Archive for
January 15th, 2008
Stories
Russia: New Year's in Grozny
LJ user timur-aliev has posted three New Year's snapshots taken in Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, which the United Nations called “the most destroyed city on earth” in 2003.
Below is the Chechen blogger's brief account of the festivities - and a couple of clarifications from the comments section (RUS):
I rang in the New Year together with the rest of the republic - by the fir tree in Grozny. Just five hours before the New Year's, however, I was sure that I'd sleep through this whole thing because of a sudden blackout in our apartment (and in the one below). I'd already been through the experience of having our electricity shut off and I understood that we'd be able to fix it no sooner than in a week. But they restored power in an hour and we set off for the [New Year's festivities] with clear conscience. Here are the results of my expedition.
***
5_513:
Were fireworks and firecrackers allowed?
timur_aliev:
I don't know whether they were allowed, but they were there alright…
mgtverskoy:
Great photos. Everything's decorated beautifully. […]
timur_aliev:
Yes, but these are the most decorated areas, of course… […]
mgtverskoy:
Decoration of the whole city is a matter of time. It'll happen soon.
varfolomeev66:
Wow, it looks like life in Chechnya is indeed getting better :)
Everything looks very cute on the photos.timur_aliev:
Life, of course, isn't really the way it appears on the photos (I've deliberately picked the brightest ones), but still, it is improving :))
China: This week's mass incidents
Still several months to go until the Olympics, yet just the past few days have seen a number of unrelated mass incidents take place around the country, from the large protest at the Tianmen Party headquarters and a taxi driver strike in solidarity following the the recent beating to death of a local business leader, to the anti-Maglev neighborhood protests that have taken place in downtown Shanghai over the past few days, videos of which have been posted on YouTube by users ubuoo3, qsommerville and tooodou.
Speaking of the Beijing Olympics, or rather its theme song, ‘We Are Ready', more than ten thousand people marched in Hong Kong on January 13 calling for universal suffrage starting with election of the Chief Executive in 2012:
Back to Hubei province, the Shiyan city bus company has been on strike since Jan. 12, bringing the prefecture-level city to a halt in the midst of a heavy snowfall. Traditional media haven't reported on it, but the bloggers [zh] are talking. SinaBBS user syyanwu has posted two photos:
Tianya blogger ‘17 years of schooling' writes:
这两天，湖北十堰市城区下雪，而公交竟然停运了！
强烈谴责公交公司的变相罢工！
２００３年，十堰市根据市场经济的要求，大胆改革，把公交公司卖给极有创新魄力的私人老板，在全国首创应该由政 府投入的公交建设转移到私人老板操作。
I strongly denounce the bus company's job action!
In 2003, based on demands of the market economy, Shiyan city carried out brave reforms, and sold the company to a very innovative and trailblazing private businessperson, probably the first time in the country a government had transfered operations of a public transportation system to a private owner.
当时的报道说：“政府也意识到，'无利不起早'的私人资本特性”,因此，公交票价理所当然由1元提高到1.5元。一时间，城区的出租车和中巴的生意红红火火，因为同样为了赚钱，中巴车主深知市民收入有限，又没有享受公车的特权，除非单位贴补，是出不起多要的5角钱的，仍然1元钱。当然就被迫不坐公交车了。
经过一段时间的博弈，公交车被迫降为1元钱。
这次的公交公司停运毫无道理。虽然原因不明，当地媒体也没有就公交停运告知市民。但是显而易见的是，既然是私人老板经营，赚钱第一是天经地义，不要去比什么北京的公交才4角钱，那是政 府解决民生之举，这是私人赚钱发财之道，连政 府都体谅私人老板无利不起早，还不应该老板叫咋的就咋的！
After a bit of back and forth, the bus company was forced back down to 1 yuan.
But this stoppage of bus company services now makes no sense whatsoever. Although the reasons may not be clear, local media haven't even told the city that buses have stopped. What's obvious, though, is that this being a privately-owned operation, it makes sense that earning money is the first priority, so don't go making comparisons to Beijing, where taking the bus only costs 40 cents; that's a move the government in consideration of living standards there, and this is a private means of earning money and becoming wealthy. The government allows for private business to choose where to invest [i.e. freedom to reject the unprofitable], so it should not be doing whatever some private boss says!
这两天，湖北十堰市城区下雪，而公交竟然停运了！
天涯的网友评评理：老板不发财，凭什么买下公交公司？
Tianya netizens are arguing: if the boss doesn't have any money, why on earth buy a bus company?
One anonymous user at Mop.com writes Tuesday afternoon that the strike has already entered its fourth day:
试问全国有几个城市的公共交通卖给私营业主？？？？？？？？！！！！！！！！！
Writing back on Monday, Sohu blogger Moon-Wind:
12日晚十堰公交开始罢工。至14日晨，罢工仍在继续。
我想探讨的是：罢工有用吗？
因为大家各为自己利益所思考，孰是孰非，暂且不论。如果真是像罢工方所说，因为官商勾结，罢工必然解决不了问题。要知道十堰这个地方是官员保险箱，还没有出现过哪个官员被严惩的事件。大家也可以从前不久审结的案子中看出个端倪。现在问题是：对于利益的获得，难道只有罢工这一个途径可走吗？
1、工人工作，服务对象是大众。长时间的罢工，老百姓会怎么看？
2、具体到公交而言，大家从巴士涨价和的士不打表也可以看出来。除非所有的交通方式都罢工。可是，这个目标实现得了吗？
What I want to explore is: does going on strike accomplish anything?
Because everyone considers things with respect to their personal gain, whether something suits them, and whether to let it pass. If things truly are the way the striking side has said, and this is about collusion between business and government, striking will certainly not resolve anything. You need to know, that here in Shiyan, it's like a safety deposit box for officials. We've yet to see any cases of severe punishment of officials. Everyone can take a look at that case which concluded recently for starters.
