This purported ‘Zee News’ article about Capsiplex weight loss product invention by an Indian student is fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 27, 2022
A post sharing a link of the purported article published by the ‘Zee News’ website claims that an Indian student from Mumbai has discovered a new innovative weight loss supplement that could reduce body weight up to 13kgs/week without using chemicals, being starved or performing exercises. This post claims that Sunitha Joshi, a Mumbai-based student, was honoured at the European Congress of Endocrinology for inventing a new weight loss product Capsiplex. According to the article, the product accelerates metabolism, restores the endocrine system and reduces the fat inside the body at a fast rate. Also, the article states that Capsiplex can be availed only in India by participating in a lucky draw till 26 October 2022. At the end of the article, the purported Zee News article provided a digital lottery rotating system and asks users to rotate the lottery draw to avail discounts on the products. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: ‘Zee News’ article reporting the invention of Capsiplex weight loss product by an Indian student.
Fact: The purported ‘Zee News’ article shared in the post is a fake one. Capsiplex is a slimming pill that contains an ingredient called capsaicin, a naturally occurring compound found in chilli peppers (capsicums). Capsiplex claims to increase metabolism to burn calories 12 times faster than normal. The US-based Capsiplex company manufactured this product after carrying out trials at the University of Oklahoma in the US. The Capsiplex product is available on many e-commerce websites in India and they do not sell this product through a lucky draw. According to an NCBI research study, using capsinoid products (6mg/week) for 12 weeks showed a decrease of 0.92kg body weight. Capsiplex was not invented by any Indian student named Sunitha Joshi. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched to check whether the ‘Zee News’ website had published any such article, we could not find any such news on the official website and YouTube channels of ‘Zee News’. All the pictures shared in the article are reference pictures taken from ‘Zee News’, ‘Shuttershock’ and other websites.
When we searched to find whether any Indian student named Sunitha Joshi was honoured at the European Congress of Endocrinology for inventing a new formula for weight loss, we could not find any news reports confirming this information on the internet. A few websites while advertising and reviewing a bio-capsule product named ‘Motto Ketu’, described that the weight loss supplement was manufactured by Mumbai student Sunita Joshi. But on the official website of Akravi, the manufacturing company of ‘Motto Ketu’, it is nowhere mentioned that Sunita Joshi is the innovator of this bio-capsule. A Hyderabad-based Ayurvedic Doctor Sunitha Joshi recommended water therapy for quick weight loss.
What is Capsiplex?
Capsiplex is a slimming pill that contains an ingredient called capsaicin, a naturally occurring compound found in chilli peppers (capsicums) that gives them their heat. The capsaicinoids present in Capsiplex induces thermogenesis that helps to burn more calories in the body, during a short period. The US-based Capsiplex company manufactured this product after carrying out trials at the University of Oklahoma in the US. Several news websites published articles reporting the trials and launch of the Capsiplex weight loss supplement in 2009 and 2010. They can be seen here, here and here.
According to these news reports, Capsiplex claims to increase metabolism to burn calories 12 times faster than normal. A few research articles published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) have also stated that the consumption of foods containing capsaicin was associated with a lower prevalence of obesity. But the research studies indicated that the treatment of overweight or obese subjects with 6 mg/day capsinoid for 12 weeks lead to a decrease of 0.92 kgs in body weight. As per the manufacturer’s statement, reported by a few websites, a person using Capsiplex could expect to lose weight to a maximum of 4lb (1.814kg) in the first week followed by the 1-2lb (0.45 to 0.9kgs) a week after that.  A Capsiplex consumer in the review section stated that he had lost 16 kgs in three and a half month time frame after using the weight loss supplement.
The Capsiplex product is available on many e-commerce websites in India like Amazon, Jio Mart and others.  However, Capsiplex product  is not sold online through a lucky draw system,. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the purported Zee News article shared in the post is a fake one.
To sum it up, this purported ‘Zee News’ article reporting the Capsiplex product invention by Sunitha Joshi is a fake one.


Trinidad & Tobago: A history of air travel · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Karen Walrond offers a personal history of air travel, which has changed, she notes, “not just because of planes flying into skyscrapers. . . it's just that societal customs have also changed so much in the last 4 decades, we all view something as illogical as air flight with a rather startling sense of nonchalance . . .“


Uzbekistan: A Dissident Poet Released · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Noah Tucker writes that the Uzbekistan authorities released Yusuf Juma, the poet and activist who was jailed for slander in 2008 after publishing a series of poems related to the 2005 Andijon protests.


Philippines: Disaster interactive map · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

CP-Union has put up a disaster interactive map to monitor the extent of damage caused by the recent flooding in the northern part of the Philippines


‘Biko Zulu’, ‘They Call Me Daktari’ and ‘Mummy Tales’ Among the Winners of the Kenyan Blog Awards · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Some of the BAKE Awards 2016 winners (left to right: Dr. Claire Kinuthia (theycallmedaktari.com), Maryann Waweru (mummytales.com), Rachael Muthoni (safari254.com), Diana Kaluhi (kaluhiskitchen.com) and Lucia Musau (luciamusau.com). Photo by Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE) and used with permission.
The winners of the Kenyan Blog Awards 2016 were announced at a gala event that took place on May 14 in Kenya's capital Nairobi.
Biko Zulu took home two titles: Best Creative Writing Blog and Kenyan Blog of the Year. Other winners included Techweez for Best Technology Blog; Ben Kiruthi for Best Photography Blog; They Call Me Daktari for Best New Blog; and Mummy Tales for Best Topical Blog.
Launched in 2012 by the Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE), the Kenyan Blog Awards, also known as BAKE Awards, recognises and awards exceptional Kenyan bloggers. The competition, according to the organisers, is open to all Kenyans and brands that operate in Kenya.
The competition began with a submission phase for 19 categories from January 8 to February 10, 2016. Then the judges chose the best five blogs for each category, before online voting was open to the public on March 3, 2016.
Check out the full list of winners for the 19 categories on the awards website.


Trinidad & Tobago: Public Art  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

The bookmann compares a termite treatment process commonly seen in Trinidad and Tobago to the public art of Christo and Jeanne-Claude.


Taiwan: Farmers Associations and Rural Politics · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Michael Turton has a very elaborated post on the history of farmer associations in Taiwan, which is related with colonialism. In recent year, the farmer associations faced very serious debt problem and the solution seems to be highly political.


PULSE: China – What You Didn’t Read in the Mainstream - New Canadian Media
Shan Qiao
February 26, 2015
Chinese people said goodbye to the Year of the Horse, welcoming the Year of the Sheep.
In the Chinese media this week, the housing market; our spiritual home; ties between Canada and China; and our Chinese representatives in the government were the main focus.
The housing market in Toronto has never been this hot and it seems that any given location listed is receiving bidding wars.
That’s not the case for the town homes at Bayview and Cummer Ave. The Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) wants to buy the land and expropriate all 30 town homes on it to build a high school. Their offer is $800,000 but the homeowners want at least $1.2M, according to Ming Pao Daily News.
When the homeowners were approached by TCDSB in 2013, most of them (one-third are Chinese) declined TCDSB’s offer.
Today, a dozen white lawn signs with “Stop” written in red capital letters show the fight between the two sides, with homeowners claiming they’re under threat of “Expropriation-based blockbusting” by the board.
Ming Pao Daily has interviewed several Chinese homeowners and realtors, indicating the market price is not $800,000 as the TCDSB offered. Realtor Shusheng Wu said that one unit was listed for $888,000 in 2013. A nearby new development unit at Finch Ave. and Leslie St. was recently listed for over $1 million. The report said there were homeowners asking for $1.2 million with no offer from the board.
Homeowner Mrs. Auyoung said it was not fair for people like her who have been living in the area for more than a dozen years. With familiar neighbours living closely and easy access to public transit, not to mention the freehold property and double garage, many of them feel it’s very hard to find any equivalent property in the area.
Mrs. Lee, another resident, argued that paying only $800,000 to each homeowner will cost the board a total of $24 million, enough to build a new school without even counting the cost of a lengthy expropriation procedure and paperwork. The board’s insistence to get this land is another example of wasting taxpayer’s money.
With more Chinese immigrating to Canada and becoming Canadians, going back to their home country easily is not always an option. Chinese foreign policy doesn’t grant duel citizenship, hence Chinese immigrants who have become Canadian will have to apply for visas to go back like other foreigners. Currently, the Chinese government only offers single or multiple entries from three months to one year, while the community is asking for a convenient 10-year multiple entry visitor visa that is equivalent to Canada’s 10-year “Super Visa.”
The concerning topic affects almost every Chinese person now or in the future. An online petition has been launched by a Toronto-based popular Chinese website www.51.ca and two dozen local Chinese associations, urging China to address their needs.
Major Chinese media organizations have covered the story. According to Sing Tao Daily Newspaper, more than sixty overseas Chinese associations joined the petition from the west coast. The petition has been sent to MP for Vancouver-South Wai Young’s office. The NDP’s Don Davies, MP for Vancouver Kingsway, in the meantime, has tabled a motion asking Beijing to allow 10-year, multi-entry visas for frequent travelers between Canada and China.
The good news is that the Chinese government is seriously considering this, according to Liu Fei, the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Vancouver during a recent interview at a dinner gala. She said the 10-year Chinese super visa for visitors, business people and tourists will soon be available in the near future.
A prominent Buddhist Temple in North America, Chamshan Temple, has expanded to 11 locations in Ontario during the past several decades. It is the biggest Buddhist association in the country and has recently invested $40 million to build the “Wu Taishan Buddhist Garden” in Peterborough. The construction work started in 2011, with more than 20 construction companies participating in Canada and from China. However, the Chinese company Golden Luban, which is responsible for the Mahavira Hall’s wooden structure, is involved in a lawsuit that is jeopardizing the project.
The news first broke out by Chamshan Temple’s sudden news conference, alleging Golden Luban has no qualification to carry on the work; hence, Chamshan Temple terminated their contract unilaterally. The bad news is that the Temple has already paid $20 million to the company with little chance to get it all back.
The construction company’s legal representative, Guo Yongrao, claimed that the company has more than three decades experience in the industry. There is no definition of what kind of qualifications the Temple requires in the contract that the two parties have signed. He also argued that the Temple has overlooked if there was such a requirement by international or Canadian laws and that the company has no legal obligation to return the deposit, according to Singtao Daily News.
No announcement has been made after the two parties’ heated media war in January. Chamshan Temple said they tried to minimize the damage and push the construction back on track.
Asked about why the Temple chose Guo’s Chinese company without thorough examination on its credentials, Dayi Master, spokesperson for the Temple sighed and said: “Our Buddhists are so naïve to believe Guo, a so-called sincere Buddhist follower, and his company,” according to Singtao Daily News.
Conservative MP for Willowdale C.S. Leung attended a town hall meeting last month in his riding where many Iranian immigrants live. According to 51 Weekly, Leung confronted Iranians when they complained about Canada and complimented Iran. Leung was caught on camera arguing, “Let me ask you, if you like Iran so much, then why do you come to Canada?”
The question immediately angered the participants with even one firing back, saying “And I can tell you, go back to China.” Leung is a Taiwan-born Canadian businessman who was elected in 2011.
Leung has since released an open letter, saying, “I uncharacteristically responded in a way that was not professional. Although I felt attacked by some in the audience, I should not have responded in the way that I did.”
51 Weekly columnist Xinfeng praised Leung’s courage to step forward and take responsibility to defend Canada. He argued that those Iranians who immigrated to Canada inconveniently forgot their own country’s dark side. With UN sanctions and Canada cutting ties to Iran, difficulties such as Iranian passport renewal or money transfers between the two countries should be expected. Yet, Xinfeng also said that out of the approximately 120,000 Iranians living in Canada, he believes only a handful of people complain about Canada.
A YouTube video of Conservative MP Chungsen Leung’s heated debate with Iranian-Canadians.
51 Weekly wrote a feature exploring a lingering pain for Chinese academics: How difficult it is to become a professor in Canada?
Zhenzhong Ma, Professor at the University of Windsor and Chair of the Odette School of Business, shared his own example in the feature article. He said it takes about six years to progress from assistant professor to associate professor with a yearly evaluation. Being a tenure means a professor’s contract with the university is permanent and secured. That explains why it is not easy to get a job opportunity if there is no vacancy.
The feature also claimed that based on statistics, “white” professors make up about 87% of professors in Canadian universities and those of Chinese background only make up four per cent.
Charlie Huang, a university lecturer, expressed his stress while on his long way of seeking tenure. He said he finds it is very difficult to apply for research funds, not necessarily because of his language and cultural background or even social skills. He has been a lecturer for five years, yet the pressure of talking in English properly was stressful during his first two years. He also hired a local language trainer to help him understand his students’ different accents and improve his English listening skills.
Shan Qiao is a Toronto-based photojournalist who used to work as a daily newspaper reporter. She currently runs her own company, Shan Qiao Photography, specialized in corporate event, editorial photos for news distribution and photo stories. She is also a feature writer for different corporate publications. See her work: www.qshan.com
Shan is a photojournalist and event photographer based in Toronto with more than a decade of experience. From Beijing Olympic Games to The Dalai Lama in Exile, she has covered a wide range of editorial assignments.


