis un citoyen gabonais et j'exige des élections dans le strict respect de la constitution de La République!!!! et je dis non à ceux qui appelle la france à se mêler de la politique gabonaise notamment BEN MOUMBAMBA qu'on ne connait pas et qui pourrait être un pion de cette france! Les gabonais doivent s'unir et rester vigilants!

Written by Elia Varela Serra · comments (16)
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The continuing tense situation in the Amazon Region of Peru has taken a turn for the worst and has become unbearable in city of Bagua. Reports coming from that area are truly alarming: RPP says: Emergency in Bagua: Police are killed and residents destroy buildings [es]. El Comercio reported that demonstrators burned government buildings [es], as well as the Apra political party headquarters in Bagua Grande. There are no official reports of deaths of indigenous residents, but SERVINDI does mention: Peru: 20 Awajún-Wampis indigenous die during conflicts in Bagua [es].

Photo of Conflict in Bagua by TV Cultura and used under Creative Commons license. http://www.flickr.com/photos/tvcultura/3597959493/

These protests are a continuation of the demands from indigenous communities, who are concerned that the government will take away their lands that are believed to be rich in minerals and oil. As a result, more than 2,000 indigenous residents have been blockading the highway in the area of Devil's Curve in Bagua Grande for the past week and a half, according to Enlace Nacional [es]. As a result, supplies have been running out in the area.

One of the indigenous leaders of the protest group, Alberto Pizango, called a press conference and stated that the Peruvian government has committed genocide with the murder of his indigenous brothers and sisters. Bloggers and twitterers from across the country are quite concerned and have been tuning in to the recent developments.

Many twitterers are following along to reports from the area, and providing their own opinions about the situation using the hashtag #Bagua:

Jonathan Sanchez @Maskus:

Pizango no quiere responder por los policias muertos ni la quema de locales #bagua

@xaxo6v:

#Bagua recuerdan lo que sucedió cuando sacaron a invasores de los bosques de pomac? será que hay “infiltrados”? o policia solo dispara?

Javier Vargas @javier_vargas:

Si los nativos no están armados, ¿quién mató a los policiías? @Peru21pe #Bagua

@elguillle:

Para Alan lo de #Bagua es pura manipulación de los enemigos extranjeros del país. “Quieren ver al Perú arrodillado” Alan dixit

Miguel Angel Tavera pe1us0:

Ya no hay medicamentos en el hospital, falta de sangre y muchas necesidades más, necesitan mucha ayuda en Bagua Grande.

In the blogosphere, Isabel of Las Burbujas Recargadas [es] writes:

Esto va a acabar mal. De hecho, ya está yendo bastante mal. Entre Brack, que ya se vendió descaradamente, y Pizango, a quien no le importa mandar a su gente a que la maten mientras él se esconde haciéndose el interesante, no veo ninguna remota posibilidad de entendimiento. Mientras, ¿alguien se preocupa por algo más importante que la politiquería y el dinero, o sea, por LAS VIDAS de los nativos y de sus familias? Claro que tienen derecho a protestar y defenderse, pero cerrando caminos y sitiando a poblaciones urbanas (como Yurimaguas), no se van a ganar el apoyo de nadie. Lo único que van a ganar es el odio y la marginación de parte de sus propios paisanos: están acentuando la división nativos-mestizos,

Paco Bardales of Diario de Iqt [es] compiles a list of links and will continue to update his blog:

Desafortunado o no, el conflicto amazónico ha tomado un cariz trágico y sangriento. Los sucesos de Bagua han desbordado, mucho más allá de lo permitido. Hasta el momento, el enfrentamiento entre habitantes de la zona y miembros de la Policía, en la llamada Curva del Diablo (luego de que se quemara la gobernación del lugar), están dejando un saldo no confirmado aún de 28 civiles muertos y 10 policías.

In addition to the conflicts in Bagua Grande, clashes are taking place in Jaén in the department of Cajamarca. Several twitterers have been posting news heard on the radio. With the seriousness of the situation, many Peruvians are wondering what will happen next.

This post is part of our special coverage Forest Focus: Amazon.

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After listening to the speech, Stiletos in the Sand, an American based in Saudi Arabia, writes:

54 minutes and 22 seconds .. of my life I can never get back. Speech in Cairo by the jeja is here in four separate parts. Really no reason for any other leaders of the world to continue ruling their own little domains. The jeja seems to have it all under control and will be the first, self-appointed, world leader from hereon out. Oh, sure. He says everything he has aspirations for, that he thinks can be achieved in the world, will need to be done “together.” Don't believe him for one single skinny second. If his lips are moving, he is lying. Hoo Boy.

