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January 27th, 2008
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Francophone Morocco Roundup: Algeria's response to the UN, anti-French sentiment and more
This week in the Moroccan blogosphere, Algeria fails in its duties, anti-French sentiment still strong in Morocco, DJ Awards and rose petals galore.
Algeria fails in its duties
Maroc Multiple et Pluriel writes about the Algerian government's reaction the United Nations' decision to classify the country as a high risk security zone following a double bombing in the nation’s capital in which 41 people died, 17 of which were U.N. personnel.
In a post entitled “Algeria’s Nervous Diplomacy,” Maroc Multiple et Pluriel cites the aggressive comments of Algerian politicians who claim that the U.N. is using a double standard in declaring Algeria a high-risk zone when it regularly intervenes in other dangerous regions throughout the world.
Mais les responsables algériens ne sont pas de cet avis, ils passent même à l'attaque avec un discours ordurier et vulgaire, digne de voyous. Zerhouni, ministre de l'intérieur qualifie l'ONU de se comporter comme «une fausse vierge “effarouchée”».
Voila une phrase qui doit intéresser les sémiologues ; les linguistes, les psychiatres et aussi les feministes pour l'analyser et dresser un profil psychologique et comportemental de ce ministre qui fustige l'ONU en la qualifiant ainsi.
De quel devoir, il fait allusion?
Est-ce le devoir de minimiser hypocritement le mal qui ronge l'Algéroe et laisser la population sans défense dans un situation de peur quotidienne?
Est-ce le refus de coopération avec les Etats de la région en matière de terrorism et de sécurité? Est-ce le devoir de s'immiscer dans les affaires internes des états voisins en fomentant des conflits artificiels à la frontière marocaine et en abritant une bande armée polisarienne sur son propre sol?
Est-ce le devoir de parrainer les rebelles touaregs en les dirigeant contre le Mali et le Niger?
Abdelaziz Belhadem, head of the Algerian government, also refused to bow to a U.N. inquiry into this double attack in an insolent tone, showing that the leaders of the country are nervous and bothered that the international community, by the voice of the U.N., is looking into the terrorism [there], one of the wounds eating into Algeria for many years.
They haven't been able to come up with the least solution to deliver the Algerian people from this daily nightmare. The head of the government goes even further, declaring that this decision “cannot be favorably welcomed because Algeria has done its duty.”
What duty is he alluding to?
Is it the duty to hypocritically minimize the evil that's eating Algeria up from the inside or the duty to leave the population defenseless in a situation of daily fear?
Is it the refusal to cooperate with the other states in the region on the issues of terrorism and security? Is it the duty to involve itself with the internal affairs of neighboring states by fomenting artificial conflicts on the Moroccan border and hosting an armed group of Polisario militants on its own territory?
Is it the duty to sponsor the Touareg rebels by directing them against Mali and Niger?
Anti-French sentiment still strong in Morocco
French expat Laurent Bervas responds to a comment regarding anti-French resentment in Morocco left on his blog.
The comment:
La lecture des commentaires de ce blog me confirme à chaque fois que le ressentiment anti-occidental est un sentiment toujours bien présent et très répandu au Maroc notammment.
Each time I read the comments on this blog, they confirm to me that anti-Western resentment is still present and widespread, especially in Morocco.
The response:
Comme français vivant au Maroc, je confirme la présence ce ressentiment (ce n’est pas mon voisin de Marrakech qui me dira le contraire). On peut alors se poser la question du pourquoi ?
La France, contrairement à l’Angleterre n’a pas très bien réussi sa décolonisation (je citais en exemple Singapour, ou l’ancien gouverneur anglais, équivalent de Lyautey, est célébré par les singapouriens).
La faute probablement à une élite politique qui continue encore aujourd’hui, dans certains discours et certains actes, a stigmatiser l’étranger comme une source de problèmes ( “le mouton dans la baignoire”, les tests ADN, …). On retrouve malheureusement cette “arogance” française dans les bureaux des administrations françaises à l’étranger ou dans certains cercles de français au Maroc (ou dans les discours récents comme “L’homme africain qui n’est pas entré dans l’histoire” ou la “politique de civilisation” de Nicolas Sarkozy).
Marie-Aude a, je pense, fait un commentaire qui résume bien celà :La colonisation à la française était beaucoup plus interventionniste que la colonisation anglaise, qui était surtout là pour assurer le commerce en “laissant vivre” les structures locales. La France voulait civiliser, l’Angleterre voulait faire de l’argent.
En filigrane, la France considérait la culture de ses colonies comme inférieure, l’Angleterre n’avait pas cette considération (et si elle l’avait, ce n’était pas essentiel). Ce qui n’allait pas non plus sans un certain mépris, à l’égard des “natives” dont la signification est beaucoup plus lourde de morgue que n’importe quel ‘bougnoule” ou “bicot”.
Et il n’y a jamais eu en France les pakis banshing organisés en Angleterre dans les années 80.Les structures politiques étaient autres, et malgré un racisme assez fort, les colonisés avaient plus la possibilité d’évoluer économiquement, que dans les colonies françaises.
