Global Voices » War & Conflict

Puerto Rico: Extraordinary Decisions

Janine Mendes-Franco — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:17:29 +0000

“What do you say when you meet someone you think is extraordinary? You should say ‘Hi!' and then start a conversation,” says Gil the Jenius, who profiles the extraordinary Andrea Pérez, a speaker at the recently held TEDx San Juan.

Mexico, USA: Journalist and Author Sam Quinones Starts Blogging

Silvia Viñas — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:18:42 +0000

Author and journalist Sam Quinones has started a blog about “Los Angeles, Mexico, migrants, culture, drugs, neighborhoods, border, and good storytelling.” You can also follow him on Twitter: @samquinones7.

Tunisia: Decision to Expel Syrian Ambassador Sparks Heated Debate

Afef Abrougui — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:53:16 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

On February 1, 2012, Tunisia, the birthplace of the so-called Arab Spring, has started procedures to expel the Syrian Ambassador in Tunis, and to withdraw recognition of the Syrian regime. That move followed the deadly assault launched on the city of Homs on Friday night, and which resulted in hundreds of deaths according to the Syrian National Council.

The Presidency of the Republic of Tunisia, said in an official statement published on its Facebook page [ar]:

تونس التي تدين إدانة مطلقة كل الجرائم التي يرتكبها النظام السوري في حق الشعب السوري الشقيق منذ أزيد من تسعة أشهر،.. معتقدة أن هذه المأساة لن تعرف طريقها إلى الحل إلا بتنحي نظام بشار الأسد عن الحكم في دمشق وفسح المجال لانتقال ديمقراطي للسلطة يحقق للشعب السوري الشقيق … كما تعلن تونس عن الشروع في الإجراءات العملية والترتيبية لطرد السفير السوري من تونس وسحب أي اعتراف بالنظام الحاكم في دمشق.

Tunisia, which has been condemning the the crimes committed by the Syrian regime in the right of the brotherly people of Syria for over nine months…believes that this tragedy will not end unless Bashar Al Assad's regime gives up power to pave the way for a democratic transition that ensures security for the brotherly Syrian people…Besides, Tunisia announces the launch of procedures for the expulsion of the Syrian ambassador in Tunisia and the withdrawal of all recognition of the regime in power in Damascus

Thank you Tunisia

"Hafedh (father of Bashar Al Assad): May your soul be cursed", written on the door of the Syrian embassy in Tunis. Photograph shared by Facebook page "Union Des Admins Des Pages Tunisiennes"

Netizens from the Arab world, welcomed the step taken by Tunisia, and considered the move as “revolutionary.” Here are some reactions of Arab netizens on the micro blogging website Twitter.

From Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, Ahlam Safi writes [ar]:

@iAhlamSafi: ولتونس علينا حقا.. أرض السابقين الأولين في الثورة.. أول دولة تسقط شرعية بشار وترفض الاعتراف بنظامه #ArabSpring #Tunisia #Syria #pray4syria

@iAhlamSafi: Tunisia has a right over us..the land of pioneers in the revolution..first state that drops the legitimacy of Bashar, and refuses to recognize his regime #ArabSpring #Tunisia #Syria #pray4syria

Algerian Melissa Rahmouni adds [fr]:

@MelissaRahmouni: Je suis heureuse du soutien de la #Tunisie au combat des syriens pour la #liberté. #syrie

@MelissaRahmouni: So glad about Tunisia's support to the battle of Syrians for freedom

From Kuwait, writer Saadiah Mufarreh tweets [ar]:

@saadiahmufarreh: للمرة الألف نرددها وراء محمود درويش خلال عام كامل: كيف نشفى من حب تونس؟.. أنا شخصيا لا أريد أن أشفى

@saadiahmufarreh: For a thousand times in one year, we say what (the poet) Mahmoud Darwish said before: “How can we be cured from Tunisia's love?”..Personally I do not want to get any cure

And Syrian citizen Geo thanks Tunisia on behalf of the Syrian people:

@CitizenGeo: From #Syria to #Tunisia Thanks for your humanity

Decision divides netizens

Back in Tunisia, the President's decision to break all ties with the Syrian regime, has divided netizens. Those who did not welcome the decision are worried about the safety of Tunisian expatriates in Syria.

