Global Voices » Chile

Chile: The Bigger Picture in a Plan to Make Stadiums Safe

Silvia Viñas — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:41:38 +0000

Diego Sazo in Ballotage [es] looks at the government's plan to make football stadiums in Chile safe. He argues that the plan tackles harmless expressions that are typical in Chilean football games (like bringing a bass drum to the stadium), and that the government should instead focus on root causes of violence, like a lack of opportunities, high inequality, and the limitations in the ‘Law on Violence in Stadiums.'

May Day Videos: Marches, Demonstrations and Protests Around The World

Juliana Rincón Parra — Tue, 08 May 2012 05:08:19 +0000

Through cities around the globe, people took to the streets to march and commemorate the International Workers' Day. Videos by The Real News take us on a tour of how the day was observed throughout the world.

May Day March in Venezuela

While some places saw peaceful marches, others had violent encounters between armed forces and the protesters. On the first part of the video, an overview of workers in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe. For example, Malaysian activists protested against the growing inequality. In the Philippines were for job security and higher wages. Indonesians protested low wages and rough conditions. Cambodians asked for higher wages. People in Bahrein asked for workers to be reinstated to their positions of which they were removed by the government crackdowns. In Egypt protests were on behalf of including workers rights in the constitution that is being drafted. In Europe, workers protested austerity measures that seem to target them. In Russia, both the ruling party and the opposition had their own rallies. The French left marched against the past of fiscal austerity. And in the London, where May Day is not a holiday, workers went on strike.

On the second part, protests in North and South America. Demonstrations throughout Canada protesting budget cuts and rises in college tuition. In the USA, banks were targeted in many major cities including clashes with riot police, calls to strikes, and blockades. In Mexico workers marched to ask the government to do a better job in the face of violence. Honduras saw protests against the privatization of public services as well as corruption. In Cuba, massive parades commemorated the Cuban Revolution and in Venezuela both the government supporters and opposition marched, either for or against the recent reforms. In Colombia there were arrests during the protests and the Chilean student movement also marched.

Chile: Reasons to Protest Again

Elizabeth — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 03:43:38 +0000

[All links in Spanish unless otherwise indicated]

On April 25, 2012, students took over the streets of Chile to protest for a free, inclusive and good quality education after several months of “silence” and days after President Piñera presented the reform for high education financial aid.

The reform proposes that the universities themselves - not the banks - finance general student loans and also ask them to cover the gap between reference and real tuition and lower the grades required for scholarships applications for low income students

With the following video the leaders of private and public universities federations invited people to protest and launched the Twitter hashtag #yomarchoel25 (I protest on the 25)

The famous student leader Camila Vallejo (@camila_vallejo) explained:

Porq no queremos cambiar deuda x deuda, porq necesitamos erradicar el lucro y recuperar la educación pública #YoMarchoel25

Because we don't want to exchange debt with debt, because we need to abolish profit and regain public education #YoMarchoel25

The student leader, Giorgio Jackson (@GiorgioJackson) was optimistic:

Ojalá mañana seamos varios miles los activistas del pacifismo… ¿Quién marcha mañana?#yomarchoel25

Hopefully tomorrow we will be thousands of peace activists… Who is protesting tomorrow? #yomarchoel25

Architecture student Pablo (@cut_copy_) shared this background information:

#yomarchoel25 porque según la UNESCO, el sistema educativo de Chile fomenta la DESIGUALDAD@javier_alatorrehttp://portal.unesco.org/geography/es/ev.php-URL_ID=15019&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html #yoapoyoalosestudiantes

#yomarchoel25 because according to the UNESCO, the education system in Chile fosters INEQUALITY http://portal.unesco.org/geography/es/ev.php- URL_ID=15019&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html #yoapoyoalosestudiantes

Matías Goyenechea (@mgoyenechea) took the opportunity to talk about the changes he wants to see in the health system as well:

Porque en Chile requerimos cambios estructurales:#yomarchoel25 por la educación, voto en el#PlebiscitoSalud

Because in Chile we need structural changes: #yomarchoel25 for the education, I vote in the #PlebiscitoSalud (health plebiscite)

Gabriel Boric (@gabrielboric), President of the Student Federation of the University of Chile (FECh), summarized:

Porque queremos que en Chile, la calidad de tu educación no dependa de la plata en tu bolsillo,#YoMarchoEl25

Because in Chile we wish the quality of your education didn't depend on the money on your pocket, #YoMarchoEl25

STUDENT MOVEMENT SPECIAL 2011. Picture by Flickr user Museo de Arte Callejero (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) taken on September 25, 2011

From Talca, @Nadapablo gave some advice:

Conoce tus derechos en caso de detenciónhttp://www.codepu.cl/documentos/cartilla.pdf(vía CODEPU) #YoMarchoel25 #Yoapoyoalosestudiantes

Get to know your rights in case you are arrested: http://www.codepu.cl/documentos/cartilla.pdf(vía CODEPU) #YoMarchoel25 #Yoapoyoalosestudiantes

The music group Illapu (@Illapu) sheered up:

Vaaaaamos compañeros hay q ponerle un poco + de empeño salimos a la calle nuevamente la educ chilena no se vende se defiende #yomarchoel25

Goooooooooo companions we need to put in a little bit more energy and go out to the streets again, Chilean education is not for sale, it is to be defended #yomarchoel25

Netizens also commented why they support the students using the hashtag #yoapoyoalosestudiantes (I support the students)

The Difamadores account (@difamadores) stated:

#yomarchoel25 Por que basta de aspirinas, hay que hacer cambios profundos al sistema educacional chileno. #yoapoyoalosestudiantes

#yomarchoel25 because we had enough aspirins, we need profound changes to the Chilean education system. #yoapoyoalosestudiantes

Paloma (@myta_colombe) criticized the solutions presented by the government up until now:

Porque no queremos “soluciones” parche y queremos educación de calidad, gratuita y laica #yoapoyoalosestudiantes

Because we don't want patch “solutions” and we desire good quality education, free and secular #yoapoyoalosestudiantes

Twitter user Jessica Tabilo (@JessicaTabilo) said:

Por el derecho de todas las familias a dar a sus hijos una EDUCACION de calidad #yoapoyoalosestudiantes,ahora y siempre!todos a marchar hoy!

