Global Voices » Jea

Comoros Chats About Identity on Twitter

Jea — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:45:12 +0000

The hashtags #TesPasComorien and #Teamcomoco are stoking conversation among Comorian Twitter users about what it means to be from the island nation.

Twitter users are adding to the conversation under the first hashtag, #TesPasComorien (You're Not Comorian), which consists of anecdotes that a person must have experienced or observed if they are truly Comorian or have lived in Comoros. The second hashtag, #Teamcomoco, seems to be more general, referring to belonging to the community.

Comoros is an archipelago island nation in the Indian Ocean between northeastern Mozambique and northwestern Madagascar. In addition to many smaller islands, the country consists of the four major islands. One of the islands, Mayotte, continues to be administered by France as an overseas department because it was the only island in the archipelago that voted against independence in 1974.

One of the most popular anecdotes is the photo shared by @ElarifC on Twitter, which shows sandals typically worn in the Mascareignes region. The caption reads: “Admit it. You know these shoes!”.

Sandales aux Comores via @ElarifC on Twitter CC-BY-2.0

Certain tweets are regularly re-tweeted and seem to implicate people who live in Comoros as well as those in the Diaspora. Some, like the tweet by Nafyza Mentos express pride in being Comorian:

@Nafyzamentos: Être comorienne c plus qu'une fierté , on est les etoiles les plus proche de la lune #teamcomoco

@Nafyzamentos: Being Comorian is more than being proud, we are the closest stars to the moon #teamcomoco

Or this tweet from Monsieur Fossettes which describes a style of communication unique to the country:

@Slackersleeper: Nous nos darons quand il nous insulte il aime bien tirer le ” Bé ” de Imbécile mais avec eux ça donne “MmmhBéééciil” #Teamcomoco on se sait

When our parents tell us off, they love to draw out the “be” in “imbecile”, which makes it sound like “MmmhBéééciil” #Teamcomoco

Tweets on culinary traditions also abound:

@Femme_Nkoulou: #TesPasComorien si ta pas un bocal de confiture mais c'est du poutou a l'interieur! Une boite carte d'or avec du madaba dedans

@Femme_Nkoulou: #TesPasComorien If you don't have a jam jar which really contains poutou (ground rice). Or a carte d'or box with madaba (manioc leaves with coconut milk) inside.

Aiadio tweets an image of a local dish:

@ShariifaBwow: @inesBwow @sophiaboss_ pilaaahou #teamcomoco pic.twitter.com/bJQHPeiDnD

Music also receives pride of place when it comes to talking about Comoros. In one tweet, Aksdayday pays homage to Comorian rap:

@Aksdayday : Le Comores il gouverne le rap français wallah

@Aksdayday : Comoros runs French hip hop

In another, Nouky Nouk places the number one Comorian Slam artist above them all:

@VELOAnouk: We still got to keep playing the top #slam from #comores #teamcomoco Absoir-Tsi Nyese (ft William's)

via @youtube

Some Comorian Internet users seem not to share the enthusiasm for using these particular hashtags for this particular affirmation of Comorian identity :

@KingComorien: Pourquoi vous voulez encore mettre le #TEsPasComorien en TT #Teamcomoco On la deja mis arreter vos gogourouitance

@KingComorien: Why persist with the #TEsPasComorien hashtag for TT (trending topics) we already did it with #Teamcomoco - stop with your meaningless chatter

@faissolempire : Si pour être comorien il faut se reconnaitre dans ce # “#TesPasComorien” bah je suis pas comorien alors

@faissolempire : If to be Comorian you have to see yourself in this # “#TesPasComorien” then, oh well, I guess I'm not Comorian

The strong presence of the Comorian community in Marseille, France is reflected in some tweets:

@_Maadine269_ : Ts Comorien et ta paw d'famille à Marseille ??? I M P O S S I B L E #teamComoco

@_Maadine269_ : You're Comorian and you don't have family in Marseille??? I M P O S S I B L E #teamComoco

@Ha_biiba : #TesPasComorien Si ta jamais participer au Djaliko Géant à Marseille (si t'es pas de Marseille t'es pardonner mais le reste nan) #TeamComoco

@Ha_biiba : #TesPasComorien If you've never taken part in the Djaliko Géant in Marseille (if you're not from Marseille then you're forgiven but the rest of you, no way) #TeamComoco

Less positive tweets remind of the harsh realities of life in Comoros.

@Comores_Actus : Quand ceux qui ont dépouillé les Comores , font la morale aux universitaires Comoriens , pauvre pays !: Quand ce… http://bit.ly/YXfpSV

@Comores_Actus : When the same people that stripped Comoros bare, want to lecture Comorian universities, poor country!: When the … http://bit.ly/YXfpSV

Venezuela: Fire Consumes Part of Canaima National Park

Jea — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 17:18:36 +0000

For a week, one of the world's most precious green lungs has been burning. The Canaima National Park in Venezuela's southern Bolivar State, has been blazing out of control.

A combination of drought, wind and a lack of personnel have made the task of extinguishing the flames virtually impossible, and over 1,200 hectares of the sixth largest national park in the world have been consumed.

Although the fire in Canaima, a world heritage site, has been raging for over a week [es], netizens had not spoken of the event until today, after it emerged that the fire had reached the tepuy [es], or tabletop mountain, where the Angel Falls are located.

It is not only the environment which is being affected by the fire. The area's indigenous community have spent a week engulfed by smoke and are calling for help from the government, with the respiratory tracts of the oldest and youngest suffering the consequences.

Many Twitter users have lamented the events, but not without calling out the indolence of the Venezuelan state and that of Venezuelan politicians in general.

Photo by pilot Raul Arias, shared widely across social media.

Luis Alfredo Osorio (‏@LuisOsorio_22) [es] points out that neither of the presidential candidates, Nicolas Maduro and Henrique Capriles Radonski, have mentioned the ecological tragedy:

‏@LuisOsorio_22: Se nos está quemando Canaima y los políticos bien gracias @hcapriles @NicolasMaduro

‏@LuisOsorio_22: Canaima is burning, thanks a lot, politicians @hcapriles @NicolasMaduro

Elsewhere, Alexa Garcia B (@AlexaBrit) [es] shows a similar discontent with the behaviour of the authorities. She is in no doubt that this lack of concern is due to the electoral campaign:

@AlexaBrit: Que lamentable lo que está ocurriendo en parte de Canaima y el Auyantepuy… Y el gobierno? en campaña, las autoridades? en campaña.

@AlexaBrit: Such a shame what is happening in parts of Canaima and Auyantepuy… And the government? Out campaigning. The authorities? Out campaigning.

The coordinator of the national parks institute (Inparques) in the western sector of Canaima, also secretary of the indigenous authority, Josval Simon, said to El Universal [es] newspaper that Sunday went by without any effort to extinguish the flames, as the helicopter equipped with the Bambi Bucket system, belonging to REDI, the Integral Defence Region of Guayana, was withdrawn on Sunday. He then decried the fact that the airship from publicly-owned enterprise Corpoelec, which had been lending assistance, left on Saturday afternoon, having used up its authorized flight hours.

In light of this statement, Twitter user ‏@enigmasPRESS [es] criticises the purchase of arms and defence equipment by the State, which does not have sufficient resources to extinguish the fire in Canaima:

@enigmasPRESS: ¡Patria Querida! Llegaron 100 carros antimotines. Llegaron misiles. Incendio Canaima 1 semana sin apoyo aéreo. http://goo.gl/3YTc4

@enigmasPRESS: Dear Country, 100 anti-riot vehicles have arrived. Missiles have been shipped in. Canaima has burned for a week without aerial support. http://goo.gl/3YTc4

Photograph by pilot Raul Arias, widely shared across social networks.

Unsurprisingly, the incident did not escape the country's political polarisation, and Twitter users spoke from their own political positions.

Emanuel Bermudez ‏(@emax4) [es] was certain that the opposition would blame the current interim President, Nicolás Maduro, for the fire in the country's southern region:

@emax4: ‏Incendio en Canaima y la culpa es de Chávez pues… Perdón de Maduro….. :S Tontos!

@emax4: Fire in Canaima and Chavez… sorry, Maduro….. is to blame….. :S Idiots!