@ElyssaDidon tweets [fr]:

@ElyssaDidon: La #tunisie aurait du rapatrier ses siens avant d'expulser l'ambassadeur syrien! #Syrie

@ElyssaDidon: Tunisia should have repatriated its expats before expelling the Syrian ambassador

She adds, in another tweet, defending her opinion:

@ElyssaDidon: J'appuie la decision d'expulser l'ambsdr 2 la #Syrie en #Tunisie msj'aurais préféré la prse 2mesures pr prtger les tunisiens sur plce d'abrd

@ElyssaDidon: I support the decision to expel the ambassador of Syria, but I would have preferred to see measures taken to protect Tunisians there, first.

Blogger and journalist Haythem El Mekki described the decision as “very brave, and very risky”. On his blog, he writes [ar]:

بشار الأسد (و ماهر خوه خاصة) سفاح دموي و يجب خلعه، لا شك في ذلك. حزب البعث نظام وحشي ظالم و يجب اسقاطه، هذا أكيد. الثورة السورية بدأها الشعب السوري الطامح إلى الحرية و القضاء على الإستبداد، و يجب مساندته في مطالبه، هذا واجب.

لكن في المقابل، يبدو جليا لكل مراقب يقظ أن ما يحصل الآن في سوريا من نزاعات مسلحة و التغطية الإعلامية الحافلة بالتهويل و الفبركة لقناتي الجزيرة و العربية (يعني قطر و السعودية) مع إحتضان تركيا و قطر (حلفاء أمريكا الإستراتيجيين في المنطقة، حاضنو قواعدها العسكرية) للمعارضة السورية، كل هذا يبرز أن سيناريو ليبيا بصدد التكرار، و أن الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية تواصل تشكيل خارطة الشرق الأوسط الجديد… يأتي قرار الحكومة التونسية المؤقتة بطرد السفير السوري في تونس و سحب الإعتراف بنظام بشار الأسد. قرار في غاية الجرأة و الخطورة، و يعكس موقفا شديد الوضوح في التموقع الجلي إلى جوار أحد أطراف الصراع ضد الطرف الآخر بصفة جذرية و نهائية، خاصة و أننا نكون بهذا أول بلاد في العالم تقوم بذلك.

Bashar Al Assad (and especially his brother Maher), is a bloody butcher and he should be ousted. There is no doubt about it. Al-Baath party, is a monstrous, and unjust system that should be taken down. This is certain. The Syrian revolution was launched by the Syrian people looking forward to freedom and an end to oppression. It is a duty to support Syrians in their demands.

But, on the other hand, it is obvious to every watchful observer that what is happening now in Syria from armed conflicts, and the over exaggerated, and fabricated media coverage of Al Jazeera, and Al Arabiya channels (in other words Qatar and Saudi Arabia), with Turkey and Qatar (two strategic allies for the US which has military bases in these two countries), embracing the Syrian opposition, proves that the Libyan scenario is about to be repeated, and that the US continues forming the map of the new Middle East…The decision of the interim Tunisian government to expel the Syrian ambassador, and to withdraw recognition of Bashar Al Assad's regime, is a very brave and very risky decision, which reflects a very clear position in standing by the side of one part of the conflict, against the other part, in an extreme, and ultimate way, especially that we are the first country in the world to take such a step.

Linda Ben Osman believes that not only the Syrian ambassador, but all ambassadors whose countries committed massacres, and human rights violations need to be expelled. She says [fr]:

Si l'on vire l'ambassadeur syrien pour massacres commis par son pays, il me semble logique que l'on en vire d'autres, à commencer par ceux de tous les pays arabes, et plus spécialement le Qatar et l'Arabie Saoudite, non seulement pour abus commis par leurs pays à l'encontre de leurs peuples et des chiites plus spécifiquement, mais aussi à l'encontre des Bahreïnis aujourd'hui colonisés.

Que l'on vire, l'ambassadeur chinois, pour massacre des tibétains et l'ambassadeur américain, pour massacre des palestiniens, irakiens et afghans pour ne citer qu'eux, et pour torture et abus de pouvoir, et pour maltraitance et violences policières envers les manifestant d'Occupy, pour Guantanamo, et, et, et…

Virons l'ambassadeur français, pays dont le Ministre de l'Intérieur considère que toutes le civilisations ne se valent pas, et qui traite les immigrés illégaux comme des moins que rien.

Virons aussi l'ambassadeur russe pour massacre des tchétchènes…

If we expel the Syrian ambassador, because his country committed massacres, I think it is logical to expel others, starting from ambassadors of all the Arab countries, and more specifically Qatar, and Saudi Arabia,for committing abuses not only in their own countries, and against their own people, (more specifically) , Shiites, but also for abuses committed against Bahrainis, who are now colonized.