Syrian Khaldoun Jarbou too wasn't impressed but writes:

I don’t see any thing new in Obama’s speech, more than that, anyone who kept up with his campaign he/she will notes that this speech is a collection of what he had said before in his way to the White House, but how ever I have liked his choosing of some words. I mean in that Violence and Extremist instead of Terrorism and Terrorist.

Bahraini Mahmood Al Yousif wonders out aloud on the speech venue:

I keep asking myself why did Obama choose the most repressive regimes in the Middle East to honour not only with his presence, but also to use as a launchpad for his Utopian vision of a peaceful and democratic Middle East? A vision that will continue to remain as illusive as a desert mirage for us Middle Eastners.

Then I try to select an alternate of the 22 Arab countries where he could have used instead, but I fail to find a single one which could be worthy of such an occasion.

On the speech itself, Al Yousif adds:

Regardless, he touched the perennial issues; Palestine through to women’s rights, freedom of expression to democratic governments and of course the rejection of terrorism and freedom of belief. Points which generally have been raised by every single American president - and world leader for that matter - albeit without such eloquence and empathy - but so far without any concrete steps to see through their resolutions. Somehow a “shared interest” creeps in and all those promises get shelved or forgotten to be revived upon a new ascension to a throne.

Writing at Mideast Youth, fellow Bahraini Esra'a explains why she did not tune into the speech:

As an Arab and a Muslim, there was nothing much I can benefit from what Obama has to say. I’m so tired of these tedious speeches and words and praises and promises that no one, including the target audience, ever lives up to. Despite not watching this speech due to lack of interest, I sat down on Twitter and was franly disgusted at the hype, the way people were mindlessly cheering his words on, as if they don’t understand the sources of our issues to begin with. Suddenly Obama was here to “fix things,” while reducing our problems to the size of a footnote.

I support Obama, at least in comparison to his war-mongering colleagues. But we don’t need his leadership, or anyone else’s for that matter.

In Israel, writing at South Jerusalem Gresghom Gorenberg notes how the speech has changed history:

Barack Obama likes to change what history means, and that’s a very good thing.

Today, for instance, marks 42 years since the Six-Day War began. Ever since then, the term “June 4 lines” has referred to the on-the-ground border between Israel and its Arab neighbors on the eve of the war - not the lines marked on maps, but the lines marked by forward military positions. On the Syrian front, for instance, the actual positions lined up with neither the pre-1948 international border between Palestine and Syria, nor with the 1949 armistice agreements. The small distances on the ground make for big problems in peace negotiations.

As of yesterday, however, June 4 means something entirely different. It now refers to the day on which Barack Obama chose to speak in Cairo. “June 4 lines” henceforth mean the line of thinking that the president laid out for reconciliation between the U.S. and the Muslim world, and along the way, between Israel and the Palestinians.

On the speech, Gorenberg writes:

His message to us was very, very basic Obama: First, I acknowledge your history. Second, it’s time each of you recognize the other’s side history, that you stop thinking that somehow by admitting the other’s side suffering you’ll erase your own. And now that you’ve acknowledged history, stop holding on to it as if electricity were running through it, as if your hand can’t let go. Move forward. Turn history into history - the text explaining how we got here - and stop treating it as an ever-repeating present.

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Mamadou Tandja, President of Niger since 1999, wants to amend the constitution so he can stay in office.

Last week, Tandja dissolved the National Assembly following a ruling by Niger's constitutional court that holding such a referendum would be a breach of his oath of office, and thus illegal. Monday, a demonstration in Niamey, the capital, turned violent when security forces fired tear gas on protestors, while in Dosso, 140 km to the west, protesters set fire to vehicles.  An array of opposition parties, unions and NGOs have announced massive demonstrations and strikes for June 7th.

It was difficult to find citizen media, blogs, or online forums within Niger discussing the referendum, however bloggers in neighboring countries like Burkina Faso and Chad are closely watching as events unfold.

tchad futur writes:

Ces derniers temps, dans la plupart des pays d'Afrique, les modifications constitutionnelles sont à la mode, se  réalisent malgré l'opposition des sensibilités socio-politiques et au gré des dirigeants.

Le Niger, pays qui a donné l'exemple d'une bonne léçon de la démocratie avec  la réalisation de sa première alternance politique et démocratique, est  happé par ces révisons constitutionnelles au nez et à la barbe de l'opinion internationale.

