Inhaling camphor, lavang, ajwain and eucalyptus oil DOES NOT increase blood oxygen level - Alt News
Ronak Borana
18th April 2021 / 1:33 pm / Last updated: 18th April 2021
A viral message widely shared across WhatsApp and Twitter suggests that inhaling the vapour of camphor, lawang, ajwain and eucalyptus oil can increase blood oxygen level and even relieve respiratory distress. Alt News Science found that there is no scientific basis to support this claim. Instead, sniffing the mixture can cause camphor poisoning, which in some cases is life-threatening.
Union Minister of Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi had shared the claim on Facebook amid rising COVID-19 cases.
सेहत की पोटली 👍💐
Posted by Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi मुख्तार अब्बास नकवी on Saturday, 17 April 2021
The claim has also been shared by social media users.
Viral text in English: “Camphor, lavang, ajwain, few drops eucalyptus oil. Make potli and keep smelling it throughout the day. This helps increase oxygen levels and congestion. This potli is given to tourists in Ladakh when oxygen levels are low. It’s a home remedy.
Viral text in Hindi: “कपूर, लौंग और अजवाइन का मिश्रण बनाकर इसमें कुछ बूंदे नीलगिरी के तेल की मिलाकर इस तरह की पोटली बना लें और अपने दिन भर के कामकाज के दौरान बीच बीच में सूँघते रहे…यह ऑक्सिजन लेवल बनाये रखने में मदद करता है..! इस तरह की पोटली लद्दाख में पर्यटकों को दी जाती है जब ऑक्सीजन लेवल कम हो..!”
1. Camphor (Karpur)
Camphor is a flammable white crystalline substance that has a strong aromatic odour. It is sometimes rubbed on the skin to reduce pain and itching.
It is also used in topical nasal decongestant gels like Vicks VapoRub in small quantities (4-5%) but the evidence on its efficacy is mixed. Some older studies have found that camphor and eucalyptus have no effect on nasal decongestion.
Nevertheless, blood oxygen saturation decreases in severe COVID-19 infections because of the lungs and lower respiratory tract damage and has little to do with nasal blockage. Similarly, another research suggests that reliving nasal obstruction doesn’t improve depressed oxygen saturation.
Inhalation or ingestion of uncalibrated doses of non-medicinal camphor can lead to severe toxicity within a few minutes of exposure, especially in children.
As per the American Association of Poison Control Center’s report, in the year 2018, there were around 9,500 cases of camphor poisoning in the USA, 10 of which were life-threatening and caused significant disability. FDA advises against doses of 11% or more C=camphor as it can cause toxicity and result in severe seizures.
The US’s Center for Disease Control (CDC) has extensive toxicity data that shows that camphor exposure causes significant impairment in animals.
As per CDC’s guidelines, inhalation of camphor vapours can lead to nose, throat and eye irritation. It can cause seizures, mental confusion, stomach ache and in higher concentration, it can also lead to death in some cases. There are several reported cases in India of poisoning caused by camphor vapour inhalation.
2. Clove (Lavang)
This claim is based on a single literature review from Italy that hypothesizes the possible anti-SARS-CoV-2 effects of cloves. However, the research cited within this review is based on the herpes simplex virus and is unrelated to SARS-CoV-2. The cited research is based on a compound eugenol which is found in cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and basil and is linked with toxicity. Although the pure extract of eugenol is not recommended in this viral text, clove vapour alone may be toxic but there is no research to suggest it can increase blood oxygen or relieve respiratory distress.
3. Carom seeds (Ajwain) and Eucalyptus oil
For both substances above, there is no research or evidence to suggest that they increase blood oxygen or relieve respiratory distress.
Other versions of the WhatsApp forward also attribute the message to ayurvedic practitioner Prajagraj Dabhi who supposedly treated COVID-19 patients with the formulation. Dabhi has rejected this claim.
Yet other versions also claim that ambulances are using this formulation on COVID-19 patients. But no such treatment guidelines are mentioned in Health Ministry’s protocol for COVID-19 ambulances.
There is no proof that camphor, clove or carom seeds increase blood oxygen or provide relief during respiratory distress. These may work as a ‘feel good’ therapy during mild respiratory infections or inflammatory sinusitis. Suggesting that they can increase the blood oxygen level in COVID patients can cause people to rely on the home remedy and not take medical help. Sniffing the mixture can also cause camphor poisoning, which may be life-threatening in some cases.
Ronak is a science communicator based in Mumbai
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Interrupted Youth and Shattered Hope in Vlasenica | Balkan Diskurs
Velma Saric
April 17th, 2015
The next collective funeral in Vlasenica will be held on 18 April this year for five murdered civilians. The youngest identified victim is Edis Hajdarević, who was seven at the time of his murder. Vlasenica is a small town located in Eastern Bosnia. According to the 1991 census, 55% of the population was Muslim and …
The next collective funeral in Vlasenica will be held on 18 April this year for five murdered civilians. The youngest identified victim is Edis Hajdarević, who was seven at the time of his murder. Vlasenica is a small town located in Eastern Bosnia. According to the 1991 census, 55% of the population was Muslim and 42% was Serb. Today, Vlasenica has a majority Serb population.
Although this will be the 12 collective funeral held in Vlasenica, Muhamed H. (born 1961) is among those who will not find peace this year as his remains have yet to be found. In 2010, the family H. buried the remains of his brother Mehmed, who was just 30 years old at the time of his death in 1993.
The brothers’ sister S.H. and 83-year-old mother A.H. currently live in Sarajevo. They have not returned to their hometown of Vlasenica in 20 years. In the small confines of their 35m apartment hang the yellowing portraits of their beloved ones, which now represent the only memories that remain of their former lives. They yearn to find the bones of their brothers and sons, and hold onto the hope that those responsible for their suffering and trauma are someday held accountable. It is with deep sadness that they remember what they, along with their fellow Vlasenicans, lived through.
S.H. worked in a municipal office until April of 1992. She remembers the day when one of her colleagues came to work and said that the municipality was going to be divided into Muslim and Serb districts. S.H. believed this was just a figment of her colleague’s imagination, however, on 8 April, they were prohibited from entering the municipal building and were told not to come to work anymore.
“That same night, armed soldiers in uniform knocked on our door. They proceeded to search our house and took two of my brothers away. My mother and I were told to stay in the home.”
S.H. is now 45 years old. During the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina she remembers being detained in numerous camps and private houses in Vlasenica where she was systematically raped and abused. Her youth was interrupted and her hope was forever shattered.
“Words cannot explain the events that took place in my hometown. People were abducted, murdered on their doorsteps, expelled from their communities, and detained in camps. Women and girls were taken from their homes, humiliated, and raped,” S.H. told Balkan Diskurs.
“My next-door neighbor came on April 9th and took me away to an empty Muslim house where he proceeded to rape and torture me. He was drunk, and I will never forget how he reeked of alcohol.”
“He raped me several times that night. I was held there for the next three months. Everyday he would arrive with 20 or 30 soldiers and they would sit and drink. I was forced to serve them. If one of them wanted to rape me, he did. They would take me upstairs and point their weapons at me,” she recalls.
“I will never find peace until those who committed these heinous crimes are held accountable.”
Raped by Drunken Soldiers and Neighbors
Responsible for the crimes committed in Vlasenica was former president of Republika Srpska, Radovan Karadžić, who is currently standing trial at the Hague Tribunal.
Former Chief of Staff of the Army of Republika Srpska, Ratko Mladić, is also being tried for the murders and torture that took place in this town.
The Hague Tribunal previously sentenced another former Serb commander, Dragan Nikolić, to 20 years in prison for crimes against humanity, including crimes of rape. According to the verdict, Bosniaks who remained in the area from May to September 1992 were forcefully expelled or arrested. Sometime during the end of May or the beginning of June 1992, as stated in Nikolić’s verdict, Serbian forces established the Sušica camp, which approximately 8,000 detainees passed through by October 1992.
Ruled as participants in the murder, illegal detention, forced relocation and disappearance of civilians from Vlasenica, Predrag Bastah and Goran Višković were sentenced to a combined total of 40 years in prison by the Court of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
According to the verdict, Bastah, a reserve police officer for the Vlasenica Police Department, and Višković, a member of the Army of Republika Srpska, were taking part in widespread and systematic attacks on Vlasenica that involved both the army and the police force of Republika Srpska. The victims of these attacks held civilian status. Višković was also convicted for raping two witnesses.
During the trial, a protected witness said she could tell that Goran Višković was drunk.
“He put his baton on the entrance of my reproductive organ. Then he raped me. When he was done, someone else came to rape me. I cursed my mother for ever giving birth to me, and I prayed to God to take my life. I begged them to kill me, just not to torture me,” said the protected witness at Goran Višković’s trial.
Forced Baptism
S.H. told Balkan Diskurs that there were many houses in Vlasenica where women and girls were held. She explains that many other girls in Vlasenica went through a living hell just as she did. Among the girls detained in one particular house were sisters Aida and Velida Karać. These sisters did not survive their ordeal and were finally laid to rest last year in the Rakita Memorial Cemetery.
The fates of Aida and Velida, who graduated from law school and veterinary school respectively, remained unknown to their father, mother and brother for many years. According to their brother Hamdija, his sisters were good girls who simply wanted to finish their studies and start their own families. “Their dreams, however, never materialized.”
Aida and Velida were taken from their home one night in April of 1992 while their parents were being detained at the Sušica camp. According to witness testimonies, which include that of S.H. who claims to have been the last person to see the sisters in Vlasenica alive, Serbian soldiers raped them multiple times and eventually demanded that they be baptized. When they refused, the sisters were taken to the nearby Serbian village of Pelemiši, where they were executed. It was 22 years later, in a mass grave in Pelemiši, when their bones were finally uncovered.
S.H. also claims that she was taken to a church near Vlasenica where she was forcibly baptized and given the new Christian name Slađana Milošević.
Dževad Bektašević, representative of the Association of Families of Vlasenica War Victims ’92-’95 told Balkan Diskurs that, “Thus far, only a small number of Vlasenicans have been identified and buried. We, the people of the Vlasenica municipality, are still looking for over 50% of our missing.”
According to data from Families of Vlasenica War Victims ’92-’95 regarding the crimes committed in Vlasenica, 2,600 people were killed, of which 265 were children. An unknown number of Vlasenicans were also killed in the Srebrenica genocide in July of 1995. So far, there have been 337 funerals held at the Rakita Memorial Cemetery, which leaves many still in search of peace and a final resting place.


