Stories about History from December, 2011
Bangladesh:Hot Air Balloon Show in Dhaka
On 28th December, a hot air balloon show was held in Dhaka. In this context, photojournalist Monirul Alam discussed the history of hot air balloons.
Pakistan: On the Construction of Contemporary Pakistani National Identity
Masood Ashraf Raja at The Pakistan Forum feels that unless Pakistan takes a critical look at its political history and restructures it's national narrative, it will continue to remain a nation that is perpetually in crisis.
Algeria: What Independence means
Algerian algerianna, at Patriots on Fire, asks readers to share their views on the true meaning of their country's independence.
India:Call for ‘Back to Basics’ in Kashmir
AL-HAQU-MURUN visits Kashmir and senses a growing, socio-religious conflict within the Muslim community. He feels that, if left unattended, this could have serious repercussion in the coming days.
Singapore Memory Project
irememberSG is part of the Singapore Memory Project, a national initiative to “collect, preserve and provide access to the memories” of a nation which rose to become one of the most prosperous cities in the world.
Barbados: old-time Christmas
Barbados Underground indulges in some seasonal nostalgia and describes a traditional Christmas “the Bajan way”: “Our young ones are missing that special warmth that we made as children.”
Macedonia, Poland: Remembering Solidarność
Macedonian blogger Zoriv reminisced about the fall of socialism by publishing original photos [mk] he made during the 1981 protests in Warsaw, Poland, organized by Solidarity Trade Union.
Bermuda: military mess?
The United States maintained a military base in Bermuda for 50 years, finally departing in 1995. Who should clean up the pollution that got left behind, asks Catch a Fire? “The Americans … shouldn’t need to be told what to do…. They have no right to come and pollute our...
Brazil: Blogging on the Archives of the Dictatorship
Journalist Niara de Oliveira published quotes [pt] from a selection of blogs that participated in the fourth blogging carnival #DesarquivandoBR (Unarchiving Brazil), that took place on December 14, on opening the archives of the Brazilian Dictatorship (1964 to 1985).
CEE: More on Václav Havel and His Legacy
More posts on Václav Havel and his legacy from around the region's Anglophone blogosphere: Richard Byrne of Balkans via Bohemia; CzechFolks.com; Petr Bokuvka of The Czech Daily Word – here and here; Jeremy Druker of TOL's East of Center; Tjebbe van Tijen and Mary Kaldor for OpenDemocracy.net; Giustino of Itching...
Czech Republic: A Tribute to Václav Havel
A tribute to Václav Havel, by Luboš Motl of The Reference Frame: “[…] Havel has been an unusually strong moral autority that has influenced even people such as me who ultimately found out that they disagree with him about many pretty fundamental things. He's been proposed for a peace Nobel...
Pakistan: Journalists Are Intimidated Not To Report
Referring to Pakistan Army's propaganda war in 1971, The Terrorland comments: “Pakistani generals have never learned from the past! Today, they are repeating the same criminal strategy in Balochistan as journalists from other parts of the country can’t go in that province for reporting.”
Russia: Mikhail Khodorkovsky and the 2012 Presidential Election
Incarcerated since 2003, Mikhail Khodorkovsky is once again in Russia's political spotlight as presidential candidate Mikhail Prokhorov vows to pardon him if he's elected next spring. Donna Welles reports.
Sidi Bouzid's Anniversary: Celebrating One Year of Arab Awakening
If you had to describe this year in one word what would it be? Leila Nachwati, who was in Tunisia two months ago to attend the Third Arab Bloggers Meeting, shares her experience in Free Tunisia and polls netizens' opinions on what word best describes the year that was since Tunisian Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in protest against tyranny a year ago.
Arab World: Thank You Mohamed Bouazizi! Thank You Sidi Bouzid!
Netizens around the world today commemorate the first anniversary of the Arab revolution, sparked by the self-immolation of fruit and vegetable vendor Mohammed Bouazizi in Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia. What started as a one-man protest for dignity ignited the Arab world and beyond.
Bangladesh, Pakistan: Crowd-sourcing Stories Of December 1971
December 1971 blog is an effort by some Pakistani netizens to crowd-source personal stories of December 1971, when the Pakistan Army surrendered and Bangladesh (former East Pakistan) gained victory in their liberation war against West Pakistan. The goal is to archive the human side of the tragedy from all aspects...
United Kingdom: Video from Hitchens’ 1999 U.S. Book Tour
“Hitch Hike” is a 53-min documentary by Palash Davé about British writer Christopher Hitchens’ 1999 U.S. tour promoting his book about Bill Clinton. The full film is available for viewing on Vimeo (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3). Hitchens died on December 15, 2011.
Historical Link between Brunei and Nanjing, China
The Daily Brunei Resources traces the historical link between sister cities Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei and Nanjing, China.
Cuba: Food History
Iván García reviews Fidel Castro's history with “experiments”, saying: “The ex-president has put his foot in it many times. In all fields. The most painful has been in regard to food.”
Brazil: Youth Demands for “Real Democracy Now”
Brazilian journalist and blogger Lucas Morais analyzes [pt] the revolutionary movements that have spread throughout the world in 2011 and says that “this youth has increasingly become more aware of the limits of capitalist democracy, and not for nothing, it is fighting for a ‘real democracy now'”.
Estonia: Language and History
Giustino of Ithing for Eestimaa discusses Estonians’ obsession with language – and especially their own as opposed to Russian – against the backdrop of a recent interview with the country's president Toomas Ilves.