The question now is: is going on strike really the only means by which benefits can be obtained?
1. For the workers, that which they serve is the public. If the strike continues too long, what will people be thinking?
2. Speaking specifically in regards to public transportation, what people see are rising minibus prices and taxis who won't go by the meter. Maybe if all modes of transportation went on strike. Except, has that target been achieved?
One netizen sent this in as a news tip to QQ on the 13th:
湖北省十堰市公交公司大罢工
2008年1月13日湖北省十堰市公交公司整体大罢工数天造成严重影响 路面上没有一辆公交汽车 私营巴士车辆趁火打劫猛涨价 平时一元的现在要5元开始时间2008年1月12日15:00:00 现在时间2008年1月13日19:39:27 电话13117100986
Starting on January 13, the Shiyan City Bus Company has gone on a total multiple-day strike, creating serious impact. There isn't a single bus on the streets. Privately-owned buses have maliciously raised prices. Normally 1 yuan, starting at 3pm on Jan. 12, 2008, the price went up to 5 yuan. Now it's 7:39 pm on Jan. 13, 2008. Phone: 13117100986.
Sina blogger Shenhanyang mentions the price gouging and direct effects of a media blackout in his Jan. 13 post, ‘Heavy snow in Shiyan, bus drivers show revolutionary spirit and go on strike':
不知情的人们在车站跺着脚，望眼欲穿的期待着公交车的出现，可终于、等来的却是涨价了的中巴和的士。
Marxist rhetoric like that which Shenhanyang goes on to dole out may not be the general tone to any of these discussions, but particularly with the massively-blogged Shanghai protests, there is something similar; from club.cat898 blogger 01free, ‘The awakening of citizen awareness: “walking” on the streets':
去年，厦门人上街散了一小伙步，于是就成了媒体的“年度人物”。阿拉上海人觉得不服气，也相约上海市政府门前的人民广场来“散步”。累了，没关系，到不远处的南京路步行街上，来个“购物”也不错。据说，在那个城管打死拍照总经理的湖北天门，一些群众也在街上集体“散步”来表达对城·管恶行的不满。
街头“散步”——你不得不佩服民间的智慧。在这个将游·行、示·威依旧视为敏感政治活动的社会，它的发明与创造不能不说是一种伟大的进步。
从自己的私密空间勇敢地走出来，大胆地公开表达自己的真实想法以及利益诉求，将那些打着公共利益旗号的政治谎言揭穿，纵使其原始目的只是私人性的蝇头小利，诸如不让自己的房屋贬值等等，但我们还是应该为这样的举动而喝彩。
走上街头，这样的行为对于现在的我们似乎有点陌生，它只深藏于我们的历史记忆，伴随的是集体的狂热与无意识，甚至还掺杂着鲜血。它在目前的政治语境中依然还是一个不光彩的行为，人们似乎更容易联想到文革式的街头批斗、学生失去理性的政治诉求以及利益受害者的过激抗争。当80后出生的一代人开始越来越习惯于网络上虚拟表达的时候，走上街头就更加离我们越来越远。
“Walking” down the street—you can't help but admire the people for their intelligence. In this society, which has always seen marches and demonstrations as politically sensitive, with the invention and appearance of these “walks”, you can't not say that this is a kind of remarkable step forward.
To bravely step out from one's own private space, and boldly and openly express one's true thoughts and interest demands, is to expose those political lies sent out under the banner of public interest, and even if the original goal is petty personal interest like not seeing your housing devalued, we still ought to act like this and make some noise.
Walking down the street is still something that feels a little strange to us, like something buried deep in our history, and what follows is collective fanaticism and unconsciousness, mixed with blood, even. Under the current political situation, it's still a dishonorable behavior, and people are most easily able to associate it with the Cultural Revolution style of denouncing people through the streets, and when students lost all reason to political aspirations and the interests and victims of the extreme struggles. When the generation born in the 1980s began learning more how to express themselves virtually online, the possibility of seeing people walk down the streets seemed to move further and further away from us.
我曾经断言，80后这一代人是从没有走上街头的一代人。相比与50、60后们的文革经历、70后在解放思想后的街头政治狂热，80后确实更像是温室里的花朵。从小他们就被教育要好好地待在房间里，不要到处乱跑。街上是充满了危险的，那里有疯狂奔跑的汽车、伤天害理的人贩，甚至还有无恶不作的地痞流氓。于是，他们开始习惯于书桌前的挑灯夜读，或者是电脑屏幕前的熬夜激战，稍微成熟之后，也只是钟情于网上论坛式的匿名式的表达。
离开街头的一代人会缺少什么？
街道是一个绝对的公共空间，它需要在街上的每一位人都要有高度的规则意识，才能维持其基本的秩序。行人、车辆要靠右行走，不能随地乱扔垃圾、吐痰，大小便就更加不允许。在这里你不可能看到无端的谩骂与人生攻击，纵使个人修养再差的人，也努力地使自己保持着良好的形象。
保持自己独立以及正当利益完整的前提下，在最大的情况下与他人和谐相处。仔细想想，这就是公民意识的解读。如果说《物权法》的颁布标志着私人财产开始名正言顺地开始与“公共财产”和谐相处，那么以“散步”为代表的私人利益理想诉求的涌现，则标志着公民意识的进一步觉醒。
But what does this “generation off the streets” lack?
Streets are a definite public space, and they require that everyone on them come with a steep sense of the rules in order to maintain basic order. Pedestrians and vehicles stay to the right, garbage is not to be thrown down randomly, and urination and defecation are definitely not allowed. There you won't see people cursing at or fighting each other for no reason, and even those will less cultivation work hard to contribute to maintaining a nice image.