So far, Libyan president Moummar Kadhafi is the only head of state to publicly support the referendum.  Both the US and Canada have spoken out against it.  tchad futur predicts France will stay quiet given the uranium deal the French company AREVA signed with Niger in January.

En Afrique, les révisions constitutionnelles ne font pas avec la volonté du peuple mais au gré des puissances étrangères, dont les intérêts doivent être garantis au détriment des valeurs démocratiques ou des droits de l'homme baffoués.

In Africa, constitutional amendments do not happen with the will of the people, but rather at the pleasure of foreign powers, whose interests must be protected, to the detriment of democratic values and human rights.

On Burkinabe news site LeFaso.net, Alain Saint Robespierre writes about Niger's “Constitutional Coup d'Etat”:

Dans cet imbroglio politique, une chose est néanmoins sûre : l’homme fort de Niamey ne reculera devient rien ni personne pour faire aboutir le projet de prolongation de son mandat à la tête du pays. Et là, pas du tout. Pour tous ceux qui croyaient le chef de l’Etat nigérien capable de faire machine arrière dans sa volonté de prolonger, au mépris de la loi, son bail présidentiel, l’heure est à la désillusion.

Nonetheless, in this political imbroglio, one this is sure: the strong man of Niamey will not retreat for anything or anyone in order to realize his plan to prolong his mandate at the head of the country.  For all those who believed the Nigerian commander-in-chief capable of moving backward in order to extend , at the expense of the law, his presidential lease, we are in the hour of disillusion.

In response, a reader named koudka writes:

Pauvre de nous africains ! il faut que ça change. le peuple nigérien ne mérite pas cela. quand je pense que il y en des chefs d’état qui estiment que leur pays ne sera rien sans eux alors que depuis longtemps qu’ils sont chefs rien n’a été fait.  j’ai envis de changer de planête tout simplement…

We poor Africans!  This has to change.  The Nigerien people don't deserve this.  When I think that there are heads of state who believe their country will be nothing without them, while in all the time they have been head of state, they have done nothing.  Quite simply, I want to change the world…

Laye, referring to former president Ibrahim Bare Mainassa's assassination, thinks Tandja is playing with fire, and ignoring history:

Comme quelqu’un qui m’a devancé l’a déjà dit, il y en a qui ont oublié ce que c’est que le Wankage. Et c’est clair qu’il y aura coup d’Etat au Niger, et très clair que Tandja sera tué. De tte façon il ne mérite pas mieux.

As someone noted before me, some have forgotten Wanke.  It's clear there will be a coup d'Etat in Niger, and that Tandja will be killed.  At any rate, he doesn't deserve any better.

And applauds those who are standing up to Tandja:

Bravo à l’Assemblée Nationale Nigérienne, à Mahamane Ousmane, à la Cour Constitutionnelle, au Président Guermakoye, à …, aux Nigériens !

Bravo to the Nigerien National Assembly, to Mahamane Ousame, to the Constitutional Court, to President Guermakoye, to…to the Nigeriens!

Traps:

Mr Tandja , ce qu’on a pas pu faire en dix ans on le fera jamais en deux ou trois ans . Il etait temps pour toi de t’en aller. Tu as insulte la democratie africaine. Mr Tandja tu aurais du donner le bon exemple a tes freres acrochards de pouvoir. Tandja . Vas t’en . Aller ouste .

Mr. Tandja, what you could not do in ten years, you will never do in two or three.  It is time for you to go.  You insult African democracy.  Mr. Tandja, you should have been a good example to your brothers holding onto power.  Tandja, get out of here.  Off you go.

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The photographer Waleed Nassar, who works near Cairo University, wrote about the preparations taking place in his neighbourhood:

I work next to Cairo University and this area has transformed over night. The bumpy streets leading to the University are now as smooth as silk. Even buildings around the area have been given a fresh layer of paint, but not the whole building, just the side that faces to the street.
[…]
That all sounds great but do you know what that means for the citizens of Cairo? No one is going anywhere on Thursday. I’ve heard that schools are taking the day off and some businesses are closing. Since Obama will be criss-crossing through Cairo in a car, police and presidential guard will be closing down streets and areas where he will be expected to be.

Hossam El Hamalawy tweeting regarding the security precautions that will take place. Al-Shrouk daily newspaper adviced Egyptians to stay home, as the streets will be nearly blocked.

