Russia blacklists hundreds of websites

Russia blacklists hundreds of websites

A law came into effect in Russia on November 1, allowing the government to block access to websites without needing to obtain a court order. The law is aimed at protecting children from pornography as well as web content that encourages drugs use or suicide. There is no official register of the blacklisted sites, but the government has opened a portal where web users can check to see if specific sites are on it.

Russian web users have been expressing concerns over the system. Numerous Russian web companies, like the search engine Yandex or blogging platform LiveJournal, had voiced opposition to the bill before it was approved by the Russian parliament back in July, saying it would fuel Internet censorship in Russia.

The site Lurkmore for example has been added to the blacklist. The satirical Wikipedia style site is very popular with Russian web users, and includes an entry on Vladimir Putin, describing him as the “botox president”, in reference to rumours he has undergone plastic surgery.

Activists from the Russian Pirate Party have been gathering information on and names of site that have, in their opinion, been blocked illegitimately. The so called “white list” also provides web users with alternative access to these sites. 

Thousands call for Nobel peace prize for Malala Yousafzai

Over 110 000 web users have signed this petition posted to the website change.org last week, calling for a Nobel Peace Prize for Malala Yousafzai, the 15 year old girl who was shot by the Taliban in Pakistan in October. The document has been translated into several languages, and urges political leaders the world over to nominate the young activist, as under the Nobel Committee’s rules, only prominent figures such as members of national assemblies and governments are able to make nominations.

Social networkers have also been busy campaigning for a Nobel Peace Prize for Malala. Twitter users have been voicing their support under the hashtag #Nobel4Malala and several Facebook groups, like this one, have been started campaigning for the teenager’s bravery and courage to be ‘officially’ recognized by the international community.

The United Nations declared November 10, “Malala Day”, and events were held in her honour over the weekend, all over the world, like we see here in Pakistan, when hundreds of men, women and children gathered to show their solidarity with the teenage girl and reiterate their desire to see her awarded the Nobel Peace prize.

Malala meanwhile is still at the London hospital where she has been receiving treatment since October 15 and where the Pakistani schoolgirl was recently reunited with her family. The hospital has been providing regular updates on her progress and her slow recovery via the Internet.

Now trending on social networks

Faced with financial ruin, the historic and now debt ridden Spanish football club Real Oviedo is asking for help from the general public… it needs to generate close to 2 million euros before November 17 to avoid liquidation. How can you help? By buying shares. Several former players have already acquired theirs and are encouraging web users to do the same. Investors from all over the world have already become part owners and the club has raised over one million euros so far.

Star Wars origami

On the site "Starwarigami" you can learn how to make origami models of the starships, cruisers and battleships featured in the Star Wars saga. Yes, there are dozens of models on display, with very detailed instructions, so you can make your very own spacecraft.

Video of the day

This video about Poland and some of its biggest cities was made using the tilt-shift technique which gives the impression you are looking at a miniature scale model. It puts a unique perspective on the magnificent landscapes and architecture just waiting to be discovered or rediscovered in Chopin’s homeland.