Global Voices » Spain

Spain: The Rebel Grandparents of the 15M

Marianna Breytman — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:25:57 +0000

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

They call themselves “the children” of 15M despite the fact that the majority of them far exceed the age of 60, they are retired, they are “iaios” (grandparents, in Catalan) and they are veterans of long-term activism.

Celestino Sánchez, Antonia Jover, Adrián Rísquez, and Rosario Cunillera are some of the members of the the “Iaioflautas,” a collective that emerged in Barcelona last October alongside the camping grounds in Plaza Catalunya. Its objective is to support the youth in their own way. But the fight, they assert, is the same: “for a dignified democracy by name and social justice against conspiratorial bankers and politicians.”

The “iaioflautas,” whose name was invented in solidarity with the “perroflautas” (gutter punks) — a derrogatory term with which the president of Madrid used to refer to the young occupiers — combine some of the methods they used in the anti-Franco, labor union, local or leftist fights with their learning about new technologies. To summarize, they organize a “direct action” in the street once a month, almost in secret, and do not announce it on their Twitter account, @iaioflautas, or blog [es] until it has already begun. That way, they avoid problems with the police.

The first event took place in November, when they occupied a Santander Bank office in Barcelona. The most recent one, called “Operation #RebelionBus,” occurred on Wednesday, February 1. Some 70 “yayos” (grandparents) arranged to meet in the very center of the Catalan capital and “hijacked” a bus in protest of the abusive increase in public transportation fares.

They chose Line 47, in reference to the missing bus driver and syndicalist Manuel Vital [es] that hijacked a bus on this line in May of 1978 to demonstrate that he could get to his neighborhood. The following is part of a series of tweets that they started writing a few days before with the help of young activists:

January 30:

@iaioflautas: #eldía1F los @iaioflautas vamos a hacer algo muy loco. (puenting…como que no). Filosofía #occupy 99% ¿Le dais un meneito? Gracias!

@iaioflautas: #Feb1 the @iaioflautas are going to do something really crazy. (bungee jumping… but of course). #occupy 99% Philosophy. Will you give it a little shake? Thank you!

@celescolorado: Miércoles 1 por la mañana nueva travesura de @iaioflautas, síguenos

@celescolorado: The morning of Wednesday, the first, a new @iaioflautas prank. Follow us

January 31:

@iaioflautas: Tic-tac, tic-tac…cuenta atrás para una travesura más. Será #eldia1f ¡especuladores, os vais a enterar! Somos el 99%. No olvidamos.

@iaioflautas: Tick-tock, tick-tock… counting down to one more prank. It will happen on #Feb1. Speculators, you're going to find out! We are the 99%. We don't forget.

February 1:

@iaioflautas: En marcha! Hoy será un día largo. No olvidéis el bocadillo, medicaciones varias… Hoy entramos en acción. ¡Atentos!

@iaioflautas: Marching! Today will be a long day. Don't forget your sandwich, various medications… Today we start the action. Watch out!

@iaioflautas: Calentando motores, q frío que hace!

@iaioflautas: Starting our engines, it's so cold out!

@iaioflautas: Hemos ocupado un autobús, el 47, en pl. Catalunya. Somos más de 70 @iaioflautas, la acción ha empezado, seguidnos en #rebelionbus

@iaioflautas: We've occupied a bus, the 47, in Pl. Catalunya. There are over 70 of us @iaioflautas, the action has started. Follow us with#rebelionbus

@iaioflautas: [Calle] Industria con Sardenya. Que se escuche: rechazamos las reducciones de tarifas y el plan de recortes salariales #rebelionbus

@iaioflautas: On Industria and Sardenya Street. Listen: we reject the reduction in prices and the plan for salary cuts #rebelionbus

@iaioflautas: Aquí podéis ver algunas fotos de #rebelionbus. Vamos por Ronda Guineueta. Estamos ocupando el bus 47 http://www.iaioflautas.org/2012/02/operacio-rebelionbus/

@iaioflautas: You can see photos from #rebelionbus here. We're going along Ronda Guineueta. We're occupying the 47 bus. iaioflautas.org/2012/02/operac…

@iaioflautas: Bueno, el trayecto de ida ha acabado. Ahora, volviendo para la Plaza Catalunya. Sobre las 12:30 haremos una asamblea allí #rebelionbus

@iaioflautas: Well, the trip there has ended. Now we're returning to Plaza Catalunya. Around 12:30 we're going to have an assembly there #rebelionbus

@iaioflautas: Final del trayecto mañanero de la #rebelionbus. La lucha continúa con #yonopago esta tarde. pic.twitter.com/8GaRmzSw

@iaioflautas: The end of the morning trip on the #rebelionbus. The fight continues with #yonopago (#Iwontpay) this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/8GaRmzSw

@celescolorado: En la asamblea final en pz. Catalunya @iaioflautas hemos cantado el cumpleaños feliz a un compañero, Manolo González cumplía 80 años

@celescolorado: At the final assembly in Pl. Catalunya @iaioflautas We sang Happy Birthday to a friend, Manolo González, who turned 80

And here is the video that @15Mbc_tv recorded and edited:

The #RebeliónBus operation had been prepared a week before, during a meeting I attended. I had been following the Iaioflautas for some time online, and I wanted to get to know them. There they finalized the details of the action and began planning the “prank” that they will carry out in March. This is part of what some of them told me:

Celestino Sánchez, 61 years old:

Celestino. (Screen shot taken by the author)

El 15M representó para gente como nosotros una especie de aire fresco. La situación ha cambiado y hay un nuevo escenario y tenemos que volver a aprender. Eso no quiere decir que nuestro pasado no sirva, pero las cosas son diferentes. Por ejemplo, hace diez años era impensable que se convocara a través de las redes sociales la ocupación de la plaza Catalunya. Se decía que la gente joven no hacía nada, y hace, hace mucho. La gente de las generaciones futuras vivirá peor que la del pasado, ese es otro cambio. Lo que creo que no ha cambiado son los objetivos: una sociedad en las que las personas podamos vivir libremente, que tengamos vivienda, transporte, que estudiemos. Eso lo queríamos hace treinta años y ahora también, sigue siendo vigente.

The 15M represented a sort of breath of fresh air for people like us. The situation has changed and there is a new scenario, and we have to go back to learning. This doesn't mean that the past no longer serves a purpose, but that things are different. For example, ten years ago, it was unthinkable for the Plaza Catalunya occupation to be organized through social networks. People said that the youth did nothing, but they do quite a lot. Future generations will live worse than those of the past, that is another change. I believe that the objectives are that which hasn't changed: a society in which we as people can live freely, where we can have homes, transportation, where we can study. This is what we wanted 30 years ago and now it also continues to be the case.

Antonia Jover, 72 years old:

Antonia. (Screen shot taken by the author)

Me gusta mucho esta forma de lucha, porque pienso que es una forma directa y, además, responde a la concepción que siempre he tenido de la democracia. La democracia es poder del pueblo, ningún gobierno puede ser democrático, porque los gobiernos son represivos. La verdadera democracia está en el pueblo y en la vigilancia del pueblo de que los gobiernos cumplan lo que prometen. Los iaioflautas podemos aprovechar las experiencias que teníamos del franquismo. Entonces los que queríamos una sociedad democrática teníamos un enemigo común, el franquismo, un sistema bárbaro y represivo. Y ahora, ¿por qué no hacer una misma experiencia de la unidad contra los especuladores y los financieros? Nos afecta al 99% de la población y sólo es el 1% el que se beneficia. Ésta es la idea.”