With the aim of preserving one's independence as well as the integrity of the commons, people, for the most part, get along well with each other. If you look closely, this is precisely what civic awareness is about. If the issuing of the property law symbolizes the justification for a start to a harmonious existence between private property and “public property”, then the rise of “walks” represents aspirations to ideals of private interest, and symbolizes a step toward the awakening of civic awareness.
A sentiment echoed by Tianya blogger Huazi in a short Jan. 14 post, since deleted, ‘City residents who are allowed to march are lucky':
去年，因为市民散步抗议，厦门市政府决定取消污染环境的PX项目。今年，上海磁悬浮列车将要经过的小区居民，也散步抗议噪音和磁污染。这一回，他们能成功吗？
不管结果如何，政府允许市民散步本身就是巨大的进步，可以“散步”的社会是和谐的……
Regardless of how it turns out, that the government allowed city residents to walk is in itself already a humongous step forward. Societies that can “walk” are the harmonious ones……
On that, indie blogger ‘The ups and downs' writes:
有了厦门人去年的“和谐散步”为经验，中国人民表达不满的方式更加大胆了，这，可是好事啊。中国最大都市上海紧接而来的散步事件，这又意味着什么呢？下一个跟进的城市会是谁呢？上海的领导们正在想着解决办法呢吧。结束又会是怎样呢？他们对于这次的处理更加意味着日后此类事件的处理方向。这次，还会是民意的胜出吗？
In anticipation of that next big protest, MSN Live Spaces blogger Smart Mojo gives a few safety tips:
快过年了大家注意安全！
快过年了，大家要注意安全呀！尽量转告吧
1。散步练声，保持理智，决不要在口头和肢体上与JC发生冲突；
2。如果JC驱赶，不要冲动，沿赶的方向走；
3。如果身边有人冲动，如果能确认是邻居，大家一起按住他；如果大家都不认识，就不要管他，远离他，让他自己去闹；
4。如果JC抓人，带摄像拍照设备的请拍照保留证据，同时保护好证据，不要被JC没收删除。大家要齐喊“谢谢JC同志！”这样JC会懵一下 我们也有机会, 把人拉回来。不要直接和警察打起来！切记！
5。万一不幸被抓走，不要与JC口头冲撞，请尽量保持沉默，看清证词再签字，不利证词不签字。大家会尽一切力量营救！
Chinese new year is almost here. Everyone needs to keep safe! Do your best to spread this around.
1. When out strolling and practicing your voice, do NOT clash with police either verbally or in person;
2. If the police start driving people away, don't be impulsive, just go with the flow;
3. If the people around you start getting impulsive, if you can confirm it's someone from your community, then get people to hold him down; if nobody recognizes him, ignore him, stay away from him, let him do his own thing;
4. If the police start arresting people, those with cameras please start taking photos to keep as evidence, and at the same time protect that evidence, don't let the police confiscate or erase it. Get everyone to yell, “Thank you Comrade Officer!” This will baffle the officer a little, giving you the opportunity to get your people back. Do not go straight to hitting the police. Remember that!
5. In the off-chance that you do get arrested and taken away, do not engage in a oral confrontation with the police. Please try and keep as quiet as possible, make sure you understand the statement before you sign it, and refuse to sign if doing so is detrimental to you. People will do everything in their power to rescue you!
On January 11, veteran Bullog blogger Beifeng received a tip, a very long piece of citizen reporting actually, from a source who just happened to pass by a smallish protest, but one still going down the middle of the street, this time in Guangzhou in the south:
21：20左右，我走到马场路与临江大道交界的丁字路口，听到东面有一阵阵锣鼓声。我以为可能有人在临江大道边排演节目，毕竟快过春节了。而且平时江边也有些人健身、跳舞等等，有时候也有音乐声。我过了路口，走到珠江边，散步七八分钟后，好奇心驱使我往声音传来的方向走去。
回到路口，发现一群人（大约一百多）正从东面，沿着临江大道的北边往西面（即往广州大道方向）进发。这个时候恰好红灯，我只能在临江大道南边等绿灯。人群越来越近，这下看清楚一些了。一群市民敲锣打鼓，还有两个白底黑字的横幅很显眼。我近视很厉害，看不清楚横幅上面写着什么，貌似什么公园之类的。
等到绿灯，我快速到赶到人群变。人群这个时候继续往西面走。我也跟着走了一两百米。这下看清楚了，白色的两个横幅是“呼吁政府诚信”和“还我城市公园”。散步的队伍中老人和孩子很多，还有被父母抱着的不会走路的小BB。而且女性特别多，我粗略估计了一下，应该超过半数。
我问了一个散步队伍中的靓仔，这是怎么回事。他说你看横幅就知道了，政府把本来规划建城市花园的地块，卖给了开发商，开发商要建楼盘。这个时候队伍又折返回来，往东面走回丁字路口，停在路口。路口西面的小区，数十人趴在栏杆上照相或者声援他们，更有一些孩子和年轻人翻越栏杆，或者围观，或者加入散步队伍。
When I got back to the intersection, I saw a group of people (around 100) coming along Linjiang Dadao from the east heading west in the direction of Guangzhou Dadao. Just then there was a red light, so I stood on the south side of Linjiang Dadao waiting for it to go green. The crowd was coming closer, and I was able to see a bit clearer. A group of city residents, banging gongs and striking drums, as well as two white banners with very visible black lettering. I'm quite shortsighted, though, so I couldn't see exactly what was written, something about a park or something.
When the light turned green, I ran to the edge of the crowd. At this time, they'd already started heading west. I tagged along for about 100 meters. That was when I could see, the two white banners had “Appeal to the government to act in good faith” and “Give us back our city land”. Within the procession there were a lot of seniors and children, as well as little babies too young to walk being carried by their parents. From the building on the west side of the intersection, people pressed up against the railings to take pictures or call out in support. And there seemed to be a lot of women, my rough estimate would be at least more than half.
