Only days before it was set to premier on Al Jazeera English earlier this month, a new film on the nonviolent movement in West Papua was pulled off air by the Qatar-based TV channel – apparently at the behest of the Indonesian government.

Called “Pride of Warriors,” the documentary was inspired by the arrival of 43 West Papuan refugees in Australia in January 2006.

According to Jason MacLeod, a lecturer at the University of Queensland’s Australian Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, who has viewed the film:

Faced with an Indonesian ban on foreign media, [Australian filmmaker Jono] van Hest smuggled six video cameras into West Papua. The result of this unparalleled access into the West Papuan resistance is a film that gets behind the media headlines to give an upfront and personal account of nonviolent resistance in West Papua.

[...]

The film tells the stories of four individuals: Yani, the daughter of an independence leader, who was kidnapped and tortured because of her father’s nonviolent political activity; Matias Bunai, a customary leader from Paniai who is fighting to keep his culture alive; the rebel leader Tadius Yogi who has put down his guns and now advocates a peaceful solution to the conflict; and a group of young dancers who were interrogated by the Indonesian security forces for performing a dance.

[…]

By refusing to screen his film Al Jazeera has come down on the side of a withering of democracy. When it is eventually premiered, Pride of Warriors promises to blend the best of art, politics and investigative journalism. The very act of filming is itself a story of nonviolent action and solidarity with a people determined to be free, highlighting the power of the video camera as a tool for liberation.

In the Jakarta Post, Ary Hermawan suggests that the film was canceled, or at least postponed, because the presidential elections were approaching on July 8, and the Indonesian government saw the documentary as threatening.

While it’s perhaps not surprising, I guess this is just evidence that when it comes to being critical of Muslim countries, Al Jazeera is not as independent as you’d hope.

[Editor's note: This post is revised from a draft that we published earlier today at the author's request. - ES]

We’re number one. The United States has the world’s highest incarceration rate, five times higher than the U.K.’s and almost nine times higher than France’s (p. 35). One in every 99 American adults, or 2.3 million people, resides in state or federal prisons or in local jails. One in every 31 American adults is involved in the criminal justice system, whether parole, probation, or incarceration.

Despite the exceptional number of prisoners in the United States—indeed, because of it—some states have sought to build more prisons. Current prisons are overcrowded, they say. That’s true. Ohio prisons, for example, hold 50,919 people, but have the capacity for just 38,665. It becomes impossible to provide adequate medical, psychological, educational, or vocational services – or focus on anything beyond food, housing, and safety. Violence also appears to rise.

But there’s another, often overlooked, way to confront prison overcrowding. Instead of building more prisons, we need to reduce the number of prisoners. Advocacy groups like Architects / Designers / Planners for Social Responsibility, with their Prison Alternatives Initiative, have highlighted the counter-productive aspects of incarceration. Lawsuits, criminal justice research, and growing awareness of the increasing costs of incarceration, have spread that message.

1. Legal action: Legal groups have used the Eighth Amendment protection against cruel and unusual punishment to challenge prison overcrowding. In California, after the Prison Law Office filed suit, the court ordered the release of 57,000 prisoners.  The Southern Center for Human Rights recently filed a federal class action lawsuit on behalf of prisoners at Donaldson Correctional Facility in Bessemer, Alabama. The facility, designed for 968 people, was holding 1,681 in December 2008, operating at 173.7% capacity. The lawsuit explained:

Because of overcrowding, three men are crammed into cells that were designed for two. These cells measure approximately 8 x 12 feet. Men do not have enough room to sit upright on their beds or to dress. … The smell of feces often permeates the cells, and overflowing toilets back up into adjoining cells. … Prisoners are packed so tightly into cellblocks that the tension and volatility results in weekly stabbings, fights, and assaults.

2. The criminal justice research also challenges the lock’em-up approach. Incarceration appears to have accounted for only a fourth of the decline in violent crime in 1990s. Drug treatment and school completion programs, meanwhile, have proven more successful and cost-effective than incarceration. In addition, incarceration has significant negative effects—such as fraying family ties and destroying employment prospects—that contribute to future criminal behavior.

3. Budget woes. Some states, facing shortfalls, have sought cheaper alternatives such as greater use of probation and parole, and “specialty courts” that emphasize treatment over incarceration for offenders with addiction, mental illness, or DUIs. These programs save money. The Pew Center on the States calculated that nationally, criminal justice costs averaged $29,000 a year for prisoners, compared with $2,750 a year for probationers and $1,250 a year for parolees. Monitoring probationers in the community is 23 times less expensive than locking them up.

