6 May 2008
Stories from 6 May 2008
Russia: “The March, Sort Of”
The Russian opposition was to hold a protest rally on May 6 in Moscow, on the eve of Dmitry Medvedev's inauguration as president Vladimir Putin's replacement, but city officials refused to allow it - and leaders of the oppositional coalition ended up canceling the Dissenters' March at the last minute. Dozens of protesters were detained by police anyway.
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Guatemala: Remembering Bishop Gerardi and His Report “Never Again!”
Ten years ago, Bishop Juan Gerardi released a report called “Guatemala, Never Again!,” which contained powerful testimonies of those forever affected by the armed conflict in Guatemala. The report provided graphic details and specific names of those who committed these crimes, and as a result, ultimately cost Bishop Gerardi his life. He was killed approximately 50 hours after the release of the report. A decade later, Guatemalan bloggers remember the man who brought much of what was happening in the war into the public consciousness.
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Zimbabwe: Using New Technologies to Fight for Democracy
In countries such as Zimbabwe where media freedom is extremely restricted, new technologies have become powerful tools for political campaigning, communication, advocacy and mobilisation. Since Robert Mugabe turned the country into a dictatorship, bloggers and civic organisations have resorted to using new tools and applications such as blogs, Flickr, Facebook, SMS, YouTube and mashups to fight for democracy, media freedom and good governance.
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Macedonia: Sakura - Cherry Blossom Celebration in Skopje
Even though very few ethnic Japanese live in the Republic of Macedonia, many locals took part in the second annual celebration of Sakura - the festival of cherry blossoms in Macedonia's capital, Skopje. Organizers of the festivals included some prominent bloggers who recently started a collaborative blog, Japan@mk, and initiated spreading the word through the Macedonian blogosphere.
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Bulgaria: Statehood in Crisis
Yavor Mihailov tells the saga of the Bulgarian blogosphere's humorous, creative, and relentless campaign against the interior minister of the country, and how it helped lead to his resignation.
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