I asked one young fella in the group what was going on. He told me to look at the banners and then I'd know, that the government had taken land marked out for the building of an inner-city garden, and sold it to a developer, who was preparing to use it to build apartment towers. At this point the procession doubled back, and started heading back east to the intersection, stopping at the corner. At the building on the west side of the street, dozens of people had come out and were taking photos from the sides and calling out to them in support. Some kids and younger people started climbing over, or gathered around to watch, and some even joined in.
The writer goes on to list the turns and course of the procession, describing how the protesters for the most part chose to bang the drums and gongs over chanting slogans; also that the police were very civil, and when at one point some young guys came close to brushing with the cops, some girls pulled them back in. Later, larger banners are pulled out, the march stops to thanks the cops and, just before 11 pm, heads back to the housing community, Nanguo Garden.
The writer tags along, learning more about the homeowners' situation, that all the background information is available in the lobby of Nanguo Garden tower B1, hearing arguments that this piece of land they're fighting for had been put aside for a city park, that senior citizens are leading the movement and need younger residents to get involved and chip in, that the new apartment towers, at 50 floors high, will be twice the height of theirs, and that city bylaws forbid construction of buildings of that height so close to the river.
S/he also learns that a series of protests the weekend before had been successful in halting construction, but that no journalists had shown up to cover it, responding to the leader of the group telling her all this that the reason is most likely due to most journalists having weekends off. By 11:10pm, everyone had peacefully gone home. One other strategy the writer learns that the protesters are using, is after having set up two homeowner hotlines (13724812234 and 13724811557), the cellphones themselves are being rotated between different organizers, lest any individuals be singled out as spokespeople for the ground and….
Some scrounging around local homeowner forums does manage to bring up a few mentions of the situation; at the GZ.focus.cn bbs, user ‘Linjiang Wind' asks for feedback on their approach of holding protests on fixed dates, starting discussion off with:
个人认为组织有些混乱:口号无法整齐,横幅过于简陋,队伍行进参差不齐.总之效果不太好
Linjiang Wind doesn't get much response, although one anonymous user needs to get together with the writer of Beifeng's piece:
为什么几次活动都没有记者收到消息到场,如果G4记者或今日一线跑腿记者到场采访,相信影响力一定会大十倍,而且最近这次活动安排在晚上没有引起更多的公众注意?如果能改变侨鑫的项目,我们举双手赞同,下次活动请在网上发通知,同时发到附近的海滨花园,力讯上筑业主论坛中,让大家一起来构建和谐社区,揭开侨鑫丑恶面目,重建城市花园.
Kenya: Cyberactivism in the aftermath of political violence
Kenyan citizen journalists and activists are increasingly turning to popular Web 2.0 tools and applications such as wikis, blogs, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and mashups to organize and share news and information about the post election crisis, chronicle violence, share crisis photos and raise funds to help the needy.
Mashups
Kenyan Pundit wrote a post asking for volunteers to create a mashup to document violence and destruction using Google Maps:
“Google Earth supposedly shows in great detail where the damage is being done on the ground. It occurs to me that it will be useful to keep a record of this, if one is thinking long-term. For the reconciliation process to occur at the local level the truth of what happened will first have to come out. Guys looking to do something - any techies out there willing to do a mashup of where the violence and destruction is occurring using Google Maps?”
White African wrote about the same subject:
Basically, you have an incident - that hopefully someone gets a picture or video of. A report on what happened and who was involved, and a location. That information is submitted and then populated into a map-based view that is easy to search by location and/or category.
One major concern in the aftermath of Kenya’s disputed elections has been the possibility that the media is undercounting the dead and injured in incidents of election violence. In a blog post last week, Ory Okolloh suggested a project to document incidents of violence and place them on a web-based map.
The idea was quickly picked up by Kenyans in the country and in the diaspora, and over the weekend, Kenyan developer David Kobia put together the Ushahidi website, based on a design sketch from White African blogger Erik “Hash” Hersman and input from a wide range of Kenyan bloggers and activists.
Kenyan Pundit's call for a tool to chronicle acts of violence and destruction resulted into Ushahidi. White African introduces Ushahidi. Ushahidi means testimony in Swahili:
Ushahidi.com is a tool for people who witness acts of violence in Kenya in these post-election times. You can report the incident that you have seen, and it will appear on a map-based view for others to see.
At the beginning of a project like this the technology portion can seem to be the hardest to get off the ground. In the end, it’s just the tool, and the hard work will come from people in the field who are working with NGO’s to keep this information accurate and to chronicle as much of it as they can.
In “What Social Media Can Be” Mike Stopforth writes:
The site is painfully simple in design and concept - it’s a Google Maps mash-up that allows users to report incidences of crime and violence by description and location. Right now this is done via the Web but SMS functionality is in the pipeline. The site doesn’t require registration (because, of course, nobody here wants to make money).
Alfajiri commenting on Ushahidi:
During this time of crisis, Kenyans have formed complex information networks, connecting and self reporting while traditional media access has been obstructed by the Kenyan government. Success has been notable but a core group of individuals have implemented something more. They are documenting and verifying the post-election violence from the ground up.
The tool is evolving rapidly:
There is continued refinement and improved functionality being added all the time. Here’s a quick rundown of what we’ve done and are doing.
• You can now SMS your report to +447624802635 with your mobile phone.
• You can email your reports and images to tips@ushahidi.com
• We have added a “Peace Efforts” button to highlight the good things that are happening.
• The “How you can help” page has started. The first is a way to send money via MamaMikes.com that will be distributed by the Kenyan Red Cross.
• There are new buttons (with copy/paste code) for you to add to your websites on the about page.
