Archive for
April 27th, 2007
Stories
Estonia: “A Russian Rebellion”
As Tallinn seems to have entered the second night of rioting over the removal of a Soviet war memorial, here's a blogger's recap (with photos, RUS, by LJ user mrprophet) of what happened the previous night:
A Russian rebellion
Today I've been to a true Russian rebellion, senseless and relentless.
For those not following the events: Estonian government has decided to begin excavations at the burial site of the Soviet soldiers and the Warrior-Liberator monument at [Tonismagi] Hill in downtown Tallinn today. In the afternoon, the police fenced off the monument and surrounding areas and covered the monument with a non-transparent cloth. Something like this has long been expected, so around 5 pm a predominantly Russian crowd started gathering near the National Library, located right by the monument.
I learned about it around 6 pm, when one of my friends called me. When I arrived at [Tonismagi], 2 to 3 thousand people were already there, chanting “Shame!” and “Fascists!”. The crowd was slowly but consistently growing, though the demonstration was extremely unorganized, due to the spontaneity of it all. Most people came to the square after learning about what was taking place from friends, over the phone, on the internet or in forums. Most people were young, but in general the crowd was pretty diverse.
In the meantime, the police cordoned off the whole square with a circle of OMON [riot police]. Nothing was happening for a long time. There were no speeches, people just stood and yelled slogans in defense of the monument to the fallen in the Great Patriotic War. The police and OMON acted calm. I witnessed only a couple of fights, when someone either threw himself on the cordon or something like that. They were using tear gas in response, but it didn't lead to mass aggression. At around 8 pm, the protesters spontaneously blocked [one of the streets adjacent to the square], and in response the police demanded that everyone disperse.
A helicopter was hovering above the crowd, some extra cordon fences were delivered, a water cannon arrived. From the crowd flew bottles, eggs, insults. The police didn't really react to that. No incidents happened while I was there - people, instead, were trying to stand there in an organized manner and to prevent provokers from throwing bottles into the first rows of the crowd. The first rows were comprised of all kinds of folks, from schoolkids to elderly people.
The truly tough stuff started happening around 9 pm. The police must've gotten tired of yelling into their megaphones for the rally to disperse, and OMON moved forward on the protesters. We were being pushed from the crossing near the library quite crudely. They were beating [us] with [rubber] sticks, and washing [us] lavishly with tear gas. Here's when the decisive moment came. The crowd got wild and the real Paris Commune began. The crowd was retreating, but all kinds of things were flying from it toward the police: stones that were ripped from the pavement, garbage containers, street poles. Everybody was yelling, “Fascists!” and “Russia!”
Here was when I decided that my life was more valuable than the lively photography, and so I moved away from the front rows. In front of me, OMON was fighting the retreating crowd. By that time, everyone had already been pushed from the square in front of the monument and OMON had begun using rubber bullets. The crowd ran, then stopped, shattering everything in its way. Ironically, at [Tonismagi] Street, where it was all taking place, there's the HQ of the ruling Reform Party, whose leader is Estonia's prime minister and whose initiative it was to start excavations at the Warrior-Liberator monument.
Finally, the people reached the turn to Parnu Highway (there's a small square there) and blocked the traffic completely. There were no police in this area at all, and so the crowd was overwhelmed by the real thugs. The protesters gone mad blocked all the paths with barricades made of sidewalk fences that they tore out, they started breaking windows, lighting fires and breaking into shops and kiosks. They nearly set on fire one of the houses near the highway, but the cooler heads, fortunately, extinguished the fire soon.
I stood behind this chaos a bit longer and went home. Police sirens became audible to me only when I was already far away from the place where it was all taking place. The police turned out to be absolutely unprepared to what took place after OMON began to push the crowd out. Pogroms went on for 20 more minutes before I left the square, and I'm not sure they've stopped already. The unrest continues.
