Archive for
February 1st, 2009
Stories
Tunisia: Attacks on Freedom of Expression
The Tunisian government is confirming again its “strong support” for freedom of speech. According to local journalists on Tuesday, January 27th plainclothes policemen surrounded the offices of the newly launched satellite radio station Kalima and detained one of its journalists, Dhafer Ottey. On Wednesday, Kalima’s journalists and reporters stayed in the building and continued to broadcast. The policemen also verbally and physically assaulted individuals associated with Kalima. Human rights activist, Zouhair Makhlouf, was attacked (as shown in the video) as well Omar Mestiri, the editor-in-chief of Kalima's website, who was threatened by knife with death. The policemen kept on insulting Kalima’s journalists who were not inside the building and many of the people who came there to show their support for Kalima’s staff. On Friday January 30th, the policemen entered the premises and seized the equipment used for broadcasting. Here is the video showing the siege on Kalima.
Furthermore the Ministry of Interior seized on Friday, January 30th ,the 113th issue of the dissident newspaper “Attariq El Jadid” before its delivery to kiosks claiming that the newspaper published the legal document of the interrogation of a detainee in what is known as “Gafsa Events”. The publishing of which is illegal according to the Acts 63 and 73 of the Journalism code which prohibits the publishing of legal documents. According to the law, these documents can not be published until after they have been presented publicly in a court of law. In this particular case, the legal documents in question had been presented in court on January 11th, 2009, therefore making the publication legal according to journalists. The blog Farda-wla9at -O5taha talked about this censorship today by reporting the article of the French news paper ” Le MONDE ‘
Tunisie: un journal d'opposition saisi pour violation du Code de la presse.
L'hebdomadaire d'opposition tunisien “Ettarik Al-Jadid” (la nouvelle voie) a été saisi samedi par décision judiciaire pour violation du Code de la presse, a-t-on appris de source gouvernementale.
La saisie a été ordonnée “en vertu des articles 63 et 73 du Code la presse”, selon un communiqué publié par l'agence gouvernementale TAP.
Hatem Chaâbouni, directeur de l'organe bilingue du Mouvement Ettajdid (Renouveau, légal), a indiqué à l'AFP que le numéro saisi diffusait une transcription de l'interrogatoire de Bechir Laabidi, un des dirigeants du mouvement social de Gafsa (sud) dont le procès en appel est en cours.
“L'interrogatoire d'un prévenu peut être rendu public dès lors que les audiences publiques au procès ont commencé”, a assuré pour sa part Adel Chaouch, rédacteur en chef du journal.
Les articles du Code de la presse invoqués interdisent, sauf autorisation du juge, la publication de tout acte de procédure pénale et sanctionnent “celui qui, à la suite des troubles, a accepté de se substituer aux autorités régulièrement constituées”, la punition pouvant aller dans ce cas jusqu'à l'emprisonnement à vie.
Bechir Laabidi fait partie d'une trentaine de Tunisiens poursuivis pour leur participation à un mouvement de protestation sociale dans la région minière de Gafsa et dont le procès en appel ouvert le 13 janvier reprendra mardi prochain.
Il fait suite à des condamnations allant jusqu'à 10 ans de prison prononcées en première instance le 11 décembre à Gafsa (350 km au sud-ouest de Tunis).
La saisie de l'hebdomadaire intervient alors qu'une enquête a été ouverte par le parquet tunisien sur le lancement sans autorisation de Kalima, une station dirigée par la journaliste dissidente Sihem Bensedrine, selon une source gouvernementale.
“Radio Kalima” avait commencé à émettre lundi mais ses locaux ont été perquisitionnés vendredi et les équipements saisis, a indiqué à l'AFP un de ses collaborateurs.
Tunisia : The Censorship of a Dissident News paper for Press's Code Volation.The Tunisian weekly news paper “Attariq Al-Jadid has been seized by court order for violation of the Code of the press, as it was learnt by governmental source.
The seizure was ordered ” by virtue of articles 63 and 73 of the Code the press “, according to a communiqué published by the governmental agency TAP.Hatem Chaâbouni, director of the bilingual organ of the Movement Ettajdid (Renewal Party , legal ) pointed to the AFP that the seized issu spreada transcription of the interrogation of Bechir Laabidi, one of the leaders of the social movement of Gafsa ( South) the lawsuit of which in appeal is in progress.