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Ana Elizabeth von Bergen Barber is angry at the treatment of stray dogs in the city of Warnes in the department of Santa Cruz and dedicates a post in her blog A Little Bit of Anna [ES] She is especially angry at dogowners that neglect their responsibilities and allow their pets to roam the streets freely.  She is also especially angry with the authorities that shoot the dogs as a way to curb the problem.


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As the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season begins, the Caribbean looks back—and to the future · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

A Beechcraft 18 aircraft stuck in tree at Jamaica's airport in Kington after Hurricane Gilbert in September 1988. Photo by PvdV (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons.
Marked by “measurable rainfall […] produced by a Tropical Wave and/or the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), both of which are the main weather-producing features of Trinidad and Tobago’s wet season,” the country's meteorological office officially declared the start of the 2023 rainy season on May 26. Since that date, the twin-island republic, which is considered to lie outside of the hurricane belt—has been experiencing adverse weather, some of which has been worthy of yellow level public alerts.
The annual transatlantic hurricane season begins on June 1 and holds the Caribbean to ransom for six tense months with its threat of devastating storms—a pattern that seems to be intensifying as the climate crisis worsens. Barbados’ Meteorological Services have already taken note of the first named storm of the 2023 Atlantic Hurricane Season, Tropical Storm Arlene, which formed in the Gulf of Mexico on the afternoon of June 2.
Just the day before, Chair of Jamaica's National Disaster Risk Management Council and Prime Minister Andrew Holness addressed a meeting at which they cautioned citizens to be prepared for the upcoming hurricane season, and to guard against misinformation. But sometimes the only way a region so battered by natural disasters can face this annual phenomenon is to look back.
Jamaican Twitter user Wayne Chen marked the start of this year's hurricane season by remembering the 1986 floods that proved disastrous for that country:
2/2 and other infrastructure damaged. The impact was worst in Clarendon where the new May Pen/Rio Minho bridge collapsed killing 8 in a minibus.https://t.co/HehISdGOnG
— Wayne Chen (@wcchen) June 1, 2023
As fellow Twitter user and Global Voices author Emma Lewis responded, just two years later, Jamaica found itself in another crisis:
And in 1988 there was Hurricane Gilbert. https://t.co/6wsrHOgE0h
— Emma Lewis (@Petchary) June 2, 2023
On September 12, 1988, Hurricane Gilbert, a Category 5 storm with an eye 40 miles (64 kilometres) in diameter, killed over 200 people in Jamaica. Winds reached a speed of 175 miles per hour, knocking out electrical power and ripping metal-sheeting roofs off houses as if they were labels on tin cans. An estimated 80 percent of homes were seriously damaged, with about 25 percent of their occupants left homeless. The campus of University of the West Indies near Jamaica's capital, Kingston, was practically immobilised, and it took the country a long time to bounce back and rebuild. Damage was estimated to be as much as four billion US dollars.
Since then, storms in the Caribbean appear to have become progressively stronger. As Twitter user Ricardo Davis noted, as Jamaica faced Hurricane Matthew in 2016:
#HurricaneMatthew *presently* is #stronger than #HurricaneGilbert when it hit #Jamaica.
— Ricardo Davis 🇯🇲 (@ricardo_1021) October 1, 2016
Still, Gilbert remains one of the strongest hurricanes on record. Jamaican blogger Susan Goffe recalled the experience in a 2016 post:
I remember the first tree to fall in our garden, the massive guinep tree that was completely uprooted very early in the storm […] I remember letting the dogs out during the eye of the storm, and walking around in the garden, seeing the damage already done. It was quite still and the sky was blue. And then the incredible intensity of the winds when they returned, from the opposite direction. By nightfall, the sustained winds had passed, but every so often there was a strong gust and I remember lying in bed, unable to sleep, with a terrible headache, worrying about how some family members had fared.
She posted a photo of the house next door “with much of its roof gone,” saying:
The massive metal beams that held that roof had been bent back like plasticine, a mental image that forever represents for me the power of the winds during the hurricane.
Some Jamaicans, like branding strategist and former journalist Hume Johnson, believe the country would benefit from deeper examination of what she calls “a watershed moment”:
We need some good restrospective #journalism around #HurricaneGilbert, this watershed moment in our history. Who want to take on this project – a documentary- get funding for it. It would be such a treasure and a learning tool and policy instrument. #Jamaica
— HumeReports (@DrHumeJohnson) September 14, 2018
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‘Hunger Games’ Salute Gives Hope to Democracy Activists in Thailand · Global Voices
Khun Somchai

In an image resonant of a Hollywood movie, attendees at the cremation of former deputy House speaker Apiwan Wiriyachai held up the three-finger salute to the former Prime Minister of the country Yingluck Shinawatra, in what could be seen as a silent message of hope for Thailand.
โปรดรู้ไว้ว่า ยังมีคนต่อต้านรัฐประหารอีกมากมายที่ไม่ยอมสยบใต้เท้าทหาร pic.twitter.com/l71BPA12hV
— หม่อมสามหยอยมีน้ำตา (@toyubomm) October 19, 2014
Please know : there are still many anti-coup Thais who refuse to be oppressed by the military
The image, which was originally posted on the BBC Thailand Facebook page has been shared on that platform over 650 times and shared on Twitter over 70 times, including re-tweets from Thais with large followings such as @toyubomm. The BBC set up this Facebook page in an effort to avoid the systematic attack on the rule of law and liberties which followed May’s coup, including the banning of political gatherings and arresting and detaining hundreds of politicians and anti-coup activists.
The raised armed salute, inspired by the fantasy blockbuster “The Hunger Games,” has been appropriated as the unofficial symbol of anti-coup activists and supporters of the pro-democracy movement.
This activity on Facebook and Twitter occurs at a time of increasing tension in the country, as the military junta continues its massive crackdown of online speech and personal expression in the country. Having taken measures to censor citizens on social media and block hundreds of offensive websites, including the UK’s Daily Mail website, in the past week one of the major political blogs in Thailand on the Asian Correspondent website, Bangkok Pundit, announced that it is going on hiatus as a result of “the constrained environment of commenting publicly about Thai politics in the immediate aftermath of the coup.”
Whilst the closure of the anonymous blog is another set-back for the freedom of expression of the Thai people, images such as the three-fingered salute being shared on social media provide a small glimmer of hope for the future of this once open and democratic country.


Police Torture Continues in Egypt  · Global Voices
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On Egyptian Chronicles, blogger Zeinobia talks about how the police continue to torture people. She shares the story of Ayman Mehana, who was attacked, arrested and allegedly sexually abused at the hands of police.
She reminds her readers about why Egyptians took to the streets on January 25, 2011:
This revolution began as a protest against police brutality claiming for human dignity , people tend to forget this especially the police and the current ruling regime.
Zeinobia shares this video of Mehana's ordeal:


