The blogosphere is concerned about the spread of cholera in Haiti

CHOLERA AND VIOLENCE SPREAD ACROSS HAITI 

Tension in Haiti: the country has been hit by a serious outbreak of  cholera, and some Haitians have turned against the “blue helmets” , demanding they leave the country. They accuse MINUSTAH of bringing the disease to Haiti and there has been an outbreak of attacks over the past week. These attacks have sometimes turned extremely violent as we see in these amateur images filmed in Cap Haitien and they are hindering the administration of aid to the sick.

The cholera continues to spread, and according to this blog that has been monitoring the sanitary conditions in Haiti ever since the January 12^th earthquake, the situation is becoming increasingly alarming. On the blog, there is an account from a doctor who is concerned about the lack of medicine and material available to wipe out the epidemic. 

The Pan American Health Organization is also sounding the alarm bells and has notably created this online interactive map so that people can follow developments on the outbreak. They have also posted this data base online that catalogues the different medical centers and the number of people they can treat.

As we see in these online videos from Doctors without Borders, the centers are now completely overloaded. Every day 150 sick people arrive in this treatment center which only has 120 beds. 

And in view of the situation, four of the presidential candidates in the election that is due to take place on the 28th of November have asked for the ballot to be postponed. But the electoral campaign continues regardless. Candidate Michel Martelly, a local singer who is highly popular with the younger generation, brought in a huge crowd for a rally on Saturday that was broadcast live on Twitter.

EGYPT: KAREEM AMER IS FREE 

Egyptian blogger Kareem Amer is free. He was sentenced in February 2007 for insulting Islam and President Hosni Mubarak on his blog and this cyber activist spent 1470 days in prison. The blogosphere had mobilised huge support during his captivity and has hailed his release.

As soon as his sentence was passed, a huge solidarity movement in support of the blogger was set up online. A Twitter thread and Facebook groups were created calling for his release. And as we see in these photos and other online videos, numerous rallies were organized on a regular basis all over the world to raise international awareness on the bloggers fate.  

A blog devoted to his cause campaigned for his freedom and asked web users to maintain pressure on the Egyptian authorities. The blog is delighted that Kareem is finally free and thanks all those who fought for him over the years. 

NGOs and « Reporters without Borders » in particular are delighted about Kareem’s release from prison. Reporters without Borders still considers Egypt as an enemy of the Internet and has launched an appeal to the authorities, asking them to stop repression of web users, saying they believe free speech online is a beneficial step forward for society. 

According to this Human Rights organization, their appeal is not likely to be granted in the near future. On its website it explains that another Egyptian blogger Ahmed Hassan Bassiouny is accused of disclosing secret documents via the Internet and must face a military tribunal. His crime: creating a Facebook page offering advice and information on army recruitment.

CONSTANT DULLAART 

Dutch net artist Constant Dullaart is shaking up our web browsing habits by depicting the web’s state of mind. When a web user connects to different addresses, the web starts moving around, the interface moves from left to right to show that the Internet is saying no or the page starts rotating when the Internet is in doubt. Dullaart is trying to change what we are used to seeing when we surf the net. 

VIDEO OF THE DAY 

Following on from throwing cans into a bin or table tennis balls into a glass, here is the new trendy online sport: throwing a baseball cap onto your partners head. These two young men are already experts and have made this demonstration video.