Alumni donate solar power to UI | EduCeleb
28th January 2020
Five members of 1990 Agronomy graduating set of the University of Ibadan (UI) have jointly lifted their alma mater with a provision of solar power as part of their strategic contributions towards overcoming incessant power outage on campus.
The five alumni, including Ms Hadrat Hammed Azeez , Wale Oyedeji, Olu Odugbemi, Adenike Odunela Ajetunmobi and Wale Adebowale Oyedeji contributed the sum of Two Hundred Thousand Naira (N200,000.00) to provide solar energy in the Office of the Media Assistant to the Vice Chancellor, Mr Sunday Saanu.
Saanu had solicited help for the provision of the facility, having been hamstrung by the irregularity of electricity in his office.
Saanu had approached Ms Hadrat Hammed Azeez for assistance regarding availability of electricity in his office, lamenting that he was being slowed down in his work by lack of some facilities including regular electricity supply.
Ms Azeez who has been an enthusiastic promoter and supporter of her University immediately promised to get in touch with some members of her 1990 graduating set to make available the cost of the solar energy as part of their own contributions to the betterment of the UI.
The money has since been provided while the installation was on-going as at the time of writing this report.
Thanking the donors, the UI Vice Chancellor, Idowu Olayinka in a letter he personally signed expressed delight at the gesture of the five alumni, describing it as a welcome development.
According to Olayinka who is a geology professor at the institution, “Mr Saanu has informed me that five of you, Hadrat Hammed Azeez , Wale Oyedeji, Olu Odugbemi, Adenike Odunela Ajetunmobi and Wale Adebowale Oyedeji contributed the money for the installation of solar energy in his office. I sincerely thank all of you for your kind gestures.”
The UI boss stated that “power outage is one of the major problems confronting the University”, adding that the “Management is exploring so many options including installation of solar power in some areas”.
In his words, “for instance, some of the halls of residence, particularly female hostels have been provided with solar energy. We would have loved to do more across the campus, but being incapacitated by the limited financial resources.”
“It is against this background that I heartily welcome your contributions towards addressing the problem. I thank you for your prompt response to Saanu’s request for what you have done for his office will go a long way to positively impact the University in general. You have also, by this gesture, challenged other alumni across the globe, to look back to the University that made them, with a view to giving back.”


Voci Globali: Global Voices and La Stampa · Global Voices
Bernardo Parrella

Global Voices is nearly three weeks in to a new partnership with Italian daily newspaper La Stampa that is designed to feature the best of the international blogs on the newspaper's website. We call it “Voci Globali“ and the activity is centered around a blog on La Stampa that republishes Global Voices stories together with translations of the best posts from 25 recommended world blogs. The headlines are regularly featured in the foreign news section of the homepage of newspaper, and individual stories have also made it into print.
Among the blogs we watch most closely are the Afghan Women's Writing Project, Congogirl, Repeating Islands, Registan, Talk Morocco, as well as the blogs of Global Voices insiders Ethan Zuckerman, Rebecca McKinnon, David Sasaki, and Sami ben Gharbia. Most of the blogs are in English, but some are also in Spanish and French.
The project is run by an (enthusiastic!) team of translators that works separately but in parallel to the Lingua translators of Global Voices in Italian. It is hard work to manage both projects, testing collaborative translation methods, and getting to know La Stampa's online platform all at once. But so far we are publishing at least a post per day, under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
La Stampa's homepage
On Saturday February 20, a Global Voices post by Juliana Rincón Parra, Mobile Libraries of the World, was printed in the newspaper. And on Sunday March 7 , the day of the elections in Iraq, La Stampa printed an Italian translation of a post by Iraqi teenage blogger “Sunshine” in Mosul, about voting for the first time in her life. After the earthquake in Chile, La Stampa asked for a fresh story, and we were  quickly able to translate the first report on Chilean web reactions Global Voices by Eduardo Ávila.
We've translated stories on a wide range of topics, and have so far received very positive feedback in online commentary. Here is a list of blogs and websites mentioning the new collaboration.
A wonderful side effect of Voci Globali has been greater exposure for Global Voices in Italian. This has encouraged several new people to volunteer to join our translation team. Subscriptions to our weekly newsletter have risen to 230 members, our Facebook group to 683 members, and our Twitter feed to 110 followers.  And this is just the beginning. We hope that our projects will soon be discovered by many more Italian speakers around the globe, deepening and widening the reach of Global Voices as a whole.
Mainstream media are hungry for fresh content and different angles, and readers are eager to encounter new perspectives from ‘the global conversation’ online. Although the experiment with La Stampa  has a limited (compared to Global Voices) focus on pre-selected blogs, this merging of professional and citizen media seems a challenging but promising idea. More so, it shows potential for a further branching out of Global Voices and its Lingua translation sites as valuable resources for media outlets, and their readers around the world.


Supporting Future Lawyers To Tackle Racism in Canada - New Canadian Media
Fabian Dawson
February 9, 2021
In a Canadian first, one of the country’s largest banks has announced a scholarship program to increase the number of students pursuing a career in the legal profession with the intent to become advocates for anti-racism.
Scholarship recipients for the Scotiabank Program for Law Students will be selected based on several factors including their “demonstrated experience in anti-racism advocacy and a clear articulation of how they will leverage their legal careers to tackle systemic discrimination,” the bank said in its press release.
Participating law schools are: University of Alberta, University of Victoria, McGill University, University of Windsor, the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University and Osgoode Hall Law School at York University.
“Like banking, the legal profession benefits enormously from the diverse perspectives of its members,” Brian Porter, President and CEO of Scotiabank, said as quoted in the press release. “The Scotiabank Program for Law Students endeavors to give the next generation of legal professionals a stronger voice and presence in furthering the fight against racial discrimination. We are confident that this first-in-Canada program will help create positive and lasting change for the benefit of all Canadians.”
The Scotiabank Program for Law Students will enable each affiliated university to award one student per year a $10,000 scholarship renewable annually for the duration of their three-year degree. Each scholarship recipient will have the opportunity to meet with Scotiabank executives and members of the legal community, and select participants will be offered an internship opportunity at either Scotiabank, a law firm, or another legal advocacy organization.
A total of $540,000 in scholarship funds will be awarded to 18 students throughout the duration of the program.
In addition to the scholarship program, Scotiabank has also committed $60,000 over the next three years in support of Black Future Lawyers (BFL); a collaboration between the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Black Law Students Association and members of the Black legal community.
The Law Society of British Columbia in a report on the demographics of the legal profession in the province said that between 2013 and 2019 there was an increase in the percentage of B.C. lawyers who identify with one of four diverse groups (Indigenous, visible minority, sexual orientation and identity, and persons with a disability).
The largest shift can be seen in the growing percentage of lawyers who identify as a visible minority, person of colour or come from a racialized background, the society said.
“While these are positive developments, the legal profession in B.C. still has a ways to go to reflect the diversity of the communities in which they live and work,” the report reads. “While just over 4.6 per cent of B.C.’s population is Indigenous (First Nations, Metis, or Inuit), Indigenous lawyers comprise  only 2.7 per cent of the B.C. bar.”
“As encouraging as the increasing number of lawyers who identify as visible minorities, persons of colour, or racialized may be, in a province where visible minorities make up 28.8 per cent of the population, individuals from these same communities comprise only 16.15 per cent of the B.C. bar,” the society’s analysis of its membership showed.
The Canadian Bar Association (CBA) is also calling on the federal government to appoint more Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour candidates to the Supreme Court and other federal judicial positions.
“We have long called on the government of Canada to make judicial appointments that reflect the diversity of the Canadian population, and to consider membership in equality-seeking racial groups one of the many factors in the assessment of judicial candidates,” wrote CBA President Brad Regehr in a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The letter admitted that the government modified the federal appointment system in 2016 to increase the diversity of judicial appointments, and started gathering and publishing self-identification data.
“However, we are concerned that these commitments and changes have not resulted in an appreciably more diverse judiciary to date,” Regehr wrote. “Between 2016 and 2019, only three per cent of federal judicial appointees self-identified as Indigenous. With no race-disaggregated data, we do not know how many federal judicial appointees identified as Black, but only eight per cent identified as visible minorities.”
A multiple-award winning journalist, Fabian Dawson is an internationally acclaimed author, filmmaker and media expert. His work over the last four decades spans the globe and he also serves as a consultant/strategic advisor to a variety of international companies. As deputy editor-in-chief of The Province, part of the Postmedia chain, Dawson led initiatives within a special publications group to provide directed content for a variety of organisations. He was named the 2019 recipient of the Bruce Hutchison Lifetime Achievement Award at Jack Webster Awards. Dawson has been invited by the governments of India, Malaysia, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong and the United States to act as a media observer/advisor on a variety of Asian-Canada issues. Dawson, now operates FD Media, which specializes in harnessing editorial assets to revenue generating opportunities.
Timely article. My daughter and son-in-law are both lawyers but I will probably be dead before I see any Filipino Canadian appointed to the bench. From my research, there are only two – one in Ontario and  one in Alberta.


