Archive for
February 24th, 2009
Stories
Iran: Students protesting against martyrs re-burial are jailed
Up to 70 students from the Amir Kabir University in Tehran were arrested today, Tuesday 24th of February, while protesting against the re-burial of five anonymous Iran-Iraq War martyrs in the grounds of the university. Students have published several videos and photos of the demonstration in a student news website, Amir Kabir News. Several bloggers have reported on this event, showing a diverse range of opinions and bringing personal accounts.
Below is a video of the protest in Amir Kabir University, where students compared the Iranian government to the Afghan Taliban and chanted: “Down with the Taliban!”
In this other video, security forces are shown “attacking protesting students”, according to Amir Kabir News:
Several bloggers, such as Jdaneshjoo, have published [fa] a declaration made by the Islamic Association of students of Amirk Abir University about the recent event. This Student Association disapproves the authorities' decision to bury the anonymous martyrs in the grounds of the university, and claims it is an excuse for security forces to maintain their presence in this university, repressing more than ever the student movements.
Ghomar Asheghane says the authorities want to turn the university into a cemetery and adds [fa]:
دانشگاه را با قبرستان اشتباه گرفتهاند؛ که نه؛ میخواهند قبرستاناش کنند. همین که بسیاری از دانشجویان یا در زندان هستند … دانشگاه را تبدیل به قبرستان کرده است. همین که بسیاری از اساتید برجسته با کارنامههای ممتاز علمی از دادن درس و آموزش محروم میشوند خود دانشگاه را تبدیل به قبرستان کرده است. همین که احمدینژاد جرات نمیکند با دانشجویان دیدار کند و در روز تعطیل به دانشگاه میرود، خود دلیلی است برای قبرستان کردن دانش گاه
Jomhour says that the students have been against this project because the authorities have used the war martyrs as an instrument to achieve their own political interests. He adds [fa] that the conservative Farsi news websites have published provoking stories and, in the end, students were beaten and arrested.
Hezbollah blog has a different opinion and says [fa] that some of the students — who are attending university thanks to the government's financial support — started to chant “down with the dictator”, “down with Basijis”… Writing with irony, the blogger adds that even in these days talking about martyrs is a shame. He concludes: “I do not know where we would be and what would have happened to us if these martyrs did not go to war.”
India: Slumdog Millionaire Sweeps The Oscar Awards
Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire, a British social film based on a novel set out in India made a clean sweep at the The 81st Academy Awards Ceremony. Its British and Indian crews bagged 8 awards including the best picture award. It was truly India's day as ‘Smile Pinky‘, another short documentary based in India also won an Oscar.
A section of the ‘Slumdog Millionaire' casts in Hollywood- photo by Flickr User KaushiK™, used under a creative commons license
People from all over the world watched the awards ceremony. Some were live blogging the event like Sepia Mutiny. There were hundred of Twitter messages appearing in a minute during the live transmission where voices like Raajesh said:
Prerna at No Borders and Binaries said:
A horde of Indian invaders and their British allies on tourist visas took home the coveted and prized Oscars as the world watched. One in particular, A R Rahman, dazzled and charmed everyone with his musical genius while also speaking sentences in Tamil. This is America, English-only!!
And of course there were many who did not like Indians invading the Oscars:
But many Indian bloggers were tepid in acknowledging the feat of ‘Slumdog Millionaire'. We highlighted the mixed reactions of many Indians about this movie in an earlier post in Global Voices. Many slum-dwellers in Mumbai, where the movie was shot, have protested because they were called slumdog in that movie.
Meera Sinha writes:
Despite feeling that Slumdog Millionaire shouldn’t be viewed as a defining film about Indian poverty, it’s been exciting to see India in the limelight after the movie’s 8 Oscar wins. I’m tempted to write more, but I’ll give into the celebratory moment and avoid going into any further detail about my issues with the film.
Great Bong at Random Thoughts Of A Demented Mind was not too impressed either:
For one, Slumdog Millionaire very deliberately and very effectively strikes many of the chords that Academy judges have been known to have a soft spot for. In order to ace an exam, you do not necessarily have to be the best —even an average person can excel if he/she can understand the “system” and do exactly what is expected. Slumdog Millionaire does that admirably.
