Global Voices Online

The 80th anniversary of the birth of Russian poet and Nobel laureate Joseph Brodsky was marked this year in Russia by an incident on May 25 highlighting the special place writers still hold in Russian political culture. Iosif Brodsky (known as Joseph Brodsky…

Commemorating June 4 is a “battle against amnesia” in Hong Kong Hong Kong has held candlelight vigils to commemorate the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre for over 30 years, but this tradition — like so many cherished by HongKongers — is…

Moscow takes its latest step towards digitising elections In Russia, socially distanced voting has just become a lot easier. Russia’s parliament has passed a law to extend the possibility of “distance voting” — particularly online. The amendments to the country’s…

An interview with Moldovan novelist Iulian Ciocan Moldova lies on cultural, linguistic, and geopolitical faultlines. Until 1991 this eastern European country of around three million was part of the Soviet Union, where Russian was considered the language of prestige. Upon…

As one ‘liberator’ vanishes from sight, another is on the rise The buildup to the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two, marked earlier this month, has exacerbated a longstanding row about how contested historical figures should be…

A propaganda video addressing the country’s “back wave” triggered a backlash Chinese officials are keen to make the country’s younger generation feel fortunate for what it has, and it isn’t difficult to see why. The post-90s generation is the least…

The Izoizolyatsiya Facebook group has become a national obsession In 1868, Fyodor Dostoevsky wrote that “beauty will save the world.” A hundred and fifty years later, that remains to be seen; but one thing’s for certain — it can definitely…

A wave of “digital protests” strikes a country under lockdown Russia is the midst of a strict COVID-19 lockdown. Although protesters cannot take to the streets, they are still holding mass demonstrations — digitally. Today, residents of the southern city of…

Misogynistic violence isn’t under quarantine. Argentina was 10 days into mandatory quarantine as a preventive measure against COVID-19 when women joined forces to protest against the increase in reports of gender-based violence during the lockdown. On March 30, at 6.p.m,…

‘A pregnant girl is a raped girl’ Written by Romina Navarro The only jurisdictions in Latin America where abortion is legal on request are Cuba, Uruguay, and a few states in Mexico. In Argentina, abortion is legal in only two…