I really like this form of uprising, because I think it is direct and also responds to the conception that I have always had of democracy. Democracy is power of the people, no government can be democratic because governments are repressive. True democracy lies with the people and in the peoples' vigilance that the governments deliver their promises. We iaioflautas can take advantage of the experiences we had with the Franco era. So those of us that wanted a democratic society have a common enemy, Franco's regime, a barbaric and repressive system. And now, why not create the same experience of unity against speculators and financiers? It affects 99% of our population and it is only the 1% that benefits. That is the idea.

Adrián Rísquez, 77 years old:

Adrián. (Screen shot taken by the author)

En los iaioflautas me siento muy bien. Llevo cinco años encerrado en la Federación de Asociaciones de vecinos hablando de la sanidad sin salir a la calle y como nuestra trayectoria fue en la calle, dentro de los locales no me aguantaba. Con los iaios hacemos lo que me gusta, en la calle, porque lo hicimos en aquellos tiempos y lo estábamos echando en falta. Decíamos que era necesario que la juventud saliera a la calle, pues ya está en la calle y ahora lo que tenemos que hacer es estar con ellos, que ellos aprendan de nosotros y nosotros de ellos. No se puede estar en casa porque las cosas que tenemos no las hemos conseguido en casa. La sanidad pública se consiguió en la calle y tenemos que conseguir en la calle para que no nos la quiten.

I feel really good being with the iaioflautas. I have been locked up in the Federation of Neighborhood Associations talking about health without going out into the streets, and since our experience had been in the streets, I couldn't take it anymore inside the locales. With the iaios, we do what I like, outside, because we did it in those times and we were doing what was needed. We said that it was necessary for the youth to come out into the streets, well now they're in the streets and what we have to do is be with them, so that they learn from us and we from them. You can't stay inside the house because we haven't gotten the things we currently have from sitting at home. Public health was achieved in the street and we have to continue on in the street so they don't take it away from us.

Rosario Cunillera, 66 years old:

Rosario. (Screen shot taken by the author)

Todo empezó cuando fuimos a la plaza Catalunya a ver a los jóvenes y saber qué pensaban. No entramos en su lucha, porque, para mí, era totalmente diferente a cuando vine a Barcelona, a los 18 años, a luchar contra Franco. Pero fue un impulso nuevo. Ellos van a encontrar su forma de luchar, pensé, con el Twitter y todo esto. Y me apunté a los iaioflautas y cada vez que hay algo de los jóvenes, procuramos ir. Los jóvenes del 15M nos han dado un poco de ilusión y eso es algo que nos faltaba a la gente mayor.

Everything started when we went to Plaza Catalunya to see the young people and find out what they were thinking. We didn't join the fight because, for me, it was totally different from when I came to Barcelona at the age of 18 to fight against Franco. But it was a new impulse. They went to find their own way of fighting, I thought, with Twitter and all of that. So I joined the iaioflautas and every time the young people do something, we try to go. The 15M youth has shown us a bit of hope and that is something that us elderly were missing.

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

Spain: A Letter From Syria

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

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

Spanish-Speaking Twittersphere Fumes Over Announcement

L. Finch — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:36:11 +0000

Twitter's announcement, published on January 26, 2012, which revealed that due to its international growth it will restrict certain user content according to the laws of each individual country, caused an immediate and overwhelmingly negative reaction in the Spanish-speaking Twittersphere.

The hashtags #CensuramestaTwitter and #TwitterCensored were used on a massive scale by Twitter users to show their disagreement with the website's decision, and #CensuramestaTwitter became a trending topic in various countries in the region as well as in other parts of the world.

Just as the hashtags indicate, the first reaction to Twitter's decision was to cry censorship. One of the first bloggers to argue the point was Colombian blogger Víctor Solano, who characterized the day as “one of the saddest days in the history of social networking freedom,” and among other things said [es]:

Image by Andreas Eldh, under Creative Commons Generic Attribution 2.0 license (CC BY 2.0)

Así las cosas, si esto hubiese ocurrido hace un año, no sabemos cómo habría sido el desarrollo de la ‘Primavera árabe’, el fenómeno que sacudió gobiernos como los de Túnez, gracias a la participación muy activa de los ciudadanos inconformes a través de las redes sociales. Con esta decisión, muchas de las ideas se convierten potencialmente en subversivas si llegan a incomodar a cualquier gobierno, sin que este tenga que ser necesariamente una dictadura.

As things are, if this had happened a year ago, we don't know if there would have been an “Arab Spring” uprising, the phenomenon that toppled governments such as Tunisia's, thanks to the very active participation of dissatisfied citizens on social networks. With this decision, many ideas potentially become subversive if they perturb whichever government, and without ideas we are inevitably left with a dictatorship.

Afterwards he reflected on how this new measure would be implemented:

Cuando un tweet alerte que hay una irregularidad en el día de las elecciones en un país que esté regentado por un gobierno que lleve, digamos, ocho años en el poder, ¿El gobierno podría solicitar que lo borre porque altera la tranquilidad y el orden? Casos como este y muchos más manipulan la puerta giratoria entre la libertad y la represión a la perseguida libertad de expresión.

When a tweet alerts the public that there is some irregularity during elections in a country that is run by a government that has held power for, let's say, eight years, could the government ask for the Tweet to be erased because it could disturb peace and order? Cases such as this and many more manipulate the revolving door between freedom and repression of that freedom of expression which we pursue.

From Spain, we hear from Rodaimos, who writes for the blog Mi mar conceptual, apart from aggregating other microblogging alternatives such as StatusNet [en] and the own well-known platform, identi.ca [en], speculated [es]:

No hace falta decir, que esto atenta no solo contra la libertad de expresión, sino también contra la libertad de prensa. Además, nos deja ante una inquietante pregunta: Si Twitter es capaz de hacer esto públicamente, ¿Qué es lo que hará a escondidas? ¿Pasará Twitter un listado de infractores a las autoridades de cada país?

It is obvious that this attacks not only freedom of expression, but also freedom of the press. Furthermore, this leaves us with a disquieting question: If Twitter is capable of doing this publicly, what will it do privately? Will Twitter hand over a list of offenders to the authorities in each country?

On the Spanish technology website Bitelia, JJ Velasco commented [es] along the same lines:

Creo que la nota de Twitter es muy desafortunada ya que intentar vestir la censura como una herramienta para cumplir la legislación francesa o alemana es una excusa muy pobre que apenas se sostiene pero, por muchas vueltas que se le de, la censura seguirá siendo censura y, con este anuncio, Twitter le brinda a muchos gobiernos la posibilidad de ejercer dicha censura a nivel local. Un movimiento bastante triste.

I believe that Twitter's note is very unfortunate because it intends to dress up censorship as a tool to comply with French legislation or German legislation. It's a very poor excuse that hardly holds up but, despite its many slights of hand, censorship continues to be censorship and, with this announcement, Twitter presents many governments with the possibility of exercising said censorship on a local level. Such a sad move.