On the other hand, Javier J. Ugas (‏@JJ_ugas) [es] believes that Nicolás Maduro will try to evade his responsibility pointing instead to the United States:

@JJ_ugas: Mas de 1.200 hectáreas de Canaima afectadas por incendio incluido el Auyantepuy donde está el salto Angel. Ya Maduro dirá q es culpa de EEUU!

@JJ_ugas: More than 1.200 hectares of Canaima affected by the fire, including El Auyantepuy where the Angel Falls are located. Maduro will say it's the US’ fault!

But the consequences run far beyond the political. The devastation wrought by the flames could take up to a hundred years to heal. At least this is what biologist Rodolfo Castillo, executive director and president of the organisation Bioparques, stated to the Correo del Caroní [es] newspaper. In his words:

Los suelos de esta zona son pobres, la vegetación tiene poco alimento y al quemarse son vulnerables a las próximas lluvias, al viento, por lo que su recuperación, en las mejores condiciones, podría tardar entre 50 y 100 años”.

The soil in this area is very poor, with limited nutrients available for the vegetation, and now, having been burnt, they are vulnerable to the coming rains, to the wind, all of which means that recovery, under the best circumstances, could take between 50 to 100 years.

For Twitter user Jose Rafael Camejo (@joserafael) [es] , however, the incident will not have a large impact, and he criticises those who question the authorities’ handling of the fire:

@joserafael: Hay opositores que se comportan como Maduro: bruuuutos. Un incendio en Canaima es imposible controlar. Además después llueve y crece todo.

@joserafael: There are members of the opposition who are acting like Maduro: stupidly. It's impossible to control a fire in Canaima. Plus, soon it will rain and everything will grow again.

Ecuador: Seven Days Without Water, Loja's Residents are Enraged

Jea — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 00:30:09 +0000

The province of Loja is currently under a state of emergency: for over a week, approximately 60 neighbourhoods have been without a supply of clean drinking water, due to problems with the main water pipeline. Residents of the province have been expressing their indignation over this and other problems in the area using the hashtags #Loxaindignada and #Lojaindignada [es, Loja outraged].

The water company, Agua Potable de Loja, obtains its water from various water sources in order to supply the area's 180,000 inhabitants. Typically, the water is conducted via aqueducts to a processing plant; however, the entire process is currently paralysed as a result of damage [es] to the water system.

Various Twitter users attribute the loss of the water supply to poor administration on the part of the area's mayor Jorge Bailón [es]. Singer-songwriter Pato Valarezo (@patovala) [es] writes:

More than 60 neighbourhoods are without a supply of potable water, a problem that has remained unresolved for several days. Image provided by José Bolìvar Carderón @jbcalderong

@patovala: #Lojaindignada #Loxaindignada no entiendo como loja aguanta por tanto tiempo una administración municipal nefasta. Abre los ojos y reclama

@patovala: #Lojaindignada #Loxaindignada I don't understand how Loja has put up with such a terrible municipal administration for so long. Open up your eyes and protest

On the other hand, Maluli (malufertan) [es] posts:

@malufertan: como que si se solucionara inmediatamente los problemas de Loja con la salida del Alcalde!!

@malufertan: as if getting rid of the mayor would immediately solve Loja's problems!!

To which Álvaro Castillo (@genesys33) [es] replies:

@genesys33: @malufertan no se solucionan, pero debes dejar precedente, q las autoridades q no trabajan por la ciudad se las puede mandar a la casa

@genesys33: @malufertan No it wouldn't solve them, but you have to create a precedent so that officials who don't work for the city can be removed

Leonardo Javico L. (@leonardojavi) [es], sports journalist, believes that the mayor is unconcerned by the state of the city:

@leonardojavi: @LoxaIndignada sin agua, calles en pésimo estado y un Alcalde q no hace nada, hasta cuando…!!!

@leonardojavi: @LoxaIndignada no water, streets in a pitiful state and a Mayor who does nothing whatsoever. For how long…!!!

Economist Giovanni Carrión (@GiovanniCarrion) [es] shows his irritation for the lack of governability which he believes the city has experienced over the eight years that the current administration has been in power.

@GiovanniCarrion: 8 años de una Alcaldía donde lo único que destaca es “la silla vacía”. Hasta cuando Padre Almeida!. #Loxaindignada

@GiovanniCarrion: 8 years with a Mayor's Office in which the only thing that stands out is the “empty seat”. For how long, Padre Almeida!. #Loxaindignada

Jhuliana Moreno (@jhuly_ldu05) [es] is indignant at having to pay for a service which has been cut for several days:

@jhuly_ldu05: #LoxaIndignada somos un país con riqueza fluviales y aquí comprando agua? no pago por servicios?

@jhuly_ldu05: #LoxaIndignada we are a country rich in water resources and I'm here buying water? Don't I pay bills to receive this service?

José Bolívar Castillo (@chatojobol) [es], former mayor of Loja, congratulates netizens on the #LojaIndignada hashtag and invites residents to make their complaints heard.

@chatojobol: Loja no soporta más una administración ineficiente y sin visión. Felicitaciones a la iniciativa #LojaIndignada. Todos debemos involucrarnos.

@chatojobol: Loja will no longer put up with this inefficient, visionless administration. Congratulations to the #LojaIndignada initiative. We should all get involved.

In the post “#Loxa indignados ? primero piensen estos tres puntos” [es] (“Loxa Outraged? First, consider these three points”), blogger Carlos Correa [es] reflects on the big impact which the #Loxaindignada hashtag has had:

Las quejas y protestas sobre el apocalíptico estado de la ciudad otra vez llegan a Twitter. Anoche y esta mañana hubo intensas discusiones, algo que seguramente ningún medio 1.0 local recogerá porque para ellos –en general– lo que pasa en las redes sociales no es noticia, perdiendo una oportunidad única de empezar a conversar.

The complaints and protests on the apocalyptic state of the city have made their way onto Twitter again. Last night and this morning there were intense discussions, something which it is sure that none of the Web 1.0 local media will pick up, since to them – in general – what happens in the world of social media isn't news, with the result that they miss out on a unique opportunity to get the conversation started.

In the first points of his analysis, Carlos focuses on the use of social networks:

1. Capacidad de convocatoria en Twitter. Si quieres tener verdadero impacto es obvio que los resultados serán ínfimos cuando trabajas prácticamente sólo, crear masa crítica no es fácil. pero cuando ya existe es absurdo despreciarla.

2. Salir de la burbuja 2.0. Como un imperativo, no necesita de demasiadas explicaciones, aunque puedo escribir párrafos citando las dificultades para hacerlo realidad.

1. Twitter's capacity to bring people together. If you want to have a real impact, it is obvious that the results will be negligible when you're working practically solo; creating critical mass is not easy. but once it's in existence it would be absurd to disregard it.

2.Get out of the 2.0 bubble. As an imperative, there is no need for excessive explanation, although I could write paragraphs on the difficulties it will involve to make this a reality.

For his final point, Carlos emphasises that any removal from office or resignation on the part of the mayor himself will not help Loja to improve the current situation in the long term:

3. Plan de acción propositivo. Se habla de revocatoria, pedido de renuncia y hasta de expulsión al actual Alcalde. Faltando un año para que se vaya, ¿creen de verdad que eso va a traer una solución definitiva a largo plazo?. Yo no lo creo. Tenemos propuestas y planes de acción, por ejemplo lean estos, aquí lo que sobra es pereza (clicacktivismo) y alcanfor, y mientras no entendamos que eso es nuestro defecto dominante social estaremos viviendo el Mito de Sísifo una y otra vez.

3. Proactive plan of action. People are talking about expulsion, asking the current Mayor to resign, even removal from office. With only a year left of his administration, do they really believe that this is going to bring about a long term, definitive solution? I don't believe so. We have proposals and plans of action, read these [es], for example, what we have no need for is laziness (clicacktivismo [es]) and mothballs, and as long as we fail to understand that this is our chief social defect, we will continue to relive The Myth of Sisyphus, over and over again.

Internet Boycott Leads to Resignation of “La Comay” in Puerto Rico

Jea — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 22:21:28 +0000

(All links lead to Spanish language sites, except where otherwise noted)

On the night of 8 January, 2013, social networks were flooded with reports of the resignation of TV producer, Antulio “Kobbo” Santarrosa, from local TV station, WAPA. Santarrosa, the man behind the puppet personality, La Comay, produced what was probably the most controversial program on Puerto Rican television: “SuperXclusivo.”