Maintenant, si tu vas en Angleterre, le revirement par rapport à un modèle que je qualifierais d’intégration “côte à côte, chacun chez soi” est violent, et sera peut être difficile.
Il est beaucoup plus difficile d’interdire le voile, comme certains commencent à le demander, quand on oblige les écoliers tous les matins à assister aux prières anglicanes!
France, unlike England did not do such a good job with its decolonization (I was citing Singapore as an example, where the former English governor, the equivalent of Lyautey, is celebrated by Singaporians).
A political elite which still continues today, in certain speeches and certain acts, to stigmatize foreigners as a source of problems (“sheep slaughtered in the bathtub [referring to a statement about immigrants' customs made by French President Sarkozy during the last French elections that he no longer wanted to see ‘girls undergo genital mutilation, girls forcibly married, [and] no more sheep slaughtered in the bathtub’],” DNA tests,…) are to probably to blame. Unfortunately this French “arrogance” can be found in the offices of French administrations abroad or in certain French circles in Morocco (or in recent speeches by Nicolas Sarkozy such as “The African man who has not entered into history” or the “politics of civilization”).
Marie-Aude made, I thought, a comment that sums all this up quite well: French-style colonization was much less interventionist than English colonization, which was mostly there to assure commerce by “letting live” the local structures. France wanted to civilize, England wanted to make money.
Implicitly, France considered the culture of its colonies as inferior to its own, England did not share this belief (and if it did, it wasn’t essential [to its colonization]).
Another sticky subject was a certain scorn towards the “natives,” a word whose significance is much more loaded with smugness than any ‘bougnoule [a derogatory French term for Arabs]’ or ‘bicot [another slang term used to refer to North-Africans]’. France never saw the paki-bashings organized in England during the 1980s.
The political structures were different, and despite a fairly strong racism, the colonized had more possibility of evolving economically than in the French colonies.
Now, if you go to England, the about face from a model of integration that I would characterize as “living side by side, everyone does as he sees fit in his own home” is violent, and may be difficult.
It is much more difficult to prohibit the veil, as some have begun to call for, when you make school children participate in Anglican prayers every morning!
The neighbor that Bervas refers to in his post is another European expatriot living in Morocco who writes more strongly but along similar lines:
Ne venez pas au Maroc.
Vous n'êtes pas les bienvenus.
Vous devriez avoir honte en tant que Français, vu le traitement que vous réservez au Marocains, qui vous reçoivent, dès lors qu'ils sont en France.
Vous devriez avoir honte d'appartenir à une nation assimilationniste, négationniste qui a élu un erzatz fasciste pour Président, de venir profiter du peuple marocain et de ses ressources, dans un cadre qui a été voulu et préparépar votre Etat.
Tant que vous serez chez nous, l'absolutisme alaouite aura de beaux jours devant lui.
Jamais une démocratie n'accorderait les privilèges que vous avez chez nous.
Ne venez pas pleurer à la faveur d'un fait divers dramatique comme celui qui s'est produit en Mauritanie.
Vous pensez que vous pouvez empêcher nos peuples de vivre sur leur territoireen soutenant corps et armes des régimes qui vous nourrissent, que vous pouvez interdire aux notresle droit élémentaire d'émigrer, et que vous méritez de vivre sur nos terres?
Vous êtes bien cons.
Comme ceux qu'on a liquidé avant vous.
Vive le peuple Marocain opprimé!
You're not welcome here.
You should be ashamed to be French, considering the treatment you reserve for Moroccans, who are happy to receive you [in Morocco], as soon as they are in France.
You should be ashamed of belonging to an assimilationist, negationist nation who elected an ersatz fascist for president, of coming here and profiting from the Moroccan people and their resources, in a framework which was intentional and made ready by your State.
So long as you live in our land, the Alaouite [the current monarchical dynasty in Morocco] absolutism will have many long years ahead of it.
Never will a democracy allow you the priviledges that you have in our country.
Don't come crying about dramatic headlines like those that recently occured in Mauritania.
You think that you can prevent our people from living in on their own territory by supporting militias and weapons of the regimes who cater to you, that you can forbid us the basic right to emigrate, and that you deserve to live on our lands?
You really are stupid.
Like those who were liquidated before you.
Long live the oppresed Moroccan people!
DJ Awards
Blogger Maroculture writes about the latest in Moroccan awards (after the Maroc Blog Awards, Film Festival Awards, Music Awards, etc…): Maroc Party DJ Awards.
Décidémment, on n'arrête plus les concours/awards/remise de prix au Maroc. Pourvu que l'on ne tombe pas dans une saturation amère de ce type d'événement.
Mais bon, là c'est plutôt sympa. Tout dépend des Djs sélectionnés car il y a djs et djs. Bref.
Voyez plutôt par vous même le communiqué des organisateurs.
