Global Voices » Germany

Germany: #Blockupy Protests Against Pan-European Austerity

Sara Moreira — Mon, 21 May 2012 21:16:32 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis

‘Blockupy‘ protests against “the widespread impoverishment and denial of democratic rights occurring in the Eurozone as part of a global systemic crisis” shook the financial epicenter of Europe - Frankfurt - last week.

Following the global action days on 12 and 15 May, 2012, (12M and 15M), activists from across Europe were called to converge in Frankfurt in an international solidarity demonstration. The ultimate goal was to blockade the European Central Bank (ECB) and other crucial global capitalism institutions. On May 4, however, the Frankfurt Municipal Department for Public Order announced that all actions planned were deemed illegal, except for a rally on Saturday, May 19.

Occupy Frankfurt in front of ECB. Photo shared by Roarmag.org (copyleft).

Still, thousands of activists decided to take a stand against the ban and claim the constitutional right “of unarmed assembly, without either prior registration or permission”.

While international mainstream media didn't give much attention to the events, online social networks buzzed with citizen reports on the mobilizations that occurred under massive police presence and repression.

On Twitter many videos and photos were shared under the hashtag #Blockupy. Netizens and collectives from different countries, such as Occupy Brussels and Belgium, livestreamed the protests, marches and assemblies, as well as the cultural program and diverse debates on labor, ecology, economy among others.

“Demonstrate for the right to demonstrate”

Blockupy started on the same day that newly elected French President Hollande met Chancellor Merkel [fr] in Berlin, May 16. Meanwhile in Frankfurt, the police complied with the order of eviction of the seven month long Occupy Frankfurt settlement around the Euro sign near the ECB headquarters. The blog Critical Legal Thinking, which had a comprehensive coverage of the four days of protest, described the city as “effectively in [undeclared] State of Exception“.

Police intercept three Berlin buses on the way to #Frankfurt. Photo by @Blockupy on Twitter.

On May 17, a bank holiday, as mainstream media directed the spotlight to the German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble - who was awarded the Charlemagne Prize for his major role in the definition of the austerity policies mostly imposed on the periphery European countries - buses filled with activists from different cities heading to the anti-austerity demonstration in the center of Frankfurt, were stopped from entering the city and escorted back by the police.

Despite the attempts of intimidation, around 2,000 activists managed, at least for a few hours, to occupy the historic Roemerberg square where the city hall is based, and which represents the birth of democracy in Germany.

Blockupy protesters take action against banking and finance system. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Stoesser, copyright Demotix (May 17, 2012).

The square was soon surrounded by the riot police:

Protesters sit down and lock arms in opposition to police presence. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Soesser, copyright Demotix (May 17, 2012).

At the end of the day riot police evicted the square with violence, as different photo reporters [de] illustrated:

A protester is detained by police. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Stoesser, copyright Demotix (May 17, 2012).

The detention of at least 400 protesters of different nationalities triggered solidarity protests in different cities across Europe:

Embassy of Germany in Rome - Protest against repression and arrests in Frankfurt during the protests against the crisis. Signs against the Rome-Berlin axis, the ECB and Merkel. Photo by Simona Granati, copyright Demotix (May 18, 2012).

A video report by Finnish user of YouTube sydansalama1, with interviews subtitled in English, sums up the events of the day:

The staff of banks were told by their employees to take the day off or work from home to avoid having to come into the city on Friday, May 18 - the day when the blockade to the financial district was expected to take place. However, as Jerome Ross from Roar Magazine wrote the night before, “Frankfurt [is] on lock-down as over 5,000 police [are] deployed in an unprecedented operation to keep protesters out of the city and away from the banks”:

as the activists here prepare to physically block the headquarters of the European Central Bank, the police already seems to have done the job for them.

"I block! You too?" Photo by ateneinrivolta on Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0).

That day, international mainstream media reported on Goldman Sachs being hired by the Spanish government to evaluate banking conglomerate Bankia, taken over by the state earlier in May, and also about rumors of a referendum in Greece to ballot the membership in the Eurozone. In Frankfurt, while banners read messages of support to the European southern countries (such as “We are all Greeks“), the city remained “affected by massive police presence, identity checks and road blocks“.

When the legal day for protesting finally arrived, May 19, around 20,000 protesters (according to the police, or more than 25,000 according to the organization) rallied the city center.

Blockupy Demonstration in Frankfurt. A large banner held up by protesters reads: 'International resistance against the Austerity Imposed by the Troika and Governments.'. Photo by Michele Lapini copyright Demotix (May 19, 2012).

Blockupy Frankfurt: More than 20,000 against financial crisis politics. International participants in the demonstration. Photo by Patrick Gerhard Stoesser copyright Demotix (May 19, 2012).

Blockupy demo (May 19, 2012). Photo by strassenstriche.net on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0).

John Halloway, writing for the Guardian, described Blockupy as “a glimmer of hope in times of austerity“, and argued that it would bring momentum to “explosions of creative anger that will follow”. International policy analyst Vinay Gupta, finalizes:

Those people in the streets rioting, the protesting classes, are fighting not for internal political change within their own countries, but (whether they know it or not) for a re-arrangement of the political balance of an entire continent.

This post is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis.

Germany: “Rundshow” A New Social TV Format

Rachel Horst — Mon, 21 May 2012 10:28:49 +0000

The Bavarian broadcasting company, Bayerischer Rundfunk, in Germany recently launched a social TV experiment called “Rundshow” [de] (Roundshow). Viewers are actively incorporated into the show through virtual means such as Google Hangout, videos, an app called “Die Macht” (The Power), and Twitter. The concept of blurring the lines between TV and the Internet can already be seen with Al Jazeera's show The Stream. But Rundshow is the first format of its kind to be attempted in Germany.

Ukraine: Yulia Tymoshenko's Plight and Euro 2012

Veronica Khokhlova — Thu, 17 May 2012 01:12:02 +0000

There must be some corners on the web (e.g., here and here) where football fans are still having apolitical discussions of the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, scheduled to take place in Poland and Ukraine from June 8 to July 1. For the past few weeks, however, the upcoming sporting event has featured prominently in arguments and discussions among those who seem more interested in the Ukrainian and European politics than sports.

Earlier this month, several European politicians, including the EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, announced their plans to boycott Euro 2012 in protest against the imprisonment of ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko. However, there is no consensus among the EU officials yet on whether “to call a political boycott of the Ukraine half of the Euro 2012 football championships.”

Tymoshenko's arrest came on August 5, 2011, a little over a month after the beginning of her first trial on June 24. She was kept at Kyiv's Lukyanivska Prison (GV texts about this facility are here and here) until December 30, when she was transferred to the Kachanivska Penal Colony in Kharkiv to serve a seven-year sentence for exceeding her powers as Prime Minister. Reports of Tymoshenko's health problems and her 20-day hunger strike have dominated the recent coverage of her case. On April 19, another trial of Tymoshenko began in Kharkiv, but she refused to attend it. The hearing of this second case, in which Tymoshenko is charged with evading taxes in the 1990s, has been postponed until late May.