Malawi: Social Bookmarking for Blogs About Malawi · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

MalawiSoc is a Social Boookmarking site devoted to news and blogs about Malawi.


Bangladesh: Terror attacks from new Al-Qaeda group raise questions · Global Voices
Rezwan

A series of bombs went off at Dhaka, Sylhet and Chittagong railway stations Tuesday morning from 6:45 AM to 9:30 AM (BDNews24). Only one person was injured in the attack but it created panic in the country. Bangladeshi bloggers are covering this extensively.
Jadid Al-Qaeda, an unknown group believed to be linked to Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network has claimed the responsibility with Aluminum plates inscribed with militant slogans found in a crime scene. Journalist Ahmede Hussain has pictures and roundups in his blog Black and Grey. More blogger round ups can be found in “The 3rd world view“, International media reactions in “My dear Bangladesh“.
Shadakalo explains:
Jadid means “New.” The last prominent group of “Jadids” existed in the late 1880 in the Russian empire and were known as reformers. Whatever these Jadids are, they are singing the old song of death to NGOs and Quadianis slogans. Large flat metal disks carried these warnings in Bangla: “If Hazrat Mohammad is not declared the superman of the world by May 10, all non-governmental organizations will be blown up.”
Rajputro on why they have picked the May Day for the attack:
Many Bangladeshis were traveling out of Dhaka taking advantage of a two-day public holiday for May Day and a Buddhist religious festival on Wednesday.
However there was only one injury and no casualty. It seems the aim of militants was to make a statement rather than killing a lot of people.
Shadakalo raises some questions:
1) The plates were signed in English –“The Al-Qaeda Network”. Why just this bit in English? Someone specifically trying to draw the attention of the foreign press?
2) Did someone think its time to scare the country a bit and pave the path towards martial law?
Drishtipat Blog reports that the news came very slowly to Bangladeshis because this was a holiday, and people were not checking the news. The Blog asks some pertinent questions:
What Kind of terrorist unit inscribes message on aluminum plate? Did they do it at home, or in a shop? If in a shop, isn’t there high chance of discovery? My theory, once again Bangladesh being used as a chess board for puppet masters. Who benefits?
Dhaka blog has chronological updates and warns:
Before we blame “foreign interests”, it's much more productive to look ourselves in the mirror and ask: what are we doing wrong? These blasts are at best gimmicks. A sort of publicity stunt for a very dangerous message.
Expat Blogger Gabrielle comments:
Unfortunately these kind of incidents are not that uncommon in this part of the world and life moves on as usual.
‘My thoughts and Ideas’ asserts:
The Caretaker Government of Bangladesh cannot afford to ignore this alarming and most serious crisis. They must take concrete actions against the militancy. We need a “Zero Tolerance- No Excuse Policy” against militancy.


Egypt: Stop Writing Arabic in Latin  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

A new Facebook group urging Arabs to stop writing in Latin letters has been launched. The group has so far attracted around 2,500 people from across the Arab world.


Bahrain: Shia Triple-Play · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Mahmood Al Yousif tackles the issue of the Sunni-Shia divide in Bahrain in this post.


Post from Community: Tips to combat distracted driving | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
West Bend Mutual Insurance Company
April 29, 2022
National Distracted Driving Awareness Month may be coming to a close, but road safety should be a priority year round. Here are some tips, tricks and reminders from West Bend Mutual Insurance Company to combat distracted driving and make the streets safer for fellow drivers, pedestrians, and yourself.
From changing traffic patterns for new construction projects to stormy weather that limits road visibility, the road ahead might be unpredictable or unfamiliar. Driving more slowly when unsure of what is ahead is an important way to avoid accidents. Speeding will not help a driver get to a destination quicker, but it will increase the risk of collisions.
Talking on a cell phone while driving is the most common form of distracted driving, followed by texting and internet use. Resist the urge to take calls or respond to messages while behind the wheel by silencing your device while driving or setting up a text auto-reply to be sent to those trying to reach out. If driving with a passenger, ask them to answer or make calls and messages on your behalf.
Phones aren’t the only thing taking our attention off the road and our hands off the wheel. Avoid multitasking while driving and be sure to eat, apply makeup, or deal with any fussy backseat passengers while the car is parked in a safe place.
Before hitting the road, adjust your seat and mirrors, get the radio tuned or the GPS running, and make sure all passengers are buckled up and ready to go. Young or new drivers should limit the car to one passenger at a time to mitigate distractions.
The best way to build safe driving habits is to drive safely every day. For young drivers, West Bend Mutual Insurance has partnered with Road America’s Teen Driving Program to build defensive driving skills and hone safe driving techniques.
West Bend Mutual Insurance policyholders can receive a discount for Road America’s Teen Driving Program and can learn more about the program and upcoming dates on the West Bend Mutual Insurance website.
Learn more about preventing distracted driving and find other resources at thesilverlining.com/focus.
Safe driving tips provided by West Bend Mutual Insurance Company


Russia: Ramzan Kadyrov’s Blog and Plagiarism Controversy · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Sean's Russia Blog notes that “just when [Ramzan] Kadyrov thought he had a clear path to becoming a star of the blogosphere, his second post, “My city, Grozny” was accused of plagiarism […].”


UK grants Assange another hearing
Freedom of the Press Foundation
March 29, 2024
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Julian Assange speaks at a press conference in London on Aug. 18, 2014. (David G Silvers/Foreign Ministry of Ecuador/licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0)
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On Tuesday, the High Court in London granted WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange another hearing on his extradition to the United States, averting — at least temporarily — a press freedom catastrophe.
While we’re glad that Assange isn’t being immediately extradited, the threat to journalists from the Espionage Act charges against him remains.
In response to the court’s ruling, Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) Executive Director Trevor Timm called on the Biden administration to drop the case against Assange, explaining that his conviction “would create a dangerous precedent that the U.S. government can and will use against reporters of all stripes who expose its wrongdoing or embarrass it.” Read our full statement here.
Other press freedom and human rights organizations also responded by emphasizing the threat the case poses to press freedom, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders, the Knight Institute at Columbia, PEN International, Amnesty International, and Defending Rights & Dissent.
For more resources on the Assange case and what you can do, visit https://freedom.press/assange/
Florida-based independent journalist Tim Burke will be arraigned soon in federal court on troubling charges based on his online newsgathering. Burke’s reporting made national news by revealing unaired footage of an antisemitic rant by Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, on Tucker Carlson’s TV show.
Breaking major news sure sounds a whole lot like journalism. But not everyone agrees. In two new columns, FPF Advocacy Director Seth Stern explains why Burke is indeed a journalist and why his prosecution should concern anyone who cares about press freedom.
Writing in Slate, Stern raises concerns that Department of Justice prosecutors may have labeled Burke as a “former” journalist in court filings to avoid judicial scrutiny of their investigation under the First Amendment, federal law, and even the DOJ’s own policies.
And in the Tampa Bay Times, Stern and Florida First Amendment Foundation Executive Director Bobby Block respond to a column that attempts to explain why the Times refers to Burke as a “former journalist.” Stern and Block write that Burke easily satisfies a “functional definition of who is a journalist” — based on whether the person was performing an act of journalism — when he broke the story of Ye’s edited interview.
Read the full columns in Slate and the Tampa Bay Times for more.
A new appeal in North Carolina by Asheville Blade journalists Veronica Coit and Matilda Bliss could break important legal ground for reporters in the state.
Police arrested Coit and Bliss while they were reporting on and recording a protest and police sweep at a homeless encampment in a public park in Asheville on Christmas Eve of 2021. They’re appealing their convictions on First Amendment grounds.
Press freedom groups have condemned the journalists’ arrests and convictions as contrary to the First Amendment. Now the North Carolina Court of Appeals will weigh in.
Read more on our website about the appeal and its potential impact on all North Carolina journalists who cover protests or police activity in public places.
Like a bad penny, bills to ban TikTok keep turning up in Congress. We’ve written before about how such proposals are unconstitutional and would enable mass censorship. The newest legislation that would effectively ban the platform is no exception.
Writing in the Columbia Journalism Review, FPF’s Stern warns that banning TikTok would impose a prior restraint on journalism and set a precedent for future censorship, including bans on foreign news sites.
Read the full column here.
Russian court extends WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich’s detention. This week marks one year since Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was imprisoned on sham “espionage” charges in Russia. It’s outrageous that Gershkovich’s detention continues to be extended when he did nothing wrong. Russia should release him immediately.
Scene reporter arrested at Vanderbilt University. After arresting Nashville Scene reporter Eli Motycka for covering a protest at Vanderbilt University, authorities released him without charges. That’s good. But Motycka never should have been arrested in the first place. Even when journalists are quickly released, arresting them still violates their First Amendment rights and prevents them from reporting.
Sacramento police put me in handcuffs inside City Hall — but I was there as a journalist. Sacramento Bee reporter Robin Epley gives a firsthand account of being handcuffed while covering a protest at a city council meeting, despite the fact that her press credentials were clearly displayed. As Epley points out, state law (not to mention the First Amendment) protected her right to be there, and handcuffing her even for a brief time was wrong.
Feds ordered Google to unmask certain YouTube users. Critics say it’s ‘terrifying.’ Multiple courts have secretly ordered Google to turn over information such as names or IP addresses of potentially hundreds of thousands of people who viewed particular YouTube videos, as part of an effort to identify criminals. This disturbing digital dragnet is likely unconstitutional and will chill what people watch online, including the news.


