When Egyptian-American journalist Mona Eltahawy was briefly detained–and beaten–by Egyptian authorities (read her account of that here), there was a concerted and fast-moving effort by her Twitter followers and friends online to quickly mobilize a solidarity campaign for her release, followed–post-release–by much discussion as to whether or not the campaign had actually helped. In Eltahawy’s case, I would wager that her relative fame and dual citizenship played a larger role than anything done online, but the global attention certainly didn’t hurt (for more on this, Zeynep Tufekci has done some fascinating analysis).

Tufekci hints that a campaign like #FreeMona or #FreeAlaa (Abd El Fattah) can improve the situation of other imprisoned Egyptians but doesn’t ask the question of whether campaigns like those can help lesser-known bloggers. As she points out, both Eltahawy and Abd El Fattah are well-known, sympathetic figures. Both received ample attention both from inside and outside of Egypt (by contrast, note how the campaign for Maikel Nabil has lagged). And yet, lesser-known bloggers are regularly made the object of solidarity campaigns: All it takes is one friend, one family member, or one sympathetic blogger from their country to throw up a site and get some attention on Twitter or Facebook. It may take longer, but evidence shows that the majority of these campaigns do result in significant attention. So, the question then, is this: Does that attention really help the individual?

I’ve been wondering this myself for some time, having been involved in numerous solidarity campaigns, including ones where the family of the detainee was somewhat uncomfortable with the campaigning, despite having given permission. There are times when the family or friends think a campaign might make the blogger’s situation worse; in most such cases that I’ve seen, they give in after a few weeks of no changes. Though I don’t think there are any conclusive answers as of yet, I’d like to share what little evidence I have come up with (some of which is, unfortunately, anonymous) to further the discussion.

First, we have a recent interview with Alaa Abd El Fattah, an Egyptian blogger and personal friend who was detained for 56 days, and released on December 25. In it, Abd El Fattah says [ at approximately 11:47]:

They knew that they couldn’t torture me because of the solidarity and the media attention, so they just made sure to try to use every other measure to put me at discomfort or add psychological pressure. But every other person arrested in the Maspero incident were tortured severely, and torture is still very systematic at police stations and in prisons.

In this case, there’s obviously very little to get excited about: Individuals without the benefit of global campaigns were still tortured, and Abd El Fattah was still detained for 56 days and made uncomfortable. And yet, he believes that the solidarity saved him personally from torture.

An account from Razan Ghazzawi’s blog also suggests that Syrian blogger Hussein Ghrer (whom, I should mention, is not well-known outside of the Syrian blogosphere) received better treatment after his case was amplified by the international blogosphere and media:

The 32 year-old blogger was kidnapped in Damascus in an ambush on 24-10-2011 and was taken to security services branches in Al-Khateeb and Kafaقsouseh, then was transferred to Adra prison, a prison that is considered by activists and revolutionaries as “haven” in comparison to security services, or worse, Air Intelligence service- a place where worst kinds of torture is practiced against detainees.

Ghazzawi, detained from 1-19 December, also stated that the campaign on her behalf was helpful in securing better treatment:

A tweet from Syrian blogger Razan Ghazzawi.

Azyz Amami, who was detained in Tunisia in January along with Slim Amamou, recalls that he and Amamou also later declared, on Tunisian television, that the international campaign for their release was helpful.

And speaking to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Azeri journalist Eynulla Fatullayev credited international campaigns with saving his life and securing his release.