Hitesh Bagai wonders in a twitter message:
Lekhni at The imagined Universe tries to find “Why do Indians hate Slumdog Millionaire?“
I wonder if our main objection to the movie is because it depicts a part of India we’d rather not focus on. We’d like to celebrate our economic growth and our resurgent middle class. We’d like to point to our new malls and glass-fronted buildings. The movie does not show much of the prosperity of middle class India. It shows the other India that not many of us know very well, or would like to think about - the poor India that has remained poor despite all the recent economic growth.
Shripriya Mahesh at Tatvam (Inner Truth) loved the movie and writes:
Why on earth should any filmmaker be burdened with representing a city or a country? He’s not making a documentary. There’s a story to be told. It involves a sliver of a view of a city. From the point of view of one fictitious life. The filmmaker’s job is to tell that story to the best of his/her ability. And that’s exactly what Danny Boyle did. And I for one, loved the result.
Prerna highlights India's capabilities and concluds with:
Sure, it took a British director to make a movie on an ‘Indian subject’ to get Oscars for Indian technicians who have been doing superior work for decades (i.e. Gulzar, A R Rahman, Pookutty). Slumdog Millionaire is nowhere near the A-list of Bollywood movies given it’s simple tried-and-tested theme of love over money. And this isn’t A R Rahman or Gulzaar’s best work. At the same time, it is heartening to see these musical greats finally getting international recognition for what is ultimately an Indian movie. However, THAT should not be a marker for success. AR Rahman doesn’t need Hollywood; Hollywood needs him.
Congratulations nonetheless, to Slumdog Millionaire and to every Indian that considers this their movie.
Mexico: Urban Artists in Monterrey Take to the Internet
In the streets of Monterrey, a city best known for being the industrial and technological mecca of Mexico, graffiti and many other forms of urban artistic expression are growing. Hundreds of street artists are active in the metropolitan area of this state capital located in the northeastern part of the country. In synergy with its development and prestige in the field of technology, as it was the first Mexican city with internet during the late 1980s, these artists have started to utilize user-friendly electronic media in order to showcase their painted works and murals on the internet. With sites like YouTube, Flickr, Fotolog, and blogs, artists are finding ways to share their works with the world.
Many of these electronic sites are free and easy to use, making the cost and effort investment minimal. Artists are using these sites to document their works, promote upcoming events, and make connections with other artists. Since many of their street works are illegal - painting on public walls - anonymity and the use of pseudonyms save them from the consequences from the local authorities. For example, the graffiti artist Buster publishes his videos on YouTube about the way he makes this illegal tagging on the cement walls of certain major avenues and multi-story buildings as part of a series of videos called “The Wild Street.” The fans of this risk-taking graffiti artist also upload their tributes and homages to Buster on YouTube
For some artists, the process of painting a mural is almost as important as the mural itself. There are hundreds of videos available on YouTube, including a video, which is uploaded and constantly deleted from the web for different reasons, of a “graffiti attack” where dozens of teenagers organize to paint an underpass along the Alfonso Reyes avenue. To paint in such an exposed location without being arrested while paradoxically they are openly showing off on the Internet takes courage equivalent to a feat in an extreme sport.
On Flickr, one can find photos of works in progress. During the citywide art event “Campeones” that took place in mid-2008, the artists Fidencio, Screw, Blast (all three from Monterrey), Blair (from California) and Eltono (renowned French urban artist) came together to paint a giant whale with some wood panels on the wall of a parking lot. The images found on Flickr with a search for the words “mural” and “campeones” taken by the artists, as well as spectators who watched the painting, provides a visual narration and illustrates step-by-step the transformation of the large, previously abandoned wall to become an alternative tourist attraction.
Photo by Cambalache and used under a Creative Commons license
On an individual level, these electronic sites serve as a type of portfolio. The collective Los Contratistas use their blog [es] to publish recent works, discuss upcoming events, document past activities, present their project invitees, and share a bit of their philosophy.
One person who is part of this collective is the artist known as Fidencio, for his use of the child “saint” Fidencio of El Espinazo, Nuevo León, in his posters and stencils. Sometimes he also includes his blog's address [es] in some of the street appearances. His blog address is his business card for his work, a link of the physical world to the virtual world.