From Mexico, Sophiegadget of SweetieGeeks.com gave [es] a practical example of what could potentially happen with Twitter's actions:

En México, ¿Qué pasa si al gobierno se le ocurre que este es un país seguro, que no hay balaceras ni narcotráfico? ¿Twitter censuraría todos los tweets con este tipo de contenido? Si así fuera, comenzaríamos a vivir en la mentira, y no solo en un país de mentiras, en un mundo de mentiras

In Mexico, what happens if the government decides that this is a safe country, that there are no shootings or drug trafficking? Would Twitter censor all the Tweets on this topic? If this were so, we would begin to live a lie, and not only in a country of lies, but in a world of lies.

Twitter, for its part, has declared [es] through a spokesperson that “our announcement has nothing to do with censorship,” adding that the announcement “absolutely does not imply any type of change” in its policy or philosophy on freedom of expression. Eduardo Arcos of Ecuador agreed with Twitter's declarations, and said on ALT1040 that “Twitter will not censor” [es]:

Twitter ha eliminado contenido y hasta eliminado cuentas desde hace años. No es nada nuevo. Es normal, y además ¡es necesario! ¿Les parece bien que si un gobierno hace una demanda formal a Twitter para que se retire contenido publicado por una persona a páginas de pornografía infantil, estas no se eliminen? La libertad de expresión no solo es un derecho, es una responsabilidad y Twitter como plataforma tiene que mantener esos principios, tanto ofreciendo el servicio sin costo a cualquier persona que desee usarla para expresarse como también ejerciendo control hacia aquellos que intentan aprovecharse para cometer delitos.

Twitter has eliminated content and even eliminated accounts for years. This is nothing new. It's normal, and besides it's necessary! Do you think it's OK that if a government formally demands that Twitter remove content published by someone to child pornography websites, they shouldn't take it down? Freedom of expression is not only a right, it's a responsibility and Twitter as a platform has to maintain these principles, so that it is both offering its service for free to whoever wants to use it to express themselves as well as exercising control over those that intend to take advantage of its service to commit crimes.

To this he added later:

Por último Twitter busca hacer todo esto de la forma más transparente posible y junto a Chilling Effects ha creado una sección donde detallará cada caso en que un gobierno pida que se censure un contenido particular. De tal forma que nosotros sepamos exactamente quien y por qué pide que un contenido no se muestre. […] Entonces tranquilos, nadie los está censurando y el poder de publicar en esta plataforma no está en peligro.

Finally, Twitter is looking to do all this in the most transparent way possible and together with Chilling Effects has created a section [en] where each case in which a government asks that they censor particular content is detailed. In this way, we can know exactly who and for what reason a government asks that content not be shown. […] So calm down, no one is censoring content and the power of publishing on this platform is not in danger.

Claudio Ruiz, of Chile, on FayerWayer agreed with this opinion, reflecting that [es]:

Antes de hablar de censura y abuso en los nuevos términos de uso hay que tomar en cuenta que hoy se bajan contenidos de redes sociales. Todos los días. Y todos lo hacen, algunos con mayor transparencia (Twitter, Google), otros con menos (Facebook). Y esto, por lo demás, es razonable que ocurra. Es un derecho vinculado a la protección de la privacidad poder solicitar la bajada de ciertos contenido bajo las circunstancias que la ley local establezca para la protección de cierta información personal. Esto no va a cambiar con las nuevas políticas. La diferencia entre lo que sucede hoy y las nuevas políticas es que ahora dicho bloqueo sólo tendrá efectos locales. De censura poco puede haber si las bajadas de contenido se hacen 1) Localmente; y 2) bajo las reglas establecidas en las leyes locales y no de manera arbitraria.

Before talking about censorship and abuse in these new terms of use, one has to take into account that social networking content is already taken down today. Everyday. And all of them do it, some with more transparency (Twitter, Google) than others (Facebook). And this, otherwise, is a reasonable thing. It's a right linked to the protection of privacy, to be able to ask that certain content be taken down under circumstances established by local law to protect certain personal information. This is not going to change with the new policy. The difference between what happens today and the new policy is that this said blocking of content will now only have local effects. It can hardly be censorship if the taking down of content is down 1) locally; and 2) under the rules established within local laws and not in an arbitrary way.

However, this is not the opinion of the majority and a TwitterBlackout was organized on Jan. 28, in which users stayed away from the platform for the entire day. The Twitter activity under the hashtags #TwitterBlackout and #j28 were going strong, and #TwitterBlackout became a Trending Topic worldwide. Manuel Moreno on Trecebits pointed out: [es]

Twitter ha conseguido enfadar a sus usuarios. A lo grande. Su anuncio de que ha desarrollado un sistema que permitirá eliminar los mensajes de los usuarios que no cumplan con la legalidad en algunos países ha sido considerado por muchos como censura. […] Veremos si mañana desciende el número de tweets en protesta por la medida… y si Twitter escucha a sus usuarios esta vez.

Twitter has succeeded in angering its users. On a large scale. Many have considered is announcement that it has developed a system that allows for the elimination of user messages that don't comply with the law in some countries paramount to censorship. […] We will see tomorrow if the number of Tweets in protest on the site go down… and if Twitter listens to its users this time.

Finally, Enzo Abbagliati, on El Quinto Poder in Childe, reflected [es] on the motivations for protest:

Los ciudadanos debemos exigirles a nuestros estados una defensa sin ambigüedades del estándar democrático. Y ese estándar incluye en su base la libertad de expresión. Pero en el mundo en red, ese estándar también debemos exigírselo a las empresas de la red, a esas que bajo las lógicas de la Sociedad de la Información, hacen de nosotros y nuestros contenidos, la fuente de su prosperidad. Twitter debe cumplir las leyes que rigen en todos los países donde opera o espera funcionar. Eso está fuera de toda duda, pero si para aumentar su penetración mundial cierra los ojos a las restricciones de libertad de expresión que en muchos casos existen, en lo personal no me gusta. Si lo aceptamos, estaríamos dando por perdida la batalla que entre libertad y control está teniendo lugar por estos días en las redes.

Citizens should demand that their states take an unambiguous defense of the democratic standard. And that standard includes in its foundation freedom of expression. But in the online world, that standard also should be demanded of the networking companies, of those that under the logic of an information society, find in us and our content the source of their prosperity. Twitter should comply with the governing laws in all the countries where it operates and hopes to function. That is without a doubt, but if to increase its worldwide proliferation it closes its eyes to restrictions on freedom of expression that in many cases exist, personally I don't like this. If we accept this, we would be treating the battle between freedom and control, which is happening these days on social networking sites, as already lost.

Other articles on the topic:

Technosociology - Why Twitter’s new policy is helpful for free-speech advocates
Global Voices Advocacy - What Does Twitter’s Country-by-Country Takedown System Mean for Freedom of Expression?
Mashable - Relax: Twitter’s New Censorship Policy Is Actually Good for Activists
Thenextweb - Worried about possible restrictions on Twitter? Here’s how to get around them.
HuffingtonPost - Twitter Censorship Policy Ignites Global Outrage

Post originally published on Juan Arellano's personal blog on January 27, 2012..

