Due to a canceled flight, I unfortunately missed most of Day One, but was able to attend (and speak on) the day's final panel, with Egyptian blogger Ahmed Bahgat, Brazilian journalist Pepe Escobar, Farhan Janjua, Ahmed Al Omran, and others.  Each blogger took a different approach, touching on issues from their country (or country of focus), with particularly interesting presentations from Bahgat and Janjua.

Bahgat, who tweets as @bahgatia, discussed–among other things–the issue of military trials in Egypt, emphasizing the ways in which the military crackdown on free expression has affected bloggers, mentioning in particular Maikel Nabil's forced move to a mental institution.

Janjua gave a more positive picture of the Pakistani Internet, showing an excellent video (by @Rabiagarib and @CIOPK of CIO WebStudio) on Pakistani social media statistics:

On Day One, bloggers also noted that, despite a high volume of tweets, the conference hashtag (#blogmundofoz) had not made it to Brazil's trending topics. Many accused Twitter of censorship (note: Twitter has explained that trending topics are not based purely on volume, see this post for a detailed explanation) and, in protest, have begun adding the hashtag #ocupatt (Occupy the Trending Topics) to their tweets:

A tweet from @BlogMundo

There was also a discussion on Libya, with questions from the audience. Pepe Escobar and another speaker discussed the Brazilian anti-intervention movement (there will be a protest in Rio de Janeiro against NATO on November 3).

Day Two: Blogging in Latin America

The second day of the conference started with a robust discussion on blogging and social networking in Latin America, a region that tends to be underrepresented in global conferences of this type, which often focus heavily on blogging in authoritarian or non-democratic countries.

Iroel Sánchez, a Cuban blogger who writes the blog La Pupila Insomne, discussed why he started blogging: “Tired of reading the same lies about my country in the media, I decided to open my own blog … The repercussion of certain coverage of my country reflected the vision of the United States but ignored some of the most important causes.  The media relies on stereotypes about the island but never discuss the causes that produce these situations.”

Quoting Iroel Sanchez

Talking about the value of blogging, panelist Ecuadorian journalist Osvaldo Léon of Agência Latinoamericana de Informação, said: “Building mechanisms and alternatives with anti-hegemonic character.  Today there is a reactivation of the discourse on technological speech in Northern Africa, according to which we want to say that changes in history have happened because of technology and not social change: such as ‘Facebook revolution,' ‘Twitter revolution' et cetera.”

Martin Becerra, an Argentinian blogger and professor, discussed some of the perils of the Argentinian blogosphere:

“I think that the blogs here represent an emergent space and try to give an alternative to the single-direction of information, but have not totally explored this … but I want to talk about some of the risks of these networks: I believe that the social networks make up a unique representation of those that exist in society. Another risk is that blogs and social networks are often grouped by those who think the same…people come together in society with the same or similar opinions about social things. This dogma leaves out anything that doesn't converge into basic agreements that these groups have.”

Nonetheless, he said, “the depths of the blogosphere are greater than those of traditional media.”

Jesse Freeston, a Canadian journalist who has lived and worked in Honduras, started by talking about the Occupy movement that started in New York, saying “There are thousands and thousands of people in North America who are opening their eyes and seeing discomfort for the first time.”

“Occupy is an important word,” says Freeston. “Cyber-activism, on the other hand, is a word that doesn't make sense. It's like cyber-eating; you can't do it virtually. Same with ‘occupy.'”

“‘Homos Interneticas' is a term recently coined by some anthropologists to describe people who no longer no how to do anything outside of the Internet. The world is waiting for us to do something,” Freeston argues, “These machines work like cocaine. I don't know if you've ever met someone who is high on drugs, but they think they're the most important in the room. The sad reality is that we don't tweet or Facebook for just one day, nobody will miss us,” he says, to a hearty round of applause. Freeston says he limits his use of the “drug” (the Internet) to an hour per day.

Discussing Honduras, he notes that the occupy movement really starts in the “south,” from prior movements. He then showed a video he produced for The Real News Network on the 2009 Honduran coup d'état. Honduras has led the world in attacks on journalists since the coup, with fifteen journalists murdered in eighteen months.