“Le concept Maroc Party DJ Awards vient avec l’idée de rassembler et en même temps faire connaître les différents DJ nationaux sur la scène, et bien sur découvrir de nouveaux talents faiseurs de tendance, le tout dans un cadre musical digne des grandes compétitions internationales.
Cette soirée placée sous le signe du Mix, du Live et de l’image se tiendra à la ville rouge.
Les nommés seront élus par un jury composé de professionnels de la musique et du clubbing. Le publique aura aussi sa parole en votant sur le site www.marocparty.com qui sera mis en place préalablement afin de déterminer les finalistes. Il y aura des catégories dans la compétition, ainsi chaque Dj pourra prouver son talent à travers son style préféré.
- Best DJ house
- Best DJ trance
- Best DJ R&b hip hop
- Best DJ electro
- Best DJ reggae ragga
- AutresAprès la cérémonie, les finalistes vont jouer dans l’un des plus grands clubs de Marrakech.”
Ce qui me fait peur, c'est que ce soit les visiteurs du site qui votent. Si DJ X à plus de potes que DJ Y, on peut déjà imaginer les résultats.
Bref, bonne initiative tout de même ( ça se passe à Marrakech en plus, ça c'est chouette!!) et bon courage à l'organisation.
Certainly, the competitions/awards/prize giving aren’t letting up in Morocco. Let’s hope that we don’t fall into a bitter saturation with this type of event. But anyway, this one is pretty cool. It all depends on the DJs chosen because there are DJs and then there are DJs. Anyway.
See for yourself the organizers' press release:
“The concept “The Maroc Party DJ Awards” comes with the idea of getting together and at the same time making the different national DJs on the scene better known, and of course discovering new trend-setting talents, all in the musical framework worthy of the large international competitions.
This evening placed under the sign Mixing, Live and Image will take place in the Red City [Marrakech]. The nominees will be selected by a jury composed of music and clubbing professions.
The public will also have a voice by voting on the site www.marocparty.com which will be set up beforehand in order to determine the finalists.
There will be categories in the competition, so that each DJ will be able to show off his talent through his preferred style.
- Best DJ house
- Best DJ trance
- Best DJ R&b hip hop
- Best DJ electro
- Best DJ reggae ragga
-Others.
After the ceremony, the finalists will play in one of Marrakech’s biggest clubs.”
What makes me worried is that the visitors to the site will be able to vote. If DJ X has more buddies than DJ Y, you can already imagine the results.
At any rate, good initiative all the same (and plus it’s happening in Marrakesh, that’s cool!!) and good luck to the organization.
Rose petals galore
Baroude, blogging out of Marrakech, offers up his indignation regarding the excess of refined tastes on a plate surrounded by rose petals in the following post which could also be entitled “too much of a good thing”:
Le nom de notre pays peut bien signifier en arabe « pays de l’occident extrême » (Al Maghrib Al Aqsa), nous ne demeurons pas moins des orientaux, dotés (au moins en partie) d’un certain sens du raffinement.
Les invasions abbassides (Avant de devenir la ville la plus dangereuse du monde, Bagdad fut le phare de la culture mondiale), les invasions omeyyades (avant de devenir un musée à ciel ouvert de statuts des Assad père et fils, Damas fut la capitale florissante d’un immense empire), l’émigration des andalous après la reconquista (autant les musulmans que les juifs, dans leurs différentes vagues successives d’exode), des siècles de monarchie et de vie de cours (avec la propension universelle de la bourgeoise à imiter dans son intérieur les traditions de la cours), etc…
Tout cela a laissé des traces dans notre pays. On asperge nos invités d’eau de rose, on brûle de l’encens à la moindre occasion, on disperse des pétales de roses à tout va, etc… on m’a même raconté cette belle histoire : il fut un temps où, la veille du retour du Sultan dans la ville de Fès, sa suite semait des pétales de roses dans les sources d’eau qui alimentaient la ville en eau. De cette façon, les fassis apprenaient l’arrivée imminente du sultan en découvrant, à l’aube, des milliers de pétales de roses dans les fontaines de la vielle ville.
Quand on dispose d’une tradition pareille, et qu’on ambitionne de recevoir 10 millions de touristes en 2010, on en profite sans retenue pour flatter les rêves d’Orient du voyageur, au risque de frôler l’indigestion.
Pendant le dernier Festival de cinéma de Marrakech, j’ai dû me rendre pour un rendez-vous dans un tout nouvel hôtel inauguré à l’occasion : Le Saadi Palace. C’est un hôtel magnifique, somptueusement meublé, admirablement conçu… un joyau de l’hôtellerie marocaine (c’est là où était logé Leonardo Di Caprio, et pendant ma visite, j’y ai aperçu Matt Dillon).
Mon rendez-vous ayant été copieusement arrosé de café et de Sidi Ali, j’eu donc également l’occasion, avant de partir, de visiter les petits coins de l’endroit. Et là, quel ne fut mon effroi : quelqu’un avait jugé que le comble du raffinement serait de placer des pétales de roses au fonds de la cuvette. Des pétales de rose autour de l’évier, sur les serviettes…ça fait joli et raffiné. Au fonds de la cuvette, c’est clairement une faute de goût et un crime contre les pauvres roses. A vous couper l’envie…
L’illustration parfaite de la maxime : trop de raffinement tue le raffinement.
