Stories about English from September, 2014
Trinidadian Diaspora Blogger Appeals to Domestic Violence Victims After Seeing Rice Viral Video
Once the video of Ray Rice (the American football player for the Baltimore Ravens) hitting his wife went viral, Trinidadian diaspora blogger Afrobella couldn't get the incident out of her mind. “The video where he spits and hits the woman who would go on to be his wife, where he...
Why Is It Such a Controversy to Start the School Day at 9am in South Korea?
Some schools in South Korea have adopted a new "9am late-start system," provoking a nationwide debate about reforming the way children are educated and mature.
The Internet Helps Double Russia's Number of Extremism Cases
The number of criminal cases opened on extremism charges in Russia doubled during 2014, and the Internet is responsible for the growth, as more political activity and activism happen online.
How Entrepreneurship Helped a Bangladeshi Girl Avoid Child Marriage
Bangladeshi blogger Raad Rahman tells the story of a girl in rural Bangladesh who avoided a forced child marriage after she started a grocery shop using a small grant from a local non-government organisation. She was going to be married off to her neighbour's son because her family could no...
Interview With the Author of ‘Chinese Turkestan’, a Photographic Documentary of Xinjiang
Far West China interviewed Ryan Pyle, a Shanghai-based photographer who recently published a photographic documentary of Xinjiang titled “Chinese Turkestan”: The news is so segregated and so focused on conflict areas that places like Xinjiang get left off the map. When the spotlight does turn there, it’s all about the...
Covert Surveillance ‘Project Speargun’ Fires Up New Zealand Election
ANNA MAJAVU of Pacific Media Watch reports for The Daily Blog on an extraordinary event in Auckland on 15 September 2014: NEW ZEALAND Prime Minister John Key has been accused of allowing the secret installation of equipment that would enable spooks to tap into New Zealand’s undersea fibre optic cable...
Criticizing the Government Could Get You Arrested in Malaysia. Is it Time to Repeal the Sedition Act?
The law was passed in 1948 and it has been used ever since to harass the opposition
Migrant Children from Central America Are Not Mere Statistics
In an opinion piece for the American newspaper Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Global Voices contributor Jamie Stark wonders, “What kind of parent would pay $10,000 for a stranger to bring a child 1,400 miles through gangland and hostile border crossings? A good parent, perhaps.” As a concerned citizen about the crisis of...
Was a Popular Saint Lucia Blog Taken Down by Google Hateful or Just Outspoken?
The no-holds-barred, muckraking blog had become both notorious and controversial among people interested in local politics -- and then it was blocked, without warning.
How a Vote for Scottish Independence Could Affect the Caribbean
How could something as seemingly remote as the issue of Scottish independence have an effect on Caribbean states? The long arm of colonial history connects more than you might think.
Ukrainian Daredevil “Mustang Wanted” Now Officially Wanted in Russia
Mustang Wanted has had quite a week, infuriating the Russian authorities, inspiring Ukrainians, and earning some unexpected money for his cause against Moscow's intervention in Eastern Ukraine.
An Urgent Call for the Protection and Preservation of Tibetan Language
Khenpo Tsultrim Lodoe is an influential Buddhist teacher at Larung Gar Buddhist Institute in Tibet. His article which addresses the relation between language and identity and urges for the preservation of Tibetan language was posted on an official educational website for Tibetan middle schools on July 4, 2014. High Peaks...
One Man's Response to Chinese Communist Party-Style Patriotism: Here, Have a Chrysanthemum
In traditional Chinese culture, Chrysanthemums are an for offering to the dead. In popular online usage, it also means "ass kissing."
Why One Trinidadian Father Will Never Hit His Kids
Corporal punishment has, for a long time, been ingrained into the fabric of Caribbean societies, with some making the connection between the region's harsh colonial history and its modern day bent towards violence. In many cases, the recipients of such beatings are the most defenseless members of society – children....
Trinidadians Concerned Over “Largest Ever Budget”
As the Trinidad and Tobago government, in anticipation of national elections next year, serves up a massive budget, two political bloggers take the country's leaders to task. Afra Raymond, whose blog keeps a close eye on politics, corruption and transparency, provided some disturbing financial context: The Minister of Finance has...
Egyptian Blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah Released on Bail
Prominent Egyptian activist and blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah was released on bail today but the road to justice is a long and bumpy one, says netizens.
Who Says You Can Block Google? Chinese Citizen Sues Telco, Demands Answers
The Chinese government has a heavy hand when it comes to online content. But exactly which government authorities set Internet censorship policy? A citizen lawsuit against China Unicom seeks answers.
Bamboo, Launch, Compound and Other English Words Borrowed from Malaysia
Writing for Coconuts KL, Lai Chee Seng listed 10 common English words which have Malaysian roots. For example, bamboo derived from the Malay word mambu or samambu, compound came from the Malay word kampung which means village or a group of buildings, and launch was borrowed from the Malay word...
Pakistan's Government, Industry Complain of Economic Losses Due to Protests
Protesters from two very different political camps in Pakistan have staged a peaceful sit-in in Islamabad since August 14 with a common demand for the resignation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif due to charges of corruption and rigging in the election 2013. In response, the government has blocked all routes with sand-filled containers...
Search and Destroy Mission for the 80 Million “Bombies” in Laos
Al Jazeera's 101 East episode tackles the efforts of women workers in Laos to find and destroy unexploded cluster bombs dropped by the United States during the Vietnam War era. The U.S. dropped 260 million bombs in Laos but about 80 million bomblets did not detonate which posed a continuing...
A Group of University Students in Kyoto Want Japan, China and Korea to Just Be ‘Happy’
Relations between the three countries are often prickly because of territorial and historical disputes. A group of students made a 'Happy' video to promote a message of friendship.