[photos]
The conclusions offer no consolation, of course. The police started dispersing the demonstration in a rather harsh way for no reason (whether it was needed or not isn't for me to decide), and the demonstration didn't want to be dispersed, so it responded even more harshly. Those who stood around me weren't thugs, but they were ready to fight till the end and to respond to every blow of the law enforcement forces with a blow twice as strong. The police were absolutely not ready to what happened as a result, when chaos prevailed.
It's crazy. The people have shown that they are capable of [fighting back] the authorities completely spontaneously, without the support of parties and movements. And it was just the first day. Can you imagine what's going to happen there on Victory Day, for which many people gather even without such reasons?
Anyway, I'm scared for my country. I'm scared because those reasonable people I saw at the beginning of the rally were beaten up during the rally's dispersal - and, very suddenly, they were replaced by the demented thugs. It all began as a spontaneous attempt to defend the monument. And it ended… the way it ended.
***
A set of pogrom pictures by Flickr user neoroma is here. (Update: Unfortunately, the viewing mode for this set seems to have been set to “private” at some point, so the link no longer works.)
***
A rather heated English-language discussion of the situation in Tallinn is currently taking place at Itching for Eestimaa - in the comment section to this post (131 comments so far).
Seismic Activity and Tidal Waves in Chile
Chile is a land of the earthquakes. In recent months, the Aysén region has been affected by small seismic activity every day. Last weekend, an earthquake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale, caused a fjord landslide into the sea. Big waves crashed into the small city of Puerto Tortuga, devastating everything in its way.
Many criticized the reaction of the authorities, for example Copihues Rojos [ES] posts:
Las autoridades discuten si fue tsunami, maremoto o sólo marejada, como si esto tuviera alguna importancia para los que perdieron casas, familiares o sus animales. La Presidenta fué a la zona. Inmediatamente la derecha criticó, que era un error haber ido, pero si no hubiera ido igual la criticarían. El asunto es que hay que solucionar los problemas que deja el sismo y prever lo que pueda venir, por que aún no hay nada seguro sobre lo que vendrá. Hay que tener en cuenta que hace dos años hubo un fuerte terremoto en el norte del país, en la zona cordillerana y aún lo que se derrumbó esta en el suelo, antiguas iglesias construidas por los españoles, monumentos históricos etc.
The authorities are discussing whether this was a tidal wave, tsunami or only a swell, as if this has any importance for the ones that lost houses, relatives or their animals. The president went to the zone. Immediately the right wing criticizes her that was a mistake to go, but they would have criticized her if she hadn't gone. The issue is to solve the problems that the earthquake left and to prevent what might come; because it is still unknown of what might happen. We have to consider that two years ago in the north of the country there was a strong earthquake in the mountain range and what had fallen down is still on the ground, old churches build by the Spanish, historic heritage, etc.
Capitán Tricolor [ES] is a disaster volunteer, ever since the earthquake of 1985 in the central zone of Chile. Referring to the Aysén situation, he recalls the seismic activity that has been affecting the area since January. He explains that the Onemi (ES), (National Emergency Office) wrote a report in March that advised to evacuate the zone an earthquake over 6 on the Richter scale would produce damage. He explains the reason:
El caso de Aysén es diferente, la misma Onemi había anunciado que los movimientos telúricos que han afectado la zona desde enero son de origen volcánico (formación de un cono volcánico submarino), se informó de la muerte de fauna marina por el aumento de la temperatura del agua y la semana pasada se había informado de desprendimiento de laderas de cerros luego de un sismo fuerte.
The Aysen case is different. The Onemi announced that the telluric movements that affected the zone since January are of a volcanic origin (formation of a underwater volcanic cone), and they informed about the death of the marine fauna due to the increase of water temperature. Last week they informed of a landslide of the hillside after a strong earthquake.
Up to now, 3 people have died and 7 are still missing.
The blog El Morrocotudo [ES], posted two impressions of foreigners that were in Aysén: Steve and Rhonda Wilson are missionaries in the the Patagonia and Jen, a British woman, lives with her boyfriend in Coyahique.