Let's expel the Chinese ambassador for massacring Tibetans, and the American ambassador for massacring Palestinians, Iraqis, and Afghanis, for torture, abuse of power, and for mistreating Occupy protesters, and for Guantanamo…

Let's also fire the Russian ambassador for massacring Chechnyans…

She adds:

nous, tunisiens révolutionnaires, voulons soutenir tous les peuples lésés par leurs gouverneurs, et si virer les ambassadeurs est la solution adéquate pour montrer notre solidarité , alors soit, virons-les tous!

We, revolutionary Tunisians, would like to support people abandoned by their governors, and if firing ambassadors is an adequate solution to show our support, so let's fire them all

On Twitter, @tounsiahourra strongly supports the President's decision. She tweets [ar]:

@tounsiahourra: شكرا للمرزوقي ,,أقول لك شكرا كما تعودت أن أنتقدك ,صدقا موقفك مشرف لنا كتونسيين ; شكرا لانك لم تتنكر لنضالك في حقوق الانسان #SYRIA #MM

@tounsiahourra: Thank you Marzouki! I'm thanking you just as I used to criticize you, truly, your position is honorable for us as Tunisians, thank you because you did not forget about your struggle for human rights

She adds in another tweet [ar]:

@tounsiahourra: أن أنقد الاسلاميين المرزوقي والتحالفات التي لا نعرف إلى أين تصب هذا أمر ,وأن نقول كلمة حق في قرار شجاع ينتظره اخوتنا في سوريا هذا أمر آخر.

@tounsiahourra: Criticising the Islamists, Marzouki and the government coalitions that we do not know where it is going is one issue, and speaking a word of truth about a brave decision anticipated by our brothers in Syria is something else.

And @The_Fan concludes [fr]:

@The_Fan: Je ne comprends pas l'attaque sur la decision diplomatique de la #tunisie, on est quand meme avec la revolution syrienne #syrie non ?

@The_Fan: I don't understand the attacks on the diplomatic decision of Tunisia. We do support the Syrian revolution, don't we?

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

Spain: A Letter From Syria

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:38:07 +0000

Take the Square publishes a letter from Khaled Khalifa from Syria: “I would like to inform you that my people is being subjected to a genocide.”

Maldives: On the Brink of Chaos

Saffah Faroog — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:28:38 +0000

Three years after the first democratic multiparty election in the Maldives ushered a democratic government to power, the infant democracy of the Maldives seems to be on the brink of anarchy and chaos. The democratic experiment of the Maldives could face an untimely demise as thugs belonging to the ruling party and the opposition clash on the streets of the capital Male‘, vandalising private property, torching private TV stations and attacking one another under showers of bricks and stones.

A rebellion within the ranks of police officers has created a nasty stand-off between the military and the police and a number of military personnel have joined the police in mutiny. Tension has reached a tipping point when there are conflicting reports about whether the president will resign.

The political crisis facing the Maldives was given a head-start in January when the government asked the police to start investigations against certain opposition leaders for what the government claimed were baseless insinuations and allegations that the government was undermining the Islamic faith of the country. Critics were puzzled when the police detained said opposition leaders in high profile investigation cases while the claims of the opposition could have been addressed through a civil case of defamation.

The ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) then started a public campaign named ‘Thiheneh Nukiyeyne‘ [div] (You Can't Say That), proclaiming that the party would not permit the opposition to continue making what it believed to be baseless allegations.

In the past, defamation was a criminal act and writers and individuals were sentenced to prison, based on defamation charges, for criticism they had expressed. Decriminalizing defamation in 2009 was hailed as a remarkable improvement for freedom of expression in the Maldives. The government's inclination towards criminal investigations regarding cases of defamation has become a deep concern for advocates of free speech.

After the Abdulla Mohamed, the Chief Judge of the Criminal Court ruled that the detention of the Vice President of the Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) was illegal and ordered to release him from police custody, the police requested the assistance of the Maldives National Defence Force or the military to apprehend the judge. Mohamed has been under military custody since January 16 and his enforced disappearance has sparked street protests which has continued for three weeks.

Mohamed himself had been in the centre of several controversies earlier and the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has found that he had violated the code of conduct for judges. Mohamed appealed this decision of the JSC in the Civil Court, and the court has issued an injunction against JSC not to take any disciplinary measures against Mohamed till the appeal case is closed. This injunction by the Civil Court itself is highly controversial because it encroaches on the powers the constitution has granted to JSC to make the judiciary accountable.