The budget-crisis may be an opportunity to finally do the right thing.

[Image from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.]

• Thousands of demonstrators in Honduras marched through the capital on Wednesday to demand the return of ousted President Zelaya, and workers at state-owned companies are planning walkouts later this week.

• Nokia phone vendors in Iran say they have seen sales fall by as much as half, as Iranians boycott the company for reportedly selling electronic surveillance systems to the government in Tehran.

• In Israel, mayors of the Arab municipal councils along with Arab members of Knesset are currently demonstrating in front of the Knesset in protest against the economic straits faced by the councils. In addition, a general strike is being held in the Arab municipal councils.

• For two weeks last month, twenty-six prisoners at Guantanamo staged a sit-in in an open-air exercise yard, refusing to move. The previously undisclosed action was launched over outrage at what the prisoners called humiliating strip-searches following the suicide of prisoner Muhammad Salih.

• After a “weekend of state terror,” trains across Greece came to a halt for 48 hours as a result of a rolling 3-hour stoppage industrial action by railway workers on Monday. At the same time, workers at Wind, the mobile telecommunications giant, in Greece declared a 24 hour strike.

• In India, about 50 sick inmates at the Alipore Central Jail hospital on Wednesday went on an indefinite hunger strike to protest against the unavailability of police vehicles and escorts to take them to the hospitals for treatment and regular check-ups.

• About 100 women from the main opposition coalition in Niger tried to hold a sit-in outside the constitutional court in the capital to protest the president’s attempt to hold onto power, but security forces used tear gas and batons to disperse the group.

• A group calling themselves the Pirates of Justice is urging residents of Vancouver to dress as pirates and converge on Canada Place at exactly 1pm this Saturday to raise awareness of widespread cruise ship exploitation.

Egyptian activists are surrounded by anti-riot soldiers during an anti-government demonstration at the lawyers syndicate in Cairo, Egypt, Sunday April 6, 2008. Many citizens in the Egyptian capital Cairo responded to activists' calls for nationwide action by skipping work or school to protest deteriorating economic conditions. (AP Photo/Hossam Ali)

Strikes in Egypt “have become more commonplace and action has often drawn government concessions,” according to a nice factbox about the labor struggle in Egypt published by Reuters on Monday.

A interesting summary of recent industrial actions in the autocratic country and the responses from firms and the Egyptian government is then provided:

Textiles – A December 2006 strike by thousands of workers in a state-owned spinning factory wins government concessions on pay and bonuses, encouraging a wave of strikes and other protests across Egypt.

Tax – In April 2009, fourteen months after winning a 325 percent pay increase, real estate tax collectors win legal recognition for Egypt’s first independent trade union since 1957.

Transport – Truck drivers in February this year strike over new law banning articulated trailers, pushing up the cost of building materials. The government gives longer grace period to comply.

Health – Pharmacists strike for several days in February over government plan to apply taxes retroactively. The government promises to reconsider. Doctors protest this year after a delayed government response to pay demands. Security forces prevent them from approaching parliament.

Law – In March, lawyers throughout Egypt protest over proposed increase to court fees. Government amends the proposal.

Post – Postal workers have organised a number of strikes across the country since May over wages, job security and a new appraisal system. No clear government response.

Fertilisers – Workers in Suez protest fertiliser exports to Israel. Strike broken and workers deducted 15 days pay.

The conservative New York Daily News had a surprisingly delightful story yesterday about a group of protesters that has been on a busy street corner in the Bronx, registering their dissent against the war in Iraq, every Monday (as long as the weather permits) for the last four years.

With weekly antiwar protests taking place in cities big and small around the country, what made this gathering newsworthy? According to the reporter, the average age of the 19 protesters, who came from the nearby Kittay House for senior citizens, was 87.

Here are a few choice quotes:

They are holding signs reading “Seniors for Peace,” “Senior Patriots Against the War,” “More Funding for the Wounded” and the message that has caused the at-times deafening eruption – “HONK FOR PEACE.”

But the low, raspy voice of 97-year-old Martin Harth, barely audible through the din, utters the ultimate proclamation.

“War is a terrible thing,” he says, shaking his head. “A terrible thing.”

[...]

“It’s time we brought the boys home,” says Jean Sneddon, 94.

Ida Kotowitz, 90, in a beige pantsuit and wearing big, dark glasses, sits in the shade. “I can’t sit in the sun,” she says. “When it’s cold, we don’t come out until the afternoon.” She says she feels good about protesting the war. “I try to do my part,” she says. “We had no business starting it.”