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Open Doors for Syrians, Closed for Others - New Canadian Media
Judy Trinh
December 18, 2015
It is with awe and a heavy heart that 21-year-old Aganze Bihamba watches the massive national effort to bring in Syrian refugees. Bihamba, a former refugee himself, fled Congo and lived on the streets of Kenya for 14 years.
Much of his life has been spent in tattered clothes, sleeping in the streets or mud huts trying to find shelter from the scorching sun and pelting rain. In September, 2014 he arrived in Ottawa after being sponsored through the World University Service Canada student refugee program. He’s amazed that the Canadian government is fast tracking the settlement of Syrians, but he can’t help but wish he could harness some of that goodwill for his own cause.
While doors open for Syrians, they close for others.
“I have three sisters living in Nairobi on their own, and I can’t get them out.” His sisters are 19, 17, 16 years old.  Bihamba’s mother died of heart failure in February, while his dad abandoned them years ago. He needs at least $30,000 to sponsor his sisters to Canada, an impossible amount for a full-time student on OSAP (Ontario Student Assistance Program). Bihamba has reached out to churches and community groups for help, but has been told they are devoting efforts to settling Syrians or are unwilling to contend with the lengthy processing times involved in processing African refugees.
“You shouldn’t discriminate,” a demoralized Bihamba pleads. “If your life is in danger you need help. Don’t ignore the Congolese — they’re all running for their lives.”
Pleas such as Bihamba’s are being heard more frequently by the Canadian Council for Refugees.
“The attention to Syrian refugee families, make some fellow citizens feel they’re being neglected,” says Executive Director Janet Dench. She says the massive government effort settling Syrians is proof Canada can mobilize quickly to help refugees anywhere if there is political will. The federal government’s Syrian refugee plan will cost more than  $1 billion.
In order to settle 25,000 Syrians in just a few short months, 500 visa officers have been mobilized. Some of them have been pulled out of retirement. Immigration officials say they have not diverted staff from other embassies to deal with the Syrians, but Dench says more resources need to be devoted to other visa offices, in particular those in Africa. Refugee applications there can take more than five years to process.
“That sends a message that people of African origins are less deserving than everyone else,” says Dench.
“That sends a message that people of African origins are less deserving than everyone else.”
Transportation costs
Another example is the federal government’s recent decision to waive transportation costs for Syrian refugees, but not other groups. Transporting refugees to Canada can cost as much as $10,000 a family, a big amount for newcomers to pay back. CCR is actively lobbying the federal government to waive travel loans for all refugees.
The federal government is also increasing the incentives for private groups to sponsor Syrian refugees. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has now opened its Blended Visa-Office Referred (BVOR) Program to ‘Group of 5‘ sponsors. BVOR refugees are pre-screened and can arrive within a month of being selected by a group.
The refugees on the BVOR list are often considered more desperate cases. They’re victims of torture or have serious medical issues. To move these cases quickly, the government provides six months of income assistance for BVOR refugees, meaning interested private groups only have to raise half the recommended amount required for settlement. Prior to September, only Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAH) such as churches had access to the BVOR list.
Scott McLeod sits on the SAH Council. He says private groups who want to sponsor non-Syrian refugees on the BVOR list should get income support from the government.
“It’s fair criticism to ask why can’t we do it for anyone else.”  McLeod says in his presentations to private groups, he tries to emphasize that all refugees regardless of where they are from deserve consideration — “but money could be the difference.”
Mcleod says the chorus of non-Syrian voices asking for equal treatment is getting louder.
“These voices aren’t angry, but they’re pleading.”
“Let’s not be too narrow and expand beyond Syrians. Some groups have been waiting even longer and are even more desperate.”
For Dench, Canada’s response to the Syrian refugee shows that our country has the financial resources and human expertise to act quickly in the face of a crisis. Dench says it’s obvious Canadians want to help, and now it’s time to expand our scope. It’s more than just Syrians who are fleeing violence and conflict.
“Let’s not be too narrow and expand beyond Syrians. Some groups have been waiting even longer and are even more desperate.”
There are are more than 13 million refugees worldwide, 25 per cent of that number are in Africa. Among them are Bihamba’s sisters. Three orphaned teenagers.
Every month he sends them $150 USD. The amount ensures they get at least one meal a day and pays the rent on their small apartment. From halfway around the world, Bihamba provides shelter, but not safety. For that he needs help, for doors to open.
“I have hope, but it’s fading.”
Judy is an award winning journalist with two decades of journalism experience who aims to be critical, yet compassionate in her reporting. She has reported extensively for CBC News on television and radio and has produced documentaries for CBC's flagship investigative program, The Fifth Estate. Judy has written for the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star and the Ottawa Citizen. She has also been nominated for two Canadian Screen awards for breaking news and a National Magazine Award for an Ottawa Magazine expose of a child trafficking ring. She has reported extensively on the #MeToo movement and human rights cases, and filed LIVE breaking reports from disaster zones. She is also NCM's Chief Mentor.


The collapsed Jamnagar-Junagarh highway bridge wasn’t inaugurated by PM Modi three months ago - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 25, 2019
On Facebook, a few users are sharing the picture of a collapsed road bridge and are alleging- “Planned by then CM Modi, inaugurated by PM Modi, Jamnagar-Junagarh highway bridge collapsed within 3 months of inauguration!”.  Let’s try to check the veracity of the claims made in the post.
The collapsed ‘Jamnagar-Junagarh highway bridge’ was inaugurated by PM Modi three months ago.
Fact: The Jamnagar-Junagarh highway bridge has collapsed at Jamkandorna area of Rajkot district. This road bridge was found to exist at Jamkandorna atleast since the year 2009 (i.e. much before Modi has become the Prime Minister). Hence the claim made in the post stands FALSE.
When the image in the post is run through Google Reverse Image technique with a filter “road bridge collapsed”, it was found in an article published by “DeshGujarat” newspaper. According to this article, the bridge on Jamnagar -Junagadh road near Satodak village at around 14 km from Jamkandorna has collapsed in June 2019.
When looked for any additional information regarding the age of the bridge, no relevant information was found in the article. When googled for more information about the collapsed bridge, another article published by “Sandesh” news agency was found. In this article, the age of the bridge was discussed as ‘years old’ but the year of construction was not mentioned.
From the data available in the newspaper articles, Factly was able to trace the location of the bridge on Google Earth. Based on the information available from the historical satellite imagery, the bridge was found to be existing at least since 2009 i.e. much before Modi has become the Prime Minister. So, this ‘Jamnagar-Junagarh highway bridge’ wasn’t inaugurated by PM Modi three months ago. In the below screenshot of the Google Earth, the bridge’s location was marked with an indicator in colour ‘red’.
Speaking with Times of India correspondent, Rajkot collector Rahul gupta said that the bridge collapsed on June 19 was built 45 years ago by the state roads and buildings department, and was later handed over to National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). Gupta added that the bridge was never inaugurated by PM Modi and was in a dilapidated condition much before it collapsed.
To sum it up, this collapsed Jamnagar-Junagarh highway bridge wasn’t inaugurated by PM Modi three months ago.
Did you watch the first Episode of DECODE series on Parliament?


NYSC member arraigned for defrauding police officer | EduCeleb
15th April 2023
A National Youth Service Corps member in Oyo State, Ukanwa Ikechukwu, was on Friday arraigned in an Iyaganku Magistrate’s Court for allegedly swindling a police officer of N235,000.
The police charged the defendant with false pretence and theft.
The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The Prosecution Counsel, Insp Olufemi Omilana, told the court that Ukenwa on December 4, 2022, around noon with intent to defraud allegedly obtained N235,000 from ACP Modupe Okpaleke.
Omilana said Ukenwa, who studied physiotherapy and was attached to the Police Cottage Hospital, Eleyele, Ibadan, collected N235,000 from Okpaleke and fraudulently converted the money to his own use
The police said that ACP Okpaleke while seeking medical solutions to her leg problem at the hospital was introduced to Ukenwa, who recommended that she buys a bicycle.
He said the offence contravened the provisions of sections 390 (9) and 419 of the Criminal Code Laws of Oyo State 2000.
Magistrate M. I. Giwa-Babalola admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties in like sum.
Giwa-Babalola adjourned the matter till May 25, for hearing.
(NAN)


Earn and learn: Opportunities abound to invest in yourself via on-the-job training | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
PrincessSafiya Byers
October 6, 2022
Want to get out of that dead-end job? One way to do that is to invest in yourself.
On-the-job training of the kind provided by several organizations in Milwaukee represents just such an investment. You can earn as you learn.
1. The Department of Workforce Development houses an up-to-date list of paid apprenticeships. For more information, you can go to its website.
2. Versiti Blood Center of Wisconsin offers paid phlebotomist training to those who are hired for the position. Phlebotomists retrieve blood and other specimens for use or testing. For more information on this opportunity, you can go to this website or call<PHONE_NUMBER>.
3. Milwaukee Christian Center offers paid work training through its Youth Build program. The program is geared toward residents 18 to 24 and offers housing and carpentry training as well as opportunities to complete a GED. For more information, you can check its website or call<PHONE_NUMBER>.
4. The Joseph Project offers weekly training and connects people to high-paying jobs. The group also offers transportation to jobs it connects people to. For more information, you can follow its website or call<PHONE_NUMBER>.
5. Milwaukee Building-Construction Trades Council offers on-the-job training with pay and professional classroom and shop instruction through its apprenticeship program. For information, you can look here or call<PHONE_NUMBER>.
6. Ascension offers on-the-job Certified Nurses Assistant (CNA) training. For more information, you can look here.
7. AmeriCorps offers on-the-job training to 18–26-year-olds that apply to be Corp members. This program lasts 10 to 12 months, depending on the type of work you sign up to do. For more information, you can check its website or call 1-800-942-2677.
SEEK Careers/Staffing Inc. houses a list of employment resources and helps connect people with employment opportunities.
Cutting Edge Staffing offers free training in several different fields.
Employ Milwaukee helps connect people to jobs.
If your organization offers on-the-job training and you don’t see it here, please contact PrincessSafiya Byers at<EMAIL_ADDRESS>


Ethiopia and cultural tourism · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Friends of Ethiopia points to a piece in the New York Times on Ethiopia's rich history and prospects for cultural tourism.


Guatemala: Mobile Advertising · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Advertising on the sides of cars have arrived to Antigua and La Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo has the picture to prove it.