The interrogation of an accused can be made public since the public audiences in the lawsuit began”, assured for his part Adel Chaouch, chief editor of the newspaper.
Articles of the Code of the press called forbid, except license of the judge, the publication of any act of penal procedure and sanction ” the one who, following troubles, agreed to substitute himself for the regularly established(constituted) authorities “, the punishment which can go in that case to the detention with life.
Bechir Laabidi is a part of a group of thirty Tunisians pursued for their participation in a movement of social protest in the mining area of Gafsa and among which the lawsuit in appeal opened January 13th will start again next Tuesday.
He is subject to condemnations going to 10 years of prison pronounced in first authority on December 11th in Gafsa (350 km in the southwest of Tunis).
The seizure of the weekly occurred while an investigation was opened by the Tunisian public prosecutor's department on the launch without authorization of Kalima, a radio station steered by the dissident journalist Sihem Bensedrine, according to a governmental source.
“Radio Kalima” had begun to broadcast on Monday but its premises were searched on Friday and the seized equipments, indicated to AFP one of his(her) co-workers.
Korea: Serial Killer and His Human Rights
A man who had an ordinary life and a good reputation in his town found to have killed 7 women over 2 years. He is a father who has two teenage sons. His targets were random. From women who worked at karaoke clubs, to middle-aged women who went back home after work, and to college girls at bus stops — all were his victims. While his cruel murders have been disclosed by investigation, whether his face should be protected or opened to the public became a big issue among netizens: the right of citizens to know vs. human rights and protection for the accused. Since 2004, criminals’ faces had been protected from the public for their human rights and for their families’ human rights. However, this big scandal and the new government has brought the question of whether it should be maintained. While the arguments have been continued on the Internet, conservative media, Chosun and Joongang Newspapers exposed his pictures.
Many people are concerned about the criminals’ families safety and chances that criminals can have second lives.
[…]살인자의 얼굴을 공개함으로인해서 살인자는 물론이거니와 그 가족들이 입는 정신적인피해, 물질적인 피해또한 생각하지 않을 수 없습니다. 살인자는 그렇다 치더라도 왜 그 가족들까지 고통을 당해야 합니까? 그리고, 글쓴분은 살인자의 얼굴을 공개해야한다는 논리중에 < < 재범>>을 꼽으셧습니다.
아무리 살인죄를 범했다고해도 교화돼서 새로운 삶을 사는 인생들도 많습니다. 왜 그런 기회까지 우리가 박탈해야합니까? […]
A netizen has another interesting concern.
최근에 많은 저 사람에 대한 많은 기사를 봤는데 많은 분들이 불만을 가지는 부분이
사형제도, 신상공개, 그리고 부실수사.. 이거더라구요. 그중에서 신상공개에 대한거 개인적으로는 반대라서 이렇게 적어봅니다.. 그렇다고 저 사람을 옹호를 하는건 절대 아닙니다. 저사람은 죽어도 할말없는 죄를 저질렀으니까요..[…] 제가 걱정하는 부분은 얼굴 공개후에 오게될 영향입니다. 물론 공개를 하게되면 저 사람이 저지른 행동에 대한 많은 목격자들이라든가 많은 증거들을 찾게될지도 모르죠.. 아니 그럴거예요. 하지만 앞에서 말한 것처럼 혹시나 비슷한 외모를 가진 사람들이 있다면 그 사람들에게 엄청난 문제가 생기지 않을까요? 작게는 학교 같은 곳에서 놀림 받는것부터 시작해서 심하게는 그 사람 인생 자체에 문제가 생길지도 모르죠.. 단지 살인자와 비슷한 외모를 가졌다는 이유로 나쁜 이미지가 박힐 수도 있구요..[…]
[…]What I am concerned is results after showing his face to the public. Of course, it will be much easier to find more witnesses about his history. However, as I said before, people who have similar faces to him will have many problems. Those can be mocked at a place where they belong to, such as schools. Or it can cause their lives badly. Due to one reason that they looked similar to the murderer. they could give bad impressions on others…[…]
Not a few netizens agree that citizens have rights to know for their own safety.