For the right every family has to give their children quality EDUCATION #yoapoyoalosestudiantes now and always! Everybody to protest today!

Luis Emilio (@DiazLuisEmiLio), who recently graduated, concluded:

Sólo en la calle se consiguen grandes transformaciones sociales #yomarchoel25

Only on the streets are great social transformations achieved #yomarchoel25

Chile: Erasing Graffiti from Historic Valparaíso

Silvia Viñas — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:00:15 +0000

In online citizen newspaper El Martutino [es], Paula Pérez reports that every Saturday until May 26 citizens and various institutions will come together to clean graffiti from the walls of the historic quarter of Valparaíso, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Chile: The Role of Municipalities in Promoting Reading

Silvia Viñas — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 13:09:00 +0000

Enzo Abbagliati in his blog Cadaunadas [es] asks, “What is the relationship between promoting reading in Chile and municipal elections?” He says that two main tools that impact what and how much Chileans read depend on Municipalities: public libraries and municipal schools. Enzo asked three candidates for mayor of Providencia (a municipality in Santiago) to answer some questions regarding the commune's public library system for World Book Day. Candidate Javier Insulza [es] emailed his answers, while candidate Cristóbal Bellolio assured Enzo that promoting reading is one of his 10 priorities, but had not had the time to answer his questions.

Cuba: Camila Vallejo and Yoani Sánchez

Ellery Roberts Biddle — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:32:55 +0000

During her visit to Cuba this week, for a meeting of the Union of Communist Youth, Chilean Student Federation leader Camila Vallejo declined an invitation to meet with acclaimed Cuban blogger Yoani Sánchez. Vallejo generated much controversy on Twitter when she told CNN that she saw this as neither “necessary nor relevant” to her trip to the island.

Internet Campaigns Invite Tourists to Visit Latin America

Jon Lindsay Miles — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 11:43:16 +0000

The people of Latin America boast of their land's fine and varied geography, with its beaches, forests and mountains; they are proud of the inheritance left them by the peoples who inhabited these lands in pre-Hispanic times, and which are standing today in the form of its archeological remains, the wonders of which are scattered all across the continent; and then there is the rich mixture of races and cultures that make up the modern cities of the region.

But if this part of the world is so magical, why isn't it also the most visited?

According to statistics of the most visited countries in 2010, Mexico has the highest ranking among Latin American nations, in tenth place on the list, followed by Argentina, which is at number 43. And if we take into account that France, which heads the list, receives 79.3 million tourists, compared with the 22.6 million that put Mexico in tenth place, and the 5.2 million that visit Argentina, it becomes clear that Latin America is not chosen by large numbers of people as a tourist destination.

However, if we look at these statistics from a historical perspective, tourism to Latin America has increased, and, even if not dramatically so, certainly enough to provide governments with reason to grant more importance to the sector. As mentioned [es] in a statement on EnlaRedRadio, there are various challenges for the region when it comes to increasing tourism:

Marco Antonio Serrato, director general de Educación Ejecutiva en el TEC de Monterrey en México, comenta que entre los temas que determinan el debate actual sobre el turismo en la región, destacan “el rol que la industria juega como motor del desarrollo económico y social en los países de América Latina; la puesta en valor de los activos, sean naturales, culturales, arqueológicos o humanos, con los que nuestros países cuentan para posicionar la actividad turística y las marcas país a nivel internacional; y la diversificación del turismo en variantes no solo de playa, sino de naturaleza, cultura, negocios, salud y congresos”.

Serrato añade que “el desarrollo de estrategias e infraestructuras que promuevan y faciliten un turismo sostenible y la mejora de servicios complementarios como los gastronómicos, telefonía móvil, renta de vehículos y hospitalarios, además de la profesionalización de los trabajadores que atienden a los usuarios, al igual que garantizar la seguridad de los turistas y reforzar la percepción de esta, son tareas que vienen aparejadas con los lineamientos de desarrollo más generales”.

Marco Antonio Serrato, Executive Director General of Education at the Monterrey TEC in Mexico, notes that key issues that shape the current debate about tourism in the region include, “the role the industry plays as the engine of economic and social development in the countries of Latin America; attaching a true value to the assets our countries possess, whether these be natural, cultural, archeological or in terms of its people, and which will allow us to locate our tourist activity and national brands at an international level; and the diversification of tourism into activities that move beyond simple beach holidays into offering the experience of our natural environment, and other activities related to culture, business, health and the staging of conferences”.

Serrato adds that, “the development of strategies and infrastructures that stimulate sustainable tourism, the improvement of complementary services in gastronomy, in the mobile telephone network, vehicle rental and hospitality services, as well as the professional training of the workforce that deals with tourists, guaranteeing their safety and security and increasing their perception of the same - all these are tasks that are entailed in the development of the most general of plans.”

Jorge Gobbi, Global Voices author and blogger specialising in tourist matters, wrote [es] in early 2012 about this growth trend in tourism in Latin America in his Blog de Viajes (Travel Blog) [es]:

se pueden señalar al menos dos cosas. La primera, las cifras de crecimiento de las naciones sudamericanas se ubica entre el 8 al 14%, dos a tres veces más que la tasa de crecimiento mundial. Segundo, buena parte de ese crecimiento se está dando gracias al aumento del turismo regional. Lo que es una muy buena consecuencia de la mejor situación económica y del aumento del consumo en nuestros países.

