Archive for
June 19th, 2009
Stories
Egypt: A New Presidential Candidate in the Making
In September 2005 Ayman Nour of Al Ghad Party and No'man Goma'a of New Wafd Party nominated themselves against President Hosni Mubarak. Nour was charged with fraud and Goma'a was accused of insanity! Since 2000, Gamal Hosni Mubarak has the been groomed to be his father's successor as the next president with no apparent opponent. Today, rumor has it that Omar Soliman, Chief of The Egyptian General Intelligence Services, is an eligible presidential candidate.
With only 19 members, I support & I am proud that “Omar Suleiman” is the next President of EGYPT is a Facebook group campaigning for Suleiman; Wael Samir, creator of the group ended his introduction of Lieutenant General Omar Soliman saying:
Gen. Omar Suleiman, .. I am proud that you are the next President of the Arab Republic of Egypt.
and about his future political role, he wrote:
In the recent years, due to his powerful role in Regional political scene, many speculations rose to conclude that Suleiman will succeed current Egyptian president, Mubarak and become the fifth Egyptian President, or at least become a Vice President. Although many have voiced that these rumors are true due to many factors including power, respect amongst Arab leaders and Israel, neither Suleiman nor the National Democratic Party spoke of this or commented on any future political role for Suleiman. Despite this, he still remains a plausible presidential candidate, should the next president come from a military background.
El Negm El Sa3ed (Rising Star) is the anonymous owner of Omar Soliman's blog. His slogan is:
The Arabist is so excited about this blog:
[A] Blog dedicated to advocating Omar Suleiman as Egypt's next president – today's front page story in al-Dustour. Its slogan: “no to the Brothers, no to Gamal”. I think this representative of a fairly large constituency in Egypt, but you have to wonder: Mubarak-haters are unhappy with his son, understandably, but why then go with his right-hand man? The other thing you have to wonder – who's behind the blog? Is this a test balloon by the Omar Suleiman people as we approach succession? The game is on, people, the game is on.
In this post, El Negm El Sa3ed quotes what renowned Egyptian politicians have to say about Omar Soliman in comparison to Gamal Mubarak:
Speaking of Gamal Mubarak, Wael Nawara posted this poll on his blog:
In this post he quotes Al Quds Al Arabi newspaper saying:
In that post, he quotes The Global Post saying:
The blog showcases various clippings from Al Dostoor Newpaper, Al Osbou', Al Jazeera Channel, The BBC Video Report, The Los Angeles Times, The Financial Times, The Daily Telegraph, and more - all in support of the new presidential candidate.
Iran: Reformist and activist bloggers arrested
As protesters continue their demonstrations all over Iran against 12th June presidential election results, Iranian authorities have arrested hundreds of activists, including bloggers.
Mohammad Ali Abtahi, former reformist vice president and an adviser to Mehdi Karoubi, a reformist candidate, was arrested last Tuesday. Abtahi used to update his blog each day for several years and share his opinion on different topics, including Iranian issues.
Here is the last post that his friends published in his bilingual blog, Webneveshteha:
Mr. Abtahi arrested
Mohammad Ali Abtahi,former vice president during Mr. Khatami's presidency and the advisor to Mr. Karroubi in the presidential election had been arrested today (Tuesday). Whenever he gets released, he will write here on his website
In one of his last posts he called election “obvious cheating”:
I analyzed the obvious cheating. It was a huge swindling. Election was planned so wisely. From one hand it made a new record of voting as it broke the previous record of Mr. Khatami who had gained more votes in second term of his presidential election and Mr. Ahmadi Nejad should gain more than him. Also they would like to destroy Mr. Mosavi and his companions. Another important part of scenario was the story of Mr. Karobi's 300,000 ballots. Although Mr. Karobi had a fixed huge number of votes, they considered 300,000 votes for him avoiding others to say such democratic mottos. Meanwhile information of other towns was showing at least equal votes for Mr. Mosavi and Ahmadi Nejad.
Somayeh Tohidloo, a female reformist blogger was also arrested. As protests against the Iranian presidential election results grows, Iranian authorities continue to arrest political activists. Recently, she and a couple of bloggers organized an Internet interview with former president Mohammad Khatami.
It seems that her blog is no longer accessible.
Mojtaba Saminejad, an Iran-based blogger and human rights activist, informs us about several other arrested bloggers.
Saminejad says that Shiva Nazar Ahari, a female blogger and human rights activist, Mehesa Amarabadi, a female blogger and journalist,Karim Argandehpour, a blogger and leading journalist and Amad Baharvar have all been detained.
So far there is no information about the charges against those bloggers.
Tanzania: Blogger arrested for publishing manipulated images of the president
The alleged owner and blogger of the blog Ze Utamu (zeutamu.com) has been arrested in Tanzania.