Europe: Radio Documentary to Chronicle Long-Term Effects of Crisis

Asteris Masouras — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:06:14 +0000

Chronicles of a European Winter is a radio documentary series project focused on the actual effects of austerity measures amongst the populations of different European countries. It will be shot and edited between December 2011 and May 2012 in Greece, Ireland and Spain, and episodes will be licensed under Creative Commons.

Spain: Electricity Cut Off for one School in Alicante

Jane Ellis — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:58:19 +0000

Power was cut off [ca] for 800 pupils in a secondary school in Alicante due to outstanding payments. The Valencian Community is currently mired in financial difficulties after years of extravagant spending. MPs Esther López Barceló [ca] from the United and Alternative Left and Mireia Mollà [ca] from the Coalicío Compromis, provided reactions to the news.

Video Highlights: Activism, Freedom of Speech, Identity and Culture

Juliana Rincón Parra — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:57:18 +0000

This section 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 or by clicking on the regional header links.

Middle East North Africa:

Yemen: The Amazing Life March Arrives in Sanaa
From Yemen we have the amazing story of the historic 264km Life March, which is the longest since Mahatma Gandhi's 390km long Salt March in 1930. During the Life March, villages and towns came together to give food and drink to the thousands of people who marched for four days straight through winding mountain passes protesting the immunity that outgoing President Saleh asked for himself and his aides and family for the killing of protesters in the Yemen uprisings.

However, the march didn't seem to sway the newly formed cabinet members who approved the bill: it will now go on to parliament for it to become a law.
Yemen: Saleh Gets Away With Murder…He Gets Immunity

It is those martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the rest of Yemen to live a life of freedom and democracy, whom Yemenis feel they must never be forgotten nor should their blood go in vain.

This next video is a silent remembrance for those who died during the peaceful uprising:

Some online activists are also promoting an online campaign against a stimulating herb chewed by many Yemeni men and women for hours on end, sometimes daily. The campaign is for a day without using the leafy green plant, Qat:
Yemen: January 12, a Day Without Qat

As blogger @Afrahnasser, proposed on Twitter:

An average citizen in Yemen wastes 8 hrs in searching money for qat, another 8 hrs in chewing qat & the rest 8 hrs in sleeping @NoonArabia

The idea of the campaign is to turn those hours spent on qat into active endeavors which build up Yemen.

Sub-Saharan Africa:

Ethiopia: Swedish Journalists Found Guilty of Terrorism Charges
Swedish journalists Martin Schibbye and Johan Persson crossed from Somalia to Ethiopia illegally which caused the Ethiopian authorities to detain and put them on trial for supporting terrorist activities and crossing illegally into the territory, although the defense claims that they were performing their duty as journalists to report both sides of the conflict. This next video was used as evidence during the trial, where the journalists are seen planning their journey as journalists

Western Europe:

Spain: Fighting for the Right to a Home

Families who got into debt to buy a home and ended without jobs or income to pay for them are being helped by an organization aiming to stop families from being evicted and to give them temporary homes in foreclosed and empty houses when they aren't able to stop the banks. The video on this post shows their success in avoiding an eviction and keeping a man and his 13 year old son off the streets.

Eastern and Central Europe:

Hungary: Memories of Barvalipe Roma Pride Summer Camp
Growing up Roma in Europe can make children feel stigmatized and rejected by their peers, causing them to hide their origins and feel ashamed of their heritage. The Barvalipe Roma Pride Summer Camp aimed to give Roma youth a chance to discover their roots by learning the language, history and cuisine of the Roma people.

East Asia:

Hong Kong: Protest Against Luxury Brand to Defend Local Identity
A luxury brand which doesn't allow for photographs to be taken of its store is not news, but when they stated that the rule only applied for local residents of Hong Kong and not tourists from Mainland China, the people of Hong Kong made their anger known through a flashmob outside the store.

Latin America:

Chile: Wildfire in Torres del Paine Shocks Netizens
The wildfire in one of Chile's top touristic spots, National Park Torres del Paine had netizens blogging and tweeting about the fire, both as experienced by those inside the park at the time of the evacuation and recorded it on video as well as from concerned people following the news and updates.

Central America: LibreBus Project Presents its Documentary
The documentary follows the activists who climbed on board a bus driving through 5 different Central American countries to spread the message of free software, the defense of freedom of speech and content sharing.

Colombia: Salsa Song Criticizes Bus Rapid Transport System
Public transportation makes it easier for people to get from one location to another without having to use their own vehicle, however, when that public transportation system is overcrowded, it can become a torture instead of a relief. The salsa song (with translated captions) shows what it is like for people to use the popular Transmilenio System in the capital city of Bogota.

Eurozone Crisis: 2011 Citizen Media Responses

Paola D'Orazio — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:21:27 +0000

This page is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis and 2011 on Global Voices.

The year 2011 will be remembered for the European debt crisis and its impact on the global economy, but also for its hard consequences on everyday life. The crisis began in 2007 and is without precedent in post-war economic history. Europe is living its darkest economic days since the 1930s.

Due to the growing importance of the topic and due to the diffusion of social media platforms, in recent months there has been a proliferation of “economic blogging” (and tweeting). Opinion, thoughts and reactions abound online trying to make sense of what future awaits the Eurozone.

Considering VAT increases, along with salary, pension and benefit cuts, some basic goods are becoming less affordable. Indian blogger Deepankar Basu wrote on the indian economic website Sanhati:

These [austerity] measures reduce expenditure and increase taxes in order to reduce government deficits. Cutbacks in government spending and increases in taxes, at this particular moment, however, amount to the worst possible policy stance, reducing aggregate demand even further, and pushing the economies deeper into recession.

Sovereign debts, junk ratings: protests take to the street

Camp site at Puerta del Sol, Madrid, Spain. Photo by Julio Albarrán, republished under a CC License.

The crisis is perceived to have started within three countries - Ireland, Greece and Portugal - but quickly spread to Spain and Italy.

Since the international rating agencies gave their assessments (ratings) for each national solvency (the ability to pay public debt) it seemed they “held the wand” over the Eurozone’s future. This power over the fate of each state provoked strong debates all over Europe, with many questioning the legitimacy of their analysis.

In Portugal, for example, there was a strong commotion and reaction when the independent American financial analysis firm Moody's called Portuguese debt “junk debt”.

But the core of the protests occurred in May. It all started in Spain with the 15M movement, mainly coordinated by the youth organization Democracia Real Ya [es], which was extremely active online and organized massive demonstrations against corruption, unemployment, and a political structure allegedly favouring a two-party system.

The acampadas born in Plaza del Sol in Madrid quickly “infected” other Spanish cities, such as Barcelona, Sevilla and Malaga. In a few weeks other movements became active in other European Countries and globally, later the Occupy Wall Street movement.

"#campmap for "#worldrevolution" - More than 600 demonstrations and camp outs were ignited in solidarity with Spanish protesters by the end of May, 2011.

Some, including mainstream media [es], soon made connections between the the so-called Spanish Revolution and the Arab Spring.

Como si se tratara de la plaza Tahrir, en Egipto, escenario de las protestas populares[es]. El caldo de cultivo del derrocamiento de Hosni Mubarak. Esto es distinto pero puede ser el embrión de algo. Quién sabe.

