Ukraine

This is the kind of jihad I can believe in:

[M]embers of Ukrainian feminist group Femen staged protests across Europe as they called for a “topless jihad.” The demonstrations were in support of a young Tunisian activist named Amina Tyler. Last month, Tyler posted naked images of herself online, with the words “I own my body; it’s not the source of anyone’s honor” written on her bare chest. The head of Tunisia’s “Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice,” reportedly called for Tyler to be stoned to death for her putatively obscene actions, lest they lead to an epidemic. Tyler has since gone quiet, leading some to fear for her safety.

Below are some images from Femen’s protests in Sweden, Italy, Ukraine, Belgium, and France. A warning, nearly every photo depicts nudity, and most contain offensive language. I did warn you so don’t go moaning in the comments about it.  Read more »

ᔥ The Telegraph

Trevor Mallard may be doing some private consulting int he Ukraine while he is on the run from Judith Collins’ process servers.

Opposition and pro-president deputies brawl in Ukraine’s parliament, during debate on a hotly contested bill that seeks to accept Russian as an official language in the country.

Violent scuffles broke out in the Ukrainian Rada on Thursday as deputies debated the bill which would allow the official use of Russian language in certain parts of the country.

The brawl erupted between deputies loyal to Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich and lawmakers from pro-Western opposition parties, who want to preserve Ukraine’s cultural and political independence from its powerful neighbour Russia.

The law being debated proposes to allow the use of Russian as an official language equal to Ukrainian in some civic institutions such as schools, hospitals and courts in regions where a Russian-speaking population is in the majority.

ᔥ The Telegraph

I hope, for the sake of the people that Sue Bradford doesn’t get ideas like this:

Topless Femen activist Yana Zhdanova is immediately seized by police as lowers her top and tries to grab the Euro 2012 championship cup on display in Lviv, Ukraine.

A topless activists from a Ukrainian women’s rights group staged a third attack on the Euro 2012 soccer trophy on Monday, grabbing it while it was on public display in the Ukrainian town of Lviv, before being seized herself by police.

Yana Zhdanova, an activist in the Femen group, peeled down her dress revealing the words “—- Euro 2012″ on her torso, and grabbed hold of the 60 cm high cup while it was being exhibited in a central square.

The Kiev-based Femen group is focusing its topless protests for women’s rights on next month’s Euro 2012 soccer tournament, which Ukraine is co-hosting with Poland.

Femen says Euro 2012, which will run in Ukraine from June 9 to July 1, will lead to a surge in prostitution in the former Soviet republic and entrench the country as a sex tourist destination in Europe.

“We needed to tear down this trophy to show that this phallic symbol does not need to stand on a pedestal, when our country is being turned into a brothel. UEFA have arranged this with our politicians in order to win back the money that has been put into the Euro 2012″ said fellow Femen activist Oleksandra Shevchenko.

ᔥ CarScoop

What a nice cop – with a sense of humour all round.

A pair of Russians who were driving their car through the Ukraine was caught speeding by the local cops. As you would imagine, the two men wanted to dismiss the ticket so they came up with the bright of idea of speaking in English, convinced that the Ukrainian police officers would not understand a word they said.

And indeed, the first cop who approached their car did not speak English, which of course, made the two men happy. However, the euphoria did not last long as there was a second officer on hand who happened to know English…

Here is Kris Fa’afoi at Yalta with Churchill, Stalin and Rossevelt. Boy he sure gets around.

Kris Fa'afoi at Yalta