요즘 인터넷에보면 연쇄살인범 얼굴 공개냐 마냐 그런걸로 싸우는데 내생각엔, 당연히 공개 해야한다. 살인자 인권? 뭐 인권도 있겠찌. 근데 군포연쇄살인 범인을 한번 생각해봐라 그사람은 7명을 더 죽였다고 하지 않았나?? 그럼 그 7명 죽은사람 가족이 4명이라고만해도 최소 28명의 마음을 갈기갈기 찢어놓고 이제 인생도 망칠수도 있는데 얼굴공개를 안햬?ㅋㅋ 그리고 지금얼굴공개해서 뭐 살인자가 불이익받는것도 아니고 또 가족이 불이익을 받잖어. 내가 듣기로는 그사람 전범 몇과 있었따는데 아에 제한을 두어서 전범 x과 부터는 얼굴을 뛰울수 있게 해야한다. 범죄자 인권 옹호할생각하지말고 범죄자에게 당하는 시민들 입장을 생각해야지?[…]
The murderer’s cruelty leads many people to anger rather than to consider his human rights.
[…]저는 군포용의자 얼굴공개를 개인적으로 찬성하는 입장입니다. 반대하시는 분들중에 인권을 운운하시고 용의자가족이 무슨 죄가 있느냐라는 글이 정말 많은거 같네요. 그러나 7명을 어쩌면 더 죽인 살인마 한테 인권을 부여할수 있을까요?
그럼 그 용의자가 빼앗아간 꽃다운 나이의 대학생이며 한 가정의 어머니 이런 분들의 인권은 어떻게 된거 인지 궁금합니다. 이 미치광이 살인마의 인권이 존중되야 한다면 그 살인마가 죽인 아무잘못없는 고인들의 인권은 종이가루 인가요? 살인마는 살인마 일 뿐입니다. 더 이상 어떠한 인권을 운운하는건 고인과 고인의 가족들에게 더한 상처를 주는 것에 불과합니다.
또한 얼굴을 공개 하게 될 경우 용의자의 가족이 피해를 입는다는 글을 많이 보았습니다. 물론 아무 이유없이 피해를 입으면 안되는게 당연한거입니다. 그러나 용의자의 가족을 먼저 생각해주시기보다는 고인들의 가족을 한번이라도 더 생각해보셨으면 좋을거 같네요.
그리고 공개수배범의 얼굴은 공개하면서 파렴치한 살인자의 얼굴을 공개하지 못한 다는건 이치에 맞지않는다고 생각합니다.
Then how about human right of family members who lost lives, such as a college student? While this crazy murderer’s human right should be respected, human rights of the victims whom the murderer killed without any reasons are nothing. A murderer is just a murderer. Talking about his human rights is to hurt the victims and their families again.
Many netizens also said that if his face is shown in public, his family will have disadvantages. Of course, they shouldn’t be victimized without any reasons. However, rather considering the murderer’s family, I hope that you think about the victims’ families.
In addition, we show wanted criminals in public, but protecting the murderer’s face is not logical.
Are showing criminals’ faces to the public related to human rights for victims and their families?
결국, 가해자의 얼굴을 공개하므로써 생기는 효과는 대중들의 호기심을 채워주는 것 하나 밖에 없다고 생각됩니다. 그러나 대중들의 호기심을 채워주는 것으로 생길수 있는 제3자의 피해를 생각해 봐야 합니다. 가해자의 얼굴을 공개할 경우, 가해자의 가족들이 사회적으로 매장당할 가능성이 커지며, 가해자와 비슷하게 생긴 사람들도 피해를 볼 수 있습니다. 그리고 만에 하나 재판결과 가해자가 무죄가 될 경우(진범이 잡히거나 누명 등..)가 있을 수 있죠.
‘범죄자(가족)의 인권만 생각하고 피해자(가족)의 인권은 생각하지 않느냐'고 하시는 분들도 있는데, 범죄자(가족)의 인권과 피해자(가족)의 인권은 서로 독립적인 것입니다. 즉, 가해자(가족)의 인권이 보호된다고 피해자(가족)의 인권이 보호되지 않는 것은 아닙니다. 범죄자(가족)의 인권을 묵사발 내는 것이 피해자(가족)의 인권 신장과 무슨 상관이 있는지 모르겠군요. 그리고 경우에 따라서는 피해자의 가족이 가해자 얼굴 공개를 원하지 않을 수도 있습니다.