Zeinobia wrote about Obama’s schedule in Egypt. She also added an update that the Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak will not attend the speech:

- Mubarak will meet Obama at Koubbah Palace only , he won't attend the speech in Cairo University according to Al-Muslamany's TV show on Dream TV 2 !!!!
- I think his absence from the speech will raise many question marks about his condition after the death of his grandchild.

Egyptian Leftist wrote a letter to Obama (strong language) with an expressive picture saying: "We don't believe you!"

Mahmoud wrote in his blog “Pains and Hopes” a cynical letter [Ar] to Obama, encouraging him to see the “real” Egypt. He explained that what he will see is only preparations for his visit, but if he tried to visit the other universities he’ll find something different; even streets which will not be as beautiful, organized and tidy as what he will see.

Another blogger, Sherif Abdelaziz wrote in his blog “Justice for all” another letter to Obama, and like Egyptian leftist, he expresses his doubt that Obama's visit would bear any fruit:

You know Cairo University you'll be visiting ? Yup…it's my university …I got my degree from there years back ..I also heard that millions of dollars were spent to fix up the place just for you to lay eyes on it for couple of hours …
I have no idea if this visit will do us any good man, I got nothing against it , but I am sick and tired of every thing …I got no faith in no body any more , and am not even so hyped about listening to what you have to say , but I will give it a try ..

On the other hand, Dalia Ziada, a human rights activist who has retained some of her hope towards Obama's visit, concluded her “Young Egyptian Activists and the Obama effect!” post saying:

For the first time, in tens of years, Egyptians can see an American president who is not eager to establish a relationship with the Egyptian regime regardless of its black record of practices against democracy and human rights. This forced the Egyptian regime to show more tolerance and flexibility towards human rights activists and groups.

Yet, the inevitable question, while waiting impatiently for Obama's visit to Cairo within few days, would be: is Obama willing to live up to the high expectations of young Egyptian activists through supporting them in their struggle for domestic reform and making their dream of change, inspired by him, true?

On a different note, Egyptian movement Kifaya called for a sit-in on the eve of the visit, opposing any intended support by the American government to Israel and the Egyptian regime:

In a reply to the sit-in call, Ahmed el Gizawy who like Dalia, also believes Obama is coming to Egypt with good intentions towards the Islamic and Arab world, asked the people to listen first to the speech then decide whether they want to proceed with a sit-in or not.

As a sneak peak to the event, American journalist Robb Montgomery, interviewed some Egyptians about their speculations regarding Obama's visit to Egypt next Thursday.

You can also follow an open discussion on Twitter between bloggers, about the speech and the visit's preparations, using the hashtag #CairoSpeech .

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However, the circumstances surrounding agriculture are changing. Farming is undergoing a makeover for better or worse, as covered by Scilla Alecci in ‘Japan: Agriculture the latest trend among celebrities‘. This follow-up post highlights some aspects of that change in an attempt to explore its scope.

Reporting for Duty by flickr user megabn

Farming and Food Safety

Growing concern for food safety is one of the factors that have contributed to this change in the way of thinking. The blog ‘What Japan Thinks' reported last year that ‘food safety worries five in six Japanese‘:

Q2: Which of the following do you strive to do regarding your eating habits ? (Sample size=1,089, multiple answer)

• Buy Japanese products as much as possible 69%
• Pay attention to the date of manufacture, use-by date, best before date, etc 66%
• Buy products with as few additives as possible 51%
• Limit use of prepared foods 25%
• Limit eating out 16%
• Other 3%
• Nothing in particular 6%

Many consumers don't mind paying extra to ensure that their food is 'safe', especially in the wake of an incident in 2008 when dozens were poisoned by frozen dumplings imported from China. In a typical example, Tamagomama lists some reminders in a blog post advising expectant mothers:

多少高くても「安全でいい食品」を買いましょうね。
できれば「生産者」の顔が見えるモノにしてください。
輸入品は避けましょう。
中国に限らずアメリカなどの食品も。
国産で皆さんの近くでとれたモノがいいです。
生産者の顔がわかるものがベストです。
家族の命をまもるためにも、他人が守ってくれるのではなく、我が身と家族は自分で守りましょう。

Farming and Unemployment

With the economy in steep decline, the government is looking to connect increased agricultural employment as one answer to rising unemployment, especially for temp workers with cancelled contracts.