The government has since then claimed that the detention of Mohamed is part of its campaign to clean up the judiciary, which is corrupt to the core, according to the government.

Mohamed's detention in a military training camp has been declared unlawful and a violation of the constitution by several parties which point out that the military does not have legal authority to detain people. The government has not put any formal charges against Mohamed. The military claims that it has provided Mohamed with access to a lawyer and it has permitted the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives to visit him. His family was informed about his whereabouts only days after he was detained.

A number of eminent lawyers in the Maldives have spoken out against the detention of Judge Abdulla Mohamed. Among them are Shaheen Hameed, the Vice President of the Constituent Assembly which drafted the current constitution, Dhiyana Saeed, the first Attorney-General of the present government and Husnu Suood, another former Attorney-General under the present government.

Prosecutor-General Ahmed Muizzu, who was a prominent practicing lawyer of the country before his appointment as PG, has also pointed out that the detention is unlawful. Ahmed Faiz, the Chief Justice, has called for the judge to be released.

The Human Rights Commission of the Maldives has also expressed concerns about the continued detention of the judge. The UN has urged the government of the Maldives to either release the judge or to press formal charges against him. Abbas Faiz, South Asia Researcher at Amnesty International, in an opinion piece published in the local Minivan News website, has said that the judge's detention is arbitrary. “Amnesty International is calling on the government to either bring formal criminal charges against him or release him,” Faiz wrote.

Tension has reached a tipping point when protesters from the ruling party and the opposition parties clashed on February 6 evening leading to considerable violence. Thereafter, some police units stormed the assembly hall of the ruling party and allegedly vandalised property there. A group of police officers have rebelled against what they say are unlawful commands and gathered after midnight at the Republic Square in Male' in protest.

In a night filled with violence, the offices of VTV, a private broadcaster which is sympathetic towards the opposition and is owned by an opposition leader, was set on fire by a group of thugs. Aminath Shifleen, a journalist at Haveeru Daily, was injured while covering the protest. In the past few weeks, a number of journalists have been attacked during the protests and offices of media outlets have been attacked on multiple occasions. Private property destruction has also been a common feature of the protests that has engulfed the Maldives.

In the early hours of the morning some people are still active on social media, expressing their opinion on the unfolding crisis. This Facebook page titled Zuvaanunge' Maidhaan (The Square of Youth) has some pictures of the protests. There are frequent updates in Twitter:

Husnu Suood, former Attorney-General, tweets:

@hsuood: dont think they can avoid a bloody confrontation. Sad day for Maldives. #mvprotest

Nattu tweets:

Maldives National Defence Force vs Maldives Police #mvprotest. MNDF steps back.

Yoosuf Waheed asks:

What's going on! Hard thing r pretty nasty in #Maldives

Ali Tholhath says:

@tholhath: Sad day for Maldives. Stop this madness.

Ali Shiyan tweets:

@falho_D: Sad to see it all come to this, who is winning now? And to think it cud hav been so simple,sad day for Maldives indeed.

Shareef asks:

@shareef: Things are getting worse, #Maldives Army V/s Maldives Police. Who will Win

Agisa asks:

@agisaa: what happened to the #maldives while i was sleeping?

Sofwathullah Mohamed tweets:

@sofwath: Nothing more to say. Blame games won't help. God save Maldives. #mvprotest

And here is an update: Ahmed Affan Shafy reports with a picture:

Maldives Military joins forces with police and the public against the unconstitutional rule of Mr Nasheed.

Image posted to Twitter by @AhmedAffanShafy

Syria: “Revolution + Blood - Oil = Veto”

Amira Al Hussaini — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:43:17 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

Netizens are still enraged over Saturday's double veto by Beijing and Moscow of the United Nations Security Council draft resolution on ending 11 months of violence in Syria.

Iyad El Baghdadi tweets that this inaction by the UN completely erodes the organisation's legitimacy among Arabs:

@iyad_elbaghdadi: The veto also completely demolishes in the Arab mind the idea that the UNSC has any legitimacy or indeed is of any use. #Syria

Syrian Alexander Page notes:

@AlexanderPageSY: #China's Veto at UNSC means that thousands more of #Syria's innocent civilians will die #BoycottChina4Syria #BoycottChina

And Palestinian Dima Khatib compares the reaction to the massacres in Syria today to that in the Gaddafi-era Libya:

@Dima_Khatib: Libya + Revolution + Blood + Oil = NATO bombs. Syria + Revolution + Blood - Oil = Veto

Foreign Policy Editor Blake Hounshell comments:

@blakehounshell: In a way, the Russo-Chinese veto absolves the West of responsibility for #Syria. Little will to intervene.