As if we were in Tahrir square, in Egypt, the scenario for popular uprisings, and the path towards overthrowing Mubarak. This is different, but it may be the seed of something. Who knows.

Solidarity to the Spanish movement came soon from Greece, which has been the first European Union country to taste the sting of IMF/ECB austerity since 2010. Particularly in Greece the anti-austerity protests have been strongest. In June there were peaceful protests and gatherings at Syntagma (Constitution) Square, and when protesters planned to surround the House of the Parliament the day for which the vote for the Mid-Term Austerity Programme had been scheduled, there were violent clashes with the police.

Protests and demonstrations continued over the summer especially in Spain and Greece. But only the big reforms and the austerity plans widely adopted in “PIIGS” countries (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain) late in the autumn marked a turning point of the European debt crisis.

“Blood and Tears”: the austerity recipe

The pressure of the financial markets and recommendations coming from European Commission urged some governments to adopt so-called austerity measures aimed at eliminating unsustainable budget deficits. Recipes seem to have some common traits across countries: cuts on social spending and social services, additional taxes, VAT increases and salary cuts with citizens paying for the crisis.

In Spain the intense social debate over the economic recovery plan led to new protest in September when the #reformazo (#bigreform) was announced. Spain, and later Italy, decided to introduce constitutional changes to limit public spending (budgetary stability). In turn, there were protests throughout the country organized by the assemblies of Puerta del Sol and by the entire 15M movement against what Real Democracy Now! has called the Financial Coup D'État.

Runner statue mocked up as a rioter. Photo courtesy of the Athens indignants' multimedia team, licensed as CC BY-NC-ND 3.0

In Greece in October there was an unprecedented protest during the ‘Ochi Day‘ (No Day) Parade since Greeks were angry for the relentless and ineffective austerity measures, culminating in the “haircut” deal negotiated by banks and European politicians, which many fear signifies the beginning of a new foreign “occupation” of the country.

The impact of the austerity recipes have been particularly severe in Greece where suicides and criminality are mounting, and where social and health assistance is becoming more and more expensive. The reportedly high cost (that can reach 1000 euros) for childbirth in public hospitals is only one example of adverse social impacts of the current crisis.

But there are also chronicles of the victims of the explosive cocktail of the housing bubble, the financial crisis, and high unemployment rates. Thousands of families are now without homes. A large campaign started in Spain against housing speculation, to stop evictions and relocate families to unused buildings.

Mobilizing on the streets and the Internet

Apart from economic issues and their implications for the people of European countries, democratic participation and citizenship rights occupy the public debate. The massive participation in protests and demonstrations against austerity measures - both online and in the streets - was something new on the European political scene.

Many, such as in Portugal, have pointed out there was an alternative to the top-down measures imposed by EC, IMF and ECB so that the Iceland’s practice of direct democracy became a model. Since Iceland refused an international bailout, many argued that there could be a different solution for the current crisis than ten years of severe budget restrictions to bail out bondholders.

But there was also another issue that emerged in recent months, since there have been crucial changes of government in three European countries. While in Spain the change was due to early elections, the new prime ministers in Greece and in Italy were chosen by the head of state, without any popular approval.

The resignation of Silvio Berlusconi in Italy was particularly important not only for the country, but for the whole European Union, since the country needed to calm financial markets in order to keep interest rates on sovereign debt under control. After the “Party for Berlusconi's resignation” soon Italians and Europeans involved in the crisis had to face the ugly reality they have to live with.

As Europe’s financial woes intensify, austerity reigns, the crisis deepens and economists are forecasting an (unprecedented?) recession, maybe 2011 will be remembered as a “lost year” of the European economic history.

This page is part of our special coverage Europe in Crisis and 2011 on Global Voices.

Global Voices Most Read Posts in 2011

Solana Larsen — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 23:46:50 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices in 2011.

Our top 20 list of most read posts on Global Voices for 2011 includes four from Japan, three from Egypt, and two from the Philippines. But only one story is about a giant crocodile!

It's been an incredible year for the reach and recognition of citizen media around the world, and that means Global Voices is no longer as lonely a media voice when it comes to reporting tweets and blog posts. Still, where mainstream media interest wanes, we're the ones who strive to continue documenting what local bloggers everywhere need the world to know.

Self Defence Forces arrive at the scene of the tsunami in Japan. Image by cosmobot, copyright Demotix (13/03/11).

Some of our proudest moments of 2011 will never be reflected on a top 20 list like the one below. This year we exceeded 500 active volunteer authors and translators of countless languages and countries, and we've published more than 2,600 long posts and 6,300 short ones in English alone.

Inevitably, many of the stories that don't get as wide a readership as they deserve are from countries that tend to be overlooked in international media. Unique coverage from across Africa, the Caucasus, Macedonia, the Russian language Internet, Latin America and indigenous rights are among some of the highlights. See the 2011 regional reviews by our editors and authors for a glance of what you may have missed.

Our Middle East and North Africa team deserves special mention this year. Throughout protests, blackouts, threats, they have managed to pull though and keep writing. The bloody images still proliferate, but our authors seek out constructive voices and angles for dialogue. So often, they've shared local humor and context that is difficult to appreciate from abroad without a guide.

Perhaps for the first time ever, China doesn't figure on our top 20 list of the year. These are particularly chilling times to blog about controversial subjects - something Global Voices authors in many other countries unfortunately also experience. This makes the stories that do come from anywhere free speech is frowned on even more precious.

Most read posts on Global Voices in 2011

Our most visited special coverage pages were:

In 2011 the world has learned more about the transformative power of online citizen media. We believe the best way to support these emerging voices on a global scale is to listen. Thanks for reading Global Voices! And please consider supporting our work with a donation.

This post is part of our special coverage Global Voices in 2011.

Spain: The #15M Celebrate Christmas With Outrage

Marianna Breytman — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:40:18 +0000

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

On Wednesday December 28, 2011, Madrid, Barcelona, and a number of other main Spanish cities celebrated the so-called #IndignantProcession (#CabalgataIndignata in Spanish), organized by the #15M [es], which, under the slogan, “We've lost our innocence because we will no longer believe the lies, nor will we stay silent before this joke of losing our basic rights,” brought over 5,000 people to the streets of Madrid, reuniting in Puerta del Sol.

The meeting's poster

@acampadasol: Lo importante es que hoy hemos vuelto a las calles para manifestarnos con imaginación y creatividad. Enhorabuena, #15M #NoSoyInocente

@acampadasol: The important thing is that today we've returned to the streets to declare ourselves with imagination and creativity. Congratulations, #15M #IAmNotInnocent

@juventudsin: La # cabalgataindignada bajando por la Calle Alcalá entre villancicos y tambores pic.twitter.com/8FFKFQNR

@juventudsin: The #indignantprocession marching down Alcalá Street amongst carols and drums pic.twitter.com/8FFKFQNR

The popular rally returned to highlight the demands that the #15M have spent quite some time asking for more citizen participation in the so-called market dictatorship and a more participatory democracy. This time, taking advantage of the holiday festivities, they celebrated it as a recreational activity [es], bringing together a large number of participants [es] until they arrived at Puerta del Sol.