Day Two: The Brazilian Blogging Experience

Brazilian activist cartoonist Carlos Latuff, whose work has been regularly featured on Global Voices, particularly throughout the ‘Arab Spring,' starts the Brazilian panel thanking his country for “bringing Latin America here,” stating that Brazil tends to turn its back on the rest of Latin America.

“In the Arab Spring,” says Latuff, “I've used Twitter heavily to communicate with people in Egypt.”

Latuff then addresses the topic of ‘Twitter revolutions', stating: “Twitter, just like Facebook, is an instrument or a tool, just like the Internet is just a tool, just like a Molotov cocktail or a mobile phone is a tool - and people use the Internet to accomplish their goals.”

He explains his own history as an activist cartoonist, stating that his 1999 trip to Palestine solidified his work in the solidarity movement. He then addresses why he started drawing cartoons about other Arab countries earlier this year:

“People in Palestine contacted me before the protests in Egypt and requested I draw cartoons for them. I was afraid that the Egyptian authorities were going to kill them all. But on the 25th, protests began, and the cartoons I had drawn were often printed and shared during protests. It gave me the confidence that I was producing artwork that has relevance for people. This is what leaves me the happiest as an artist.”

“People say I'm an activist and not a cartoonist, as if those things couldn't come together,” says Latuff. “I don't care about being promoted as an artist - even if people removed my name, I'd still be happy. I'm not interested in money; anyone can reproduce my cartoons.”

“I have 50,000 Twitter followers, and many of them are from Egypt. No one knows me in Brazil; it's amazing how many Egyptian press interviews I've done,” says the cartoonist. (Note: I transcribed much of Latuff's talk here).

Following Latuff's talk, there was a robust discussion of the role of the blogosphere in Brazil, with panelists showing frustration at the mainstream media, accusing it of plagiarizing the blogosphere on numerous occasions. To that end, Conceição Oliveira calls for “the democracy of comunication in Brazil,” a call met with heavy applause.

“We have Facebook, blogs, Twitter…we just need to maximize their potential and do something amazing like they did in the Arab Spring,” says Leandro Fortes, a journalist with CartaCapital and blogger with the national commission BlogProg.

Closing Thoughts

In the closing panel, speakers discussed media regulation, a hot topic at the moment in Brazil. The panel featured Paulo Bernardo, the Brazilian Communications Minister; Jesse Chacón, the former Venezuelan Communications Minister; Damian Loreti, a member of the commission that drafted Argentina's media law; and Blanca Josales, Peru's Communications Minister.

Brazil's draft media law has sparked a polarized debate, with some–including major companies and activists–saying that the bill threatens free expression, and others (including some publications) defending the bill.

The conference, while interesting, could have benefited from greater interactions between participants. To that end, organizers should consider making the second meeting more participatory, offering breakout sessions or unconferences. Furthermore, the gender diversity on the panels was disappointing; many contained no women, while the total count of female speakers (myself included) was about three. Nevertheless, the organizers succeeded in bringing together a really interesting group of individuals from all over Latin America and the world, and should be congratulated.

Next year's conference, for which Itaipu has already promised funding, is already being discussed, and I have agreed to take part in the international planning committee to ensure greater global participation.

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US-based and US-affiliated telecom companies, which is to say, nearly all telecoms that offer service in the Caribbean, face severe restrictions in the US- Cuba embargo legislation, and this has put Cuba in a fundamental disadvantage for decades when it comes to telecommunications.

Scaffolding on a building in Havana. Photo by Sergio Falleti.

President Obama pledged to eliminate these restrictions in 2009, but has made little progress on his promise. In a July/August 2010 editorial in Foreign Policy, Christopher Sabatini summarized the current legislation, which remains too restrictive to allow US-affiliated telecommunications companies to conduct any business on the island, whether it be selling hardware or software, or building new infrastructure. He remarked that with the current policy:

…there's little room for any real U.S. business activity that could link the island to the Internet and provide citizens with the tools of communication. Instead, the provisions only allow for the donation of these items, rendering a critical foreign-policy objective to philanthropy.