I have also interviewed–on the condition of anonymity–three other people who have been detained in various countries, and who have been the subject of solidarity campaigns. Each said a variation on the same theme: That they were treated well, and sometimes even given special privileges, because of their status. One mentioned that it bothered him that the same treatment was not extended to his fellow detainees, a reminder that being a blogger is a position of privilege in its own way. Similar to his sentiment is that expressed by recently-released Bahraini blogger Zainab Al-Khawaja, who tweeted the day of her release:

Zainab Al-Khawaja expresses a desire to give attention to lesser-known cases in Bahrain

Al-Khawaja’s sister, Maryam, had also previously suggested that international support was the reason Zainab was not arrested at an earlier instance:

A tweet from Maryam Al-Khawaja suggesting that international support has been beneficial to her sister

But all of the bloggers I’ve spoken to individually have emphasized the importance of permission from family and/or friends before starting up a campaign (a recommendation cited in a recent post I co-wrote for EFF and Global Voices Advocacy). This isn’t always an easy thing to do, of course, and in some cases, may result in no campaign at all (if friends can’t contact family members, for instance).

There is also, I might add, evidence that some campaigns don’t help at all. Take, for example, that of Tal Al-Mallouhi, the teenaged Syrian blogger now imprisoned for two years, for allegedly spying for a foreign government. Despite ample international outcry, including from such prominent organizations as Amnesty International, Mallouhi remains in prison following an unfair trial. On the flip side, a lack of international attention can be detrimental, as Zainab Al-Khawaja points out:

Zainab Al-Khawaja feels that international attention is crucial

Ultimately, the only definitive takeaway from these cases is that authorities are paying attention to them. And that alone is enough to suggest that, in most cases (taking into consideration a blogger’s personal circumstances), solidarity campaigns that draw on international media are beneficial, if only minimally.

So, how can bloggers who are not as well-connected as Abd El Fattah or Eltahawy ensure that their name won’t be forgotten? At a recent event I spoke at in Istanbul, incidentally, a Turkish blogger asked me just that question. My short response at the time was–and I stand by this–to plug in to international networks, something which social media has made incredibly easy. The aforementioned EFF/Advox post puts forward some other recommendations, but I have no doubt there are others, and I look forward to whatever discussion this might generate.

Some background: Tunisia is preparing to write its constitution, and both political parties and independent “lists” (made up of groups of candidates) are vying to be part of the constitutional assembly. Everyone on this panel is either running themselves, or working with the various constituents to ensure diverse representation.

Riadh Guerfali begins: “Our objectives as bloggers included changing the world around us, pushing for democratic institutions…With these new opportunities, our values are the same, and can be supported from different angles and perspectives,” says Riadh Guerfali, opening the panel. The elections will not change everything, says Guerfali, noting that their fight will continue. “We’re working heavily with the Internet, trying to make Internet access a right for every Tunisian citizen; we must also find a solution to censorship of the Internet,” he says. “Now we can see why a blogger, doing this work, is a citizen above everything else.”

Khadraoui then turns to Amira Yahyaoui: “On your website, you define yourself as being devoted to bringing down Ben Ali. Now how do you see your role?”

Amira Yahyaoui: “Is it more important to present an economic and social project for Tunisia or is it more important to draft a constitution; looking at the parties and even independent lists, we see they’re focusing on how many bridges and hospitals they’ll build…I believe these things are important, but in spite of that, what’s more important is to see what will go in the constitution. This will not be Ben Ali’s constantly-amended constitution, but a stable constitution that will not be changed. It’s important for me to participate in the drafting; that’s why independent lists must be included. Being independent means we are not hampered by the parties which force us to write things that ‘seem to have to be written’ in the constitution. For example, the constitution has to stipulate how politics will be run in Tunisia, and how political parties will work during the campaign.”

“For me, it’s important to have a constitution for citizens, not for political parties,” she concludes. “I am running for this office particularly for that reason; when the campaign started, I decided to run, late compared to some other independent candidates. We wanted to wait and see what other parties were presenting…we looked at their programs. To answer your question quickly: ‘Do we, people of the Internet, have a position?’ My experience was that I hated having a blog; I felt that the Internet space, and free expression was an easier struggle than what was happening on the street. We don’t just live in the Internet, we want to live in our country.”

Malek then turns to Tarek Kahlaoui: “In your blog you’ve always been involved in politics; why did you choose an independent list rather than join a party?”