In addition to providing coverage of the work of these urban artists, social media is also important for establishing connection points and for other supporters, especially shops that are directly linked to the gangs, “crews,” or collectives. For example, Streetarte [es], located in a very busy shopping center in central Monterrey is dedicated to the art of airbrushing and graffiti. They take orders to airbrush images on t-shirts, caps and other items. They use their website and their Fotolog, another image hosting service, to showcase their items for sale and as a portfolio for the artists that work there.
On their YouTube channel, they publish videos of those graffiti artists working live, without revealing their faces:
On the same channel, they also add original content of interest to the hip-hop community, which is closely tied to the culture of graffiti. They publish video of conversations with local rappers, such as Güero, national rappers, such as Serko Fu and Caballeros del Plan G, as well as international artists such as the Spanish rappers Violadores del Verso improvising rhymes or “beatboxing.”
These urban artists are making great use of citizen media to promote and share their work. The state of Nuevo León, of which Monterrey is the capital, is the Mexican state with the most users of Fotolog. A mash-up map was recently created to link photographs found on Flickr and Fotolog of murals and other urban art with their corresponding location on a Google map. The result is a map of the metropolitan area of Monterrey showing different locations of murals, graffiti tags, stencil works, or stickers:
To date, there are more than 50 works from artists, via this map, can be integrated without problems to the service of Google Earth. For artists and collectives, these social media sites are becoming a very powerful tool. They have the best of both worlds: an international reach with little effort and little cost, as well as distancing themselves to protect their identity. The pseudonyms that they use when they sign their names in the form of “tags” in the street represent their usernames on the internet, known by their friends but out of reach of the authorities.
Hong Kong: Defending freedom of speech
On 22 Feb 09, more than a hundred Hong Kong people took on the street to voice out their concerns about the alarming shrinking of freedom of speech in Hong Kong. The protest was proposed by the Citizens’ Radio and supported by other democratic institutions including Save RTHK Campaign, Hong Kong Human Right Monitors and the pan-democratic political alliance in Hong Kong.
“Supporting Citizens’ Radio” and “Supporting RTHK” are the most frequent slogans chanted by the demonstrators. The protesters were unsatisfied with selective prosecution on Citizens’ Radio talk show’s guests including Mr Szeto Wah, a 78 years old prominent pro-democracy figure and the former chair of an anti-communist organization, Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. At the same time, protesters were also anger with the refusal of transforming RTHK, a quasi public broadcaster but critical towards the government, into an independent public broadcaster.
Mr Szeto Wah bravely said he would not be afraid of spending the rest of his life in prison in order to fight for the free speech zone in Hong Kong! One of the masters of ceremony of the event, Angel Lee wrote in her blog that:
本身我都很少參與遊行, 今次站出來是因為重視言論自由, 香港這個國際大都會絕對有能力容納到不同發聲的平台, 讓市民可以多個選擇, 這樣香港這美麗之都才得以發展。
Another participant, XOX also supports the struggle for freedom of speech in Hong Kong:
Still a bit tired after yesterday march. But it is worth it. The selective persecution in the People Readio so bloody unfair. […].So, freedom! Kind of touched when the uncle Wah (Szeto Wah) said he rather go to jail. I really really don't want him to go to jail, considering his age and everything.
In a reply to a forwarded post on Seven Deadly Sins of Donald Tsang’s leadership, pangtszyin sighed,
我覺得現在無論是香港新聞透明及自由度,己大不如前了.
The facebook event page also have some discussions and the youtube video below shows the concert outside the government central office after the rally:
Sudan: Mourning a Great Novelist and Musings on the ICC
After a long absence, a number of fascinating Sudanese bloggers, return to the blogosphere to rant, share their thoughts on recent events and vent. They're included in this roundup along with the usual suspects.
After a frustrated rant about Khartoum International Airport's unhygienic condition, Sudanese Optimist mourned the passing of the respected and well-known Sudanese novelist, Al-Tayeb Saleh.
Sudan has lost a dear citizen, who has contributed tremendously to Sudanese and Arabic literature. His most acclaimed work is the 1966 novel “Season of Migration to the North.” The novel was, at one point, banned in Sudan for its inclusion of sexual imagery, yet it was declared “the most important Arabic novel of the 20th century” by the Syrian-based Arab Literary Academy in Damascus.
