Stories about Breaking News from March, 2009
Guyana: The Legacy of Janet Jagan
Guyanese bloggers react to the death of Janet Jagan, the country's first female president.
Pakistan: Lahore Police Academy Attack
Today morning Pakistanis were shocked by the news of the attack on Manawan police training school in Lahore. Some 10-12 masked gunmen dressed as Policemen attacked from four sides when almost 700 trainees were performing their morning exercise in the camp. BBC reports that they succeeded in a siege of...
Indonesia: “Mini-Tsunami” hits village as dam collapses
Last Friday the Situ Gintung dike collapsed in Indonesia which killed almost a hundred people and injured 190 others. At least 300 houses were destroyed and 1,600 residents were displaced. The extent of the tragedy reminded many Indonesians about the deadly tsunami which hit the region five years ago.
Pakistan: Suicide Bombing at Mosque While People Praying
CHUP! – Changing Up Pakistan is reporting that ” 48 people were killed (today) when a suicide bomber blew himself up in a mosque near the town of Jamrud in the Khyber agency in northwest Pakistan.” The Blogger comments: “For a suicide bombing to occur at all is horrific, but...
Indonesia: Deadly dam burst
A dam burst outside of Jakarta Friday dawn which killed more than 50 people. Twitter user Indrika Kurnia writes: praying for my friend's father who was carried away by the flood from the dam breaking.. may God be with you.
U.S. official holds dialogue with Myanmar Foreign Minister
Stephen Blake, director of Mainland Southeast Asian Affairs met Myanmar's Foreign Minister Nyan Win in Yangon. This is an important visit and may signal a shift in U.S. policy towards the Junta-backed government of Myanmar.
Barbados: Suspect Named
“Further media details indicate that the suspect is a 24 year old man. Apparently, the man was found with a camera, jewelry and an imitation firearm”: Bajan Dream Diary links to mainstream media articles that provide details about the suspect in the Terry Schwarzfeld murder.
Brazil: Controversial demarcation of indigenous land confirmed
Five indigenous tribes of Brazil have won a 30-year battle to reclaim 1.7 million hectares of their ancestral land in Roraima in the Amazon on the border to Venezuela and Guyana. On March 19, the Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) ruled on the integrity of the Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous land, keeping its size and borders intact as a continuous area, disappointing ranchers and rice farmers who coveted the land.
Long awaited victory for Baha'is in Egypt
After many years of being denied the right to legal documentation, Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court removed any grounds for preventing Baha'is from receiving proper official identity documents.
Hong Kong: Ng-hao big-naug or you are dead!
On Tuesday, March 18, a local police shot at a Nepali homeless man twice at close range and one of the bullets end up in the head, leading to the man's death. The police report soon after the shooting said that the police officer went to check out the hillside...
Pakistan: Suicidal Attack in Rawalpindi
While Pakistanis were celebrating today's victory for Long March the country faced yet another suicide attack in Rawalpindi. “As many as 12 people, mostly poor people taking the local transport back to their homes, were killed in a huge blast,” reports Pak Tea House.
Pakistan: Triumph of Democracy
The Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry has been reinstated which has fulfilled the primary objective of the ongoing judiciary movement and the Long March. This was announced by the Pakistani Prime Minister in a televised speech. In addition the government has agreed to restore all deposed judges and...
Madagascar: A Changing of the Guard?
The Madagascar crisis may have reached a major turning point: the beginning of the end of the President Marc Ravalomanana's regime. While there is still confusion about who is currently in charge, the army seems to have chosen to stand with former mayor Andry Rajoelina. The prime minister's office, as well as the national TV, are now under Rajoelina's control. Twitterers in Madagascar described events as they unfolded.
Pakistan: Media Muzzled Again
All Things Pakistan reports that GEO News (a private TV news channel) was blocked in different cities of country as crackdown on the Long March continued in Pakistan.
Paksitan: Where The Long March Is Heading?
Chowrangi reports that a deal may be struck before the ‘Long March’ of Pakistani lawyers movement reaches the capital Islamabad. The blogger comments: “(The) future of Long March will be decided by the politicians and invisible hands that pull the strings in affairs of Pakistan.”
Bangladesh: Fire At Bashundhara City Shopping Mall
E-Bangladesh is posting roundups of eye-witness reports and photos from bloggers and updated twitter messages describing the fire at Bashundhara City, the largest shopping mall in South Asia situated in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
India: The Third Front
A number of political parties in India have announced a third front to offer an alternative to the ruling Congress party and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Modern Indian Politics opines: “The idea of a Non-Congress and Non-BJP government seems less than absurd now; many view it as plausible...
Pakistan: Sharif Brothers Under House Arrest
Open Pakistan reports quoting GEO TV that “Pakistani authorities on Wednesday decided to put Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif and his borther Shahbaz Sharif under house arrest to prevent a planned long march by the opposition party workers and lawyers to Islamabad.” CHUP! – Changing Up Pakistan reported...
Pakistan: Live Coverage Of The Long March
A section of the Pakistani Lawyers and political activists have finished all their preparations for a scheduled Long March and sit in protest starting tomorrow to reinstate the deposed judges. Tensions are running high in Pakistan because the opposition leader Nawaz Sharif's party (PML-N) is participating in the protests and the government has started crack down on activists and imposed ban on protests. Pakistani citizen journalists have started to cover the events as they unfold using live blogs, live picture updates, email/SMS and Twitter messages.
Pakistan: Section 144 imposed
Usman Latif at Lahore Metblogs reports that Pakistan government is trying to stop the upcoming lawyers’ march: “Section 144 was imposed in Lahore and in several other cities of Punjab on Tuesday for three days effective from Wednesday. The crack down against different politicians and lawyers has been started.”
Sri Lanka: Blast at Akuressa
Musings from Toronto reports that Tuesday morning an LTTE suicide bomber has attacked a Muslim civilian gathering in the south region of Akuressa in Sri Lanka killing 10 people and wounding a minister.