Nina Fallenbaum reported on her participation in a pilot agriculture-experience program:

Here’s the very simple idea: send 18 to 40-year-old city slickers to rural communities for a free five-day trip to learn farming, meet local people, and perhaps be tempted to adopt that way of life for themselves. Administrated by an environmental nonprofit group, a grant from the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture paid our food, bullet train fare, lodging — everything (and I’m not even a citizen!). Seems extravagant, but compared to the amount of money spent on recent bank bailouts it’s a very cheap form of stimulus — and benefits rural areas, young people, and the agricultural sector simultaneously.

Farming and the Internet

Here are some cases of people harnessing the power of the Internet.

Yasai8313, who produces rare vegetables, uses the Internet to
cultivate sales channels [ja]. Tomato farmer Shinichi Soga succeeded in connecting the popularity of his blog directly to sales, as covered by the Japan Times in ‘Younger farmers blogging their way to success‘. Seebit, a company that produces video content for the Web, runs a website that sells rice. They offer footage from an on-site Web camera so that people can see how the rice is growing. There's a social networking site for all people related to nogyo, Boku-nou (Our Agriculture), which also enables people to buy and sell farming equipment.

Online learning is available as well. Toshihide Muraoka introduced one such example on his blog:

秋田県農業研修センターが運営する「インターネットアグリスクール」が人気を集めています。インターネットを利用して、農業のやり方や秋田県の自然の知識を学ぶことができます。２００１年に開始して以降、東京、愛知、長崎など全国から約２００人が受講し、毎年、定員（３０人）はほぼ満員状態。スクールを通じて農業の魅力に引かれ、これまでに９人の受講生が県内で農業を始めています。

Farming and Other Industries

Companies and organizations in industries unrelated to farming are re-thinking their relationship with agriculture. In one example, marketer and blogger happy-kernel commented on the news that the Kakegawa City Amateur Sports Association in Shizuoka Prefecture is starting an agricultural farm business.

野菜嫌いな子どもたちに、野菜作りを手伝わせることで野菜嫌いがなくなったり、観察力が高まるという指摘もあるように、中年以降、お腹周りが気になり始めた運動不足の肉好きの人たちにとっては、運動を兼ねた野菜中心食へ転換できるきっかけとなるかも知れないのだ。
とすれば、体育協会がこのような試みをすることにも、意味があるだろう。
何よりも参加者にとっては｢新鮮・安心・安全な野菜｣と｢運動＋健康｣が手に入るのだ。
今後このようなアプローチの｢健康作り｣が、注目されていくのかも知れない。

In conclusion

Most Japanese farms are small and family-oriented, and the image of ojiichan and obaachan (grandpa and grandma) tending to their plot of land day in and day out, a typical setting in Japanese folklore, isn't that far from present reality. What will happen next? Where these trends will lead to is yet to be seen, but it's all part of one big and developing wave.

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León Huarancca Quichca does not trust the media or the government and writes [es]:

Hasta ahora la AH1N1 ha sido la gran noticia para los medios de comunicación pese a que aún no ha causado muerte alguna, mientras que la neumonía ya ha matado a 133 niños y niñas, y recién es una noticia minimizada para los medios de comunicación. Según dicen que el Perú crece a todo dar, pero hay niños muriendo de neumonía, personas contagiadas con TBC, y seguramente el presidente García fiel al a su estilo conminará a la gente que hagan donaciones

El Paki [es] publishes a short analysis of the coverage provided by the local television station and criticizes the government:

Acabo de ver una nota en el noticiero vespertino de canal N sobre la gripe AH1N1, y los contagiados en el colegio Altair de la Molina. Una nota de 5 minutos, con transmisión en vivo. Lo que me recordó al post del Dr. Huerta, que al final de un concienzudo análisis del contenido del noticiero de canal 4 llega a esta conclusión:

Total de tiempo dedicado a la gripe AH1N1: 41 minutos.
Total de tiempo dedicado a la muerte de decenas de niños peruanos por el frío: UN SOLO MINUTO (en el noticiero del jueves)

Y lo que es peor, el ministerio de salud que publicita muy bien su estrategia de lucha contra la fiebre porcina, no tiene datos (mínimamente, no?) acerca del plan de lucha/prevención/tratamiento, de las consecuencias del friaje, que cada año, asola a la infancia de las zonas altoandinas.

With the annual low temperatures that affect the rural populations in southern Peru, many believe that the Health Minister and the local governments should have an adequate preparedness plan in order to prevent cases like this. The blog Caviar de Cianuro [es] is worried about this lack of response:

Lo que más rabia da es que recién comienza la ola de frío y muere gente (y al parecer traerá más víctimas). Más desazón da cuando el Gobierno comienza a actuar en el momento en el que las cifras de muertos por las heladas son alarmantes y para colmo utilizan la catástrofe para su proselitismo político. Si hay algo peor que el Gobierno Central es la forma como Hernán Fuentes, presidente regional de Puno, no se pronuncia ni se hace responsabe de alguna actividad para apasiguar el daño que dicha catástrofe ocasiona a su comunidad regional ¡Actúen de inmediato, pero actúen bien y ya!