가해자의 얼굴을 공개하자는 주장, 유치한 호기심에 지나지 않다고 생각됩니다.
Some people say ‘we think about human rights for the criminals (families), but don’t consider human rights for the victims (families).’ But human rights for the former and for the latter are separate. That is, protecting human rights of the criminals (families) doesn’t mean to protect those of the victims (families). I don’t understand how disregarding those of the former is related to those of the latter. In addition, some victims’ families don’t want to show the criminals’ faces to the public either.
Insistence on showing the criminals to the public is just from childish curiosity
China: Hard to get home in a time for family reunion
A journey to home preludes most people's Spring festival. It usually starts a few days before the Chinese New Year eve. And when they are to say goodbye to their families, the short holiday will end with another journey back to a place far away from home.
The Spring Festival Travel, or Chunyun, is the largest annual human migration that carries over 2 billion passengers every year, in a short time not exceeding 40 days. This year the New Year is on Jan 26. 15 days before that Chunyun kicked off; today, 31, Jan, the return journey begins.
The spectacular movement, with waves of humanity crowded in rail stations, airports, and roads, is driven by the core value of the festival, that is, family reunion.
The rapid but in some sense distorted urbanization in China highlights the meaning of family reunion. As many as 200 million labor from rural areas are working in cities, while leaving the entire family behind to earn a better life in a place foreign to them. Spring Festival, to most of them, is the only chance to see their beloved families again because of the high cost of going home.
One of the side effects is the unparalleled difficulty to get home. The carrying capacity falls behind the surging demand. On the other hand, the monopolized, state-controlled railway is routinely under vehement critiques every year. Because of the strong demand and restricted price, ticket scalpers flourished. Clerks in booking offices, meanwhile, is thought by many as the major culprit in complicity with the ticket dealers to drive up the ticket price. If a survey is conducted, I bet it is among the most unpopular careers in China.
In Beijing, a ticket clerk, who issued tickets from machine but didn't sell them to passengers, and instead, put them aside regardless of the long queue waiting, was shot by cellphone, the video uploaded to the internet soon. People doubt the ticket are preserved for scalpers. Thousands of people, with strong sympathy, joined the condemnation of the clerk.
楚天阁 in Tianya said:
看过这几段视频，再想想那些在寒风中为了一张火车票排很久队的人。北京站37窗口的售票员同志良心何在?
The clerk is only one epitome of the entire interest group, the Ministry of Railways, which operates all the railways in China, called by people “railway big brother.” Blogger Zhu Weidong points out the absurdity of the railway monopoly, which he thinks is not understandable at all:
铁老大独家经营的垄断地位也一直未变。
铁路保持国有垄断经营是否会效益更好、服务更优呢？事实刚好相反。铁路部门经常性亏损尽人皆知。服务如何？过去说政府部门门难进、脸难看、事难办，铁路部门是有过之而无不及。
However, would monopoly brings it more benefit and better service?
The fact goes the opposite way. The railway system is routinely in the red. Then how is the service? Well, even worse than government offices, which are hard to get in, difficult to have things done, and often greeting you with a cold face.
A post cited by the official media Xinhua, named “unobtainable tickets tell all about urbanization“, analyzed the underlying cause of the hardship of getting home. In the blogger Den Yu-wen's view, making transportation better is not as good as making cities the real home for migrant workers.
另一方面要减少人们回家的需求，特别是把农民工留在他工作的城市里。而要把农民工留在城市，就必须把他的家庭也留在城市。
由于农民在居住、养老和子女入学等方面遭遇一系列难题，目前农民不可能从心里真正把城市作为自己的家，也就难以真正融入当地社会，所以他们不得不每年候鸟般地在农村和城市之间来回奔走。
The status quo is that migrant workers don't enjoy as comprehensive social security as that of the urban citizens. It is not that cities are their mines to find bonanza, but that they are cheap tools for cities to use for exploitation.
Besides the institutional discrimination against the migrant labor, the writer further points out:
主要在于我们的城市化是一个被动的、盲目的过程，多数城市主政者只想解决城市发展所需要的廉价劳动力.而不去认真探究和解决它所衍生的一系列问题。就此来说，春运难的背后，实际反映了中国的地区发展差距特别是城市化的滞后。
Blogger Willings (驿动的心) wrote a touching post to conclude that, “you'll understand today's China as long as you understand Chunyun (Spring Travel).”