In “Digital activists find ways to help Kenya,” Ethan writes:
The rapid development of this application demonstrates a number of important points about the situation in Kenya, and about emergency situations in general:
- Kenyan bloggers are watching the situation in their country closely, and their combination of passion and technical skill means that we’re likely to see innovative uses of technology to document the unfolding situation and provide assistance to those in need.
- It’s still lots easier to create a web application quickly than an SMS application, even if the SMS application might be more appropriate. This is important for anyone concerned about applications for the developing world. While we all know that mobiles are the best platform (alongside radio) for reaching broad audiences, we need much better tools to build applications.
- When a crisis is unfolding, people want to find ways to help, and will build tools online to help. We saw this in the wake of the Boxing Day tsunami, where activists in South Asia and around the world started a series of relief efforts around the SEA-EAT blog. We saw it again during Katrina, where teams around the world worked to create Peoplefinder, a database designed to help family members and friends find each other. And we’re seeing it in Kenya.
Mobile Phones
AfricaNews.com has been experimenting with mobile phones in reporting the Kenyan crisis:
With a media blackout in Kenya mobile phones played a vital role in covering the Kenya elections and now they are playing an even more important role in covering those elections bloody aftermath.
AfricaNews.com makes use of internet-enabled mobile phones to report on the election crisis in Kenya. Local African journalist, with advanced mobile phone and a portable keyboard, collect text, photo and short video on the events in Kenya as they unfold. The reporters use their mobile phone to publish their reports to http://www.africanews.com. This is the first time the concept of a mobile journalist has been introduced in Africa.
In her post, Technology for Advocacy in Kenyan Crisis, Sokari writes about an activist using phone credits to distribute money:
In an environment of fear and violence with many businesses closed and little or very expensive transport how do you communicate with friends and family? How do you send and receive money when banks and other financial businesses such as Western Union offices are closed? The simple answer is the ubiquitous mobile phone. One activist (for purposes of his personal safety we cannot mention his name) wrote how he was able to distribute a donation of money by purchasing phone credits and dispersing them to colleagues in need. One person in Eldoret needed money for transport, others could not get to a Western Union paypoint to receive funds and so on. He was then able to phone all of his colleagues and ensure they had cashed in their credits and were safe.
Mashada, a Kenyan online forum, created an SMS Hotline to allow Kenyans with no Internet access to send news using their mobile phones:
Soon after violence erupted, Mashada, a prominent online forum launched an SMS hotline to help share information. Further, several prominent Kenyan blogs are accepting comments via SMS.
At the same time, the Kenyan government was warning mobile phone users of possible prosecution if they use SMS to cause public unrest:
“The Ministry of Internal Security urges you to please desist from sending or forwarding any SMS that may cause public unrest. This may lead to your prosecution.”
Joshua reminds us of the power and danger of SMS:
In Uganda last year, a protest against developing Mabira Forest was organized via mass SMS in Kampala and quickly turned violent and resulted in at least one death.
Blogs
Global Voices Online has a special Kenya coverage page, Kenya Elections Aftermath 2008:
Black Looks writes about an Action Alert Blog created by Pambazuka News:
Pambazuka News has created an Action Alert blog for up to date news and alerts on Kenya.
White African has listed blogs covering Kenyan elections and its aftermath.
Kenyan Twitterverse
Afromusing is using her Twitter channel to send quick updates and reports from Kenya:
You can help from anywhere in the world: mamamikes donation page is live http://www.mamamikes.com 03:50 AM January 11, 2008 from web
Global voices special coverage page for kenya http://tinyurl.com/2gxmed 02:41 AM January 09, 2008 from web
working with mamamikes and Red cross to get an online donation page up. Another meeting set 4 tomorrow. 09:03 AM January 07, 2008 from web
NBI:Trying to find Geo Data in Eld for Google Mashup site. Holla if u have info.thx 02:10 AM January 07, 2008 from web
credit ordered on mamamikes still not delivered, thx to friends who sambazad credit. Really helped 10:25 AM January 02, 2008 from web
A better day. uploading pics to flickr and trying to wrap my mind around this mess. 10:23 AM January 02, 2008 from web
going to watch tv for updates, though i really shouldnt, this tension is starting to get to me. 09:48 AM January 01, 2008 from web
Posted pics on flickr. Still in Eld, tension eased a bit since its daylight, still precarious situation :( 04:15 AM January 01, 2008 from web
kassfm is perhaps the only fm radio station reporting results from diff. areas.theyve had to do it in english swahili & kalenjin 03:03 PM December 27, 2007 from web
driving by polling stations, most of eldy area appears to be raila country by large margins 01:39 PM December 27, 2007 from web
visited several polling stations in eld. some with long lines some are done. took pics. 04:39 AM December 27, 2007 from web
nation media txt and blogger daudi confirm railas problem voting in langata.new registers being printed 01:51 AM December 27, 2007 from web
KenyaNews is a Twitter channel with updates on what is happening in Kenya:
Opposition leaders are planning three days of street protests, starting on Wednesday, raising the possibility of fresh violence. about 14 hours ago from web
Kofi Annan is due to arrive tomorrow in the latest attempt to find common ground between the two sides. about 14 hours ago from web
Kenya is braced for fresh fighting after last month's bitterly disputed elections, as MPs prepare to take up their new seats. about 14 hours ago from web
China paper sees West to blame in Kenya chaos. about 19 hours ago from web
Mediation talks seem to have faltered raising doubts of bringing together the warring President Kibaki and Raila Odinga sides. about 19 hours ago from web
Human Rights Watch urged the government to allow rallies led by opposition leader Raila Odinga, which are due to start Wednesday. 04:18 PM January 13, 2008 from web
Kenya death toll tops 700 as protest rallies loom. 04:17 PM January 13, 2008 from web
John Kufuor, Ghana's president and the current African Union head, flew home from Nairobi after failing. 07:21 PM January 10, 2008 from web
The former UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, was yesterday enlisted to help broker a peace deal in Kenya. 07:20 PM January 10, 2008 from web
Kenya President Says No Recount, or Vote. 01:39 PM January 09, 2008 from web
Hospitals in towns such as Nyeri say their wards are full of Kikuyu men suffering from wounds from axes, machetes, and bows and arrows. 01:38 PM January 09, 2008 from web
Facebook
Facebook has also become a platform for fundraising and raising awareness. Kenya’s Post Election Humanitarian Crisis is created to raise awareness the situation in Kenya.
