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Sunday, January 16, 2011

In Protest

Taking their desires to be heard to the streets, thousands of protesters and demonstrators around the world have recently been marching, shouting, praying, and engaging in both theater and violence to make their points. From quiet, prayerful requests for peace in Mexico to the violent takeover of an office building in London to student demonstrators in Chile and gay rights activists making a statement to the Pope in Spain, the past two months has been full of protest. Their reasons are many - anger with austerity measures, frustration with incumbent governments and globalization, frustration with policies in other countries - even protests against other protesters. Collected here is a view of protests and demonstrations around the world over the past two months.

1. An activist from the women rights organization "Femen" shouts at an Interior Ministry officer as she takes part in a rally to support Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, by the Iranian embassy in Kiev, November 3, 2010. Ashtiani, whose sentence of execution by stoning for adultery provoked a worldwide outcry, will instead be hanged for the murder of her husband, a human rights group said. (REUTERS/Konstantin Chernichkin)
2. Students demonstrate on November 17, 2010 in the center of Rome against reforming universities and budget cuts decided by Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's center-right government. Altogether more than 100 rallies took place in Italy. Over the last two years, the Berlusconi government adopted several new bills, which cut the education budget by 9 billion euros and remove 130,000 jobs over the 2009-2013 period. (FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP/Getty Images)
3. Devotees pray during a multi-religious demonstration to ask for peace and stop to violence in downtown Monterrey, Mexico, Saturday Nov. 13, 2010. (AP Photo/Carlos Jasso)
4. Polish anti-fascists, dressed as Nazi death camp prisoners, sit on a street to block far-right demonstrators during rallies held to mark the country's independence day in Warsaw, November 11, 2010. Fighting broke out when several thousand far-right demonstrators found their path blocked by a much larger gathering of anti-fascist organizations in the Polish capital. (WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP/Getty Images)
5. Indian police use a water cannon to try to disperse supporters of India's ruling Congress party as they protest outside the office of Hindu Nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in New Delhi, India on Friday, Nov. 12, 2010. The protest was against former RSS chief K. Sudershan who recently alleged that Congress party President Sonia Gandhi is a Central Intelligence Agency agent and is behind the murders of her husband Rajiv Gandhi and mother-in-law Indira Gandhi. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das)
6. Members of the U.S. Park Police arrest a veteran and gay rights activist who had handcuffed himself to the fence of the White House during a protest November 15, 2010 in Washington, D.C. Activists staged the protest to call on the Obama Administration and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to keep their promises on repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, which prevented gay people from serving openly, during the lame-duck session of the Congress. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
7. Protesters supporting Western Sahara are pushed by Spanish police while they shout slogans during a protest against the Moroccan government, outside of Madrid's Interior Ministry, Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2010. Moroccan authorities had earlier forcibly removed thousands of Saharawis from a protest camp, resulting in a number of deaths of both protesters and security forces. (AP Photo/Daniel Ochoa de Olza)
8. A protester wears a Barack Obama mask while holding a mask of Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan during an anti-APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) demonstration near the APEC summit venue in Yokohama, Japan, Saturday, Nov. 13, 2010. The sign reads "Yes we can WAR". (AP Photo/Greg Baker)
9. Several Chilean women are seen in a mine called "El Chiflon del Diablo" (The Devil's Draft) in Lola, some 500kms south of Santiago, Chile on November 16, 2010. Thirty-three women descended 500 m into the El Chiflon del Diablo mine - an unused carbon mine which now operates as a tourist attraction - in protest of the elimination of a labor program of which they belonged and have threatened starting a hunger-strike. (Camila Lasalle Ramirez/AFP/Getty Images)
10. In Stockholm on November 14, 2010, Iraqi Christians hold pictures of some of the 53 people who were killed on October 31 in attack at the main Syriac Catholic cathedral in Baghdad, Iraq, as they demonstrate against attacks on churches. An estimated 800,000 Christians lived in Iraq before the US-led invasion of 2003, but that number has since shrunk to around 500,000 in the face of repeated attacks against their community and churches. (JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP/Getty Images)