只有乘坐长途火车，经历过春运的人，才能真正理解中国，才可以称之为一个真正的中国人。中华民族的所有苦难，都集中体现在春运历程中。
选项A：买不到票；选项B：买到高价票；选项C：买到假票；选项D：不回家。
Choice B: overpriced ticket
Choice C: fake tickets
And D: Don't go home
但在当今中国，即使穷人之间也一样互相倾轧，票贩子心安理得的赚取高额利润，小偷们心满意足的清点钞票，从打工妹，打工仔身上毫不留情的大赚特赚，只留下她们坐在地上嚎啕大哭的背影。在当今中国，利益的攫取，已经取代了仁义礼智信的古训，人民失去了信仰，除了对金钱的崇拜。
火车站的广场上，站满了数万数十万渴望回家的人们。他们披星戴月，他们风餐露宿，他们饥寒交迫的站在广场上，密密麻麻一眼望不到边，每个人都是那样的焦急，他们是最底层的中国人，他们只有最简单渴望回家的愿望，却无人给他们帮助。既然他们买不起飞机票，于是他们就注定命如蝼蚁，注定命贱如草….
车厢里密密麻麻，过道里水泄不通，空气浑浊不堪，厕所极度肮脏，这些都是春运的常态，不是你我所应抱怨的……
我们办得好春晚，办得好奥运，却始终办不好春运。
Russia: A Day of Rallies
It was sunny in Moscow on Jan. 31, with temperatures around minus 14 degree Celsius/7 degrees Fahrenheit, but despite the cold, the city saw a number of anti-government rallies - and some fighting. Below are a few accounts, some photos, videos, and links.
LJ user drugoi posted nine photos from the opposition rally on Bolshaya Polyanka and wrote this (RUS):
Young opposition activists have once again succeeded in marching down a Moscow street today. This time it was Bolshaya Polyanka, and the participants of the rally […] were getting there in roundabout ways, switching trains on the metro. Today, however, it turned out that the regime had some volunteer (or, perhaps, hired) assistants. […]
The moment the column of approximately 50 to 80 “dissenters” with flags and banners started moving along Polyanka, a few cars drove up from behind and - with the words, “Why aren't you letting us relax, assholes?” - some 10 or 12 people got out, dressed uniformly: in jogging pants, jeans and hooded jackets. Without delay, the gang started beating the protesters, and a pretty serious fight began.
There was some initial confusion in the “dissenters”‘ ranks, but then they were quite organized and tough as they fought the attackers back. Among the protesters, there were people with blood on their faces, one of the reporters had a stone thrown at his camera, but the attackers were forced to run away and would have been chased if the opposition activists hadn't decided to continue on their march.
At the end of the fight, those who were covering their faces with scarves sprayed some tear gas around. Many of those who were affected had to wash their eyes.
Riot police showed up only after the rally was over, and the work of all the law enforcement organs had to be done by two police [officers] from a nearby station, under the sharp eye of a dark-blue police helicopter hanging over Polyanka.
Several times they jumped bravely into the protesters' crowd, trying to take the banners away. It was causing some serious resistance, but the protesters had more people and [the police officers] obviously didn't have the guts to face up to them.
Desperate, one of the policemen rushed to a group of soldiers he saw standing on the sidewalk, and begged them to join in the difficult task of protecting public order. The cadets reluctantly shifted from one foot to the other, but didn't go against the people's will.
All in all, the Dissenters' March has again taken place, and there was more than enough drive today. Riot police units, which showed up belatedly […], seized whoever was within reach - a cameraman, for example, with a huge Betacam on his shoulder - placed them into the [police van] and drove away. Somewhere above the square a new police helicopter hung still - all it had left to do was register the fact that the “dissenters” have managed to achieve what they wanted today.
LJ user zyalt posted nearly 30 photos from the same rally in the oppositional namarsh_ru LJ community.