Con esas perspectivas, es de esperar que para este 2012 los organismos de turismo sudamericanos se van a concentrar en incrementar su promoción en otros países de la región, sin apuntar tanto a América del Norte y Europa. Esperemos que 2012 sea la consolidación de una tendencia de crecimiento económico a mediano y largo plazo en América del Sur, ya que las perspectivas globales no parecen demasiado positivas.

at least two points can be identified. First, growth figures of between 8% and 14% among South American nations, which are between two and three times the rate for the world as a whole. Second, a good part of this growth is due to tourism within the region itself. This is one very positive consequence of the improved economic situation and the growth in consumption within our countries.

From this perspective, it is to be hoped that tourist organisations across South America are going to focus in 2012 on increasing their promotional activities in other countries in the region, and not give so much attention to the North American and European markets. Let's hope that 2012 will be the year of consolidation towards both a medium and long term trend in economic growth in South America, particularly as the global picture isn't particularly positive.

A question follows: What concrete actions are governments or businesses taking to increase the flow of tourists into their countries? Apart from the infrastructure works and service sector training that needs to be carried out, one of the most common strategies is that of the publicity campaign.

Colombia is host to one of the most well-known tourist promotion campaigns, with its slogan, “Colombia, the danger is you'll want to stay“, which was preceded by the establishment of the country brand: “Colombia is passion” [es]. There is an official travel guide to accompany the campaign, which has produced various promotional videos:

Neighbouring Venezuela is also attempting to attract tourists through its Venezuela Turismo, since the country possesses many interesting [es] destinations.

Another Colombian neighbour, Panama, has recently launched [es] its “Disfruta Panamá” or “Enjoy Panama” campaign, which makes use of a YouTube channel and Facebook pages in both Spanish and English, as well as Twitter accounts, also in Spanish and English. The website Visit Panama provides an additional resource.

As for Central America, although there is a regional campaign to promote tourism within the region, several of its countries have their own campaigns, as in the case of Guatemala with its “Corazón del Mundo Maya” [Heart of the Mayan World], or Costa Rica's “Sin Ingredientes Artificiales” (No Artificial Ingredients).

Mexico is running several campaigns, one of which, Mundo Maya 2012 [Mayan World 2012, es], places the same emphasis as Guatemala on the ancient Mayan civilisation. Another is Visit Mexico. The Federal Executive Authority in this country has its own Ministry of Tourism, which initiates the development of tourist destinations and activities at the same time as promoting these among both Mexicans and those from abroad. And then there is the Mexican Tourist Board (also an arm of the Federal Government), which coordinates, designs and develops both national strategies and those targeting the overseas market.

Moving south, we find “Chile es tuyo” [Chile belongs to you, es], a campaign mainly targeted at the internal tourist market. Something similar can be found in Argentina's “Viajá por tu país” [Travel your own land, es]. But we also come across local initiatives here, as in the case of that of the Tourist Secretariat of Santa Cruz Patagonia [es] or that of Mendoza [es].

In neighbouring Uruguay there are several websites that promote tourism in the country, including Tourists Club Uruguay, Viaje a Uruguay [Journey to Uruguay, es] and Turismo en Uruguay [es].

Several campaigns have been put into motion in Peru as part of the activity that takes place within its country brand, with the launch of a new campaign [es] in the coming days. One of its previous campaigns, “Perú: Vive la leyenda” [Peru: Live the Legend] was a prizewinner in Brazil last year. This is the video:

I had the opportunity earlier this year to speak with the Argentinian journalist and blogger previously cited in this article, Jorge Gobbi, and we recorded a short podcast [es] about tourism in Latin America today.

Although the above is not an exhaustive survey, it does give a rough idea of how the promotion of tourism is currently taking place in a region with an infinite number of attractions to offer to both local and international visitors.

Thanks to our Latin American collegues at Global Voices for the information and links they provided.

Post originally [es] published in Juan Arellano's personal blog.

The small image of Machu Picchu is from the Flickr account of Benjamin Dumas, used under license Atribución-NoComercial-CompartirIgual 2.0 Genérica (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Chile: Short Film on Kayaking ‘Shows Chile at its Best'

Silvia Viñas — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:00:02 +0000

“Breathless in Chile” is a short film that has been submitted to the 2012 Kayak Session Best Short Film of the Year Awards. Blogger Robert L. Funk says that the film “shows Chile at its best.” You can watch the five-minute film on Vimeo.

Video Highlights: Culture, Human Rights, Online Activism and Crowdfunding

Juliana Rincón Parra — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 17:09:24 +0000

This series of highlights aims to showcase interesting and recent posts in Global Voices that show the many ways in which videos are helping people tell stories all around the world. You can follow the activity by regions in our YouTube channel.

The Earth, image by Esparta Palma CCBy on Flickr

Culture

India: The Last Handwritten Newspaper in the World

The earliest forms of newspaper were handwritten and now ‘The Musalman‘ probably is the last handwritten newspaper in the world. This Urdu language newspaper was established in 1927 by Chenab Syed Asmadullah Sahi and has been published daily in the Chennai city of India ever since.

Azerbaijan: Novruz Bayram

Alongside Iran and elsewhere, Azerbaijan once again celebrated Novruz, the Zoroastrian or Persian New Year. Usually celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox, Novruz marks the first day of Spring, and is one of the most important dates in the Azerbaijani calendar.

This next promotional video prepared for Eurovision shows how the holiday is celebrated in Azerbaijan.

Human rights and videos

Ethiopia: Child Abuse Caught on Mobile Phone Camera

Ethiopian Facebook users have reacted to a mobile phone recorded YouTube video which shows a little girl constantly being abused by her mother. Shortly after the upload of the video, netizens on Facebook organized an online campaign for justice by starting a Facebook group called “Ethiopians Against Child Abuse”:

Warning: the video shows situations of child abuse.

This month also saw other reactions in Ethiopia regarding human rights abuses, in the next case, an Ethiopian domestic worker was beaten by her employers in front of the Ethiopian Embassy in Lebanon, and it was captured on video. Sadly, she committed suicide shortly after.