The Diban [ES] , the Department of Libraries, Archives and Museums has information about Earthquakes in Chilean history and some photos. The Seismology Service [ES] of the Universidad de Chile (ES) has a complete report of seismic from month to month.
Pray for Malawi's former president, 21st century Pan-Africanism, Google sponsors African students , and Donor aid raises questions
Malawi is reviewing its Republican constitution and hot issues on the table relate to the executive and term limits. As reported here before, Malawians are busy discussing the possible return of former president Dr. Bakili Muluzi. Based on how one understand the constitution, the debate is whether the Malawian constitution allows him or not to stand for presidential election after he served two five-year terms. The blog Malawi Politics is running an appeal for prayers so that he may not stand:
Please pray and ask everyone you know to pray for this Muluzi Guy not to stand again, remove all of all desires in his body and mind so he may enjoy all that former presidents benefits, and that MALAWI has to continue to be the wonderful country to its citizens,neighbours and visitors.
The power of Prayer is unsurpassed, unsurpassed. I want the whole world to have her (Malawi) in their prayers the next few weeks. God will hear our cry. Please do not be offended by my plea. This is only a request for your help. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading this and helping with our request.. No words can express how much power we have when we do a little extra to come together.
GV Author finally finds own copy of The New African
When Malawians in diaspora travel back home, they are faced with an opportunity to see relatives and old friends, read the mushrooming publications in the country and enjoy new discussions on the political scene. But for Global Voices author, Steve Sharra, his recent trip back made him buy a much-missed copy of The New African, which he had last read ten years ago.
The latest issue of this London-based pan-African monthly magazine features among others people like Lovemore Munlo, a Malawian serving at the Special Court in Sierra Leone. Munlo is a Malawian attorney who once served as Minister of Justice in the dying days of Dr. Banda’s rule. There is also “Confessions of a CIA AGENT: How the imperial powers control Africa.” But Sharra liked the magazine for one reason: Its focus on the path to the renaissance, from a social justice and an Afrikan epistemological perspective in which he sees hope for Malawi:
As for Malawi, there is a growing sense of optimism amongst the middle class, who see a new Malawi emerging before their eyes. While some of this optimism is being generated by government policies that stress fiscal discipline, food security and economic stability, some of the vitality is also being generated by ordinary Malawians who have never stopped working hard, despite popular beliefs to the contrary held by the educated elite. Some have asked if Malawi will also experience a rebirth as the rest of Africa does, and my response has been that it will take a pan-Africanist perspective that asserts our place on the continent. Obviously that needs further redefinition, but I am glad to say The New African appears to me to be a part of that process to redefine pan-Africanism for the 21st century.
Blogger campaigns for AGLOCO
New things always take time to be accepted. Clement Nyirenda feels he has to challenge internet users to sign up for AGLOCO which is a short form for “A GLObal COmmunity. This is an Internet based economic network, which enables members to get their share of the InternetAGLOCO reveals that advertisers, search companies, online merchants and other businesses currently pay lots of companies to deliver attention and commerce. In light of this, promises to be a global community of Internet users whose active members can be paid for all their online activity. It is said one does not have to do anything extraordinary to be part of this revolution. Why is it wise to sign up?:
When a good thing is coming up, there will always be negative sentiments. Even Lotfi Zadeh, the father of fuzzy logic, encountered criticism in connection to the fuzzy logic theory which he proposed some decades ago. Some sections of the society still regard fuzzy logic as controversial maybe because the principles enshrined in it are a threat to their own career orientations. Despite all this, nowadays, there is a wide acceptance and a broad track record of successful applications of fuzzy logic. I hope that with this observation, you can now agree with me that it is really wise to sign upfor AGLOCO.
Blogger's critical look at international aid
Malawi is one world's least developed countries heavily dependent on donor aid. Economists, politicians, and policy makers are challenged by the problems the country faces. While Malawians generally praise donors for the support, few ever take time to critically examine the intentions behind some aid initiatives. A Malawian UK-based blogger Cryton Chikokohas has explored this subject. In his post, “My Lamentations on donor aid,” he cries out on behalf of his country.
