politics
10/01/2012 / FRANCE
Six French citizens share their hopes and opinions on the 2012 presidential elections
As France’s presidential elections quickly approach, we asked our Observers in France to share what issues they would like to see take centre stage during the campaign. Read more…
23/09/2011 / CHINA
Modern-day Maoists worry Chinese authorities
A group of Maoists commemorating the 35th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s death in the northern Chinese city of Taiyuan was violently broken up by police. Chinese authorities have no patience for these Mao-lovers, who seem to have forgotten the former communist leader’s authoritarian streak and retained only the idyllic vision of a fairer society. One Chinese Maoist gives us his account. Read more…
05/08/2011 / RUSSIA
Russian anarchists fight capitalism with fire
In Russia, anarchists are increasingly attacking symbols of capitalism and authority by setting them on fire. These arsonists, linked through a secretive network, say they are ready to do whatever it takes to get their message out. We talked to one of them. Read more…
04/08/2011 / LITHUANIA
27/07/2011 / RUSSIA
‘Sexist and ridiculous’: feminists blast Putin’s big-breasted ‘army’
You won’t find guns or tanks in Putin’s Army, but you may see a fair amount of bare female flesh. This new Russian activist group is composed exclusively of young women using their looks to lobby for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s re-election as president. The initiative has many other Russian women fuming. Read more…
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30/06/2011 / CHINA
Chinese officials win ridicule for Internet's worst doctored photo. Ever.
Three government officials in China’s Huili county, in the south-west Sichuan province, brought fame to their little corner of the country after publishing a doctored image of them inspecting a new road earlier this week. The image, which was poorly touched up, quickly became a popular source of Internet derision as the world’s worst-doctored photograph. Ever. See the photos...
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07/06/2011 / AFGHANISTAN
With a little jihadi kitsch and some gangsta iconography, Afghan artist ‘runs’ for parliament
When Amanullah Mojadidi, a US-born, Kabul-based Afghan artist, ran a parliamentary election campaign combining elements of jihadi kitsch with a gangsta style, Afghan authorities were not amused. Read more...
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06/06/2011 / TUNISIA
Graffiti artists show their support for the Tunisian revolution
There’s something new going on in the streets of Tunisian cities: graffiti art. Since the fall of former president Zine el Abidine Ben Ali’s government, Tunisian street artists are reclaiming public spaces that were once tightly controlled by police and secret services. Read more...
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04/06/2011 / IRAN
Did Iranian security forces kill opposition activist Haleh Sahabi?
On June 1, hundreds of people gathered in the Iranian city of Lavasan to pay a last homage to the late Iranian opposition leader Ezzatollah Sahabi. His daughter, Haleh Sahabi, a feminist and political activist, had been released from jail especially for the occasion. Yet in a tragic turn of events, she suffered a fatal heart attack after armed forces blocked the funeral march. Read more...
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31/05/2011 / IRAN
Footballer's funeral kicks off protests
Dubbed ‘The Legend’ by Iranians, Nasser Hajazi, Iran’s best defender but also a major symbol of opposition to Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government, died on May 23. His massive public funeral gave anti-government Iranians a rare chance to speak out in public. Read more...
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