Syrian Revolution notes:

@RevolutionSyria: The veto is just allowing Syria to kill more people

Syrian children condemn the veto. Photograph from Facebook group Syrian Days of Rage

And Syrian blogger Razan Ghazzawi concludes:

@RedRazan: Veto or not, Assad will be toppled by the great people of #Syria.

Meanwhile, online activists have started a campaign to boycott Chinese products in retaliation against the Chinese veto. On Twitter, the campaign is run under the hash tag #BoycottChina4Syria.

Lina Tibi writes [ar]:

من أجل سوريا وشعبها واطفالها الذين يقتلون قاطعوا حق الفيتو الذي اعلنته الصين.. قاطعوا المنتجات الصينية

@LinaTibi: For the sake of Syria and its people and children, who are being killed, please boycott China's veto…Boycott Chinese products.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

Yemen: Yemeni Protesters Greet Saleh With a Shoe in New York

Noon Arabia — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:37:45 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Yemen Protests 2011.

Yemenis in New York threw a shoe in the direction of outgoing Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, whom they say should be standing before the International Criminal Court (ICC) and not staying at Manhattan's Luxury Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The shoe did not hit Saleh but sent home the message that Yemenis are angry he is getting pampered instead of facing justice for his crimes against the Yemeni people.

On Thursday February 2, 2012, a press conference was organized in front of the Ritz Carlton, where Yemenis and Yemeni Americans standing on the sidewalk opposite the hotel expressed their anger by waving placards with slogans saying “democracies should not host dictators,” as well as photographs of people who were killed in Yemen's year-long revolution.

Amel Ahmed @iiamelii, a NYC-based freelance writer, law student and member of the Yemeni American Coalition for Change speaking to Democracy Now (video starts at “10:45) said:

Dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh is staying at this hotel, so we came out to protest the fact that our government would allow him into this country to begin with. We don’t feel that he should be here in the United States of America. We think it sends the wrong message to the Middle East, if you’re saying that you support democracy in the Middle East, and you’re anti-extremism in the Middle East, then you shouldn’t be supporting dictators. You should be supporting people on the ground who are calling for a democracy. I mean, for years, we’ve criticized the Muslim world, for turning to extremism and not sharing the same democratic values, meanwhile we have an entire generation that’s rising up and demanding democracy, and meanwhile, you’re hosting a dictator in a five-star hotel. The message is conflicting, and there should be a consistent message coming from the White House.”

Another protester rally was staged on Sunday (Feb 5), when Saleh himself exited the Ritz Carlton, confirming his debatable stay at the hotel. Protesters shouted at him, “O'Afash (an offensive name given to Saleh by Yemenis) you will be prosecuted for killing innocent people,” when Saleh provokingly waved at them and blew kisses at them as shown in this video (posted by: ahmedfathinyc) prompting a shoe to be hurled at him from a protester. Another tried to cross the police barricade but was arrested.

@SummerNasser, who was at the protest, tweeted:

@SummerNasser: SALEH CAME OUT OF THE RITZ, throwing kisses at us. one protester tried to run across the street to go after him. He got arrested!!!!!

@SummerNasser: The chants that we said were: “ICC not NYC” ; “Shame On Ritz for hosting criminals” ; Obama must choose a side, Human rights or genocide”

@SummerNasser: I can't believe I saw the man that killed thousands of my people back home. No words to describe what I was feeling. No words..

She tweeted a photograph of a sign another fellow activist, Ahlam Said, was carrying:

@SummerNasser: @AhlamS's sign for the rally today. pic.twitter.com/elI9JIU7

A sign Ahlam Said was carrying in the protest in front of the Ritz Carlton Hotel in New York

@AhlamS, an online organizer and daughter of Yemeni immigrants, tweeted:

While Yemenis at Guantanamo bay r being tortured w/out a trial, Saleh is livin it up at the ritz carlton. THE RITZ! #yemen

@AhlamS added:

video of #Saleh n NY waving & throwing kisses at the #Yemeni protestors. Medical treatment my @$$. He looks fine 2 me ht.ly/8Tb7e

She finally added:

@monaeltahawy picture of us with the shoe that was few feet frm hitting #Yemen's brutal dictator #Saleh ow.ly/i/rHHG

@SamWaddah expressed what the majority of Yemenis felt:

@SummerNasser @AhlamS Proud of you guys! Saleh has faced humiliation today like never before!