Santarrosa's resignation is the culmination of a movement that started on Facebook. The online movement called for the boycott of the “SuperXclusivo” show due to comments made by Santarrosa that caused widespread upset among Puerto Ricans. Santarrosa insinuated that a murder and torture victim got what he deserved, for being in a secluded part of the town of Caguas, which, according to him, was a “prostitution and homosexuality” hotspot [see video from 6:48 minutes in]. The movement brought about sufficient pressure for various companies to withdraw their ads during the hour in which the program aired, and WAPA decided not to broadcast the program live any longer, in order for it to be screened for potential inflammatory content by the channel's administration.

The movement caused a controversy which raised interesting questions on censorship, what constitutes a boycott, and whether Santarrosa's program could be considered journalism or not.

On Twitter, users expressed incredulity, jubiliation, protest and indifference. Of course, there was no shortage of comments with a sense of humor, either:

@GelockS: Todavia no lo creo… RIP La Comay?

@GelockS: I still can't believe it… RIP La Comay?

@Rene_A_Vargas: Hasta nunca, Kobbo. No serás extrañado. Mucho que aprender sobre la caída de la Comay. Felicidades a @BoicotLaComay y a @PedroJulio.

@Rene_A_Vargas: See you never, Kobbo. You won't be missed. Still a lot to find about the fall of La Comay. Congratulations to @BoicotLaComay and to @PedroJulio.

@SoyRobi: No veo La Comay pero simpatizo con la postura de Kobbo de no permitir censura y aunque sus compañeros no se den cuenta protege a otros…

@SoyRobi: I don't watch La Comay but I sympathise with Kobbo's stand on not bowing to censorship and even though his colleagues might not realise it, it protects others.

@marinaov21: cancelaron la comay. aunque eso no resuelve nada, es un buen comienzo hacia un mejor futuro. :)

@marinaov21: They cancelled la comay. even though this doesn't resolve anything, it's a good start towards a better future.

@manolexico: Hoy es la comay, mañana puede ser Pedro Julio….

@manolexico: Today, it's la comay, tomorrow it could be Pedro Julio….

@DraMontijo: El Fin de La Comay. Se caen Los Imperios. El Poder de las Redes Sociales.

@DraMontijo: The end of La Comay. Empires are falling. The Power of Social Networks.

@adriana_baez: El hecho de que se cancele La Comay no va a afectar para bien o para mal a Puerto Rico #sameshit

@adriana_baez: The fact that they canceled La Comay is not going to affect Puerto Rico for better, nor for worse. #sameshit

@Barbarajosefina: A que Telemundo, Univision u otro canal lo contrata… tiempo al tiempo. Y ojalá me equivoque. Ojalá!!!

@Barbarajosefina: Telemundo, Univision or some other channel will pick him up… give it time. I hope that I'm wrong. God willing!!!

@GabrieloscarRR: Un PR sin la Comay como Cuba sin Fidel

@GabrieloscarRR: Puerto Rico with no La Comay is like Cuba without Fidel

@darkRemiiix: Que comiencen los memes de La Comay…

@darkRemiiix: Let the La Comay memes begin…

There is one thing that cannot be doubted: the key role played by social networks in bringing about the resignation of the producer who had reigned for years with the largest TV audience in Puerto Rico and who had thought he was untouchable.

Spain: Young Emigrants Have “Spirit of Adventure”

Jea — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 18:23:47 +0000

This article is part of our special news coverage Europe in Crisis.

[All links lead to Spanish language pages, except when otherwise noted.]

A few days ago, “Marina del Corral” was one of the most popular topics on Twitter. Del Corral, who has entered the spotlight after statements which set the social networks alight with indignant messages, is a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Employment and Social Security [en], specifically, the Secretary General of Immigration and Emigration.

The Secretary General opined that emigration rates among Spanish youth were not due solely to the crisis currently confronting the country, but also “why not say it; to young people's drive for adventure”.

Spanish Youth; emigrants or adventurers? Image from the Lo que no pasa blog.

These statements proved extremely controversial, particularly coming from a high-ranking official in a government which has almost made gaffes its signature. The “fuck them” [en] directed at the unemployed by Andrea Farber, Pilar Sol's accusations that some out-of-work people were wasting public assistance money on “plasma screens,” and the nearly innumerable nonsensical statements by government representative Cristina Cifuentes and Education Minister José Ignacio Wert [en] all bear remembering.

As would be expected, the Twittersphere wasted little time in responding, with hashtags like #espírituaventurero (“spirit of adventure”) and #NoNosVamosNosEchan (“We're not leaving; they're throwing us out”) receiving hundreds of comments, mere hours after the statements came to light. Comments such as these, by @Haannnssss, 08181@ and Alvaro Velasco (@alvaro_velasco):

@Haannnssss: Me comentan que Marina del Corral está escribiendo el guión de la próxima “Indiana Jones: En Busca del Trabajo Perdido” #NoNosVamosNosEchan

I heard that Marina del Corral is writing the script to the next Indiana Jones: “In Search of the Lost Job”

Marina del Corral, Secretary General of Emigration. Image from www.xn--cartadeespaa-khb.es.

08181@: Que alguien le aclare a Marina del Corral que lo aventurero es quedarse en España.

Can someone make it clear to Marina del Corral that adventurousness is staying in Spain.

‏@alvaro_velasco: Marina del Corral… Espíritu aventurero es irte a hacer deporte extremo al Pirineo. No a currar en un Burger de Berlín.

Marina del Corral… The Spirit of Adventure is going to the Pyrenees to do extreme sports. Not grafting in some fast food restaurant in Berlin.

Nolesvotes recalls that the recent evictions [en] have already led to several suicides:

@Nolesvotes: Marina del Corral dice que los españoles emigran por espíritu aventurero y los desahuciados se tiran por el balcón para practicar balconing

Marina del Corral says that the Spanish people are emigrating because of their spirit of adventure and that people who got evicted and jumped off the balcony were doing balconing [en].

César states that, with each passing day, the government seems more and more distant from the realities facing the people:

@CatoMad: Los parados compran teles de plasma y los jóvenes se van de España por espíritu aventurero. Gobierno de España, con los pies en el suelo.

The unemployed are buying plasma screens and the young people are leaving Spain because of their spirit of adventure. The Spanish Government, with its feet firmly on the ground.

Tweeters (@whoanrubi), Яubén Sánchez (@rubensancheztw), Ciudadano Libre (@SuperTTuitero) y SorriSorrilla (@SorriSorrilla) take a humorous approach:

Sign: “If you finish your degree in Spain you have 3 ways out: by land, by sea or by air”. Image from kaosenlared.net

@whoanrubi: Secretaria g. d inmi: “lo españoles emigramos x el espíritu aventurero”. si claro, y nos operamos de apendicitis para conocernos por dentro.

Secretary of Immigration: “We Spanish are emigrating because of our spirit of adventure.” Of course, and people have surgery in order to get to know themselves better on the inside.

@rubensancheztw:De los creadores de “no son recortes, sino reformas” llega “la crisis no provoca emigración, sino espíritu aventurero”

From the creators of “Not cuts, but reforms” comes “the crisis isn't the cause of emigration, it's the spirit of adventure”

‏@SuperTTuitero: La única neurona de Marina del Corral también tiene #espírituaventurero.

Marina del Corral's only brain cell has the spirit of adventure, too.

‏@SorriSorrilla: “L@s subsaharian@s cruzan el estrecho en patera porque les gusta el rafting de alto riesgo” Marina del Corral

Subsaharian Africans cross the strait in open boats because they like extreme rafting” – Marina del Corral.

Map of Spanish emigration in the 21st century. Image from the blog “Periodismo con Gafas”

A group of Spanish emigrants in Switzerland published an open letter to Marina del Corral in which they explain the arduous conditions that many emigrants end up in once they leave Spain:

[…] A las historias positivas de aquellos que encuentran trabajo, se suman las historias de madres y padres que dejan a sus hijos en casa, de españoles que acaban durmiendo en sus coches o en lugares de acogida al no encontrar trabajo y acabar con los ahorros que trajeron, que no dominan el idioma pero pese a todo no les queda otra opción que salir, historias de fracasos y de vueltas a casa con una situación mucho peor a la que se tenia antes de partir. […]

[…] El Gobierno al que usted pertenece ha reducido en 60 por ciento las ayudas económicas destinadas a asociaciones y fundaciones que prestan asistencia social y médica a emigrantes españoles con escasos recursos en el extranjero, ha reducido en un 14,5% el presupuesto de la Dirección General de Emigración o ha sufrido la vergüenza de ver como el Presidente del Consejo General de la Ciudadanía Española en el Exterior afirma “Las leyes son como las mujeres. Están para violarlas“.