A photoshopped image of Hoshang Shah Tomb pillars is being shown as 1212 pillars at the Rameshwaram temple - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 14, 2019
An image of pillars is being shared widely on social media with a claim that the image was taken at the Rameshwaram temple, where 1212 pillars meet in one dot. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Image of 1212 pillars meeting in one dot at the Rameshwaram temple.
Fact: The picture of 1212 pillars meeting in one dot at the Rameshwaram temple is a photoshopped image. Also, the pillars in the photo are very different from the pillars at the Rameshwaram temple (Arulmigu Ramanatha Swami Temple). Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When looked for the Rameshwaram temple with 1212 pillars on Google, the official website of Arulmigu Ramanatha Swami Temple (Rameshwaram) can be found in the search results. On the website, it can be read that the temple has 1212 pillars in its third corridor.
But the pillars in the temple are very different from the pillars in the posted picture. The pillars are more intricately carved and are placed on a raised platform.
Also, the posted picture looks photoshopped because the same crack can be seen on all the pillars on the left.
In an article published by SMHoaxSlayer in 2017, it was written that this picture is a modified version of Hoshang Shah Tomb pillars. When searched for the images of ‘Hoshang Shah Tomb’ on Google, similar pillar photos were found in the search results. There are only 81 pillars in Hoshang Shah Tomb. Lot of such images of Hoshang Shah tombs can be found on Getty Images also.
To sum it up, a photoshopped image of Hoshang Shah Tomb pillars is being shown as 1212 pillars at the Rameshwaram temple.
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series on Parliament?


Post from Community: First Stage presents the triumphant return of THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
First Stage
February 16, 2022
First Stage is delighted to announce that its next mainstage production will be THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS, a world premiere co-commission with Oregon Children’s Theatre, which originally premiered in March of 2020. The production features clever, original music from classic rock to dance pop as well as fantastical costumes, sets and puppets that will entertain the entire family. Based on the bestselling book by Drew Daywalt with illustrations by Adam Rex, First Stage Resident Playwright John Maclay wrote the book and lyrics and Eric Nordin wrote the music and lyrics. Choreography is by First Stage alum Molly Rhode and popular Milwaukee actor Kelly Doherty will direct. Kelly made her First Stage directing debut when the play premiered in 2020, but that run was cut short due to the pandemic. Kelly, along with the creative team of THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS and all of First Stage, is eager to share this delightful production and its infectious joy with audience members once again.
In THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS, three fierce warriors return to the stage for a rematch after their brief battle was cut short in March 2020. From the Kingdom of Backyard came Rock, from the Empire of Mom’s Home Office came Paper, and from a messy village in the Junk Drawer Realm came Scissors. They were the strongest, smartest and fastest in all the land. Though they searched far and wide for worthy opponents, no one could beat them . . . until they met each other and a musical battle royale began to see who would come out on top! Sponsored by Molitor Foundation. Performance run time is approximately 60 minutes, with no intermission. Suggested for families with young people ages 4+.
THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS runs March 5 – April 3, 2022 at the Marcus Center’s Todd Wehr Theater, located at 929 N. Water Street in downtown Milwaukee. Tickets start at $25 and can be purchased in person at the Marcus Center Box Office at 929 N. Water Street, by phone at<PHONE_NUMBER> or online at firststage.org.
Director Kelly Doherty had this to say about the play: “On the surface, THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS seems to be a kooky musical about a bunch of inanimate objects singing, dancing and battling each other in some very ridiculous and over-the-top scenarios. And, it is a kooky musical about all of that, but it really is so much more. It’s about friendship, bravery, teamwork and overcoming challenges.  . .  . My hope is that audiences will walk away from this show with a smile on their face, and the realization that it is good to surround yourself with people who not only love you for who you are, but who also challenge you to be the best version of yourself.”
Artistic Director Jeff Frank added: “Clever, funny, raucous and joyful – just a few of the words that come to mind for this world premiere musical returning to First Stage. John Maclay and Eric Nordin combined their talents to bring the irreverent humor of author Drew Daywalt to the stage in glorious musical form. In their search for individual glory, our heroes discover that healthy competition and friendships are perhaps the greatest glory of all.”
BIOGRAPHIES
Drew Daywalt (Author) has been creating escapist fantasy, horror and comedy since his childhood in Ohio. With a BFA in creative writing from Emerson College in Boston in 1992, Drew set off to Hollywood where he wrote for Disney and Universal on Timon & Pumba, Buzz Lightyear and Woody Woodpecker. He also wrote the Emmy-nominated animated series The Wacky World of Tex Avery. His first trip into live action landed him studio screenwriting and directing work with such Hollywood luminaries as Lawrence Bender, Tony Scott and Jerry Bruckheimer. In 2013, Daywalt’s debut picture book, The Day the Crayons Quit, spent a year on the NYT Bestseller List at #1, and remains on the list to this day, over five years later. The sequel book, The Day the Crayons Came Home, also spent a year as a NYT Bestseller and his third book, The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors is a NYT Bestseller as well. Daywalt has also written a Star Wars book for LucasFilm Publishing, called BB-8 on the Run. His books, Sleepy the Goodnight Buddy and The Epic Adventures of Huggie and Stick have both been recently released to rave reviews and two national book tours. He has received 65 awards for his children’s writing, including the coveted E.B. White Read Aloud Award and the Time Magazine Top 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time.
John Maclay (Book and Lyrics) is a playwright who specializes in adaptation for Theatre for Young Audiences. In addition to his latest, THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS (with fabulous composer Eric Nordin), his plays and musicals include: GOOSEBUMPS THE MUSICAL: PHANTOM OF THE AUDITORIUM (with Danny Abosch); GERONIMO STILTON: MOUSE IN SPACE, JUST A LITTLE CRITTER MUSICAL (with Brett Ryback); NANCY DREW AND HER BIGGEST CASE EVER (with Jeff Frank); ANATOLE (with Lee Becker and James Valcq); a new version of ROBIN HOOD (with Joe Foust) and NATE THE GREAT (with Brett Ryback). Upcoming projects include ANDROMEDA AND THE TRIALS OF HERCULES (with Joe Foust). Prior to leaving to pursue writing full-time, John proudly served in
various leadership roles at First Stage, one of the America’s largest and most respected theaters for young audiences. John has worked with First Stage in one form or other since 2000, has directed or appeared in more than 25 First Stage productions (from classics to world premieres) as well as having produced more than 50 productions for the First Stage high school programs. His work as an actor or director has also been seen at the Utah Shakespeare Festival, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Milwaukee Shakespeare Company, Defiant Theatre, Bunny Gumbo, Bialystock and Bloom, Skylight Music Theatre and more. He also teaches theater at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Eric Nordin (Music and Lyrics) is a multiple award-winning playwright, composer, music director and pianist and has made his artistic home in Portland, Oregon since 2004 at Oregon Children’s Theatre. Recent original pieces for the theater include THE SNOWSTORM (2015) and JOHN HUGHES HIGH: THE 1980’S TEEN MUSICAL (2018). In addition to his writing credits, Eric has also had the enormous pleasure of music directing recent Oregon Children’s Theatre productions such as GOOSEBUMPS: THE MUSICAL and PETE THE CAT.
Kelly Doherty (Director), a familiar face to Milwaukee audiences, moved to Milwaukee after graduating from UW-Whitewater with a BFA in Theatre Performance. Having appeared onstage as Agatha Trunchbull (Roald Dahl’s MATILDA The Musical) and Deb (ELF – The Musical) at First Stage, she is filled with joy to be directing THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS once again after it was prematurely closed back in 2020. She has appeared onstage with Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Skylight Music Theatre, Northern Sky Theatre, Renaissance Theaterworks, Milwaukee Opera Theatre and Next Act Theatre. Some favorites include Bodey (LOVELY SUNDAY FOR CREVE CEOUER), Trunchbull (MATILDA), Williamina (SILENT SKY), Gangster 2 (KISS ME, KATE) and to her knowledge she has never been cast as an ingénue. When not in the theater, she enjoys watching made-for-TV romantic comedies and singing to her cats.
Jeff Schaetzke (Music Director/Director of Artistic Operations) is grateful for a long history at First Stage as a director, teacher, music director and actor, dating back to playing Romeo in 1996. Most recently, Jeff directed the smash hit ELF – The Musical, MATILDA The Musical and THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER: THE MUSICAL. Other First Stage favorites include THE MIRACULOUS JOURNEY OF EDWARD TULANE, SPOOKLEY THE SQUARE PUMPKIN THE MUSICAL, LOVABYE DRAGON, RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER™: THE MUSICAL, ELLA ENCHANTED; BIG NATE: THE MUSICAL; BIG FISH (having also appeared as Edward Bloom); BIG, THE MUSICAL and many others. Jeff enjoys leading the Young Company trip to American Players Theatre and directing several Company Class productions. A lifelong Milwaukeean, Jeff has enjoyed working with many Milwaukee theaters, including playing Father in Skylight Music Theatre’s production of VIOLET, and directing music for the Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Skylight Music Theatre, Carroll University, UWM and Marquette University. Other credits: Milwaukee Chamber Theatre’s THE DALY NEWS, two seasons at American Players Theatre and a 25-year relationship at Dominican High School. Jeff is a 2014 inductee into the Wisconsin Theatre Directors Hall of Fame, and a four-time Outstanding Musical Award Winner at the Overture Center’s TOMMY/JERRY Awards. He’s a proud graduate of North Central College and the Professional Theatre Training Program at UW-Milwaukee. Jeff is celebrating 27 years of marriage to patient wife, Sheila, and he’s a proud father to Amelia, Jeremy and Adelaide.
Molly Rhode (Choreographer) adores creating dances for John Maclay musicals and is thrilled to work with so many good friends on this production. A former Theater Academy student and young performer, Molly always loves returning to First Stage. She was last seen as Mrs. Wormwood in MATILDA The Musical. Past directing projects include 2019’s THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER: THE MUSICAL, NEWSIES at Skylight Music Theatre and DAD’S SEASON TICKETS at Northern Sky Theatre, where she is also the Associate Artistic Director. Molly loves working on new plays, and she will be directing the world premiere of James DeVita’s THE AMAZING LEMONADE GIRL up next in the Todd Wehr Theater.
ADULT CAST
Austin Nelson, Jr. (Paper); Rick Pendzich, Member of Actors’ Equity Association, (Rock); Karen Estrada, Member of Actors’ Equity Association, (Scissors); Sydney Kirkegaard (Clothespin/Roll of Tape in Plastic Dispenser/Printer); Jonathon Gideon (Understudy for Austin Nelson, Jr. and Rick Pendzich) and Leah Gawel (Understudy for Karen Estrada and Sydney Kirkegaard).
YOUNG PERFORMER CASTS
Young Performer roles are double cast. Young Performers in the Trail Mix Cast include: Max Larson (Milwaukee) as Announcer; Aiden Toth (Milwaukee) as Trail Mix/Printer/Ensemble; Daisha Lafford (Milwaukee) as Peach/Printer/Ensemble; Rebekah Michel (Waterford) as Chicken Nugget/Printer/Ensemble; Costello Mylott (Milwaukee) as Trail Mix/Printer/Ensemble; Sailor Ames (Brookfield) as Trail Mix/Printer/Chicken Nugget/Ensemble; Greta Carlson (Fox Point) as Trail Mix/Printer/Ensemble; Vivian Madson (West Allis) as Chicken Nugget/ Printer/Ensemble and Evie Patrick (Whitefish Bay) as Chicken Nugget/ Printer/Ensemble.
Young Performers in the Chicken Nugget Cast include: Eloise Field (Oconomowoc) as Announcer; Abram Nelson (Whitefish Bay) Trail Mix/Printer/Ensemble; Naima Gaines (Milwaukee) as Peach/Printer/Ensemble; Josephine Van Slyke (Milwaukee) as Chicken Nugget/Printer/Ensemble; Kyra Mathias (Oconomowoc) as Trail Mix/Printer/Ensemble; Annie Sturtz (Waukesha) as Trail Mix/Printer/Chicken Nugget/Ensemble; Ryan Bennett (Mequon) as Trail Mix/Printer/Ensemble; Lucy Irwin (Elm Grove) as Chicken Nugget/Printer/Ensemble and Eloise Bejma (Shorewood) as Chicken Nugget/Printer/Ensemble.
The Artistic Staff for THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS includes: Kelly Doherty (Director);Molly Rhode (Choreographer); Jeff Schaetzke (Music Director); Arnold Bueso (Scenic Designer); Jason Fassl, USAA, (Lighting Designer); Matt Whitmore (Sound Designer);Brandon Kirkham (Costume and Puppet Designer); Melissa L. Wanke, Member of Actors’ Equity Association, (Production Stage Manager) and Emily Marie Wilke (Assistant Stage Manager).
Tickets start at $25 – Tickets may be purchased at firststage.org or through the Marcus Center Box Office, in person at 929 N. Water Street in downtown Milwaukee or by phone<PHONE_NUMBER> or toll free at<PHONE_NUMBER>. The number for TDD (for deaf and hard of hearing patrons) is<PHONE_NUMBER>.
COVID Protocols: First Stage COVID safety protocols and updates can be viewed here:
firststage.org/covid-19-safety-protocols/ – performances
Visual Assets: Production Photos and b-roll from First Stage’s 2020 production of THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS can be found here:
drive.google.com/drive/folders/1fuW9BgWC5f3Uc8QCRSXrY-OPNoNm9FPd
Digital Playbill: To view the digital playbill please visit: firststage.org/about-us/media-center/playbills/. The digital playbill includes artistic/actor/designer bios and will be posted a few days before the production opens.
Special events for THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS
Pay What You Choose Performance: Friday, March 11, 2022 at 7:00 p.m.
Pay What You Choose tickets are available on a first come, first served basis with a minimum suggested donation of $5 per person. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. on the day of the performance. Patrons are encouraged to arrive early. To learn more visit: firststage.org/events-tickets/tickets-offers/pay-what-you-choose/
Sensory Friendly Performance: Saturday, March 12, 2022 at 4 p.m.
A Sensory Friendly Performance with accommodations for families with children on the autism spectrum will take place on Saturday, March 12 at 4 p.m. Sensory accommodations include lower sound, house lights up, a quiet area staffed by an educator experienced with the care of students on the autism spectrum and other developmental differences, and more. Tickets for Sensory Friendly Performances are $10. Order by phone at<PHONE_NUMBER>, weekdays 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. to reserve tickets. To learn more visit: firststage.org/plan-your-visit/sensory-friendly-performances/.
ASL Interpreted Performance: Sunday, April 3, 2022 at 4:00 p.m.
This performance will be sign language interpreted for patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing. Assistive listening devices are also available at the Todd Wehr Theater. To learn more visit: firststage.org/plan-your-visit/accessibility/sign-language-interpreted-performances/
FACT SHEET
About: THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS
By Drew Daywalt
Illustrated by Adam Rex
Book and Lyrics by John Maclay, Music and Lyrics by Eric Nordin
Directed by Kelly Doherty
Choreography by Molly Rhode
A world premiere co-commission with Oregon Children’s Theatre
Location: Marcus Center’s Todd Wehr Theater, 929 N. Water Street, Milwaukee
Live Performances: March 5 – April 3, 2022
Description: These three fierce warriors return to the stage for a rematch after their brief battle was cut short in March 2020. From the Kingdom of Backyard came Rock, from the Empire of Mom’s Home Office came Paper, and from a messy village in the Junk Drawer Realm came Scissors. They were the strongest, smartest and fastest in all the land. Though they searched far and wide for worthy opponents, no one could beat them . . . until they met each other and a musical battle royale began to see who would come out on top! Performance run time is approximately 60 minutes, with no intermission. Suggested for families with young people ages 4+.
Performances:
For more information, please visit firststage.org or call<PHONE_NUMBER>.
About First Stage
First Stage is one of the nation’s leading theaters for young people and families. First Stage touches hearts, engages minds and transforms lives by creating extraordinary theater experiences through professional theater productions that inspire, enlighten and entertain. Its Theater Academy, the nation’s largest high-impact theater training program for young people, fosters life skills through stage skills and serves nearly 2,000 students each year. As Wisconsin’s leader in arts-integrated education in schools, First Stage’s dynamic Theater in Education programs promote literacy, character building and experiential learning throughout the curriculum, serving over 20,000 students each year. First Stage was selected to participate in the Partners in Education program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (2012) and was the recipient of the Milwaukee Business Journal’s Eureka Award, recognizing creativity and innovation in business, education and the arts for its Next Steps program for students on the autism spectrum (2013, 2015). First Stage is a member of TYA/USA, the American Alliance for Theatre and Education, the Wisconsin Alliance for Arts Education, Milwaukee Arts Partners and is a cornerstone member of the United Performing Arts Fund (UPAF). firststage.org