@wsaqaf tweeted with irony:

Protester who threw #Saleh with shoe in #NYC got arrested by police yet when Saleh threw bombs at his people, he was rewarded!

A statement issued by the Yemeni American Coalition for Change, the organizers of the rally said:

[We] are outraged and disgusted with our government's decision to grant the dictator temporary haven and diplomatic immunity….We demand with a unified voice that that these hotel chains respond to what the international community has classified as the work of war criminals.

Yemenis, especially the Yemeni-American community living in the US have been protesting against Saleh's visit to the US, which was under the pretext of seeking medical treatment. Many believe Saleh is in the US for a treat rather than a medical treatment. When the Obama administration decided in December to permit Saleh to visit the country, an official said that NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital would be providing his treatment, but the hospital has not confirmed that report.

Update: If the purpose of the visit to the US was really medical @GregoryDJohnsen suggested:

This all could have been avoided http://nyti.ms/zjvMjA Instead of bringing Salih to the US, could have brought US doctors to Salih in Saudi

This post is part of our special coverage Yemen Protests 2011.

China: Veto of UN Security Council Draft Resolution on Syria Draws Praise and Grief

John Kennedy — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 16:24:32 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

Russia and China seem to have voted with their own interests in mind yesterday in their controversial opposition to a draft resolution at the UN Security Council which calls on Syrian president Bashar al-Assad to stop the killings in his country, a revision of an earlier draft calling on Assad to relinquish power.

China justified its decision to veto the draft resolution, saying it wants to promote peace in Syria, and Russia claims to hope for a diplomatic approach to resolving the conflict in the country. As FireDogLake writer David Dayen points out: “The fact that Russia still supplies arms to the Syrian security forces clearly weighed heavily on the vote today.”

US ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, confronting Li Baodong, China. Image posted to Weibo.

Unrest in the country has led to an estimated 7,000 deaths since March last year, with more than 200 lives lost in a massacre earlier this week.

Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of the People's Daily tabloid Global Times, made today what is perhaps one of the most vocal statements in support of China's decision to veto the draft resolution, ending up under heavy fire in the comments section. Taking offense at Susan Rice's reported “disgust” at China's vote, Hu confuses her [zh] with Condoleezza Rice but also writes:

美国代表不点名批评中俄“出卖了叙利亚人民的意愿”。骂去好了。美国多次在安理会涉以色列提案表决时搞“一票否决”，这次中俄是“两票否决”。叶利钦当年说的好：只要中俄联手，美国无论捣鼓什么，“都是手淫”。赞呵。

The American representative has criticized China and Russia for their “betrayal” of the Syrian people. Whatever. America has vetoed a number of Security Council propositions dealing with Israel with a lone vote. China and Russia's “veto” now was done with two votes. Yeltsin said it best: As long as China and Russia stick together, the most America can do is play with itself. Awesome.

Almost as a sort of response, writer Ran Yunfei wrote [zh] shortly after that:

一个政府做一次错事可以原谅，不可原谅的是把做错事当成事业。我不是个民族主义者，但百年来的历史证明，中国与俄国的联手从来都没有对过。

A government can be forgiven for making one mistake, but it becomes unforgivable when making mistakes becomes a legacy. I'm not a nationalist, but a hundred years of history has proven that China and Russia have never done anything right by sticking together.

One “verified” commentator on Sina Weibo wrote [zh] early Sunday morning Beijing time that Russia and China ought now to be removed the Security Council and China replaced by Taiwan; that post was quickly deleted.

Sorry world, sorry Syria, we Chinese have an evil government. —Michael Anti, on Twitter.

The horrific video below [WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT], however, purportedly of the massacre Thursday in Homs, has not yet been deleted and has gathered hundreds of comments across the different spaces on which it's been embedded. At Sina Video, where it's currently being hosted, the most recent comment reads:

尼玛的我们国家在干什么鸟呀

Damnit, what the hell is our country doing?

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011/12.

Israel: The Lie, the Truth and the Meme (of the Soldier and the Girl)

Carmel L. Vaisman — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:52:05 +0000

The photograph below, of a soldier stepping on a little girl, has been circulating on the social web for the past few days, claimed to be of an IDF soldier and a Palestinian girl. Wesley Muhammad who posted it claimed to have seen it on someone else's news feed with that caption, and wonders why it went viral from his page. Within two days the photo (now discarded) received over 500 comments, including some claims the photo is fake.