The only reforms that have actually been made allow for individuals living outside of Cuba to pay for cell phone handsets and roaming service for Cuban family members and friends on the island. While this has made a difference for thousands of Cubans, the island could gain greater opportunities to access digital communications technologies if President Obama were to further liberalize or eliminate restrictions on telecom companies. He could do this by executive order.

There is no guarantee that the Cuban government would allow US-based or US-affiliated telecoms to conduct business on the island, even if they were free to do so. But by lifting these restrictions, the Obama administration could cease to stand in the way of increasing digital and telecommunications access for Cubans, and put the political ball in Cuba’s court.

Mural in Havana. Photo by Sergio Falleti.

While the US continues to postpone reforms, Telecomunicaciones Gran Caribe of Venezuela has proceeded with plans to build a submarine fiber optic cable linking Venezuela’s Caribbean coast, Cuba, and Jamaica. How this will change Internet use in Cuba remains unclear, but it is certain that it will help to further strengthen the diplomatic and political bond between Cuba and Venezuela, an already very sharp thorn in the side of the US government. This could incentivize the Obama administration to pursue further liberalizations, but it hasn’t yet.

Many in the US-Cuba policy community believe that President Obama is running out of the time and political capital necessary to make reforms to the embargo. After Tuesday’s midterm elections in the US, the blogosphere was alive with commentary on the election of soon-to-be Florida Senator Marco Rubio, a GOP and Tea Party magnate and the son of pro-embargo Cuban émigrés. Rubio is adamant about “holding the line” against Cuba.

Anya Landau-French, at The Havana Note, writes that with Rubio in office:

The level of pro-embargo, anti-engagement speechifying, floor-side colleague arm-twisting and bipartisan sign-on letter-writing and hand-wringing will certainly amp up.

Given the changing tide of Cuban-American opinion on US-Cuba relations, will this make a difference? El Yuma predicts that Rubio’s influence on US-Cuba policy (and US politics on the whole) will be formidable, telling readers:

Do not underestimate him or the potential of his wide appeal to American voters outside of the Cuban-American community and outside of the state of Florida…

Whether or not Rubio’s victory will impact President Obama’s decisions regarding executive order-tied reforms, the political climate for change towards Cuba may be growing cold. Phil Peters, of The Cuban Triangle, remarked on the narrowing opportunities for Obama to create meaningful reforms to the embargo. Referring to the recent market-oriented economic reforms in Cuba, Peters wrote:

If President Obama doesn’t respond to incremental changes in Cuba with incremental changes of his own, his offer will at some point become a dead letter, and idea of constructive influence in Cuba….will be empty.

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Ordinary netizens were outraged, and Syrian users fought back, blogging about the restrictions and calling for entrepreneurship in the community. Now, two weeks later, SourceForge has announced a change in restrictions that would allow greater autonomy for projects hosted on the site. On their official blog, SourceForge directors explained:

Our action provoked a strong, angry reaction from those it affected and from the community at large. But even before we heard your cries of outrage, we were looking for reasonable alternatives – and we believe that we’ve found one.

We have no way of knowing exactly which projects should trigger a block. But each project’s leadership is positioned to make such determination – so we’ve placed that power in their hands.

Beginning now, every project admin can click on Develop -> Project Admin -> Project Settings to find a new section called Export Control. By default, we’ve ticked the more restrictive setting. If you conclude that your project is *not* subject to export regulations, or any other related prohibitions, you may now tick the other check mark and click Update. After that, all users will be able to download your project files as they did before last month’s change.

We at SourceForge are fully committed to the ideals of free and open source software, including the principle of free exchange of information. We recognize that, for some people, the recent site changes called into question whether your support of us is justified. The changes that we deployed today are intended to empower our projects and reward your continued trust.

It remains to be seen how the new strategy will affect SourceForge users, or how many projects will choose to turn off the restrictions, but for now, users are happy to have regained access to the site.

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Spanish blogger Rosa Jiménez Cano, who works at the Spanish news daily El País, reported that she received the following SMS text meessage from Yoaní around 2am Madrid time:

Fui detenida junto a Orlando L. Pardo y Claudia Cadelo nos llevaron a la fuerza estilo siciliano. Golpes. Nos dejaron tirados en una esquina.