He first looks at recent plans by Madonna who was reported to be assisting Malawi orphans with money. On this Chikoko questions Madonna's financial support to Malawi and offers advice to the pop singer:
In reference to Madonna I believe if you give, give openly with no strings attached. To put a proviso that her funding comes with the condition that her religion is taught is not charity in the true sense. It is using charity to further her own ideology on some of the poorest people in the world who do not have the luxury of choosing to accept her cash or not.
The abuse to the poor are diverse and take many forms. Because poor people often don’t know what’s good for them, they are assigned to the tutelage of richer people. It is difficult for the poor to bite the hand that feeds them. They are venerable to abuse therefore need protection. In fact some of the rich amass their riches from the poor! They pretend to help. These are the rich who are shrewd, manipulative, and brilliant and there is always something they want to control and get from the poor at the end.
Then Chikoko takes a swipe at Bretton Woods institutions:
By the way do you know that IMF receives much of its income from loan repayments from poorer nations? As a result, that leaves nation like Malawi stuck in a vicious circle of misery.
Google sponsors African students
A regular Lilongwe-based blogger Soyapi Mumba welcomes Google's Summer of Code program, where they sponsor students to work on open source projects. Each student receives a stipend of 4500 USD in total. Soyapi says recently, Google accepted 900 students from 6,200 students' applications and out of these successful students, 2 are from Africa: one from South Africa, another from Nigeria. But Mumba has a question:
But what do you think about this number of accepted students from Africa? Is it representative of the number of capable Computer Science or Engineering students in Africa? I believe there are a lot more potential Dare Obasanjos out there who deserve to get on this program but weren't aware of this opportunity. So how do we help them get on the program next year? Congrats to the 2 successful students! I hope this number grows exponentially in the following years.
Japan: Reactions to Tokyo Governor Ishihara's re-election
On April 8 and April 22 nationwide local elections were held throughout Japan, gubernatorial elections on the 8th and local assembly and municipal elections on the 22nd. Among 13 gubernatorial elections, the Tokyo elections attracted the most attention, with incumbent Ishihara Shintarou running for a third term. Over the previous two terms, Ishihara's comments on various sensitive issues, notably on the topics of foreigner communities, crime, and women's issues, have sparked numerous debates in and outside of Japan. Although he won over 50% of the votes, a sizeable group of Tokyo citizens as well as people elsewhere voiced concern and disappointment at the result. Discussions on the outcome continued for a period of time following the election, with bloggers on various sides of the issue presenting their views.
A housewife in her 40s, blogging anonymously, expresses her relief at Ishihara's re-election victory:
まあ、まずは ホッ としました。—-
だって、韓国民団や、北朝鮮礼賛者や社民党やフェミニストの
集団が支持する浅野さんが、まかり間違って当選したら、折角
不法外国人を取り締まったり、日教組に支配された学校から
狂信的な反日教師達を追い出したりしていたのに、元に戻る
どころか、今度は、外国人が偉そうにする都市になっていた
かも知れないからです。
We have made great efforts to crack down on illegal foreigners and to get rid of fanatic anti-Japan teachers from schools that were controlled by the Japan Teachers' Union. If Asano, who was supported by the Korean Residents Union in Japan, North Korea sympathizers, the Social Democratic Party and feminist groups, had been elected by mistake, we would have not only gone back to where we were but we would also have had a city where foreigners would feel free to do what they like.
Another blogger, Aiharaharu, comments on the anti-crime and security policies that Ishihara was pushing for during his election campaign:
都知事は、石原さんがいいよ！
何故なら、TV番組のインダビューのコメントを聞いたら、他の候補者よりも治安意識が強いコメントをしていたからである。
治安はいいほうがいいよ。治安がいいと聞くだけで、心がホットしますし。実際犯罪とかって、他人事のように感じるかもしれませんが、いつ遭遇するかはわかりません。
Because, based on comments he made in TV interviews, he has a stronger sense of the need for security than other candidates.