En cette année qui commence avec autant de drames, de catastrophes et d’angoisses pour l’avenir du monde, les sujets bien plus graves ne manquent pas.
Mais j’avais envie d’exprimer mon indignation sur ce sujet précis. Il faut savoir se montrer courageux parfois.
The name of our country can mean in Arabic “country of the extreme West” (Al Maghrib Al Aqsa), we remain never the less orientals, gifted (at least partially) with a certain sense of refinement. We sprinkle our guests with rose water, we burn incense for the slightest occasion, we toss rose petals all over the place, etc…I’ve even been told this lovely story: it used to be that the day before the Sultan’s return to the city of Fes, his [royal] suite cast rose petals into all the springs that nourished the city with water. This way, the Fassis [people of Fez] learned of the sultan’s imminent arrival when they discovered, at dawn, thousands of rose petals in the old city’s fountains.
When you can call upon such a tradition, and when you set your heart on receiving 10 million tourists in 2010, you can take advantage of it without restraint in order to satisfy the traveler’s Oriental dreams, at the risk of barely evading indigestion.
During the last Marrakech Film Festival, I had to go to a meeting in a brand-new hotel inaugurated for the occasion: The Saadi Palace. It’s a magnificent hotel, sumptuously furnished, admirably conceived…a jewel of Moroccan hotel industry (that’s where Leonardo Di Caprio was staying, and during my visit, I caught a glimpse of Matt Dillon).
My meeting, having been copiously watered by coffee and Sidi Ali [a brand of Moroccan mineral water, like Evian or Perrier], I also had the opportunity before leaving to visit the “little corners” of the place.
And there, what a scare I had: someone had decided that the epitome of refinement would be to place rose petals in the bottom of the toilet. Rose petals around the sink, on the napkins…it looks pretty and refined.
In the toilet, it’s clearly a lack of taste and a crime against the poor roses. Enough to make you not want to…
The perfect illustration of the maxim: “too much refinement kills refinement.”
In this year starting with so many dramas, catastrophes and fears for the world’s future, there is no shortage of more serious subjects.
But I wanted to express my indignation regarding this particular subject. Sometimes you have to be a little gutsy.
Blogger of the Week: Salam Adil
After 90 regular posts for Global Voices Online, we have all become familiar with Salam Adil's pleads: If you read no other post this week, read this. A blogger since May 2005, Salam joined GVO at the beginning of 2006 with a mission. Despite living in London, UK, Salam says GVO has given him a chance to reconnect a generation of Iraqis he has grown apart from.
Here's our quick interview with Salam:
* How long have you been blogging for GVO and why?
Longer than I care to remember … sorry, I could not resist… since January 2006
As to why … it's simple. We are doing our part to change the world. What we are doing is politics in the real sense. Politics is not about parties and making speeches and getting votes. It is all about changing the way people view and act towards the world around them so that the wars and the horrors of this world become things of the past.
*What have you given GVO and what has it given back to you?
Ninety posts and over 400 hours of my life (not that I am counting). GVO has given me a global network of friends and a chance to make a difference. It has also given me a source to get an impression of the world any time I need. Also, having lived outside of my home country, GVO has given me a chance to reconnect with a generation of Iraqis that have I have grown apart from and a generation that has grown up apart from the world.
* Please sum up your experience covering the Iraqi blogosphere at such a difficult time. How different is what you are reading on blogs from what is being reported on mainstream media?
It has been a true pleasure covering the Iraqi blogs. One cannot do justice to the wealth of experiences talked about in the Iraqi blogs and the hardest part is always choosing what to leave out. My best experience is being part of the community of Iraqi bloggers and the wider blogging community. No matter how much we disagree I am always sure to get a friendly response and a blogger ready to go out of his way to help when I need. When Ali Shafiya of the video blog Alive in Baghdad died, even A-list bloggers like Robert Scoble wrote posts to express their condolences and many people, from all over the world, contributed to help his family with the funeral. It is very hard when I have to report deaths as I have grown to know the bloggers as well as my best friends but I feel we are all strengthened by sharing these experiences.
I will not say that blogs are better or worse than the mainstream media but they are an essential alternative channel. Many times the mainstream media, by sheer virtue of being a foreign organisation, completely misses what is important. Blogs can fill in these gaps or provide insight into what is happening that you just cannot find anywhere else. In my next post I will be writing about a conversation between one blogger and people claiming to be part of the Iraqi resistance. Chance conversations like this just do not happen in the media.
* Are Iraqi citizen journalists being heard? How is that happening?
Yes. Well, the obvious answer is that Global Voices Online is a great part of why they are being heard. And bit by bit the media is realising that bloggers have something relevant to say. Already BBC television news has invited me to describe blogger reactions to current events. The BBC news web site already has an occasional column rounding up the writings of Iraqi bloggers and I think that without GVO, none of this would have happened.
