Maram starts by saying:

Maram goes onto to describe attending a recruitment event at Oxford University with the oil company she works for. During the event some protestors started demonstrating about what they argued the oil company had done in various parts of the world, accusing it of having acted criminally. Security guards started to remove the protestors, but a company official agreed to let them have their say for five minutes, saying that he respected their right to freedom of opinion. However, after the five minutes were up the protestors would not allow the official to continue, and kept heckling. Despite the disruption, the company official was disappointed when one of the protestors was finally carried away by force; he said that Britain was a free country and no one should be thrown out because he or she disagreed with the company's activities.

The second event that caught Maram's attention was a particular episode of the weekly BBC television programme Question Time, in which a panel of politicians and others face questions on current issues from a studio audience. Controversially, Question Time had allowed the chairman of the rightwing British National Party and Member of the European Parliament, Nick Griffin, to be part of the panel for this programme. Nick Griffin has previously been convicted of distributing material likely to incite racial hatred.

After setting the scene, Maram describes what happened on the programme:

Blogger The Other Door writes about the coverage, in a post called “Very Ordinary Racism”:

A wide range of subjects are covered in the blog, such as an awareness-raising campaign [Ar] in Tunisia, reasons for the spread of AIDS in Iraq [Ar], and a Saudi religious scholar's opinion [Ar] on the permissibility of marrying a person with HIV/AIDS.

In this post, Zied tells Global Voices Online about his work, and how it all began.

AIDS Awareness Ribbon, by Auntie P (used under Creative Commons License)

What prompted your interest in working in the field of HIV/AIDS?

A family member died of HIV/AIDS when I was 11. This was in the 80s and at that time there was nothing we can do. This event shaped my life and made HIV/AIDS become part of the issues that are dear to me. During my medical school, I joined the Tunisian Association Against AIDS (Association Tunisienne de Lutte Contre le Sida) and never left the HIV field ever since. I worked in Tunisia, Lebanon and Sudan so far and I’m looking forward to help my colleagues and friends in more countries.

What are the greatest challenges for people living with HIV in the Arab world?

Stigma and discrimination is definitely on the top of the list. Stigma is partially due in my opinion to the fear-creating approach that our governments and activists adopted as a main prevention message. Fear is often paired with ignorance and stigma is a consequence of this mix. Stigma makes it more difficult to convince people to get tested, and hence to get treated. It also contributes in denying basic rights to those who are infected and does not allow them to have security regarding their future (work, family…).

When did you start the HIV in the Arab World blog, and who are you aiming at?

I believe in the power of media in changing behaviours and bringing awareness. For many years Arab media has been neglecting the issue of HIV/AIDS and during the last years I observed some changes in the way they framed HIV/AIDS. I created this to better follow the way Arab media reports about AIDS and to offer to those interested a webpage that collects all the articles that talk about this epidemic in the MENA [Middle East and North Africa] region. It is also a way for me to keep connected with the MENA HIV news.

You also have a Facebook group associated with the HIV in the Arab World blog – who is it for?

I left the region in 2007 and moved to the United States where I work for the department of Global Health at the University of Washington. This move made it difficult for me to keep in touch with my friends and colleagues from the region. I created this Facebook group to reconnect with my friends and to offer an opportunity for activists and HIV/AIDS professionals to meet and discuss about the issues that are important to them. It is a primarily a networking tool and also a forum where news and emerging issues are discussed. The group is open only to those who are working in the field and has already more than 42 members from all over the Arab world.

How many HIV-positive people are there in Tunisia? Can you describe the work of the Tunisian Association Against AIDS [fr]?

Tunisia’s HIV epidemic is relatively small (3000 estimated cases/10,000,000 inhabitants). We estimate the prevalence to be one of the lowest in the world. This is due to male circumcision, a good healthcare system, conservative sexual behaviours and the government/civil society’s work. There is however a lot that needs to be done in order to prevent the disease from spreading larger. These actions include a need to target vulnerable groups with better designed prevention interventions and more work on the policy and epidemiology level.

I joined the Tunisian HIV association in 1997. This NGO is the largest and one of the most popular ones in Tunisia. We work in the areas of HIV prevention, care and support, and advocacy. We cover the Tunisian territory with more than 5 local offices and we participate in many international activities and networks that represent to us a source of funding and partnerships.

