April, 2009
Stories from April, 2009
8 April 2009
India: The Advent of Citizen-Driven Election Monitoring
A group of Indian bloggers and activists has recently launched Vote Report India, which is a collaborative citizen-powered election monitoring platform for the upcoming 2009 Indian parliamentary elections. This platform is based on the award winning crisis reporting platform Ushahidi ('witness' in Swahili) and will display reports of violation of election codes, violence and sabotage during elections. Many Indians will be able to send these information using SMS or web and those will be displayed in a geospatial archive of events for easy access of the masses.
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DRC: Unpaid Soldiers Pillage Civilian Homes
Last week, Radio Okapi reported that members of the FARDC, the Democratic Republic of Congo's military, pillaged several homes in Kirumba, 200 kilometers north of Goma. The soldiers, who have not been paid in three months, stole cash, telephones, and electronics.
Colombia: Humanitarian Minga Recovers Bodies of Awá Indigenous
A group of 470 Colombian indigenous participated in a humanitarian minga, which is a collective mission towards a common goal, to recover the bodies of members of the Awá indigenous communities that were killed by the FARC, who accused them of cooperating with the army. The blog from the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC) provided regular updates on the progress of the minga, as well as the situation that led to the action.
Moldova: “Grape Revolution” / “Twitter Revolution”
Peaceful protests that took place in Moldova's capital Chisinau on Monday, following the victory of the ruling Communist Party in the April 5 election, turned violent on Tuesday, as protesters stormed and set fire to the parliament building. While it's too early to speak of the outcome of the post-election uprising, one thing is sure: the impact of social media on facilitation and coverage of the protests in Moldova - which is known as "the poorest country in Europe" - has been outstanding.
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7 April 2009
Argentina: A Land of Immigrants and Emigrants
Argentina is a country built by immigrants primarily by Europeans who escaped war and hunger in the early 20th century. Later, South Americans and Asians also made a new life in the country having to adapt to new surroundings. However, in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, Argentineans also left their country due to the presence of a military dictatorship, and later a political and economic crisis. All of this movement makes Argentina a land of immigrants and emigrants.
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Hi Christa, Thank you for sharing the good news. I am glad that at least one battle has been won by...
Help us bring international visibility to this issue. Please read and share the following link regarding Vila Autódromo's recent win...