Yossi Gavni reposted the photo highlighting the main claims that the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) doesn't carry that kind of weapon and has no such uniforms, and that photo circulated mainly among Israelis. Apparently, the photo was tweeted last year in French, claiming this is actually from Syria's demonstrations and asking for it to spread. However, Arab blogger Omar Dakhane found the original photo (below), which is neither from Syria nor Israel but a street theater performance in Bahrain.

This story could have ended here with a lesson not to believe everything that circulates out there in the age of media manipulation and virality, but apparently some Israelis have decided the best response to a viral lie is a humorous meme. In the last 24 hours many photos replacing the soldier with different characters have been circulating on Facebook, initiated by 10Gag, the Israeli answer to 9Gag humor and memes generator.

For example, a photo where the soldier was replaced by a dog wearing real IDF uniform, probably also responding humorously to earlier allegations that IDF trains dogs to attack Palestinians. Other entities stepping on that girl included an empire soldier from Star Wars, the Angry Birds, the Android, the Avatar N'aavi, Chuck Norris and more.

By turning the photo into a meme, Israelis are saying in “social media language” that such a situation is ridiculous and fictional, although Wesley Muhammad who started the viral spread concludes: ”I took the photo down (even though that type of thing DOES happen in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict)”. In response, Shani Yaakov posted a collage of pictures titled “this is the true picture of the IDF” (below) in which soldiers are seen in positive and friendly interactions with Palestinians. As for the truth, as always, it's probably somewhere in the middle.

Brazil: Pinheirinho Videos ‘Cover-Up' Leads Activist to Hunger Strike

Raphael Tsavkko Garcia — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:29:09 +0000

The violent eviction of thousands of poor residents from their homes on land owned by the bankrupt estate of Naji Nahas, on January 22, 2012, is an event in Brazil that has become popularly known as the ‘Massacre of Pinheirinho‘.

It was photographed and filmed from various perspectives: from the day before the eviction itself, to the moments of panic among the population while becoming victims of police brutality in the city of São José dos Campos in São Paulo state, to the interviews conducted after the completion of the evacuation, with the poor people in precarious shelters being harassed by the police forces meant to protect them.

There was no shortage of reports of abuse of power and extreme violence, and allegations that many people had been injured and even killed, but no information was available from hospitals or the local Institute of Forensic Medicine (IML). Activist Pedro Rios Leão [pt] was in the city of São José dos Campos and interviewed dozens of residents who, on camera, talked about the existence of dead and wounded who were being hidden by the city and state governments.

Leão is now on hunger strike, chained in front of one of the entrances of the TV Globo television station [pt] in Rio de Janeiro, accusing the mainstream media of complicity in the “massacre” for having hidden the events or treated them as normal.

Pedro Leão on hunger strike in Rio de Janeiro. Photo of the Facebook user Rodrigo Ajooz, used with permission. On the sign one can read "For the deceased of Pinheirinho".

In a video, provocatelly titled ‘Eu queria matar a presidenta: depoimentos da guerra civil brasileira‘ (I wanted to kill the president: statements from the Brazilian civil war), Leão declares that it is a legitimate right to desire the death of those who bring death to the people. There is a touching piece of poetry created by Antônio da Silva [pt], an expelled resident of Pinheirinho, in the opening of the video.

Leão points to not only the township of São José dos Campos, nicknamed ‘São José dos Campos de Concentração' (São José of the Concentration Camps) by many, but also the state and federal governments for what he considers to be their guilt in a crime against the people of Pinheirinho. He has declared a state of war against those complicit in the suffering of the homeless population and has begged for the Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff to take action.

His video exposes the fear of the population in the face of the violence with which they are being treated, and collects numerous complaints to be urgently investigated. The church where villagers had taken refuge was the target of bombs and bullets - despite the denials of the local priest who later expelled [pt] the locals - and nearby a man was allegedly murdered by the occupying troops of the Pinheirinho. In the video, there are repeated reports of bodies “gone missing” from the IML:

YouTube user stresser recorded a video that shows the beginning of the hunger strike of Leão and his speech explaining the reasons for the strike:

And here is the second part, with an interview with Leão.

The Coletivo de Comunicadores Populares (Collective of Popular Communicators) [pt], fom the city of Campinas, in São Paulo state, recorded and edited the video ‘O Massacre de Pinheirinho: A verdade não mora ao lado‘ (The Pinheirinho Massacre: The truth does not live next door), so far available with subtitles in English, Spanish and French.

