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Jordan: Gearing Up for Strike

Amira Al Hussaini · 22:24

lingua → bn · es

Jordan is gearing up for a strike on May 4, according to bloggers. Just like in Egypt, the message to strike was posted on Facebook, and later picked up by blogs, in protest against increasing prices and calling for better living conditions.

Jordanian Issues [Ar] says the strike will coincide with a similar event in Egypt on the same day. According to the post:

فيه دعوة متداولة على “الفيس بوك” لإضراب عام في الاردن يوم 4 ايار. منه اعتراض على الوضع في البلاد ومنه عموما تضامن مع اضراب مماثل يجري في مصر في نفس اليوم. وانا اعتبرها صرخة شجاعة ومبادرة ضرورية. الا انني لا اعرف من وراء هذه الدعوة، وما هي نقاط ارتكازها. انا ايضا مع روح التضامن مع الشعب المصري وتوطيد التناغم الشعبي في المنطقة العربية عموما، لكن ليس بالضرورة ان ينسحب الوضع في مصر مكانيكيا على الاردن، لذلك رأيت ان انوه لبعض الاشكالات المرافقة لدعوة على هذا المستوى بالاردن، رغم تعاطفي المبدأي مع اي مبادرة ديمقراطية وسلمية كهذه.

There is an invite being circulated on Facebook for a general strike in Jordan on May 4. It is a protest against the situation in the country in general and in solidarity with a similar strike being held in Egypt on the same day. I consider it a brave and essential move. However, I don't know who is behind the strike and what is it aiming for. I am also supportive of the spirit of solidarity with the people of Egypt and solidifying the relations between people in Arab countries in general. But it isn't necessary for the situation in Jordan to mechanically synchronise with that in Egypt. This is why I would like to draw attention to the problems associated with this call in Jordan, despite my sympathy with any democratic and peaceful initiative.

From Amman, Ibrahim Safa [Ar] writes on Al Jazeera Talk :

كانت المفاجأة عندما رأيت مجموعة على الموقع المشهور فايس بوك (Facebook) مجموعة عنوانها “إضراب النشامى والرجالة”، “التغيير القادم من الشرق: مصري فلسطيني أردني، وهذا الإضراب بحسب ما يقولون ” لعيون الأردن، ولعيون مصر … تضامناً مع أنفسنا ومع أشقائنا المضربين في مصر … دعونا نضرب في الأردن يوم 4 / 5 / 2008م إضراب عام عن العمل وعن الخروج من المنازل حتى الساعة 11:00 صباحا لا حزبية ولا سياسية…شعبية شعبية شعبية” بل وأيضا” .
ويبدو أن الإضراب التضامني بين الشعبين المصري والأردني انضم إليه أيضا إضراب فلسطيني وبالتالي قد أصبح عبارة عن سلسلة إضرابات في المنطقة من أجل كما قلنا الغلاء الذي يتفشى في العالم العربي.

I was surprised to see a group on Facebook entitled The Strike of Men: Change is coming from the East: Egyptian, Palestinian and Jordanian. This strike is as they say, for the eyes of Jordan and Egypt… in solidarity with ourselves and our brothers in Egypt. Let us strike in Jordan on May 4, 2008. It will be a general strike from work and from leaving our homes until 11am. It isn't a political or party call but a public one. It seems that the solidarity strike between the Jordanians and the Egyptians, has attracted the Palestinians, and has triggered a call for strikes across the region against increasing prices in the Arab world.

ما سبب الإضراب؟
سبب الإضراب هو إيصال رسالة بأن الشعب الأردني لم يعد قادرا على تحمل المزيد.

What is the reason for the strike?
The reason is to send a message that the people of Jordan are not able to withstand more.

From Egypt, which is also gearing up for a strike on May 4, Zeinobia writes:

To my dear Jordanian friends is that true that there is a call for strike in Jordan in the Facebook on the 4th of May 2008 because of the increase in prices ??

wow our President Mubarak's birthday will be a regional one , if this happens it will be a real historical strike in two countries.