Brazil: Lula’s Risk of Losing it All · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Ricardo Carreón, based in Sao Paulo, takes a look at “How Lula lost his chance to win on the first round and is now in risk of losing a second term.”


Arab World: RIP Steve Jobs · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

The Arab world is mourning the death of Steve Jobs, Apple's visionary leader. Tributes are pouring in via social media as netizens wake up to the news.
From Saudi Arabia, Aziz Shalan tweets [ar]:
RIP Steve Jobs. Image by Flickr user noppyfoto1 (CC BY 2.0).
Egyptian Ahmed Naguib notes:
@ahmednaguib: The Internet today is all about Steve Jobs. That's how influential he was. #SteveJobs
And Shaden Fawaz, also from Egypt, adds:
@shadenfawaz: “Steve Jobs was born out of wedlock, put up for adoption at birth, dropped out of college, then changed the world. What's your excuse?”
From the UAE, Saleh Al Braik writes:
@FearlessinDubai: #ThankYouSteve for giving my generation the motivation to never give up on our dreams. #RIPSteveJobs
But if religion was not imposed into this, it wouldn't be the Middle East.
Egyptian Bassem Sabry informs us [ar]:
Dalia exclaims:
@Daloosh: Dear #Salafi: if you're going to tweet a fatwa against mourning Steve Jobs then for the love of God don't do it from an Iphone. #RIDICULOUS
For Jordanian blogger Roba Al Assi, the loss is more personal. She blogs:
A while ago, a friend asked me if I would ever cry over a celebrity death. I said, “Of course I would not”.
But this morning, I woke up to the terrible news of Steve Job’s passing.
And I cried.
Steve wasn’t a celebrity. He was a man who changed the world.
I didn’t just cry over the loss of a brilliant man. I also cried over death. Death by cancer. Death by liver cancer. And he was only 56. I don’t think I ever mentioned it here, but we lost our father three years ago to liver cancer as well. It was sudden. He was only 53. Another brilliant, kind man, lost forever.
RIP Steve Jobs.


Kazakhstan: Where Central Asia’s Bread Comes From · Global Voices
Alexander Sodiqov

On Vox Populi, photographer Kanat Beysekeev presents an annotated photo report [ru] on wheat sowing and the everyday life of farmers in northern Kazakhstan. Much of the wheat flour consumed in Central Asia comes from this area.


Egypt: Looking Inside Mr Egypt  · Global Voices
Marwa Rakha

Twenty-six-year-old Tarek Mohammed Nagiub Abdel Gawad has been named Mr Egypt 2010. He was also Egypt's candidate in the Mister World 2010 male pageant, which was held at Incheon, Korea, recently.
According to  Universal Queen:
Tarek’s ambition is to have a career in fashion. His hobbies include football, volleyball and painting. “Don’t cry over spilt milk is his personal motto”.
Zeinobia  says the young man looks “dumb” and does not represent Egypt:
I will not say anything except that this young man looks dumb, really dumb. Of course I can't expect high I.Q from a person who accepts to participate in this pageants.
This video is circulating in the Egyptian Facebook universe, where many people have commented in the usual Egyptian homophobic way.
By the way who is this guy ?? and why we did not hear anything about Mr. Egypt 2010 in the media in general !!?? I know after the controversy of Miss Egypt in 2007 Mr.El-Sibhay has disappeared and so I am just wondering on how he organizes the Mr. Egypt event and attracts contestants like the champ above !!??
On Egypt Search Forum, another video was posted of Tarek singing Get Down.
Comments on the forum ranged from:
Mr Egypt – hmmm – not bad at all.
I hope the best is inside him though!
to
Is that Mr./ Egypt 2010 …shame on us Egyptian men it seems Wasta [favoritism] is everywhere even in that false competition.


