· June, 2011

Stories about History from June, 2011

D.R. of Congo: Reflections on Congolese Independence

  30 June 2011

Jason remembers the sword thief while reflecting on Congolese independence: “Instead of remembering Patrice Lumumba, Pierre Mulele or Simon Kimbangu, I'll choose Ambroise Boimbo this time. His claim to fame? Stealing King Baudouin’ sword when the Belgian monarch arrived for independence celebrations in 1960. What was he thinking? Was he...

Bermuda: The Attitude/Economics Equation

  30 June 2011

Politics.bm says that 30 years after tourism's heyday, “Bermudians are wondering where all the tourists went” and fears that the same thing will happen to the country's stake in international business; Vexed Bermoothes echoes his concern about Bermuda's economic outlook, saying: “At the rate we are going, we may soon...

Filipinos Commemorate Jose Rizal's 150th birthday

  29 June 2011

Jose Rizal is the Philippines' national hero and one of the first Asian leaders and intellectuals who advocated freedom from colonial rule through peaceful means in late 19th century. His 150th birth anniversary this month was a huge celebration in the country. Netizens actively discussed his rich legacy and continuing relevance.

Video: Celebrating the Solstice

The celebrations for Summer and Winter Solstices were full of lanterns, dances, flowers and bonfires. Lets tour around the world to check out the different celebrations: Solstice at Stonehenge, Feast of Saint John's bonfires in Spain, Inti Raymi in Peru, we tripantu in Chile and Kupala Day in Russia or Midsummer's night in Poland.

Haiti: BBBC Benefits in Question

  27 June 2011

An interesting post on Bill Clinton's housing initiative, Building Back Better Communities (BBBC), which “seeks to construct housing projects across the nation of Haiti”, but upon closer examination, “seems as though the initiative won't live up to its name and in fact will build worse communities than even before the...

South Africa: On Being White and Feeling Ashamed

  27 June 2011

On being white and feeling ashamed in South Africa: “Should white people in South Africa feel ashamed about being white and about the fact that we benefited in the past because of our white skins and continue to benefit from our whiteness – even if we were born after the...

Indonesia's 24 world records

  27 June 2011

Truly Indonesia lists 24 world records held by Indonesia. For example, it has 3 of the 6 largest island in the world and it is currently the largest Muslim country in the world

China: The politics of hydroelectricity

  27 June 2011

Sinologistical Violoncellist has a guest post by Kristiana Henderson of Pacific Lutheran University which addresses the politics of hydroelectricity projects in Tibet by looking into the history of conflicts between indigenous Sami community with the Norwegian government since 1850s.

Paraguay: Photo Essay: The Ovecha Rague Festival

  24 June 2011

Yluux posts a photo essay [es] of the Ovecha Rague (‘sheep fur’ in guaraní) festival in San Miguel, Paraguay. The festival includes artistic performances, craft fairs, an exposition of products made out of sheep's wool and more.

Balkans: Ratko Mladic and Justice

Posts on the capture of Ratko Mladic and justice being done (or not) – by Katharine Engelhart and Ozren Jungic at OpenDemocracy.net, by Blogging Balkanistan/The Daily Seyahatname, and by Marko Attila Hoare and David Pettigrew at Greater Surbiton.

Croatia: EU Membership Approval

On June 10, 2011, Croatia was cleared to become the newest member state of the European Union. There is still a long road before Croatians are officially a part of the EU, and the timing at the moment is, at best, precarious, creating many skeptics. Miquel Hudin reports.

Zambia: Chiluba Funeral Donation Call Raises Eyebrows

  23 June 2011

Zambian netizens have received an appeal by their government to donate money towards an estimated US$1 million of funeral costs for the late former president Frederick Chiluba with incredulity, considering that barely two and half years ago there was massive abusive of resources for the funeral of the then incumbent president Levy Mwanawasa.