* What are your hopes for the Iraqi blogosphere?
To grow and grow. I want to get more people writing who would would not normally consider writing a blog.
* What are your hopes for GVO?
Already GVO has greatly exceeded my hopes - so I can only hope that it continues to exceed my hopes.
MENA: Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr…It's Freezing
Brrrr… It's freezing in the Middle East is the message that has been popping up on blogs recently. Here's a round up of what some of the region's bloggers had to say about the cold spell, in the otherwise warm and sometimes explosive hotspot of the world.
Qatar:
Our first stop is in Qatar, where Marjorie in Qatar describes how cold it could be in a country where using heaters is not the norm. She writes:
(S)even degrees is pretty dang cold in a country with no heaters. Right now I'm huddled under a blanket with my cat. At least I'm not in Riyadh, which is getting below freezing at night, or in mountainous parts of the UAE, where it's *snowing*.
Dan is also experiencing rain for the first time after nine ‘dry' months.
“Doha, this crazy, desert town was besieged by rain. It is oddly refreshing and comforting to feel raindrops on your face after 9 dry months in Qatar. The last rain that I remember here was way back in April.. Its a good thing that it was so long ago too - I had forgotten the mania of Doha in the wet. Yesterday alone I saw 5 car accidents (normally its 1)..
Doha is not built for rain. Streets get flooded, drivers get enraged (or petrified depending on their disposition), buildings leak water (and wind) and even the mice try to venture in for shelter..” he explains.
Click here to see some of Dan's pictures.
Writing in Qatar Living, Ajnas points out how catastrophic those rain drops could be and the toll they have on drivers and road users. He reports:
A total of 153 traffic accidents have been reported in and around Doha during the first day of rains, local Arabic daily Arrayah reported.
There were 35 accidents in Khalifa Town. An Asian young man suffered injuries when he was knocked down by a car while crossing Al Sadd Street.
Al Rayan saw 30 accidents, including 10 severe ones. Al Mamoura had 88 accidents, without injuries.
And Mohamed chimes in and writes:
The worst thing about rain in the desert….
…is that the streets turn to mud….
Kuwait:
From the muddy streets of Doha, we move to Kuwait, where bloggers are also complaining about the cold.
In addition to making him lazy, ZDistrict says the cold is harsh on his car's gears. He explains:
What the hell is this cold! Where the hell did it come from, I like the cold more then I do the heat but not when I have work, going to work early the morning in this cold makes it difficult to get up, getting the car moving is another issue. 4C is damn cold early in the morning and I want to warm the car right up by putting it in gear and launching so that I warm up the car forcefully but sometimes its so cold the car has a hard time getting in gear since it hasn’t really warmed up.
Still in Kuwait, Fonzy shares with us pictures he received on email of frozen puddles on the sea front in Wafra.
“The sea water froze!! I won’t be surpirised if it were actually true,” he exclaims.
Libya:
Bad weather dampened Khadija Teri's mood over the weekend. She writes:
My weekend plans collapsed under the buckets of rain that fell from the skies. Thursday we hung around the house mostly but decided to go out to Cinnabon in the evening to get a change in scenery.
Friday's plan was to go to the mountains - more rain.
Iraq:
For the first time in living memory, it snowed in Baghdad. Marshmallow26 writes more about the flakes which warmed up the hearts of Baghdad's residents. She explains:
So Snow finally has arrived in Iraq, and its not only in the North but it kicked in Baghdad's atmosphere… What a lovely thing to know that the snow, which is one of the miracles of God to the nature had drawn a smile on many Iraqis faces that day when the weather center subjected snow in Baghdad and some other cities!! Is it weird to know that London is still waiting for the snow while Baghdad; the Bride of the middle east had it? HUH!!
Ever the adventurer, Marshmallow26 succeeds in convincing her father to take a two hour drive to Sullymania and shares with us more snow pictures here.
SnowVarks:
And last but not least, Middle East commentator Marc Lynch or Abu Aardvark, shares with us this picture of a snowvark - a fitting conclusion to this post!
Related GV posts:
Iraq: Snow in Baghdad
Videos of Snow in Baghdad
Brazil: Countdown to Carnival
There is a popular belief that in Brazil the year only starts after Carnival. Be this an exaggeration or not, there is not much else being talked about on the country's blogosphere: everyone is dusting off their costumes, getting into the mood and counting down the days for the biggest street party on Earth. If you don't believe this, just check the Technorati's stats for the Portuguese word carnaval.
The good news is that carnival starts earlier than usual this year, going on (officially) from 2 through 5 February. In other words everyone must be ready to party next weekend. Not that it makes any difference: in many places there have already been lots of pre-carnival events, warm up parties and rehearsals, while the year doesn't start properly until the close of carnival. Being such a huge and multicultural country, every state in Brazil has its own type of celebrations. Here's a round up of bloggers expectations in Rio de Janeiro, Bahia, Pernambuco, and the lesser known carnival in Minas Gerais.