Earlier this year, The General Union for Sudanese Writers, requested Al Tayeb Saleh to be preliminarily nominated to win the 2009 Literature Noble Prize.
Ras Babi Babiker mourned Saleh's passing too by reminding us about the great novel that made him a major name in the world of modern Arabic literature.
Season of Migration to the North (Arabic: موسم الهجرة إلى الشمال Mawsim al-Hiǧra ilā ash-Shamāl ) is a classic post-colonial Sudanese novel by the late novelist Al-Tayyib Salih. Originally published in Arabic in 1966, it has since been translated into English and French.
The novel charts individuation of the (un-named) narrator, who has returned to his native village in the Sudan having spent seven years in England furthering his education.
On his arrival home, he encounters a new villager (”Mustafa Sa'eed”) who exhibits none of the adulation for his achievements that most others do, and displays an antagonistically aloof nature. The villager betrays his past one drunken evening by wistfully reciting poetry in fluent English, leaving the narrator resolute to discover the stranger's identity. As it turns out Mustafa was also a precocious student educated in the west but simultaneously harbors a violently hateful and complex relationship with his western identity and acquaintances. The story of Mustafa's troubled past in Europe and in particular his love affair with a British woman, forms the center of the novel.
Meanwhile, as Drima mourned along with his fellow bloggers the death of his country's great novelist, he also blogged an in-depth analysis on the possible consequences of an ICC arrest warrant charging his country's president with crimes against humanity and genocide.
the ICC can’t do much on its own in terms of enforcing the arrest warrant (if it issues it at all) and the UN is a fangless paper tiger, but…
… given that we now have Susan Rice as the US Ambassador to the UN, Hillary as Secretary of State (she has her own blog now by the way), and a Blue Donkey administration in charge of running things, US policies towards Sudan will gradually become starkly different than they were just a few months ago when Bush was still in power.
An ICC arrest warrant issued within this new context will now have more weight, and hence its potential issuance will probably be more useful as a tool for pressuring Omar al-Bashir to act in favor of peace in Darfur and implementing the CPA.
Mimz, who returned to the blogosphere after a long absence, also recently mentioned the ICC arrest warrant and her adventures with Facebook.
“Dang!” doesn’t even begin to describe it. It’s been almost a year and a half since I was last here. And a lot of things went down during that time. Here are just a few highlights:
1. I joined facebook.
2. There’s a global economic crisis going on and it’s on the rise.
3. Obama was elected president of the United States.
4. Israeli troops attacked Ghaza killing and injuring hundreds.
5. The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Omer El-Bashir on charges of war crimes.
6. I graduated.
7. Sami El-Haj was released from Guantanamo Bay. (I obviously have a lot of editing to do).
8. Gillian Gibbons was arrested for a “teddy bear blasphemy case” in Khartoum.
9. The rebels reached Khartoum and attacked everyone.
10. I quit facebook.Did I mention that I finally graduated?
Hipster, a Sudanese blogger living in the UAE, is now also back actively blogging again. She shares with us a little “Che Guevara” experience she had while driving to work.
Aggravated at the abrupt interruption, I glared at the monstrous vehicle, only to be completely amazed and amused at the sight of the colors and words adorning the spare tire case. Che Guevara’s renowned & symbolic raggedy face picture was sandwiched between words in bold letters namely “T.N.T” and “ Al Maafia”. I couldn’t help but look down at my paperback copy of “The Young Che: Memories of Che Guevara”, lying on the passenger’s seat, triggering me to ponder and wonder upon the mockery this revolutionary has become.
With my humble knowledge, I ask: What do “T.N.T” and “Mafia” have anything to do with the Soldier of the Americas?
And if you've ever wondered whether blogging is a form of therapy, you're not alone. Path2Hope shares those thoughts too.
And then it happened, the dam that was blocking my ability from putting down thoughts onto paper broke and everything wanted to come pouring out instantly. So much to write about, so many experiences to relate and then you sit infront of the laptop and wonder - who the heck cares? Everyone has their own battle that they are tackling - and well I suppose blogging really is a form of therapy and an excuse to self indulge.
As for JohnAckec, he reminded us today of the increasingly sad situation with education in Sudan.