Sarah Schnurr, “93 this week,” one of the charter protesters, holds a sign reading “Make Love Not War,” and raises two fingers in the peace sign.

“It’s Time for Peace,” reads the sign held by Betty Gumanow, whose husband fought in World War II.

Sometimes younger activists – myself included – get down at how few people from our generation come out to protests. And rightfully so. It’s often pretty pathetic given the depth of the crises we face. (The one major exception I’ve found is the annual protest at the School of the Americas, which is dominated by students from Jesuit high schools and universities.)

If we’re not careful, however, this frustration can lead us to discount the value of those from other generations. Yes, we desperately need to find ways to attract more young people to activism and nonviolent action, but we also must always be appreciative of those who have shown us the way and continue to do so even in their older years. May we all never retire our consciences or cease fighting for justice!

• About a hundred workers of Deno Gold Mining Company, a Canadian-owned mining plant in southeastern Armenia, refused to show up for work on Monday morning in what they described as the start of a possible large-scale strike for a pay rise.

• Workers of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) staged sit-ins at their offices on Monday and threatened to embark on an indefinite nationwide strike action next Monday if the Federal Government does not meet their demands for improved pay and enhanced welfare package.

• The London Metropolitan was brought to a standstill yesterday as members of the University & College Union went on strike for the third time in eight weeks in their ongoing fight to save hundreds of teaching posts.

• On Monday, which was the 20th anniversary of the assassination of the Kurdish leader and former General-Secretary of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI) Dr. Abdul-Rahman Ghassmlou, the markets, shopping centres and individual shops all over Iranian Kurdistan were closed due to a general strike.

• As unions representing the staff of the Cyprus public broadcasting service went on strike Monday, TV screens and radios fell silent for four-hours starting at 6pm.

• More than 12,000 postal workers across the UK will go on strike on Friday in protest against cuts at Royal Mail, threatening the worst disruption to deliveries in years.

• Intern doctors in Chennai who have been on strike since July 1, resorted to an indefinite hunger strike on Monday over their demand for higher stipends.

• Palestinian children took part in a protest organised by the Hamas movement in front of the Rafah border crossing, calling on Egypt to open its border with the impoverished Gaza Strip.

• A hunger strike called by 100 Muslim refugees, rendered homeless after the 1993 ethnic cleansing in Bongaigaon, India entered its second day yesterday.

In an op-ed last week in the Christian Science Monitor, Mark Pfeifle, a former national security adviser to George W. Bush, makes the case for the micro-blogging site’s nomination for the prestigious peace award.

When traditional journalists were forced to leave the country, Twitter became a window for the world to view hope, heroism, and horror. It became the assignment desk, the reporter, and the producer. And, because of this, Twitter and its creators are worthy of being considered for the Nobel Peace Prize.

[…]

Without Twitter, the people of Iran would not have felt empowered and confident to stand up for freedom and democracy. They did so because they knew the world was watching. With Twitter, they now shout hope with a passion and dedication that resonates not just with those on their street, but with millions across the globe.

It’s really hard to know where to begin with a crazy story like this. So I’ll just throw out a few thoughts.

First, what is a national security adviser for the Bush Administration doing even writing on this subject, and why did the Christian Science Monitor dignify his opinion with publication? Counseling those in power on when to employ violence rather than nonviolence is Pfeifle’s expertise.

Second, how does giving the prize to a website or technology make any sense considering the original intention of Alfred Nobel? According to his will, the prize for peace was to be awarded to the person who “shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding of peace congresses,” during the preceding year.

While the Nobel Committee has on numerous occasions given the award to organizations that are dedicated in varying degrees to promoting peace – such as the Red Cross, Amnesty International, and the American Friends Service Committee – rather than individual people, Twitter is simply a texting service that happened to come in handy during recent protests.

How Twitter meets any of the other criteria, apart from possibly improving the fraternity between nations (which every other tool of communication does as well), is beyond me. More importantly, however, the site is fundamentally amoral. Therefore, it can and probably is being used to push intolerance, hate and war as well. Just search for your favorite derogatory or racist word on Twitter to get a taste of the garbage that is regularly “tweeted.”

Third, the idea that Iranians would not have felt empowered to do what they did without Twitter truly shows Pfeifle’s ignorance on the history of nonviolent movements. In recent decades, ordinary people have brought down dictatorships and repressive regimes in many countries – including Chile, Argentina, the Philippines, South Africa, Poland, Serbia, and the Maldive Islands, to name just a few –  without violence and without Twitter.