[…] lo que le exigimos es un poco de respeto hacia los muchos miles ya, de españolas y españoles honrados que no hemos salido de nuestro país para ver como sopla el viento en otros sitios o vivir una experiencia enriquecedora y volver cuando nos cansemos. Salimos de nuestro país forzados y con pena porque no tenemos en que ganarnos la vida ya tengamos formación básica o superior.

[...] To the positive stories of those who do find work must be added the stories of mothers and fathers who leave their children behind, of Spanish citizens who end up sleeping in their cars or in shelters after failing to find work and having no more savings left, who can't speak the language but, despite it all, they have no other option than to leave, stories of failure and returning home to a situation even worse than it was before they left. […]

[…] The Government to which you belong has cut by 60% the funding to associations and foundations which provide social and medical assistance to Spanish emigrants of limited means, it has cut the budget for the General Directorate of Emigration by 14.5% and faced the embarrassment of seeing the President of the General Council of Spanish Citizens Living Abroad state that “Laws are like women. They are there to be violated.”

[…] what we demand is a little respect towards the several thousands of honest Spanish men and women who have not left our country to see how the wind blows elsewhere, or to have an enriching experience and simply return when we tire of it. We left our country by force and with a heavy heart, because we have no way of making a living at home, whether we have a basic or an advanced education.

[All links lead to Spanish language pages, except when otherwise noted.]

This article is part of our special news coverage Europe in Crisis.

Student Dies in Protests in Dominican Republic

Jea — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 00:29:51 +0000

In the wake of the Fiscal Reform submitted to the National Congress, which was met with strong disapproval by civil society, the business sector and trade unions, various movements in opposition to the bill have been organized [es]. Demonstrations have been taking place since the 4th of October, when the draft bill was announced. However, since Tuesday the 6th of November, citizens have increased the intensity of their protests, with daily numbers up.

On Thursday, the 8th of November, the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo, the sole public university in the country, was the scene of one of these anti-government protests. But as is customary—and in spite of different regulations which prohibit it—students were confronted by a unit of armed police, culminating in the death of 21-year-old William Florián Ramírez [es], a third-year medical student, hit by a bullet to the chest.

Killed student, Willy Florián, as he was taken away from the disturbances by hooded individuals. This image has been widely disseminated over the Internet.

The indignation took little time to be felt on social networks and on pirate radio. Civic leader Elizabeth Mateo, popularly known as the leader of the fight to get 4% of GDP spent on education, published the following on Twitter:

@ElizabethMateo: Condeno la muerte del estudiante de la UASD. Exijo justicia.

@ElizabethMateo: I condemn the killing of the UASD student. I demand justice.

Likewise, investigator, consultant and columnist Olaya Dotel, stated:

Young man calls for civil mobilization. Taken from the page of the Bonó Centre and reproduced with permission.

@OlayaDotel: Los corruptos que hoy controlan el Estado no valen una gota de sangre de nuestros jóvenes… Ni uno más!!!

@OlayaDotel: These corrupt individuals in control of the State are not worth a drop of the blood of our young people…not one more!!!

The controversy has spread so far that René, vocalist in the popular Puerto Rican group Calle 13, commented on the incident:

@Calle13Oficial: El mundo está mirando a República Dominicana esperando que se haga justicia por el asesinato del joven estudiante de medicina Willy Warden!

@Calle13Oficial: The world is looking at the Dominican Republic, hoping that justice will be done for the death of the young medical student Willy Warden!

All of these incidents have taken place as it was revealed that, during the precarious economic conditions and high social tension the country is currently facing,

Young people hold up signs outside the National Congress, in protest against the Fiscal Reform.Taken with permission from the page of the Bonó Centre and reproduced with their permission.

the Minister of Education, Josefina Pimentel, increased her own salary by 62% [es], from RD$185,000.00 to RD$300,000.00 a month, equivalent to USD $7,500.00.

The fusion of these and other trigger issues, far from discouraging protestors, has renewed their revolutionary spirit. A group of around 100 people, including public figures and media, congregated in front of the buildings of the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development [es] (FUNGLODE), an institution set up by former president Leonel Fernández Reyna, who is deemed responsible for having bankrupted the nation during his eight years in power (see video here) [es].

Protestors placed candles in the street and sang their condemnation in unison, at the top of their lungs. Twitter was the medium which gave the most coverage to the event, with Twitterers grouping themselves together under the hashtag #FrenteaFunglode. Reporter Maribel Hernández shared this from her Twitter account:

@MaribelNexos: Policía Nacional una banda criminal, vocifera la masa #FrenteaFunglode.

@MaribelNexos: The National Police, a criminal gang, shouts the #FrenteaFunglode crowd.

@MaribelNexos: La masa grita La Fundación Global verguenza nacional. #FrenteaFunglode #FrenteaFunglode

@MaribelNexos: The crowd is screaming Global Foundation, national shame. #FrenteaFunglode #FrenteaFunglode

But things don't stop there. Both civil organizations and individuals have flooded the Internet with a grand display of creativity, via numberless ads and images against the pro-government party and the current administration, such as those displayed below. In the same vein, various mobilizations at all levels were planned for Friday, the 9th of November, as well as for the rest of the week. I leave you with some of the calls to protest and examples of graphical artwork focused on the events.

“Latinitas,” Empowering Young Latinas With Technology

Jea — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 19:54:47 +0000

Fortunately, not all good ideas discussed in the classroom end there. In 2002, Laura Donnelly and Alicia Rascó at the University of Austin, Texas began to develop the concept of a magazine focused on the experiences of young Latinas. After graduation, they continued building the professional links necessary to finally create what is now known as Latinitas, the sole non-profit organization in the United States dedicated to the empowerment of young Latinas aged nine to 18, through education and the use of media and technology. The video below features one of their projects.

And, of course, the magazine continues to be published in digital form under the name of the organization, with the participants themselves writing a large part of the content. Among the sections developed by the youngsters are the following:

On October 6th, Latinitas held their first conference with huge success. Hanne Vang

Latinitas hold their first Annual Conference in Austin Texas. Photo used with permission.

Hansen, the translation editor and community relations assistant—and also a Global Voices translator—commented that more than 60 girls aged nine to 15 took part in the three workshops offered in TechChica: social media/networks, blogging and podcasts, and public service announcements.

Hanne explains:

A través de estos diferentes medios las niñas crearon campañas sobre problemas sociales en su comunidad con el fin de crear cambios sociales. Entre los temas que eligieron están embarazos de adolescentes, la intimidación (bullying) y la discriminación de los discapacitados. El resultado al final fueron videos con anuncios públicos de servicio social (PSA's) que fueron exhibidos. Durante la conferencia nos dimos cuenta de la conciencia que las niñas tienen sobre cuestiones sociales.

Through the different media, the girls created campaigns focused on social problems in their community with the aim of creating social change. Among the subjects they chose were teen pregnancies, intimidation (bullying), and discrimination against the disabled. The final result were videos with public service announcements (PSAs) which were exhibited. During the conference, we discovered the degree of awareness that the girls had on social issues.

According to the reporter Juan González:

El censo proyecta que antes del 2050 una de cada tres personas que viven en Estados Unidos serán de descendientes de latinos y si esta tendencia continúa es muy posible que para fin del siglo XXI la mitad de la población del país trazará no sus orígenes a Europa sino a Latinoamérica.

The census projects that by 2050, a third of the people living in the United States will be of Latin descent. If this trend continues, it is very likely that, by the end of the 21st century, half the population of this country will trace its origins not to Europe, but to Latin America.

The fact that Latinitas is supporting the strengthening of the voices of young Latinas, who will be our future leaders, is very encouraging. This collective of brilliant and creative young people knows well that success lies in continuing to fight for your individual dreams, in spite of prejudices.