Some of messages left on their page read:
Hi Nadine, Thanks for wanting to help! The situation in Ukunda is starting to stabilize. However, there are still many families who are struggling financially due to the effects of this crisis. There was a period of two weeks where the market was closed, for fear of looting if they opened. You know how people live there day to day… Anyhow, right now the primary need is for food. There are many children who are going hungry. The money I sent to Mama Kenn, I told her to focus on feeding children in Ukunda who are in need. She has the purest heart of anyone I know and would feed a child before she fed herself without blinking an eye.
hey, this is the kind of group im looking for. im tired of polital rants and raves and i just wana give wat i can now. so could u please tell me more on the situation in ukunda and which goods will be needed?
i have some friends living in the area and will be more than willin to send my donations in cash to them and then having the goods which are required delivered to the children.so please let me know wat is needed and to whom. thanks!
Hey Huss…thanks for the inspiration…i called my Mama last night, I happy to report she is doing ok…but I going to Western Union some money to her as well….keep me posted friend…I feel like we all need to brainstorm some things to do here…hope to see you soon, ox
Emergency Crisis in Kenya is created by the Christian Blind Mission Ireland:
CBM is responding to the situation in Kenya. After weeks of political turmoil, violence has claimed the lives of an estimated 500 people and displaced around 250,000 in search of safety.
Another group is Peace for Kenya:
This cause seeks to raise money for Samaritan's Purse ( http://www.samaritanspurse.org/ ) and other Organizations trying to meet the needs of more than 500,000 affected Kenyans, including more than 250,000 people who have been driven from their homes. Thousands more are escaping ethnic violence.
Flickr
There is a Kenya Elections 2008 Flickr page:
Joshua Wanyama of AfricanPath has offered to help grow and manage images on Flickr of the post-election crisis in Kenya. You can find the Kenya Post-Election Pictures 2008 Flickr group here. Consider sending yours in and tagging your images with “KenyaElection2007
Wiki
An online community led by a Lithuanian activist, Andrius Kulikauskas, is using their community wiki to offer help:
Meet with us! Meet us in our chat and wiki session to help the Kenyan rebirth and draw inspiration for Lithuania and all the world.
Chat with us! 8 seconds ago. Fred1: whetherthe number and sentence of Margret has been added to kenyan to call right
Wiki with us! 1 minutes ago. FredKayiwa: KenyansToCall
Sokari writes about their work:
One excellent resource has been created by Worknets a global community Wiki site. They have a series of dedicated spaces which provide a resource of new sites and bloggers, action alerts, commentary and chat rooms by and for Kenyans.
Ethan writes about their use of PayPal, M-PESA and Kenya’s leading e-commerce site, Mama Mike’s:
Andrius Kulikauskas, a Lithuanian activist, has been asking his online community what they can do to help people in Kenya. They’ve begun a service that raises money via PayPal and transfers it to people in Kenya via mobile phone credit transfer services, like Mama Mike’s, and via M-PESA. They’re vetting recipients based on a simple reputation mechanism - they’re asking friends in Kenya to recommend people in need
Bridging the Digital Divide
Finally, what does all this mean in the context of the digital divide in Kenya?:
While blogging, emails, Twitter and the internet are doing a great deal of good getting the news out of what’s going on in Kenya to the rest of the world, I find myself troubled. You see, the communication that needs to be happening is at the grassroots level. Everyday Kenyans do not have access to any of these services.
Let’s put our minds and capabilities towards solving real problems for people beyond the technologically elite.
India: The Political Dynasties
Is democracy alive? That's one persistent question in the sub-continent's political gamble on hereditary. We had our kings, our queens and we stilling can't stop rooting for our neo-political emperors, and their families. A leader was slain in Pakistan, on December 27, 2007 and hours after her departure from her political and physical life, her son was chosen to be her heir. Sirensongs, from ‘Feringhee: The India Diaries‘ questions.
“When is a democracy not a democracy? When its leaders are appointed by non-democratic methods, for one thing. When heredity is 9/10 of the law; and yes, the same formula applies to the Gandhi-Nehrus and Thackerays of India, and many others.”
Sirensongs quotes from the Indian Express, “Royalism has been democratised in South Asia. In turning our backs on monarchy, we reinvent ourselves as republicans. But this is often a fragile and tenuous republicanism, as the political parties in our democratic polities are mini-kingdoms each with its own royal family.” adding to this her personal observations.
At India View, S. Venikar is apathetic to the political situation in South Asia, yet sympathizes for the crown prince ‘Bilawal' and his inheritance.
“If political leaders of the country start bequeathing their personal estates through their last will, there would be no questions asked, although any last will could be legally challenged by legitimate interests. If Kings and Queens in the 21st Century appoint their heirs to the throne that may be quite understandable.
There is really no custom or convention in the constitutional law or in the political parties for such a phenomenon. Nepotism during the lifetime of the political leaders is reluctantly accepted by their followers. Bilawal Bhutto, Rahul Gandhi and Pankaj Singh each may be viewed as the heir apparent for their respective party leadership positions in remote future.
Bilawal lofty statements regarding his faith in democracy and avenging his mother's assassination through democracy are normal expressions of a grieving and mourning teenager but alas he does not see how democracy is high jacked in his political party.”
