· June, 2008

Stories about Elections from June, 2008

Azerbaijan: Media Concerns

Writing on AFP's Correspondent blog, the news organization's Caucasus Bureau Chief, Michael Mainville, laments the state of the media in Azerbaijan. The post recognizes the pressures and restrictions in place on local journalists in the oil-rich country and comments on the case of Agil Khalil who has been recognized by...

Armenia: Racist Rhetoric?

  22 June 2008

Blogian raises concern over what it considers to be racist rhetoric used by Armenia's first president, Levon Ter-Petrossian, at a radical opposition demonstration staged Friday in downtown Yerevan. Meanwhile, The Armenian Observer and my The Caucasus Knot carries more coverage of the unsanctioned rally.

Georgia: Post-Election Concerns

Steady State comments on the evaluation of the recent parliamentary election in Georgia by the country's human rights ombudsperson as the “worst in the country’s history.” The blog also examines the position of international observers and the United States on the vote and raises it concern with some of the...

Cuba: Election Summer

  21 June 2008

Circles Robinson Online on Cubans’ interest in November's US presidential election, and what the possible election of Barack Obama may mean for relations between the two countries.

Armenia: Children's Political Park

Unzipped comments on the latest move taken by the authorities to prevent tomorrow's planned rally by the radical opposition in the Armenian capital. In order to prevent supporters of the first president from assembling in Yerevan's Liberty Square, a children's park has been set up. The blog casts doubts on...

Zimbabwe: Mapping terror

  19 June 2008

Mapping terror in Zimbabwe: Sokwanele has mapped a sample of the cases based on recorded first hand testimony from victims, and the interactive map so far bears witness to over 1,000 confirmed experiences of terror and intimidation.

Zimbabwe: Murders and violence

  19 June 2008

Violence and murders continue in Zimbabwe: Four MDC youths were this morning found dead after Zanu PF and state security agents had abducted them in Chitungwiza yesterday morning.

Armenia: Ukrainian Color Revolutionary Visit

And Nothing Else Matters [RU] comments on a recent visit by a prominent architect of the Ukrainian Orange Revolution to Armenia, highlighting the fact that the activist's own blog shows Dmirtri Potekhin in the country. In a second post, the blog says that consultations were held with the leader of...

Armenia: A1 Plus European Court Ruling

Six years after it was effectively removed from the airwaves, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg has finally ruled in favor of the A1 Plus TV Station. Known for its criticism of the authorities, A1 Plus failed to win a tender for its own broadcasting frequency in April 2002.

Brazil: The Black President Before Obama

  17 June 2008

The sweeping Obama phenomenon has caught Brazil, and it comes as no surprise in the country with the world's largest population of African descendants. An especially notable thread is the one reporting on the resurgence of a weirdly interesting 1928 Brazilian sci-fi novel — ‘The Black President' — that predicted a US election matching a black, a feminist, and a conservative candidate in the then remote year of 2228.

Barbados, U.S.A.:

  16 June 2008

Barbados Underground says that “the queue of ‘expectation’ for Barack Obama, has already started to form”.

Palestine: Obama on Jerusalem as Undivided

Barack Obama's pledge on June 11th to AIPAC that Jerusalem should be Israel's undivided capital has angered Palestinian officials. President Mahmoud Abbas made a statement that Obama's pledge is “totally rejected,” while Saeb Erekat, an Abbas aide, said that Palestinian negotiators would continue to insist upon East Jerusalem as the...

El Salvador: Funes Continues to Lead by Wide Margins

  15 June 2008

The presidential candidate for the FMLN party in El Salvador, Mauricio Funes, continues to lead by nearly 19 percentage points over ARENA candidate Rodrigo Ávila. Hunnapuh [es] notes that this latest survey took place after the revelations of possible links between FMLN party members and the FARC noting that it...

Zimbabwe: Morgan Tsvangirai campaign on Google Earth

  15 June 2008

Morgan Tsvangirai campaign in Zimbabwe on Google Earth: “I’ve compiled Morgan Tsvangirai’s campaign from June 2nd until yesterday, with information on campaign stops, detentions by police, vehicle impoundments, and references to all information from on-line news sources. I’ll update it as required. The tour will take you round parts of...

Zimbabwe: In the words of the people

  15 June 2008

In the words of Zimbabweans: “Can someone help As I am writing this mail there is massive killing of people for political affiliation reasons, destruction of houses and ploughing down of crops in Mutambara Gonzoni area. Can anyone please help STOP this wave of political violence.”

Caucasus: Armenian & Georgian Blogosphere Assessed

Following last weekend's BarCamp in Tbilisi, one of the event's main organizers, Giga Paitchadze, briefly considers its success and provides a small glimpse into the Georgian blogosphere. Also known as DvOrsky, the blogger claims to be the oldest in the country. Global Voices Online interviewed Paitchadze after the Caucasus BarCamp.