I do not know much about the internal affairs of Jordan but I know one thing Egypt is really the leader of the Arab world.

Update : Here is the URL of the Jordanian Facebook group that is calling for a strike

Their demands are :

* The Government put limit for the increase in Prices.
* Fixing the prices of Electricity and Gas.
* To end privatisation of public properties .
* To raise the salaries in the private sector.

As you see there are some similarities between the Egyptian Strike and the Jordanian strike , the main similarity is the economic factor.

They are not calling for protests , just stay at home

It is not Egypt is changing but the rest of the Arab world too

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Iran: Inflation and Untouchable Tomatoes

Hamid Tehrani · 22:15

lingua → bn · fr · de · zht · zhs

The Iranian government has often denied the existence of inflation, even suggesting it is an invention of foreigners and the media. However, in recent months inflation has risen stronger and faster than ever in Iran. It is partly due to the rise in food prices on the international market, but many people also consider failed economic policies to be a main factor. Several bloggers shared their ideas and feelings on inflation in daily life.

Helpless farmers and “careless leaders”

Eghtesaddaneh writes [Fa] that Iranian farmers are unprotected and unrepresented by officials. The blogger adds that:

The Ministry of Agriculture represents the middle class and employees, rather than farmers. The farmers are the silent class. Have you ever heard them protest? Have you ever heard the Minister of Agriculture protest against obstacles to free trade?

He adds that there is “no help for farmers after natural disasters, contrary to in most industrialized and Latin American countries. In my city Kashan, the pomegranate gardens have almost all been destroyed by the cold.”

Athalolah Mohajerani, the former reformist Minister of Culture, says that contrary to what an influential cleric, Mahdavi Kani says, inflation has nothing to do with people's lack of consumption. The blogger writes that the government does not listen to qualified experts, and that its populism and slogan-oriented policies are the reason for inflation.

Soweyda writes [Fa] that Hadad Adel, the President of the Iranian parliament, said there may be inflation in the country, but at least there is security. The blogger speculates that he probably meant that Iran is more safe than its neighbours, but writes that inflation and economic difficulties can also threaten security.

Broken promises

Dehyari says [Fa] that inflation cannot be solved by speeches. The blogger writes:

When Ahmadinejad first denied there was inflation in Iran two years ago, he said it was the lowest in the last 40 years. Then only six months ago he promised a better future, but all these statements were false.

The blogger says society can not tolerate such rising inflation anymore. Dehyari considers that Ahmadinejad’s decisions are not based on expertise nor rationale.

According to [Fa] AmirKhosro 10 MPs warned Ahmadinejad and three ministers about inflation.

The Islamic Association of Shahr Kurd Students blog reports[Fa] that Mehdi Karoubi, the former president of the parliament recently criticized Ahmadinejad, and invited him to think about problems of housing and subsistence, rather than trying to run the world.

Untouchable tomatoes

Azarmoghan says [Fa] with irony that tomato prices are getting so high that we can proudly have our photos taken with them. It has already replaced the banana as the most precious fruit.

Parse dar Bozorgrah writes [Fa] that last year Ahmadinejad said that in his neighbourhood tomato prices are low and people can buy them, but it seems this year everybody accepted the high price. In some sandwiches, tomatoes have disappeared.

Shagard says [Fa] tomatoes cost about 2 Euros per kilogram, while a worker only earns 80 Euros per month!

Photos from Flickr:
* Pomegranate in snowy Iran, by Varahran.
* Tomatoes in a Hamadan market by Mary Loosemore.