The morning after the events, Yoaní posted the following account on her blog:

Cerca de la calle 23 y justo en la rotonda de la Avenida de los Presidente, fue que vimos llegar en un auto negro –de fabricación china– a tres fornidos desconocidos: ‘Yoani, móntate en el auto' me dijo uno mientras me aguantaba fuertemente por la muñeca. Los otros dos rodeaban a Claudia Cadelo, Orlando Luís Pardo Lazo y una amiga que nos acompañaba a una marcha contra la violencia. Ironías de la vida, fue una tarde cargada de golpes, gritos y malas palabras la que debió transcurrir como una jornada de paz y concordia. Los mismos ‘agresores' llamaron a una patrulla que se llevó a mis otras dos acompañantes, Orlando y yo estábamos condenados al auto de matrícula amarilla, al pavoroso terreno de la ilegalidad y la impunidad del Armagedón.

Me negué a subir al brillante Geely y exigimos nos mostraran una identificación o una orden judicial para llevarnos. Claro que no enseñaron ningún papel que probara la legitimidad de nuestro arresto. Los curiosos se agolpaban alrededor y yo gritaba ‘Auxilio, estos hombres nos quieren secuestrar', pero ellos pararon a los que querían intervenir con un grito que revelaba todo el trasfondo ideológico de la operación: ‘No se metan, estos son unos contrarrevolucionarios'. Ante nuestra resistencia verbal, tomaron el teléfono y dijeron a alguien que debió ser su jefe: ‘¿Qué hacemos? No quieren subir al auto'. Imagino que del otro lado la respuesta fue tajante, porque después vino una andanada de golpes, empujones, me cargaron con la cabeza hacia abajo e intentaron colarme en el carro. Me aguanté de la puerta… golpes en los nudillos… alcancé a quitarle un papel que uno de ellos llevaba en el bolsillo y me lo metí en la boca. Otra andanada de golpes para que les devolviera el documento.

Yoaní's post goes on to describe further brutality inflicted on herself and Orlando, and their eventual release:

Nos dejaron tirados y adoloridos en una calle de la Timba, una mujer se acercó ‘¿Qué les ha pasado?'… ‘Un secuestro', atiné a decir. Lloramos abrazados en medio de la acera, pensaba en Teo, por Dios cómo voy a explicarle todos estos morados. Cómo voy a decirle que vive en un país donde ocurre esto, cómo voy a mirarlo y contarle que a su madre, por escribir un blog y poner sus opiniones en kilobytes, la han violentado en plena calle. Cómo describirle la cara despótica de quienes nos montaron a la fuerza en aquel auto, el disfrute que se les notaba al pegarnos, al levantar mi saya y arrastrarme semidesnuda hasta el auto.

At the time of writing, Yoaní's post had attracted 1,412 comments.

Claudia also quickly entered her version of the incident on her blog:

We refused to get in the car, there were three of them and they threatened us:

‘Get in the car, now.'
‘Let us see your documents, or bring a policeman.'

Orlando had his cell phone in his hand. ‘Pardo, don’t record,' said the one in the orange shirt, and I got my cell out. Nobody noticed me, I sent the first Tweet… In less than three minutes a patrol car came up with a couple of cops—a woman and a man—completely dumbstruck by the scene. The carried out their orders almost in slow motion, the woman told me:

‘Don’t resist.'

‘They are undocumented,' it occurred to me to enlighten her.

Yoani was clinging to a bush, I was clinging to her waist, and the woman was pulling me by the leg. They had already dragged Orlando off, outside my field of vision. A man at the bus-stop looked on with an expression of terror, people didn’t say a single word. The officer, very young, got me in an armlock that immobilized me. I could have kicked a little but I was too astonished at seeing Yoani’s legs sticking out the rear window of the State Security car.

Her post goes on to relate the chain of events in great detail, but she ends on a triumphant note:

Then the first call came, with a 00 international prefix, and I knew nothing had been in vain, even if we had all been arrested and the march suspended. When, later, I saw the video that Ciro brought me, I knew for certain: They lost; it's the countdown.

