Global Voices · Citizen media stories from 2011 August 01

1 August 2011

Daily archive · 11 posts

Stories from 1 August 2011

Ramadan Recipes: Feasting After Fasting

Written by Maria Grabowski · Middle East & North Africa, East Asia

As the month of Ramadan begins, Maria Grabowski has started a list of blog links to some wonderful Iftar recipes. Please do share your favorites, too!

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Global Voices Podcast 2: Speaking Our Language

Written by Jamillah Knowles · Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa

In this edition of the Global Voices podcast we talk all about language and the internet. The way we speak, write, gesture, code and communicate is such a rich topic for discussion. It was hard to pick what to go for!

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France: The Forgotten Tunisian Refugees of #Botzaris36

Written by Anna Gueye · Translated by Laura Venables · Middle East & North Africa, Western Europe

After several months of wandering, 30 Tunisian migrants are currently sleeping rough in a park in Paris. #Botzaris36 is the hashtag launched on Twitter to help them out both financially and legally, in what is a complicated legal and political situation involving France and Tunisia. Anna Gueye reports.

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Bangladesh: 40th Anniversary of The Concert For Bangladesh

Written by Rezwan · South Asia, North America

The 'Concert For Bangladesh', a benefit concert organized by George Harrison and Ravi Shankar on August 1, 1971, is not widely known. Bangladeshi bloggers celebrate the 40th anniversary of the epic event and tell the world why it matters for Bangladesh.

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Caribbean: Online Reactions to Guyana Plane Crash

Written by Janine Mendes-Franco · Caribbean

When news broke early on Saturday that a Caribbean Airlines flight had crash landed at Cheddi Jagan International Airport in Guyana, the regional blogosphere sat up and took notice. In its 71-year history, the airline had boasted an unblemished safety record until the incident.

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Global Voices in Aymara: Preserving Indigenous Language Online

Written by Eduardo Avila · Latin America

One of the newest Global Voices Lingua sites is also its first in an indigenous language, Aymara. This native language is spoken by more than 2 million people across the Andes, especially in Bolivia and Peru, where it is among the official languages.

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United Kingdom: #BlameTheMuslims Twitter Hashtag Spins Out of Context

Written by Gilad Lotan · Middle East & North Africa

Sanum Ghafoor is a 19-year old Muslim student in the UK. Aggravated at how Muslims were immediately accused for any act of violence, especially following last week's Oslo attacks, Sanum let out steam by tweeting with the hashtag #blamethemuslims. The hashtag was wholly taken out of context, leading to a plethora of frustrated users.

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Puerto Rico: “The Point Is” to Cross Borders and Facilitate Dialogue

Written by Yarisa Colon · Translated by Ayoola Alabi · North America, Latin America

The online publication "El punto es…" [The pint is...] was created by a group of Puerto Ricans who were fed up with having limited access to information regarding what was happening in Puerto Rico. Since 2010, this group of talented individuals has worked on a voluntary basis to shape what has become a refreshing website, where the opinions of Puerto Ricans on the island, in the United States and in Spain can converge.

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South Korea: Web App Controversy Reignites Net Neutrality Debate

Written by Jae Yeon Kim · East Asia

The threat of a government clampdown on a free smart phone messenger app, has reignited the net neutrality debate in South Korea. This core principle of Internet governance is fast becoming one of the country's most debated issues.

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Mexico: Portrayals of a Culture… of Violence?

Written by Juliana Rincón · Translated by Juliana Rincón Parra · Latin America

Even though other parts of the world are experiencing high levels of violence, Mexico's case attracts our attention with the apparent inability of the government and its institutions to face the epidemic. Do the media: mass and independent, have a part to play in this struggle?

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Updates from 1 August 2011

Pakistan

Habib R. Sulemani opines that in Pakistan the military is calling the shots no matter who is in power in the country. He also opines that: “Members of the parliament are being terrorized by the secret agencies and they’re being used according to the wishes of the ignorant and vision-less bandmaster-like generals.”

• Rezwan

Nepal

Nepal Blogs informs that the first ever TedX event was held in Kathmandu, Nepal on July 29, 2011.

• Rezwan

Azerbaijan

A campaign to raise awareness of the plight of political prisoners and restrictions on freedom of assembly in Azerbaijan has been launched by four non-governmental organizations ahead of next year's Eurovision Song Contest to be held in the country's capital, Baku. A video in English detailing the campaign has been posted on Obyektiv TV and a Facebook page set up here.

• Onnik Krikorian

Russia

Kevin Rothrock of A Good Treaty sums up a recent discussion among Russian opposition bloggers on which tactics to use to avoid that Putin or Medvedev do not get re-elected in the March 2012 presidential elections.

• Vilhelm Konnander

Russia

Amid speculations on whether Medvedev or Putin will run for the Russian presidency in March 2012, Patrick Armstrong of Russia: Other Points of View argues that - judging from key official documents and speeches - Medvedev is the likely candidate of the two.

• Vilhelm Konnander

Lithuania

Albatros of Litauen blog discusses [ger] the ongoing controversy between Lithuania and Austria, after authorities in Vienna let go of an internationally wanted ex-KGB officer, who allegedly was party to the January 1991 Vilnius killings of Lithuanians by soviet troops.

• Vilhelm Konnander

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa has joined the ranks of Latin American presidents on Twitter. Latin America News Dispatch reports: “The account is named @MashiRafael, which means “Comrade Rafael” in the indigenous language of quichua, the president explained. The account remains unverified, but it was announced by Ecuador’s Office of the Presidency, which also mentioned the launch of Correa’s Facebook fan page.”

• Silvia Viñas

Chile

In Indigenous News Ryan Seelau reports on recent incidents in Ercilla, Chile as the Mapuche indigenous people of the area struggle to get their lands back from landowners.

• Silvia Viñas