11. Gymnasium owners, employees and sympathizers dance in front of the Portuguese parliament Friday, Nov. 12 2010, protesting the government's plan to increase taxes on sports activities. The tax hike is part of the government's package of measures to deal with the country's current financial crisis. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
12. Activists of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) argue with police outside the Dhaka cantonment in Dhaka, Bangladesh on November 13, 2010. Bangladeshi police battled with opposition activists who went on the rampage in the capital Dhaka protesting the alleged eviction of a former prime minister from her home. Officials said Khaleda Zia, leader of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and a two-time ex-prime minister, left her sprawling house in a military district of Dhaka "willingly" after a court deadline to vacate the home expired on Friday. (MUNIR UZ ZAMAN/AFP/Getty Images)
13. In this image released by Spectral Q, people form the phrase "THE END?" on an island at the barrier reef off the coast of Belize City, Belize, Saturday Nov. 13, 2010. The demonstration was held on the final day of the Belize Reef Summit which urged global leaders to take strong action for the environment at the upcoming U.N. Climate Change Conference in Cancun, Mexico. (AP Photo/Spectral Q, Lou Dematteis)
14. A supporter of Myanmar democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi demonstrates in Trafalgar Square, London November 13, 2010. Aung San Suu Kyi walked out of her home to cheers from thousands of supporters on Saturday after Myanmar's military rulers released her from seven years of house arrest. (REUTERS/Paul Hackett)
15. A demonstrator is arrested by South Korean police during an anti-G20 protest on November 12, 2010 in Seoul, South Korea. World leaders converged on Seoul for the fifth meeting of the G20 group of nations to discuss the global financial system and world economy. South Korea is the first non G-8 country to host the G20 summit. (Lee Myung-Ik/Getty Images)
16. Pakistani tribesmen gather next to burning oil tankers carrying fuel for NATO forces, in Chaman, southwest Pakistan on Saturday, Nov. 13, 2010. Thousands of people protesting the killing of a tribal elder by unknown gunmen in Chaman district of southwest Pakistan attacked a NATO supply convoy, setting four oil tankers on fire, a police official said. (AP Photo/Shah Khalid)
17. Protesters shout slogans at an anti-APEC rally in Yokohama, south of Tokyo November 14, 2010. (REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon)
18. Vittoria Risi, a Venetian porn star, and members of "Venessia.com", a group of campaigners for the defense of the city of Venice, parade in gondolas during a protest called "Welcome to Veniceland" to ask local authorities to provide affordable housing for locals and to diversify Venice's economy away from tourism on November 14, 2010 in Venice, Italy. With 25 million tourists visiting each year compared to only 59,000 local residents, they claim that Venice is becoming "Veniceland", an amusement theme park. (ANDREA PATTARO/AFP/Getty Images)
19. Bulgarian scientists hold candles during a silent rally in central Sofia, Tuesday Nov. 16. 2010. Hundreds of scientists from the Bulgarian Sciences Academy gathered to continue their protest against the severe budget cuts and the neglectful policy on science and education. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)
20. Demonstrators wave Saharawi flags and shout slogans during a pro-Saharawi protest in Madrid, Spain on November 13, 2010. Clashes between security forces and protesters in Western Sahara killed several people on Monday after Moroccan authorities stormed the site of the disputed territory's biggest anti-government protest in decades. (REUTERS/Andrea Comas)
21. An image taken on November 8, 2010 and released by the Moroccan gendarmerie on November 15 shows an apparent vehicle of the Moroccan gendarmerie spraying water from a watergun towards alleged protesters near Laayoune. Moroccan forces dismantled a camp on November 8, housing thousands of refugees in the Western Sahara leaving four dead and scores injured, according to the rival sides. The security forces were ordered to empty a camp housing some 12,000 people set up four weeks ago outside Laayoune, the main town in the Western Sahara, in a protest against the deterioration of living standards. (HO/AFP/Getty Images)
22. Activists of the transsexual, gay and lesbian community participate in a protest demanding for the right to choose a name according to their gender along a street in San Salvador on November 15, 2010. The slogans on the T-shirts read, "I choose to be called... Lucero/Pamela". (Jose CABEZAS/AFP/Getty Images)
