Feminist talk

“A Facebook status can get you arrested faster than killing someone now”

Posted Fri 23 Nov 2012 - 11:36 | 11,421 views
In India, the largest democracy on Earth, 21-year old girl Shaheen Dhada was arrested for posting a status update on Facebook questioning the complete shutdown of cities for Bal Thackeray’s (rightwing leader notorious for inciting religious hatred and violence) funeral on Sunday, 18th November. Her friend Renu Srinivas was also arrested for “liking” the update which reportedly read: "People like…

Feminist talk

Censorship walks, a feminist view of the Internet Governance Forum

Posted Thu 15 Nov 2012 - 15:05 | 8,548 views
A big hangar, with a constant voice asking people to wear headphones and talk to each other through the microphones, an internet network that does not allow participants to be online simultaneously, with an average of only one person out of three being able to access full online services and the other two struggling with their different devices to reach out, comment and communicate what is…

Feminist talk

Autocracy 2.0 at the Internet Governance Forum

Posted Thu 15 Nov 2012 - 15:00 | 33,615 views
This is my first IGF, I have sneaked into the arena of Internet Governance during the WSIS. At that time I decided to retire and be a distant witness. This year I am here, listening, learning, observing and exercising my right to express my visions, my active feminist citizenship - which was censored today (7th Nov.) in the workshop 89 room 8 by the “aggressively moderate” Robert Guerra.

Feminist talk

Human rights must be encoded into the fabric of internet governance dialogues

Posted Wed 14 Nov 2012 - 06:27 | 5,745 views
This is the transcription of Valentina Pellizzer 's speech at the closing ceremony of the 7th Internet Governance Forum (IGF), which took place in Baku, Azerbaijan from 6th to 9th November, 2012.

Feminist talk

The Uprising of Women in the Arab World censored by Facebook

Posted Tue 13 Nov 2012 - 10:57 | 7,691 views
On 10 November, the page of The Uprising of Women in the Arab World posted that Dana, the Syrian woman whose photo was censored by Facebook, was restored after a call for support against Facebook censorship of her photo.

Feminist talk

Censorship in South Africa: Protecting or policing?

Posted Mon 18 Jun 2012 - 07:44 | 10,972 views
The Spear is a painting that depicts the African National Congress leader and South African president Jacob Zuma in a rallying pose, with genitals exposed. It has caused controversy and been defaced. Images of the painting have gone viral on internet. In late May 2012, the South African Film and Publications Board classified the painting, as "16N" - not suitable for people under the age of 16…

Feminist talk

Bargain basement shopping in the information society

Posted Tue 15 May 2012 - 06:19 | 11,362 views
When I saw this quote on Mozilla's new Collusion website: "If you're not paying for something, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold - Andrew Lewis." I felt it summed up the economics tool box session on Commodification of Knowledge that APC led at the 2012 AWID Forum quite nicely. The session, organised by APC, brought together speakers to spark debate and reflection, but the…

Feminist talk

Liberation Inc. – more reflections from the AWID Forum

Posted Sun 22 Apr 2012 - 07:02 | 6,634 views
I spent a full day yesterday focusing on the intersection of feminism, activism, and Information Communication Technologies (ICTs). And I kept running into the same women (the feminist Twitterati?). And these women were mostly already known to me from my own work on the issue. This worries me a little bit. Could it be that there are so few feminist / female Techies in the world that we all know…

Feminist talk

Filtered by the state, inspired by Gita Sen

Posted Thu 19 Apr 2012 - 17:00 | 7,788 views
Today Gita Sen said “we are in a fierce vicious unequal new economic world where battlegrounds are many” and a few hours later in the session on “Commodification of knowledge: how increasing access and availability of the internet had transformed the way knowledge is produced and shared” a participant made us notice that “We were being watched." And it's true behind the gorgeous beauty of…

Publication

Submission to the Universal Periodic Review of the Republic of South Africa

Posted Wed 4 Apr 2012 - 09:31 | 7,415 views
This joint submission from APC, CALS, CIVICUS, Gender Links, Highway Africa Chair in Media and Information Society, IDASA, ODAC, Right 2 Know, SANGONet, Section27, and SERI focuses on freedom of expression, the right to information, freedom from censorship; freedom of the press, the right to privacy, and the importance of affordable access to the internet in South Africa. The submission…