While the preparation for the tournament in Ukraine was marred by a number of other controversies (e.g., the cruel treatment of stray animals; accusations of hotel price gouging; and, of all things, the threat posed by the “beautiful Ukrainian women”), this latest international scandal seems to have done the most harm to Ukraine's image so far.

On May 3, the Economist asked readers in an online poll if they supported the calls to boycott the games held in Ukraine:

The apparently brutal treatment of Yulia Tymoshenko, an imprisoned Ukrainian opposition leader, has led to calls for European leaders to stay away from Ukrainian matches in the upcoming Euro 2012 football tournament, which the country is hosting jointly with Poland.

The Economist agrees with these calls. Do you?

Of the 1,834 votes cast so far, 68 percent are in favor of the boycott and 32 percent are against it.

Odessablogger - who believes that “the football is the wrong stick to hit Ukraine with given the need for EU personalities to interact directly with the Ukrainian people” - recounted some of the examples of sports and politics “colliding” in the past, and quoted from the April 28 Der Spiegel interview [en] with boxer and politician Vitali Klitschko, who opposes the boycott of Euro 2012:

“[…] This tournament is the biggest sporting event in the history of Ukraine. It has to happen. It is even an excellent opportunity to draw the world’s attention to the maladministration in our country. […]”

Odessablogger also noted Yulia Tymoshenko's stance on the boycott:

[…] In case you are wondering, the current position taken by Ms Tymoshenko herself over the matter, is that there should not be a boycott because of her, and that the Ukrainian people should see the EU leaders in Ukraine as it will encourage them to look to the EU rather than think they have been written off. […]

Marek Siwiec, a Polish politician and Member of the European Parliament, explained on his BlogActiv.eu blog why he did not support the boycott:

[…] In Poland we need to understand (and I repeated it many times) that the football championship for Ukrainians is a national question – a source of pride, regardless of political views. Ukrainians deserve to have this tournament in their country in an atmosphere of festivity, in spite of all. […]

[…] Besides, as a whole political class, just as we act together in defence of Yulia Tymoshenko, in this case we should separate sport from politics. If there was somebody in Poland who would like to take this opportunity to rob something from Ukrainians, I warn – the political costs in the mutual relations will be long lasting and serious. […]

Jonathan Hibberd of Chicken in Kiev wrote about Germany's stance on Euro 2012 in Ukraine:

Merkel boycotts Ukraine? Business as usual.

Germany has been boycotting Ukraine's interests for some time. […]

[…] Germany should in fact, albeit indirectly, accept some responsibility for what has happened here since 2010. As one leading commentator said a couple of years back, it would have meant an awful lot if Chancellor Merkel had come to Kiev and made a speech in support of Ukraine's European ambitions. Don't forget how narrowly Tymoshenko lost the Presidential election. German endorsement of a European and Euro-Atlantic choice for Ukraine might well have been enough to swing the election for her, but instead it was held against a background of resignation, that Europe didn't want Ukraine and rapprochement with Russia was paramount. Merkel was not there for her then. […]

At OpenDemocracy.net, Valery Kalnysh, deputy editor of the Kommersant Ukraina newspaper, shared this possible explanation for the German leader's position:

[…] But why, on the other hand, is Germany so active in taking up the cudgels against Ukraine? During the course of a conversation, a German journalist commented ‘It’s quite easy for Merkel to attack Ukraine and demand respect for human rights. Unlike Russia, you have no oil or gas and you’re not as strong and influential as China. It’s convenient to criticise Ukraine and it does great things for [her] popularity rating.’ […]

LEvko of Foreign Notes explained “why Ukraine's Euro 2012 [would] not be as big a success as hoped”:

[…] In previous tournaments, in my experience, many fans have made an extended holiday of their visits to countries hosting such events; days between matches being spent on the beach, sightseeing, etc. etc. In countries such as Austria/Switzerland or Portugal, where tourism is highly developed, this was an attractive proposition..but, no disrespect intended…Kharkiv? Dontesk?

Europe is currently in the deepest economic crisis since WW2. There is little cash around..not enough to pay the Ukraine's rip-off hotel prices.

Then there's the Olympic games in London later in the year - an attractive draw for sports fans.

[…] But the tsunami of bad press in Europe's mass media over the Tymoshenko affair will be the final turn-off. Fans will rather stay at home, or, at best, fly in and out for matches, just like they do for European club matches.. […]

Olga Mrinska of Regional Accents reflected [uk] on the Euro 2012 boycott scandal in the context of the general social and political situation in Ukraine:

[…] The repressive race aimed at the opposition leaders has reached its apogee in the past year, and domestic politics has become the center of attention of world leaders. […] Today's Ukraine is, above all, associated with the jailed opposition, lack of freedom of speech, kleptomaniac and lying officials. Our president must have naively (???) believed that [it's possible to endlessly mislead these “spineless” European leaders and feed them with “mañana” [empty promises] at any mention of the democratic reforms - the leaders who live in ordinary houses in the city center (Germany), ride bicycles (the Netherlands), fly regular commercial flights (Finland) and have incomparably fewer guards that he does (choose any EU country).] And when these Europeans have finally stood up […], [the Ukrainian leaders began talking] of the Cold War era and bias. In my opinion, this is a lousy excuse…

The problem isn't with the Europeans, but with the Ukrainians - the voters who have brought to power people without the intellect, without a strategic vision and without the belief in the better future for the country and its people. The problem is with the so-called elite that, just like those hotel owners, lives only in the present, without giving any thought to the future.

Despite the avalanche of negative information about Ukraine in the world media, justified in most cases, we still have a chance to [show Ukraine in a positive light] to those football fans who would attend the Euro. Out people are the last frontier and the last hope. The end result and the final assessment of the event depends on their open-mindedness, decency and hospitality. […]

Finally, a few words about the aspect of Euro 2012 that has gone largely unnoticed - [the view that the Ukrainians themselves have of the event]. Five years ago, we were promised an ocean of private investments, a new and shining infrastructure that would serve host cities for decades, an influx of tourists and billions for the economy. Instead, residents of Kyiv and other cities have experienced mainly negative consequences - destruction of parks, totally dug-up cities, closed streets, altered public transportation routes, […], growing prices, etc. […]

Europe: Economic Crisis Fuels Rise in Anti-Immigration Politics

Ariane Defreine — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:31:35 +0000

The French presidential election may be over, but the fact that outgoing president Nicolas Sarkozy chose immigration as a core theme of his campaign [fr] is still the subject of much debate on the Web. Many netizens have wondered whether his choice to flirt with the far-right wing of his electorate helped temper his defeat or whether, on the contrary, it was one of the reasons his electorate deserted him [fr].

Given the apparent waning appetite of European voters for multiculturalism, singling out immigration as the root of the global economic crisis has proven fruitful for far-right parties across the continent.