Russian photographer Oleg Klimov posted a few pictures of the National Bolshevik leader Eduard Limonov, who made an attempt to hold another rally on Jan. 31 - a follow-up to the protest by the Communist Party at Triumphalnaya Square. Here're some of Klimov's observations (RUS):
[…] Triumphalnaya Square, in front of the monument to [poet Vladimir Mayakovsky], was cordoned off by riot police - and empty. There was a crowd by the entrance to the metro, though, not allowed to come to the stone “revolutionary poet” - and the loudspeaker kept addressing them loudly: “The rally is over! Go home!” Most of these people were journalists and they didn't want to disperse. They were waiting. Waiting despite the fact that the [National Bolshevik activists] and other young people had already been arrested and squeezed into [police vehicles].
We walked out [from the opposite side of the square] and it seemed as if nobody noticed us. Limonov started his speech by the monument to Mayakovsky. The crowd by the metro got somewhat excited, but riot police were holding them tough. Some of the journalists managed to break through, however, and ran towards Limonov. Riot police ran after them. Things were happening around the revolutionary writer [Limonov] as well. He continued talking, most likely about “freedom, fraternity and equality,” surrounded by his personal guards, but at some point two huge plainclothes guys pushed over simultaneously on Limonov's bodyguards and hit one of them right into his nose. It was just an ordinary fight. Limonov was thrown on the asphalt, but, as an experienced revolutionary, he managed to take his glasses off, to keep them from being broken, obviously. The guards did their best to protect him, but the riot police were there soon, and it all ended the way it always does - the doors of the [police vehicle] […] were shut close.
The crowd was just staring at what was going on - with obvious pleasure, it seemed. No one said anything. No one yelled anything. No one cursed anyone… the crowd was observing, along with the journalists. Observing lawlessness and impunity of the “cats” who didn't like one “little mouse” that was not gray.
There was a feeling of sadness because of this, and a terrible embarrassment, because, as Johann Goethe, I guess, said - “None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.”
Below is a video of the events at Triumphalnaya Square, posted by LJ user zlaya-uchilka:
According to LJ user alaverin (RUS), Eduard Limonov is to spend the night and part of Feb. 1 at the police department.
A pro-Kremlin rally took place just off Red Square on Jan. 31, too. LJ user drugoi posted a photo of one of the banners from that event: “We believe!” - underneath the portraits of Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin. Some of drugoi's readers thought the banner looked familiar, in two different ways:
cab9:
I thought at first that this was an Obama poster.
***
filaretus:
Marx-Engels-Lenin-Stalin.
Long live CPSU.How deep must the USSR still be in the people that even after nearly 20 years the same style of banner design comes up.
dont_ban_me_mo:
It never went away anywhere, they've just done a little re-branding, Putin instead of Lenin, [Medvedev] instead of Stalin, and the CPSU has renamed itself into [the United Russia party].
LJ user mutin2007 posted a sheep cartoon, on which the animals hold banners thanking the regime for price hikes and layoffs, among other things.
Also, LJ user mutin2007 posted a photo from a rally that took place on the same day all the way across Russia, in Vladivostok: a group of protesters there carried a banner with the words “Putler kaput!!!” on it.
LJ user bwm posted 16 more photos from the Vladivostok rally, organized by the Communist Party and the Community of Activist Citizens of Russia (TIGR), and wrote this (RUS):
[…] The march turned out to be pretty strange because [TIGR activists] didn't really have anything in common with the Communists - neither in their appearance, nor in their [political views].
But most of the protesters were people who did not belong to any political movements, but were just not indifferent to the realities around them. […]
Links for Sun, 2009-02
Marking the 125th anniversary of the birth of Mammed Amin Rasul-zadeh, one of the founders of the short-lived Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan in the early 20th Century, the Ol! Youth Movement staged a small event in Baku and posts the video on its channel on YouTube.
How do you keep school computers away from thieves in places where schools are target of criminals? You can get some tips from Khanya Project in South Africa.
Alisa compiles a list of 100 best blogs for learning about the African continent.
This site is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License
Please read our attribution policy.
Samuel Maina18 posts 
Janet Gunter7 posts 
Fabienne Flessel49 posts 
Maya Norton213 posts 
Filip Stojanovski18 posts 
Aparna Ray62 posts 
Layal Al Khatib1 posts 
Tarek Amr64 posts 
Veronica Khokhlova6347 posts 
Belen Bogado7 posts 
Kamla Bhatt60 posts 
Abdoulaye Bah4 posts 