Start of the Indignant Procession. Image by alteridadperiodicocultural.blogspot.com

Tensions

A few days ago, this video was posted, starring the #15M members of Valladolid in an eviction at the gate in Belén, which denounced the evictions that were being practiced en masse throughout the entire country.

An argument with the police broke out during the procession that resulted in the police charging at some of the participants, and even detaining a neighbor of the APBM.

Moments of tension during the procession. Image by Flickr user pierrerc

In the end, the procession regained its calm and resumed without any more incidents, demonstrating once more that the strength of the #15M lies in taking advantage of occasions to continue reinventing ways to make its demands known.

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

Spain: Fighting for the Right to a Home

Marianna Breytman — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 13:14:29 +0000

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

The explosive cocktail of the housing bubble, the financial crisis, and high unemployment rates have left thousands of families without homes in Spain. But the victims of mortgage eviction are not anonymous, they have names and stories to tell.

Francisco had to vacate Getafe (in Madrid) this week; and Sheila and Medeleine, single mothers of five children, who will be evicted from their homes in Barcelona; and Alex and his family, who have returned as okupas (to occupy) to the home they had lost in the Catalan locality of Terrassa.

All of them contracted mortgages in the years of supposed prosperity and easy credit, ended without incomes, and now cannot pay them. They not only lost their apartments, but are also indebted. There are many more people in this situation, they are among the thousands. They have broken out of anonymity thanks to a collective of activists, composed of those affected, as well as supporters, who have joined together in a campaign of pacifist resistance to stop the crisis. The motto is clear: “We will not let the bank kick us out of our homes.”

This kind of guerrilla against evictions was born in 2009 in Barcelona when a group of victims created the Platform for People Affected by Mortgages (PAH in Spanish), to denounce these abuses and the legal protection of financial entities. ”Neither the banks nor public powers are interested in our uproar,” they affirm in their blog. “Resisting evictions means challenging them, standing up to them, looking at them as one equal to another (…). Our house is our instrument of battle, our lever of pressure, our greatest ally.”

In November of 2010, they achieved a milestone: they stopped an initial eviction near Barcelona and prevented Lluís and his 13-year-old son from being left to the streets.

The PAH continued to work until it received an unexpected boost this spring — support from the collectives that form part of the 15M movement. Now other similar groups exist, including neighborhood assemblies, and social and local entities in many Spanish cities that fight for the right to a decent home. In total, the PAH assures that it has stopped 109 evictions.

While that number is large, an enormous amount of work remains to be done, taking into account that between 2007 and 2011, almost half a million foreclosures are expected to take place in Spain (there have been 32,000 proceedings in the first half of this year and almost 48,000 in 2010, according to data from the General Council of the Judiciary [es].)

A digital alliance

The campaign counts on a strong online component, from where it organizes and connects those affected with activists and the rest of society. Stop Eviction's webpage [es] was created in June with the goal of generating a network of alerts and a state map of the dramatic situation. Anyone who will fall victim to a mortgage eviction can present his or her case there and set off an effort of coordination to receive help.

The alerts are also spread through the campaign's Twitter accounts, @LA_PAH and @stopdesahucios, and through hashtags #stopdesahucios (#stopevictions) o #stopdesnonaments (”stop evictions” in Catalan). And it works — the tweets are retweeted and information is disseminated, getting groups of sympathizers, neighbors, and activists show up to stop the evictions. Below are some recent examples:

@oscartaxibcn: Mañana pararemos un desahucio 13D, Barcelona – Ciutat Meridiana. A las 08:30h, C/ Les Agudes 58b, bloque K #stopdesnonaments via @LA_PAH

@oscartaxibcn: Tomorrow we'll stop an eviction in 13D, Barcelona – Ciutat Meridiana. At 8:30, Les Agudes street, 58b, block K #stopevictions via @LA_PAH

@alertadesahucio: L'Hospitalet. Parado hoy desahucio en la C. Jardín. Próxima cita el jueves a las 8 en C. Llançà, 7 miguel-delamo.blogspot.com/2011/12/otro-d…#stopdesahucios

@alertadesahucio: L'Hospitalet. Stopped an eviction today in C. Jardín. Next site is Thursday at 8 on Llançà street, 7. miguel-delamo.blogspot.com/2011/12/otro-d… #stopevictions

@GetafeAsamblea: Si conseguimos ayudar a Antonia, el miércoles hay que apoyar a Paco ¿venís?#stopdesahucios bit.ly/sMs2pi

@GetafeAsamblea: If we can succeed in helping Antonia, we have to support Paco on Wednesday. Will you come? #stopevictions bit.ly/sMs2pi

“Family evicted, house reappropriated!”

Over time, the PAH and 15M have launched another fighting front. It no longer has to do only with stopping evictions, but also to relocating families to unused buildings due to housing speculation: Family evicted, house reappropriated! The first cases took place in Barcelona and Madrid on October 15, following the massive global demonstration in both cities. Under the slogan, “from indignation to action,” they occupied a building in Barcelona, which was the property of a seized construction company, and “Hotel Madrid” in Madrid, which was up for auction.

Both initiatives created blogs: Edifici 15O [es] and Hotel Madrid [es]. Although the police evicted the families relocated in Hotel Madrid, the movement did not back down. Twitter user @Arganda15m wrote that very day: “They're chanting ‘An eviction, another occupation' #withoutahome.”

A month later, on November 18, a similar case occurred in Barcelona, when members of the Indignant Assembly from the Sants neighborhood, also members of the 15 M, occupied a block of apartments that remained empty for a number of years. They accommodated five evicted families and launched a blog [es], as well as a Twitter account [es], to spread information about the case, now known as “Habitatge18N” (”House18N” in Catalán). Twelve days later, the alarm spread widely [ca]:

@La_Directa: Els #Mossos tenen previst desallotjar @habitatge18n d'Hostafrancs aquesta matinada

@La_Directa: The #Mossos (Catalan police) plan to evict @habitatge18n from Hostrafrancs this morning

@Acampadabcn: Va, som-hi! Hashtag per seguir tot el que (no) passi aquesta nit a @habitatge18n ->#totesambH18n Recordem: c/ Hostafrancs, 3

@Acampadabcn: Let's go! Hashtag to follow everything that (won't) happen tonight at @habitatge18n ->#everyonewithH18n Remember: Hostafrancs street, 3

The building was effectively evacuated that morning in a controversial police operation, which, according to the collective, is being investigated by Amnesty International. Nevertheless, the project continues on and remains quite active.

The campaign against evictions has captured the interest of the media and some proposals that it defends are making room for it in their political agenda. This is the case of the “dación en pago [es],” which promotes that by law the debt be condoned when the property is acquired, as it is in other European countries. They have also relocated a number of families in subsidized housing and have led some city councils to ask for a modification of mortgage legislation.

Clearly, there are motives to celebrate. This is how they did it on Twitter on November 30:

@acampadasol Cumpleaños feliz para @La_PAH: 100 desahucios paralizados, ¡sí se puede! bit.ly/tBUefB #stopdesahucios

@acampadasol Happy Birthday to @La_PAH: 100 evictions stopped, yes we can! bit.ly/tBUefB #stopdesahucios

and in response:

@LA_PAH: “@acampadasol felicidades tb a vosotr@s! es una victoria de tod@s!”