It's better that we have security. I feel relieved when I hear that we have security. In fact, it's like, when you hear about crimes, you think that it's somebody else's business, but you never know when you yourself might encounter them.
特に性犯罪はこれから増える可能性があるので、石原さんに対策を早くこうじて欲しいと思う。専門家の話によると、マスコミはあまり性犯罪については詳しく報道していないと聞く。性犯罪者は、再犯率がかなり高い。しかも、自分の意識では、やめられないそうです。やったら君ら、あとがないよ……というよな対策をこうじて欲しい。また各個人がしっかり自衛して欲しいと思う。
あとは、外国人による犯罪もこれからますます増えると思われる。より東京は、流動化していくので、外国人がやってくる。そうなると東京で犯罪をおこすグループもたくさんやってくるかもしれない。東京は犯罪しやすいと思わせないためにも、外国人による犯罪の対策をもっとしようと思っている石原さんにまた都知事になってもらいたいと思う。浅野さんはやはり中華系の団体に応援を要請したりしているので、危険な要素があります。
いろいろ石原さんにも難点があったりしますが、他の候補者と比べると治安に対しての意識が強い石原さんに1票をいれるのは、お買得な気がします。私は、埼玉県民なので、都知事選に参加できません。もし私が都民なら、石原さんに1票をいれています。
Another pro-Ishihara blogger, momonga_seven, points out that the Olympic bid was a factor in his choosing Ishihara:
今回は迷いもなく私も石原さんに一票を投じましたが、やっぱりこの方しかいないじゃありませんか。
東京オリンピック招致問題は、もし仮に断るような方が知事選に当選したとしたら、日本の国益にとっても重大で、今後開催できないことにもなりかねていたかも知れませんでした。
他の知事立候補者たちは、”オリンピックを中止して福祉にあてるべき”と掲げていたが、具体的な政策内容に乏しいこともありました。
そうでもあるにも関わらず、野党陣営は立候補者をできるだけ少数に持ち込めなかったことも、纏まりもなく原因の一つだと思います。
On the other hand, bloggers like this one, an anonymous blogger from Heiwa e no michi (平和への道), expressed their concern about the political awareness of Tokyo citizens:
石原都知事が三期目の当選を果たしました。今回の選挙結果の意味するものは、東京都民の民度の低さを鮮明に示したということではないでしょうか。これで石原都知事がジャブジャブ税金を浪費しても文句を言えなくなりました。どうぞお好きなようにやってくださいということです。東京都民は、地方のことなど考えず、自分さえよければそれでよいと言う、利己的な人間が多いのでしょう。やはり、落ちるところまで落ちないとわからないということです。
Blogger Kuni, a Japanese photographer based in the U.S., compares the Tokyo election to the U.S. presidential election in 2004:
すこし前のことになるが、東京の石原知事が再選されたということを知ったとき、２００４年のブッシュ再選時と似た、半ば絶望感の混ざったなんともいえない暗鬱な気持ちになった。
確かに対立候補に魅力が欠けていたこともブッシュのときと同様だが、それでもこのときの大統領選挙では、それが無知を基にしたものであれ、ブッシュを心から信じて彼に投票した、中西部を中心とした保守的アメリカ人たちのれっきとした「意思」によって再選が果たされた。
しかし、今回の都知事選挙はそういう「意思」をもった人たちの力で石原都知事が再選されたわけではないと思う。どちらかといえば、都民の大多数の政治への無関心さや軽薄さによって、なんとなく結果的に再び石原都知事を生み出してしまったのではないだろうか？
[…]
東京都民は、こういう人間を仮にもリーダーとして持つことに恥ずかしさや怒りを感じないのだろうか？普通に考えれば、こんな人が再選されるなど考えられないはずだ。柳澤厚生労働大臣の暴言のときもそうだが、やはり国民自体がこういう暴言や差別感覚に鈍感になってしまっていて、自分の目先の日常生活には関係がないと無関心に切り捨ててしまっている人が多すぎるのだろうか。
だから、石原都知事の「再選を防ぐため」に投票場に足を運ぶこともしないし、別に誰が知事になったところでそれほど生活に変化はないとたかをくくっているのかもしれない。
無関心でいることは、とても怖いことだと思う。こういう知事を持つことの災難が我が身の上に降りかかってきてから気付いても、もうそのときには、がん細胞の如く都政の破壊は進んでもう手遅れだと思うのだが。。。
Finally, many people have cited the comment Ishihara made in 1975 about then-Tokyo governor Minobe:
「前頭葉の退化した六十、七十の老人に政治を任せる時代は終わったのじゃないか？」
As many have pointed out, Governor Ishihara is now 74 years old.