Fragile Hope and the Fate of Missing Persons in Lebanon & Bosnia and Herzegovina | Balkan Diskurs
Yana Ghazi
April 12th, 2024
“The families of the missing are both survivors and victims of the war, as they have survived the war yet they have lost a family member: the disappeared.” (Abdel Latif, The Families of the Missing in Lebanon, 2021)
The fate of the missing leaves unhealed wounds for decades after the end of a conflict. Their continued absence can be a reminder of failed institutional responses and the lasting effect of conflict beyond the laying down of guns. An analysis of missing persons and the pursuit of justice following war in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Lebanon reveals interesting commonalities and differences that are worthy of further study.
Communities attempting to process the past are left to deal with the ambiguity surrounding the fate of their missing loved ones. In Lebanon, more than 17,400 people disappeared (Djokanovic, Bojana, The Long Wait: Lebanon’s Missing Persons) in the civil war that plagued the country between 1975 and 1990, with many more losing their lives.
According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which has been present on the ground since the mid-1960s, this translates to a third of the population being affected by the loss of members of their immediate family (Abdel Latif, The Families of the Missing in Lebanon, 2021). The years that have followed have been turbulent for family associations, which have led the fight for demanding action and justice. Moments of positive momentum have not led to cathartic change.
The post-war Lebanese reality and the measures taken by the highest authorities have reinforced and strongly encouraged forgetfulness (Young, Michael, The Sneer of Memory: Lebanon’s Disappeared and Postwar Culture, 2000), or what is also referred to as state-sponsored amnesia (ibid). Iosif Kovras describes this reality as institutionalized silence. (Özgür Sevgi Göral, Violent confrontations of the local, sectarian and international actors: “Institutionalized silence” of Lebanon and beyond).
Among these measures is the general amnesty law of August 1991 (Law 84), which stipulates a blanket amnesty over all crimes committed during the civil war, with some exceptions, including crimes committed against political and religious figures. It is important to note that there are voices arguing that this blanket amnesty should not be applicable to the crime of forced disappearance. The basis of this argument lies in the fact that forced disappearance is a continuous crime, as is stated in the national Lebanese legislation, namely the General Amnesty Law of 1991 (On Justice Denied: Interrogating Amnesty and Amnesia in Post-Conflict Lebanon,  Yale Journal of International Affairs, 2021)
In 1995, Law 434 was passed, shortening the necessary lapsed time period to have abducted persons legally declared dead (ibid) by their relatives to four years (Young, Michael, The Sneer of Memory, 2000). This legislative action was considered by many to be insulting to families, as they felt it killed any hope of finding their loved ones. Thus, perpetrators in power, including government officials, effectively washed their hands of culpability after 15 years of crimes, including forced disappearances. Amidst no effective legislation and political will, the responsibility of finding the missing and advocating on their behalf has been taken on by family associations.
Bosnia’s success and Lebanon’s frustrations
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the 1992-1995 war resulted in approximately 31,500 missing persons. Over 90 percent of those reported missing were men (Hronešová, Jessie, Bones and Recognition: Compensating Families of Missing Persons in Post-War Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2018). As of today, around 75 percent have been accounted for. This high proportion of discovered missing persons is unprecedented when compared with other post-conflict societies. What is important to note is the institutional capacity that Bosnia and Herzegovina has been able to build in order to reach these figures, something Lebanon cannot claim to be true in its case.
The International Commission for Missing Persons (ICMP), among many other organizations, has supported Bosnia and Herzegovina in building a comprehensive framework for determining the fate of its missing persons. Bosnia and Herzegovina has signed the Declaration on the Role of the State in Addressing the Issue of Persons Missing as a Consequence of Armed Conflict and Human Rights Abuses, along with Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro. Bosnia and Herzegovina is also a signatory to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED). Lebanon has signed but not yet ratified the convention.
Among the reasons for the substantial work accomplished in Bosnia is, according to Political Sociologist, Jessie Hronešová, how the Srebrenica Genocide propelled the issue onto both domestic and international agendas in the years following the war (Hronešová, Bones and Recognition, 2018). Operationally, the fact that the ICMP was established and headquartered in Sarajevo before moving to The Hague also eased some of the challenges faced in accomplishing its mission (Hronešová, Jessie, Bosnia: The Search for Missing Persons, 2015). The ICRC has been attempting to lay the ground for a national process in Lebanon for years now, including through data collection and attempting to build the capacity of authorities to fulfill their responsibilities. Unfortunately, both endeavors have been, thus far, fruitless (Bell, Jennifer, Lebanon’s Missing: Painful Search for Answers Continues 48 Years after Civil War, 2023).
The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) has also supported Lebanon in its quest to uncover the truth about the missing. With no trials and prosecutions taking place, even the collection of information in Lebanon has become increasingly harder (Abdel Latif, The Families of the Missing in Lebanon, 2021).
A common struggle in civil societies
Civil society, both in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Lebanon, has been persistently voicing its demands for justice and efforts to find the missing. In Bosnia, Bosniak families created 12 municipal associations for the missing (Hronešová, Bones and Recognition, 2018). The Mothers of Srebrenica and their efforts culminated in the opening of the Srebrenica Memorial Center. Their journey to justice was not easy, especially at the beginning when they were not taken seriously by authorities due to their being women from rural areas, often uneducated (Khan, Amil, To Know Where He Lies | Remembering Srebrenica, 2017).
They tirelessly support the International Commission for Missing Persons, sharing DNA samples, and identifying bodies as well as personal belongings. As of today, over 75 percent (7,607 people) of missing persons in Bosnia have been found (Tesija, Vuk, et al, International Missing Persons Day Commemorated in Ex-Yugoslav Countries, 2023).
In Lebanon, efforts to account for the missing were initiated by several organizations. These included the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared, which received support from the ICRC, the Follow-Up Committee for the Support of the Lebanese Detainees in Israeli Prisons, and the Support of Lebanese in Detention and Exile. One important NGO supporting the cause is ACT for the Disappeared and their interactive platform, Fushat Amal (Space of Hope), featuring stories of those missing. Women have an especially important role in leading these movements as many of their husbands were kidnapped (Abdel Latif, The Families of the Missing in Lebanon, 2021) showcasing the gendered impact of this issue prevalent in both post-conflict countries. Just as the Mothers of Srebrenica tirelessly fought to seek justice for their missing sons and husbands (who make up over 90 percent of those missing in Bosnia) so have the women of Lebanon fought to find their missing men.
Following the tireless work of Lebanese family associations, especially the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared, two commissions of inquiry came into existence (2000-2001), followed by a third, joint Lebanese-Syrian commission in 2005 (Maalouf, Lynn, No Resolution for the Missing Persons in Lebanon, 2016).
However, these commissions did not lead to any substantive findings. Security service representatives among others were appointed by the government to investigate the cases of over 17,000 disappeared in Lebanon, casting doubt over the impartiality of their findings in the context of widespread impunity. The final report produced by one of the commissions concluded that most of those who have disappeared are most likely dead (ibid). Alarmed by the lack of action undertaken by the government, family associations continued tirelessly, demanding to know the truth of their missing loved ones, including those abducted by actors during the Israeli occupation (Mowles, Chris, The Israeli Occupation of South Lebanon, 1986) and Syrian intervention in Lebanon (Lawson, Fred H, Syria’s Intervention in the Lebanese Civil War, 1976: A Domestic Conflict Explanation, 1984). This further complicates the already sensitive issue, as some of those abducted are believed to have been transferred to prisons and other confinement centers in the two countries that exercised territorial control over parts of Lebanon until the early 2000s.  Despite these challenges, families have continued fighting for legislative reform.
With the support of the ICTJ, Lebanese lawyer Nizar Saghieh drafted the Law for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared in 2010 (Law 105). Lebanon’s highest administrative judicial authority, the State Consultative Council, recognized this right to know in 2014. Following this, families were granted access to previously confidential archives gathered by the first commission of inquiry created in the year 2000 (Seeking the Truth about the Missing in Lebanon: An Interview with Nizar Saghieh, 2014). Renewed hope echoed in response to the promulgation of Law 105 for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared Persons in November 2018. This legislative step taken by the Administrative and Justice Parliamentary Committee was regarded as a beacon of hope for justice (El Bejjani Noureddine, Nour, Lebanon Edges Closer Toward Truth for Families of the Missing and Disappeared, 2018). This legislation established an independent commission, the National Commission for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared Persons in Lebanon (Guide to the Law 105 on the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared Persons: Questions and Answers – Lebanon, 2022) which was tasked with investigating the fate of the missing. The Commission was mandated with exhuming mass graves and protecting DNA samples (ibid) both urgent matters considering how protracted any action has been to address this issue. The appointment of members of the Commission took place in 2020. Hopes were high that this would build on the breakthroughs achieved through civil pressure, including the legally recognized “right to know”.
Ever since, however, no measures have been taken to further advance this pursuit of justice. Considering the multifaceted crisis – political and economic – Lebanon is currently facing, hopes remain low as to seeing any renewal of efforts. Despite decades of pressure from civil society, the effective involvement of state authorities is necessary for concrete results (Maalouf, Lynn, No Resolution for the Missing Persons in Lebanon, 2016). The executive paralysis of the state is a major hindrance to the efforts of civil society in Lebanon.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, despite many challenges, an unprecedented comprehensive law on missing persons was adopted at the state level. The Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted the Law on Missing Persons in 2004. This was the first such legislative act adopted at the state level in a post-conflict society. Considering the structural complexity inherent to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s model of governance, the passing of this law can be deemed a huge success. One of the foreseen institutions is the Missing Persons Institute (MPI), which is tasked with tracing missing persons and issuing the necessary documents in this process. Along with the creation of the Fund for the Families of the Missing, this shows the strong institutionalized approach that has yielded the high percentage of discovered missing persons.
Article 3 of the Law on Missing Persons stipulates the right to know of the families of those missing.  The law states the responsibilities of the entities to protect this right: the Federation of BiH, the Republika Srpska, as well as the Brčko District. It obliges them to provide the necessary assistance and information to the bodies involved in the search for the missing. These bodies include the ICRC, ICMP, the Missing Persons Institute, and the Red Cross Society (Article 6, Law on Missing Persons 2004, Bosnia and Herzegovina). Similar to Law 105 in Lebanon, the Law on Missing Persons in BiH also contains a legal definition of “missing person”. The law also sets out the protocol for submitting a tracing request, as well as specificities surrounding the termination of the status of a missing person. In order to preserve the collected data, the Central Records of Missing Persons in BiH was also created and is to be maintained by experts of the MPI.
Today’s ongoing struggle
Remains of the missing are still being exhumed in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 2021, 80 victims were discovered despite the challenges faced with COVID-19 restrictions (Grebo, Lamija, Bosnia Finds More Wartime Missing Persons in 2021, 2021).  A few months ago, the remains of a victim of the Srebrenica  Genocide were discovered by the Missing Persons Institute in Brčko (Talha Öztürk, Mustafa, Bosnia unearths remains of 1995 Srebrenica genocide victim, 2023). During this year’s Srebrenica commemoration in July, 30 newly identified victims were buried (Kurtic, Azem. “30 Srebrenica Victims to Be Buried at Genocide Commemoration, 2023). Meanwhile, the families of those missing in Lebanon cannot lay their loved ones to rest or even know the truth of their whereabouts. As time progresses, hopes are fading in the Levantine nation.
As international attention on these post-conflict nations wanes, raising awareness of the fight for truth is as important as ever. On the 30 of August this year, the International Day of the Disappeared, Balkan Investigative Reporting Network BiH launched a video campaign that sheds light on the pain felt by the family members of those who are still missing (Stamatoukou, Eleni, BIRN BiH Launches Video Campaign about Missing Persons, 2023). In June 2023, the ICTJ and the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon released the book entitled Windmills of Our Hearts, composed of short stories by 15 female relatives of the missing and forcibly disappeared (In a New Book, Women Relatives of the Missing in Lebanon Use the ‘Ink of Their Hearts’ to Tell Their Stories | International Center for Transitional Justice, 2023). The family associations and international organizations in both Lebanon and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to shed light on the ambiguity that haunts the families of the missing to this day, decades after the end of conflict.