Commenting on the incident, diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense expresses some surprise, since “those of us overseas who presume that because Yoani, Claudia and the others are so well known, the Castro dictatorship would never dare arrest them.” Yet arrest them they reportedly did. He continues:

Of course, we should never be surprised at what the regime does when it comes to trying to silence its opposition on the island.

And we should never underestimate the importance of the protection we provide every time we read one of their blogs. Obviously, it doesn't provide them absolute immunity, but it is conceivable that someone like Yoani Sanchez would have a long ago been locked away in the Castro gulag were it not for the fact that she is so well known.

What you provide them with each click is the moral support vital for their continuing struggle for freedom.

Meanwhile, Babalu Blog, after publishing the story as breaking news, kept updating the post as more details became available, including an 8:15 am entry showing evidence of physical abuse via a photo that was sent to Penultimos Dias by Orlando Luis Pardo. Cuban American Pundits‘ John R. learned of Yoani's detention from Babalu and goes on to comment:

It can only be said that the Cuba Governement is afraid, and that these heirs to Cuba's future are extremely brave.

The blog also searched mainstream media sites to determine how big the story was and was disappointed to learn that “the only thing CNN is covering on Cuba is how Miller Beer and Haagen Dazs ice cream may be sold in Cuba — for a premium nonetheless. As Cuban citizens are sequestered and beaten for their exercising of free speech, Chicago food (and other companies) are negotiating how beer and ice cream are to be sold on the island.” (CNN eventually went on to cover the story of the bloggers' seizure.) The post goes on to comment on the U.S. economic embargo against the island, saying:

For those who claim that a new era has dawned on Cuba should take a close look at the incident that happened with a peaceful group of Cuban bloggers. Nothing has changed. Oppression remains in the cities while luxury and freedom exudes in the resorts.

I don't know about you, but I'm no longer eating Hagen Dazs ice cream nor drinking Miller beer.

Oswaldo Payá of the Movimiento Cristiano Liberación issued a statement expressing solidarity with Sánchez and other victims of repression. My big, fat Cuban family is also standing in solidarity with her Cuban sisters:

I have the supreme luxury of writing about anything that excites or amuses me at any given time. And I do.

Today I want to make you aware if you're not already, of a group of dissident bloggers presently under fire for blogging in Cuba.

Unlike me, they write about the everyday indignities of living in castro's gulag. You understand, of course, that in a communist country, dissension is not just discouraged, it is oftentimes attacked.

Yet these brave bloggers persist…Tonight, Yoani Sanchez and a group of dissidents were picked up, harassed, detained and beaten as they prepared to attend, ironically, a demonstration against the use of violence.

They knew and called her by name and forced her into a car where she figured that this was a kidnapping which would end in her execution. Although she and her dissident companions were beaten severely they were subsequently released.

Her safety lies here. On blogs like mine.

Along the Malecon gives some background to the incident and firmly believes that “the legend of Yoani Sanchez grew Friday after Cuban authorities snatched her off the street, shoved her into a car and roughed her up before freeing her”:

Luis Eligio, of the counterculture group OMNI-Zona Franca, and two rappers organized the march. On Oct. 20, Sanchez was one of more than 10 bloggers who staged a ‘virtual protest' using Tweets, cell phone text messages and blog posts to call for the release of political prisoners. All this puts the socialist government in a tough spot. The more force authorities use, the easier it will be for opposition activists to recruit followers. These incidents also help galvanize international support for Sanchez and other bloggers. This support grows at an exponential rate, colonizing cyberspace and making it difficult for the Cuban government to effectively counter.

In a separate post, the blogger highlights the views of those who are a tad sceptical about the whole event, one of whom is Cuban journalist Vladia Rubio Jiménez, who writes in her blog:

Francamente, me resulta bien oscuro el asunto. ¿A partir de ahora seremos testigos de “espontáneas” marchas de protesta? ¿Contra qué violencia estaban pronunciándose esos muchachos con sus abstractos carteles? ¿Sería contra la que está ocurriendo en Afganistán, Honduras, o contra lo acontecido en la más importante base militar norteamericana donde un enloquecido disparó y dejó muertas a 13 personas y varios heridos?