African refugees by Vito Manzari on Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

If this rhetoric sounds familiar, it's because it has affected the old continent, when in times of crisis, in a cyclical pattern for centuries. Valérie, on her blog 'Crêpe Georgette', recounted the chronology of perceptions on immigration in France [fr] from the first half of the 19th century until today:

S’il est une idée en vogue, c’est bien de penser que les anciennes vagues d’immigration (italiennes, polonaises, espagnoles, belges …) se sont parfaitement intégrées au contraire des vagues, plus récentes, maghrébines et africaines.
Les anciennes vagues d’immigrés étaient travailleuses, ne posaient aucun problème et les français les ont d’ailleurs parfaitement acceptées, entend-on souvent.
Constatons donc que les propos actuels sur les immigrés les plus récents ne sont qu’une répétition d’idées reçues anciennes et qui se sont exercées à l’encontre de toutes les communautés migrantes (qu’elles viennent de province ou de pays étrangers).

If there is but one fashionable idea, it is the belief that the old immigration waves (from Italy, Poland, Spain, Belgium…) are now fully integrated in our society, as opposed to the more recent immigration waves from Maghreb and Africa.
We often hear “the former immigration waves were related to labour, did not cause any issue, and were indeed perfectly accepted by the French.”
Let us then recognise that current comments on the most recent immigration waves are the mere reiteration of old stereotypes which all migrant communities have faced (whether they originated from the countryside or from foreign countries).

Valérie drew a parallel between allegations that Italian and Spanish immigrants did not and could not be integrated, and those against today's immigrants from Eastern Europe and Africa:

Toutes les populations d’immigrés – mais aussi les populations pauvres de manière générale – sont vues au cours des siècles comme sales, non intégrées, se vautrant dans la luxure et des coutumes exotiques. Ce qu’on entend à l’heure actuelle sur les quartiers « islamisés », « envahis » de femmes en burqa avec 10 enfants n’est que la répétition, comme vous le constatez, de propos tenus sur toutes les vagues d’immigration précédentes. L’italien lui aussi fait une cuisine infâme, trop d’enfants et se vêt d’oripeaux. Le polonais se ridiculise avec son catholicisme particulier et à se tenir debout pendant la messe alors que le bon français est assis.

All immigrant populations - but also the poor in general - have been deemed throughout the centuries to be dirty, non-integrated, indulging in lust and other exotic customs. As you may observe, what is said today about the ‘islamicised' neighbourhoods, 'swamped' with women wearing the burqa and their tens of children, is only repeating comments of all the previous waves of immigration. The Italian immigrant also cooks dreadful food, has too many children, and dresses in rags. The Polish immigrant is ridiculed for his peculiar brand of Catholicism and his habit of standing up throughout mass whereas proper French people remain seated.

Economic downturn not the only reason

Nevertheless, the economic downturn alone cannot explain the attractiveness of anti-immigration arguments. In an editorial on the future of multiculturalism in France, Julie Owono highlighted that:

The reason for the growing worry over the future of Europe is not simply related to the crisis. Contrary to what some politicians were quick to explain on the evening of the first round, it seems that the French who gave their vote to extremism do not suffer that much from the immigration scourge. French analysts have found that, while the latter represents a major concern for 62 per cent of National Front voters, areas where the party has received a significant number of votes do not have a particularly high immigration rate.

A European phenomenon

Foreigners in Europe by Digital Dreams on FlickR License-CC-BY

Politicians singing this weathered old tune against immigration are not limited to France. In Greece, the Neo-Nazi party known as Golden Dawn took advantage of the country's economic difficulties and broke through during the most recent general elections. In Great Britain, a commenter posting under the name James reacted to the fact that Cameron, Merkel, and Sarkozy declared the failure of multiculturalism in Europe:

She [Merkel] wanted People from richer nations to embrace and train poorer region folk! It hasn't worked, its cost us all billions and its getting more expensive year on year! Would you rather have a farmer from romania working in britain, claiming to be poor and sending all the money home to build a mansion! thats whats happening.

Valérie said she is no longer surprised by recycling of anti-immigration rhetoric. She suggested in her blog some reading to open up the debate:

Pour combattre les craintes face aux immigrés maghrébins et africains, on gagnerait à lire les textes du 19eme et du début du 20eme pour comprendre comment se fondent ces peurs et comment l’on ne fait que répéter les mêmes idées ayant cours dans les siècles précédents. Conseils de lecture :

- Conseillé par Melle S. : A. SAYAD « L’immigration ou les paradoxes de l’altérité » (1. L’illusion du provisoire et 2. Les enfants illégitimes).
- Gérard Noiriel, « Le creuset français ».
- Laurent Dornel, « La France hostile. Histoire de la xénophobie en France au XIXe siècle ”

To address anxieties over immigrants from Maghreb and Africa, one would gain from reading texts from the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries in order to understand the foundations of such fears and how the same arguments are being used throughout the centuries. Suggested reading:

- Suggested by Melle S. [fr]: A. Sayad, Immigration or the Paradoxes of Alterity [fr] (1. The illusion of the ephemery and 2. The illegitimate children)
- Gérard Noiriel, The French Melting-Pot
- Laurent Dornel, Hostile France. A History of Xenophobia in France in the 19th Century [fr]

Best of the Blogs 2012: Winners Announced

Leila Nachawati Rego — Sat, 05 May 2012 08:53:23 +0000

Image from The BOBs website

After a month of voting and jury discussions, the awards for this year's Best of the Blogs - the BOBs - have been decided. This annual event held by the Deutsche Welle Media Group aims to award bloggers who contribute to their communities and promote freedom of expression.

In addition to User Prizes (selected by popular vote), a jury of bloggers, media experts and activists have curated the best blogs, campaigns and media projects in six multilingual categories.

Best Blog

Iranian journalist Arash Sigarchi (jury winner and user winner) and the Lebanese author of Mowaten Jou3an (user winner) are this year's “Best Blog” winners. Sigarchi, currently based in Washington, is the author of Window of Anguish [ar], where he writes about social and political issues in his homeland. While in Iran, he was arrested several times for the content he published on his blog and was eventually sentenced to 14 years in prison. The unnamed author of Mowaten Jou3an [ar] covers diverse subjects related to several countries including Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon.

This year’s other Jury Awards went to:

Best Social Activism Campaign: Free Syrian Blogger & Activist Razan Ghazzawi

This campaign was launched after Syrian activist and former Global Voices contributor Razan Ghazzawi was arrested in December as she was on her way to attend a workshop on press freedom in Jordan. After her release she was taken into custody, released and taken into custody again some months later. This Facebook page calls for her release and that of her colleagues from the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression, who have been detained since February 2012.

Special Topic Award Education and Culture: Fasokan

Boukary Konaté is the author of Fasokan, where he promotes his local language and culture in both French and Bambara (the most widespread language of Mali). Konaté is a translator for Global Voices in French and also a Rising Voices grantee representing the Ségou Villages Connection.

Best Use of Technology for Social Good: Harassmap

This Egyptian project, using an Ushahidi map, allows victims of sexual harassment to report and map what happened by type and location. Reports can be made via the website, text message and via Twitter hashtag.

Best Video Channel: Kuang Kuang Kuang

This Chinese cartoon series, whose main character goes by the name Kuang Kuang, is one of animation director Pi San’s satirical works that has provocatively evoked China’s social ills.