Nathan Collier is an American postdoctoral researcher at KAUST:

The idea of the University is to be a graduate school only in sciences and mathematics. The goal is to function much like a government lab would, with directed research foci, yet have students come to be part of this also. KAUST has done a fabulous job at attracting great people to its faculty and has taken an aggressive stance to become a significant contributor to the world's scientific knowledge. There is a lot of skepticism about whether the University will succeed, but at this point these discussions are not fruitful. The point now is to work hard to make it a success and help contribute to our understanding of the way our world works.

Eric Martin, blogging at Sober Saudi, is an American master's student:

(A)s the first class of a University, there is a heavier burden of responsibility that lies on the students shoulders than there is with following classes (obviously). Traditions, formation of student government, and academic standards are just a few key responsibilities that come to mind. […] As student unions form, students settle, and classes come into maturity, there remains one balancing act left for KAUST to master; respecting the Saudi culture while simultaneously keeping the open mind that will attract scholars from around the world for years to come. One Indian friend put it bluntly, calling it a “lose-lose” situation; suggesting that if KAUST gets too liberal the nation won’t support it, but if it is too conservative it will become just another “Saudified” university. I’m still ambivalent at this point, “near-beer” in hand.

Eric attended the inauguration of the university, and was in awe:

Tonight I attended my first Royal Ball, on National Saudi Day, hosted by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques (and now KAUST); King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud. The official event, the KAUST Inauguration Ceremony. I have never felt better (or cooler for that matter) being so insignificant in my entire life, if you can grasp that. There’s something special about being in the presence of a King, a REAL King. I get the idea that there are many such “Kings” in our world today, but only few actually have the power to inspire a nation. King Abdullah is one of those few. […] KAUST’s motto has always been “Through Inspiration. Discovery.” Fortunately for this Inaugural class, “Inspiration” is coming in the form of extravagant events, and until KAUST becomes yet another “Self-Inspiring” university, we can only imagine what grand act awaits us next. I’ve already put in a request for either stealing the World Cup from South Africa or bringing Michael Jackson back from the dead, whichever costs less.

Nathan, another American at KAUST, writes at Saudi Aggie:

The more I learn about King Abdullah, the more I have grown to like his policies, his savvy politics (necessary in such an ideologically diverse country), and his progressive vision for the country. The King deserves a Nobel prize for bringing us together here in Saudi Arabia from different countries and cultures to learn more about the world through science…and to learn more and build bridges between each other's cultures while we are here.

Abdullah Al-Duhailan is proud of his country’s achievement:

Ahmed Al-Omran, who blogs at Saudi Jeans, is in a reflective mood:

Last Wednesday was the 79th National Day of Saudi Arabia. […] I salute those who live by the ideals of this nation, and find the courage in themselves to stop, think and reflect, and then say: we can do better than this, we must do better that this, we are better than this. That’s why when I read that groups of young men in different parts of the country decided to celebrate the National Day by acting like hooligans, I was disturbed but not surprised or shocked. […] Although we have a great country, we are yet to construct a plural identity and make those boys realize that what they were vandalizing is actually theirs. Our national identity has been tied to individuals, tribes and religion among other things, but never to the country which we all should belong. […] At the very same moments when the hooligans were destroying storefronts in Riyadh and Khobar, a dream of our King was coming true in Thuwal. […] The launch of KAUST promises a new dawn for Saudi Arabia, the beginning of a future based on knowledge and enlightenment. That’s the promise, but will we ever come to realize it or even just come near it? How can we make sure that KAUST will not end up, in the words of Rasheed Aboulsamh, as a west coast Aramco enclave, where freedom and progressive thinking prevail while the rest of the country remains hostage to a religious dogma controlled by a select few? The celebrations of the National Day, the opening of KAUST, the acts of vandalism, and everything else that happened over the course of this past year left me with many conflicted feelings: aspiration and disappointment, hope and despair. But more than anything, this 23rd of September left me with many questions, and no answers.

“Bekhsoos” means “concerning…”, and is a reference to the changing topic of each issue. As well as news articles and opinion pieces, Bekhsoos includes poetry, fiction, and personal stories that focus on queer and transgender identities in the Arab world. It also plans more investigative reports.