Ethiopia: Outrage Over Abuse of Ethiopian Domestic Worker in Lebanon

Ethiopia Lebanon: Online Outrage Over Death of Domestic Worker Turns into Activism

The graphic nature of the video together with the tragic end of the plot left Ethiopians netizens outraged. Ethiopians have been using Facebook and online petition sites to mourn her death and campaign for justice for domestic workers in the Middle East.

Online activism

Kony 2012 Special Coverage Page

With the Kony 2012 campaign, discussions increased online on the topics of online activism, its efficiency and how media portrays the conflicts and situations lived in different African countries. A Special Coverage page was created to follow the reactions on the polemic video with Ugandans weighing in on the topic:

Uganda: Kony 2012 Video Response from Ugandan Prime Minister

On the YouTube comments for the previous video, Ugacentricity gives credit to the intentions behind the Invisible Children's video, but defends the need for an accurate portrayal:

No doubt, Jason's intentions MAY have been good, but he threw truth and fact out in favour of drama and innuendo. True, he may not have got the 100 million+ viewers, but the end doesn't always justify the means. As a Ugandan who was affected by Kony, I'd rather have had 100 people listening to the truth in my story than 100 million believing the untruths in it.

A series of video responses made by people inspired by the original Kony 2012 video can be found in the post Uganda: Yes We Kony!.

Other examples of online activism:

Online activism continues in the following examples of stories posted during the month of March 2012:

In Puerto Rico, an organization is seeking to raise awareness on the dangers and risks of planning unnecessary C-sections on women expecting babies through a music video.

In Russia, sex and videos were used as a means for political support by Putin supporters and detractors during the Election season, and this article walks us through some different examples.

In Latin America, women who had breast surgery with faulty implants are taking to the web to get their stories out and gather support. Through blogs, online forums, Facebook groups and online videos [es], women are talking about the high incidence of cosmetic breast enhancements, on financial responsibility for the removal of faulty implants and on the legal aspects of dealing with medical procedures that go wrong.

Crowdsourcing

Nicaragua: Film on the Consequences of a Leaked Sex Video Seeks Crowdfunding

An award-winning team of producers and actors is coming together in rural Nicaragua to make a movie based on actual events exploring the consequences of a couple of young people in love who make an intimate video of themselves which then becomes public by mistake, and how they deal with the backlash of their actions. They are looking for extra funding to cover costs on location in Matagalpa, Nicaragua, and all the money raised will be spent locally.

Chile: Open Letter to Daniel Zamudio Goes Viral

Silvia Viñas — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 13:33:11 +0000

Chilean netizens were deeply moved by an open letter to Daniel Zamudio, a young gay man who died after a brutal beating, written by Felipe E. Mercado and published on Tumblr [es]. The letter, with more than one thousand notes on Tumblr, became a local Trending Topic on Twitter.

Chile: Daniel Zamudio, Victim of a Brutal Hate Crime, Passes Away

Elizabeth — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:27:59 +0000

Este bestial, cruel y despiadado ataque no pasará a la historia como un asalto más, o como una noticia de crónica roja más. Te prometo que lucharemos y combatiremos para que esta práctica nefasta sea extirpada de nuestra sociedad.

This brutal, cruel and ruthless attack will not go down in history as just another assault, or crime news. I promise that we will fight and combat so this harmful practice is removed from our society.

That was the promise Marcos Cárdenas, a Jesuit and philosophy student at the Alberto Hurtado University, made in his open letter [es]. He, as many other Chileans, expressed his grief after a group of men barbarously beat Daniel Zamudio, a young gay man, on March 3, 2012.

Daniel Zamudio Vera. Picture taken from the Internet from various sources.

The Clinic [es] published a summary of the story according to declarations of the men accused of beating and torturing Zamudio:

Todo empezó la madrugada de un sábado, en las cercanías de un cuartel policial y en un parque vigilado por guardias, un grupo de matones masacró a golpes a Daniel Zamudio, un joven homosexual que estaba allí. Lo torturaron seis horas y nadie vio nada. De los cuatro agresores, uno dicen que es claramente neonazi. El resto, una mezcla de lumpen y descarriados. Pero todos hoy están acusados de participar en uno de los ataques más salvajes que se recuerden en Santiago.

[…] Sobre él estaban Fabián Mora, Alejandro Angulo y Pato Core golpeándolo nuevamente. Esta vez con más fuerza, con “patadas, combos en la cabeza, en la cara, en los testículos, en las piernas, por todo el cuerpo”. López reconoce que pegó un par de patadas. A esa altura, cuenta, Zamudio ya sangraba por la nariz y la cara. Estaba tan ido por la borrachera y los golpes -dice-, que ni siquiera tuvieron que afirmarlo cuando Angulo y Pato Core le escarificaron tres esvásticas con el gollete de una botella de pisco sour Campanario, que minutos antes habían quebrado en su cabeza.[…]

It all started on a Saturday early in the morning, close to a police station and a park secured by guards. A group of thugs massacred Daniel Zamudio, a young gay man that was hanging out there. They tortured him for six hours and nobody saw anything. One out of the four aggressors is said to be a neo-Nazi. The rest, a mixture of ill-bred misfits. But today, all of them are accused of participating in one of the most savage assaults ever seen in Santiago.

[…] On top of him were Fabián Mora, Alejandro Angulo and Pato Core hitting him again. This time stronger and with “kicks, punches in the head, face, testicles, legs, and all over the body”. López admits that he kicked him a couple of times. At this point, he said, Zamudio was already bleeding through the nose and face. He was so unconscious because of alcohol and punches - he said - that they didn't even need to hold him when Angulo and Pato Core tattooed three swastikas with the neck of a Campanario pisco sour bottle that they broke minutes before on his head. […]

In this post we show some of the reactions from blogs, online news sites and Twitter since the news broke and until March 27, when Daniel Zamudio's death was announced [es].