Tarek Kahlaoui: “We used to only know each other through Skype; this is the first time I’m meeting Amira face-to-face. I’m happy to be here. This would not have happened without the political developments that took place in Tunisia, and that had an impact on everyone. From the social science perspective, we need time to understand if there are really any political parties in Tunisia; the parties that were being constructed under the Ben Ali regime could only be shaped after the revolution, based on polls. Most of these parties only drafted their programs in the last few months. These parties are still being built, are still young and taking their first steps. The rest of the political scene is still dazzled and taken aback by what has happened. Nobody expected the revolution, not even the most optimistic among us expected it to happen so fast.”

“This sense of bewilderment has stalled our thinking,” Kahlaoui says. “I have lots of colleagues who struggled in political parties, which is why I’m not a part of it. When I look at these parties, I can’t deal with the idea of taking a top party position; I would consider it disrespectful to those parties to take such a position, and when I look at people who weren’t involved in politics or were on the side of regime but have now become revolutionaries, out of respect for these old parties, I feel that I need more time before I can join one. All the parties lack the ripeness or maturity for me to join them. That’s the brief answer.”

Malek then turns to Mehdi Lamloum: “You are one of the most well-known bloggers; you didn’t deal much with politics but you had some reach within a particular circle of networks. How did a blogger like you, who was not political, turn out to run for the constitutional council?”

Mehdi Lamloum: “I’m still not talking about politics on my blog. When we got to the point of having to run for the council, I had no chance of making the list. I started to give up, but with the demonstration on the 15th of August (where ‘some people had cake and others had police batons’), I had to look for a place to play my role and felt that I had to be independent, and so I joined Youssef Seddik‘s list.”

“It’s very difficult for one list to ensure three seats,” says Lamloum, “But I wanted to prove to the people who knew me that my being with this philosopher is not empty of meaning. I felt that, as a blogger and citizen, I could help this list get to the constitutional assembly.”

Malek turns to Slim Amamou: “Can you see the difficulties facing the independent lists now?”

Slim Amamou: “I’m devoting my time to helping the lists get to the constitutional assembly. The election law should help the small lists, and helps ensure diverse representation in the constitutional assembly.”

“There are four or five parties running in the same district; if one or two of these parties picks up the seats, independents will have no chance,” explains Amamou, “I’m trying to explain why Mehdi says he has no chance of going to the assembly. The election law is set up so that only the top list makes the assembly. If a second list makes it, it will only be after the remaining votes are compiled.”

Malek asks the group: “How did you each come to the conclusion to run? And what difficulties are you facing in your campaign?”

Amira Yahyaoui: “We were not afraid of Ben Ali, why would be afraid of the parties? We knew what to expect, in terms of difficulties, particularly material ones. My list, for example, has no money. Our main difficulty is financial; the second is that we get no media coverage. Our campaign is basically run on the Internet.”

Malek turns to Riadh Guerfali, who is running in Bizerte, and whose party name means “Evacuation”: “How will you work to make contact with those who will be voting for you?”

Riadh Guerfali: “We have to have a campaign, but it is difficult – the first is that it’s difficult to get started on the campaign, the second difficulty came later: For a long time I was wondering whether I should run or not, start a campaign or not…Just starting from the activities that we undertake on Nawaat. Though my candidacy has nothing to do with Nawaat, my platform does. My question was: ‘Can I be more effective if I run for the constitutional assembly?’ I then decided that it was worth it, and began engaging in the election ‘battle,’ as it were. It’s difficult for independents because we don’t have the logistics of the political parties that are represented in every town and region, so we have to work. We have to be active on the Internet, but that’s not enough. I hope that we will achieve something, especially as Amira has said, I think that for the independents, there is some confidence because we’re not playing the political games of the parties. The most difficult thing then for the independents–as our friends in Egypt will also experience–is that the media is giving plenty of time to the parties and is ignoring the independents, despite the fact that 45% of the lists are independent.”