Kurdistance: A Week Like Any Other
The news coming out of the Kurdish blogs this week is as varied as the landscape of Kurdistan itself. From predictions on Syrian Kurd alliances with Israel, to censorship in Turkey; from explorations of Northern Iraq, to essays on intolerance, the Kurdish bloggers cover it all. But for this week, I think we will begin with why, to Kurds, April is considered as the “Bride of the Year”.
Why is April the bride of the year? April behaves like the bride. It is between winter and spring. The snow has not melted yet; the flowers start to come out; and the trees start to bloom while the mountain peaks are covered with snow. There are occasionally also snow blizzards. One would wander whether one is going to see the black soil again. So April is caught between winter and spring and does not know what way to go—stay in winter or head toward spring. What way is the sweetest? Is it not like a bride? Bride is ready to marry and it is so hard to leave her parents’ house because that house give her life and brought her up to marriage age. Then there the groom that wants to take away from her home and bring her into his home where she finds another kind of happiness. The decision is very hard. What shall she do? Shall she stay in her old home or go away to the new home? She cries and doest not want leave her family home. Can she tolerate that her whole life? It is not possible to prolong this old habit. The new force draws her and she becomes a part of her new life or husband. So is the month of April. She finally decides to go with spring and give new life to everything that wants to be alive.
As with any marriage, there are times of great beauty and great pain. Michael Totten has two beautiful posts this week about Northern Iraq/Southern Kurdistan in which he describes the “Red Zone” and the trials and tribulations of keeping the peace.
Vladimir on From Holland to Kurdistan writes about supposed predictions of Syrian Kurds allying with Israel:
It's the question if Kurdish parties in Syria would openly accept Israeli support, despite that they are pro-Israeli. It could make the Syrian regime attack the Syrian Kurds by making anti-Zionist propaganda versus Kurds. It could also result into a mass Arabic attack against Kurds and a rehearsal of the tragedy of 2004. At that time the Syrian regime also blamed Israel for their own problems with the Kurdish minority.
Rasti focuses alot this week on Turkish censorship in its multiple forms, from presenting an interesting article on Turkish censorship laws to showing how the three killings of Bible publishers in Malatya has ties with the Kurdish experience:
The recent murders of Christian publishers in Malatya are examples of the extreme forms of censorship to which the Turkish state has had recourse throughout its history, particularly since the September 12 coup. In light of this tradition of extreme censorship, it might be appropriate to discuss another publisher and his battles with the Ankara regime.
Ragip Zarakolu is one of those brave and noble Turks who has stood for justice since 1968 when he began writing. With the military coup of 1971, he began his long history of persecution by the Turkish state. At that time, he was tried and imprisoned for having “secret” relations with that well-known subversive organization, Amnesty International.
With his wife Aysenur Zarakolu, he founded Belge Publishing House in 1977. Together with Aysenur, through Belge, he published writings that other publishing houses would not have touched with the proverbial ten-foot pole, especially after the September 12 coup, writings about minorities in Turkey, the Armenian Genocide, the Kurdish situation, and the impunity of the state in its terrorism against the people. In 1986, he joined with others as one of the founding members of the Human Rights Association (IHD), which has had a number of incredibly courageous human beings associated with it such as Akin Birdal, Eren Keskin, and Osman Baydemir.