Candlelight protest for Daniel Zamudio in Santiago. Photo taken on 03/22/2012 by Flickr user Movilh Chile (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Anti-Discrimination Law

The Anti-Discrimination Law that has been stuck in Congress for seven years has come back as a trending topic after the attack on Zamudio. There has even been a request to call it Zamudio Law [es] and to carry on the discussion at the Parliament's Mixed Commission after the last vote [es] that took place in November 2011.

Marcos Alvo, in a column called “Tolerance for Dummies” [es], published by El Dínamo, sentenced:

[…] Es por eso que necesitamos con urgencia la aprobación de la Ley Antidiscriminación (LAD). Legislar no cumple el único propósito de coaccionar , sino -más importante aun- el de ser un manifiesto social acerca de lo que nosotros como país queremos reflejar, con lo que estamos de acuerdo y con lo que no estamos dispuestos a tranzar.

[…] That is why we urgently need the approval of the Anti-Discrimination Law (LAD). Legislating does not only fulfill the objective of coercing, it is also - and most importantly - a social manifesto of what we as a country want to reflect, what we agree upon and what we are not willing to compromise.

To that respect, the President of the Jewish Community in Chile, Shai Agosin, pointed out [es]:

Por desgracia, la ley antidiscriminación, como está hoy día, no incluye una institucionalidad, no incluye políticas públicas ni un ministerio que esté encargado de llevarla adelante de buena forma.

Candlelight protest for Daniel Zamudio at the Posta Central (Central Hospital). Taken from the J. blog with Javiera Tapia's (author) permission.

Unfortunately, the anti-discrimination law, as it is today, does not include institutions, does not include public policies or a ministry that will be responsible to enforce it in a good way.

Diversity or tolerance?

Lala from the blog Zancada [es] reflected:

Recordé qué poco nos enseñan de diversidad, de lo aislados que estamos geográfica y mentalmente. Sé que en muchos casos no es así, pero si encendemos la tele y vemos cómo se burlan de los homosexuales, de los peruanos, de los “distintos”, no nos están enseñando a integrarlos a todos, sino que nos dicen que es mejor reírnos de ellos o huir. Dicen que la xenofobia se cura viajando, y qué cierto es. Cuando te das cuenta de que ese que tiene otro color de piel u otro acento, o cree en otro dios, no te hará nada, que es en el fondo igual a ti, te haces más persona y pierdes el miedo. Eres un poco más libre.

Y lo mejor es que ni siquiera sería necesario viajar si aquí en nuestras casas nos lo dijeran. Si en los colegios nos contaran. Si la tele y los medios lo mostraran.

I remember how little is taught to us about diversity, how isolated we are geographically and mentally speaking. I know that in many cases this is not true, but if we turn on the TV and watch how they mock gays, Peruvians, the “different one”, we are not being taught to include everyone, we are told that it is better to laugh at them or run from them. They say xenophobia is cured by travelling, and it's very true. When you realize that those who have a different skin color or accent or believes in a different God is not going to harm you, that he or she is like you, you become more human and lose the fear. You are freer.

And the best part is that it wouldn't be necessary to travel if here, in our homes, they told us. If they told us in schools. If the TV and the media showed it.

Beatriz Gimeno shared her thoughts in a column at El Ciudadano (The Citizen) [es]:

No estar activamente posicionado en contra de cualquier tipo de discriminación es dar alas al odio y a la violencia. No hace falta llamar directamente a la violencia legitimar la violencia. No reconocer que las personas lgtb somos merecedores de exactamente los mismos derechos, es no querer reconocer que somos merecedores del mismo respeto, de la misma dignidad; es no querer reconocer que compartimos exactamente la misma humanidad. Y finalmente cuando no se reconoce la misma humanidad ni la misma dignidad, se termina por favorecer que alguien entienda que somos merecedores de algún tipo de castigo.

Not being actively involved against any type of discrimination is to boost hate and violence. You don't need to directly incite violence to legitimize violence. Not recognizing that we, LGBT people, are worthy of respect, of the same dignity; it is about not wanting to recognize that we share exactly the same humanity. And finally, when the same humanity is not recognized nor the same dignity, you end up understanding that someone thinks we deserve some type of punishment.

Marcos Alvo, in the previously quoted column, added:

Si hasta hablar de tolerancia me parece intolerante. Decir: “te tolero” suena de un egocentrismo absoluto. Quien soy yo para “tolerar”. Es casi como afirmar que a pesar de tu diversidad te permito vivir en mi país. WTF.

Even speaking about tolerance seems intolerant to me. Saying: “I tolerate you” sounds absolutely selfish. Who am I to “tolerate”. It's like asserting that despite your diversity, I allow you to live in my country. WTF.

Supporting Daniel

Protest in support of Daniel Zamudio and his family in Curicó, Chile. Picture by Twitter user @JParadaHoyl used with his permission.

Since day one, declarations backing Daniel and disavowing his attackers appeared under the hashtags #FuerzaDanielZamudio [es] and #DanielZamudio [es].

A movement that advocates and defends human rights of lesbian, gays, bisexual and transsexuals, Movilh Chile (@Movilh) [es], constantly kept its followers informed about Daniel's health progress and started a campaign [es] that invited Twitter users to lighten up their avatar with a virtual candle to show their support.

Among the famous who expressed their solidarity was Ricky Martin (@ricky_martin) who tweeted:

Last night I won a @Glaad award! I am honored and thankful and would like to dedicate it to #DanielZamudio and his family #Chile

Also, several candlelight protests have been taking place in several parts of the country like Antofagasta [es], Santiago [es] and Curicó demanding justice for Daniel. You can see more pictures of one of the protests at the front of the hospital where Daniel Zamudio was staying at the J. Blog [es]

Daniel's death

On Twitter, Chileans reacted as soon as they found out about Daniel's decease.