@LA_PAH: “@acampadasol Congratulations to you too! It's a victory for everyone!

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

Spain: Interview of “Arreglamicalle.com”

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 00:31:32 +0000

Periodismociudadano.com interviews Idoia Soto from Arreglamicalle.com [es], a website created to help municipalities and citizens collaborate in finding solutions to local problems.

Spain: Controversies in the General Elections

Elizabeth Rivera — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 01:58:44 +0000

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

The PP (Popular Party) of Spain won the recent elections with an ample majority. After 100% of the ballots were counted, the neoliberal party claimed the victory. The attendees of the celebration at Génova Street in Madrid (where the PP's general headquarter is located) gave a taste of what's to be expected from now on in Spain: social cuts and employment cuts, in order to make their constituents and the markets happy.

Let's not forget that the number of abstentions and blank votes reached 10,000,000 to thus become the second political force in the country, even though this is not reflected in the results or the mainstream media.

@VicenteVallesTV: Gritos de “quita el aborto” mientras Rajoy habla en el balcón de Génova.

@VicenteVallesTV: Screams saying “down with abortion” while Rajoy gives a speech at the Génova balcony.*

During the day, there were also various controversies. Many voting booths received members of the mareaverde [es] (Green Wave - public education defenders against cuts of teachers and education); when they approached to vote with a green t-shirt they were not allowed to exercise their right [es], because they were violating the act sent by the Electoral Board that warns officials from carrying slogans to voting centers, although it doesn't mention anything about the voters themselves.

T-shirts forbidden at various voting tables.

@democraciareal: #votodenuncia La Junta Electoral da orden de prohibir votar a quien lleve #camisetaverde #20n #mareaverde #votar #mesas20n

@democraciareal: #votodenuncia [complaint vote] The Electoral Board forbids voting to those who wear #camisetaverde [green t-shirt]#2on #mareaverde #votar #mesa2on

“If a voter goes to his/her voting table and is not allowed to vote because he/she is wearing a green wave t-shirt, the person has two options: Take off the t-shirt or present a complaint and leave without voting”, commented a voting table spokesperson.

Also, there was another incident reported where voters of a pro-animal rights political party (PACMA) didn't have ballots [es] to vote. Therefore, a representative of the Interior Ministry had to personally check the irregularities at the voting center, where the president firmly denied signing the complaint saying: “I don't sign for any anti-bullfighting.”

At least twice journalists were expelled from the voting booths [es] because the presidents did not want to be photographed, even though the photographers explained they were only taking pictures of the congressmen who went to vote.

In recent weeks there was an endless number of counter-campaign strategies, like the calling of the hacktivist group Anonymous using the hashtag #Op20N to “hack the elections” telling people to vote against the bipartisanship between PP and PSOE (Popular Party and Spanish Socialist Labor Party) [es] or vote blank. There was also Doriyakitu [es], a campaign that urged voters to present complaints against the system based on the Article 19 of the Electoral Law arguing an infringement of political pluralism, or the unfairness of the electoral law (D'hont Method ), among other issues.

You can check the results of the 2011 general elections on the official web page [es]

Spain: Creative Counter-Campaign Spreads on the Net

Marianna Breytman — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 03:47:55 +0000

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

The general elections campaign that will be held this Sunday in Spain has an entirely different version online. The digital anti-campaign, propelled by the 15-M movement, is hyperactive and rapidly spreading through social networks. Although it is directed toward all voters, it can have an impact on the undecided and those who lean towards expressing their dissatisfaction and anger through non-participation.

Although the predominant mindset in the country is that everything is already decided — polls reveal the defeat of the governing PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) and give absolute majority to the PP (People's Party) — Internet users are promoting reflection, and a responsible, well-informed vote in a heated debate against the clock. Their slogan advocates participation through the selection of minority options to break the bipartisan system and the consolidated power shared by socialists and populists during the past decades. They remind us that abstention does not count and blank votes are detrimental to small political groups.

Journalist and blogger Mónica Solanas summarized this feeling a few days ago in a tweet [es]:

@monicontomate: Todavía nos queda una semana para dar un vuelco a lo que parece inevitable. Podemos hacerlo. Debemos hacerlo. #PPSOE #nolesvotes #votaaotros

@monicontomate: We still have a week to overturn that which seems inevitable. We can do it. We must do it. #PPSOE #donotvoteforthem #voteforothers

Other Twitter users express themselves as follows [es]:

@CarlosCAlvarez: Votar en blanco es como votar PP y PSOE, porque pone más alto el listón para los partidos pequeños #20N #reinicia

@CarlosCAlvarez: Returning a blank vote is like voting PP and PSOE, because it sets higher standards for the small parties #Nov20 #restart

@ bufetalmeida:Votar a quien recorta libertades y derechos no saca de la crisis, solo recorta libertades y derechos #nolesvotes #votaaotros #aritmetica20n

@ bufetalmeida: Voting for someone that takes away liberties and rights does not get us out of the crisis, it just takes away liberties and rights #donot voteforthem #voteforothers #Nov20artithmetic

@ivanbreve: Tinc dues opcions per votar. Per suposat que no es el #ppsoe. Decidiré el mateix #20N

@ivanbreve: I have two options to vote for. Of course not the #PPSOE. I'll decide on #Nov20.

@AiTask: Mi hijo de 5 años me pregunta qué habrá en la Tierra cuando nos extingamos como los dinosaurios. Le he dicho: políticos y banqueros. #2oN

@AiTask: My 5-year-old son asked me what will be left on Earth when we become extinct like the dinosaurs. I told him: politicians and bankers. #Nov20

Ateneapensativa: Lo bueno es que después de las elecciones nos quedarán 4 años para seguir peleando por una democracia real ya @DRYmadrid ;)

Ateneapensativa: The good thing is that after the elections, we'll have 4 more years to continue fighting for a true democracy. @DRYmadrid ;)

One of the campaign's posters. Freely distributed.

Countless initiatives are discussed online under hashtags #20N (#Nov20), #PPSOE, #nolesvotes (#donotvoteforthem) or #votaaotros (#voteforothers), that add up and place counter-campaigners on top, including those who promote protests and actions on the streets in defense of public education (#forthepublic [es]) or against the eviction of citizens who cannot pay their mortgages (#stopevictions [es]).

Real Democracy Now (DRY) [es], the platform that sparked the first protest on May 15, is one of the most active and has made its position clear [es]:

Democracia Real Ya no anima a la abstención, al voto nulo, al voto en blanco ni al voto a ningún partido en concreto, animamos a la elección informada y en conciencia. La opción más eficaz para debilitar a los partidos mayoritarios es el voto a otros, aunque se puede interpretar como la aceptación del sistema de votación.

Real Democracy Now does not promote abstention, null votes, blank votes, nor any party in particular; we promote an informed and conscious elections. The most efficient option to weaken majority parties is voting for others, despite the fact that this can be interpreted as accepting the voting system.