The Night the Lights Went Out in Jamaica: Politician Freed of Corruption Charges  · Global Voices
Matthew Hunte

The fraud and money laundering charges against former Jamaican Energy Minister Kern Spencer (and his then-assistant, Colleen Wright) have been dropped after Senior Resident Magistrate Judith Pusey upheld a no-case submission filed by their attorneys. The case was the result of what has become known as the Cuban Light Bulb scandal, in which the distribution of energy saving light-bulbs, donated by the Cuban government, ended up costing Jamaica JA$276 million (about US$2.5 million).
A video which was widely circulated in 2007, showed Kern Spencer breaking down in Parliament while the Jamaica Labour Party government, which was in office at the time, pressed him for answers relating to the light-bulb distribution program:
Journalist Emily Crooks tweeted the developments as they happened:
Breaking news – RM upholds a no case submission made by Defence attorneys – #KERNSPENCERFREED
— Emily Crooks (@emilynationwide) March 24, 2014
Money laundering and conspiracy charges end against Kern Spencer. RM Judith Pusey rules he has NO case to answer
— Emily Crooks (@emilynationwide) March 24, 2014
Kern Spencer – Charged in Feb 2008; Spent 2 nights in custody; on trial for 6yrs; freed – March 24, 2014
— Emily Crooks (@emilynationwide) March 24, 2014
The magistrate's decision drew much attention not only because the charges involved a politician, but because the case furthered an ongoing discussion about the Jamaican justice system. Many commenters compared the outcome of this case to the recent Vybz Kartel verdict. A blogger at Yardflex wondered if there was a double standard:
Spencer, the former junior energy minister [and] north east St Elizabeth Member of Parliament, who cried in Parliament when the allegations were first made public, was a picture of relief after the ruling.
Defence attorneys K.D. Knight and Deborah Martin argued, in their submissions, that Spencer and Wright were denied a fair trial because of prosecutorial misconduct and the lengthy delays in the case and that the evidence did not support the charges.Same situation with Kartel. Why was he found guilty?
Dee Nadz Tine said that people should not jump to conclusions about the Jamaican justice system on the basis of a single case:
Two weeks ago in the Kartel Murder Trial the justice system was being lauded, now in the Kern Spencer trial, the same people are bemoaning and crying shame of the same system…never let one situation and its outcome bring us to a conclusion; neither should we allow hatred, anger, dislike, love, fondness, political allegiance to be the premise on which we pass judgment#ourjusticesystemisbroken #admitit #itcouldfailyoudirectly
Twitter users couldn't help but compare the two cases, however:
Ask not for whom justice was served @iamthekartel, Alas it wasn't for thee #KERNSPENCERFREED
— anniepaul (@anniepaul) March 25, 2014
Kern spencer walk free an d boss a go jail on d basis dat he is just too influential..no justice system
— Lanz Authentic (@lancebrown19) March 25, 2014
If kern spencer can walk free …so shud kartel ..
— IG:thsgurl_lisa (@spencer_lisa87) March 25, 2014
"All animals are equal but some are more equal than others." #KERNSPENCERFREED
— Rae Smith (@isme876) March 25, 2014
This Twitter user did not understand how the case could end this way after a six-year investigation…
So it took 6 years for them to realize that there was no case submission against Kern Spencer? :/
— JANNEILLE N. MORGAN (@Jade1Allure) March 25, 2014
…while this one felt that Spencer should have had an opportunity to clear his name in court:
Kern Spencer was done a MAJOR INJUSTICE having heard he has NO CASE TO ANSWER after 6 YEARS as an ACCUSED @emilynationwide @nemsfrancis
— Alric Williams (@alricwill) March 25, 2014
Others suggested that the whole process was a waste of time:
This Kern Spencer court ruling tho, we've been better 4 tax payers if they didn't wait 5 yes to tell us what we already knew smh


The Day More Than 800 Egyptian Protesters Died: One Year on, Remembering the Horrific Raba’a Massacre · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

A young Egyptian flees from the horror of the Rabaa Massacre. By Mosa'ab Elshamy. From his Flickr Account. Taken on August 14, 2013. Used with Permission.
One year ago today, the world watched in horror as one the single bloodiest days in modern protest history took place in Cairo, Egypt.
On August 14, 2013 Egyptian security forces opened fire at a sit-in protest in Rabaa Al Adawiya Square, killing more than 800 people opposed to the ousting of Egypt's first democratically-elected president Mohamed Morsi.
A few weeks earlier the reign of Morsi, a senior Muslim Brotherhood member, was cut short after only one year in power. Morsi's ouster was announced on July 3 2013 by the head of the Egyptian Armed Forces Abdel Fattah El Sisi, who later became the president of Egypt.
Al Jazeera Plus shared this 23-second video, featuring photographs taken by Award-winning Egyptian photojournalist Mosaab Elshamy touching on the scale of the catastrophe.
Elshamy shares an extensive gallery of photographs from the Rabaa massacre and its aftermath on Flickr. [Warning: Some pictures, particularly of corpses in the morgue, are graphic]. His gallery of 184 photographs have had almost 363K views to-date.
Raba'a's victims. By Mosa'ab Elshamy. From his Flickr Account. Taken on August 14, 2013. Used with Permission.
In a series of tweets on August 14 last year, he describes how he dodged bullets:
Literally felt a bullet pass over my shoulder. Heard a buzz similar to that of a gigantic mosquito traveling at the speed of light. Eerie.
— Mosa'ab Elshamy (@mosaaberizing) August 14, 2013
Today he writes:
A year later the magnitude of killing in Rabaa is more realised and the mourning & condemnation seems louder. Not in vain.
— Mosa'ab Elshamy (@mosaaberizing) August 14, 2014
And like many, ElShamy wonders if justice will ever be served. He notes:
A year later a monument honouring police and military stands in the same place where hundreds of civilians were massacred.
— Mosa'ab Elshamy (@mosaaberizing) August 14, 2014
Remembering the Raba'a massacre
While many Egyptians were happy with the overthrow of Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood junta, others were upset that Egypt's first democratically elected president had to go following a “coup.” What followed next, particularly the Raba'a massacre, changed the euphoria many had earlier expressed.
Basil Dabh sums up the sentiments many feel in less than 140 characters:
I hope we never see another day as dark as August 14, 2013. Over a thousand killed, dozens of churches burned, people cheering loss of life.
— Basil الضبع (@basildabh) August 14, 2014
Egyptian Hatem wonders:
حد يفهمني كده : ازاي الاف الأسر و الاهالي هيعيشوا و يتعاملوا مع دولة جيشها و امنها قتل اولادها و افراد من عائلاتها ؟؟؟
— Hatem (@QALAWA) August 14, 2014
Can someone explain to me how thousands of families and relatives can live with and interact with a country whose army and security forces have killed their children and members of their families??
Mayhem at Rabaa. By Mosa'ab Elshamy. From his Flickr Account. Taken on August 14, 2013. Used with Permission.
HRW report on Raba'a
According to Human Rights Watch, the massacre was “all according to plan.” A 188-page report released to mark the anniversary “documents the way the Egyptian police and army methodically opened fire with live ammunition on crowds of demonstrators opposed to the military’s July 3 ouster of Mohamed Morsy, Egypt’s first elected civilian president, at six demonstrations between July 5 and August 17, 2013. While there is also evidence that some protesters used firearms during several of these demonstrations, Human Rights Watch was able to confirm their use in only a few instances, which do not justify the grossly disproportionate and premeditated lethal attacks on overwhelmingly peaceful protesters.”
The report, which took one year to investigate, describes the killing of at least 1,150 demonstrators by Egyptian security forces in July and August last year as “systematic and widespread” saying that the killings “probably amount to crimes against humanity.”
HRW adds:
In the August 14 dispersal of the Rab’a al-Adawiya sit-in alone, security forces, following a plan that envisioned several thousand deaths, killed a minimum of 817 people and more likely at least 1,000.
“In Rab'a Square, Egyptian security forces carried out one of the world’s largest killings of demonstrators in a single day in recent history,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “This wasn’t merely a case of excessive force or poor training. It was a violent crackdown planned at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. Many of the same officials are still in power in Egypt, and have a lot to answer for.”
By Mosa'ab Elshamy. From his Flickr Account. Taken on August 14, 2013. Used with Permission.
A year later, HRW says “the authorities have failed to hold even a single low-level police or army officer accountable for any of the killings, much less any official responsible for ordering them, and continue to brutally suppress dissent.”
The report adds:
While there is also evidence that some protesters used firearms during several of these demonstrations, Human Rights Watch was able to confirm their use in only a few instances, which do not justify the grossly disproportionate and premeditated lethal attacks on overwhelmingly peaceful protesters.
In an open-ed in Foreign Policy, Roth explains:
Early in the morning of Aug. 14, 2013, security forces launched their operation: Within minutes, security forces — advancing on crowds of protesters with bulldozers, armed personnel carriers, and hundreds of ground forces — were already firing live ammunition, sometimes in intense fusillades.
Protesters immediately began falling. The promised safe exits never materialized until the final minutes of the dispersal, causing protesters to cower in an ever-shrinking area as snipers picked off people from rooftops and ground-level police fired indiscriminately into the crowd. Snipers even targeted the entrance to Rabaa Hospital, which became known as “Sniper's Alley.”
Omar Shakir, a HRW fellow, “still can't process the savagery” of the Rabaa attack, after spending a year investigating it. He tweets:
I spent a yr investigating #Rabaa, but still can't process the savagery. @hrw produced a video to give you a flavor https://t.co/5zWXqwPEeW
— Omar Shakir (@OmarSShakir) August 14, 2014
One year on
In Egypt, today witnessed clashes between protestors and the police, leaving about half a dozen people dead.
Egyptian blogger Zeinobia, who maintains a live blog here, reports that six people, including a policeman, were killed today.
The 6 victims are 5 protesters and one policeman. Four protesters were killed in Giza while the fifth was killed in Southern Cairo. The policeman was killed in Helwan which witnessed huge action.
Zeinobia describes the violent dispersal of Rabaa as “the day that changed Egypt forever unfortunately.”
She added:
The Pro-Morsi supporters started their day of commemoration earlier since dawn blocking traffic and major highways in Cairo and Giza. It is going to be a long day
Fatima Said reports on protests in Matriya, and how they were attacked by police.
Rabaa commemoration protest in Matriya being attacked now by police using birdshot+tear gas. Injuries reported #Egypt pic.twitter.com/9CpHsaqQLq
— Fatima Said (@fattysaid) August 14, 2014
While Alshimaa M. shares a photograph of protests in Giza:
Marches in Haram #Giza today on the anniversary of the massacre in #Rabaa مظاهرات ذكرى المجزرة في الهرم #مصر #رابعة pic.twitter.com/lJZZihmXNQ
— Alshimaa M. (@Agenda_kid) August 14, 2014
And netizens are also reporting solidarity protests around the world. From Washington DC, real-time news DJ Andy Carvin tells his 103K followers on Twitter:
Must be a #rabaa protest in DC today; my train is full of Egyptian American kids in yellow tshirts with the four-finger salute. #Aug14 — Andy Carvin (@acarvin) August 14, 2014
And befroggled reports on support coming from Idlib, Syria, with a sign which reads: “Our pain is one.”
From the city of Idlib in #Syria, in memory of those massacred in Rabaa. Our pain is one. #RememberRabaa pic.twitter.com/brUjpKC7HF
— B (@befroggled) August 14, 2014
And in Istanbul, protesters remembered those killed in Rabaa:
Hundreds of activists march in #istanbul to mark the anniversary of the #Rabaa Massacre. #WorldR4biaDay pic.twitter.com/cCVc8rtVBl
— Humanitarian Relief (@IHHen) August 14, 2014
In addition to those killed after Morsi's ousting and the period following the Rabaa massacre, many churches of Egyptian Copts came under attacks by extremists.
Blogger Mina Feyek reminds his 5,488 followers on Twitter:
On this day too, Egypt saw one of the largest set of sectarian attacks on Christian institutions by extremists, security forces were absent.
— Mina Fayek (@minafayek) August 14, 2014


Russia: Which way with the WTO? · Global Voices
Vilhelm Konnander

Amanda Lahan at Crisis Crunch discusses Russia's ambivalence on whether to become a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) or not.