Thousands of Turks protested in an Istanbul square Sunday to denounce ethnic violence in China's Xinjiang province that has killed 184 people and call on their government to intervene to protect Muslim Uighurs there.

Nine anti-war activists were arrested on Sunday for blocking a major military access road for more than an hour and a half to the Talisman Sabre 09 military exercises being held at Shoalwater, central Queensland, Australia.

In the Maldive Islands, residents protested outside a job fair organized by the luxury resort One and Only Reethi Rah for not hiring locals.

British Airways workers are planning demonstrations outside the airline’s annual meeting this week to protest at the firm’s cost-cutting plans, using live lemmings to ram home their message.

Twenty New York human rights advocates captivated Astoria, Queens shoppers today with songs and street theater calling for a boycott of communications giant Motorola until it stops selling products that aid Israel’s army and settlement movement.

Niger’s lawyers said on Sunday they would strike this week in protest at President Mamadou Tandja plan to hold a referendum on extending his rule at the beginning of August.

About 100 residents of Wangkhei in India staged a sit-in protest against militants exploding bombs following the bomb explosion at the house of an engineer of the state public works department on Saturday.

Activists, such as those with Greenpeace, have a different take on the lackluster efforts of world leaders to address climate change.

The New York Times ran a rather peculiar story last week titled  “Disillusioned Environmentalists Turn on Obama as Compromiser.” Initially, I was suprised that the Times would note such a trend among the more hardcore of environmentalists. But by about a third of the way through it becomes clear that the Times is mostly mocking them and their idealism.

Few politicians make the transition from campaign trail to White House without sacrificing a few starry-eyed supporters along the way, of course.

Granted, I never expected Obama or Congress to address climate change in any meaningful way either. But that’s me. When did the Times become such political nihilists? Oh wait, nevermind. They’re just apologists.

Mr. Obama’s early record on environmental issues suggests that he is more aggressive than any of his predecessors in supporting causes like combating global warming and shifting to renewable energy sources.

Hear that nature? Obama’s trying. Why aren’t you? Ever hear of the phrase “You gotta give a little to get a little”?

Seriously, though, what a strange comment to find in a supposedly objective piece of journalism. It’s not like this is an op-ed written by some mainstream environmental group like the NRDC–which, by the way, supports a potentially disastrous climate bill over no climate bill.

The New York Times is essentially telling us that activists are dumb for wanting more than incremental meaningless legislation. They even refer to fact-based gripes, such as handouts to coal companies and the stripping of EPA authority to regulate carbon emissions as “perceived shortcomings.”

Of course, final word went to NRDC climate center director Daniel Lashof, who gave a classic better-than-nothing-esque quote.

“We are not saying this is perfect,” Mr. Lashof said, “but we cannot hope for stronger environmental champions in Congress. If not now, when?”

A more worthy final word would have been the one Greenpeace painted (shown above) on a coal ship near Rome last week after the G8 meetings came to a close: FAILED.

• More than 130 workers at the Stella D’Oro Biscuit Company in the Bronx have ended an 11-month strike after the National Labor Relations Board ordered the company to reinstate and pay back wages to the striking workers. The company’s owner—the Connecticut-based private equity fund Brynwood Partners—is now threatening to close the factory within 90 days.

• Chile’s civil workers’ union, the Association of Fiscal Employees, plans to strike tomorrow and Wednesday to protest job instability and failed labor reforms.

• Shops, restaurants and schools shut down in the large southern Philippine city of Cotabato on Friday in protest over a deadly bombing blamed on Islamic militants.

• Striking workers from the Radio, Television and Theatre Workers Union (RATTAWU) and their counterparts in the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) picketed the headquarters of the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) in protest of non payment of their monetization benefits by the Federal Government.

• About 500 contract workers at the Crocodile River mine northwest of Johannesburg staged a “sit-in” 30 meters (100 feet) below the surface to demand that they be made full-time employees by the Canadian-based mining company, Eastern Platinum Ltd.

• Staff and their assistant professors at Sana’a University in Yemen staged held a protest in front of the University’s headquarter to push for the implementation of signed agreements with the university presidency that have stalled.

• On Friday, students in India resorted to a sit-in protest on the Jhargram-Binpur road that paralyzed traffic for six hours to demand the immediate reopening of a number of schools  that have been occupied by government forces in a recent offensive against the Maoists.

• Israeli soldiers attacked Palestinian villagers along with their international and Israeli peace supporters and kidnapped several demonstrators during the weekly non-violent protest against the wall in Ni’lin and Bil’in.