Rio de Janeiro
Starting with the most famous worldwide, Rio de Janeiro Carnival, with its semi-naked bouncing girls and its colourful Samba Schools parades, is part of the popular imagination of Brazil. It is considered the largest open air spectacle on Earth, entertaining 65,000 people per night. Watch a video here. However, inflated prices to watch the sumptuous parades mean that it can mostly only be enjoyed by tourists, while the majority of the population is resigned to watching it on TV. What's worth knowing is, the best parties happen outside the Sambodrome, where blocos and street carnival are cheaper and fun.
Putsgrilo [pt], who has a collection of videos from this year's samba schools' themes, explains what Carnival is like in the marvelous city:
No Rio de Janeiro é assim. O Carnaval começa antes, ainda em janeiro, e vai aquecendo, criando clima até o ápice da festa e da alegria na sapucaí. O Brasil inteiro entra em festa para comemorar esse que é o período mais animado do ano, o maior feriado, o carnaval. Quem pode, vai à sapucaí. Quem não pode, se sacode por aí. Para já ir entrando no clima, veja os sambas de enredo das escolas de samba do Rio de Janeiro.
In Rio de Janeiro it is like this. Carnival starts earlier, even in January, and warms up, creating an atmosphere until the apex of the celebration and joy in Sapucaí. The whole of Brazil parties hard to celebrate this time, which is the most lively period of the year, the biggest holiday, the carnival. The ones who can [afford to] go to Sapucaí. Those who can't enjoy it elsewhere. To get into the right frame of mind, check out the samba schools' plots and songs in Rio de Janeiro.
Rio de Janeiro's Carnival by Video Vik and used under a Creative Commons License. See more in his South America Travel Gallery.
Bahia
Differently from the spectator-oriented Carnival in Rio, in Salvador, capital of Bahia, the revelers are right in the thick of action, dancing day and night to the rhythms of energetic bands with a rich African influence - think of Olodum and Timbalada on a larger scale. It was in Salvador that the trio elétrico - a big float loaded with giant speakers - was invented. There are more than 2 million people spread along a 25 km circuit, watch a video. The Guinness Book of Records recognizes it as the biggest street party on the planet, but some also swear it is the wildest one on Earth. It too can be very expensive for those who want to be part of blocos and get very close to the best musicians' trios, but people can still enjoy it from far and there are free trios and events to make up for it.
From Rome, Bahian journalist Carrozzo [pt], who will not be in Salvador for the first time in 11 years, publishes some pictures and laments on missing it this time:
Falem o que quiserem, mas nao tem jeito: carnaval eh foda. Vai chegando perto, Salvador vai ficando mais iluminada, os turistas chegam e dao novo ar à cidade. Eh uma festa injusta? Sim. Mas na semana de carnaval deixo de lado todo o discurso sociologico e me junto aos milhoes de baianos e turistas insandecidos. Quer dizer, deixava…
Say whatever you want, but it's got to be like this: carnival is fucking good. As it draws close, Salvador becomes more lively, tourists arrive and give a new air to the city. Is it an unfair party? Indeed, but in the week of carnival I leave the entire sociological discourse aside and get together with millions of maddened Bahians and tourists. I mean, I used to…
Timbalada parade at Salvador's Carnival by SteveMcN and used under a Creative Commons License. See more in his Carnival Gallery.
Pernambuco
If Salvador has the largest street party, Pernambuco has, also according to the Guinness Book of Records, the largest carnival parade in the world. Galo da Madrugada brings together around 1,500,000 costumed people on Saturday morning, to usher in the festivities in Recife. Watch a video here. In the nearby city of Olinda the party has a very similar flavour to traditional Portuguese carnivals, but with the addition of African influenced rhythms such as maracatu and frevo. It is definitely the funniest (think of humorous masquerades, giant puppets and brass bands up and down the hilly streets) and the most democratic carnival in Brazil - unlike Rio de Janeiro and Salvador, all events are free for all.
Daniel Nunes makes some CDs available for download and explains [pt] why Carnival in Pernambuco is labeled the most multicultural:
Pois bem, o Rio de janeiro pode ter suas glamurosas Escolas de Samba, Salvador pode ter os melhores blocos com trios elétricos do mundo, mas carnaval mesmo é aqui. Se você quer encontrar Escolas de Samba ou deseja sambar apenas, você encontra em Pernambuco. Se você quer correr atrás de um trio elétrico, aqui tem. O que você desejar curtir no carnaval, Pernambuco tem. Não recordo de estado nenhum do Brasil onde você dança frevo, se cansou? tem maracatu. Se cansou? tem caboclinho. Se cansou? tem coco, ciranda, cavalo marinho, afoxé e por ai vai. Não gosta de coisas tão cultural assim? tem rock, pop, instrumental, é só procurar que vai encontrar fácil. Gosta mesmo é de uma “fuzaka”? tem samba, pagode e axé, é só querer, Pernambuco é o lugar que você curti tudo de tudo.