China: Silence about Top Leader Reshuffle · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Josie Liu from China in Transition noticed that mainstream media in China has been silent about top leader reshuffle in the 17th Party Congress.


#NewPalmyra Crowdsources the Majestic History That ISIS Destroyed in Syria · Global Voices
Rami Alhames

Digital reconstruction of the Temple of Bel from the New Palmyra project.
Forces of embattled President Bashar al-Assad recaptured Palmyra from ISIS at the end of March, leading the country's head of antiquities to declare that the ancient Syrian city's “nightmare is over”. The brutal militant group took over the city in May 2015 and waged a campaign of destruction against its archaeological treasures. In August, its militants beheaded Khaled Asaad, the city's chief archaeologist for five decades.
In less than a year, many of Palmyra's majestic archaeological monuments were damaged or destroyed, including the Baalshamin Temple, The Temple of Bel, Arch of Triumph and The Tower of Elanbel. Its National Museum was plundered. ISIS say the historic artifacts are idols or don't conform to their distorted notion of Islam, and so should be demolished (or sold — the group doesn't appear to have any qualms about making money off of “blasphemous” heritage). A number of pre-Islamic archaeological sites in Iraq, including 3,000-year-old sculptures at a museum in Mosul, met the same fate.
Long before ISIS had seized the city and war had broken out in Syria, putting heritage sites at accelerated risk, one initiative was working to document Palmyra's archaeological wonders. The #NewPalmyra project, which began in some form in 2005, is the brainchild of Bassel Khartabil, a Palestinian-Syrian computer engineer, activist and Creative Commons leader. Khartabil aimed to reconstruct the city's history in a free online database of 3D models.
However, he was arrested by the Syrian government on March 15, 2012. After four years in detention, he was moved to an unknown location. Human Rights Watch and 30 other human rights organizations have demanded that Khartabil's whereabouts be disclosed, but so far he remains missing.
In October, a group of activists revived Khartabil's effort, naming it #NewPalmyra. They crowdsource photos and rely on volunteers to help construct 3D models of Palmyra's historic gems.
Have Palmyra Photos? Any before Destruction? Help Rebuild at https://t.co/RIcmbRZ9kq & Share via our new Upload Box. pic.twitter.com/311tCg2UpR
— New Palmyra (@NewPalmyraOrg) March 10, 2016
Below is a model of the Temple of Bel from the project. According to the site, the model is only 20% complete:
#NewPalmyra isn't the only preservation effort for Syria. The Million Images Database, through he Institute of Digital Archaeology, is plying volunteers with low-cost 3D camera to document monuments. The project is planning to display a replicated Temple of Bel entry arch, which dated back to 32 AD, in London's Trafalgar Square on April 19, 2016.
Documenting history is one thing, but recreating a destroyed site is another. A recent post on the academic-minded news site The Conversation explores the ethics of doing so.


India partially lifts communications blackout in Kashmir, internet still down · Global Voices
Rezwan

An Indian policeman stands near an alley in the uptown of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian administered Kashmir. September 11, 2016. Image via Instagram by Ieshan Wani. Used with permission.
Indian authorities have partially lifted access to communication networks in Kashmir. Access to the internet, however, remains cut off.
On August 5, Srinagar, the main city in Jammu and Kashmir, went under complete lockdown as the government of India revoked Article 370 of the Indian constitution that provided special autonomy status since 1950 to the disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir. Access to mobile, landline and internet networks were suspended and roadblocks were put on the streets and restrictions on almost all movement were enforced.
The authorities eased up the restrictions in phases. They first restored all 50,000 landlines in the region by the first week of September. On October 14, after 72 days from the lockdown, the authorities restored SMS and call services for postpaid mobile subscriptions. However, prepaid mobile connections and internet services are still suspended. According to the Telegraph India, there are about 400,000 post-paid phones connections and 260,000 prepaid connections in the region. The government did not provide an explanation as to why it restored access to call and SMS services for only postpaid subscriptions. However, this decision could be explained by the fact that users of prepaid subscriptions are harder to track and monitor since unlike users of postpaid subscriptions, they are not required to submit personal data that make it easier for the authorities to identify them such as bank details and mailing address.
Satya Pal Malik, the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir has claimed that “the situation is normal as there had been no violence since two months”. The minister defended the blackout as a measure to protect the “safety of Kashmiris” and said that access to the internet “will soon be restored”, without specifying when.
Despite the easing of restrictions, the authorities soon resorted to disrupting access to SMS services for postpaid subscriptions.
During the night of October 15, text messaging services were disrupted in Jammu and Kashmir when a truck driver was killed by suspected armed rebels who then set the truck ablaze. The services were restrored after a few hours.
Brahma Chellaney, a professor of strategic studies at the Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research commented that the restrictions on mobile communications were placed to limit the activities of militants, who usually coordinate attacks over phones. However, Kashmiris are paying the price as the tourism business which depends on the internet had literally stopped. The restrictions also hamper Kashmiris’ rights to express themselves and access to information online, and prevent them from connecting and sharing with the rest of the world what is happening on the ground.
According to Internetshutdowns.in, 55 shutdowns were imposed in jammu and Kashmir in 2019. The longest shutdown was observed in Jammu and Kashmir was in 2016 when mobile internet services were suspended for 133 days.
Indian Supreme Court lawyer Nitya Ramakrishnan, and Nandini Sundar, a professor of sociology at the Delhi School of Economic visited Kashmir from October 5 to 9, 2019. They mentioned in a report after their visit that Kashmiris are resisting the actions imposed by the Indian Central Government “through satyagraha or non-violent civil disobedience”. They also added that since the entire leadership is in confinement – from mainstream political parties to separatist leaders – the disobedience is entirely voluntary. They both claimed that “almost every single person wanted azadi or freedom”.
The Indian government claims that restrictions on freedom of movement have been lifted in most of Kashmir, barring a few areas and that restrictions on tourists visiting the region have been lifted. The spokesperson for state government Rohit Kansal also stated that internet facilities will be opened at “touristic spots”.
In an interview with India Today, the Indian Home Minister Amit Shah said that the situation is “peaceful” and “returning to normal” in Jammu and Kashmir.
However, On Octber 15, 2019, authorities arrested 13 women for holding an anti-India protest in a park in Srinagar, the capital of Jammu and Kashmir. They were carrying placards reading “Respect Fundamental Rights” and “Why downgrade Jammu and Kashmir”.
A group of prominent women in Srinigar, including @hawa_khan1, who peacefully protested India’s decision to revoke the autonomy of Kashmir & the brutality there have been arrested.
India is setting an example. They want to stifle all dissent in Kashmir.
Via @Junaidbhatphoto pic.twitter.com/2vdaDslmSR
— Arjun Sethi (@arjunsethi81) October 15, 2019
My 80 year old aunt, Ruqayya Sayeed was arrested today and lodged in Central Jail Srinagar with scores of women activists for protesting peacefully against communication blockade in #Kashmir #Article370 pic.twitter.com/gUsoMji0ze
— Bismah Malik (@bismahmalik) October 15, 2019
These women were jailed in “normal Kashmir” The Modi govt has no end game in Kashmir pic.twitter.com/fY4nSH20sG
— Swati Chaturvedi (@bainjal) October 16, 2019
On October 3, journalists from the Kashmir Valley staged a silent demonstration in Srinagar to protest the ongoing communication blockade.
Today, we journalists in #Kashmir had to protest against the communication blockade, which has crossed two months now. It hasn't been an easy task to be a journalist working in Kashmir in these times – without phones, internet or any communication. pic.twitter.com/9LKK2xRDnM
— Fahad Shah فهد شاه (@pzfahad) October 3, 2019
Meanwhile a few sporadic protests against the clampdown were held across India:
Students at the #AligarhMuslimUniversity organized a silent protest against the clampdown in #Kashmir. pic.twitter.com/T1MNXDAnuD
— Ubair Ul Hameed (@UbairUlHameed) October 15, 2019
A recent report by the BBC quoting industry experts, suggests that the lockdown in Indian-administered Kashmir has cost the economy more than $1bn losses in the past 2 months. Until the lockdown, the tourism industry was one of the main sources of Kashmir's income supporting 700,000 people. The industry was suspended during this period. Three thousand hotels in the valley lie empty, incurring daily expenses and payments of unpaid staffs. Some 400,000 migrant labours have left since the start of the lockdown creating labour shortage. Five thousand travel agents will still find it difficult to arrange tours even though the ban on tourism has recently been lifted as there is still no internet. Most of the activities in the handicraft industry and the fruit industry are suspended due to the restrictions.
From handicrafts to tourism, to fruit and other wholesale and small businesses, the lockdown in #Kashmir has cost the region's economy more than $1bn in two months.
Not to mention, the trauma, dejection, and depression that the locals are facing. https://t.co/AaGEte2pvc
— StandWithKashmir (@standwkashmir) October 13, 2019
Check out Global Voices’ special coverage of the situation in Kashmir.