Nadz, one of the editors, explains the relaunch:

This is the new Bekhsoos. We’re back after almost a whole year of no publishing (the last issue we put out was in December 2008). So what’s different? For one thing, we’ve decided to publish weekly. […] Bekhsoos.com started out as a replacement for a “real” print magazine. We knew we probably couldn’t manage printing a magazine because we’d need lots of money to purchase a publishing license, do the printing, and it wouldn’t fit too well with Meem’s underground nature. At the time (exactly 2 years ago), Bekhsoos online was a replacement. Today, and with the way information sharing has evolved, it is clear to me that Bekhsoos actually belongs online. That’s where young LGBTs in Lebanon are looking for information, connections, and support. So it’s up to us to provide the information quickly, accurately, and consistently.

Nadz continues:

The age of “wow, gay groups in Lebanon, that alone is impressive” is over. It’s not impressive anymore. Now is the time for us to become engaged with our own societies, to think analytically, to advance politically, to understand the truth about oppression, to create, to research, to be proactive, to write, to write, to write! The LGBT community has always had a strong online presence – way before people were calling it “ICT [information and communication technologies] 4 social change” and “social networking.” That’s because we had no other choice. So we built websites and chatrooms on mIRC. Then we became bloggers. Then we came out on MySpace and started groups and causes on Facebook. Then we started a YouTube channel. Now, we’re tweeting. And guess what? The world is now moving into our side of the playground. And when media moves online, they’re coming to where we are strong and numerous and unafraid. They’re coming to where the younger generations are. And no, of course, this side is not the best because it leaves out the older generations, it leaves out the people who can’t afford internet or computers, it leaves out my mother. But they are on the course to getting there. It’s getting more affordable, more Arabicized, and more widespread. The Middle East is adding 500,000 internet users a month. That’s 6 million a year. If the queer community is everywhere online, then the internet users are bound to bump into us somewhere. They’re bound to listen to what we have to say.

A recent Bekhsoos article was called “5 Reasons Health Care for Lesbians in Lebanon is at Stake”:

Lesbians and bisexual women are alienated from the health care system in Lebanon. Barriers to medical care that lesbians face can cause poorer mental and physical health. […] Heterosexism and homophobia are endemic in Lebanon. “Coming Out” to your physician, even though essential, might be challenging. […] Lack of any adequate training of health care providers about lesbian health issues. The absence of formal education about homosexuality in medical school and residency training leads to an alarming lack of understanding of health issues relevant to homosexuals. Misconceptions and dogmas about homosexuality are prevalent in Lebanon. […] Some physicians still believe homosexuality is a mental disorder even 15 years after the World Health Organization has removed homosexuality from its list of mental illnesses.

What does “Blank Noise” mean? The project's blog explains:

Blank: no form, no meaning.
Noise: heightens, builds, breaks form.
Blank Noise put together are two words that contradict themselves.
We experience eve teasing daily. It is a sexual violation but we ignore it. At the same time, we structure our lives to avoid the occurrence of it - by ‘dressing decently', ‘coming back home on time', etc, thereby making unwanted rules for ourselves and not recognizing ourselves as citizens.
This daily silent experience of street sexual harassment is what comes closest to the term blank noise.

Blank Noise started as a final year student project by art student Jasmeen Patheja in 2003, and was a personal response to street sexual harassment, which many Indians, male and female, accept as normal or try to ignore. The project initially focused on small workshops, but has since developed into a network of groups around India, who use street interventions, public art and blogging to explore the issue of harassment.

WHAT IS EVE TEASING?

Thumbprints indicate what people consider eve-teasing in these polls

Blank Noise groups around the country have used opinion polls to highlight the issue of harassment:

There have been innumerable debates on the blog in the past over what exactly constitutes 'street sexual violence' […]There are questions about what constitutes a lecherous look- and the ones who experience it will argue saying ‘it's obvious. we just know!' This is precisely the kind of discussion we want to further on the streets itself. More than for facts figures and statistics we attempt to use the form of an opinion poll to start discussions. The opinion poll also becomes a 'safe' way for people to testify and admit what they have seen or experienced.

2007: Namita Sharma's Tea Stall (Gariahat, Kolkata) welcomed Blank Noise poll

I NEVER ASK FOR IT

In 2008, on March 8 (International Women’s Day) Blank Noise held a series of street interventions around India under the banner I Never Ask For It:

Action Hero: n. a woman who has dealt with street sexual harassment by confronting it. Her final response might have been to choose to ignore the harassment, but she will have chosen to do so, not failed to notice it. […] The Blank Noise street action challenges you to be an Action Hero. Participants are requested to come wearing a garment they wore when they were sexually harassed. By doing so, they are actively taking a stand that reads ‘I never ask for it'.