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Macau: Wild cheers as the Olympic Torch is paraded

Paula Góes · 18:27

lingua → pt · es

Photo from Tori birdie~'s Flickr photostream

Unlike in other countries on the route, the Olympic Torch met only with smiles today in Macau, its last leg before Mainland China. Runners have already finished carrying the torch through the city with not a single disruption from protesters. On the contrary, it was greatly cheered by flag-waving spectators who could barely contain their excitement as the flame toured the former Portuguese colony that returned to Chinese rule in 1999. Leocardo [pt] fully reports:

Photo from Tori birdie~'s Flickr photostream

Passavam 44 minutos das 15 horas quando o Chefe do Executivo Edmund Ho entregou a tocha olímpica ao primeiro transportador; Leong Hong Man, atleta de Wushu, era o primeiro a transportar a chama olímpica em Macau. Ainda na Doca dos Pescadores entrgou-a ao bilionário Stanley Ho, que apesar de ter dado apenas alguns passos, mostrou-se extremamente bem disposto e cheio de fervor patriótico, e afirmou que pelo seu país transportaria a tocha “até ao fim do mundo”.

It was 44 minutes past 3 pm when the Chief Executive Edmund Ho delivered the Olympic torch to the first runner; Leong Hong Man, a Wushu athlete, was the first to carry the torch in Macau. Still at the Doca dos Pescadores‘ wharf, he passed it to billionaire Stanley Ho, who despite having walked only a few steps, proved to be extremely well prepared and full of patriotic fervor, and said that for his country he would carry the torch “to the end of the world”.

Photo from Tori birdie~'s Flickr photostream

Entre as personalidades convidadas para transportar a tocha destacaram-se Costa Antunes, director dos Serviços de Turismo, Jorge Neto Valente, presidente da Associação dos Advogados de Macau ou Paula Carion, atleta de judo medalhada nos últimos Jogos Asiáticos. A cantora de Hong Kong Miriam Yeung, que esteve na base de uma polémica que levou ao afastamento do deputado José Pereira Coutinho, usou os seus 30 segundos para gritar “yeah! yeah!” enquanto sacudia o punho esquerdo.

Among the celebrities invited to carry the torch, the highlights were Costa Antunes, the Tourist Office's director, Jorge Neto Valente, Association of Macao Lawyers' president, or Paula Carion, prized judo athlete in the last Asian Games. Hong Kong singer Miriam Yeung, who was on the bottom of a controversy that led to the expulsion of Mr Jose Pereira Coutinho, used her 30 seconds to yell “yeah! Yeah!” while shaking her left fist.

Photo from H.L.Tam Flickr photostream

Foi um lugar comum. Todos sorriam para ficar bem na fotografia e mandavam adeuzinhos enquanto seguravam na tocha. O ar mais grave terá sido o de Leong Heng Teng, que levou a tocha de volta à Doca dos Pescadores e terminou a relay de Macau. Devido a uns atrasos “à portuguesa” (herança cultural?) a tocha nunca chegou a passar pelo Leal Senado. Não se sabe se desta vez os comerciantes da Av. Almeida Ribeiro alegaram transtorno para o comércio (sou tão mauzinho, não sou?) para que se dispensasse a passagem pela principal artéria do território.

It was commonplace. Everyone was laughing to look good in the pictures and waving bye-byes while holding the torch. The most serious air was Leong Heng Teng's, who led the torch back to the Doca dos Pescadores‘ wharf and finished Macau's relay. Due to some delays “a la Portuguese” (cultural heritage?), the torch never passed by the Leal Senado (Loyal Senate) building. It is not known whether this time Almeida Ribeiro Avenue traders claiming an inconvenience to business (I'm not that bad, am I?) meant the torch not passing through the main arterial road.

Photo from H.L.Tam Flickr photostream

Milhares de residentes saíram à rua, juntando-se a eles os turistas, muitos deles vindos da China Continental. A generalidade - mesmo os ocidentais - parece concordar com a ideia de que as reivindicações dos manifestantes deviam ser feita em sede própria, e longe, portanto, do evento da passagem da tocha olímpica. Um grupo de cristãos filipinos (Jesus Rocks?) juntou-se à festa para “abençoar os Jogos”, segundo eles.