Op20N [es] defends a similar stance that anonymous people have put forth, much like Do not vote for them [es], a very active initiative online that rose in February to denounce the Sustainable Economy Act (Sinde Act), and encourages others to not vote for any of the main three parties in the Parliament, adding the nationalist Catalan party CiU (Convergència i Unió) to that list, in addition to the PP and PSOE. Its page has already attracted more than 4,680,000 unique followers:

No te pedimos el voto por ningún partido o ideología en concreto, sino que te informes para comprobar si existen alternativas políticas que quizás representan mejor tus ideas, y lo que los ciudadanos concebimos como democracia. La democracia no son los grandes partidos: la democracia eres tú, y millones como tú. Sin tu voto no son nada. En las próximas elecciones, NO LES VOTES.

We're not telling you to vote for any concrete party or ideology, but rather that you become informed to check if political alternatives exists that may better represent your ideas, and that which we citizens conceive as democracy. Democracy is not large parties: you are democracy, along with millions of others like you. Without your vote, they are nothing. In the next election, DO NOT VOTE FOR THEM [es].

The platform links to blog AritmEtica20N [es], which calculates which minority parties have more options to be selected in each district and suggests not voting according to color or programs, but rather an objective to complete: ”Make the PP, PSOE and CiU monopoly collapse and stop the PP from governing by absolute majority.”

The DRY anti-elections campaign is quite versatile: they have done everything from creating educational tools [es] to making voters conscious and explaining how the seat distribution functions according to the D'Hondt system that Spain uses, to massive actions of protest like the so-called DoriYakiTu [es] operation, which, under its exotic name, proposes that voters present a complaint to the polling stations to show discontent between the voting system and the vote count, which is considered “unjust and disproportionate,” given that it penalizes minority representation.

The portal Socvot [es] (that derives its name from Social Vote but also means I am the vote in Catalán) also aims to shed a bit of light on the system and inform voters about available options. It also demonstrates how Congress would be divided if it were a “single district” on Twitter or Facebook, allocating seats based on the number of followers that each party had on the two social networks.

Other platforms center on political corruption, such as País corrupto [es], that compiled a map fo Spain showing the cases of corruption in which the parties are implicated, or Huele a Corrupto [es], an aggregator of sorts for news, blogs and comments on social networks that include the terms “corrupt” or “corruption.”

Here is a YouTube video that uses Pink Floyd's “Money” to show Congressional and Senatorial candidates who were charged, investigated, or presumably involved in cases of abuse of power:

Spain: Conversation with Ignasi Labastida on Intellectual Property

Marianna Breytman — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 20:35:12 +0000

During the final part of the Free Culture Congress [es] in Quito, Ecuador, Ignasi Labastida [es] spoke about “Intellectual property in the IT era” (some tweets with excerpts from his speech here [PDF] [es]). Ignasi, a physicist by profession, is a member of Creative Commons Spain, and therefore an expert on the issues of copyright and intellectual property.

In this 2008 interview [es], for example, he explains Creative Commons and Copyright:

El Copyright es el marco legal en las jurisdicciones anglosajonas mientras que en las continentales europeas hablaríamos de derechos de autor. Más o menos el Copyright es una parte de los derechos de autor, los llamados derechos de explotación. En estos derechos se incluye el de reproducción, distribución, comunicación pública y transformación. El autor es quien decide cómo ejercer estos derechos y si quiere ceder su titularidad a otra persona o entidad.

El Copyleft nace como una alternativa al llamado Copyright tradicional o restrictivo; es decir, al de ‘todos los derechos reservados'. El Copyleft utiliza el Copyright para crear un sistema de cesión menos restrictivo: se permite cualquier uso de las obras siempre que se cite al autor, y que cuando se transforme la obra original en una nueva obra, ésta también se distribuya con la misma licencia.

Actualmente la palabra Copyleft se utiliza para designar todos los sistemas de licencias alternativos al clásico de todos los derechos reservados. Creative Commons (CC) es una organización americana que ofrece un sistema de licencias, entre las cuales hay una puramente Copyleft. Creative Commons no ofrece una única licencia sino que ha desarrollado unos grados de restricción que van desde sólo pedir que se reconozca la autoría hasta la limitación de hacer usos comerciales e incluso no permitir la transformación para crear nuevas obras.

Copyright is a legal concept in Anglo-Saxon jurisdictions, while on European platforms, we would refer to author's rights. More or less, copyright is a part of author's rights, the so-called exploitation or licensing rights. These rights include reproduction, distribution, public communication and conversion. The author decides how to exercise these rights and whether he or she wants to cede his or her ownership to another person or entity.

Copyleft came about as an alternative to the traditional or restrictive copyright; or rather, the “all rights reserved” one. Copyleft uses copyright to create a less restrictive system of cession: it allows any use of the works so long as the author is cited, and that when the original work is converted to a new work, the new work be distributed with the same license.

Currently, the word copyleft is used to designate all of the licensing systems that are alternative to the classic one of all rights reserved. Creative Commons (CC) is an American organization that offers a licensing system that is purely copyleft. Creative Commons does not offer one single license, but rather has developed grades of restriction that go from only asking for author recognition to limiting commercial use and even not permitting conversion to create new works.

Given that following the event, I had the opportunity to briefly chat with Ignasi, I took the opportunity to bring up certain doubts about these issues:

Ignasi has also written various articles, one of which is about [es] how Creative Commons licenses appeared, were adopted, and spread throughout the Spanish state. In this article, he concludes:

Quizá el aspecto más importante de la implantación de las licencias de Creative Commons en el Estado Español es la reflexión que está suscitando sobre los derechos de autor o el acceso a la cultura. Los modelos de negocio actuales están quedando obsoletos con los avances de la tecnología. Hay que optar por buscar nuevos modelos y no pretender mantener los actuales que restringen el acceso a las obras. A veces la sobreprotección de los derechos se realiza por los intermediarios en nombre de los autores, cuando éstos quisieran más flexibilidad u optar por fórmulas más novedosas para difundir sus creaciones.

Perhaps the most important aspect of introducing the Creative Commons licenses in the Spanish state is that it has provoked a reflection on author's rights or access to culture. Current business models are becoming obsolete with the advances in technology. We must opt to look for new models and not expect to maintain the current ones, which restrict access to works. At times, over-protection of rights comes about through the middlemen on behalf of the authors when they want more flexibility or completely new formulas to disseminate their creations.

Nevertheless, this philosophy does not seem to have completely permeated through all institutions in the Spanish state. For example, in a recent case, the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) told Uruguayan journalist Ricardo Soca, through editorial house Planeta, to remove web content that was considered RAE property such as links to the RAE homepage. Ignasi Labastida also shared his opinion about this case:

During his speech at the Free Culture Congress, Ignasi commented on the need of making as many people as possible aware of intellectual property and the licenses, which ultimately affect us all. This sparked a conversation about the 15-M movement in his country, Spain.

More interviews with Ignasi Labastida can be found online. One of the most widely spread is this part [es] from the documentary ¡Copiad, malditos! [es]. This one [es] about OpenCourseWare is also quite interesting. If you understand Catalan, you can follow him at @ignasi on Twitter.

* Subtitles of the videos by Helen Siers and Beatriz Arze.

Spain: Canary Islands Volcanic Activity at El Hierro

Juliana Rincón Parra — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 23:34:55 +0000

Although the community has been evacuated from the La Restinga in El Hierro Island of the Canary Islands due to increased earthquakes due to volcanic activity, scientists and journalists are staying posted to record the underwater volcano eruptions as can be seen on this video by local Guilletheplayer.