Concern over Subterranean Water in the Sahel

Jea — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 14:30:33 +0000

We are told that miners do everything to waterproof the soil and ensure that waste does not contaminate subterranean water. But it must be recognized that there is always a risk, as they can never be completely sure that they are not contaminating subterranean pools. Moreover, with the impact of climate change, people will increasingly rely on subterranean water to supply towns

Alain Tossounon, reporting comments [fr] from a meeting with Dam Mogbanté, Executive Secretary of the Global Water Patnership West Africa

Senegal: Ensuring Efficient Telephone Use by the Government

Jea — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 14:24:24 +0000

Aliou Fama reveals [fr] that Macky Sall, President of Senegal, has decided to put the members of his goverment on a strict regime, in order to reduce government telephone bills:

Ministers’ telephone credit is now capped at 500 000 FCFA (EUR 762,25), with that of technical advisers limited to 150 000 FCFA. Beyond this point, costs must be covered out of the officials’ own pockets. As a result, after the 15th of each month, certain advisers have found themselves scratching away at top-up cards to get their phones back on line.

Dominican Republic: A Fiscal Apocalypse?

Jea — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 14:40:26 +0000

On the 4th of October, the Dominican government finally unveiled proposals for the new Fiscal Reform [es] following a controversial negotiation process with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). During a session of the Economic and Social Council, the Minister for Economics, Planning and Development revealed that the deficit had reached 148,564 million Dominican pesos (DOP) (6.5% of GDP), making this year's figures the highest in Dominican history.

The new fiscal reform, which is really a tax reform as it does not take into account government spending, has elicited discontent from all sectors –business, unions and civil society– who have united for the first time to oppose the reform. The bill, which has yet to be discussed in the House of Representatives, affects all social classes but hits the poorest and middle class hardest; 47% of the projected tax collections, estimated at 55,044 million Dominican pesos ($1,395,995,103.36 USD) will come from indirect taxation.

President Danilo Medina has tweeted that:

@DaniloMedina: Estamos enfocados en promover una reforma integral que garantice que la población cuente con las condiciones básicas para vivir con dignidad.

We are focused on bringing about wholesale reform which guarantees that the population can count on having the fundamental conditions to live with dignity.

Civil society is in almost unanimous agreement that the reform, far from offering better conditions to the less well off, is actually a way to finance the rampant corruption of the state, and avoid having to consider ways to improve the quality of government spending. The public completely refuses to support the reform if it is not accompanied by radical reforms of the government structure, including transparency in the use of state resources, freedom of information and social audit, as well as the imposing of harsh sanctions against those responsible for the current crisis. Pavel Isa Contreras, a respected economist, said on the subject:

@IsaPavel: Antes de discutir impuestos e ingresos, urge acordar qué es lo que queremos financiar, en qué vamos a gastar, quién gastará y cómo.

Before discussing taxes and revenue, we must agree upon what we want to fund, where we are going to spend, who will do the spending and how.

The current vice-president and former first lady until the 16th of August this year, Margarita Cedeño de Fernández, stated that:

@MargaritaCDF: Las causas de este #PactoFiscal son: el alto subsidio al sector eléctrico, deuda del país con el Banco Central y la caída de recaudaciones.

The causes of this Fiscal Pact are the high costs of subsidies to the electricity sector, national debt at the Central Bank and the drop in tax intake.

Nonetheless, Miguel Ceara Hatton, economist and former Director of the Office for Human Development at the United Nations Development Programme for the Dominican Republic, refuted this statement, asserting that:

@CearaHatton: Es falso que el subsidio eléctrico explica el aumento del gasto público. El aumento del subsidio es 10.6% del aumento del gasto total 2011-2012.

It is false to state that the electricity subsidy explains the increase in public spending. The increase in the subsidy accounts for just 10.6% of total spending in 2011-2012.

Consequently, until the facts which led to the current crisis become clear, and precise measures are put in place to put an end to the waste, the cronyism, and the corruption, and ensure that tax revenues are directed towards government plans which positively impact the lives of all Dominicans, the trade unions, business owners, social activists and civil society in general have agreed not to negotiate with the government on the proposed tax rise.

Some legislators have also expressed their disapproval of the reforms. The representative for the National District, Víctor Gómez Casanova, and colleague José Paliza, who represents the northern province of Puerto Plata stated:

@VGomezCasanova: La Propuesta de Reforma debe ser REFORMADA. No es una Reforma Integral, es más de lo mismo. Es hacer lo que siempre se ha hecho…

The Reform Bill needs to be REFORMED. This is not an complete Reform, it is more of the same. It's doing what has always been done.

@JosePaliza: Impuestos por soñar? “Hacer lo que nunca se ha hecho”.

A tax on dreaming? “Do what has never been done.”

Both legislators’ comments alluded to President Danilo Medina's electoral campaign, which included a slogan pledging to do what had never been done during his mandate.

Elsewhere, the studied economist, Jaime Aristy Escuder, predicted that the Reform would have a negative effect on the economy.

@AristyEscuder: La reforma tributaria aumentará los precios y el desempleo.

The tax reform will push up prices and increase unemployment.

Meanwhile, the Dominican public awaits the results of the evaluation and negotiation process which the Reform must undergo, fearing that its approval will mean a death sentence for the country's economy. The Economic and Social Council will meet this week to agree amendments, as will the National Congress.

Interestingly, in what appears to be perfect timing, on Monday, the 8th of October, Alicia Ortega [es], the famed investigative journalist, released a report on the construction of luxury residences with State resources [es] in one of the most costly neighborhoods in the country, properties which are currently inhabited by high-ranking government officials and their family members. With a little bit of luck, it is possible that this report, in conjunction with other scandals, will awaken the public from its lethargy and motivate them to mobilise en masse against corruption.

Political Exile On Board the Eritrean Presidential Jet

Jea — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 18:49:23 +0000

The blog “les Erythréens” has this report [fr]:

Yesterday morning (October 3rd) two Eritrean pilots defected—in their Eritrean Air Force jet—to Saudi Arabia, requesting political exile upon landing at the airport in Jizan.

Dominican Republic: Proposal to Toughen Sentences for Minors

Jea — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 16:21:09 +0000

[links in Spanish] On the 19th of September, the House of Representatives approved on second reading a controversial bill which amends seven articles of the Protection of the Rights of Boys, Girls and Adolescents Code (Minor Code-PDF). This reform aims to raise the maximum penalties for citizens who commit crimes before reaching the age of majority. The initiative, which has yet to be passed or debated by the Senate, proposes an increase of 3-10 years in prison for criminals aged 13-15, while for those between 16 to 18 years of age, the increase ranges from 5-15 years in prison.

On the first reading of the bill, it was passed with 99 votes in favour, out of a total of 112 participating representatives, and in the second reading with 95; in both cases, an overwhelming majority. This initiative has the support of the three-time representative and current president of the Lower Chamber, Abel Martínez, who has stated that the measure will help decrease the delinquency rate. Other important figures have also expressed that they consider this reform necessary. One key example is the five-time representative, Pelegrín Castillo, who stated the following on his Twitter account:

@pelegrinc: Modificación al Codigo del Menor hecha X @diputadosrd. Es triste tener que reforzar acción publica y judicial contra menores, pero inevitable.

@pelegrinc: Amendment to the Minor Code made by @diputadosrd. It's sad to have to toughen public and judicial sanctions against minors, but it's inevitable.

However, various sectors of civil society have not shown the same support for the regulation. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has spearheaded criticism against this piece of legislation. On the 20th of this month, a press conference was held in which the organization made clear its stance against the proposal, underscoring that this was not the answer to the wave of delinquency with which the Dominican Republic is currently grappling. In this vein, the well known social activist, Sergia Galván, updated her Twitter account with multiple criticisms such as:

@sergiagalvan: Es cuestionable el interés en sancionar aniñas, niños y adolescentes, quienes en muchos de los casos son víctimas de la exclusión social

@sergiagalvan: It is questionable to sanction girls, boys and adolescents who in many cases are victims of social exclusion.

@sergiagalvan: Pregunto ¿con más años de cárcelpara niñas, niños y adolescentes se enfrenta la delincuencia?

@sergiagalvan: I'm asking, is more jail time for girls, boys and adolescents going to tackle delinquency?