It has been viewed by more than 190,000 people, and features interviews with displaced residents of Pinheirinho denouncing atrocities committed by the Military Police on the first day of eviction. These include the use of pepper spray against pregnant women and children, intimidation, threats, tear gas, and bombs aimed at morale if not targets. There are also testimonies of people who, after being expelled from their homes, were refused the right to go back and get their documents, in the area organized by the city hall for registration of the displaced families.

The video also depicts the humiliated sense of the refugee population in a nearby church and shelters. Finally, the Collective summarizes the legal and political situation behind the whole operation, accusing the government of São Paulo and the local justice to be subject to the sale of the assets of bankrupt speculator Naji Nahas, against the public's interest:

The Collective also interviewed families the day before the eviction, on Saturday, January 21, “soon after the attempted repossession was frustrated by a federal injunction that forced the police to stop the operation.” The video, called ‘Onde estarão os Nobres? Uma família de Pinheirinho 1 dia antes do Massacre‘ (Where are the Noble? A family of Pinheirinho 1 day before the massacre) is the story of ordinary people about their situation and the fear they felt of losing everything:

The group Los solidários [pt], whose name is a tribute to an anarchist group that worked in Barcelona in the 1920s, collected images of the violent eviction punctuated by statements of Military Police Captain Antero, also head of communications of the prime minister, in order to show the discrepancies between the official action and discourse in a video called ‘O Pinheirinho é do povo! — crônicas do terrorismo do Estado‘ (Pinheirinho belongs to the people! - chronics of state terrorism).

The group also interviewed residents driven from their homes who reported the existence of many dead people, whose bodies have been hidden by the authorities. The group also sought information from hospitals about deaths and injuries but gained no access, and conducted interviews during the night after the eviction with residents visibly scared and fearful of their future:

The activist Hiure Anderon recorded two videos posted on his YouTube channel, with testimonials from mothers displaced from Pinheirinho, many with small children or pregnant women:

Rapper Davi Perez has recorded a song [pt] to honor the victims of the “Massacre of Pinheirinho,” reproduced by the blog “Solidarity with Pinheirinho Occupation”. Blogger Hugo Albuquerque meanwhile, has compiled a list in English and Portuguese on the ten most common lies told about Pinheirinho.

Russia: Realism of Rearmament Plans

Vilhelm Konnander — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:50:58 +0000

Streetwise Professor and Siberian Light critically discuss Russia's ambitious plans, presented by vice-premier Dmitry Rogozin, to build an aircraft carrier and six submarines annually over the coming years.

Kenya: War, Guns and Votes

Ndesanjo Macha — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:33:37 +0000

What will be the impact of Kenya's war with Al Shabaab on the 2012/13 elections?: “A number of questions: will the heightened security requirements associated with the threat of terrorism from Al Shabaab also help secure the country against election violence? Or will security forces be used to intervene in the campaign instead, as in 2007?”

Chile: NGO Report Reveals Increase in Sex Crimes

Silvia Viñas — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:50:48 +0000

According to a report by NGO Activa, sexual crimes increased by 19.1% in Chile in 2011. A post in Activa’s site Ciudad Global [es] says there is a rate of 9.8 rapes per day in Chile.

Russia, Syria: Anti- and Pro-Assad Facebook Comment Attack

Veronica Khokhlova — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:25:25 +0000

Facebook pages of some Russian media outlets (e.g., Afisha, Bolshoi Gorod, Esquire Russia, Channel 1, MTV Russia) were deluged with copy-pasted comments [ru, ar] from users who appeared to be supporters of the Syrian opposition earlier today. An excerpt from a typical comment [ru, ar]: “Syria's regime is killing people with the Russian weapons. If it hadn't been for the Russian veto, the killing of the people in Syria would have been stopped a few months ago. […]” On President Medvedev's and PM Putin's Facebook pages there are comments [en, ru, ar] from both the opponents and supporters of the Syrian regime (e.g., here and here).

Mexico: Discussing Nonviolence with Javier Sicilia

Silvia Viñas — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 13:42:33 +0000

Fred Rosen interviewed Javier Sicilia, founder of the Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity. Rosen will report on the conversation in upcoming posts in his blog at the NACLA (North American Congress on Latin America) website; in this first post he focuses on “some excerpts on the questions of nonviolence and the process of dialogue.”