With more than 30 universities in Sudan and with talk of declining academic standards and rising level of unemployment amongst university graduates in our country, one is led to believe that university education has lost its glitter and is now next to worthless. Nothing could be further from the truth.
On a happier note, Precious, wished everyone a Happy Valentine's Day.
Although I no longer beleive in romance and that passionate love I used to dream of, and although I no longer trust a man's fake “I love you”s, but you might still have a little hope. So anyway, I deeply and sincerely wish you a very Happy Valentines day, whether you are Single, dating, engaged or married. Enjoy the day and dont let anyone not even him/her, ruin it for you!
Armenia: Illegal hunting in nature reserve exposed
Illustrating how online activism could make a difference in Armenia, a YouTube video of a chief forester hunting wild boar at the Khosrov nature reserve has resulted in his dismissal.
On February 6, 2009, YouTube user TugUrartu posted the video with the following description:
On January 20, we went to Khosrov's preserve on a trip. On our way back we saw how a forest guard is killing animals, saying ‘it's a stupid animal, it destroys forests' oaks.’ He ignored our pleas …
The short video shows the forester firing fourteen shots at the running boar. The female cameraman even offers money to the forester to no avail. A day after the video was uploaded, a moderator of an Armenian environmental group on Facebook sent the following message to members:
The head of foresters KILLS WILD ANIMALS
… to protect the Khosrov reserved forest“it's a stupid animal damaging the trees” says the head of foresters
Reserved Forest? Sl[a]ughter house? Place for having Fun?….
What is KHOSROV RESERVED FOREST NOW?
Who are the real protectors of it? In whose hands is it? How many animals still exist in the place called RESERVED FOREST”?
[…]
Lets protect our rights to live in HARMONY with NATURE~~”
The message, which was also posted on a few blogs, asked supporters to contact Armenia’s Ministry of Nature Protection and provided the relevant phone numbers and e-mail addresses.
The following day the environmentalist blog Bnamard [AM] wondered if the incident wasn't part of a powerful politician's development project as it detailed in another entry.
Հայկական մամուլը ժամանակին գրեց, որ Հայաստանի մի բարձրաստիճան պաշտոնյա Խոսրովի անտառում ռեստորանա-հյուրանոցային համալիր է կառուցում, ոչնչացնելով անտառի մի մասը: Թերեւս, անտառապետը հրահանգ է ստացել անտառին զուգահեռ ոչնչացնել նաեւ այնտեղ բնակվող հատուկենտ “ախմախ կենդանիներին”:
[…]
Bnamard later reported that the forester was punished.
Տուգանք մեկ միլիոն դրամ, աշխատանքից հեռացում..
[…]
Արգելոցի գլխավոր պետին և տեղակալին խիստ նախազգուշացում
[…]ի դեպ սա բնապահպանության նախարարության թեժ գիծն է…51 91 82…, բայց չմոռանաք հայտնել ևս մի քանի լրատվամիջոցների[….]
[…]
By the way, the Nature Protection [reporting] hotline is 51-91-82, but don’t forget to also inform a few media outlets…
Indeed, without the video evidence, it is unlikely that justice would have been served at all.
Links for Tue, 2009-02
Mexico's war on drugs is getting “so surreal, absurd, and downright twisted” according to Daniel Hernandez of Intersections. He cites some recent incidents, including the claim that the drug cartels are organizing street protests against the Mexican military.
Tourism in Cusco, Peru will get a luxurious boost with the building of a new 7-star hotel writes Israel Ruiz of Living in Peru.
Andrea Zamora narrates her daily commute to the Municipality of Peñalolén in Santiago, Chile [es] and some of the people she observes riding the Transantiago public transportation system.
Cholesterol levels for Lima residents are rising according to a report cited by Letra Suelta [es].
Mario Carrasco Berrios describes some of his recent experiences in the city of Talca, Chile with the lack of parking spaces for disabled drivers [es], as well as the problem of drivers who are not disabled that take these reserved spaces.
Blogger Mohamed Nasheed analyzes the performance of the first 100 days of his namesake Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed (Anni) in two parts (1, 2).
Bhutan, 2008 and beyond celebrates the King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk’s 29th birth anniversary by sharing a touching picture of His Majesty.
From Trinidad and Tobago, de cooler : soca news and This Beach Called Life link to photo sets of this year's Carnival celebrations.
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