She continues:

Por lo que leo, parece haber sido una manifestación organizada sobre todo a través de algunos blogs, entre ellos Octavo Cerco; y también me asombra ver las posibilidades tecnológicas de que disponen: teléfonos celulares, rápidas conexiones a Internet que incluso les permiten subir los videos… En ninguna parte dice con claridad quién convocó esa marcha.

Yohandry's Weblog echoes her sceptisicm:

Pero bien, Claudia Cadelo dejó este vídeo en su blog. No comprendo cómo pueden subir sus videos a Youtube tan rápido, pero allí está. Ella misma por Twitter dijo que no había llegado hasta el performance, además de que explicó que estaba detenida.

Cómo pudo hacer Twitter detenida, cómo subió el video desde un carro de la policía?

Entra en acción Yoani Sánchez. Ahora bien, Yoani Sánchez cuenta a las siempre listas agencias y emisoras que tienen la misión de cubrir sus actividades lo ocurrido con ella y otros bloggers que se encaminaban al performance, quizás con el objetivo de provocar, nadie sabe.

Les dejo la grabación, ¡esos medios tan ágiles al servicio de Yoani! Adelanto que cuenta que ella tiene celular, computadora y seguirá haciendo Twitter, cosa que no acabo de comprender, cuando ella misma dice que no tiene libertad para trabajar en Cuba.

Y yo esperaré ahora la otra versión de lo ocurrido. Como dice el dicho, siempre hay un ojo que te ve.

Social media users are certainly keeping a close eye on developments. Even as Claudia tweeted about the incident, apparently while it was happening - “Estoy detenidaabout 22 hours ago from txt” was her first entry - her Twitter followers have shown their support, with one user calling her “muy valiente” (”very brave”).

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Sánchez received a summons notice, which she photographed and published on her blog, for her to appear at a local police station. Her appointment with government officials took place last Wednesday, and immediately following the event, she posted about the details:

El encuentro es breve y el tono enérgico. Somos tres en la oficina y el que lleva la voz cantante se ha presentado como el agente Roque. A mi lado, otro más joven, me observa y dice que se llama Camilo. Ambos me anuncian que pertenecen al Ministerio del Interior. No están interesados en escuchar, hay un guión escrito sobre la mesa y nada que yo haga los distraerá. Son profesionales de la intimidación.

El tema me lo esperaba: estamos cerca de la fecha para el encuentro de blogger que, sin secretismo ni publicidad, hemos estado organizando desde medio año y ellos me anuncian que tenemos que suspenderlo. Media hora después, cuando ya estábamos lejos de los uniformes y de las fotos de líderes en las paredes, reconstruimos aproximadamente sus palabras:

“Queremos advertirle que usted ha transgredido todos los límites de tolerancia con su acercamiento y contacto con elementos de la contrarrevolución.Eso la descalifica totalmente para dialogar con las autoridades cubanas.

La actividad prevista para los próximos días no puede ser realizada.

Nosotros, por nuestra parte, tomaremos todas las medidas y haremos las denuncias pertinentes y las acciones necesarias. Esta actividad, en los momentos que vive la Nación, de recuperación de dos huracanes, no será permitida.”

(translation of Sánchez' post by Babalú blog)

Sánchez was not the only blogger to be summoned by government officials. Claudia Cadelo of Octavo Cerco [es] also received an unexpected visit by the police. She writes about the surprise in her post titled “Me too!,” where she also posts a photo of the summons:

Con Reinaldo Escobar en el teléfono, aún sin conexión, y enterándome por él de todo lo ocurrido, no tuve tiempo a expresar mi frustración ante la anulación de nuestro primer encuentro de bloggers, pues en ese mismo momento un policía tocó a mi puerta para entregarme mi respectiva citación:

Presentarse mañana en la estación de policía de Zapata y C a las 2 pm.