St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Serving the People? · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Will politicians wise up and realise they are servants of the people?” wonders Abeni, as she recounts two incidents in which a public official abused his power.


Albania: A Book Review · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Living in Shkoder reviews M. Edith Durham's book, Albania and the Albanians.


The Quirky Tranquility of Japanese Suburbia in Photos · Global Voices
Nevin Thompson

Suburban Japan Tumblr blog archive
The Japanese Suburbia Tumblr blog does exactly what its name suggests: it serves up images of the less seen, more quotidian scenes of the Japanese “suburbs” (although many of the photos are taken from quiet residential neighborhoods in the heart of Tokyo).
The Tumblr account has no description; the images speak for themselves.
As one Japan-based Twitter users says:
Keep getting lost in the Japanese Suburbia tumblr when I find myself clicking to it. https://t.co/azFjKQRhnK pic.twitter.com/rKqmuONakE
— Mulboyne (@Mulboyne) June 1, 2016
The Japanese Suburbia blog curates images found on Tumblr and Flickr, and there seem to be a few by the author of the blog as well. Far from being boring, many of the photos show of the often quirky character of suburban Japan.
Here we see the view of the Tokyo Sky Tree from the relatively suburban streets of Asakusa, the old “shitamchi” part of Tokyo, east of Ueno.
Here is a quiet residential scene in Yushima Tenmangu, in central Tokyo. The houses are flying flags, likely in commemoration of a national holiday:
Yushima Tenmangu. By Flickr user Yamauchi. License: CC BY 2.0. Found on Japanese Suburbia.
Next, Japanese Suburbia has found a photo of motorways in Shinjuku. Forty years ago this would have been considered a suburban area of Tokyo.
A photo posted by Tokyo, Japan (@446i) on
Next, a shop hording in Shimokitazawa advertising cockroach and termite sprays. Shimokitazawa is located in Setagaya, a suburban district in Tokyo.
A deli in Chofu, a city to the west of Tokyo:
Here's a photo of typical shopping arcade that could be in any city in Japan, once again in Chofu:
A typical Japanese residential scene; the photo was taken in Takamatsu, on the island of Shikoku:
A photo taken “someplace in the neighborhood” during the Golden Week extended holiday in May:
A collection of photos shopping arcades typical to any neighborhood in suburban Tokyo:
Many suburban commuter cities have large shopping areas built up around a central train station:
Sunset in suburbia. Power lines criss-cross most streets in Japan:
The Japanese Suburbia blog also features many images of Japan's more whimsical character, such as this plastic model of a crawfish being transported somewhere by mini-truck:


Eccentric reggae pioneer Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry dies at 85 · Global Voices
Emma Lewis

Jamaican dub pioneer Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry. Photo by Preetam Slot on Flickr, CC BY 2.0.
The hugely influential, avant-garde reggae music producer, songwriter and singer Lee “Scratch” Perry died on the morning of August 29 at the Noel Holmes Hospital in Lucea, Jamaica. He was 85 years old.
Culture Minister Olivia “Babsy” Grange confirmed the news on Twitter:
Officially confirming the passing of musical icon Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry. Spoke to his son, Rocky, this morning. My condolences to his widow, Mireille, his children and other relatives. What a man, what a music, what a life, what a genius!
Further details will be announced. pic.twitter.com/ANHUOPKI5l
— Hon.Olivia Grange (@Babsy_grange) August 29, 2021
Prime Minister Andrew Holness paid a heartfelt tribute:
My deep condolences to the family, friends, and fans of legendary record producer and singer, Rainford Hugh Perry OD, affectionately known as “Lee Scratch” Perry. pic.twitter.com/Eec2MEd6yC
— Andrew Holness (@AndrewHolnessJM) August 29, 2021
The Office of the Prime Minister later issued a press release, noting that Perry had received a National Honour (Order of Distinction, Officer Class) in 2012. The statement included a personal comment by the prime minister:
Undoubtedly, today Jamaica has lost the rhythm and soul of a prolific music icon who has inspired many … Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry was truly one of the most important and creative figures to have come out of Jamaica.
Opposition Leader Mark Golding tweeted:
Jamaica honours the memory of one of our most original musical geniuses, Lee “Scratch” Perry. His immense body of work, as a producer & artist, underscores his influence. His unique touch & feel enriched some of our most beloved popular musical compositions. RIP Lee Perry. ?? ? pic.twitter.com/0BX9tTIyUd
— Mark Golding (@MarkJGolding) August 29, 2021
Perry was famous not only for his own pioneering dub sound but also for helping to steer Bob Marley’s career in its early stages. Social media tributes came in from Jamaicans and from around the world, including a flood of tweets from Japan, where he was extremely popular.
A New York-based reggae station pointed out that Perry was one of four legendary reggae musicians to pass away in the past year:
LEGENDS FOREVER …great loss to Jamaica & the world, in less than a yr.#TootsHibbert •Sept 11, 2020#URoy •Feb 17, 2021#BunnyWailer •Mar 2, 2021#LeeScratchPerry •Aug 29, 2021
play the music • sing the songs • celebrate them in exhibitions • PRESERVE THE LEGACIES? pic.twitter.com/RfuvTuurIb
— Sound Chat Radio (@IrishandChin) August 29, 2021
He was born Rainford Hugh Perry in 1936 in the rural western parish of Hanover; his mother was a farmer and his father a labourer (who later became a professional dancer). Perry left school early and was not particularly ambitious, pointing out in an interview that he preferred playing dominoes—he became the local champion—to getting a job. Dominoes, he said, taught him to “read the mind of others.” Like his father, he loved dancing, and was well known in dancehalls as the “Neat Little Man.”
In the late 1950s, Perry moved to Kingston and began working as an assistant to music producer Clement “Sir Coxsone” Dodd, and later as a talent scout and auditioner for Dodd’s Downbeat sound system. After producing some songs for Dodd’s renowned Studio One label, the often irascible Perry felt unappreciated and fell out with Dodd.
During that time, when he helped launch the careers of vocal trio the Maytals and rock steady singer Delroy Wilson, he acquired his nickname, from a hit record called “Chicken Scratch.” Sound systems were culturally influential—and very competitive—during this period. After a stint with Dodd’s rival, Joe Gibbs, Perry finally struck out on his own, founding his Upsetters label—named after his band—in 1968.
Perry established the Upsetter Record Shop on Charles Street in downtown Kingston, and worked with a number of popular artists in the late 1960s and early '70s, including The Wailers, working on famous songs like “Duppy Conqueror” and “Small Axe”. In a 2015 interview with BBC Channel Four, Perry said, “I gave Bob Marley reggae music as a present”—a theme he expanded on in a 2017 interview for Reggae Vibes magazine, in which he was asked about his early mentorship of Bob Marley.
Perry worked with another famous producer and mix master, King Tubby, during the early 1970s, but he wanted his own space. His Black Ark studio, located in Washington Gardens, Kingston, was completed in 1974. Using only basic equipment, he created a remarkable and totally unique sound at Black Ark, stretching the limits of creativity and experimentation. The music he recorded there was remarkable for its diversity, with artists ranging from toasters such as U Roy, to jazz trombonist Vin Gordon, and even the mournful melodica of Augustus Pablo.
Over the next 10 years, Perry would produce an extraordinary range of Rastafarian-influenced music at Black Ark, including the influential “War ina Babylon” with Max Romeo, Junior Murvin’s “Police and Thieves” and many other classic roots reggae songs. A combination of domestic troubles and infiltration by criminal elements resulted in the studio’s decline by the late 1970s, however, culminating in the building being burned down in 1983.
Perry was not well known to many younger Jamaicans since, being without a studio in the 1980s, he spent much of his time overseas, settling in the United Kingdom in 1983. In 1989, he married and moved to Switzerland, where he continued to produce music. Curiously, his studio there also burned down, in 2015—an incident which Perry called his “Second Judgement.”
Described by many as a musical magician whose imagination knew no limits, Perry constantly pushed boundaries, working with musicians from a wide range of genres over the course of his long musical career. Outside of reggae, he had a great love for hip hop. Upon hearing the news of his passing, The Beastie Boys, whom Perry had collaborated with, shared their appreciation for his genius:
We send the most love and respect we can to Lee Perry who passed today, to his family and loved ones and the many he influenced with his pioneering spirit and work. We are truly grateful to have been inspired by and collaborated with this true legend.
– Mike pic.twitter.com/cmdcnI6hHT
— Beastie Boys (@beastieboys) August 29, 2021
Another musician pointed to Perry's influence on hip hop:
Most modern Hip-Hop owes its sonic fingerprint, whether wittingly or no, to the hands of Lee Perry.
The Man has passed into Legend, but his Sound is as close as your music feed.
4/
— ATTACK AND DETHRONE MOLOCH (@BroknHeadphones) August 29, 2021
Tuff Gong Studios also shared their tribute:
We give thanks for the wonderous life of Lee “Scratch” Perry… the ORIGINAL UPSETTER.
“I grew up with revolution in my brain, revolution in my leg, and revolution in my head”~ Lee “Scratch” Perry
JAH LIVE????? pic.twitter.com/Vme5phrHPt
— Tuff Gong (@TuffGongINTL) August 29, 2021
British reggae aficionado and deejay David Rodigan tweeted:
Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry has left us and the world of music has lost one of its most enigmatic creators; an amazing, incomparable phenomenon whose sonic sound waves transformed our lives; the ‘Blackboard Jungle’ album alone stands as a beacon of his genius. pic.twitter.com/WgYZ106UNR
— David Rodigan (@DavidRodigan) August 29, 2021
Perry's work was recognised in his four Grammy nominations in the Best Reggae Album category, for “The End of an American Dream” (2007), “Repentance” (2008), “Revelation” (2010), and “Back on the Controls” (2014). He won the Grammy in 2002, for “Jamaican E.T.“
However, “Scratch” will always be primarily known for his brilliant creativity during the Black Ark years, his unconventional, often bizarre fashion sense, and his charismatic persona. In 2001, he did a series of captivating television ads for Guinness, and in 2020, modelled for Gucci, at age 84. Perhaps, most of all, for his influence on a wide range of musical genres, there will never be another Lee “Scratch” Perry. He was a musical giant.