Conti (@gcontador) [es] stated:

Antes que lo mataran, lo ningunearon los políticos que tú elegiste, se rieron de el los humoristas que tú premias y lo condenó tu iglesia

Before he was murdered, the politicians you elected looked down on him, the comedians you praise laughed at him, the religion you follow condemned him

From Viña del Mar, user @Festitroll [es] criticized:

Lloran la muerte de #DanielZamudio pero se burlan de Hinzpeter por ser Judio y gritan a Zalaquett por ir a la posta. Rica tu tolerancia

People cry #DanielZamudio's death but they mock Hinzpeter (Chilean Interior Minister) for being Jewish and Zalaquett (Santiago Major) for going to the hospital. Nice tolerance.

The famous Chilean TV host Rafael Araneda (@RafaAraneda) [es] commented:

Q tremendo ! Murió #DanielZamudio no lo puedo creer… Es un hecho q habla muy mal de nuestros tiempos y de lo q nos rodea…

What a shock! #DanielZamudio died, I can't believe it… It's a fact that speaks very ill of our times and surroundings

Similarly, TV host Carolina Urrejola (@CarolaUrrejola) concluded:

Algo edificante en medio del dolor: una sociedad entera está escandalizada. #DanielZamudio.

Something good came out of this pain: an entire society that is outraged. #DanielZamudio.

Chile: Blogging About Government Transparency in ‘El Vaso'

Silvia Viñas — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 20:00:36 +0000

Ciudadano Inteligente, an organization that aims to make Chilean politics more transparent, has created a blog titled ‘El Vaso' [es] to inform and promote a discussion about technology and government transparency. Readers are invited to contribute [es] content.

‘Mujeres Construyendo': Empowering Women, One Blog at a Time

Kathryn Morgan — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 10:00:34 +0000

“Una bloguera es, ante todo, una mujer valiente, que se atreve y se compromete. ¿Por qué? Porque a través de su blog se expresa, dice lo que piensa, siente, lo que es. Si tiene miedo de hablar o darle cuerpo a sus ideas, enfrenta ese miedo y lo supera.”

- “¿Quién es una bloguera?”, Mujeres Construyendo

A female blogger is, first and foremost, a brave woman, one who dares and one who commits. Why? Because through her blog she expresses herself, she says what she thinks, what she feels, what she is. If she is afraid to speak of or shape her ideas, she confronts this fear and overcomes it.

- “¿Quién es una bloguera?” [es] (Who is a female blogger?), Mujeres Construyendo

Women make up almost half of Latin America's Internet users. However, in spite of their high web-presence, women are mainly content consumers. Mujeres Construyendo [es], the first platform for female bloggers in Spanish, wants to transform Hispanic women into creators, not just consumers, of internet content.

Its founder, Claudia Calvin, answered some questions about this platform and community of Hispanic female bloggers.

Global Voices: How and when was Mujeres Construyendo created?

Claudia Calvin: Mujeres Construyendo surge como proyecto en el 2008, después de un tiempo de haberme hecho bloguera. Su origen se encuentra principalmente en mis andares por internet y después de descubrir una realidad que llamó profundamente mi atención: que las mujeres de habla hispana que participamos en internet seguimos transmitiendo en este espacio una creencia profundamente arraigada en nuestra cultura. ¿Cuál es? Aquella que nos inculcaron de niñas y en la que nos decían que “calladitas nos veíamos más bonitas”. Descubrí que nuestra participación como blogueras era muy distinta a la participación de las blogueras estadounidenses: ellas en la actualidad representan casi un 60% de los blogueros en su país y las blogueras en internet de habla hispana representamos un escaso 27%. Cuando inicié Mujeres Construyendo, la cifra era más desalentadora aún: 15%.

Busqué afanosamente un espacio de convergencia de mujeres blogueras, un espacio que no fuese un directorio, sino un lugar de convivencia, una comunidad como tal. Al no encontrarla, decidí hacerla, y así es como surge Mujeres Construyendo.

Hablé con unos amigos desarrolladores y lograron darle vida a esta idea que tenía en mi mente. La plataforma Mujeres Construyendo surge como tal en el 2009.

Claudia Calvin: Mujeres Construyendo came about in 2008, after a period of establishing myself as a blogger. It came from my internet browsing and the discovery of a reality that really caught my attention: Spanish speaking women who contribute to the internet continue to transmit a profound belief that is deeply-rooted in our culture. What was it? The belief that has been instilled in us since we were girls, the idea that “the quieter we are, the more beautiful we are”. I discovered that our contributions as bloggers were very distinct to that of American women. They currently constitute almost 60% of bloggers in their country and Spanish speaking female bloggers make up just 27%. When I began Mujeres Construyendo, the figure was even more discouraging… 15%.

I frantically looked for a space where female bloggers could get together, a space that wasn't a directory, but rather a place of coexistence, a community, as it were. After failing to find this, I decided to make it myself, and that is how Mujeres Construyendo came about.

I spoke with some developer friends and they managed to bring the idea I had in mind to life. And so the Mujeres Construyendo platform sprung to life in 2009.

GV: What is Mujeres Construyendo's mission? What does it want to achieve with this female blogging platform?

CC: El objetivo de Mujeres Construyendo es que las mujeres aprendamos a hacer uso de las nuevas tecnologías y las herramientas que brinda internet para empoderarnos, crecer, desarrollarnos. Los blogs son una herramienta de empoderamiento para nosotras: nos permite comunicar lo que hacemos, pensamos, visualizamos y participar en un diálogo central en el nuevo espacio público, que es internet.

Hemos participado más como observadoras y consumidoras de contenido que como proveedoras y en este espacio vacío se está perdiendo una enorme oportunidad para construir una realidad que refleje nuestros intereses y manera de entender y participar en el mundo, tanto en el ámbito de lo social, como lo político y empresarial, y ni qué decir de lo personal y familiar.

Las mujeres vivimos muchos tipos de marginación en el mundo, no necesitamos sumar una más a las existentes: la digital.