Cadelo posted a photo of herself holding the summons, smiling, flashing a peace sign and a sign in the background ironically saying “I Love Minint” (Ministry of the Interior). The image drew the attention of Enrisco del Risco, who sees the photo as a sign that “times are changing” and writes [es]:

La sonrisa y el orgullo con que enarbola un papel que cada vez da menos miedo. El desafío y la complicidad. Y ese cartel al fondo que lo dice todo diciendo lo contrario con una gracia reservada para cosas menos serias. Los tiempos cambian porque ella sabe que no está sola, que ahora mismo mirando esa foto –con un punto de angustia, es cierto- estamos todos nosotros.

In spite of the warnings from government officials, Sánchez says that the meet-up will go on as planned. In a recent AFP news article [es], Sánchez writes that these types of intimidation tactics by the government only draws more attention to her blog and an increase in traffic. She also thinks that the summons was excessive since the meet-up was not political in nature, and that the bloggers was an informational gathering to learn about techniques and share experiences.

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He says:

I chose the six countries in the book because they are routinely referred to in the West as “enemies” or “allies” of Washington and we were rarely gaining true insights into life for average citizens, away from stories about “terrorism”. I wanted to talk to bloggers, writers, dissidents, politicians and citizens and hear their stories, removed from “official” perspectives.

Antony attended the Global Voices Summit 2008 in Budapest as a panelist. You can find several references to Global Voices in his book.

Here, Antony presents his book on You Tube:

I interviewed him about the book:

Q: Before starting your trip to Iran, you wrote that you were skeptical that the internet on its own can bring real revolutionary change to this country. What do you mean by revolutionary change? And what do you think now?

The concept of revolution is a fluid term. I met few people in my travels that wanted great shifts in their country. My book profiles a number of dissidents and bloggers across the globe who are striving for political, social and moral change – including Saudi Arabia’s most famous blogger, Fouad Al-Farhan, recently released from prison for challenging his nation’s nepotistic rule - but they recognize that only a tiny minority of citizens would join them in massive upheavals.

The internet cannot on its own bring large change, but it can facilitate and empower people to find their voice and campaign openly. No technology has existed before the web to do this. I don’t idealise the internet, nor believe Western-style democracy is the goal of people in the countries I visited. Foreign meddling is largely resented, though opening up the lines of communication with Westerners is welcomed.

In Iran, after nearly thirty years of revolution, most young people I met were exhausted; what they don’t want is to be bombed by the US or Israel.

Q: You quoted an Iranian journalist who worked with international news agencies, and said that foreign media in Iran are only interested in nuclear issues and Al–Qaida. Don't you think it is the same in other countries? After all, Iranians are more interested in the US elections than the American health care system. How do you see the role of blogs in covering the less “hot” issues in Iran?

Western media is currently in a massive crisis of confidence. Resources are declining, fewer journalists are being employed and localism is being celebrated. It’s therefore not surprising, though regrettable, that so many stories in our press about a place such as Iran is obsessed with Ahmadinejad, terrorism, Iraq or human rights. These are all vitally important issues, but they don’t define the place.

My book reveals a side of Iran that is rarely seen in our terrorism-obsessed media.

Living in Sydney, Australia, I see daily the obsession with the US election, as if we all have real influence over Barack Obama or John McCain’s campaigns.

Blogs in so-called repressive regimes cover issues that time-constrained and narrow Western journalists usually do not. For this reason alone, they should be discussed and promoted.

Q: Are there any real commonalities between the Iranian, Egyptian, Syrian and Saudi Arabian blogospheres, or any radical differences?

The Iranian and Egyptian blogospheres are large and growing, and influencing the political process. The regimes, recognizing this, are increasingly imprisoning bloggers and activists to try and silence them. International solidarity, from other bloggers and certain governments, is making the job of repressive regimes more difficult. Imprisoned bloggers won’t be forgotten.

I was impressed with the depth and diversity of the voices in both Egypt and Iran, something I feature extensively in the book, from the left to the right, women, activists and Islamists. Frankly, this scene is far more engaged than in many Western nations.

In Saudi Arabia, the blogosphere is less developed though still remains active. Censorship of “pornographic” sites is limited, though the regime is starting to fear the power of activists. Reading female bloggers – as a gender they’re actively marginalized in society – is refreshing if we want to understand this previously “silenced” group.