The same blogger is angry that this is a subject that needs to be written about yet again [es]:

Los medios tradicionales también merecen ser criticados puesto que no están cubriendo este tema debidamente ni lo ponen en la agenda pública ni están informando a la población sobre la importancia de tomar ciertas medidas para evitar que los niños tengan las enfermedades respiratorias derivadas de las heladas. ¿Cómo Alan García, Yehude Simon o cualquier autoridad les podría decia a los padres de esos niños que somos parte de un país? Francamente, da rabia volver a escribir sobre esto. Porque al final lo que más mata en este país, no son las enfermedades, es la indiferencia.

However, there not all is indifference, Renato Cisneros and Jesús Véliz write about the support campaign [es] conducted by the Municipality of Barranco, a district of Lima.

Mientras en la capital aún hay brillo solar, y no nos abrigamos mucho. En Puno, muchas víctimas, en su mayoría niños, han fallecido por el exceso de frío… El distrito de Barranco, está organizando una campaña “Abriguemos Puno”… ¿CREES QUE HABRÁ UNA ÓPTIMA RESPUESTA DE LOS PERUANOS CON ESTA CAMPAÑA DE SOLIDARIDAD?…¿SOMOS SOLIDARIOS ENTRE PERUANOS?… Ya lo demostramos con nuestros vecinos del Sur, después de terremoto… ahora??

The question has generated a lot of responses, among which include apparent skepticism about such actions, but is thought to be good to help. The bad experiences with donations ending up in the wrong hands have created a bad precedent that will need to be overcome.

Finally, Francisco Canaza of Apuntes Peruanos [es] provides another perspective to understand the problem:

El frío es el gatillo para infecciones que proliferan en los pobladores con desnutrición. Puno, Lampa, Azángaro y Carabaya muestran altos niveles de desnutrición infantil. … De los 435 centros de salud ubicados en la región Puno, pocos son los que cuentan con las condiciones apropiadas para atender casos de neumonía extendidos por toda la población. Es más, muchos de estos centros de salud son de Primer Nivel, es decir puestos de salud con limitaciones y con un promedio de dos profesionales.

Consideremos esto. El 64.3% del presupuesto nacional es gasto corriente. la mayoría de regiones recibe menos del 1% del presupuesto nacional. Puno recibe como región el 0.97% del presupuesto nacional, con lo que tiene que hacerse cargo de las funciones ya descentralizadas. La solución no es la vacuna contra la gripe sino que un adecuado sistema de apoyo social brinde sus frutos. Y que el Estado se encuentre preparado a atender las infecciones clásicas, pues las IRA’s son una constante en la época de frío.

In addition to the above posts recommended, the article about the freezing temperatures [es] that appeared in the La República newspaper provides real accounts from Peruvians living in the region. There is also an interesting conversation taking place in the Peru Forums [es].

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Reacting to news reports about the discovery of a swine flu case in Malaysia, Nuraina A Samad fears the worst:

we know that there are those other passengers on the two flights who have not reported to the health officers. And multiply that by the number of people they have come into contact with….and so on and so forth. Scary, isn't it?

But…aaah, to think that just two weeks ago, the Swine Flu, — whoops, Influenza A or the H1N1 virus — was way yonder in far far Mexico.

Before you could say la Cucaracha, it flu to the US, Canada……and now it's here.

Othman bin Hj. Ahmad thinks it is already too late for Malaysia to contain the virus:

With the limited success in quarantining all passengers or people in contact with swine flu confirmed cases, coupled with the delay in testing and confirming these swine flu cases, it is too late to contain this swine flu.

Please note that many swine flu cannot be detected with these tests and many now appear like normal flu except that they are not resistant to Tamilflu unlike the normal flu in US. Malaysian normal flu may vary.

aeqmal onetale thinks Singapore should be doubly alert now that Malaysia already has a swine flu case:

Singapore has lowered its flu alert level from ‘Orange’ to ‘Yellow’; but Malaysia has just announced it’s first swine flu case yesterday afternoon. It’s not time yet to party and do keep your personal hygiene in check.

