Stories about LANGUAGES from March, 2012
Slovakia: Paying More Due to Corruption in the Area of State Tenders
Tibor Blazko highlights the ongoing public debate on corruption in the area of state tenders in Slovakia.
Bolivia: The Wandering Hands of the Santa Cruz Mayor
Santa Cruz Mayor Percy Fernández is in hot water because of his apparent inappropriate touching of city council member Desirée Bravo, which was caught on tape by the media during a public event. The behavior may be a repeated pattern of bizarre actions by the controversial mayor.
India: Arresting Tibetan Activists
Dilip D'Souza at Death Ends Fun comments on the arrests of Tibetan activists in India: “we gave the Tibetans shelter when they fled from the excesses of China. Now we arrest them when Chinese premiers come visiting.”
Puerto Rico: A Small and Modest Art Blog
Check out artist Omar Banuchi's blog on Tumblr: “a small and modest blog of images.”
Puerto Rico: Youth, Facebook, and News
A recent survey of 130 college students [es], mostly from the Río Piedras campus of the University of Puerto Rico, shows that many of them actually use Facebook to read news.
Puerto Rico: “He Leaves at Last”
Blogger and historian Yvonne Acosta comments on the recent dismissal [es] of the Superintendent of the Police Emilio Díaz Colón.
Spain: The Faces of the Young and Unemployed 51%
Three Barcelona-based journalists, Lucija Stojevic, Jennifer Baljko and Marc Herman, have launched the excellent digital magazine 51percent with the mission “to go beyond the news headlines and put a face to the youth unemployment crisis facing Spain. We’ll be investigating this issue for the next couple of months, on-the-ground around Barcelona.”
Iran: Earth Hour celebrated in Tehran
Iranians are going to celebrate the “Earth Hour” today Saturday 31st of March. Here in this Farsi-language website, Iranians are organizing the “Earth Hour” events, including turning-off lights for an hour ‘to protect the planet’. Parham, an Isfahan-based user, tweets: ‘They are going to turn off Si-o-se Pol (historical bridge)...
Brazil: “Kilombos”, Stories of Slaves Bridging Three Continents
In this article, we make a secular journey across three continents with 'Kilombos', a documentary released in March in Portugal, which "transports us through the oral history of the African roots of the Quilombo communities, showing the intersection of these roots with contemporary cultural practices".
Zambia: Can Barotseland ‘Seccession’ Hold?
South Sudan may hold the record as the newest nation in the world but this may no longer hold if the developing situation in Zambia in which advocates of an independent Barotseland, better known as Western Province, force matters and secede from the rest of the country. Zambian netizens weigh in on latest developments.
South Asia: Every Day Is Earth Hour for Us
Today many countries of the world are observing Earth Hour, an event to make people aware of the climate change by turning off their non-essential lights for one hour. Millions of people in South Asia have no access to electricity and the demand of electricity is much bigger than supply.
Bulgaria: Students Protest Teacher's Dismissal
Bulgarian blogger Boyan Pishtikov publishes [bg] images from a students’ demonstration in the north-western city of Vratza [en]. The protest was organized by high school students who disagree with the recent dismissal of one of their teachers. According to the principal [bg], the layoff was caused by alleged libel by...
Chile: Open Letter to Daniel Zamudio Goes Viral
Chilean netizens were deeply moved by an open letter to Daniel Zamudio, a young gay man who died after a brutal beating, written by Felipe E. Mercado and published on Tumblr [es]. The letter, with more than one thousand notes on Tumblr, became a local Trending Topic on Twitter.
Mexico: One Year After Birth of “Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity”
Mexicans speak out about the first anniversary of the beginning of the “Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity,” which is related to the death of activist and former poet Javier Sicilia's son during the "war" the current administration has declared against organized crime.
Georgia: Tongue-in-cheek development forecast
A satirical video posted on YouTube takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the development of Georgia ahead of parliamentary elections later this year and a presidential vote in 2013. With the current president, Milhail Saakashvili, unable to run for a third term in office it foresees him following in the footsteps...
Philippines: Petition Against Magnetite Mining
An online petition urges the Philippine government to deny the magnetite mining applications in the northern coastal areas of Luzon Island in the Philippines.
East Timor: Early Warning Early Response Mapping System
NGO Belun in East Timor has teamed up with Columbia University to establish the Early Warning Early Response mapping system which was designed to increase early responses to conflict and prevent the escalation of violence at the national and community levels.
Myanmar: Responsible Tourism
The Irrawaddy interviews Dr. Andrea Valentin who talks about responsible tourism and the prospect of pro-poor tourism in Myanmar.
Human Rights Mapping in Cambodia
Human rights advocates in Cambodia have been using online maps to document, monitor, and expose human rights violations across the country. Some of the maps track land conflicts, media killings, freedom of expression violations, and prison overcrowding
India: Is God Now An Industry?
Ugich Konitari at Gappa writes about the VIP pilgrims of the famous Hill Temple at Tirupati, who keep the ordinary pilgrims waiting for many hours for their chance to perform rituals. “Should money be the deciding factor in defining classes of worship?” the blogger asks.
Taiwan: Failed ‘Made in Taiwan’ Clothing Promise Disappoints
Upon its success in establishing its market, former 'Made-in-Taiwan' fashion brand, Lativ, has decided to relocate its production line overseas. Many of its supporters feel betrayed.