Q: What were the biggest challenges you faced writing this book and doing your research?

Gaining full access to some of the countries was challenging. Investigating the role of Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and other Western multinational firms and their collusion in web censorship in a state such as China. Protecting my sources was equally important. I took precautions before I contacted bloggers in most countries and when I arrived there.

A key aim of the book was to move away from the traditional role of Western journalist as a filter of quality. In every featured country, my perspective is unavoidable, of course, but I was determined to redefine my position in relation to the people I was interviewing. Their voices were far more important than mine.

Q: What do you think about the role of Global Voices in helping people learn about unheard voices? Any ideas for how to make Global Voices more efficient?

The strength of Global Voices is its ability to educate readers across the world about different countries and cultures, often issues and perspectives ignored by the myopic Western media. Language remains a key problem, however. More effort should be placed into finding connections between the West and the rest because the internet is currently a space where these two worlds rarely interact.

Written by Fred Petrossian · comments (1)
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El Diario de la Resistencia II and Cuba File quote from the Reuters story:

Sanchez, whose critical Generacion Y blog received 1.2 million hits in February, said Cubans can no longer visit her Web page (http://www.desdecuba.com/generaciony/) and two other home-grown bloggers on the Web site on a server in Germany.

All they can see is a “error downloading” message.

The Cuban Triangle, however, in touch with friends in Cuba, reports that “the site was blocked, then ‘a slow access' was permitted.” But this “slow access” does nothing to change the opinion of El Cafe Cubano, who compares Raul Castro's regime to apartheid:

While the media and some bloggers are praising raulita like he's some sort of saint or the catalyst for FREEDOM. He's using the Chinese model FOLKS! Wow computers are available now, but no one can afford them and as you can see the internet is restricted.

Blog for Cuba adds:

What will Cubans do with all those new computers? One thing for sure, they won't be reading Cuban blogs that voice dissent. Raul the reformer, remains Raul the Oppressor.

Blue Star Chronicles is not at all surprised, but admits to being a little confused:

Don’t the progressives (aka communist) of our country just love the current Cuban form of government. I keep hearing how superior it is to ours. I keep hearing how they have a better medical care system, etc. Of course, the people who say that are almost exclusively well-to-do latte liberals who don’t have to live under the confines of a petty dictator. I’ve not seen a one of them actually move there.

Tim Worstall echoes his sentiment in this post, while TonyTeri.com acknowledges that “it takes extreme guts for her (Sanchez) to write about what she does. She actually has to roam about Cuba blogging from hotels and other areas with Internet access usually reserved for foreigners.” Underscoring this point is 1Click2Cuba:

Blogging in Cuba can get you in a heap of trouble (translation: jail), but that threat hasn't stopped hundreds of bloggers on the island determined to get their messages out. Lately, Cuban bloggers have taken to dressing like tourists, feigning accents and secretly using hotel internet lines (native Cubans aren't allowed inside tourist hotels). Once inside the hotel, Yoani Sanchez has to write fast. Not only because she fears getting caught, but because online access is prohibitively expensive. An hour online costs about $6, the equivalent of half of what the average Cuban make in a month. Independent bloggers like Sanchez have to build their sites on servers outside Cuba, and they have more readers outside Cuba than inside.

Readership in fact extends to other Caribbean territories and Child of the Revolution notices that “the attempt to effectively shut down the sometimes critical blog has received wide coverage in the international media, in outlets as diverse as The Sun Sentinel and the Left-leaning London daily, The Guardian.”

Jefferson Lives posts a thoughtful perspective on the situation, saying:

I have always found it fascinating that each country can have its own laws regarding something that is supposed to be the World Wide Web. Understandably it is tough to regulate something on a global scale. However, valuable information and potential freedoms are being violated repeatedly by restricting freedom of the press and freedom to post on a global scale. This begs this question, in an arena without borders, is Cuba violating essential rights for citizens in the US by restricting this website for all to see, or just their citizens?

…while Uncommon Sense asks:

Looking for an easy way to stick it to the Cuban dictatorship?
Visit Generación Y, the most popular Cuba-based blog.

Written by Janine Mendes-Franco · comments (2)
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