Tarek Kahlaoui, who is running in Ben Arouss says that “There’s a lot of trade union activity there, so the parties closer to the left will get more votes. It’s very difficult to run a campaign against these well-established parties. And if you don’t have young people at the head of the lists, these parties won’t be trying to get young people to the assembly. The revolution was a revolution of youth, and yet the parties aren’t working to get young people to the front. The one way that will get you somewhere is direct contact with people.”

Malek asks Mehdi: “What can a third place person on a list to do ensure that their list gets a seat.”

Mehdi Lamloum: “There are 93 lists, and in some cases, the third on a list has a better chance. The groundwork is incredibly important: Despite having no financial means, we have to deploy ourselves and go door-to-door. But the most important part is that we’re convinced by what we’re defending.”

“Despite the fact I used to rely upon social media, I told people that in this case, Facebook will not be of much help. It’s like opening a tap with a full flow of water: you can never get enough water in your mouth. On the ground, we need to be closer to the people.”

Malek asks: “You have just mentioned something; you have experience dealing with social networks and you can make a difference. But from what you’re saying, social media is not enough to make a breakthrough, particularly for an independent list. What can we do to change the media and how it deals with the elections? We have twenty days left.”

Tarek Kahlaoui: “What should we do? I think we should insult television and radio stations, they’re ignoring 45% of us.”

Slim Amamou adds: “This isn’t the only problem; people are actually trying to buy candidates; these people are against independent candidates, as if independents are themselves a party. We know, however, that they’re independent, totally, and not affiliated with any party. I think independents should make a bloc.”

Riadh Guerfali says: “We are going to contact media and TV.” Malek asks, “Are you going to have a sit-in or what?” Riadh responds, “There are 45% of us, how are we going to be ignored? … I will write, I will publish widely about this issue, and tomorrow, anyone who has made enemies of independent candidates, should not rely on us. Finally, I would like to say I have entered these elections without a political action program within a political party but I think one of the good things is that after the 23rd of October, even if the independents don’t have sufficient voters, they’ll have the last word.”

To clarify, Malek says that they could be some kind of arbitrator between the other parties.

Amira Yahyaoui disagrees with Riadh Guerfali that independent lists should unite. “I am independent because I think the constitution needs to be drafted according to citizen wants. We will defend ideas; not a set of ideas, but idea by idea.”

Mehdi Lamloum: “Forthcoming politicians have one thing in common: They will be held accountable. These bloggers are the politicians of tomorrow. You have seen the cameras here, they belong to a very well-known Arab TV station.”

With that, Malek closes the debate, as we’re running late.

Session One: Rebecca MacKinnon

The inimitable Rebecca MacKinnon, co-founder of Global Voices and free expression expert in her own right, opened the day with a talk not all that dissimilar from her recent TED talk. The premise of Rebecca’s talk–as well as her upcoming book–is the fight for a citizen-centric Internet, rather than one controlled by governments. She, like I, has particular focus on the role of companies (Rebecca is also a founding member of the Global Network Initiative), and today discussed the role Tunisians–whom she says have just hit the “reset” button–could play in introducing new and innovative regulation that is citizen-focused.

Session Two: Tweeting the Revolution(s)

The second panel featured Ahmed Al-Omran (@ahmed), Hisham Al Miraat (@__hisham), Manal Hassan (@manal), @RedRazan, and was moderated by Nasser Weddady (@weddady). I unfortunately was unable to connect to the Internet during the panel, but @nmoawad, @techsoc and others did a great job of live-tweeting in English.

The main premise agreed upon by all panelists was the role that Twitter was less an organizing tool, and more a tool to allow users to draw a bridge between journalists/mainstream media and the people/citizen journalists. One major point worth noting, and agreed upon by Manal and @redrazan, is in respect to objectivity: citizen journalists, they emphasized, need not be wholly objective. They’re involved, it’s only natural that their views and reports will have a slant.