Thousands of residents took to the streets, joined by tourists, many of them coming from Mainland China. The general public - even the Westerners - seems to agree with the idea that the demonstrators' demands should be made in their own places and, therefore, far away from the Olympic torch event. A group of Filipino Christians (Jesus Rocks?) joined the party to “bless the Games”, according to them.

Photo from H.L.Tam Flickr photostream

A tocha olímpica passou hoje por Macau pela primeira vez na História, e provavelmente a última, pelo menos em muitos anos. A passagem foi pacífica e sem qualquer tipo de incidentes semelhantes aos que aconteceram noutras etapas da passagem do fogo Olímpico, o que leva a questionar o tremendo aparato de segurança que se verificou. Aparentemente Macau não está na agenda dos apoiantes da causa tibetana, e os activistas de sofá ficaram em casa a ver pela TV.

The Olympic torch passed today through Macau for the first time in history, and probably for the last at least in many years. The transition was peaceful and without any incidents similar to those that occurred on the other Olympic torch legs, which leads us to question the tremendous security apparatus that was put in place. Apparently Macau is not on the agenda of the Tibetan cause supporters, and couch activists were at home watching it on television.

Photo from H.L.Tam Flickr photostream

The torch has now returned to Mainland China, where the relay continues on its way to Beijing for the Olympic Games from August 8-24.

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Bahrain: Lebanese singer causes political storm

Ayesha Saldanha · 18:12

Earlier this week the provocative Lebanese singer Haifa Wehbe performed in Bahrain, but not before Bahrain's MPs protested and tried to ban her concert.

Mahmood gives us a taste of Haifa Wehbe's music in a vlog:

He adds:

So what’s so special about this lady then, that would make her so damnably dangerous that they’re all frothing at the mouth to bar her from performing in Bahrain?
Well my friends, I hope this vlog will demonstrate that there is really nothing unusual about her, other than being a beautiful lady who can’t sing! But those qualities could hardly be held against her, she is not the first and most certainly not the last person to use what Allah has given her to her advantage.

Munther was offended by the high price of tickets - for a concert which happened to be on International Workers' Day:

Oh and bringing Haifa Wahbi to celebrate the day is the biggest insult to the working class especially with tickets starting from BD 50 ($132.642) - who are you kidding?

What's Up Bahrain is also shocked by the ticket prices:

WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD PAY 200 DINARS TO SEE A TALENTLESS WOMAN SING ON STAGE !!!!!!!! Seriously what's up with those ticket prices, if you're willing to charge that much for a hayfa wehbe concert why not get someone who deserves it.

Nevertheless, the concert sold out - and Mahmood has a theory why:

In spite of the 'severe' objections from Islamist MPs, Hayfa sang last night at the Gulf Hotel and thrilled the audience who filled the hall with all tickets sold! What does this demonstrate? Does it demonstrate that the MPs have no authority whatsoever, or is it that the government chose - in its wisdom - to simply stall and ignore them completely and do nothing to let the concert go on? To me, I think it clearly demonstrates that at the very least the MPs did not choose their battle wisely, they rushed things, polarised opinions, stepped on multiple toes and in the end, the lady sang despite all their objections, resolutely poking her fingers in their wandering eyes while thanking them, even subliminally, for making her show a memorable sellout concert. Hang on, maybe it was that in the first place, both Hayfa and the MPs were in cahoots. It was a planned PR and marketing exercise to ensure that the tickets - even the expensive ones - sell out completely! Smart! Those MPs are very very smart!