Reporters Without Borders Award: Abu Sufian’s Blog

Reporter from Bangladesh Abu Sufian uses his blog to report on crimes that much of the mainstream media ignores, such as the recent killing of the journalists Sagar and Runi. He has been vocal against extrajudicial killings in Bangladesh, which take thousands of lives.

User Awards in all categories and languages

In addition to the Jury's Awards, the users have also chosen their favorite blogs in all the categories and languages of this year's competition. You can see the list here.

Congratulations from the Global Voices community to all the Award winners for their inspiring work. We wish to send special greetings to Boukary Konaté for his outstanding work. When we talked to Boukary about what this award meant for him, he answered:

I got the news in a moment when my country is going through a military and political crisis. I consider this Education and Culture Award as an award for unity and peace for Mali.

According to jury member and Global Voices author, Tarek Amr from Egypt who helped review Arabic language nominees:

The FreeRazan campaign is important on its own, but I also see it as symbol for acknowledging the struggle of the Syrian people and showing solidarity with political detainees in the Arab world, whether Abdulhadi Alkhawaja in Bahrain, military trials victims in Egypt, and many other examples. Harassmap is also a great platform to help raise awareness about sexual harassment in Egypt, and help victims to speak up, especially when society often tends to blame the victim before blaming the harasser.”

A Global Voices Guide to re:publica Berlin 2012

Filip Stojanovski — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:58:04 +0000

This week (May 2-4, 2012) thousands of minds will join in Berlin, Germany at the annual gathering aimed at exchanging knowledge and ideas called re:publica (#rp12). Those physically present will be able to attend lectures, debates and nightly parties. Last year the re:publica conference had over 3,000 attendees, and almost a hundred thousand viewers of the webcast. Even more are expected this year.

The motto for “Germany’s largest and most prominent conference on the future of our society and all things digital” this year is ACT!ON.

A number of Global Voices (GV) community members will participate in over 200 hours of scheduled program, on 8 separate stages in 14 tracks.

Solana Larsen, GV managing editor, who presented Global Voices at re:publica 2011 “in an auditorium that holds more than 1000 people!” reckons:

In Germany, it's a conference that really speaks for the Internet scene and has a clear influence on the political discourse here.

Claire Ulrich, editor of Global Voices in French and a member of GV Board of Directors, explains:

For us European netizens, Berlin is the center and driving force of hackers' culture, the “free” culture, in short, our European “innovation hub”. re:publica in Berlin is a showcase of international trends, but also of this hacker culture that will be essential in the recession and political crisis we are in, and a great opportunity to meet those future movers and shakers.

When can you hear Global Voices people speak?

Ivan Sigal, GV executive director, will speak together with Solana on May 2 (13:30 CET) in a session called “Joining Forces” about the driving forces behind the rise of citizen media, and if individual acts of online activism in countries that are far from each other together can be considered a “global movement”. Ivan will also speak with Bjarke Myrthu of Storyplanet.com on May 3 (11:15 CET) about “New directions in visual storytelling”.

Ivan thinks that re:publica is important because…

…It seems to be expanding beyond Germany and even Europe in terms of its reach and influence. I also like that it has an open-ended and democratic feeling.

Jillian York, GV author, member of GV Board of Directors, and EFF director of international freedom of expression, will speak on May 3 (13:45) about Threats to Free Expression in the Middle East and North Africa. A re:publica veteran, she said:

re:publica was one of the best conferences I attended last year - the unique mix of participants, as well as the pertinent topics.

The panel “From Dissent to Disillusionment?” hosted in cooperation with Deutsche Welle, will focus on Syria, Egypt, Tunisia in “A Critical Assessment of the Media Landscape After the Arab Spring” on May 3 (15:00 CET) and will feature 3 GV'ers: Leila Nachawati of Spain/Syria, Claire Ulrich, and Tarek Amr of Egypt. They will speak on a panel with international journalist Zulfikar Abbany.

Claire Ulrich and Tarek Amr are also participating in the jury of this year's the Best of Blogs Awards. Tarek says:

I am part of the jury this year, and I used to follow the competition since its beginning. I love how despite it covers about 11 languages, it doesn't only stick to that but there are also verticals, topics, ranging from video blogs, to blogs for human rights to the use of technology for social change, which shows how they aren't limiting themselves to blogs only and how also the are creating competition within certain languages as well as worldwide between blogs from different languages.

On May 4 (11:15 CET) Markos Lemma will speak about Blogging in Ethiopia. He considers the conference “a big scale meet-up for people who are engaging on citizen media and create a physical nexus point for connections,” and adds:

It is my first time to re:publica and Berlin. I am excited to represent the Ethiopian bloggers and talk a little bit about them.

Besides the speakers, other members of the GV network attending re:publica include Berlin residents Kasia Odrozek and Débora Medeiros, as well as outlanders Paula Goes, Emma Brewin, Katrin Zinoun, Suzanne Lehn, Bernardo Parrella , Janet Gunter, and Rayna St., who echoed a wider sentiment when she wrote:

This year's edition will be held in the middle of quite a battle: we had SOPA/PIPA in the US that saw massive protest again and the same happened to ACTA which, I hope, will not be ratified. In the meantime, numerous countries impose various restrictive regulations on their own. re:publica 2012 will gather speakers with wide range of experience, backgrounds and standpoints which will definitely help (me) to make better sense of what is happening and what is to come.

Also attending will be Adil Nurmakov and Filip Stojanovski, who are participating in the Blogger Tour 2012, a public diplomacy initiative at the invitation of the German Federal Foreign Office.

Global Voices Speakers at re:publica

May 2

(13:30) - “Joining Forces” (Ivan Sigal, Solana Larsen)

May 3

(11:15) - “New directions in visual storytelling” (Ivan Sigal, Bjarke Myrthu)

(13:45) - “Threats to Free Expression in the Middle East and North Africa” (Jillian York)

(15:00) - “From Dissent to Disillusionment?” (Leila Nachawati, Claire Ulrich, Tarek Amr)

May 4

(11:15) - Blogging in Ethiopia (Markos Lemma)

France: The Presidential Election Through Foreign Eyes

Jenny Sin — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:27:47 +0000

While the French are preparing to choose a president in the upcoming weeks, French voters overseas and the foreign online media have reacted as the first round poll came to an end. Some peculiarities of the French electoral process, such as the ban on posting polling estimations in the media before 8 pm on election day, were intensely debated.

Drawing of Petar Pismestrovic in Austria shared by @alissabernathy on Twitter

Ban on tweeting election results before 8pm, even abroad?

In France, Law No. 77-808 of July 17, 1977 on the publication and dissemination of opinion polls [fr] prohibits the broadcast of the first estimates, before 8pm. With the ubiquitous rise of publications online, this ruling quickly became problematic to implement. Tefy Andriamanana, from Madagascar, summarizes the complexity and challenges of applying this law [fr].