CC: The objective of Mujeres Construyendo is for women to learn to make use of new technologies and tools that the internet offers in order to be empowered, to grow and to develop. Blogs are empowering tools for us - they enable us to communicate what we do, what we think, what we see. They allow us to participate in a central dialogue in the new public space, the internet.

We have been more involved as observers and consumers of content than providers. We are missing out on a great opportunity to construct a reality that reflects our interests and way of understanding and participating in the world, in a social sense, as well as a political and business sense, not to mention the personal and familial.

Women deal with many types of marginalisation in society, we don't need to add digital marginalisation to those that already exist.

GV: Why is it important for women to have a blog?

CC: Como mencionaba anteriormente, los blogs son una herramienta de empoderamiento en la medida en que posibilitan que las mujeres puedan comunicarse, expresar, proponer y dialogar en internet y con ello contribuir a la definición y construcción de una realidad que refleje sus intereses y visión. Las voces de mujeres en la blogósfera son importantes porque son el reflejo de la mitad de los habitantes del planeta y en el medida en que sean actores sociales, políticos, voten, consuman, tomen decisiones y vivan de manera cotidiana los diversos contextos de su entorno (desde violencia, hasta crisis económicas, pasando por desastres naturales o guerras) su voz es importante. Son actores de la vida cotidiana y su visión y mirada cuentan, valen, reflejan una circunstancia. Su silencio resulta -sin que ellas mismas los sepan- cómplices de realidades sexistas o que marginan y en la medida en que paulatinamente vayan apareciendo y expresando su voz…irá cambiando el entorno. El silencio jamás ha sido socio del empoderamiento.

CC: As I mentioned before, blogs are tools of empowerment insofar as they make it possible for women to be able to communicate and express themselves, make suggestions and converse on the internet. They are tools with which women contribute to the definition and construction of a reality that represents their interests and vision. Women's voices, in the blogosphere, are important because they reflect half of the planet's inhabitants. Their voices are important in the sense that they are social players, politicians, they vote, they act, they make decisions and everyday they live through different environmental contexts (from violence, to economic crises; from natural disasters, to wars). They are players in everyday life and their vision and perspective counts, they are valued, they reflect a situation. Their silence, although they themselves are unaware, acts as an accomplice for a sexist reality, or it means they are marginalised. As long as their voices continue to gradually appear and be expressed, this environment will keep changing.

GV: How many women have a blog on Mujeres Construyendo?

CC: La comunidad de Mujeres Construyendo está constituida por la plataforma Mujeres Construyendo (www.mujeresconstruyendo.com) y las redes sociales a través de las cuáles se conecta su comunidad. La suma de personas conectadas a esta propuesta y a este espacio suma hoy cerca de 9 mil personas.

CC: The community of Mujeres Construyendo is made up by the Mujeres Construyendo platform (www.mujeresconstruyendo.com) and the social networks that connect this community. The total sum of people connected today is around nine thousand.

GV: What is the profile of the women who blog on Mujeres Construyendo?

CC: Cabe decir que participan hombres y mujeres en nuestra plataforma. Somos un espacio incluyente y consideramos que no se puede hablar de equidad partiendo de un principio de exclusión, por ello, las voces masculinas son bien recibidas. La mayoría, estamos hablando de más del 96%, son mujeres. Su perfil es principalmente urbano, de entre 25 y 45 años, en su mayoría de México, España, Argentina, Venezuela y Estados Unidos. Quiero destacar a una de nuestras blogueras más activas, y que inclusive ha sido entrevistada en televisión: Bertha, una extraordinaria mujer de 82 años que nos enseña que no hay edad para seguir aprendiendo y que las herramientas digitales son poderosas y permiten a las personas seguirle dando sentido a su vida.

CC: I should say that both men and women use our platform. We are an inclusive space and we don't believe that you can talk about equality while at the same time exercising a principal of exclusion, so male bloggers are also welcomed. The majority, we're talking more than 96%, are women. Their profile is mainly urban, from 25 to 45 years of age, and mainly from Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Venezuela and the United States. I want to focus on one of our most active bloggers, who has even been interviewed on television. Bertha, an extraordinary 82 year-old woman who shows us that there's no age limit to learning and that digital tools are powerful and they can continue to give meaning to people's lives.

GV: What will 2012 bring for Mujeres Construyendo?

CC: Empezamos el año con el pie derecho, estrenando nueva casa y nuestro nuevo sitio nos permite interactuar mejor, conocernos y convivir de manera más cercana. Detrás de esto hay trabajo y compromiso y queremos consolidarnos como un espacio central para que las mujeres participen, tengan voz y con ello contribuir con nuestro grano de arena no sólo a su empoderamiento, sino al fortalecimiento de la democracia. Queremos incrementar el número de blogueras participando y vinculadas a nuestra comunidad, estamos trabajando en ofrecer herramientas a las blogueras que les permitan fortalecer su presencia y cumplir sus objetivos, sean estos personales, familiares, profesionales. Detrás de este trabajo hay alianzas y proyectos que podrán ver en un futuro muy cercano y del que con gusto les platicaremos en su momento.

Muchas gracias por su interés en conocernos y ojalá a través de Global Voices más mujeres se animen a sumar su voz a nuestra comunidad. Juntas podemos hacer una diferencia.

CC: We're going to start the year off on the right foot. Opening a new house and our new site will allow us to interact, get to know each other and live together in a closer way. Behind this there is work and dedication and we want to consolidate it into one central space so that the women who participate have a voice with which they do their bit, not just towards their own empowerment, but also towards strengthening democracy. We want to increase the number of female bloggers who participate within and are linked to our community so we are working on offering tools to the female bloggers that enable them to strengthen their presence and achieve their goals, whether these be personal, familial or professional. Behind this work there are aliances and projects that will be seen in the very near future, about which we'll talk about nearer the time.