In addition, the famous constitutional lawyer, Nassef Perdomo, stated:

@NassefPerdomo: Triste es el destino de un país que cree que el lugar de sus niños es la cárcel y no las aulas.

@NassefPerdomo: Sad is the destiny of the country that believes that the place of its children is in prison, rather than in the classroom.

In the House of Representatives itself, although by an almost insignificant minority, there has been a degree of opposition. Representative Guadalupe Valdez – best known for her work on women's rights and gender equality – while not rejecting the proposals, has, in a post published on her website, called for a social consensus to be reached before the passing of new legislation and for the benefits to be weighed, as well as the setbacks.

For the moment, the outcome of the Upper Chamber's discussions on the initiative, due to take place next week, are awaited, as is the possibility of an agreement being reached between UNICEF and other civil society organizations working for the rights of the affected groups.

Assessing Quality of Life in African Cities

Jea — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:19:47 +0000

A study by The Economist Intelligence on the most liveable cities in the world (PDF of the complete report), suggests that six out of the ten least liveable cities in the world are situated in Africa.

However, another ranking by the New Economics Foundation shows that, based on the HPI (Happy Planet Index), residents in certain African countries are happier than those in several European nations [fr]. So where are we exactly, when it comes to urban quality of life in Africa?

Urban versus rural life

As Sabine Cessou points out, the Happy Planet Index is fundamentally subjective and seems to favour African countries in terms of respect for the environment. She states [fr]:

Le cas de Madagascar illustre bien la particularité des mesures de HPI. Ce pays, plongé depuis 2009 dans une profonde crise politique et sociale, glisse chaque jour un peu plus dans le gouffre de la pauvreté. Ce fléau touche 76% de sa population, contre 68% en 2010, selon le rapport Perspectives économiques de l’Afrique de l’OCDE [..] Mais le respect de l’environnement et le relatif optimisme de ses habitants jouent en faveur de la Grande île. Avec une empreinte carbone de seulement 1,2, Madagascar se classe avantageusement, dans le palmarès HPI, entre la France et l’Autriche.

The case of Madagascar is a good illustration of the peculiarity of the measurements used in the HPI. This country, which was plunged into a profound political and social crisis in 2009, slides a little deeper into the grips of poverty every day. This scourge affects 76% of the country's population, compared with 68% in 2010, according to the OECD report on economic perspectives on Africa [...] But respect for the environment and the relative optimism of its inhabitants works in favour of the island. With a carbon footprint of just 1.2, Madagascar achieves a favourable position on the HPI, ranked between France and Austria.

However, an overall carbon footprint of just 1.2 for the nation stands in stark contrast to that of the Madagascan capital, Antananarivo, often ranked amongst the most polluted cities in the world [fr]:

En deuxième position, on trouve la capitale du Bangladesh, Dacca, qui s'illustre par une pollution de l'air au plomb. Les deux autres villes suivantes sont Antananarivo et Port-au-Prince, capitales respectives de Madagascar et de Haïti, “confrontées à une croissance rapide de la population urbaine et à des besoins toujours plus importants en matière de gestion des déchets et de l'eau”.

In second position we find Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, the air of which is contaminated by lead. The following two cities are Antananarivo and Port-au-Prince, the capitals of Madagascar and Haiti respectively, “faced with rapid population growth and ever-increasing needs for waste and water management”.

This video uploaded to YouTube by user WbMadagascar on 30 June, 2012, is from the World Bank in Madagascar on social protection in Madagascan cities [fr]. The video depicts the daily hardships that the malagasy population is facing while they transition from the rural to the urban areas:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGZjEHKW5GE

Such is the paradox of life in Africa; urban capitals in full expansion despite endemic poverty, surrounded by abundant natural spaces, which cast into especially sharp relief the unique contrast between rural and urban life.

The capital city of Windhoek in Namibia by Bries on Wikipedia. License CC-Attribution-Share Alike 2.5.

The state of affairs in Namibia [fr], as described below by Antoine Galindo, is one which the residents of several African cities would recognise:

C’est principalement contre ces violences que mettent en garde les différentes chancelleries. Ces vols peuvent être assorits d'agressions physiques dans les grandes villes. En dehors des agglomérations, le pays reste calme et prisé pour ses paysages spectaculaires et très variés. Seulement, en raison de l’insécurité qui règne encore dans les rues de la capitale, le tourisme piétine, et l’afflux des étrangers demeure faible.

It's principally this type of violence that the various ministries are issuing warnings about. These thefts can sometimes occur alongside physical attacks in larger cities. Outside urban areas, the country remains calm, popular for its spectacular and richly varied landscapes. Still, due to the insecurity which continues on the streets of the capital, tourism is making little headway, and the influx of foreign visitors remains weak.

Growing infrastructure problem

Amel Bouzidi analyses the study conducted by The Economist Intelligence, noting the following [fr] about Algeria:

Sur les 140 villes passées au crible, Alger arrive à la 135 position, derrière Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire), Teheran (Iran), Douala (Cameroun) et Tripoli (Libye). Dacca, capitale du Bandgladesh, ferme la marche. Le mauvais classement de la capitale algérienne qui compte une population de plus 3 millions d’individus ne surprend guère. Alger est dépourvu de lieux de loisirs, les salles de cinéma se comptent sur les dix doigts de la main, la circulation automobile y est épouvantable et ses habitants se plaignent de la saleté des trottoirs. A tout cela s'ajoutent aujourd'hui les coupures fréquentes du courant électrique ainsi que les coupures en eau potable.

Of the 140 cities put to the test, Algiers came in in 135th, behind Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire), Tehran (Iran), Douala (Cameroon) and Tripoli (Libya). Dhaka, the Bangladeshi capital, came in last. The poor ranking of the Algerian capital with a population of over three million comes as little surprise. Algiers lacks leisure spaces, its cinemas can be counted on one hand, traffic is terrible and its residents complain of the filthiness of its streets. Added to all this are the frequent cuts in the power and water supply.

In Douala, Cameroon, power cuts are one of the symptoms of a dire economic situation [fr]. Global Voices contributor Julie Owono describes a state of affairs in which the country's infrastructure cannot keep up with its rapidly increasing population:

According to certain estimates, just 20% of the Cameroonian population has access to a regular electricity supply. In fact, those who have access to electricity are accustomed to power cuts every three days. Electricity is also becoming more and more costly for the rest of the country's citizens. The private provider, AES Sonel, for example, recently announced a 7% rise in prices starting June 1st, 2012.

Rapid changes to quality of life in urban areas

The urban quality of life study also shows that the rankings are susceptible to rapid change. One of the criteria taken into account, the city's economic power, sees three Chinese cities dominate the list. The report explains that other criteria such as the efficiency of its institutions, human capital, cultural attractions, and the financial maturity of the cities weigh more heavily in the balance.

Looking to the future, the report suggests certain points of improvement that cities in emergent countries (including African cities) must accomplish to improve their position in the rankings:

The rise of emerging markets will likely make a number of largely unknown cities rather more prominent by 2020. Bandung, Hangzhou, Lagos and Lima, for example, all feature growth rates of 6% or higher, but are familiar to few outside of their home countries today. That will change. A key question is the speed with which this will happen [..] To do so, they need to adapt their investment attraction policies, but this in turn requires more fundamental shifts. “They have a good stock of infrastructure, but it’s highly polluted and there are no public spaces and things like this. They now understand that they have to move to something more qualitative.”

Venezuela: Video ‘Caracas, City of Farewells’ Sparks Discussion on Emigration

Jea — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:35:32 +0000

It took the Venezuelan blogosphere only a matter of days to unleash an avalanche of criticism and mockery on the video documentary “Caracas, Ciudad de Despedidas” (“Caracas, City of Farewells”). The video compiles seventeen minutes of interviews on the experience of emigration in Venezuela and explores the reasons which have driven several of its citizens to join the growing Venezuelan diaspora. The sheer force of the response led to the video's removal from the YouTube channel on which it was initially posted, and resulted in public statements from those behind and those featured in the documentary.

Overall, the video met with a strong wave of harsh criticism, mockery, video responses, remixes [es], parodies [es], caricatures, memes and tweets, with the hashtag, #meiriademasiado [es], an allusion to the comment of one of the subjects in the video, “Yo sí me iría… Me iría demasiado [sic]” (“I would go, I would so go”) becoming a trending topic en Venezuela.