Cuba: Twitter Truce · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“The exchange started cold, with scorched looks and the logical suspicion between persons who reside in a nation where debate of opposite opinions is a rare bird”: Iván García blogs about TwittHab, “the first encounter between official and alternative ‘twitterers’ [where]…both groups could look face to face and even exchange greetings.”


Ghana: Using party colors in social functions · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Is it appropriate to use colors of Ghana's political parties in social functions?: “The Brong-Ahafo Regional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police Seth Charles Oteng, on Thursday expressed concern about the organisation of social functions under politically coloured atmosphere.”


Brazil: Blogging Against Web-Censorship · Global Voices
Daniel Duende

Censura Não! (No Censorship!, PT) issued on last July 5th a call for a collective blogging on July 19th (today) against web-censorship and the Azeredo Bill . Many Brazilian blogs, like Luz de Luma  [Pt] and Ladybug [Pt] answered to the call.


City to Release Video of Lloyd Ferguson Incident – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 6, 2015
In response to Freedom of Information requests from The Hamilton Spectator and CHCH Television, with a supporting FOI filing from myself, the City of Hamilton plans to release video of the incident in which Councillor Lloyd Ferguson used physical force against me on February 26, 2014.
The video will be released on July 29, 2015.
The City initially denied FOI requests for the video, citing privacy reasons.
I filed my own FOI supporting the request of The Hamilton Spectator and CHCH, and to ensure I clearly waived any privacy considerations for my being in the video.
At present, there are two significantly differing versions of what occurred. The release of the video will allow you to determine what actually happened and the truth.
Councillor Ferguson claims his actions were excusable because I was “eavesdropping” on a private conversation, that Councillor Ferguson had politely and calmly asked me twice to move, that after giving time for me to move, Councillor Ferguson calmly and gently moved me only three feet, and that I overreacted to Councillor Ferguson’s actions.
Former Integrity Commissioner Earl Basse’s report on the incident includes Ferguson’s comments. It has been lambasted widely for failing to interview me or any other witnesses, for having no evidence to support the allegations made against me, and for failing to include any analysis of Basse’s decision to excuse Councillor Ferguson’s actions.
What is not disputed is that Clr. Ferguson made physical contact with me.
Ontario Ombudsman Andre Marin publicly criticized the report saying it is a “model of how not to write a report”.
If #Bill8 had been in effect, I would have sent #HamOnt IC report back 2 drawing board. And not the grade 3 one it appears it was written on
— Ontario Ombudsman (@Ont_Ombudsman) February 27, 2015
Mr. Marin, who does not have oversight of municipalities until January 2016, says that if he had oversight, he sent the report back to be properly done.
My statement of events, posted shortly after the event, states that I was standing in the public foyer of the Council Chamber:
At approximately 10:45pm Wednesday evening, I was following the City’s Corporate Communications Manager to a press conference.
The conference was originally scheduled for a meeting room in the City Councillors area and was being moved into the City Manager’s Boardroom, a non-public area.
I had to follow the Manager to get into this Boardroom.
The Manager was stopped by Ward 9 Councillor Brad Clark. The two began a conversation.
I stepped back and was standing approximately three metres from their conversation, holding my tripod – with camera attached – over my right shoulder.
Behind me, from the Councillors offices, a visibly agitated Councillor Lloyd Ferguson walked in front of me saying – to either the Manager or Councillor Clark – “I need to talk to you about something”.
Immediately, Ferguson looked at me and aggressively told me to get away from the area.
Before I had a chance to move, Ferguson turned around, strongly clenched my upper right arm and shoved me with force.
He did not let go of his grip, continuing to clench me and strengthening his grip as he very angrily stated with a threatening tone that I wasn’t welcome to stand where I had been.
The City Manager Office ruled that Councillor Lloyd Ferguson was in his capacity as a Councillor when the incident occurred and the City will release the video despite the objection of a person in the video.
The City approached all parties in the video seeking their approval of the release. I’ve spoke with the City’s Communications Director Michael Kirkopoulos, former Councillor Brad Clark, and Councillor Jason Farr. All of them state they signed the release.
One person in the video is not consenting to the release and the City must wait 30 days to provide them an opportunity to appeal to a provincial tribunal.
The City plans to release the video to The Hamilton Spectator, CHCH, myself, and others who have filed Freedom of Information requests on July 29.
I wish to thank everyone who has supported me during this difficult experience. I’m humbled by the faith you’ve shown in my character and approach to journalism, especially in light of the serious allegations made.
I welcome the release of the video. It will conclusively prove that I committed none of the wrongs alleged by Councillor Ferguson.


Peru: Pisco To Receive OLPC Laptops · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Desde El Tercer Piso [ES] is pleased with the announcement that the One Laptop Per Child project in Peru will be distributed as a priority to the rebuilt city of Pisco.


Cuba: Ferrer Arrested  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Cuban bloggers react to the arrest of Dr. Darsi Ferrer on the grounds that he allegedly bought construction materials on the black market to repair his house: Blog for Cuba, Uncommon Sense and Human Rights Cuba.


In Kazakhstan, the truth about the 2022 deadly protests is still suppressed · Global Voices
Vlast.kz

