Stories from 27 October 2011
Colombia: Photos of Student Protests at Plaza de Bolívar, Bogotá
Mike shares photos of student protests at Plaza de Bolívar in Bogotá. “Lots of people protest for lots of causes in central Bogotá, but few of them seem to have as much fun and do it as artistically as do the university students”, he writes.
Nicaragua: Blogger Argues Digital Journalism in the Country is on the Right Track
Carlos R. Fonseca says [es] he was surprised when participants in a discussion panel at the Universidad Centroamericana affirmed that digital journalism in Nicaragua is “stagnant”. Carlos argues that digital journalism in the country is actually progressing. However, he also admits there is room for improvement and lists specific issues...
Madagascar: 16 candidates for the Prime Minister Position
Valis reports that the selection of the new prime minister in Madagascar among the 16 official candidates was postponed [fr] from October 23rd to October 28 because no consensus could be found between the parties involved. Ndimby argues that the increasingly pessimistic projection for the Malagasy economy forced the transition leader to finally...
Guatemala: Three Generals Finally Arrested and Indicted for Genocide
Guatemalan courts are set to face a challenge without precedent in the country: prosecuting genocide. After three decades of failed efforts to prosecute the Guatemalan Army, three generals stand accused of perpetrating genocide and other war crimes against the Maya Ixil people.
France: New Visa Restrictions for Foreign University Graduates
France has taken a legal step which makes it more difficult for foreign students who have graduated from French universities to work on French territory and thus change their student visa permit into a working visa. Julie Owono reports on reactions to the new immigration rules.
Mexico: Discussing the Possibility of Recall Elections
The Chamber of Deputies in Mexico has been discussing a political reform for weeks. But the initiative that reached the floor lacks elements that its supporters considered essential, like the "recall of the mandate", most commonly known as recall elections.
Algeria: Algerian Journalists Reactions to the Tunisian Elections
Algerian blog Algérie-Politique published a round-up of Algerian journalists’ comments [fr and ar] on the October 23 Tunisian constituent election. Many were very impressed and inspired by this “example of democracy”.
Egypt: A Class Project That Became One of Egypt's Biggest Charities
From a class discussion after a lecture at Cairo University, to the building one of the biggest charity and volunteer organizations in Egypt. Here's the story of how university professor Sherif Abdel-Azim helped create Resala.
South Korea: Warning to Twitter Influencers Fails to Discourage Voters
South Korean capital, Seoul, elected a new mayor on October 26. The mayoral race was a fierce battle between an elitist female candidate from the ruling party and an outsider from democratic party. Despite warnings from the authorities, influential Twitter users continued to encourage people to vote throughout.
Russia: 24,300+ Personal Records Belonging to Pro-Kremlin Youth Camp Participants Leaked
Russia is entering a personal data leak war led by anonymous hackers. After the partly-fake contents of the Alexey Navalny's mailbox was published, the RuNet was struck with another massive leak of personal data belonging to 24,324 participants of the pro-Kremlin youth camp “Seliger 2011,” ridus.ru reported [ru].
Brazil: Belo Monte Dam Construction Site is Occupied
Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI) reports [pt] that 600 people have occupied Belo Monte Dam construction site in Altamira, brazilian state of Pará. Journalist Beth Begonha (@BethBegonha) said [pt] that Kayapó people from the village of Gurupira will join the protest shortly. This action was decided yesterday, with news that the...
Ghana: Meet Two Ghanaian Musicians M3nsa and M.manifest
Kobby Graham introduces his readers to two Ghanaian musicians, M.anifest and M3nsa: “First and foremost though, m.anifest is a hiphop MC. Straight no chaser and when it comes to straight hiphop, there is loads to bop your head to here, especially when m.anifest rhymes over beats by his regular partners...
Tanzania: Who Killed Zinjanthropus?
TEDxDar 2011 asks, “Who Killed Zinjanthropus?”: “This year’s TED theme is “storytelling” and from this we have created our central theme for TEDxDar 2011: “Who Killed Zinjanthropus?” With Tanzania approaching its 50 years jubilee of independence, we are using Zinjanthropus – a fossil of early man discovered in Tanzania –...
Tanzania: New Blog to Connect College Students
TZCampusVibe: Life of University Students is a new Swahili and English blog in Tanzania that connects University students in the country.
Russia: Pre-Election Scandals, YouTube Videos and Semi-Anonymous Protest
Anna Arutiunova at Russia Profile covers recent pre-election RuNet scandals (see also this week's GV coverage here and here). “RuNet has become an essential platform for the dirty business of political campaigning. It’s just that unlike the press or television, where pseudonyms are not the order of the day, the...
Overview of Occupy Southeast Asia
‘Occupy’ protests are also spreading in Southeast Asia. Inspired by the global ‘Occupy’ movement, assemblies were organized this month in Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, and Singapore. Here is an overview of the 'Occupy' actions in the region and their online impact.
Collecting Audio of UN Human Rights Declaration in 370 Languages
United_Sounds on SoundCloud is compiling the largest collection of audio recordings of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in more than 370 languages. If you speak a language they don't yet have, you can submit an audio recording – the UN has probably already translated, you just have to...
Brazil: Is the Ruling Party an LGBT Ally?
Marcelo Gerald published a series of posts (part 1, 2 and 3) [pt] on the blog Eleições Hoje (Elections Today), that analyses the position of the ruling party in Brazil, PT (Worker's Party), towards the LGBT community.
Bahamas: Economics of the Environment
Bahama Pundit‘s Larry Smith uses a case of environmental destruction from Belize to make a point about “the economic impact of Bahamian protected areas.”
Bahamas: “War” Against Women & Children
“The war against women and children in the Bahamas rages on,” says Womanish Words, adding: “This war that was dismissed for years as ‘domestic’ violence is by far the biggest and most damaging social problem we have and it is destroying us all.”
Dominica: “Authentic Architecture”
Dominica Weekly explains why it thinks the Nature Island “should also be celebrated for its beautiful architecture and historic buildings.”