The video did receive some shows of support, albeit very few, which backed up the validity of its ideas, pointing out that behind the tone and the rhetoric (the most criticized aspects of the video), the video had served to stir up a highly sensitive topic within citizen media: emigration due to urban violence.

El brujo [es] points to what, in his opinion, was the main flaw in “Caracas, Ciudad de Despedidas”:

El problema del autocensurado video [...] y de sus participantes, radica en la absoluta ajenidad y desconocimiento absoluto de la sociedad a la que dicen pertenecer, emitiendo juicios de valor totalmente sesgados y prejuiciados respecto a asuntos que obviamente conocen por lo que les dicen sus padres …

The problem with this self-censored video [...] and its subjects, lies in their absolute alienation from, and ignorance of, the society to which they claim to belong, passing completely biased value judgments and spouting prejudice about issues on which quite obviously their only knowledge comes from what their parents told them.

Meanwhile, Luis, on Panfleto Negro [es] (Black Pamphlet), underlines the main message:

…detrás de todo el mandibuleo [*] y el “me iría demasiado” hay una realidad a la que no queremos dar la cara; Venezuela no ofrece a sus jóvenes ni un presente ni un futuro viable, ofrece más penurias y que todo vaya a peor antes de ir mejor. Hablar de porvenir en un país donde se depende de la salud de una sola persona es casi tan ingenuo como los testimonios de estos chicos.

…Behind all the “mandibuleo” [*] and the “me iría demasiado” (“I would so go”), lies a reality which we do not want to face up to; Venezuela offers its youth neither a viable present nor future, the country offers more hardship and the idea that things have to get worse before they can get better. To speak of the future in a country in which that future depends on the health of a single person is almost as naive as the views expressed by the kids in the video.

[*] In Venezuela, “mandibuleo” is a term used to describe the speech of upper-class youth in Caracas (who are also known as “sifrinos”).

On the other hand, Vanessa [es] opines:

Yo pienso que ellos sí tienen derecho a opinar lo que les dé la gana, así sea mandibuleado y mal redactado. ¿O es que acaso ya en Venezuela estamos tan acostumbrados a la mordaza en la boca que nos escandaliza una opinión distinta a la propia? Se ha formado una especie de dictadura opositora donde, al igual que los chavistas, todos repiten al unísono lo que les mandan a decir los “líderes opositores”. Al que se salga un poquito de la línea, los demás le caen a peinillazos.

I think that they do have a right to express their opinion on whatever they feel like, even if it's “mandibuleado” and poorly-executed. Or is it the case that in Venezuela we are so accustomed to being gagged, that we are scandalised by any opinion different to the one we hold. A kind of opposition dictatorship has sprung up, just like the Chavista one, in which everyone repeats in unison whatever the “leaders of the opposition” tell them to say. Let anyone step the slightest bit out of line, and the others come down on him like a ton of bricks.

Laura Solórzano, en her blog Debilidades y Vicios [es] (Weaknesses and Vices) points to another fact:

[...] mi preocupación es que muchos de esos “jóvenes del este del este["] que estudiaron en los mejores colegios y universidades” sigue sin entender el verdadero problema en Venezuela. Que esos chamos de “me iría demasiado” son los hijos de esos venezolanos que hicieron plata y se olvidaron que existía un país y que algún día les tenían que responder.

My concern is that so many of these “east of east["] youth, who attended the best colleges and universities still don't understand the real problem here in Venezuela. Namely, that these kids with their “I would so go” are the children of those Venezuelans who made a lot of money and forgot about the existence of a country which they would one day have to answer to.

Meanwhile, Mirelis Morales Tovar [es] explains why the video moved her:

Me movió… Si, no lo niego. Quien tiene dos hermanos lejos, otro con un pie aquí y otr[o] allá, así como casi todos sus amig@s a muchas horas de distancia, no puede ser indiferente a lo que se plantea en el video Caracas Ciudad de Despedidas.
Es una realidad. Queramos o no. [...] Todos quienes vivimos en esta ciudad tenemos el temor de no regresar a casa y eso no es precisamente una sensación con la que debamos acostumbrarnos.

Pero fomentar la idea de que emigrar se ha vuelto la solución a los problemas que nos agobian en este país es ir creando una generación de desarraigados.[...] Otros países han vivido situaciones similares o peores. Y es el espíritu de su gente lo que les ha permitido salir a flote. [Venezuela] es una nación herida. Herida por su propia gente. Pero también es tierra de gracia, de oportunidades.

It moved me… Yes, I'm not going to deny it. A person with two brothers living far away, and another with one foot at home and the other abroad, and on top of all that, with almost all their friends living several hours away, can't just be indifferent to what was going on in the “Caracas, Ciudad de Despedidas” video. It's a reality. Whether we like it or not. [...] Everyone who lives in this city carries this fear of not being able to make it home and this is not a feeling we ought to get used to having.

But to foment this idea of emigration now being the solution to the problems overwhelming us in this country, is to create an entire generation of rootless people [...] Other countries have been through similar or worse. And it's the spirit of their people which allowed them to rise above it. [Venezuela] is a wounded nation. Wounded by her own people. But this is also the land of grace, of opportunity.

Asdrúbal [es], for his part, comments:

lo que sinceramente no me gustó [de las opiniones expuestas el video] fue el hacer entender que la responsabilidad de mejorar al país era de «otros» exclusivamente.

What I sincerely disliked [about the views expressed in the video] was the idea that the responsibility for improving the country lay exclusively in the hands of “others”.

Of the participants in the video, Raquel Abend van Dalen, was the first to break her silence. In her blog Merienda en el Espacio [es] (Snacking in Space), which was made private days later, she wrote:

La realidad de Venezuela nos afecta a todos. Tanto a los que viven en ella, como a los que se tuvieron que ir. Y cada quien busca la forma de sobrellevarla y de aportar para un cambio positivo. Yo amo a Caracas, yo a amo Venezuela. Es el país en donde nací y crecí. Venezuela es el espacio que me ha hecho ser quien soy, y que me ha brindado todas las oportunidades para crecer como persona y como ciudadana. Esta situación me ha servido de lección de vida: se vive y se aprende.

The reality in Venezuela affects all of us. It affects those who still live here, just as it does those who had to leave. And everyone is looking for the right way to uplift the country and to bring positive change. I love Caracas, I love Venezuela. It's the country I was born and raised in. Venezuela is the place that has made me who I am, and which has offered me every opportunity to grow as a person and as a citizen. This situation has served as a life lesson for me: you live and you learn.

The youth involved in the documentary published a communique [es] in response to the reaction their video received. In it, they explained their reasons for producing such a video, adding:

Nunca nos imaginamos, esperamos o quisimos este alcance y ahora que lo tenemos no nos lamentamos, porque a pesar de que la forma parezca banal, lo que ahí se expresa sigue siendo la verdad: tenemos miedo por la inseguridad que existe en Caracas y por ello no hemos podido vivir nuestra ciudad como quisiéramos.

We never imagined, hoped or desired it to reach this level, and now that it has, we don't regret it because, although the form might appear banal, what's being expressed remains as true as ever: we are afraid of the insecurity that exists in Caracas and because of it we have not been able to live our lives the way we would have wanted to.

The communique concludes:

Respetamos las opiniones diferentes a las nuestras, agradecemos el apoyo de quienes nos han respaldado e invitamos a todos a mirar más allá de la forma y analizar el fondo, a leer entre líneas y considerar que todos formamos parte de lo mismo aunque seamos diferentes. No es una cuestión de discriminar a un grupo, es de exponer a otro y no es para ofender a nadie, es para compartir lo que algunos sentimos.

We respect opinions different to our own, we are grateful for the support of those who have backed us and we invite everyone to look beyond the form and analyze the substance, to read between the lines and consider that we are all part of the same thing, even though we might be different. It's not a question of discriminating against a group, it's to display another, and there is no intention of offending anybody, this is to express what we feel.

Finally, Leopoldo Tablante [es] reflects on the similarities and the discourse of the upper and lower classes, and on how this mirrors a common spirit which makes living together and social advancement difficult:

Por novatada o por lo que sea, el video parece inspirado por un muy particular espíritu de indolencia ante el proyecto de construcción del bien común. Y sin ese espíritu, ¿qué nos queda?
Por la izquierda o por la derecha (si es que estos clivajes siguen teniendo vigencia), en la urbanización o en el barrio, Venezuela suena en monofónico. Y con ese empaque al vacío, ¿a quién le queda fuelle para pensar en una reconciliación?

