Stories about Governance from January, 2010
Ukraine: UK Ambassador's Ukrainian Vocabulary
Leigh Turner, UK Ambassador to Ukraine, writes on how the Ukrainian phrases he is learning reflect the political, economic and social situation in the country.
Belarus: LGBT Issues
BelarusDigest quotes from a chapter on Belarus that was included in the Greenwood Encyclopedia of LGBT Issues Worldwide earlier this year.
Iran: Two Bloggers in Danger of Death
Two Iranian bloggers, who are also human rights defendants, are behind bars under serious charges. Mehrdad Rahimi and Kouhyar Goudarzi have been accused of wanting to wage “a war against God,” and charged as being “Mohareb” (enemies of God). Their charges are similar to those against the two men who were executed this week in Tehran.
Global Voices in Haiti: Talking to Volunteer Régine Zamor
Alice Backer, on assignment for Global Voices in Port-au-Prince, interviews Régine Zamor, a Haitian-American who travelled to Haiti after the 12 January earthquake and has helped dozens of people as an independent volunteer. "Many Haitians and others willing to help took matters into their own hands during the first-response period."
Tajikistan: Power Plant as a National Idea
TajikVoice posts (and Andrey translates) stories of real people in Tajikistan, telling how they are being forced to “voluntarily donate” money to the construction of the Rogun dam and hydroelectric...
Afghanistan: Fresh Data Sources
Nick Fielding reviews new publication on negotiating with the Taliban and recommends a great source of stats on security, governance, socio-economic indicators and polling information.
Kazakhstan: Glutting the Wheat Industry
Joshua Foust reviews the situation in Kazakhstan's wheat industry, noting weak professionalism of the agriculture officials in managing market price fluctuations and food crisis risks.
Kyrgyzstan: Sheeps to receive passports
Noah reports on the striking decision of the Kyrgyz authorities to issue a passport and disaster insurance to every sheep and other livestock.
Iran: A cleric blogger was arrested
According to some Iranian sites and blogs Ali Ashraf Fathi, a Qom based religious student and blogger was arrested [fa] on Friday. He used to write [fa] in his blog...
Global Voices in Haiti: On Reconstruction
With scattered clean-up efforts under way in Haiti, debates have begun about how best to rebuild houses and other structures destroyed in the 12 January earthquake. Georgia Popplewell reports from Port-au-Prince on "the critical matter of shelter for those who have lost their homes".
Haiti: Bloggers’ Reactions to Regional Interventions
For more than two weeks, the governance of Haiti after the earthquake has been seriously questioned by Haitian bloggers. They are now discussing the reactions in the neighboring countries and islands of the Caribbean. Here is a review of the French-speaking posts dealing with this question.
Pakistan: Depleting Water Resources
Owais Mughal at All Things Pakistan discusses about the depleting water resources of Pakistan and urges the decision makers to “invest in Pakistan’s Water Resources for the stability of the...
Ukraine: Involvement in Afghanistan
Leigh Turner, UK Ambassador to Ukraine, writes about Ukraine's involvement in Afghanistan, now and then.
Ukraine: “Bring Your Skates”
Greetings from Kyiv posts an update on the situation on Kyiv's sidewalks: “This year, Kyiv City Services decided not to clean up the snow so the snow on the sidewalks...
Serbia: “No” to NATO
Belgraded believes that “Serbia does not need to have a military at all, and therefore does not need to join NATO.”
Russia: CJR Piece on the Media
Robert Amsterdam recommends Adam Federman's article on the Russian media, published in Columbia Journalism Review: “[…] Federman focuses on the remaining mechanisms and political dynamics for freedom of press and...
Azerbaijan: Democracy is…
Önər Blog [AZ] posts a video [EN] made by the OL! Azerbaijani Youth Movement for the Democracy Video Challenge. OL! has been exemplary in its use of new media in...
Iran: Green Tune to Support Protest Movement
A ring tone for a song which motivated young Iranians to go to the front and fight during the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s is making the rounds again in solidarity with the opposition. Hamid Tehrani reviews the reactions of bloggers to the 'Ey Iran' song.
Haiti: The Politics of Recovery
The last thing that Haiti needs as it faces the monumental task of recovering from the earthquake that devastated Port-au-Prince and its environs on January 12 is a lack of good governance. Yet, some members of the Haitian blogosphere are bracing themselves for more of the same when it comes to the 2010 earthquake recovery effort.
Eritrea: Remove current regime quickly
According to Mohammed Hagos, democracy project in Eritrea has to start with the removal of the current regime: “The hurdle preventing the Eritrean people from having their say is the...
Malawi's President to formally declare new love on Valentine's Day
Malawians are digesting news that the country's president Dr Bingu wa Mutharika will engage his former tourism minister Callister Chimombo on Valenetine's Day 14 February. A couple of bloggers have wished the president well in his new found love following the death of his wife Ethel three years ago.