I can’t emphasize this point enough: I often hear MSM mainstays claim that to be the problem with the blogosphere; on the contrary, I believe that no one is truly objective, and that I would rather see an admittedly subjective player reporting his/her surroundings than a Tom Friedman sputtering bullshit without knowledge of the country he’s in. Of course, there are wonderful mainstream journalists–I’m not a hater, so to speak–but citizen journalists provide a complementary view. Both MSM and citizen journalism are needed in the ecosphere.

Session Three: Moez Chakchouk, President of the Tunisian Internet Agency

“Even if we wanted to censor, we’d have to consider the court decisions – there was a court decision in an appeals court without any prior references. We need to change ATI, make it an IXP, and provide more transparency.” — Moez Chakchouk, President and CEO, ATI

Moez Chakchouk is the president of the Tunisian Internet Agency (ATI). I recently interviewed him for a forthcoming piece, and his talk today was within the same framework: how to build up the ATI as an Internet Exchange Point (IXP) whilst ensuring that the ATI is neutral and free of censorship. He offered considerable detail on the goals and accomplishments of the ATI thus far (which I’ll spare you here, as it’s included in my upcoming piece – well, and because I couldn’t see the slides well enough from my position in the back row!)

Moez also, as Nasser Weddady put it, “[blew] a huge hole in tech companies’ claim that their equipment sale to repressive regimes [are] in good faith.” Tunisia long used SmartFilter (owned by McAfee/Intel) to censor the Internet and continues to do so (though at a very different level: see my post here). Slim Amamou (@slim404) commented afterward on the sale of surveillance and censorship equipment by American and European companies to foreign regimes, particularly Tunisia.

A little background: The ATI was long an enemy of Tunisians; charged with censorship and surveillance under Ben Ali, it was a feared agency, its practices referred to widely as “Ammar 404,” in honor of the 404 error users received when trying to access a blocked site. Post-revolution, the options were to shut down Ammar 404 and the ATI, or leave the ATI open as a semi-government agency, charged with being Tunisia’s IXP. Moez and others have faced several attempts to shut down the Internet, but continue their fight for an open and neutral Internet.

Session Four: Zeynep Tufekci on Networked Activism and Democratic Transitions

Zeynep, an associate professor at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and fellow at the Berkman Center, is presenting on the role of networked activism post-revolution.

“How did these regimes remain in power for decade after decade despite opposition?” Zeynep asks to start. She notes the struggles faced by long-term activists, as well as the perception that regimes cannot be brought down. “Once the floodgates open, as they did in Tunisia,” she says, “People realize they can bring a regime down. Revolutions can happen.”

Zeynep recognizes the years of preparation by both Egyptians and Tunisians, but explains that everyone here understands that and that, rather, she wants to bring experiences from other post-revolutionary states to Tunisia. She notes the utility of the new media ecology in expressing the unknown; like Sami Ben Gharbia has said, Tunisians were aware of corruption and human rights violations, but leaks and activism confirmed it.

“How does new media play a role in organizing a new society?” Zeynep asks. “More participation and more democracy are not identical, and new media can even increase polarization, create more conflict. Free speech doesn’t automatically translate into other values.”

If you start with free speech, Zeynep notes, it’s only the first step – there are complications and expression is not a magic wand. She takes us through the post-revolutionary processes in the French Revolution, as well as in Iran and Eastern Europe, noting that in all cases, transition was not straightforward and often took years, or even decades. “Sometimes you have to keep going back, back, back. Revolutions are not moments.”

“The biggest danger facing us is a failure of imagination,” she concluded.

Cynthia Wong of the Center for Democracy and Technology introduces the next breakout panel, entitled “Online free expression and the cat and mouse game between bloggers and governments.”