Ammaro looks at the bigger picture:

I wasn't even going to go into the whole Haifa Wahbi issue, since I believed the whole fuss raised about her was, to say the least, ludicrous. But when I … just mentioned the fact that I thought our MPs were being really, very silly by trying to ban the concert, I get our dear Mr. Anon arguing at how he didn't like what I said. Well, the truth is, the are unfortunately a number of people who are with our MPs on this, and who believe banning a singer was the right thing to do. This isn't a reply to you, Anon, but it's a reply to all Islamists who believe our country should turn into a mini Saudi Arabia, all those who believe our MPs have a job to enforce their religious extremist beliefs on us, and is a direct message to all our MPs to stop their stupid antics and do the job they were hired to do. Anon, you mentioned that Bahrain is supposed to be an ‘Islamic Country'. Well allow me to say that really has no relevance; countries don't go to heaven or hell, countries don't get judged under of the eyes of God. People do. It doesn't matter how ‘Islamic' you try to make a country, it won't affect the people in it; the good people will be good, and the bad people will be bad, regardless of where they live. … Now let's jump back to our MPs. Trying to ban a singer? Bahrain has ISSUES, guys! From unemployment problems, to housing, to corruption, to figuring out who stole what from where.. We didn't hire you to do religion, we hired you to do politics. But you guys focus on a bloody singer, and you're giving me Islam as an excuse? Islam is about behaviour, actions, and what's inside your heart first before anything else. Things banned are only a small part of it, but you've turned it into a HUGE issue. When you guys sit in a parliament session swearing at each other, that's not Islamic. When you guys skip a session to fulfil your own agendas while the people who trusted and elected you wait, that's not Islamic. Hell, when you try to do a job you're unqualified for, sitting on your butts earning a salary that you don't deserve, that's not Islamic. So get off our backs and start doing your jobs, or resign and let someone whose qualified to create progress do them.

And in a follow-up post, Ammaro has some disappointing news for the MPs:

Here's to our MPs and everyone else trying to ban Haifa Wahbi thinking THAT will solve all our morality issues. A big slap in the face for you, Manama has been ranked as the NUMBER EIGHT sin city in the world.

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Bangladesh: Bangla Blogs remember May Day

Aparna Ray · 15:37

lingua → bn · mk · sq · mg

This week, the Bangla blog world buzzed with essays and analysis regarding May 1st, remembered the world over as International Workers' Day or Labor Day.

There was disappointment amongst many of the bloggers who felt that the day, over time, had perhaps lost its true meaning and was seen as just another holiday. According to Zukrufa, many employers were paying lip service to the memory of May Day by organizing seminars, sports and magazine articles on the issue and showing the workers a lush dream of what their life could be like. However, those same employers were not actually making any changes in the way workers were exploited by the system and thereby denied their well-deserved rights.

Syed Amiruzzaman sees this as a ploy to keep the working class deluded so that they can be exploited, not only by the employers, but also by political parties and trade union leaders. In Amader Kotha (Our stories), a Bangla blog which is part of Narijibon project in Bangladesh (a Rising Voices grantee), Aysha Khatun writes how even today the workers in Bangladesh's garment industry are very much exploited and have to put in minimum 12 hours labor to get paid 8 hours' worth. Also, these workers, she tells us, are made to work through holidays and probably were working even on May Day.

Kowshik Ahmed points out the plight of workers in various fields and raises a question about their rights and ‘job security'. Blogger Suman Chowdhury however sees hope and says that just as there is exploitation on the one hand, on the other hand there is the indomitable spirit of the labor class and the will to protest and get their rights. He calls for unity among the workers across the globe.

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Tajikistan: Electricity in Exchange of Salaries

Vadim Sadonshoev · 04:51

lingua → mk · sq · mg · es · zht · zhs

The mayor of Dushanbe and Chairman of the Tajik Parliament's Upper Chamber Mamadsaid Ubaidulloev proposed a strange way to raise funds for construction of Rogun hydropower station - one of the biggest energy projects in Tajikistan. He calculated all salaries of the Dushanbe residents and drew a conclusion that if all of the working people in the city give up half of their wages in May and June, it will constitute about $10 million. The power plant reportedly requires about $1 billion more, but in fact nobody knows the real amount of money necessary for completion of the construction. (more…)

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