Thailand has confirmed that swine flu has entered the country as well. More than 20 people with flu symptoms are under surveillance. Not the Nation features a satirical article about the presence of “swird flu” in Thailand

The precautionary measure was based on speculation that a pig with swine flu spending time with a chicken with bird flu could lead to the outbreak of a new flu virus he called “swird flu”.

Cambodia is on alert after Thailand confirmed its 1st swine flu case. Recently, Cambodia is monitoring the health of three Cambodian-Americans who tested positive for swine flu. Meanwhile, a Vietnamese air passenger was quarantined in South Korea after exhibiting symptoms of being positive with the dreaded virus.

For want of a better title reminds us that there are deadlier diseases than swine flu:

If youre worried about H1N1, Don’t. There are 5 more deadlier diseases that are more virulent and have a better chance of killing you. Think Dengue, Ebola, AIDS, Cholera and Spinal Meningitis. I mean cholera has been around forever, and dengue is among us. I think I would worry about those a lot more.

See leong Kit warns against communal eating in Singapore. To prevent the spread of A(H1N1), he proposes the following:

-Health Promotion Board should mount an effective campaign to educate Singaporeans on “Eat The Hygienic Way” (using serving spoons) to complement its on-going efforts on ”Eat The Healthy Way” (more fruits and vegetables).

-National Environment Agency, using its licensing clout, to issue a compulsory directive for hawkers and restaurants to provide serving spoons automatically.

The Philippines has two swine flu cases already. The dominant Catholic Church is thinking of banning the holding of hands during mass as a measure against the spread of swine flu.

As the swine flu scare continues to grow, more and more people are getting paranoid about eating pork. This may explain why Cambodia’s rat meat exports to Vietnam are increasing in record numbers.

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The polarized Sri Lankan Blogosphere is buzzing with a lot of analysis and counter analysis on the developments.

Although the Sri Lankan government has been successful in finishing off the LTTE insurgency, its methods were controversial and much criticized. In Mutiny quotes a Time article which lists the Rajapakse doctrine of counterinsurgency.

Serendipity is critical of the Western media for not portraying the feeling of many Sri Lankans who were relieved and have celebrated the news of the end of the bitter war. The blogger accused the Western media for using sensationalism in their writings and urged the Sri Lankan blogosphere to help balance the biases by raising their voices.

Reacting on the news that the EU wants to organize a tribunal to investigate civilian deaths by Sri Lankan Army and the LTTE, The Whackster's Lair challenged the world to come to Sri Lanka and see with their own eyes whether the alleged war crimes happened for real. However sporadic incidents of kidnapping Tamil activists are still being reported in the media.

Criticizing the ban of foreign journalists and aid workers, renowned journalist John Pilger wrote that the sufferings of the Tamils are being unnoticed by the world and distant Tamil voices are not being heard. In recent times we have seen that the pro Tamil voices have become feeble due to intimidation and fear.

Sujai at Desicritics is not a supporter of LTTE but supports Sri Lankan Tamils’ desire and aspiration to establish a separate Tamil state on that island and asks:

“Can we ignore the history of how Tamils were targeted, discriminated, and marginalized in Sri Lanka? Does Sri Lanka have a prior record which suggests they are going welcome Tamils participation in that country? Can a Tamil become President of Sri Lanka the way a Sikh can become Prime Minister of India?”

Tamil protest in london, Image from Flickr by danie, used under a CC license

Musings from Toronto questions the Diaspora support for the LTTE:

I don't understand why they support the LTTE. [..] I don't understand how they claim the LTTE is any better than the government of Sri Lanka.

But it would be wrong to think that all Tamils are supporting the LTTE. Amardeep at Sepia Mutiny posts a video of Tamil Canadian journalist Ignatius Sellah talking on CBC which tells a different view, that the Tamil protests in Canada were instigated by the LTTE arm in Canada.

Terms like “Genocide” have been indiscriminately used by LTTE which has overshadowed the real problems. Nilanjana at Sepia Mutiny quotes the human rights abuses of both the Sri Lankan Government and the LTTE and writes:

Terms like “genocide” (and “terrorism,” for that matter) raise our blood pressure and focus our attention on those who have committed violence, but they don’t even begin to address how minorities can be more effectively represented and fairly treated in the future.

Indrajit Samarajiva at Indi.ca tells the Sri Lankan Diaspora:

It is not enough to lobby the UN or the ‘international community’ or the consciences of the fashionable thinkers of the global elite. [..]