As lawyer and famed French blogger Master Eolas explains on his blog, this method should also apply to the publication by French surveys in the foreign media [fr]:

Notons qu’ainsi rédigée, la loi interdit de faire un rappel de l’évolution des intentions de vote des candidats après vingt heures mais avant minuit le jour du scrutin, même une fois les bureaux de vote fermés et les estimations proclamées. C’est une pure maladresse de rédaction, mais la loi est la loi, je fais confiance au parquet pour être ferme (..) Les article 113 du Code pénal posent les règles d’application de la loi pénale française dans l’espace (pas au sens de “Des cochons dans l’espace”, mais dans le sens de sa territorialité). Ces règles sont les suivantes : la loi pénale française s’applique à toute personne se trouvant sur le territoire français, quelle que soit sa nationalité. Une infraction est réputée commise en France dès lors qu’un de ses éléments constitutifs est commis en France. On assimile au territoire française les bateaux battant pavillon français et les aéronefs immatriculés en France (article 113-4). Quand les faits sont commis à l’étranger, la loi française peut leur être applicable, à certaines conditions. Sans rentrer dans les détails, qui feront les tortures des étudiants de L2 de droit, la loi pénale française s’applique à l’étranger quand l’auteur est français, ET, condition cumulative, que les faits constituent un crime…

Note that written as it is, the law prohibits an overview of the evolution of the candidates' voting intentions after 8pm, but before midnight on polling day, even after the polls are closed and the estimates are proclaimed. This is pure awkwardness of writing, but the law is the law, and I trust the prosecutor to be firm (..)Article 113 of the Penal Code [fr] sets forth the implementing rules of French criminal law in the area (not in the sense of “Pigs in Space” [fr], but in the sense of its territoriality). These rules are: French criminal law applies to any person on French territory, whatever their nationality. An offense is considered to be committed in France as long as one of its constituent elements is committed in France (Article 113-4 [fr]). When the acts are committed abroad, French law can be applicable to them, under certain conditions. Without going into details, which will torture L2 law students, French criminal law applies abroad when the author is French, AND, cumulative condition, when the acts constitute a crime…

Many French abroad are surprised at this law and ask what would constitute a violation of this law. Paul asks [fr]:

créer un compte twitter qui vous envoie automatiquement les résultats (en avant-première) en DM n’est donc pas délictueux, puisqu’on reste dans la communication privée ?

Should the creation of a Twitter account, that automatically sends you the results (advance access) in DM, constitute a crime since it remains in private communication?

Joe poses the following hypothesis [fr]:

..Un agent provocateur Bordure, depuis son ordinateur de Szohôd (donc en Bordurie) décide de poster à 18h30 les premières estimations qu’il aura entendues à la radio Syldave sur un forum public, par exemple dans les réactions du blog d’un célèbre avocat blogueur Français…

L’agent Bordure ne risque rien (si j’ai bien compris la démonstration du Maître), mais est-ce que le responsable Français du forum peut être inquiété ?

An agent provocateur from Borduria (ed's note: made up country), since his Szohôd computer (thus in Borduria) decides to post, at 6:30pm, the first estimates that he will have heard on the Syldave radio on a public forum, for example in the reactions of the blog of a famous French lawyer blogger…The Bordurian agent does not risk anything (if I fully-understood the Master's demonstration), but is it the head of the French forum who may be worried?

Campaign Poster by JC Benoist on Wikimedia CC License -3.0-BY

Foreign internet users find that French law is rigid and outdated. Trésor Kibungala, a native of DR Congo blogs on North Africa [fr]:

Seulement voilà, depuis 1977, les choses ont changé. Les nouveaux médias sont arrivés et cette loi paraît inadaptée à la nouvelle donne. Déjà, les pays voisins de l’Hexagone ne se priveront pas de rendre public les résultats de la présidentielle française avant la messe de 20 heures. RTBF par exemple a déjà annoncé qu’elle dévoilera les résultats du scrutin à 18 heures 30 (..) Sur les réseaux sociaux, pas sûr non plus que les twittos obtempèrent. Certains ont commencé à mettre en place le dispositif Radio Londres. Une chose est sûre : on va bien rigoler ce dimanche sur twitter, facebook et autres. Mais, chut !@Tresor_k ne tweetera pas non plus les résultats avant 20 heures ! Rendez-vous sur les ondes de #RadioLondres.

The only problem is that, since 1977, things have changed. The new media have arrived and this law seems inadequate to the new circumstances. Already, the neighbouring countries of the Hexagon do not shy away from publicizing the French presidential elections results before the 8 o'clock mass. RTBF, for example, has already announced it will disclose the poll results at 6:30pm (..) On social networks, it is uncertain whether the Twittos will obey. Some have begun to set up the Radio Londres system [fr]. One thing is certain: we will have a good laugh this Sunday on Twitter, Facebook, and other websites. But, hush! @Tresor_k [fr] will not tweet the results before 8pm! Visit #RadioLondres.

Thus, Radio Londres, is the common thread on Twitter to comment on the elections in coded language without the risk of breaking the law. Radio Londres refers to a few minutes of daily program broadcast [fr] on British radio, BBC, to the first resistance fighters who had fled the German occupation entitled “The French Speaking to the French” [fr]. The meanings of the coded messages used during the resistance [fr] can be found on doctsf.com, including the famous “Wound my heart with a monotonous languor,” which announced the landing.

International issues in the French elections

Foreign media watch the the elections in France with great interest and respond to the 1977 Act. Jean-François Munster in Belgium does not understand [fr] why we still have this measure, he says:

Une loi complètement obsolète à l’heure d’internet et des réseaux sociaux et qui profite aux médias étrangers, dont Le Soir, qui diffusent les premières estimations sur leur site internet dès qu’elles sont disponibles – à partir de 18h45 – alors que les médias français doivent rester muets. (..) Les médias (français) respecteront la loi. Cela ne les empêche pas de dire tout le mal qu’ils en pensent. « Cette loi est ubuesque sur le fond, dénonce Thierry Thuillier. Aujourd’hui, une information produite est une information diffusée. Il faudra impérativement la dépoussiérer ».

A completely archaic law in today's internet and social network era, and benefits foreign media, including Le Soir, which broadcasts the first estimates on their website as soon as they become available - from 6:45pm - while the French media must remain silent. (..) The (French) media will obey the law. This does not prevent them from saying all the bad things that they associate with it. “This legislation is ludicrous on its merits, denounces Thierry Thuillier. Today, generated information is disseminated information. It will be essential to bring it up to date.”

However, it could be that foreign media are prosecuted for any distribution that violates French law. Boris Mahenti reports that [fr]:

La Commission de contrôle va plus loin et menace de poursuivre les médias belges et suisses qui diffuseront les résultats de la présidentielle dès 18 heures. “Si une information est diffusée sur le territoire français, alors le média tombe sous le coup de la loi française. Les médias belges et suisses sont susceptibles de poursuites.”

The Audit Board goes further and threatens to sue the Belgian and Swiss media that will disseminate the presidential elections results as early as 6pm. “If information is circulated in French territory, then the media is punishable under French law. Belgian and Swiss media are subject to prosecution.”