Bahrain: Unblock Political Websites · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

Bahraini blogger Zainab Abdel Amir requests the government to unblock the political websites that are currently banned in the country [Ar].


Argentina: Whither the Famed Argentine Ego? · Global Voices
David Sasaki

GoodAirs wonders if the famed “Argentine ego” has taken a hit in the last few years, citing a survey in which only 3.5% of respondents chose “the people” as their country's major attraction.


Failed Sudan Coup Attempt Contained, Situation Under Control – Official - Liberty TV/Radio - News - Voice For All! Vision For Alll!
Publisher (F.BA)
September 21, 2021
The country’s ruling council Spokesman Mohamed Suleiman told reporters on Tuesday that interrogation of suspects involved in the attempted coup on Monday was due to begin and the military would issue a statement shortly.
Also, a government source, who pleaded anonymity, said the coup attempt had involved an effort to take control of state radio in Omdurman, across the river Nile from the capital, Khartoum. It added that measures were being taken to contain a limited number of people involved.
A witness also said the military had used tanks to close a bridge connecting Khartoum with Omdurman early on Tuesday morning.
Sudan is being ruled under a fragile power-sharing deal between the military and civilians following the overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir in April 2019.
Transitional authorities have said they had foiled previous coup attempts linked to factions loyal to Bashir.


On the Block: Safety First | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Brendan O’Brien
June 22, 2016
This summer, Auilda Torres is caring for her 9-year-old daughter and her 3-year-old grandson, whose father died last year. Although she knows that the children need to be active outside, she is concerned with crime in the city.


Fiji: Minimum wage increase postponed  · Global Voices
John Liebhardt

At the beginning of February, Fiji’s workers and trade unions were preparing to receive a roughly 20 percent increase in the country’s minimum wage.
However, Fiji’s business leaders — especially the garment industry, whose workers receive a lower minimum wage than employees in other sectors — warned the increase would force layoffs and shutdowns. Other economic concerns arguments persisted. The global financial crisis has increased worries of recession in the Pacific Island nation, which recently experienced its worst floods in a century, destroying some vital infrastructure (and many crops). January’s flooding has lead many tourists and travel agencies to wrongly believe the tourism industry is unable to handle more guests, helping hamstring this economically important sector.
Business leaders won a reprieve when Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama postponed the wage increase until July 1.
It is unclear how many of Fiji’s workers earn minimum wage. The government sets wage minimums by sector, with most industries compelled to pay workers around $2.50 FJ per hour, or $1.33 US. In admittedly old data, roughly one-quarter of Fiji's households live in poverty and another 20 percent of families hover near the poverty line.
Bainimarama’s move coincided with a government decision forcing taxi drivers to decrease fares, but allowing bus companies to maintain their prices. News also broke that an audit would soon be complete investigating the legality of a $184,000 FJ payout to Bainimarama for untaken leave and other backpay from Fiji’s military, where some of the money owed dates back to 1978. Bainimarama, the head of Fiji’s military, dissolved Parliament and took power of the government in a December 2006 coup.
Like many economists, the blogosphere is largely divided over what effect a minimum wage increase would have on workers and industry. Interestingly, the pro-government blog IG Fiji condemned the country’s leaders for going back on its promise to workers and “fall[ing] prey to the sly and bastardly businessmen.”
We noted with grave disappointment the announcement by the PM that the minimum wage order would be shelved until July. We share the sentiments shared by many when the accusation that the govt. has given in to the elite of the society. For the PM to come out with a ridiculous statement that it is for the betterment of the country, the statement is in very bad taste, particularly if it was said in jest.
We cannot understand why such a decision was taken, particularly when the govt. is supposedly doing what it is doing for the good of the people. Added to this, the Fiji Times today revealed details about PM's leave payout which means that decisions made have been one-sided – for the people in govt. It is indeed a dark day when the people who chose to take the reigns of this country in their quest for truth and fairness do exactly what the previous govt's. were doing and continue to treat the backbone workers of this country like dirt. For a man who has just about everything, the least the PM could have done was allow the minimum pay order to go through. By deferring it, he has not only made a fool of himself as that was his initiative, but also of the govt. which has been, ironically, preaching from the pulpit about fairness, transparency and benefits for the poor. Where has that vision gone to? Has the PM finally succumbed to the temptations of the dollar and decided to let the country go to the dogs? Perhaps we are truly not far from the days when Fiji will become another Zimbabwe.
On the other hand, the anti-regime bloggers at Raw Fiji News argue that with local businesses already laying off workers, an impoverished government with no support forthcoming from donor countries because of the postponement of elections, it is best to hold off for the next few months on forcing industries to pay workers higher minimum salaries.
People must understand that the private sector is also made up of affectionate people who fully understand the contribution made by their staff and it is wrong to try and create a wedge between the employers and employees. They need each other and let them sort things out the best way they know how.
We must give it to the businessmen/women in the private sector who are shouldering all the business risks that comes with being in business because without them, Fiji is stuffed. They too must be rewarded handsomely for their blood, sweat and tears in setting up businesses that majority can never do in their lifetime. But it is the government’s job to create a conducive environment that will allow these entrepreneurs to go wild with their job creation plans.
real jack, writing in the Fiji Exiles Board, contends the government's deferment didn't go far enough.
personally i think that wage increase should wait for at least 12 to 15 months – thats a sensible time frame – after that period there should be a reassessment of the situation – if the world wide economic situation starts improving that would be a good precursor to improved demand on local garments and derivation of sales generating revenue to sustain those increased wage costs.
as it is these workers are taking home packets below the tax threshold – and there is basically a “honey pot” set up emerging around these factories – wherever they set up they are creating employment for the local neighborhood – workers are generally living within 1 kilometer of these factories – out at Nadawa, in the Kalabu Tax Free zone – out at Laucala Beach Estate etc etc etc – and they have schools, supermarkets and basic amentities (health centres) within 1 kilometer radius of their abodes. so its really a sustainable proposition – those wages may look meagre but within the context of the set up that many of these factories have done (some even have set-up kindergardens and play centres for pre school age kids of workers who have no one to look after the kids during working hours) – and the factory workers walk to their factories.
defering the wage increase is not going to put any families into a worse position – it is sustainable.
Media observer Crosbie Walsh, who runs Fiji: The Way It Was, Is and Can Be, notices that business leaders have not been completely forthcoming on their earnings, and delaying the minimum wage increase casts doubts on the regime’s commitment social justice and Bainimarama's leadership style.
Whatever the economic realities, Bainimarama's wage decision raises many questions about his credibility on other matters: What happened to his championship of social justice and help for the poor? Why has he succumbed so easily to business interests? Will it be the “right time” in July? This was an Order on minimum wages, not all wages. How do decisions like this differ from those of the Qarase Government? [The government Bainimarama ousted in 2006] Why has he ignored his own advisers and made clowns of his ministers? How many supporters will leave his cause? Can he be trusted? Is this another example of a broken “promise”? Is he really a dictator? [My advice to the Interim PM? You need to reverse gear quickly and make a sharp U-turn to avoid running over many ordinary citizens.]


Banditry: NAF To Deploy Air Assets To Niger - Liberty TV/Radio - News - Voice For All! Vision For Alll!
Editor 2
September 16, 2019
The Nigerian Air Forcesays it will work closely with other security agencies to tackle the securitysituation in Niger State.
The Chief of the AirStaff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, gave the assurance on Monday when GovernorAbubakar Bello of Niger visited him in Abuja.
Earlier, Bello told theair chief that the northern part of Niger has been faced with securitychallenges recently.
Bello said his visitwas to solicit further support of the NAF to address the menace of the banditsin Niger.
He said based on hisinteraction with the joint security agencies, they are of the opinion that theeasiest and safest mode of operation to address these challenges would bethrough air raid.
Bello disclosed that atthe moment a lot of communities have been displaced by bandits.
He disclosed that he had earlier visitedthe inspector general of police on the same matter.


Post from Community: Milwaukee County launching long awaited text-to-911 service | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Milwaukee County
December 8, 2021
Leer en español: Publicación de la comunidad: el condado de Milwaukee lanza el esperado servicio de texto al 911
Milwaukee County is joining a growing number of areas across the country in launching a Text-to-911 service that allows County residents to text 911 for help in case of an emergency. The new service allows Milwaukee County residents near County cell phone towers to text 911 emergency service if they are unable to make a voice call.
“This is a fantastic day for Milwaukee County as we launch an important emergency service that we’ve wanted to bring to the community for quite some time. This service increases the equitability of our public safety resources by leveling the field of accessibility for deaf, hard-of-hearing, and deaf-blind individuals to access 911 services at any time,” said County Executive David Crowley. “In addition, text-to-911 provides another tool to increase public safety for individuals in situations where they cannot call due to poor reception or in situations where it is too dangerous to make a call. When it comes to 911 emergency services, residents should call if they can and text if they can’t.”
To text 911, residents should enter the numbers “911” into the “To” field and compose a short, simply worded text message in the text message field, just like a normal text message, using no abbreviations or jargon. The first brief message should describe the location of emergency and the type of help needed. After sending the first message, users should be prepared to answer questions and follow instructions from the 911 call taker. Dispatches do not have the ability to get picture or video through the text message service at this time, however the department anticipates next generation 911 technology arriving soon will enable 911 call centers to receive photos and video in the future
“Calling 911 remains the quickest and most efficient method to share information about an emergency, but the texting technology allows another option for individuals to contact emergency services in the event they cannot call,” said Office of Emergency Management Director Cassandra Libal. “Our number one goal is keeping residents healthy and safe, so we’re excited to provide another tool to meet the needs of County residents.”
The text-to-911 program is a technology-based service that uses cell tower information to determine where a text is being sent from. This means when using text-to-911 cell phones will connect to the closest cell tower and the cell tower location is sent to 911. Because the Text-To-911 program is a county service, messages to 911 sent through a non-county cell phone tower will bounce back and not be submitted to 911 emergency services.
Learn more about Milwaukee County Text-To-911 program online.


Sri Lanka: LTTE Tactics · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Lankawatch on LTTE tactics given the heavy defeats in hands of the Sri Lankan military. “In a sickening revelation witnesses have said that the LTTE repeatedly filled up buildings used as training camps with school children ahead of an imminent air attack.”


Australia: Malawi · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

African Refugee based in Australia has an interview with a young Malawian girl


Haiti: Drive-By Shooting Reported  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

@KarlJeanJeune shares some distressing news on Twitter: “5 Armed men in a white Toyota Landcruiser opened fire in the Petionville Area in Rue Faubert. No known victims. #Haiti”