23. Thousands of Communist Party supporters wave flags during the protest rally in central Athens on November 15, 2010 against the IMF-EU troika visit in Athens and the expected new austerity package. Greece acknowledged it would breach conditions for a new installment of a 110-billion-euro bailout as the IMF and European Union began an audit of the country's austerity measures. (LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images)
24. A Bulgarian girl with a gas mask attends a rally against the upcoming visit of Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Sofia on November 13, 2010. Bulgaria's state energy holding BEH and Russian gas giant Gazprom will set up on Saturday a joint venture to build and operate the Bulgarian stretch of the South Stream gas pipeline from Russia to southern Europe. (DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images)
25. Students carry books on their heads during a protest in front of Sofia University in Bulgaria on November 16, 2010. Hundreds of university students and lecturers rallied in central Sofia on Tuesday to protest against the cuts in funding for universities and the lack of clear strategy for reforms of the Balkan country's education system. (REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov)
26. A Palestinian protester holding his national flag confronts an Israeli soldier during a demonstration against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Maasarah near Bethlehem on November 12, 2010. (MUSA AL-SHAER/AFP/Getty Images)
27. Protesters hold signs as they march to Southern Methodist University where a ground- breaking ceremony was being held for the George W. Bush Presidential Library in Dallas on Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2010. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)
28. A high school student is detained by riot police during a protest outside the Chilean congress in Valparaiso city, about 121 km (75 miles) northwest of Santiago, Chile on November 16, 2010. Over 60 students protested on Tuesday at the parliament against changes to the public state education and are demanding the government to increase their budget to fund universities. (REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez)
29. Iranian security guards drag partially-dressed female protesters away from a hall during an Iranian cultural event in Kiev November 11, 2010. Activists from the women's rights organization "Femen" staged the protest in support of Iranian citizen Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, accused both of adultery and of being complicit in her husband's murder. (REUTERS/Gleb Garanich)
30. Demonstrators struggle with riot police as they try to march during an anti-G20 protest in downtown Seoul, South Korea on November 11, 2010. (REUTERS/Jo Yong-Hak)
31. A body of a man killed by police lies on the ground in the Cosa neighborhood of Conakry, Guinea amid a violent protest against the electoral victory of opposition leader Alpha Conde on November 16, 2010. The post-election violence has left at least four dead since Monday, three of whom were killed by security forces, according to various sources. No official death toll has been released. (Cellou Diallo/AFP/Getty Images)
32. Italian Policemen walk ahead of students demonstrating against government's education reforms in Rome, Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010. Students demonstrated Wednesday in many cities all over Italy against Education minister Mariastella Gelmini's policy on high school and higher education. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
33. An Indian police vehicle burns after protesters set on fire after Eid prayers at Anantnag, some 55 kilometers (34 miles) south of Srinagar, India, Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010. Security forces fired warning shots and tear gas to quell protests in restive Indian-controlled Kashmir on Wednesday, after prayers marking a Muslim festival led to street demonstrations against Indian rule. (AP Photo)
34. Vietnam War veterans form a line to block an anti-gay protest held by members of the Westboro Baptist Church (rear, hidden) at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia on Veterans Day, November 11, 2010. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)
35. Police detain a student protester inside the besieged Millbank Tower home of the Conservative Party headquarters on November 10, 2010 in London, England. Student groups were protesting against the government's proposed funding cuts to education and an increase in tuition fees (Matthew Lloyd/Getty Images)
36. Demonstrators protest on the roof of the Conservative Party headquarters building in central London November 10, 2010. A group of protesters against higher university tuition fees broke into the headquarters of Britain's governing Conservative party on Wednesday, smashing the glass reception area and streaming up onto the roof. (REUTERS/Paul Hackett)