Blogger Karer on Kurdistan writes about a Turkish co-worker's repeated reluctance to understand why being a Kurd from Turkey is different than being Turkish:
Later on I wrote to her that I would like to correct her on the issue of being Turkish. I clearly delineated the difference between being Turkish and Kurdish. I reminded her that we both speak Turkish, which I was forced to learn. Known Turkish or other languages is a fine thing, but being forced to learn Turkish is raping the mind of other people. It is a psychological sickness to force other people to change their identity or culture. The enforcer is capable of doing everything, ranging from genocide to destruction of countries because the mindset is based on resorting to force that could be detrimental any time. If an intellectual who has taught at a university level and does not know the differences and has not accepted uniqueness of differences within a country, the normal layman could be much worse and ignorant of events happening in his/her country and around the world. This ignorance I thought would be only challenged by reminding them kindly of the environment.
And our last word today goes to a new Kurdish blogger, Zaneti, who writes about intolerance to the Kurdish people in general:
“Light wisdom means heavy burdens”, a Kurdish proverb that could not apply so well to any other ethnic group or nation in the world. The lack of understanding and knowledge of the world surrounding them, oftentimes, resulted in the consequences of many tragedies that Kurds faced throughout their history. While unable to know how to help themselves, burdens of oppression, genocide and lack of rights continued to get heavier and heavier.
Many groups throughout the world may face similar consequences when living in ignorance. Without knowledge and wisdom to do so, one cannot progress and move forward for the betterment of his or herself or his or her people. Of course, challenges and tragedies cannot be blamed solely on ignorance. However, those without knowledge are always left behind by a fast-moving world where each group or individual is only concerned with his, her or it's own needs and desires… And needs and desires of one entity are fulfilled at the expense of another. Those without knowledge to protect themselves and move forward lose and their burdens get heavier and heavier.
It is true, knowledge is empowerment. And indeed, ignorance is not a bliss.
Korean bloggers on Virgina Tech shooter Cho Seung-hui
Since the Virginia Tech massacre on April 16, 2007, it’s not hard to guess that the South Korea-born shooter, Cho Seung-hui, and what he did are among the hottest issues for Korean bloggers. As the visual shock of the mass murder is fading from the headlines, the angle from which bloggers are viewing the case has been changing.
Bloggers like Kim Hyung-hui criticize Cho Seung-hui as an example of problems coming from the excessive passion of Koreans for education:
미국에서 사상최악의 총기사고가 발생 하였다는 뉴스를 처음 접했을 때 나는 옆에 탄 승객에게 중국인이 아니라 우리나라 사람이 사고를 쳤을 것 같다고 이야기를 하였었다.왠지 느낌이 우리나라 유학생일 것 같다는 생각이 불현듯 든 이유는 사교육 열풍으로 부모의 강압에 못이겨 외국유학을 간 학생이 그 중압감을 못이겨 분노가 폭팔한 것으로 내 다 본 것이였다.우리나라처럼 부모의 광적인 교육열이 잇는 곳은 세상 어디에도 없기에 그같은 큰 사고를 친 나라 사람은 우리나라 학생일 것이란 생각이 든 것이다.
“Freedom, Self-dependence, and Independence” at the “Agora” discussion portal, Daum, compared Cho Seung-hui with Frankenstein and Pinocchio:
프랑켄슈타인의 괴물은 끝끝내 자신을 창조한 프랑켄슈타인을 살해하고, 그 스스로 자신의 몸을 불태웠다고 한다. 버지니아 공대에 또 한명의 프랑켄슈타인의 괴물이 잠들었다. 그와 반대로 피노키오는 그를 만든 제페트의 사랑으로 결국 한낱 나무인형에서 인간으로 거듭 태어난다. 한 사람을 무시무시한 괴물로 만드느냐, 나무인형에서 인간으로 화(化)하게 하느냐는 우리가 얼마나 진실하게 ‘마음이 가난한 사람들'을 다시 한 번 돌아보느냐에 달렸다. 우리에게는 더 나은, 더 아름다운 세상을 만들어가야 할 사명이 있다. 그것이 천명(天命)인 것이다.