To change Sri Lanka you need to reach the kid in the IDP camp, you need to work with the police office in Hambantota. You need to chat with the Muslims in Galle and the tea pluckers in Nuwara Eliya. [..]

Sri Lanka still needs its bright children to come home.

Gunaratne at Groundviews is amazed at “the mobilization of young people from the Tamil Diaspora around the world to organize protests against the Sri Lankan government’s purported human rights violations.” But the question is how to end the cycle of hatred?

Maybe once the conflict is over, they will come back to Sri Lanka to rebuild the country together. However, there is long way to go for reconciliation between the two communities as so much hatred has manifested, especially amongst the Diaspora overseas.

Appu's advice to the Tamils is to try something different:

Invest in your people, your lands, your future. You work wonders for your employers in other parts of the World, now do it for yourselves.

To do that however, you need to walk away from the bitterness that you are entitled to feel.

But how can the bitterness and disbelief be removed when there are still reports of human rights abuses? According to the latest reports, women were raped and men “disappeared” from the Sri Lankan refugee camps and the Red Cross has been banned from the entering the camps. Reports of revenge on Tamils have begun to appear. So sense of disbelief and worry is still present in many Sri Lankan Tamils. The future of many refugees in the IDPs is uncertain. The world needs to be aware of the situation and take measures to stop these human rights violations to pave the way for some kind of reconciliation.

Written by Rezwan · comments (6)
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Recent weeks have seen an increase in acts of censorship, with in the arrest of reporter Evariste Ramanatsoavina, jailed on May, 5th, and the firing of Ravoajanahary Johary, director of National Television on May 19th. Journalists demonstrated for freedom of speech on May 15th, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters without Borders (fr) reported

Mohamed Hassim Keita of CPJ explains:

The protestors were showing solidarity for Ramanatsoavina, a presenter held in Antananarivo's Antanimora Prison on charges of “incitement to rebellion” and “civil disobedience,” according to defense lawyer Fidele Rakotondrainibe. The journalist, who denies the charges, is expected to appear in court for sentencing on Wednesday.

( video credits to pakysse )

Reporter Without Borders has further details on the arrest of Ramanatsoavina:

He was arrested at his home at 5 a.m. on 5 May by masked soldiers as his daughters looked on, and was taken to the National Mixed Committee for Investigations (CNME), which is located in the suburb of Ambohibao, in premises that used to be the headquarters of the former domestic intelligence service, the DGID [..] The decision to bring charges against Ramanantsoavina contradicted an initial statement by communication ministry secretary-general Charles-Aimé Randriamorasata that the authorities had arrested him simply to find out where Radio Mada was broadcasting from.

Razily's Release

For its part, the Malagasy blogosphere was buzzing about the good news of Razily's release. Ndimby on fijery blog explains the key role bloggers played in pressuring the government and what his release means for the online community following the Madagascar crisis:

Devant la démission des médias traditionnels sur le sujet, et il faut bien le dire, de l’opinion publique nationale devenue par la force des choses blasée, ce sont les blogueurs qui ont mis la pression. Alors qu’on n’a jamais vu un article de la presse écrite malgache poser la question, les internautes malgaches se sont mobilisés aux quatre coins du monde. Des gens qui ne se connaissaient pas, qui ne se parlaient pas, qui ne connaissaient pas Razily, en ont fait le symbole de leur lutte pour la démocratie et les droits de l’homme. Rappelons que suite à la mobilisation de la société civile et des blogueurs, le haut-commissaire des Nations unies aux droits de l’homme a envoyé discrètement un émissaire discuter avec le pouvoir de transition. Ce diplomate a rencontré à plusieurs reprises le Colonel Rakotonandrasana, le chef des mutins devenu Ministre de la défense

Blogger Avylavitra wonders why there is so much mobilization now and where everyone was earlier in the conflict (mg) ?

Fanamarihana kely avy amiko fotsiny ny hoe: fa maninona moa no tsy nihetsika toy izao ny mpanao gazety fony nitranga ny fahafatesan’i ANDO (RTA)?

demonstration photo by http://gazetyavylavitra.wordpress.com/

( March against censorship by Avylavitra)

A prominent Malagasy, website TopMada, notes that the committee of journalists in Madagascar is weary of the increased partisanship of journalists in the Malagasy political landscape:

Selon le comité des journalistes, l’image du journalisme est fortement ternie suite à la participation active de certains de leurs confrères dans les actions et activités politiques. Les journalistes veulent revenir à la déontologie et à l’éthique de la profession

Written by Lova Rakotomalala · comments (6)
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