Presidential campaign in Antananarivo by the French Legislative from Abroad on Facebook

The African continent did not dwell on the controversy of the dissemination of poll results prior to 8pm, rather, it focuses on the election results' long term consequences for the continent. In Kenya, Global Voices translator [fr] Laila, is excited to be able to vote in Nairobi, Kenya:

@hardcorekancil: Bureau de vote de Nairobi: A 10h30, plus de 100 électeurs avaient déjà voté. Le bureau est ouvert de 8h à 18h. #présidentielle2012

@hardcorekancil [fr]: Nairobi's polling station: At 10:30, more than 100 voters had already voted. The office is open from 8AM to 6pm. #présidentielle2012

In Madagascar, the candidates' campaigns were going door to door. Legislative French from Abroad's Facebook profile says [fr]:

La démarche du porte à porte est inédite à Madagascar. Nous avons suivi une équipe en campagne vers Ivato puis à Tsaralalana. L’accueil est réceptif. Les franco-malgaches sont d’abord surpris puis ravis que l’on s’intéresse à eux et que l’on prenne le soin de venir chez eux pour leur parler et les inviter à une réunion de quartier..

The door to door approach is unheard of in Madagascar. We followed a campaign team to Ivato, then to Tsaralalana. The host is responsive. The Franco-Malagasy are surprised at first, then delighted that we are interested in them and that we take the time to come to their homes to talk to them and to invite them to a neighborhood meeting..

In Ivory Coast, Théodore Kouadio takes the pulse of Franco-Ivorian voters. He reports some voters' voting intentions [fr]:

« Moi, j’ai l’habitude de voter socialiste, car ce sont eux qui sont sensible à la cause des minorités en France. Mais surtout à la situation des noirs. Mais je vais voter Sarkozy », explique Cissé Mamadou, un sexagénaire. Pour lui, c’est sa manière à lui de merci à Nicolas Sarkozy pour son implication dans la résolution dans la crise post-électorale en Côte d’Ivoire, qui a fait 3000 morts officiellement. Noel Koffi, installé dans la zone depuis 2 ans, mais de nationalité française est du même avis. Pour lui, ce serait une bonne chose que le Nicolas puisse rester au pouvoir pour accompagner les autorités ivoiriennes dans la reconstruction et dans le processus de réconciliation nationale.Dan Emmanuel, lui est alarmiste. Il pense qu’une défaite de Nicolas Sarkozy au soir du 7 Mai va être catastrophique pour le gouvernement ivoirien en place.

“I'm used to voting socialist because they are sensitive to the cause of the minorities in France. But especially to the situation of the black community. But I am going to vote for Sarkozy,” said Cissé Mamadou, a man in his sixties. For him, it is his way of saying thank you to Nicolas Sarkozy for his involvement in the resolution in the post-election violence in Ivory Coast, which resulted in an official death toll of 3,000. Noel Koffi, who has been living in the area for two years, but of French nationality, agrees. For him, it would be good if Nicolas could remain in power to accompany the Ivorian authorities in the reconstruction and process of national reconciliation. Dan Emmanuel is fearmongering. He thinks that a defeat of Nicolas Sarkozy on the evening of May 7th is going to be catastrophic for the Ivorian government in place.

Geostratégie publishes an interview with Charlotte Sawyer [fr] entitled “From France-Africa to France without Africa” and conversely she affirms:

L’Afrique a, surtout, appris une chose : qu’on ne pouvait plus faire confiance aux Français, devenus détrousseurs de grands chemins et grande compagnie. Enfin, à peu près tout ce qu’on voudra, sauf l’ami et le protecteur dont rêvaient encore certaines capitales africaines.(..) Demandez donc aux Maliens ce que vaut l’égide française ? Quant aux Ivoiriens, beaucoup se demandent ce que vous avez fichu dans leur capitale..

Africa has, above all, learned one thing: that we could no longer trust the French, who became highway robbers for large companies. Finally, they became almost anything you want, except the friend and protector that some African nations were hoping for (..) So ask Malians what's the use of being under the good grace of France ? As for the Ivorians, many wonder what were your mandate for intervention in their capital city..

Finally in Germany, Daniel Dagan gathers some funny German cartoons [de] on the French presidential elections.

Madagascar: Rare Deposit-Rich Land Sold to French-German Group

Lova Rakotomalala — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:40:44 +0000

French group Rhodia and German company Tantalus announced the signing of a Letter of Intent to exploit a 300 km-long region filled with rare deposits [fr] in the Ampasindava peninsula in the North-West of Madagascar. The group expects to produce 15,000 tons a year within the next 18 months, a total value estimated at 2 billion euros [fr]. Madagascar is still marred in a political crisis that was triggered by a land grab scandal. Meanwhile, the head of the transitional government Rajoelina has seemingly kicked off his presidential campaign [fr] [photos] after announcing two years ago that he would not run [fr] for president.

Global Voices ‘Europe in Crisis' Coverage Shortlisted for Award

Solana Larsen — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 11:29:18 +0000

Thanks to the work of dedicated volunteers, Global Voices special coverage of “Europe in Crisis” has been named a national winner for the European Charlemagne Youth Prize. The final winners for all of Europe will be announced in Aachen, Germany in May 2012. The award aims to encourage a European consciousness among young people.

France: Pirate Party Fields Candidates in Legislative Election

Jane Ellis — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 08:48:11 +0000

The Pirate Party, which was started in Sweden in 2006, has since spread to other countries in Europe. In Germany, the local elections of Sunday, March 25, 2012, allowed the party to enter the parliament of Saarland after an earlier victory admitted it to the Berlin Parliament. This result has inspired its French counterpart to put forward candidates for this year's French Legislative Election. The newly created Alsace branch [fr] of the Pirate Party is preparing an “essentially digital campaign costing zero Euros”. Le blog de la vache libre [fr] hosted a video [fr] interview in which a candidate explains the objectives [fr] of the party, and journalism student Jérémie Nadé describes the anticipated pirate invasion on his blog.

Macedonia: Fuel Prices Continue to Rise

Filip Stojanovski — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 00:18:43 +0000

Continuous increase of fuel prices is a cause of much concern for citizens of Macedonia, and some vent the tension through humor. The prices are set by a regulatory body, and more and more social media users object to the fact that the lion's share of the revenue in fact goes to the government, stymieing the growth of the business sector.

On his blog, Zoriv published comparisons of the prices of oil derivatives in Macedonia, the USA and the EU [mk], and also calculated how much fuel one can buy on an average salary in various countries [mk]. (Both posts are in Macedonian, but the tables with country comparisons are in English and easily comprehensible.)

So, according to Zoriv, Latvia has the lowest price of gasoline in Europe (EUR 1.20), while Norway has the highest (EUR 1.94). Consumers in Macedonia have to pay EUR 1.4. While the official explanation for rising fuel prices is always the change of price of crude oil, Zoriv points out that a major factor in forming the end price are the excise taxes that go directly to the state budgets in countries with the highest prices (Norway, Holland, Italy, the UK, and Greece). He adds:

In Macedonia, for instance, the total taxation together with the profit margin for the merchants form around 70% of the price (Official Gazette of Republic of Macedonia, no. 138/09 and 52/11). The difference between Macedonia and the EU countries, alongside the salary levels which are incomparable, is the tragic fact that even the slightest increase of oil derivative prices affects the personal material existence of every citizen of Macedonia. The latest data show that fuel consumption has decreased by 30% [mk]. The increase of fuel prices leads to a spiral of the increase of all other living expenses, while family budgets drastically decrease.