This action was followed up by another, in which women were invited to send an item of clothing:

Do you really think you ‘asked for it' when you experienced street sexual harassment? How often have you found yourself blaming the pair of jeans, the salwar kameez, the skirt, the t-shirt? Do you really think it is your fault when you are violated? Do you really think you deserve to be humiliated? Do you really think that it is only certain kind of clothes that result in women experiencing street sexual harassment?

We say NO. We say there is no such thing as ‘asking for it' and we need you to prove that for us/ yourself.

How? Send in one garment you wore when you experienced ‘eve teasing'. Your garment is your truth, your witness, your evidence, your memory. […] What next? We propose to install these clothes on the streets of your city and collectively challenge the notion that women ask to be sexually violated.

TO HIT BACK OR NOT TO HIT BACK

Blank Noise recently initiated a discussion about self-defence:

chilly powder. bamboo stick. baygon spray. toy gun. body spray. big bag. eyes. elbow. steel scale. nails. confidence. rings. pens. pepper spray. paper cutter. pencil. angry look. mouth. hand. fists. feet. elbows. sharp pencils. teeth. handbag. comb. body spray. stilettos. fat psychology book. cell phone. cerebrum. swagger. attitude. mobile phone. books. files. bag. crossed arms. conversation. pens. pins. sewing pins. breath spray. bunch of keys. hair pin. blank noise pamphlet on section 354. dupatta. crossed arms. staring at the ground. scowling. talking on cell phone. not making eye contact.

These are just some of the “weapons” used by women to make themselves feel safer in public spaces. Most of the objects listed above are not weapons in the conventional sense. However these are used by a number of women all over the world to give them some sense of security. […] Violent self defense should definitely not be the primary response to the problem of sexual harassment, but should it be a response at all?

BLANK NOISE GUY

Earlier this year Blank Noise set up a blog for men called Blank Noise Guy:

Blank Noise is terribly interested in men!
The Blank Noise Guy blog is in its first phase, asking men/boys to respond to street sexual harassment. send us your thoughts on street sexual harassment. write to us if you've seen it and are feeling thoughtful about how you responded, or even if you engaged with it or caused it (knowingly or unknowingly).

Lina Al Sharif, blogging at 360 km2 of Chaos, writes:

Ramadan in Gaza is not like elsewhere. The suffering of the people reached the point where some people have water for Iftar, because they are too poor to buy food. Other have their Iftar in a tent in a refugee camp made for those who lost their houses in the war.

Foods are being smuggled from Egypt; however, they are beyond what an average family can afford. The prices of almost everything is doubled due to the siege.

Nevertheless, there are still things to take pleasure in. Lina and her friend Bodour Abu-Kuwaik put together this sequence of Ramadan scenes in Gaza:

Ayman Quader visits a friend for iftar:

Today I was invited to take a Ramadan breakfast in my friend Jumaa’s house. He lives in Al Maghazi Refugee Camp where people still are suffering miserably from the impacts of the War on their houses and streets. Basically, most of the residents of the Gaza Strip are already refugees and during the War they were once again forced to evacuate their houses and flee. I asked my friend to take me around in the camps small pass-ways, as I wanted to be closer to the people actually living there. Indeed, this made me feel strongly how much the people in the Refugee Camp are still in real pain. In the middle of the Al Maghazi Refugee Camp there is still a completely destroyed building – impossible to ignore by the people living in the Camp. I found little children playing on the rubbles of this building which really made me sad. But THEY didn’t mind and seemed to be really happy.

The Paltoday News Network recently reported on unemployed men in Gaza taking on temporary work as musaheratis, who wake people up for the meal before daybreak, suhoor. At her blog In Gaza, Canadian Eva Bartlett writes:

Walking back at 2am, we come across the singing and drumming of the Ramadan Musaher: men who undertake to awaken Muslims for the pre-dawn meal and prayer (Suhoor).

It is a Ramadan tradition that extends to Muslims around the world and still lives today.

On the near empty streets of Gaza, where Ramadans in the last few years have held little happiness and celebration, this sound is somehow encouraging…that culture and tradition live on, in the worst of times and circumstances.

For some, this month and the work of the Ramadan drummer is a source of income otherwise absent in Gaza under complete and strangling siege.

This is some brief footage Eva took: