Senegal's “Soft Revolution” Makes Change in Digital Space
BY Antonella Napolitano | Tuesday, June 25 2013
Senegalese activist and blogger Cheikh Fall explains how Sunu2012, a participatory platform that he developed to monitor the electoral process during Sengal's presidential election in 2012, reveals a growing “soft revolution” among young activists in Senegal. Read More
PDF France 2013: “Au Code, Citoyens!”
BY Antonella Napolitano | Wednesday, May 15 2013
This year PDF France will take place in Paris on June 13, with the theme "Au Code, Citoyens!" ("To Code, Citizens!") The speakers' lineup includes some of the continent's leaders in the digital revolution. Read More
Finnish Parliament Must Vote on Citizens' Petition for Same Sex Marriage Law
BY Antonella Napolitano | Monday, March 25 2013
Over the course of a single day last week, Finnish advocates of equal marriage rights gathered 50,000 signatures for a petition that proposes granting legal recognition to same sex couples. According to the Citizen's Initiative Act, a modification of the Finnish constitutionthat was passed last year, this is the minimum number of signatures required for a legislative vote: the proposal has therefore been submitted to parliament. Read More
Spaniards Demand Prime Minister's Resignation with Change.org Petition
BY Antonella Napolitano | Wednesday, February 20 2013
"I demand the immediate resignation of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and the calling of elections, as well as the resignation of any member of the People's Party named in the documents who holds office publicly or in the party." That's not an opposition leader speaking but more than a million Spanish citizens who signed a petition on Change.org as a reaction to an unprecedented corruption scandal involving the highest ranks of the government. Read More
Slovenian Pirates Might Be Tested Sooner Than Expected
BY Antonella Napolitano | Wednesday, January 16 2013
The Pirate Party of Slovenia (Piratska stranka Slovenije) started, as in most countries, as a movement focused on digital issues and it has been around for three years now. But countrywide protests against austerity and political corruption — and, possibly, upcoming elections — might force them to test their strength sooner than planned. Read More
Personal Democracy Forum Poland-CEE, February 1-2 in Warsaw
BY Antonella Napolitano | Monday, January 7 2013
Personal Democracy Forum is back in Europe and is going east! After our events in Barcelona, Oslo, Paris and Brussels, we are happy to announce our first conference focused on Central and Eastern Europe, happening this ... Read More
Portuguese Activist Blog Shut Down by Google for Defamatory Content
BY Antonella Napolitano | Wednesday, November 28 2012
Over the past few days, the Portuguese blog Precários Inflexíveis (Inflexible Precarious Workers) has reportedly been silenced and then blocked by Google. The blog was devoted to exposing the working conditions of freelance workers without permanent contracts: Google allegedly shut the blog down because of a complaint made by BF Grupo after the “precários” accused the company of illegal work and tax evasion”. Read More
Iceland Citizens Vote in Favor of Crowdsourced Constitution
BY Antonella Napolitano | Monday, October 22 2012
Last Saturday, the citizens of Iceland voted in favor of the new Constitution, EurActiv reports. The bill was drafted thanks to a crowdsourced process that started a year and a half ago. Read More
In Macedonia, a Draft Law on Defamation May Lead to Online Censorship
BY Antonella Napolitano | Wednesday, October 17 2012
The Macedonian Parliament is discussing a draft law on defamation related to online communication which may lead to strong censorship of online communication, the European Digital Rights reports.
The bill considers online service providers liable for penalties, along with the author, for any damage resulting from offensive or defamatory information the provider has allowed access to, but it fails to provide a clear definition of what a provider is, thus allowing the possibility of an arbitrary judgement. Read More
British PM Cameron Joins Twitter
BY Antonella Napolitano | Monday, October 8 2012
British Prime Minister David Cameron joined Twitter on Saturday afternoon. His account, @David_Cameron, gathered 50,000 followers in the first few hours, the Guardian reports. As of Monday evening, he has more than 96,000. His first steps, though, show some flaws in the communications strategy. Read More