The Macedonian government temporarily abolished the excise before the June 2011 elections, but returned it later, raising the prices [mk] in August.

By calculating how much fuel a citizen can buy with an average salary, Zoriv tried to shed light on income disparities: in the United States, one can buy 4,296 liters of gasoline on an average monthly salary. In Europe, the top spots go to Switzerland (3,441 l), Luxemburg (3,439 l), and Germany (3.075 l). The lowest on the list are Macedonia (243 l) and Albania (194 l), with a “disastrous ratio of 1:14″ compared to the leading “rich” countries.

According to the 2010 edition of the annual publication 200 Largest Companies in Macedonia, prepared and published by the Euro Business Center – Skopje, the two largest companies in the country are: the sole oil refinery OKTA (owned by the Greek interests, privatized while the current PM Gruevski served as the Minister of Finance) and the biggest oil derivatives distributor Makpetrol, with the total revenues of EUR 512 million and EUR 350 million, respectively.

The prospects for the future seem bleak. According to the UNDP report “Assessing the Economic Impact of Climate Change,” Macedonia also faces numerous other challenges in the energy sector.

Social media users shared various kinds of data related to the fuel price increase, such as the table [mk] showing the elements that form the prices of fuel, originally from an Radio Free Europe article [mk] by Srgjan Stojanchov:

Elements of fuel prices in Macedonian Denars.

They also posted various reactions to ongoing developments with the fuel prices, and the most shared were the humorous responses, such as this joke: “Would you like to take your girlfriend someplace expensive? - Take her to a gas station!” The latest chuckle is a demotivation-style meme featuring the late Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito and a supposed laconic quote in Croatian:

Photo of Tito and a supposed quote: You say the gasoline got more expensive? Well, why don't you make a deal with the Non-Aligned countries?

During the Cold War, Tito was famous for striking a balance between Eastern and Western blocs, with Yugoslavia serving as a kind of a buffer, to the commercial benefit of its people. In 1961, he co-founded the Non-Aligned Movement, which included many oil-producing nations, resulting in favorable trade relations. A famous political-economic quote attributed to him (in the Lexicon of Yugoslav Mythology) is this: “The grain that we received from the Americans is much superior in quality to the grain the Soviets did not deliver.”

Europe: Will ACTA Treaty Pass After Protests?

Danielle Martineau — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:09:08 +0000

[All links forward to French articles unless stated otherwise.]

As of the end of the month of February 2012, the mobilization efforts of Internet users against the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) [en] were still going strong. In fact, they may have begun to bear fruit.

By including infringements against the author's rights in its scope, this international treaty, which addresses intellectual property rights, also affects Internet content.

The ratification debates which were placed on the European Parliament's agenda on February 29, were put on hold in expectation of the opinion of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). The issue of the treaty's conformity with European Community law was brought before the court on 22 February by the European Commission.

No ACTA - Strasbourg. Photo by Christophe Kaiser on Flickr, CC-license-BY

Taurillon, the “magazine of young Europeans -France” describes “Europe's about-face on ACTA“:

Si l’avis est négatif, l’ACTA n’a plus aucune chance en Europe. Mais en cas d’avis positif, le recours à la CJUE représente le double avantage de redonner au traité une certaine crédibilité, et de repousser son adoption à une époque suffisamment lointaine pour que la polémique se soit tassée et que l’opinion publique regarde ailleurs.

If the opinion is negative, ACTA no longer stands a chance in Europe. However, if there is a positive opinion, appealing to the ECJ would mean a double advantage by giving the treaty a certain credibility, and also pushing back implementation to a time that is far enough away when public debate has settled down and the public's attention is focused elsewhere.

Jérémie Zimmermann, co-founder and spokesperson for la Quadrature du Net urges on the European deputies:

Les eurodéputés doivent résister à la stratégie de la Commission européenne, qui cherche à gagner du temps et à transformer le débat en une simple discussion juridique, et pour cela continuer à travailler au rejet d’ACTA. ACTA vise à imposer une tendance pour une politique globale du droit d’auteur qui est toxique pour l’Internet libre et pour les libertés. Le Parlement européen est le dernier rempart : il doit agir et adopter une position claire et forte, faute de quoi il laissera le champ libre à la Commission pour imposer une répression inacceptable.

The Eurodeputies must resist the European Commission's strategy of attempting to gain time and turning the debate into a simple legal discussion, thereby continuing to work towards ACTA's rejection. ACTA aims to impose a tendency for a global policy of author's rights that is toxic for the free Internet and for freedom. The European Parliament is the last line of defense: it must act and adopt a firm and clear position, otherwise it will leave the field wide open for the commission to impose an unacceptable repression.

For trucbuntu, there is no question of remaining passive while waiting for the Court to adjudicate:

Les citoyens de toute l’Europe peuvent contacter leurs représentants dans les commissions Commerce International (INTA) et Industrie (ITRE), qui se réunissent cette semaine pour discuter d’ACTA, et leur demander de continuer à travailler au sein de leur commission pour le rejet d’ACTA.

Citizens of all of Europe were able to contact their representatives in the International Trade (INTA) and Industry (ITRE) Committees, who met on February 29 to discuss ACTA. Many citizens requested their representatives to reject the proposal.

The website of the European Parliament explains the procedure and the issues of the treaty [en] that are under scrutiny, and has published ‘What you should know about ACTA‘ [en], a page of questions and answers. The ACTA workshop of the European Parliament has been the object of a storify [en] made by the Parliamentary services (link via Global Voices contributor Asteris Masouras [en]).

The organization AVAAZ submitted a petition to the European Parliament on 29 February with 2.4 million signatures against ACTA. The petition is still open:

Nous sommes vraiment proches de la victoire — notre pétition forte de 2,4 millions de signatures a ébranlé les responsables politiques partout en Europe et stoppé les censeurs. La Commission européenne est à présent en position de faiblesse et espère que la Cour de justice donnera son feu vert au traité ACTA en lui soumettant une question juridique très limitée qui recevra certainement une réponse positive.Mais si nous faisons résonner nos voix aujourd'hui, nous pouvons faire en sorte que la Cour examine tous les impacts légaux du traité ACTA et publie un avis qui fera toute la lumière sur cette attaque contre nos droits qu'est ACTA.

We are really close to victory — our petition, with 2.4 million signatures has shaken up those politicians in charge throughout Europe and stopped their censors. The European Commission is currently in a position of weakness and is hoping the Court of justice will green light the ACTA treaty by bringing before the court a very limited legal question, that will without doubt receive a positive response. But if we make our voices heard today, we will be able to get the court to examine all the legal implications of ACTA and publish an opinion that will bring to light the real attack against our rights that is ACTA.

No ACTA - Strasbourg. Photo Christophe Kaiser on Flickr, CC-license-BY

Anti-ACTA parties continue to strengthen their resources. New protests were set for 10 March, and torrentnews gives a list, with this appeal:

La liste n’est pas exhaustive, n’hésitez pas à nous contacter pour la compléter ;)

si certains se sentent l’âme d’un reporter- photographe en herbe, nous recherchons également des personnes pour faire un petit article photo du déroulement de la manif, rien de bien compliqué, comme fait ici pour Nice, Marseille,Bordeaux et Strasbourg.