Out of naivete or whatever the case may be, the video seems to be inspired by a very particular spirit of indolence, in terms of the project of working on the common good. And without this spirit, what do we have left? Whether on the left or the right (if these cleavages are still relevant), in exclusive housing developments or in the ghetto, the sound of Venezuela is in monophone. And with such an apparent void, who still has breath left in them to think of a reconciliation?

Panama: Italian Scandal Rocks Martinelli Government

Jea — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 17:13:09 +0000

The arrest of Italian citizen Valter Lavitola has made the news around the world due to his alleged links [es] to a prostitution ring and bribes allegedly paid to former Italian prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi. To Panamanians, however, Valter Lavitola is a familiar face. In December 2011, former presidential candidate Balbina Herrera leaked emails to various media outlets which purportedly linked Panamanian president, Ricardo Martinelli, with the Italian's illicit activities, implicating him in a radars and helicopters overpayment scandal.

Telemetro [es] posted the following details on its site:

Adicionalmente, Herrera presentó una serie de intercambios de correos electrónicos entre el italiano Walter Lavítola y Adolfo De Obarrio, secretario privado del presidente Ricardo Martinelli. Las misivas reflejan que el italiano, quien mantiene una orden de detención en su país, recibe custodia del Servicio Protección Institucional (SPI). También hay mensajes que suponen una comunicación entre Lavítola y la cuenta de correo electrónico del propio presidente Martinelli.

Additionally, Herrera released a series of email exchanges between Lavitola and Adolfo De Obarrio, private secretary to President Martinelli. The missives indicate that the Italian, currently under detention in his home country, had been provided with an escort by the Servicio Protección Institucional (the Institutional Protection Service or SPI). Other messages suggest email communication between Lavitola and the email account of president Martinelli himself.

Martinelli himself has confronted the accusations, attributing them to evil intentions on the part of of the media, and, as has become customary in his presidential speeches, evoking the “malevolent souls” who wish Panama the worst. In his blog, Pma507pty [es], Erick Simpson Aguilar recalls Martinelli's speech:

“Ya llego la carta de Italia y ojala todos los medios, todas aquellas personas que con mucho morbo, y con mucha mala intención desinformaron todo lo que pasaron sobre los radares y todas las cosas en Italia, que le den la misma prominencia ustedes los medios a eso, que le den la misma prominencia que le dieron a todos los detractores que tanto daño hicieron, porque como no pueden criticar al individuo por las obras que se hacen, critican los precios de los proyectos, pero que me digan dónde hay algo aquí indebido para agarrar y meterlo preso. Ojala todas esas almas malévolas y perversas que lo único que desean es el mal para Panamá sepan recapacitar que cometieron un error”. El Presidente Ricardo Martinelli tratando de justificar el caso del supuesto sobreprecio millonario en detrimento de Panamá, en la compra realizada a la investigada empresa italiana Finmeccanica, la cual vendió a Panamá 6 helicópteros, 19 radares y 1 mapa digital por unos $250 millones.

“The letter from Italy has now arrived and hopefully the media, all those people who with their morbid fascination and all their ill intentions, spread misinformation about radars and all the issues in Italy, may they give the same amount of coverage to this, you the media, may you give the same amount of coverage that you gave to all those detractors who did so much damage because, as they could not fault the individual based on his actions, they criticised the prices of projects. But let them tell me where in this matter there is any impropriety so that those guilty of it can be arrested and imprisoned. Hopefully, all these malevolent and perverse souls who only wish evil upon Panama are able to admit that they made a mistake”. President Ricardo Martinelli trying to justify the multimillion dollar overpayment made by the Panamanian state in the purchase of six helicopters, 19 radars and one digital map, to the tune of $250 million from Finmeccanica, the Italian company currently under investigation.

La Prensa [es] has put up a video of the president's statements on the matter:

The accusations and criticisms reached a roadblock due to lack of evidence, and, little by little, the Panamanian public forgot the name Valter Lavitola. However, on April 16, 2012, with Lavitola's arrest at the Rome airport, Panama was in the spotlight again, and, inevitably, so was the current government. Moreover, other members of the government are also now facing accusations of taking bribes during tendering for contracts to build prisons, as Terra reports on its site [es]:

En la lista de beneficiarios de sobornos figuran, además del presidente Martinelli, la ministra de Justicia panameña, Roxana Méndez, y otras figuras políticas, sostiene la fiscalía.

“Parte del dinero para el presidente panameño fue entregado en un maletín”, asegura la acusación, que precisa que se hicieron dos entregas de 530.000 euros y 140.000 euros.

Among the names of those accused by the prosecutor of accepting bribes, appears that of president Martinelli; the Panamanian Justice Minister, Roxana Mendez, and other political figures.

“Part of the money for the Panamanian president was delivered in a suitcase,” the accusation states, specifying that there were two payments of 530,000 euros and 140,000 euros each.

The Italian newspaper Corriere [it] details how Lavitola was treated as a guest of honour in Panama, including being transported in official vehicles and provided with an escort, all whilst facing accusations in Italy. In addition, it provides in-depth coverage of the alleged corruption in which the Panamanian government became embroiled.

There was strong reaction to the news on social networking sites. From his Twitter account (@rmartinelli) [es], the Panamanian president, denied that there were any prisons being built by any Italian companies:

En Panamá ninguna empresa italiana está construyendo ni una cárcel.

There is not a single prison in Panama being built by any Italian company.

Amed Arosemena (@AmedArosemena) [es] worries about how the Panamanian justice system will appear in the eyes of the world once the all wrongdoing in the Lavitola case comes to light:

#MePregunto [es] Como queda la Justicia Panameña si en Italia llegan a destapar las bellezas de Lavitola en Panamá?? Mejor sera cerrar la Procu!

#MePregunto (“I wonder”) How will the Panamanian justice system end up looking if Italy manages to uncover Lavitola's doings here in Panama?? It would be better to shut down the Prosecutor's office!

Victor Bosch (@BoschVictor) [es] is of the view that the Lavitola case is seriously hurting the country's image:

Que daña mas la imagen del Pais, indígenas protegiendo sus recursos o publicaciones Italianas x caso Lavitola, mucha gente debe estar cagada

Which is more damaging to the image of this country, indigenous people protecting their resources or Italian coverage due to the Lavitola case, a lot of people must be in deep trouble.

Alcides Batista (@abatista15) [es] is also indignant at the apparent impunity with which the case has unfolded:

Es increíble ver como en Italia se llevan 2 procesos a Lavitola, 1 por sobornos a Panameños!!! Y Acá ni siquiera motivos para investigar!!

It's incredible when you see that in Italy there are 2 cases being brought against Lavitola, one of which concerns bribes paid to Panamanians. And yet over here there isn't even grounds for an investigation!!

But for some, like Virgilio Hurtado (@HurtadoVirgilio) [es], the issue has been rather exaggerated, to the point of seeming like something out of a novel. Noting the similarity with two other cases in which suitcases stuffed with money were also involved, she writes:

Los maletines de dinero son como objetos de utileria en la novela política: CEMIS, MURCIA y caso LAVITOLA. Disculpen pero no soy novelero.!

These suitcases filled with cash are like props from a political novel: CEMIS, MURCIA and the LAVITOLA case. Sorry, but I'm not interested in novels!

Carlos Pasquini (@pasquinocarlos) [es] also plays down the importance of the case, pointing out that the problems which matter to him are those concerning the day to day life of the Panamanian people:

A mi lo de Lavitola no me da ni picazon. Quiero ver como avanza el metro, expansion de corredores, que haya mas metrobuses

To me, this Lavitola business is a complete irrelevance. What I want to see is how the metro system is being developed, expansion of the vehicle corridors, more buses…

Thus, while some consider the issue to be the height of corruption by the current government, others view it as an issue of little practical importance for Panama. What is certain, is that the coming days will bring some degree of elucidation. At least, this is what the Panamanians are hoping.

Image of President Ricardo Martinelli courtesy of Flickr World Economic Forum user, used under an Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0) license