She introduces the session by mentioning the issues of bloggers, governments, and company responsibility, then calls on respondent Esraa Rashid from Egypt to introduce the relevance of this issue in her region.  Rashid believes that we can achieve democracy by using the Internet as a tool, but notes that governments, such as the Egyptian Mubarak government wants to remain in power and continue to suppress the rights of its opposition.  ”The government is so scared of those who can oppose them online, such as the activists on Facebook.”

Esraa Rashid notes the example of Khaled Said, a young Egyptian activist who had taken a video of police officers dealing drugs.  He was at a cyber cafe attempting to upload his videos and photos when police kidnapped and beat him, killing him in the process.  Witnesses took photos of Said’s body, spreading it online.  In the end, the police were held culpable, a major achievement in Egyptian activism.

Rashid believes that the Egyptian government would like to get rid of all of Egypt’s bloggers, but thinks that the US net freedom initiative can be helpful in bringing attention to these issues.

She also notes the reception for potential presidential candidate Mohamed El Baradei, noting that his prominence has also risen due to Internet discussions and campaigning.

Cynthia Wong turns the discussion to Ivan Sigal, Executive Director of Global Voices.  He notes the relationship and differences between online and “traditional” activism.  He says that it’s difficult to generalize about these campaigns but that, contrary to traditional activism, online and blogging efforts are often coming from a non-institutional basis, from individuals without links to NGOs or labor movements.

Sigal notes the example of a house in China where the family was asked to move, whilst an excavation occurred.  The family refused, so the company dug around them, leaving the house intact; this incident brought land rights into the mainstream as a bigger issue.

He asks: “How does an idea like this turn into a movement, or should it?”  He notes the relationship of bloggers and citizens to a “vocal anti-professionalism” and a conception of being citizens, rather than members of an organization, thus making it very grassroots, and opposed to tradition.  Sigal views this grassroots activism as a challenge to traditional concepts.

A third point Sigal makes is the idea of ideas and themes going “viral” online, a concept sometimes called “slacktivism.”  Sigal thinks there’s another way of viewing this; that an idea may have more importance than simply a single voice. Just because an idea isn’t driven forward by a traditional campaign mentality doesn’t mean it’s not a good one.  Sigal notes that ideas are sometimes implemented beyond their original spheres, and that this may have broader implications.

Wong opens up the discussion as an open one for the group, and asks, based on our own experiences, what do we see as the main challenges and obstacles for online activists and bloggers.

Wael, a Jordanian blogger, notes that he took a workshop from an experienced lawyer with specific experience in Jordan, and states that understanding government and legal loopholes is important.  He says that, as governments and regions use their own rules against bloggers, it becomes more and more important for bloggers to understand and utilize the laws as well.

Rita Chemaly, a Lebanese researcher and blogger, jumps in to say that, when causes exist online, many people often join on to them, but are not participatory.  Her question is, “how, in the public sphere, can we change good arguments into political action?”  She also notes that, since Lebanon’s recent president came to power, her Facebook page and blog are reported if she talks about them, and there’s a risk that she can be arrested [note: Lebanon does not block websites].

An audience member from Vietnam asks if bloggers should get paid for working.  She elaborates to say that perhaps bloggers should be funded, that they need a better environment.  She says that bloggers need better expertise and professionalism, and that perhaps civic volunteers are the best to help train them.  She also notes that slacktivism is a negative phenomenon, but that in a closed society, people don’t really have the chance to speak up publicly, so clicking “like” is controversial.  She sees this as a positive development.

In response, Sigal notes that traditional activists often have a stronger sense of the risks they’re taking, whereas people new to activism may find that the risks they’re taking are not reasonable or rational.  He notes that it’s important to articulate goals, and assess risks and concerns.

Regarding slacktivism, Sigal notes that a lot of online organizing is not about structural change, but cultural change, and that some people seek a structural indication of success, but that he sees that as a narrow assessment (using the Armenian protests of last year as an example).