Crowd outside of the court building in Almaty. Photo by Akbota Uzbekbay. Used with permission.
This article was written by Almas Kaisar for Vlast.kz. An edited version is republished on Global Voices under a media partnership agreement.
On January 5, 2022, during violent anti-government protests, a group of protesters went to the Almaty airport, after learning that Kazakhstan had turned to the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for help. They worried that a Russian military contingent could be flying into Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest city, which was the epicenter of the protests. By the time they arrived, the police had already left the building.
Together with other people, these protesters were looking for the control tower to demand that they switch off the green light. Once they were told that Russian troops were not flying into the city at that time, they left the airport.
A year and a half later, those five protesters were sentenced to four to eight years in prison for “attacking, as well as seizing the airport” and “participating in, as well as organizing, mass riots.” In reality, witnesses said they were not threatened or hurt. The court still found them guilty, as required by the prosecution.
On July 11, the judge quickly read the verdicts and hastily asked for someone to translate the sentence from Russian into Kazakh. At that time, in the courtroom, dozens of people were screaming, showing a banner that read: “The people are not terrorists!”
Aigerim Tleuzhanova is a journalist and civic activist, Kalas Nurpeisov is a history teacher and civic activist, Nurlan Dalibayev, Yermukhamet Shilibayev and Zhan-Aidar Karmenov are ordinary citizens who were worried about the fate of the country. None of them pleaded guilty.
Perhaps no one expected an acquittal, because as early as January 5, 2023, the country’s Prosecutor General Berik Assylov had already said that Tleuzhanova was “a member of an extremist religious organization” and “the mastermind of the airport hijacking.”
Moreover, an acquittal would have undercut President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s version of the events: “the capturing of the airport was a key step to ensure the passage of militants to the city,” he had said. Without this, like a house of cards, all other statements about “attacks from outside” would collapse.
The protests started on January 2, 2022 in the western city of Zhanaozen after a steep increase in the price of the liquified petroleum gas used to power the majority of cars in the country. They quickly spread to other regions, including the financial capital Almaty in southern Kazakhstan, and acquired broader demands for social justice and political change. According to the authorities, 238 people died during the deadly protests, which came to be called Qandy Qantar (Bloody January).
As protests turned violent, Tokayev gave the order to shoot to kill without warning, stating that 20,000 local and foreign “bandits” and “terrorists” were attempting to topple the government. CSTO member states approved Kazakhstan’s request to send troops and dispatched over 2,000 soldiers, who guarded government buildings and critical infrastructure objects in the country.
However, the events that unfolded in the aftermath of the protests suggested that they were the outcome of the political struggle between Tokayev and the former president Nursultan Nazarbayev, who ruled over Kazakhstan between 1991 and 2019. Soon after the events, Nazarbayev stepped down from his role as the Chairman of the Security Council, a post he planned to occupy for life. His appointees among political and business elites were removed from their posts and/or given prison sentences. Nazarbayev’s close ally and former head of the National Security Service, Karim Masimov was found as the the main culprit of the failed coup attempt and sentenced to 18 years in prison for treason.
The defendants in the case reported, among other violations, the inhuman conditions of their detention and the prosecution offering them deals in exchange for testimony against each other. They said that the investigators deliberately misled them.
The court cases around Qandy Qantar seem to have a specific set of goals: to disenfranchise those who came out to protest, to deprive the people of Kazakhstan of truth and justice, and to ban political participation and self-organization without state control. The country's leadership allows no space to heal the collective trauma associated with Qandy Qantar, as well as with many other bloody events in the country's history.
For a year and a half, the authorities have not released a complete list of the victims, along with the circumstances of their death. The population was never shown the results of the investigation that would supposedly reveal the truth about the events. Instead, people who took to the streets because of injustice have been branded criminals and bandits, and the country is left to drown in conspiracy theories.
Until the truth is obtained and justice is achieved in the courts, the Kazakhstani people will remain hostages of those bloody events and continue to live in a stunned society, torn apart by internal conflicts.


The claims made by Dr. Christiane Northrup regarding COVID-19 vaccines in this video are false - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 20, 2020
While the world still reels under the repercussions of COVID-19, researchers & scientists are racing to produce a vaccine against the virus’ spread. However, a viral video on Facebook continues to spread false claims surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine. Thus, limiting its impact and sowing the seeds of doubts and mistrust among millions of viewers. Let us verify the claims made in the post.
Claim 1: The RNA vaccine will fundamentally change people’s DNA.
Fact: According to experts, mRNA vaccines do not alter human DNA. Such misinformation is regularly aired on social media to sow doubts/mistrust even before the vaccine is available to the public. Thus, the claim made in the post is FALSE
The video is a 4-minute clip of the 37-minute long interview with Dr. Christiane Northrup, an obstetrician- gynaecologist who has earlier featured as a health expert on “The Oprah Show”. She claimed that the upcoming COVID-19 vaccine will alter the human DNA. The vaccine henceforth, is set to control our movements has gone viral on social media.
However, according to experts, “mRNA vaccines work by introducing a messenger RNA molecule into your body, which causes cells to produce a protein that resembles one of the viral proteins that make up SARS-CoV-2. The immune cells then recognize this viral protein and generate an immune response against it, primarily by generating antibodies that recognize the viral protein”. A similar explanation can be found here and here.
The World Health Organization (WHO) clarified the same on its website that the working principle of vaccination is to stimulate the immune system “with an infectious agent, or components of an infectious agent, modified in such a manner that no harm or disease is caused, but ensuring that when the host is confronted with that infectious agent, the immune system can adequately neutralize it before it causes any ill effect.”
Claim 2: The toxic metals used in the vaccine will create antennas in the human body that will be detected by 5G technology
Fact: Multiple conspiracies and speculations have been doing rounds on social media but in fact, 5G technology has nothing to do with COVID-19. Thus, the claim made in the video is FALSE
While the conspiracy theory on 5G technology is no new news, experts have time and again clarified that 5G is a mobile-network technology and there is no scientific evidence that phone signals will either transmit or reduce our defences to COVID-19. BBC News has also confirmed the same from around the world.
Claim 3: The non-human DNA will turn humans into chimers.
Fact: There is no scientific evidence that the mRNA vaccine will introduce non-human/animal DNA into human bodies. Thus, the claim made in the video is FALSE
Dr. Northrup continues to argue that non-human DNA will be introduced into our bodies which will, in turn, enable humans to pick up certain animal traits. However, by definition, the origin of chimera is in Greek mythology which refers to a single organism composed of cells with more than one distinct DNA. However, there is no evidence that humans will exhibit animal traits
Claim 4: Vaccine to contain nano particles which in turn act as antennas will collect biometric data that will further be traded for cryptocurrency.
Fact: While there is a patent application that mentions technology allowing to monitor & track people’s activity in exchange for cryptocurrency, there is no mention of nano particles or implanted chips in the body. Thus, the claim made in the video is FALSE.
She further accused Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation of using the vaccine as a strategy to collect people’s biometric data for their own profits. Although Microsoft and Bill Gates have filed for patent numbered 060606 for a system which rewards physical activity with cryptocurrency, there is no mention of implanted microchips or nano particles that will collect the biometric data. The patent application has not yet been granted either.
Claim 5: The patented dye Luciferase produced by MIT will help countries to check on who has been vaccinated
Fact: In 2019, Massachusetts Institute of Technology did develop a novel way to record patient’s MMR vaccine history using the luciferase enzyme. However, the same has not been approved for COVID-19 vaccine. Thus, making the claim MISLEADING.
According to Massachusetts Institute of Technology news, they did develop a method to store patient’s data through a dye, invisible to naked eye, that is delivered under the skin through microneedle at the same time as the vaccine. This was developed to devise a method for recording vaccination information in a way that does not require a centralized database or other infrastructure specific to the use of MMR vaccine.
Further research has shown that both Dr. Northrup and the interviewer Polley Tommey, an autism activist are members of the anti-vaccination community. While Polley Tommey is the producer of the 2016 documentary Vaxxed: From Cover-up to Catastrophe, Dr. Northrup is known to have endorsed the ‘Plandemic’ movie with her nearly half a million Facebook followers. The entire interview has been subsequently removed from YouTube for violating its terms of service.
To sum it up, the claims made by Dr. Christiane Northrup regarding COVID-19 vaccines in the video are false. Many of those claims do not have any substantial scientific evidence.


Bolivia: Unity Festival 2006 · Global Voices
David Sasaki

GlowMain lists the DJ's that will perform at the 24-hour, non-stop, psychedelic trance event (ES) called “Unity Festival,” which will take place the first week of May in Bolivia.


Syria: Farewell Om Abed  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Syrian Mariyah mourns the death of Om Abed – a neighbour and family friend – in this touching post.


Africa: 7 Rules of Innovation · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

White African writes about Ethan's 7 rules of innovation in Africa: “Ethan Zuckerman has produced yet another amazing thought piece. This time, he’s talking about innovation in Africa and how that is brought about by resource constraints.”


Palestinian Drones Fly on Israel  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Palestinian Al Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, unveiled three models of unmanned drones today, which it said it flew into Israeli skies.
Journalist Dima Khatib tweets:
Al Qassam Brigades say they made 3 models of Ababil drones: A1A, A1B, A1C. Pic v @QudsN of A1B during a mission pic.twitter.com/sTfW0bVS98
— Dima Khatib أنا ديمة (@Dima_Khatib) July 14, 2014
The drones, made in Palestine,  are called Ababil – after a type of birds mentioned in the Holy Quran, which protected Mecca during a war with Yemen in the year 571.
Gaza-based blogger Jehan Alfarra exclaims:
#Israel shocked at the use of Palestinian drones by Palestinian Resistance in #Gaza! So are weee #GameOfDrones مرمطناهم
— Jehan Alfarra (@palinoia) July 14, 2014


Serbia: Five Years Since Zoran Djindjic’s Death · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Belgrade 2.0 writes about the fifth anniversary of Zoran Djindjic's death: “Unfortunatelly, a Serb with the greatest qualities has been assasinated by people who could not understand the modernity, and were too dumb for arguments.”


Cameroon: French Politician Denounces Irregularities in the Cameroonian Election · Global Voices
Julie Owono

Eva Joly, the green party candidate for the French 2012 presidential election, denounced on her blog the re-election  of Paul Biya, Cameroon incumbent president.  She points out  that even the usually prudent US State Department expressed strong reserves with the electoral process. She is surprised that the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs already aknowledged Paul Biya's re-election despite noting many irregularities.