The alleged arrest has been in discussed at Jamii Forum, a popular Tanzanian Online Forum, since yesterday. And today, Swahili Time has posted the news along with a picture of the arrested blogger, Malecela Peter Lusinde, 39, an IT consultant from Essex in the UK.
Swahili Time reports that Tanzania’s police in cooperation with their UK counterparts have collected enough evidence to conclude that Lusinde is the owner of Ze Utamu Blog which was blocked in February after publishing manipulated photographic images depicting Tanzania’s President Jakaya Kikwete engaging in lewd sex acts.
Legal aspects of the arrest are not yet clear. Tanzania does not allow dual citizenship and since Mr Lusinde is a UK citizen of Tanzanian origin, it is not yet known under which law Lusinde will be charged. The post in the Swahili Times says:
Habari zilizothibitishwa zinadai kuwa Ndg Malecela amerudishwa Tanzania kwenda kujibu tuhuma mbalimbali za kuendesha mtandao uliokuwa unadhalilisha watu,kuna malalamiko 6850 yaliyoandikishwa kulaumu udhalilishwaji wa watu uliofanywa na mtandao huo […]
Haijaeleweka wazi Ndg Malecela atashitakiwa kwa sheria gani? Lakini ni wazi kwamba atashitakiwa Nchini Tanzania.Licha ya Ndg. Malecela Polisi wa Upelelezi wamezungumza na Watanzania wengine wawili katika miji ya Wichita na San Diego Nchini Marekani,ambao pia wanahusishwa na Mtandao huo wa Ze Utamu.
It is not clear under which law Ndg Malecela will be charged. Also detectives have spoken to two Tanzanians in Wichita and San Diego in America in relation to their involvement with Ze utamu blog.
Besides legal aspects, members at Jamii Forum also commented on the perceived double standards. Semilong said:
Is utamu the biggest ever crime committed by a Tanzanian?
watu wa JF kwa double standards wanashabikia zeutamu kukamatwa na wakati watu wana loot nchi yetu wanatembea huru
wangeshirikiana na interpool kuhakikisha hela zilizokuwa duabi, jerzey na kwinginepo zinarudi TZ ingekuwa ni jambo la maana kulikoni zeutamu[…]
JF people have double standards they support the arrest of Ze utamu while looters of our country walk free…
They should have collaborated with Interpol to make sure that all the money stashed in Dubai, Jersey and other places is returned to Tanzania […]
Also at Jamii Forum, BlueRay supporting the arrest adds:
Your argument is weak. Two wrongs do not make a right. We do not want British citizens (of Tanzanian origin or not) to fling unchecked rampant numerous unfounded character assassinations on Tanzanians.
Does the Tanzanian government project a sense of misguided priority in pursuing this rather than EPA , of course, yes. But it is also possible that this was a quick slam dunk because this guy left his tracks left right and centre, IT consultant indeed! … What saddens me is that it took gross and pornographic caricaturing of the president himself for this to happen.
My concern is our internet laws are practically non existent, and our jurisdiction may be limited because this presumably happened over British web servers (?) by a British subject. So if the guy gets a good attorney, and the government does not use extrajudicial means (if it does not Ghailani him under some autocratic anti-terrorism preventive-detention like draconian)
The guy may walk scot free.
* Global Voices Online has not verified the information published in the blogs covered on this post.
Egypt: Between the Swine Flu and Approaching Plague
Terror and panic have gripped many Egyptians after the first case of H1N1 influenza, or Swine Flu, was detected in the country. The panic had actually started before the virus hit, prompting the Egyptian government to cull pigs. Now that the disease has made its way to Egypt, bloggers are questioning the whole sanitary and health related issues that are considered preliminary elements in combating the disease.
Mohaly kicked off the discussion with a broad question: “Why is it hard to be clean?” In this post he says:
I realized that all the precautions to avoid Swine Flu are simply about “BEING CLEAN” and I also realized that the danger in Egypt is not because of the flu itself as much as not having the “being clean” culture.. I kept on thinking and I wondered Why aren't the majority of the Egyptian people in the 21st century clean? what have led to this? If the religions tell us to be clean, and all creatures care about being clean, so why aren't we?
In an attempt to raise awareness among the public, pharmacies have started putting out signs calling upon people to take all the required precautions, reports Abul Ma3aly Fa2ek in his blog:
فى بعض الدول العربية وعلى رأسها مصر رأت بعض الصيدليات أن تقوم بخدمات إرشادية وتحذيرية للمواطنين لأخذ الحيطة والحذر تجاه هذا المرض الخطير
Swine Flu mania has gripped Egypt, which is still suffering from an increasing death toll from the avian or bird flu, which is considered by health authorities even more dangerous than swine flu. And just as you would think that we have had our fill of diseases, the deadly Plague has been reported in neighbouring Libya, poising a valid threat to the Egyptian western borders.