Well, Rio de Janeiro may have its glamorous samba schools, Salvador may have the best trio elétrico blocos in the world, but real carnival is here. If you want to find samba schools, or just want to dance to samba, you'll find it in Pernambuco. If you want to go after trios elétricos, we have them here. Name what you want to enjoy, Pernambuco is the place. I don't recall any other Brazilian state where you can dance to frevo. Got tired? There is maracatu. Tired? Go for caboclinho. Tired? There are coco, ciranda, cavalo marinho, and there is afoxé. Don't you like such cultural things? There is rock, pop, instrumental, whatever you look for you find it easily. Do you really like “fuzaka“? There is samba, pagode and axé, you just need to wish, Pernambuco is the place for you to enjoy it all.”
Revelers in Alto da Sé, Olinda's Carnival by Luiza Leite and used under a Creative Commons License. See more in her 2007 Carnival set.
Minas Gerais
Lesser known than the above, the best carnival in Minas Gerais is in Ouro Preto, a baroque city which used to be very rich due to its gold mines. This is the place for those who want to have fun but are not prepared to face millions of other revelers. In a way, this is where carnival still belongs to the ordinary Brazilians, mostly students who hire out their student halls and promote free beer parties (and barbecues). Watch a video here. Besides carnival, the town, which was the first Brazilian city to be awarded Unesco's Cultural Heritage of Humanity title, is truly a beautiful gem.
Geraldo Félix [pt], who says that those who don't like carnival have ‘feet disease', explains how it all started:
Já em Minas Gerais teve origem em Ouro Preto, quando os lacaios do Palácio dos Governadores da Província criaram o famoso “Zé Pereira” em 1867 (grupos de foliões de rua munidos de tambores e bumbos). Há também, os blocos caricatos. Com destaque para a “Banda Mole” em Belo Horizonte. O interior mineiro tem uma característica bem diferente, por ser uma manifestação do povo nas ruas.
In Minas Gerais [the carnival] started in Ouro Preto, when the lackeys from the province's Palace of the Governor created the famous “Zé Pereira” in 1867 (these are street groups of revelers fitted out with different types of drums). There are also the caricatured blocos, most noteworthy is “Banda Mole” in Belo Horizonte. In the provinces of Minas there is a very different characteristic to carnival, because here it is a manifestation of the people on the streets.
Along Ouro Preto's streets by Andrea Fregnani and used under a Creative Commons License. See more in her Carnival tags.
Every good thing in life always comes to an end, and Ash Wednesday, aka ungrateful Wednesday, always comes too soon (at least that is the unanimous opinion of Brazilians), and after the hangover the year in Brazil slowly, finally starts - as does the countdown to next year's carnival.
Flagging at the Iraqi Blogodrome
Collage of the new versus the old Iraqi flag by Konfused Kid
Iraq has a new national flag. Some people may say that flags are really not important, but for Iraq it is big deal. Every new regime has sought to cement its presence through the national symbol. And this government is no exception. So what do Iraqi's really think and were the media right? And, if you read to the end, find out what design the Iraqi bloggers collectively agreed upon.
But first, if you watch no other video blog this week, see this one:
Alive in Baghdad continues its essential role, bringing the story of an Iraqi family that had to deal with the kidnapping of their child. With the total breakdown of security in Iraq, kidnapping is a problem that faces all Iraqi families - we hear so much in the news yet nothing can bring home the devastation of kidnapping more than hearing directly from the families that were directly affected.
AIB writes:
In 2006 Baghdad became a nightmare, more then 200 being kidnapped every day in Baghdad by gangs and militias. … Some families travel every morning to the morgue, looking for their fathers, brothers, or other relatives, because in many cases though the family pays a ransom to the kidnapper they never received their loved one, so they go desperately searching for a corpse, and there are many kidnapped people who, to this moment, have never been found.
Well, this time the media has got it so wrong
Bloggers from all sides of the political spectrum were incensed by the way the media reported the new flag. Nibras Kazimi's blood boiled:
I'm happy about the flag change … but reading the papers this morning still managed to get my blood to boil….It’s funny how the western media is so ignorant about the history of the flag that had just been changed. The three stars do not refer to the tenets of Baathism, rather they represent a proposed union between Egypt, Syria and Iraq….
The western media is also neglecting to mention that choosing a new flag and national anthem is mandated in Iraq’s new constitution
And Baghdad Treasure was really irritated:
The American news outlets changed the facts about the former flag. They attributed the flag to Saddam Hussein… the flag was basically chosen before Saddam came to power. …The other thing is that all American newspapers and websites insisted that the three stars symbolized the three Baath Party goal … they did not. … Unsurprisingly, the US media did not have the guts to mention that fact. Instead, they insisted on misinforming their audience by saying these three [stars] represented Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party goals.
One blogger is happy
Nibras Kazimi likes the new flag but not without reservations. He writes:
I am happy about the temporary change to the flag: it opens up the possibility of future, more dramatic changes. I don’t like the Allahu Akbar (‘God is Great’) slogan on it and what its colors represent, but parliament ruled that the change would be temporary and would last a year.
