The website Marche Paris 2012 [fr], emanation of the Indignados and Occupy movements, details the organization and the stages of the March of the Suburbs, which leaves from Saint-Denis on April 14, and proposes to go through the Parisian suburbs in 27 stages, as punctuated by the People's Assemblies Network, before ending up at the Place de la Concorde on May 12th. A Facebook page [fr] and a Twitter account [fr] link with similar movements in other cities.
17 April 2012
Stories from 17 April 2012
Cuba: Diaspora Blogs About Dissidents
The plight of prisoners of conscience is a front-burner issue with Cuban diaspora bloggers. This week, they are talking about two in particular: Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia, a former member of the Black Spring “Group of 75″ and Andres Carrion Alvarez, the man who was detained after shouting, “Down with Communism!” prior to the start of a mass during Pope Benedict XVI's recent visit to the island.
Bahrain: Police Help Thugs Vandalize Shiite-Owned Shop
The owners of the Jawad Business Group, a Shiite-owned company in Bahrain, have released a video of one of their shops being stormed, robbed, and vandalized by a group of thugs on April 10, as policemen watched and even helped.
Nigeria: Was Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala's Candidacy Symbolic?
Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, the only African and woman running for the World Bank presidency, has lost the race to Dr. Jim Yong Kim, a Korean-American physician. Should this have been the time for global governance values to triumph over the long-standing tradition of an American leading the institution?
Egypt: Campaign Against Compulsory Military Service Gains Momentum
A discussion against conscription or compulsory military service is emerging in Egypt. Ahmed Awadalla gives us an overview of the debate in this post.
Zambia: On the Ban of Popular Cheap Spirit ‘Sachets’
Two years ago, a blogger called for the banning of the sale of very potent alcoholic spirits packaged in 60 ml sachets which have come to be known as “tujilijili”. Whether government officials saw the blogger’s appeal or not, at least the Minister of Local Government and Housing, Professor Nkandu Luo on March 15, 2012 did just that. Zambian netizens weigh in on the government's decision.
Arab World: Technology in the Time of Revolution
The Arab uprisings have created a debate about the role played by social media and mobile technology in bringing change. Whatever conclusion you come to on that subject, activists certainly make use of a wide range of new technologies, and Tarek Amr takes a look at some of them in this post.
Morocco: Opposition to Mawazine Festival Grows
As the the world struggles with the global economic crisis, Morocco's Mawazine festival may be affected by growing resentment at its cost. Mawazine is an international music festival that will take place this year between 18 and 26 May.
China: What is Causing the Death of Endangered Finless Porpoises?
More than a dozen corpses of the Finless Porpoise, a species even more rare than the Giant Panda, have been found in Dongting Lake in Hubei and Hunan provinces since March 2012. Chinese micro-bloggers are keeping each other updated on the situation while trying to determine the reasons for the deaths of this critically endangered species, as the government is yet to confirm the death toll and put forward a rescue plan.
Overhyped Elections in Myanmar?
The world rejoiced after Myanmar election officials announced the victory of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi in the recent by-elections in the country. But according to some netizens and political observers, the euphoria over the opposition victory must be tempered by the fact that the junta-backed party is still the dominant force in the local politics.
Indonesia: Popular Minister Starts His Twitter Account
Dahlan Iskan, the popular State Enterprises Minister of Indonesia, has caused another hype in the virtual world after starting his Twitter account. In the past week, some netizens were able to express their concerns directly to the Minister through Twitter.
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