Thank you very much for your interest in getting to know us and hopefully through Global Voices more women will be encouraged to add their voice to our community. Together we can make a difference.

Claudia is also a blogger [es] and she tweets under @LaClau [es]. You can follow Mujeres Construyendo on Facebook [es], Twitter, [es] YouTube [es], and LinkedIn [es].

Chile: Twitter Debates Therapeutic Abortion While the Senate Waits

Kieran Lonergan — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 00:45:37 +0000

[All links lead to Spanish-language websites unless otherwise stated]

While the Senate continues to postpone the debate over the decriminalization of therapeutic abortion, the exchanging of opinions has continued unabated in Chilean cyberspace, most noticeably following televised debates on the subject on two Chilean TV programmes. Subsequently, the hashtags #aborterapeutico (”therapeutic abortion”), #tolerancia0, #t0, and #VP (all three referring to the TV programmes) became trending topics in Chile.

The bill was due to be debated in the senate on August 2, 2011, but to this day has not yet been introduced, due to the introduction of other more, or less, urgent bills.

Below are the highlights of the comments made on Twitter during the televised debates.

Chilean Senate. Picture by Flickr user congresochile (cc by 2.0)

Debate on TV programme ‘Tolerancia Cero'‘

During the programme ‘Tolerancia Cero' on March 18, Pato Linsky (@Patolinsky) stressed that:

En un debate televisado sobre el Aborto a la que menos le dieron la palabra fue, adivine usted, a la única Mujer presente. #EsteEsChile #T0

In a televised debate on abortion, the person given least airtime was, you guessed it, the only woman involved. #EsteEsChile [”This is Chile”] #T0

Giorgio Jackson (@GiorgioJackson), a student representative, condemned one of the speakers, saying:

Es muy violento lo que dice el doctor de la U Andes… Lo peor es q cree q tiene la autoridad moral para decidir por miles de chilenas. #T0

It's very violent what the Doctor from Andes University is saying… and worst of all, he thinks he has the moral authority to make a decision on behalf of thousands of Chilean women.#T0

Meanwhile @JAVIERLABRIN, a student, defended the right of the conservative Dr. Illanes to give his opinion:

En 1 debate exento d argumentos moralistas y religiosos, Dr. Illanes, U andes, planteo su postura y, nos guste o no, se debería respetar #T0

In a debate dominated by moral and religious arguments, Dr. Illanes from Andes University made his position clear and, whether we agree with him or not, it should be respected. #T0

Twitter user Trini (@Sita_Tri) congratulated one of the moderators:

Bien Paulsen, al final esta no es una discusión científica, si no que ideológica #T0 #aborterapeutico

Well done Paulsen, ultimately this is not a scientific debate but an ideological one. #T0 #aborterapeutico

Jessica Riquelme (@JessRiquelme) asked:

si en #t0 dejaron claro q en caso de riesgo de vida de la mujer el médico está obligado a terminar el embarazo… que estamos discutiendo??

If on #t0 [TV programme ‘Tolerancia Cero'] it was made clear that in cases where a woman's life is at risk the doctor is obliged to terminate the pregnancy… then what are we debating??

Debate on TV programme ‘Vía Pública'

Following that, on March 19, during the programme ‘Vía Pública' on station TVN, the well-known Twitter user Elquenoaporta (@elquenoaporta) said:

Prohibir el aborto de un feto inviable por razones ideológicas es tan ilógico como obligarlo. Las creencias no se imponen. #VP

Making it illegal to ban an inviable fetus for ideological reasons is as illogical as making it obligatory. Beliefs should not be imposed on others. #VP

To which, dentist Felipe González (@Felipedental) replied:

@elquenoaporta y quien habla de obligar a abortar? La discusión es que existan todas las opciones

@elquenoaporta and who says anything about making abortion obligatory? The debate is about having all the options available.

While Igraine (@Igra_ine) said:

#VP si ud quiere llevar feto inviable 9 meses en su útero, bien por usted, pero si otra persona no quiere hacerlo, debe tener la opción.

#VP if you want to carry an inviable fetus in your womb for 9 months, good for you, but if someone else doesn't want to do that, then they shouldn't have to.

And law student Caroola (@Carooola) added:

Interesante el debate en #VP .El problema radica en no separar las creencias de las políticas públicas,sin hacer eso no hay avance

Interesting the debate on #VP [TV Programme ‘Vía Pública']. The problem centres on politicians being unable to leave their public beliefs out of the debate. If that doesn't happen, there will be no progress.

Belén Araceli Lagos (@Belencillaboop), meanwhile, stressed that:

#vp Podemos estar muy en contra del aborto, pero lo que no se puede hacer es no debatir el tema

#vp one can be completely opposed to abortion, but what one cannot do is refuse to have a debate on the subject.

Alvaro Jorquera, a political scientist (@jorqueramora) concluded:

#VP negarse a la idea de legislar, es no permitir que se den discusiones como la que están realizando ustedes en el programa.

#VP to refuse to accept the idea of legislation is to deny the possibility of debates like the one taking place on this TV programme.

Neither the issue, nor the debate surrounding it, are anything new, given that since last year, when the Senate Health Committee put the legislation on therapeutic abortion forward for debate [en], there has been intense discussion, both online [en] and face-to-face.

The Health Code in Chile (the legal body responsible for regulating the health system) had, since 1931, considered abortion as an option in cases where the woman's health was at risk. In 1989 however, months before the end of the dictatorship, Augusto Pinochet revoked this position following intense pressure from Cardinal Jorge Medina and Admiral Toribio Merino. Since then, abortion under any circumstances has been completely outlawed.

Only five other countries in Latina America and the Caribbean share the same legal position of absolute prohibition: The Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Haiti and Honduras.

Chile: Photos of the First Student Protest of the Year

Silvia Viñas — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 12:54:51 +0000

Brittany Peterson and Kena Lorenzini [es] share photos of the first student protest of the school year in Santiago, Chile.