Our Berlin Wall in Syria · Global Voices
Rami Alhames

Syrian Students for a Better Future is a WordPress blog by Syrian students at the Illinois Institute of Technology. The students are studying in the US as part of Jusoor Initiative to help Syrians continue their higher education outside Syria through scholarships. The blog, which has posts in Arabic and English, reflects the students hopes, doubts, worries, optimism, homesickness and wishes for a better future in their home.
Safouh Takrouri wrote his post Our Berlin Wall in Syria saying:
After reuniting the people of German, individuals and communities started to plan for its future. A future free from wars, blood and disputes. A future full of achievements and development.
People now in Syria are divided in two groups – maybe more. Each group has its own opinion, and believes in its own vision for the future of the country. Each group is right in so many points; and wrong in too many ways as well. No doubt, each group loves their country and some are ready to give their souls freely for it. While to many victims of this horrific violence and suffering never asked for their lives and those of their families to be so disrupted. Every citizen and resident of Syria has the right to give his or her opinion for the future of the country in which his or her child will live, but these opinions – different as they may be – should be respected. Honest, fair, transparent and respectful debate should be our strategy for working together; this should be our moral code, our law – and for centuries this has been our Syria. Today, we are experiencing a low point.
Despite the whole dark news that comes from Syria, I cannot be pessimistic.
Syrian Students for a better future. Source WordPress Blog. Used BY CC 3.0
Mariela Shaker who is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in music at Monmouth College, and previously studied at Aleppo University, was happy to meet her Syrian colleagues. Hoping for better Syria she expressed:
I very much hope that all the Syrian students are doing very well in their new colleges, and are keeping up the hard work so that we can continue to represent our country very well in all fields, and so that Syria will be proud of us always.


On the Block: New food truck | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Andrea Waxman
May 9, 2017
Lyndi Vang manages her sister and brother-in-law’s new food truck, The Noodle Café. She explained that they started selling their dishes a few weeks ago at 35 Street and West Lisbon Avenue, near their home, to offer their neighbors an opportunity to try the foods of the countries they came from, Laos and Thailand.
In addition to the current menu, which includes egg rolls, fried noodles, stuffed chicken wings and nava, a sweet coconut-flavored tapioca drink, The Noodles Café plans to add chicken fried rice, khao poon noodle soup, curry and other dishes in the future.


Taiwan: boycotting mainstream media · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Wang Chien-Ming, a Taiwan baseball player who was called up from the Yankees’ AAA affiliate, the Columbus Clippers in 2005, issued a open letter on 17 of August saying that he would reject all the Taiwan mainstream media interview because his privacy had been infringed. Ilya blogs a press release to support Wang's action, saying that collective boycott is a citizen movement to actively monitor the media malpractice (zh).


Nigeria: 3rd term for Obasanjo? · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Grandiose Parlor believes President Obasanjo of Nigeria is “hell bent on going for a third term” as the “Constitutional Committee” commenced hearing this week.


Congress: Don’t let jet owners cover their tracks on the taxpayer dime
Seth Stern
March 20, 2023
Twitter CEO Elon Musk made headlines in December when, despite his free speech proclamations, he suspended an account that tracked his private jet using only publicly available information. But what if billionaires who don’t own social media platforms could also conceal their newsworthy flight patterns from the press and public? And what if they could do so on the U.S. taxpayer dime?
Well, turns out they can. The Federal Aviation Administration began publishing flight location data in 1997 but, in 2000, it began scrubbing its data regarding private aircraft upon request from their owners. The owners don’t pay for the service. The Obama administration briefly required private jet owners to submit certifications justifying their requests, but, after pressure from industry groups, Congress reinstated the no-questions-asked policy.
The FAA’s funding is up for reauthorization later this year. Congress should take the opportunity to ensure that the new funding bill leaves these taxpayer-funded secrecy programs in the past. Flight tracking has enabled important investigative reporting for years and climate change means that the overuse of private jets will remain highly newsworthy for the foreseeable future. No other country besides the U.S. similarly restricts access to flight data.
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The good news is that, for now, the FAA’s anti-transparency measures are not terribly effective because flight trackers have options besides FAA data. Private jets can also be tracked through wireless signals they transmit (called ADS-B), which can be detected by widely available censors. Communities of hobbyists track and share this data. It’s relatively easy to find online and includes jet owners whose flight information the FAA has scrubbed.
That’s how the owner of the account Musk suspended managed to track his flights. Journalists have since further reported on Musk’s prolific private jet usage — but it’s far from the first time that flight tracking has enabled valuable journalism.
There are websites that allow the press (and anyone else) to track movements of dictators through flight data. Journalists tracked a jet linked to an Israeli “spyware tycoon” to investigate which authoritarian regimes he did business with. The Wall Street Journal recently investigated PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan’s alleged personal use of the tour’s plane. There are plenty of other examples involving important news stories, including the Jeffrey Epstein case. People might also want to know which “civilian flights” the government is protecting when it spends millions to shoot down unidentified objects.
The aviation industry and its lobbyists nonetheless continue urging legislators to crack down on access, by both maintaining and expanding current secrecy policies. The Trump administration tried cutting off FAA data to sites that also use ADS-B signals, but some sites responded by opting to exclusively use ADS-B data. Other efforts have also failed to effectively conceal private flights information.
But governments will keep trying — both here and abroad. Saudi Arabia recently called for (PDF) international efforts to block flight tracking via ADS-B data.
Industry groups have argued that the government should protect the privacy of data it collects on private jet flights like it protects medical and tax information. But people need to see doctors and pay taxes. Private jets are optional. The press is entitled to investigate, for example, how much private jet owners pollute the air the rest of us breathe and whether executives of companies Americans work for and invest in divert corporate funds for personal travel.
It’s time for Congress to put an end to the taxpayer-funded secrecy program at home and ensure that the U.S. opposes any international efforts to help billionaires cover their tracks.


China: Melamine Inevitable, even for EU Commissioner · Global Voices
Bob Chen

Melamine-tainted milk gave made-in-China a tough punch, and to reassure the world of China's product safety, premier Wen Jiabao affirmed that “we'll revive the Chinese food industry very soon,” at the World Economic Forum held in Tianjin last month.
The widely-influential milk scandal was resulted from the industrial chemical melamine added to not only milk but yogurt and infant formula. It has led to kidney stones crystallized in body that inflicted hundreds of babies, and killed 3.
At the Forum, Wen kept on saying, as China daily described,
Wen said he was very moved when he saw in television European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson drinking a cup of Chinese milk on Friday to show his trust in China-made products. “It's because he not only sees the present, but the future as well,” Wen said.
This Mandelson, 9 days later, was rushed to hospital in England due to unbearable pain, and after inspection, the trouble-maker is revealed—–kidney stone.
Mandelson might have gone through his most dramatic days in the period of time. In the reshuffle on Friday, Mandelson made a surprise return to the Britain cabinet under Brown's appointment. And on his first day in the office, kidney stones sent him to doctors. Would he relate his misfortune with the milk drunk a few days ago?
Whatever, Chinese blogger have already picked up their pens for responses.
Blogger “prostate inflamed” published on bullg.cn an entry, named “the Chinese milk stunned the  world again“. Nothing more did he do than juxtaposing the two news stories, “Wen was impressed by Mandelson's drinking of China milk”, and “on his office move-in day, Mandelson was sent to hospital due to kidney stones “.
Fishabc0 could only sigh in his comment,
立竿见影
And Nasheishei summarized in one word:
黑色幽默
Netizen 无上荣光 (Ultimate glory) exclaimed:
我喜欢英国幽默。这绝对是一场精彩的行为艺术表演！这是对中国政府官商勾结坑害百姓的机智嘲讽。非常精彩！
Another well-known blogger  宋石男, in a further step, wrote to analyze Mandelson's kidney stones,
在我看来，事件真相有两个可能：
1、曼德尔森早就知道自己有肾结石，故意当众喝中国牛奶，是在落井下石。
2、曼德尔森不知道自己有肾结石，勇敢地当众喝中国牛奶，是好心办了坏事。
Whichever is the truth (I personally incline to the latter), it would be as 老碗 says,
中国奶的确没让世界人民失望
But overall, it's never good to be a group of people, who can only make fun of ourselves, while find no way out, no way to change, even no no way to keep ourselves and baies from poison.
驴夫 says,
最近心情很忧伤 看到这个故事于是忧伤有了愉悦 成了愉悦的忧伤
This is our bitter joy melted in milk
(Pictures from Wikipedia, use under permission license)


GV’s Advocacy Director at AI-Observer-Irrepressible.info’s June 6 meeting · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

On June 6, 2007, Global Voices’ Advocacy Director Sami Ben Gharbia appeared at an event in London marking the one-year anniversary of the Amnesty International-Observer-Irrepressible.info campaign. The video above is of Sami's address. Global Voices’ co-founder Ethan Zuckerman also participated remotely — a video and transcript of Ethan's contribution are available at this page.The webcast of the full proceedings is archived here, and Kevin Anderson offers an overview of the event at the Corante weblog.


Honduras: Ports and Airports Closed · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Honduras Daily News writes that all ports and airpots are closed today due to the continuing crisis in Honduras.


Serbia-Belarus: Mobile phones in civil resistance · Global Voices
Vilhelm Konnander

Information Policy summarises a recent survey on the use of mobile devices as a tool of civil resistance in Serbia and Belarus, concluding that state surveillance of communication is making them increasingly difficult to use.


China: Complicated Internet Culture · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Ethan sums up Rebecca Mackinnon's presentation on the Chinese internet, deliberative government and internet filtering at the Berkman Center


Jordan: Wasting Time on Shallow TV Shows  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Jordanian Batir Wardam at Jordan Watch [ar] asks: “What is the percentage of Arabs who waste most of their time following shallow television shows, devoid of any content, on Arab satellite channels?”