A blogger from the Philippines notes that the government at first viewed them like everyone else, but that they began to view them as threats sometime after.  Bloggers there did not have a unified voice, but as they tackled common issues, they were seen as “speaking one language.”  They tried not to be too confrontational or negative, with awareness that those tactics had not worked in the past.  He says that his blogging community meets once a year to discuss how to further engage the rest of the population, government, and media.

Susan from Internews asks the blogging community what the role of development and funders is.

Mohammed Abdullah, a blogger who works for HRW and has experience arrest (as have members of his family), says: “What is not said is that blocking is not the issue; the biggest threat is blogger arrests.  That is pushing bloggers to practice self-censorship or stop blogging entirely.”  He also notes that every country is different, and that in Syria, because of Emergency Law, you go to prison if you say something wrong, whereas in Lebanon, where rule of law exists, bloggers are rarely held.

Wong jumps in to ask if there’s any role for organizations in blogger campaigns.

[I responded to say that, noticing that most campaigns are bottom-up and grassroots, a) I don't think organizations shouldn't fund bloggers, but that it's important for consent and awareness to be a part of it and b) we need to focus beyond simply "Iran and China" and look to other countries as well.  Biased organizations, lobbies, and power can be an issue.]

Anas Qtiesh jumps in to add that in protecting bloggers, Tor does a great job, but there’s a need for faster, better programs that provide both circumvention and anonymity infrastructure.

Nasser Weddady notes that he’s worked on numerous campaigns, and that the campaign for Ali Abdulemam is successful because we have a large, diverse group with different skills.  We limited the group, and included people with specific abilities (e.g., media, writing, etc).  Weddady thinks that these campaigns have grown in success; Khaled Said is a great example of grassroots activism without traditional, political actors.  ”This in itself is a massive breakthrough.”  On the negative side, Weddady notes that what is relevant is that some of the fundamental questions remain: Why do some countries get more attention than others?  He notes that it’s not simply political agendas, but also outside biases from analysts of the region.  Weddady sees outside organizations’ desires to get involved as an opportunity, and agrees with the idea of training for skills.  ”Those that reach a certain level of growth, capability, and connections.”  He notes that connections were what have helped Ali Abdulemam most.  ”When you have hubs, you get coverage beyond the Arab world.”  He notes that Western media is likely to cover before local or Arab media, thus hubs get results.  ”How can we produce more hubs evenly across the Arab states?,” asks Weddady.

Wong asks if he has any suggestions for building hubs.  Weddady notes that it’s undeniable that the flourishing of civil society in the Arab world puts them in a place to receive attention (and possibly funding) from foreign NGOs.  The question then is what can we do moving forward?  He says that with a lack of internal culture to fund such initiatives, outside funding can be necessary.

Weddady also notes that Arabs are at the forefront of the fight and that Arabs have skills, they just need support: from the media, for capacity-building, but not for strategic planning.

Wong takes the mic again to raise the subject of corporations and what kinds of roles they can play.

Rashid notes the role of the Egyptian government in limiting the creation and reach of NGOs.  Mohammed Abdullah notes that in Lebanon, the government is begging for projects, while activists in Egypt and Morocco, for example, can’t get funds.  He also notes that, regarding whether or not bloggers should get funded, it’s a matter of influence: grassroots, volunteer bloggers have no rules, no restrictions, and no regulations.  He also agrees with me that organizations’ incessant focus on Iran and Syria, due to a political agenda, is harming the human rights sphere.

A blogger from Indonesia notes that the problem in his country is the government has started to pay bloggers (as in Russia and China) to write for the government.  In Philippines, it’s transparent, other places it isn’t.

Hisham Khribchi from Morocco notes that there is little contact between blogospheres in each regions.  He suggests a transnational structure to educate people about legislation, as well as ways in which they can help other bloggers in difficult situations.

Anas Qtiesh notes the idea of passively sharing tools with bloggers globally, but also explains that it needs to be done safely.