On the Pandemic Information News blog, blogger Common Ground describes a “Triangle of Death” poised by “triple catastrophic diseases.”
On the plague threat in nearby Libya, the blogger reports:
He then notes:
Writing at Egyptian Chronicles, Zeinobia too discusses the plague threat on her country:
Forget about H1N1 and H5N1 ,now we are having in Egypt even much more dangerous deadly catastrophe knocking on our Western doors : The Plague , the black death that can't be comprised.
Confederation Cup: Egypt beats World Champions Italy in Football Victory
Egypt moved closer to reaching the semi-finals of the Confederation Cup after a famous 1-0 win over Italy, the world champions. After the match, many Egyptians took to the streets loudly beeping their car horns at midnight. Streets became crowded after traffic was light during the match. Young men were seen hanging from the windows of moving cars, cheering and waving Egyptian flags.
Twitter was almost as crowded as the Egyptian streets, but this time there were tweets during the match as well as after it. The tweets started to pour in after Egypt's first goal against Italy:
Non Egyptians and for sure Italians were there to comment on the match also.
The tweets related to the match were sufficient to bring Egypt as one of the main topics on twitter.
During the last few minutes of the match, all the Egyptians fans were not able to wait for the referee's whistle.
And finally the referee's whistle caused a real flood of tweets.
Vietnam arrests prominent lawyer and writer
Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security police arrested Le Cong Dinh last weekend in Ho Chi Minh City for participating in subversive activities. Dinh is a prominent pro-democracy lawyer, human rights advocate and writer. Several media groups and local scholars have condemned Dinh’s arrest.
Dinh is charged with violating Article 88 of the Vietnamese criminal code which bans the distribution of anti-state propaganda. Dinh is accused of “colluding with domestic and foreign reactionaries to sabotage the Vietnamese state.” If found guilty, Dinh could be jailed for three to 20 years depending on the gravity of the offense.
Who is Le Cong Dinh? A brief profile of his human rights advocacy background:
(Dinh), who has a law degree from the US’s Tulane University, was close to several of the dissidents who formed a pro-democracy movement in 2006 known as Bloc 8406. He served as a defense lawyer at the trial of human rights lawyers Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thi Cong Nhan in May 2007, where they were sentenced to prison for “disseminating propaganda that was harmful to the State.”
Amnesty International criticizes the Vietnamese government for stifling freedom of expression:
“The arrest appears to be yet another indication of Viet Nam's determination to stifle freedom of expression, and silence anyone who criticizes the government or holds different views.”
Amnesty International added that at least 30 dissidents have been sentenced to long prison terms since 2006 for being involved with pro-democracy activities and human rights issues.
Southeast Asian Press Alliance analyzes the political implication of Dinh’s arrest
Given his reputation and experience as a defender of other writers and advocates of human rights and democracy in Vietnam, Mr. Dinh's arrest is a simultaneous attack on two sectors vital to democratic reform in Vietnam or any society. It sends a chilling message not only to other writers and citizens who peacefully advocate for change, but also to those in the legal community who would defend the Vietnamese people's right to free expression.
Dinh has reportedly confessed to authorities that he had indeed participated in several activities that violated Vietnamese laws. He has allegedly asked for clemency from the state, according to the same news report.
There is an online petition urging Vietnam to immediately release Dinh “since his arrest is a huge blow to democracy and human rights.” The campaign also encourages everyone to write and send letters to Vietnamese embassies around the world to show support for Dinh.
The Free Le Cong Dinh blog was also set-up to provide the latest information about Dinh’s case.
Links for Fri, 2009-06
From Egypt, Maryanne Stroud Gabbani writes about the two-week visit of a group of California secondary school students to her farm to learn more about real life. “They've stayed at my farm in the midst of Egyptian farmers and visited some of the less touristy sites of Cairo […] two weeks in Egypt will open their eyes to the richness and variety of life in a country that they've previously seen in a fairly two dimensional aspect. The hope is that they will return to assess their own lives and country in a new way,” she explains.
At Checkpoint Jerusalem, Dion Nissenbaum discusses what he describes as Israeli Journalism 101 in this post.
At Creative Jordan, Yusuf Mansur argues in favour of private schools. “Jordanian policy makers, lacking the resources to promote world-class educational systems, have focused their attention on overregulating the private schooling system,” he writes.
Egyptian Dalia Ziada announces that she has just signed an Avvaz petition, which supports US president Barack Obama's call to stop the building of Israeli settlements on Palestinian territories. So far, 179,699 people have signed the petition.
Harvard University's Berkman Centre for Internet and Society has released a study of the Arabic blogosphere entitled Mapping the Arabic Blogosphere. About 35,000 active blogs were covered. “The goal for the study was to produce a baseline assessment of the networked public sphere in the Arab Middle East, and its relationship to a range of emergent issues, including politics, media, religion, culture, and international affairs,” announced the centre.
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