Stories about Economics & Business from February, 2010
Latvia: “Cyber-Security ‘Killer Incident'”
Telecoms in Latvia reports that in order to “expose government waste, unjust wage differentials and possible corruption by analyzing data filed by state agencies and public sector,” individuals calling themselves “the Fourth Awakening People's Army” have obtained some “7.4 million records from a database linked to the web-based service for...
Croatia: A New President, A New Path
On Friday of last week, Ivo Josipović took office as Croatia's third president, replacing outgoing two-term president, Stjepan Mesić, who was the head of Croatia for a decade.
Colombia: The Closure of Cambio Magazine
The Colombian magazine Cambio, known for its investigative reporting, was recently closed by its owners, who say it was an economic decision. However, journalists say that it was a politically motivated decision.
EU, Greece: Greek PM Parody
Greater Surbiton mocks the the Greek prime minister's comment on the EU-Greek relationship in the time of financial crisis.
Poland: “Better Say Nothing”
The Economist's Edward Lucas posts his article about Poland and follows up with “this exasperated response” to counter “the furious reaction to the earlier piece on the Polish blogosphere.”
Haiti: Reading the Reports
Repeating Islands republishes segments of a report on HIV infections in Haiti, while Haiti Vox links to a story on “who's getting the first Haiti contracts”, saying: “It's important for us to widely circulate this information, and to HELP Haitian groups who may want to apply…it's also important for Haiti...
Haiti: Moving On
“The men and women of Haiti are strong and ready to show the world that they can rebuild their country”: Wadner Pierre says that Haitians are ready to move on post-earthquake.
Bahamas, Haiti: Migration Debate
“The level of ignorance, fear and hate-mongering surrounding the Haitian migration to the Bahamas is astounding – especially when one considers the fact that Africans living in Haiti achieved the first successful slave revolt in history against one of the world's most advanced nations”: Larry Smith at Bahama Pundit weighs...
Japan: Cool bizz campaign
Neojaponisme blogs about conflicts and challenges surrounding the cool bizz campaign in Japan. The campaign encourages white-collar workers to work sans jacket and tie in the summer months to reduce dependence on air conditioning.
Singapore: Minimum wage
Tan Kin Lian from Singapore argues that a minimum wage will reduce disparity of income in the country
Morocco: To Valentine or Not to Valentine?
In Morocco, as in many countries, celebrating Valentine's Day has caught on as a modern expression of love. In major cities, storefronts stock candy hearts and teddy bears, but, as blogger Robin du Blog points out, the Moroccan media doesn't always encourage the celebration.
Sri Lanka: Microfinance Making A Difference
Drew Kinder posts an encouraging story of Champika, an agricultural entrepreneur in the Kurenegala Distirict of central Sri Lanka, who availed collateral free micro-loan from BRAC and succeeded in achieving financial independence.
China: What will shutting down Beijing's liaison offices do for petitioners?
A planned move to shut down most of Beijing's 'liaison offices', many of which run their own restaurants and hotels as part of lobbying efforts aimed at the central government, stands to help curb corruption. But what will it mean for petitioners, whom liaison offices are tasked with silencing?
Russia and Korea: Siberian Timbering
Robert Neff from The Marmot's Hole blogs about Korea's role in the logging of Siberian timber, in particular how North Korean are working as slave loggers in Russia.
Egypt: Recall your Corolla
Zeinobia mentions that the Egyptian Consumer Protection Agency has obliged Toyota Egypt to recall some of its models from the market, in order to fix defects Toyota announced earlier on the company’s expense.
Russia: Tracing City Buses in Real Time
The city administration of Ryazan [ENG] in the Central Russia became the first in the country to launch an interactive map of the public buses [RUS], gov-gov.ru reported. Equipped with GPS devices, the buses can now be traced online in real time.
USA: Native Cherokees Fight for Sacred Mound
Cherokee Native Americans in North Carolina are currently fighting the construction of an electrical station they say would impede the spiritual experience at Kituwah, a sacred mound that is cherished as "Mothertown".
Kyrgyzstan: Controversy over sale of the national telecoms operator
Users of the leading Kyrgyz Internet forum “Diesel” have held their own investigation of the transaction, in which shares of the national operator Kyrgyztelecom were sold. According to them, the new owners are linked to Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's son Maksim, recently appointed to a key economic position in the...
Russia: Theater Play to “Reconstruct” Lawyer Magnitsky's Death
The death of Sergei Magnitsky, a 37-year-old lawyer who spent nearly a year in jail awaiting trial, received much publicity and prompted Russian authorities to introduce some changes. The case also inspired a public discussion of prison conditions in Russia, which is now likely to move to a new level, as a Moscow theater is working on a documentary play that would "reconstruct" the horror of Magnitsky's final hours.
Turkmenistan: Aside of crisis
“Turkmenistan’s leadership has been insisting that the country was not affected by the global financial’, Annasoltan says and comments on how could this be.
Afghanistan: Prospects for exporting Baghlani Gouda
Peter Marton reports on a cheese factory in Afghanistan. It was started 30 years ago, destroyed in the 1980s and re-launched again in 2006.