Some bloggers who study abroad identified with Cho Seung-hui's loneliness. The blogger 36.5°C talked about her own experience in a blog post entitled “loneliness of students abroad”:
고독이란건 무서운겁니다. 낯선 땅에 떨어지면 그 고독이란 녀석이 정말로 피부에 와닿습니다. 조승희씨는 한국말도 제대로 못했을 것 같네요. 그 나이에 가서 계속 영어만 썼다고 하면 말이죠. 그치만 미국에서도 친구 못사귀고, 그렇다고해서 한국에 돌아와서 한국말을 해서 일자리를 찾을 수 있나 돌아갈 곳이 있나. 조승희씨는 고립된겁니다, 이 세상에서요.
Another issue being discussed was identity. When the criminal was revealed to be a South Korean (in terms of his nationality), the Korean government and some associations apologized for this tragedy to American society, in part because of concerns about the safety of Koreans in America but also because of guilt that someone from the same ethnic group had done this. This attitude produced two responses: why do Koreans have to apologize? Some bloggers have also criticized the strong and unnecessary nationalism of Korean society.
Blogger Hugitong wrote:
솔직히 아무리 국적이 한국인이라고 해도.
걘 어릴때부터 미국에서 자라, 미국 교육을 받고 영어를 쓰는 미국인인데,
왜 한국이 대신 사죄한다고 하고 한국언론이 더 들끓는건지.
여기서 유학중인 학생들이나 한인들의 입장은 생각조차 안한다.
문제는. 한국인이 저질렀다. 가 아닌것이다.
진짜 문제는. 왜 이렇게 미국에서 총기사고가 빈번한가 인것이며, 왜 경고를 받았음에도 불구하고 학생을 방치해놨냐는 것이며, 그런 애한테 누가 총기를 팔았느냐인것이다.
자꾸 이런식으로 한국에서 들끓으면 문제의 포인트가 한국인-이민자들의 문제로 변질될까 걱정스럽다.
Another view expressed by Korean bloggers is that Cho Seung-hui was not actually the perpetrator, but a victim and even try to find similarities between 9/11 and this incident. Winemaster is one who has expounded on these theories, putting forward 18 reasons why Cho Seung-hui could not have been the shooter. The main points are translated below:
1. A person who can accurately shoot each target three times must be a professional. According to gun experts, it is impossible to shoot 32 people in several minutes unless you are a professional (13 dead with 900 shots from three guns by two people at Columbine). But he bought the gun a month ago.
2. Cho Seung-hui killed himself with two shots on his chest and one shot on his head. There are three ways to commit suicide with a gun. 1. above the ear 2. inside the mouth 3. right under the chin. A bullet was stuck in the backside of his head. Then who shot two bullets in his chest? He had three shots like other victims.
3. There was no one who saw his suicide. His corpse was discovered in the classroom. But one witness said that the shooter ran away from the classroom.
4. One witness said that the shooter was about 6 feet, but Cho is quite short.
5. The gun seller said that he bought 50 bullets. But according to the massacre, he needed more than 200 bullets.
6. He was careful to erase the serial numbers from the guns, but the receipt was found in his bag left in the place.
Links for Fri, 2007-04
Bosnia Vault lists useful resources on turbofolk music.
In the early 1990s, the escalators of Sofia's Main Train Station did not work, writes Sofia's Hidden Beauty: “The escalators' colour became darker and darker, dust and rubbish irreversably damaged the mechanisms and they turned just into dangerous alternative of the stairs.” Now some of them do, again.
Balada Del Elefante Azul [ES] is frustrated at the fact that the leading cause of death for children aged 12-17 in Bogota is by bullet or knife. He is also bothered by a culture that seems to applaud those that “appear on television and proudly saying that they were a guerrilla, paramilitary or soldier.”
Dan McMinn's roundup of recent Ukrainian political developments gets a life of its own, as usual, as the comments start coming in (31, so far).
A comprehensive overview of coverage of the situation in Transdniestria, over at Scraps of Moscow.
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