In a previous article, “De'mo-narchy Of India”, Venikar talks of how the real threat to Indian democracy is from the new breed of politicians who are taking advantage of the institution of democracy to create dynasties.
Patrick Pringle is frightened by the similarity between the predicament of Bhutto's son, Bilawal, and that of Gandhi's. He comments on this prolonging issue all the way from London on his blog Patrick's South Asia Diary.
Ecuador: The Eruption of Tungurahua
Photo by Nelson Piedra and used under a Creative Commons license.
The Tungurahua Volcano in Ecuador has experienced a jump in activity in recent weeks. Since 1999, this activity has affected residents of the surrounding areas, especially farmers and those in the tourism industry. Some Ecuadoran bloggers are following these events, as well as other news around the country.
Janvier Samedi, in his blog MC au loi [es] points out a confusing problem that appeared in a Montreal METRO Daily:
En la ultima pagina de la edicion del dia de ayer se publico una impresionante foto de la erupcion del volcan Tungurahua, el problema es que lo titulan: “Espectacular erupción en Perú”, en donde indican que el mismo se encuentra ubicado a 135 km al sur-este de Quito “la capital del Perú
On the last page of yesterday's edition, there was an impressive picture published of the eruption of Tungurahua Volcano. The problem was with the title: “Spectacular eruption in Peru”, which indicates that the volcano is located 135 km south-east of Quito “the capital of Peru.”
As most know, Quito is the capital of Ecuador. The eruption of this volcano has also fascinated some local bloggers. La Voz de Guamote [es] writes about the ashes that are falling on neighboring communities. Nelson Piedra provides a little background of the volcano [es] and what it means to residents of the surrounding areas.
El volcán Tungurahua [es|en], que en idioma quichua significa “Garganta de Fuego”, entró en proceso eruptivo desde 1999, a partir de la fecha ha registrado periodos variables de alta actividad. Los más afectados han sido los hermanos agricultores, ganaderos que trabajan en las faldas del Tungurahua y las personas que atendian la demanda turística en Baños, a punta del sufrimiento de perder sus animalitos, cultivos, pertenencias y hasta familiares, los Ecuatorianos de baños se han ido “acostumbrando” con la actividad volcánida del “Garganta de Fuego”.
The Tungurahua volcano, which means “Fire Thorat” in the quichua language, entered in an eruptive process since 1999 and since then has registered variable periods of high activity. The most affected have been our brothers, the farmers and cattle ranchers that work on the outskirts of the Tungurahua, as well as the people involved in the tourist industry in Baños, to the point of losing their animals, crops, belongings and even relatives. The Ecuadorans in Baños have become “accustomed to” the volcanic activity of the “Fire Throat.”
Some users of Twitter have also provided information on the recent activity of the volcano. Communication studies students from the SEK University have set up a Twitter account called Volcan Ecuador [es] and provides updated news and photos of this activity.
Another blogger, Palulo Panda [es] lives 15 minutes away from the Volcano and has clear views of the activity. His twitter account also provides some viewpoints on these events.
Yo pienso que los que menos ayuda necesitan son los de Baños, solo les llega ceniza… lo siento pero otros son los necesitados.
I think those that least need the help are those from Baños, as only ash is landing there…I am sorry, but there are others more in need.
His latest blog entry provides a first-hand account as a resident living 23 km from the volcano and adds some of the aid that is being provided by local authorities.
El lugar donde me encuentro (centro de Pelileo) está a 23 kilómetros, más o menos a 15 minutos en auto del volcán Tungurahua; se podría decir que es un lugar sumamente peligroso pero no, gracias a la naturaleza existen valles entre donde estoy y el volcán. Pero ya estando en las faldas, se siente el dolor y la angustia de aquellas familias que durante la noche deben salir a albergues o donde amigos, por el sumo peligro que representa vivir en las faldas de la mama Tungurahua.
The place where I am located (the center of Pelileo) is 23 kilometers, approximately 15 minutes in car, from the Tungurahua volcano. One might say that it is a very dangerous place, but no, thanks to nature there are valleys between where I am and the volcano. But being on the outskirts, one feels the pain and anguish of those families that had to evacuate in the middle of the night to shelters or to the houses of friends due to the high risk to those living near mother Tungurahua.
Other News
In other Ecuadoran news, Southern Ecuador has a small group of prominent bloggers that, in association with the local university (Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja and Universidad Nacional de Loja), are developing projects. At the end of the 2007 they gathered on the UTPL campus at a summit that they called: Loxa Bloggers 2007
Piedra [es] also writes the five conclusion after the meeting:
1. Nos comprometemos a reconocer nuestras voces, desarrollar conversaciones horizontales, crear comunidades, romper jerarquías, inspirados en el manifiesto “Tren de Claves.”
2. Somos “open”, creemos y nos comprometemos en promover la Educación, el Conocimiento, la Autoría, los Negocios, la Colaboración, la Participación, la Tecnología y su uso para que sean abiertas y libres.
3. Como latinoamericanos seguiremos trabajando por la inclusión social, la promoción de nuestra identidad, el rescate de nuestras raíces y la mantención de nuestro patrimonio como reserva para un futuro humanista.
4. La participación ciudadana y la democracia ya ha empezado a cambiar. ¿Te quedas fuera o te unes a nosotros?
1. We pledge to recognize our voices, develop horizontal talks, build communities, break hierarchies, and be inspired by the Manifesto “Train Keys”
2. We are “open”, we believe and we pledge to promote Education, Knowledge, Authoring, the Business Partnership, Participation, Technology and its use will be open and free.
3. As Latin Americans, we will continue to work for social inclusion, the promotion of our identity, rescue our roots and keep and maintaining our heritage as a reserve for a humanist future.