37. Police officers stand outside the Conservative Party headquarters building during a protest in central London November 10, 2010. (REUTERS/Paul Hackett)
38. Farmers shout slogans at a rally against Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks in Tokyo November 10, 2010. Thousands of Japanese farmers rallied on Wednesday to demand their government steer clear of a U.S.-led free trade initiative which would open the heavily protected agricultural sector to fierce competition. (REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon)
39. A man holds placards during a protest against U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Indonesia, in Jakarta November 9, 2010. (REUTERS/Dadang Tri)
40. A general view of the Saharawi protest camp on the outskirts of Western Sahara's main city, Laayoune, November 6, 2010. Before it was recently leveled by Moroccan authorities, the thousands in this camp amounted to be the biggest protest in three decades in Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony annexed by Morocco in 1975 and now the subject of Africa's longest-running territorial dispute. Picture taken November 6, 2010. (REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal)
41. Anti-nuclear protesters block train tracks near Harlingen, Germany in the early hours of the morning on November 8, 2010. After a weekend of heavy protests, which at times turned violent as police with truncheons charging demonstrators, protesters aimed to block a train carrying a cargo of nuclear waste from France to Germany to the underground storage facility in Gorleben in northern Germany. (JOCHEN LUEBKE/AFP/Getty Images)
42. An anti-nuclear protester places a firecracker under a police vehicle near Leitstade, northern Germany, on Sunday, Nov. 7, 2010. The activists are protesting against a castor train transporting nuclear waste that is underway from French La Hague to the nuclear interim storage plant in nearby Gorleben. (AP Photo/dapd, Axel Heimken)
43. An anti-nuclear activist with a radiation symbol embroidered on his hat, during a demonstration on a field near the embarking station in Dannenberg, Germany on November 6, 2010. German police and anti-nuclear groups expected about thirty thousand demonstrators to try to block the transportation of CASTOR rail containers of reprocessed German nuclear waste from the La Hague reprocessing plant in France to the Gorleben interim storage facility in Germany. (REUTERS/Christian Charisius)
44. A woman holds a poster reading "Journalist Oleg Kashin has been beaten. I demand to find the persons who attacked him" during a picket at the headquarters of Moscow police department in Moscow on November 7, 2010. A leading Russian reporter was put into an induced coma after an attack in central Moscow, and remained in a serious condition in hospital, reports said. Kashin, who covers the sensitive issues of opposition protests and youth groups for the respected Kommersant daily, suffered fractures to his jaw, concussion and broken fingers in the attack early Saturday. (Alexey SAZONOV/AFP/Getty Images)
45. A gay couple kisses in protest as Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Santiago de Compostela, Spain on November 6, 2010. (PEDRO ARMESTRE/AFP/Getty Images)
46. Egyptian Muslim activist Mahitab Al Gilani lights a candle and holds flowers during a protest against Last week's al-Qaida militant attack in a Baghdad church that left 58 people dead, in front of the Iraqi embassy in Cairo Egypt on Monday, Nov. 8, 2010. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has assured the country's Coptic Christians the government will protect them in the face of al-Qaida threats. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
47. A girl holds a sign reading "Obama's Bad" as U.S. Representative Mike Pence (R-IN) (left) and Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) (2nd left) address the group "Americans for Prosperity" as they hold a rally on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, November 15, 2010. (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)
48. A Tibetan exile shouts slogans during a rally in New Delhi, India on November 15, 2010 to protest against the ongoing 16th Asian Games taking place in Guangzhou, China. (MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP/Getty Images)
49. Members of the media surround policewomen as they detain two members (obscured in middle of group) of the group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) after they staged a "naked" protest outside the venue of the upcoming G20 summit in Seoul, South Korea on November 9, 2010. The naked "Mother Earth" protesters wanted to warn G20 members about hazards of meat production ahead of the November 11-12 summit. (HOANG DINH NAM/AFP/Getty Images)
50. A policeman detains a man during a protest rally to defend article 31 of the Russian constitution in Moscow October 31, 2010. Opposition activists have been holding demonstrations on the 31st day of each month to mark the article, which guarantees the right of assembly. (REUTERS/Nikolay Korchekov)