· December, 2009

Stories about Digital Activism from December, 2009

Caribbean: 2009 Regional Roundup

  31 December 2009

As Global Voices celebrates its fifth anniversary, the occasion has given us all an opportunity to reflect on why we do what we do and how our work makes a difference.  As my colleague Jillian York so succinctly put it, “We spread stories.  We spread words.”  We manage to do...

Trinidad & Tobago: Do the Math

  31 December 2009

Jumbie's Watch does the math on Trinidad and Tobago's murder rate: “While the CoP was bleating in public about the 3.65% murder solve rate (for last year), he neglected to mention that for the ‘known’ 508 victims of this year, there is a further 904 still missing!!!”

Cuba: History & Hope

  31 December 2009

“Hopefully, 2010 will bring, finally, an end to this sad, torturous chapter of Cuban history”: Uncommon Sense remembers Cuba's past and expresses his hopes for its future.

Caucasus: 2009 Blog Review

  31 December 2009

If the Armenian and Georgian blogospheres attracted most interest during 2008 after one disputed presidential election in the former and an albeit short war with Russia in the latter, Azerbaijan was the undoubted focus in 2009. In particular, youth activists quickly embraced both new and social media to spread their message online.

Bahamas: Inefficient Judiciary

  30 December 2009

As a suspected murderer out on bail allegedly kills again, Weblog Bahamas‘ Sidney Sweeting asks: “How long should the Bahamian people have to put up with this nonsense and get the Judiciary to give some consideration to the law abiding, God-fearing citizens of the country?”

Puerto Rico: On the Trail

  30 December 2009

When it comes to corruption, Puerto Rico's Gil the Jenius follows the “more subtle ‘influence trail'” rather than the money trail.

Japan: Spread the message, translate it

  29 December 2009

A video interview [en] of Kyo Kageura, head of the project Minna no Honyaku (みんなの翻訳, Translation for all) [ja], a new translation platform that helps NGOs and NPOs to spread their messages thanks to volunteer translators. Global Voices Japan asked him about the challenge of Minna no Honyaku [en], the...

Trinidad & Tobago: 500

  29 December 2009

Trinidadian bloggers comment on the country's record murder rate – Jumbie's Watch: “The message is clear. We’re screwed.” B.C. Pires: “Not even when Mr Manning and Mr Panday achieve Trinidad's most vulgar historic event – the creation of an executive presidency by back-room trickery – will Trinidadians put their feet...

Cuba: Show of Support

  29 December 2009

Cuban diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense reports on “the arrests over the past several days of numerous activists attempting…to show their support for political prisoner Orlando Zapata Tamayo, who has been on a hunger strike…to demand that his human rights be respected.”

Barbados: Drunk Driving

  29 December 2009

“To Owen Arthur, Mia Mottley, David Thompson and a series of Attorneys General: the victims and the families of the dead and injured say ‘Thanks for nothing.'”: Barbados Free Press wants breathalyzer laws instituted on the island.

Palestine: Twitter accused of silencing Gaza tribute

  29 December 2009

Twitter has been accused of attempting to silence tributes to Gaza one-year after an Israeli onslaught devastated the Palestinian enclave. Pro-Palestinian and human rights activists used the influential Twitter to express support for the besieged territory. Tweets using the hashtag #Gaza flooded in on December 27th, peaking at number 3 on Twitter's top ten Trending Topics list.

Barbados: Facilitating Crime

  28 December 2009

“Like any social secret the criminal persists because of the facilitators. So, our challenge should be to deal with the facilitators”: Living in Barbados examines “the crime of crime” in the Caribbean.

China: Tweeting in support of Iran

  28 December 2009

Twenty-four hours later and #CN4Iran remains in heavy constant use by Chinese Twitter users speaking out in support of protests now underway across Iran. The #CN4Iran hashtag has since been joined by a @CN4Iran Twitter account and a central blog. Related is this post with a similar story from 2007.

Global: Tweeting for #Gaza

  27 December 2009

In honor of the one-year anniversary of Israel's attacks on Gaza in December 2008, a number of activists have planned a targeted "tweet for Gaza" campaign on Twitter. Jillian C. York has more.