4. The citizen participation and democracy has already begun to change. Are you on the outside or will you join us?
Finally, the Correa administration is changing gears in the Ecuadoran Trade, B.P.L.E [es] provides a round up about a note most Ecuadoran newspapers have echoed regarding the new administration of the Pacific Bank:
Mauricio Martinez, Gerente del Banco Central ha dicho que proceso de negociación del Banco sigue en marcha pero que los dos, Félix Herrero y Roberto González luego de enemistarse con Correa y de terminar su periodo para el que habian sido contratados, deben irse a su casa. No mas dolares para ellos sino para los profesionales locales, encargado queda el Sr Andrés Baquerizo
Mauricio Martinez, CFO of the Central Bank has said that the Bank's negotiation process is ongoing, but that the two, Felix Herrero and Roberto Gonzalez after antagonizing Correa have finished their terms for what they had been hired, must go home. No more dollars for them, but instead for local professionals, the new man in charge is Mr. Andrew Baquerizo
Pacific Bank is second in importance in Ecuador and thanks to those two Spaniards, the bank returned from a probable bankcarupcy to a sucessful business bank during the last year. How this will affect the Ecuadoran economy is something all Ecuadorans can look forward to.
Russia: Xenophobia Blogging
There seems to be more and more posts on xenophobia in the Russian blogosphere - and many are written by xenophobes.
A recent example of this type of blogging is LJ user holmogor's Dec. 31 report (RUS) from Moscow - which has received 1,884 reader comments:
THEM
I found myself at Red Square today.
And was horrified.
THEY were at the square.
THEY alone.
Lonely white faces in this crowd were all but inconspicuous.
[…]
They were walking around lazily, in groups of six-seven people, taking pictures of each other with their cell phones.
My first wish was to ask: “Who has organized this rising?”
But then I realized that it was not organized by anyone.
THEY were just having a day off.
And THEY decided to go to the place THEY are familiar with.
And it turned into a real flash mob - hundreds of Tajik, Uzbek, Kyrgyz faces, small groups of young guys, aged 18 to 30.
They lacked any bold aggression of the [Caucasus natives], it wasn't that but their calm multitude that was so impressive…And I became scared.
For the first time, this scene at Red Square got me truly scared.
I know that THEY want to eat, live and work.
I know that not too long ago the capital of our Motherland was the capital of THEIR Motherland, too.
I know that for THEM, the New Year arrives when the clock at the Kremlin tower strikes 12.
But…
As A. I. Fursov wrote beautifully, “Yes, they are oppressed, hungry and miserable. But if they come to us, they'll turn into ordinary robbers. And if we are weak, they'll take away our space and resources: the weak ones get beaten.”
And for this, not even a knife or a knuckles is needed.
In order to take away space, it sometimes suffices to simply occupy it.
Today I've seen how THEY did it.
And it should be noted that they don't mean any evil.
What will happen tomorrow?
***
There are, of course, posts about xenophobes and their fears out there, too.
On Jan. 7, Grozny-based LJ user timur-aliev posted this reflection (RUS) on how Chechnya and its people are perceived online:
In 1999, I got online for the first time. And, perhaps like any newbie, I got addicted to chats and ICQ. I remember spending much time at chat.ru. There were more or less the same people there, with more or less the same nicknames. I doubt I'll remember any now, except for one - stasya ([…] I even wonder if she's got a blog of her own now).
I can't say I befriended everyone there, but our interaction was friendly enough, that's for sure. They were mildly interested in Chechnya. But this interest wasn't negative or openly aggressive. Here's an example of one such dialog (to be honest, I sometimes took advantage of their not being able to check my words and made fun of them, but in the end, of course, I used to confess I was joking):
- Where are you from?
- From Grozny.
- And how are things over there?
- Okay. Only too hot. And there's some shooting.
- Why are they shooting?
- Oh, it's at the stadium nearby. They've scored a goal.
- But why are they shooting?
- It's the fans. Because they are happy about the goal.
- Wow. Does everyone have a machine gun? Everyone including the football players?
- Yes, only they've left them in their lockers.
- Does the referee have a gun, too?
- Of course. It's important for him to have one.
- Do you have a gun, too?
- Yes, it stands next to my computer.
- And where do you keep your gun when you're asleep?
- Under my bed…
- Well, poor you…Et cetera… The point is, there was more sympathy in their tone than accusation. And I remember that after the blasts in Volgodonsk and Moscow, some wrote me that they didn't believe it had been done by someone from Chechnya.
And now I sometimes run into people in LJ who are [extremely angry] about Chechnya and the Chechens.
It turns out that they changes in perception have occurred in these few years - from 1999 to 2000-something.
Below is one of the exchanges from the comments section, between timur-aliev and his reader:
reader59:
It does not mean anything. In eight years, there has been a tenfold increase in the [Russian internet users], and at the same time, the average level of intellect has fallen almost proportionally.
timur_aliev:
But I don't think that there's a direct correlation between one's intellectual and the way one perceives other communities.
reader59:
It's something of a scientific fact. Quite easily explained: a person is afraid of the unknown and the incomprehensible. The higher the intellectual level, the fewer things that one does not understand, and the higher the educational level, the fewer things one does not know. Hence, the higher the level of education and intellect, the fewer phobias one has. Including xenophobias.
timur_aliev:
This is how I used to think, too… But even in the LJ, I see people who are quite educated but with a very high level of xenophobia…
reader59:
I was talking about education AND intellect. They aren't interchangeable. No matter how long you try to teach a fool something, he's not going to become smarter: he'll just know more.
timur_aliev:
This is true.
Links for Tue, 2008-01
Window on Eurasia reports on a new political trend emerging in one of Russia's North Caucasus republics: “Daghestan, the most multi-national republic in the Russian Federation, no longer has any ethno-parties which express the interests and will of particular ethnic groups. Instead, the major all-Russian parties there increasingly include representatives of a wide variety of nationalities.”
Our Man in Gdansk