The list is not exhaustive, do not hesitate to contact us to complete it ;)

If any individuals see themselves as budding photojournalists we are also looking for people to do a small photo story on how the protest unfolds, nothing too complicated, as it happens in Nice, Marseille, Bordeaux, and Strasbourg.

For details on the elements of the debate, see also these linked articles from the Tribune on February 29, and Myeurop, on March 3. On Global Voices, see the laws SOPA/PIPA that set a precedent in the USA, here [en] and here [en]. Since the beginning of the protests, ACTA seems to have lost a lot of political momentum.

The title of this post is inspired by the end of the article “La liberté sur Internet : le filtrage de la discorde” which was published by the Institute of Research and Legal and Information studies and Communication (I.R.E.D.I.C.). It puts into perspective Internet blocking and debates the adoption of ACTA.

The original article in French was published on March 4. For background on the ACTA proposal, more articles can be found here [en].

Germany: Email Monitoring #Bomb(e) Drops

Rachel Horst — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 16:15:40 +0000

On Saturday morning, February 25, 2012, the story [de] broke that in 2010, German intelligence had heavily monitored email communication in the country. More than 37 million emails containing particular search terms related to terrorism, smuggling and proliferation were reported to have been filtered out and examined.

Of the approximately 2,000 search terms, there was one singled out by media and Internet users that prompted not only outrage, but also many a creative word play: “bomb.”

Journalist Richard Gutjahr argues that the intelligence agencies concerned went too far and points out the results of the surveillance of email communication in his blog [de]:

Respekt: Unter den 37 Millionen abgefangenen Mails 2010 waren immerhin 213 Personen, die bei ihrer Steuererklärung gemogelt, Marihuana geraucht oder ihre Strafzettel nicht bezahlt haben. Soll noch einer sagen, Rasterfahndung liefere keine Ergebnisse.

Respect: Among the 37 million intercepted emails in 2010 there were 213 people who cheated on their tax returns, smoked marijuana or didn't pay their traffic ticket. Never let it be said that computer surveillance yields no results.

Markus Beckedahl of the blog Netzpolitik marvels [de] at so many users' surprise:

Geschockt und überrascht? Verschlüsselte Kommunikation via Mail und Jabber sichern die eigene Privatsphäre besser.

Shocked and surprised? Encrypted communication via email and Jabber [open source instant messengering software] better secure one's own private sphere.

The hashtag #bombe was trending in Germany by Saturday afternoon. Following are a few reactions by Twitter users shortly after the story broke.

@ploechinger writes [de]:

@cjakubetz @videopunk @heiko Das ist ja heute Morgen schon eine #Bombe-nstimmung!

@cjakubetz @videopunk @heiko This morning is just the #bombe!

@HausOhneFenster jokes [de]:

Manchmal schreibe ich in meine Emails absichtlich Wörter wie Bombe, Rakete und Terror, damit wenigstens der Verfassungsschutz sie liest.

Sometimes I write words like bomb, missile and terror, just so that at least the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution will read it.

@irm_tw comments [de]:

#bombe trendet auf Platz 1. BND und MAD ratlos. Beantragen Budget für neue Technik, um auch noch sämliche tweets durchsuchen zu können.

#bombe trending in first place. BND [Federal Foreign Intelligence Agency] and MAD [Federal Military Counterintelligence Service] dumbstruck. Requesting a budget for new technology so they can search through all tweets too.

Wingdings Bomb (Picture by Twitter user @Olaf_HB on Twitpic)

Twitterer @Olaf_HB posts [de] a photo:

die tägliche #BOMBE ! / the daily #BOMB ! *hehehe* ;-) @lieselm twitpic.com/8pcndw

the daily #BOMBE ! *hehehe* ;-) @lieselm twitpic.com/8pcndw

@linksgruen asks [de]:

@netzpolitik Hui, da darf man wohl das Wort Sex-Bombe nicht mehr benutzen?

@netzpolitik Whoa, does that mean you can't use the word sex bomb anymore?

@PatrickLobacher doubts [de] the usefulness of this approach:

Sehr schön Herr Geheimdienst: Denke auch, dass Gangster über das schreiben, was sie konkret vorhaben - bestimmt! http://bit.ly/ySZ5dj #bombe

Very nice, Mr. Intelligence Agency: I totally think gangsters write about exactly what they plan to do too- definitely! http://bit.ly/ySZ5dj #bombe

@kischtrine is amazed [de] at the amount of resources put into this initiative:

Wieviele Geheimdienstler wohl wie lange damit verbracht haben diese Mails zu lesen? Wie bei der Stasi damals für nix. Was das kostet #Bombe

How many intelligence agents have spent how long reading these emails? Just like the Stasi back then, for nothing. What that must cost #Bombe

The Best of the Blogs Awards: Have You Submitted Your Blog?

Claire Ulrich — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:23:46 +0000

Have you submitted your blog, social media group, or online initiative to the 2012 Best of the Blogs Awards (The BoBs)?

The BoBs are an annual blog award organized by German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (@dw_thebobs). Bloggers, writers, artists, citizen video reporters, activists and innovators are encouraged to shun shyness and register their blogs in one of 17 categories in 11 languages.

You can also recommend a blog you love written by someone else. Take a moment to submit the link before March, 13, 2012. Online voting will open on April 2, and the winners will be announced on May 2.

This year, educator blogs are especially welcome since a new Education Award will be awarded. A Reporters Without Borders Freedom of Expression Award makes a comeback this year.

Facebook and Twitter may dominate the current online landscape, but blogs are far from outdated and now blend in with social networks.

The “Best of the Blogs” laureates of 2011 are proof of the transforming power of individuals and groups of netizens striving for change. Many have played a part in uprisings in the Arab world, Russia, Mexico, Iran, Bangladesh (full list of the 2011 BoBs winners here).

A few of the 2011 BoBs winners from Iran, Russia, Egypt, Tunisia, Mexico during the ceremony in Bonn, Germany - Image courtesy of Deutsche Welle

The video below highlights the vision behind this respected and global blog competition, now in its 8th year.

Global voices Online and the Best of Blogs Awards share a common mission: to shine light on rarely heard voices and to create bridges across languages and cultures. Many bloggers who were highlighted on Global Voices have later been distinguished by a BoBs award.

Individuals from Global Voices have also been honored to sit on the jury. This year, along with myself (Claire Ulrich) for the French category, Tarek Amr from Egypt will sit on the jury for blogs in Arabic. Also on the jury is Enda Nasution from Indonesia who was the first Indonesia author on Global Voices from 2005-2006.

Macedonia: Animated Hitler Meme as a Free Resource

Filip Stojanovski — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 13:44:37 +0000

As a reaction to the corporate efforts to enact an even more draconian legislation and in response to the attempts of the distributor of the film Downfall to take down the Hitler meme on copyright grounds, Ribaro published [mk] an animated parody of the iconic scene, free for download and re-use under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial License.