Angelina from Vietnam talks about speaking up about freedom of expression; for example, Google helped bring coverage to the situation in Vietnam.

Stewart from the Open Society Institute feels that we need to support legal defense funds for people outside of the traditional media network; these funds already exist, but how can we expand them to more communities?

Lhadon from Tibet notes that in the Tibetan context, strategic nonviolence resistance training would be helpful.  She states that we have the capacity but not the training.

Cynthia Wong thanks participants for attending and says we should continue the discussion online.

With some of these writers, I have an intimate relationship – with some, it involves through commenting on each other’s posts or sending behind-the-scenes e-mails; with others, it goes far deeper. And then there are those whose work I read as a stranger, just another anonymous IP address lurking in the shadows. Given that half of the time, I’m using Tor, my identity remains safely hidden from view.

What all of these writers have in common is that each of them intimidates me with their talent and insights. You see, I am a writer – and I rarely doubt my ability in that for a second. But what I lack is the introspection that so many of my compatriots possess. I am, or so I’m told, a wearer of masks, and I must only re-read my own blog to know the truth in that statement. It’s not as if I don’t try – but somehow, the ability to look inside myself was lost through years of containing my feelings so tightly that they spread throughout my soul and covered every inch of self-awareness.

*****

In the so-subtle process of forming our identities, we are rarely aware as one thing changes to the next. Only after the fact are we ever able to look back and determine formative moments – at least most of the time. Occasionally, some such moment occurs and momentarily, you are able to pause the world around you and realize, at least in a very basic way, that that moment is something that will later define you.

It takes two hands to count the number of moments like that I’ve had in the past year.

]]> http://jilliancyork.com/2009/06/15/on-admiration/feed/ 6 http://jilliancyork.com/2008/11/24/free-hoder-2/ http://jilliancyork.com/2008/11/24/free-hoder-2/#comments Mon, 24 Nov 2008 21:36:29 +0000 Jillian http://jilliancyork.com/?p=206 Following my posts here and at the Huffington Post regarding the “arrest” of blogger Hossein Derakhshan (aka Hoder), I realize that perhaps my pronouncements were premature.

Many of you are following this story with skeptical eyes, and I want you to know: so am I. For those of you who aren’t so aware of what’s going on, here’s the breakdown:

A Persian news site, Jahan News, reported Hoder’s arrest last week. Following that announcement, Global Voices Advocacy picked up on the story (clearly putting “arrested” in quotes), prompting activists to contact major media outlets. While the activists had Hoder’s best interests at heart, the media quickly sensationalized the story, and before anyone could blink, the Times Online was reporting that “Iranian ‘Blogfather’ Hossein Derakhshan is arrested on charge of spying for Israel” with other outlets such as Haaretz and Canada’s National Post (which unfortunately quoted me as a news source and not a blog) simply piggybacking on the story.

Yet other sources have kept the story in quotes: Toronto’s Globe and Mail (which I spoke to regarding the skepticism), The New York Times, and prominent bloggers such as Ethan Zuckerman.

Right now, the truth is that we don’t know the truth. With no one to confirm or deny Hoder’s arrest, the best we can do is continue to advocate for him until more details are known.

p.s. Will my faithful readers please write to PostGlobal and ask them to update the facts as well? So far, I have done so without response.

Fortunately, this story has been covered quite a bit. Fortunately, because I’ve covered it in at least three articles and I don’t know that I have any more to say. I suppose I could reiterate my disappointment in Morocco for committing such an offense toward free speech.

Long story short – Blogger Mohammed Erraji was arrested early this week for an article in which he insulted the king; he was rapidly sentenced to two years in prison. A major downhill slide for Morocco.

The whole story is covered on Global Voices. A number of bloggers have said their piece as well; check out Berberus (new North Africa aggregator) for a full listing. Another blogger covering the story who appears to have been left out of the aggregator is A Moroccan About the World Around Him.