The rest… hate it
Layla Anwar expresses her anger in poetry:
Look what they’ve done to our flag, ma.
They turned it upside down, ma.
Tied it up and threw it to the grounds, ma…Look what they’ve done, ma…
They have invaded us, occupied us, killed us, destroyed our country, our history, our heritage, our people, humiliated us, pillaged us, plundered us, impoverished us, divided us, tortured us, raped us, imprisoned us, exiled us and now they changed our flag.Look what they’ve done to us, our country and flag, ma…
And Zappy is in denial He changed his blog banner and sidebar and wrote:
See the Flag … on the right? This the flag I was raised under, and thats the only flag I know about.
It's somehow incredibly fitting to me that, contrary to what the articles said, the part that was kept is the only part that actually was Saddam's doing… [the adding of the words “Allahu Akbar”]. What else stopped in 2003: not corruption, persecution, poverty, or killing, so why not keep that little bit consistent too if this really is the flag of Iraq 2008. Is there any better statement of absurdity than to put God's name on all of this bullshit they expect them to swallow? Any better summary of the audacity of the last five years? As if God needs to be associated for these sociopaths and apologists, like he doesn't already have enough working in his name. No wonder he left us.
Baghdad Treasure simply hates the new design:
So the Iraqi people woke up today to find out their flag has been changed! But what a horrible change! The new flag is dull. Just red, white, black and dark green. They should have either changed the whole thing, or kept the original. They removed the stars and left what Saddam has already put! The “Allahu Akbar” inscription. The only thing they did is they changed the handwriting of Saddam into the Kufi calligraphy. The main idea of having “Allahu Akbar” is still there! And who put it? Saddam!! So have they really removed Saddam’s imprint from it?
The legitimacy of the vote was also questioned.Konfused Kid writes, “the Iraqi parliament today approved a new interim design to be approved for one year with a majority of 110 out of 275, 100 MPs were absent from the session.” While Salam Adil (that's me) wonders about the politics behind the new design:
This flag represents a humilliating defeat for Kurdish chauvinism - with Turkey breathing down their necks the Kurds have realised they only have two choices. Be a part of a united Iraq or a poor suburb of greater Turkey. They desperately needed a standard that they could hoist to warn off the Turkish army that is massed on the Northern border. Hence the compromise on the new flag. But what a compromise. Gone is any sign of the Kurdish symbol, the yellow sun, but instead they agreed to a flag that bore the Arab and Islamic colours. Oh dear.
And Finally…
Iraqi bloggers had their own fiery discussion on the design of the new flag. Konfused Kid was pleased to report that the discussion ended in a consensus:
we all came to the conclusion that the best Iraqi flag is this:
After all, Good old Greendizer is really loved by all Iraqis, even the fake ones, mu baba?
Links for Sun, 2008-01
My Armenia Election Monitor 2008 continues to cover next month's presidential election in Armenia with a post on the concerns and voting preferences of the country's 530,000 pensioners. Citing special coverage in the local media, it looks like senior citizens in Armenia are as divided, confused and cynical towards the democratic process in the country as the rest of the country.
Expat worker Bruce Tasker continues to update his readers on the latest developments on his blog, Blowing The World Bank Whistle. In particular, he details how coverage in the local media is finally beginning to pay dividends in his attempt to reveal alleged World Bank corruption in Armenia.
An American in Azerbaijan says that he is becoming increasingly frustrated by working with a local television station on a show for children. Exasperated by a tight deadline, the blogger says that his work is frustrated by a “lack of vision” from ANS TV.
The Armenian Observer says he is noticing a large number of blogs that have suddenly spring up ahead of next month's presidential election in Armenia. The blog laments the way in which supporters of former president Levon Ter-Petrossian and prime minister Serge Sargsyan are using the Internet to disseminate black propaganda and wonders if they shouldn't be blacklisted.
Window on Eurasia says that a book by ethnic Azerbaijani author Eduard Bagirov is causing a stir as a best seller throughout the Russian Federation. In particular, notes the blog, Bagirov's books generally examines the “extraordinary difficulties Azerbaijanis and other non-Russians living in the Russian capital now face in trying to cope with the rising level of xenophobic attitudes among Russians.”
Leigh’s new adventure in Azerbaijan takes a look at trends in fashion in the former Soviet republic. In particular, the blog notes, women are significantly more stylish and less conservative than men.
Armenia continues its reports on life as a volunteer from the Armenian Diaspora living and working in the country. In particular, the blogger says, knowing Russian can be a disadvantage for ethnic Armenians hoping to learn or improve their local language skills.
The Armenia Blog comments on the discovery of a website, Dictator of the Month, that includes the former Armenian president and candidate for next month's election, Levon Ter-Petrossian, in its notorious list of undemocratic leaders.
Unzipped: Gay Armenia comments on how being homosexual or lesbian is still considered a taboo subject to talk about in the Armenian Diaspora. The blogger also links to and discusses an academic paper on the LGBT Armenians at UCLA.
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