· June, 2012

Stories about History from June, 2012

Korean ‘Comfort Women’ Photo Exhibit Sabotaged in Japan

A South Korean photographer explains his ordeal in holding an exhibition in Japan that documents aging 'Comfort Women', the term used for Koreans drafted as sex slaves by the Japanese during World War II. Many South Koreans and fans of the photographer online, accused Japanese extremist right-wing groups of refusing to admit their war crimes and attempting to sabotage the art exhibition.

27 June 2012

Russia: The War Over World War II

RuNet Echo

Last Friday, NTV broadcast a controversial film titled, "I Serve the Soviet Union," a film about political prisoners fighting the Nazis only to be murdered by Soviet secret police. The screening lead to a scandal that involved patriotic bloggers, the Minister of Culture, and others. Kevin Rothrock reports.

26 June 2012

St. Lucia: Flower Festival

At “I and Iyanola”, Nkrumah Lucien completed a two-part blog post exploring the origins of Saint Lucia's flower festivals: “It is not that La Wòz and La Magwit cannot be...

20 June 2012

Rediscovering Africa's ‘Forgotten’ History

Contrary to what former French President Sarkozy said in a speech in Dakar, the history of the African continent is full of rich civilisations and iconic characters. But this history is too often overlooked or ignored. Here you will find some reasons to rediscover Africa's history.

20 June 2012

South Korea: Former Dictator's Cadet Review Sparks Public Anger

In South Korea, a former president notorious for directing a massacre and oppressing democratic activists during his term (1980-88), has been criticized for participating in a cadet review at the Korea Military Academy and enjoying perks as a former head of the state, despite his criminal records.

19 June 2012

Understanding the Violence in Western Myanmar

Dozens dead, more than two thousand houses burned down, and thirty thousand residents have been displaced by the communal violence in Rakhine State, west of Myanmar. Who are responsible for these deaths? How was the internet used to spread hate and racism? What are the views of ordinary citizens on this very complicated issue?

16 June 2012

Development Model for Myanmar

Myat Thu Pan discusses the possible development model for Myanmar by studying the development histories of Singapore and Thailand. The author advises Myanmar to learn from the mistakes of its...

14 June 2012

Afghanistan's First Computer-Animated Movie

Leaving the three decades of war and destruction behind, Afghans make use of modern technology and media to rebuild the country and raise new generations with a brighter vision for the future. ‘Buz-e-Chini‘ (Goat) is the country's first ever 3D computer-animated short film.

14 June 2012

Brazil: Online Impressions of Brazilian Identity

Since the declaration of Brazil as an independent nation in 1822, Brazilian identity has gone through several changes spurred by economic, social and cultural transformations. But is there a common Brazilian identity for every citizen? Fernando Sapelli reports some online impressions of what it means to be Brazilian.

13 June 2012

Poland: Obama's “Polish Death Camp” Gaffe Causes Controversy

In the last days of May, a storm of controversy struck the Polish public opinion when the US President Barack Obama used the expression "a Polish death camp" rather than stating clearly that what he meant was a Nazi Germany-operated death camp on the Polish territory. Anna Gotowska reports.

10 June 2012

India: The Colonial Bungalows Project

Kiruba Shankar has started a photography project titled Colonial Bungalows, in which century old residential bungalows (British, French and Portuguese) in India will be photographed and documented.

8 June 2012

Nepal: The Kathmandu Project

Lex Limbu highlights a photography project of Surendra Lawoti, which will try to record the landscape of the Kathmandu valley in transformation.

7 June 2012

Greece: Inspiration Behind the Shocking ‘Modern Maenad’ Photo

A photo showing a young naked woman, a modern Maenad (a mythological female follower of Dionysus) bleeding from her navel and holding in her hands like a newborn baby, the Greek flag, has travelled around the world. For the photographer, it underlines the current psychological situation of Greek people, their lost pride and anger, while experiencing the crisis.

7 June 2012

China: Tiananmen Political Prisoner Li Wangyang Found Dead

Li Wangyang, a Chinese political prisoner who spent most of his life in detention, was found dead on the morning of Wednesday 6 June, after being interviewed by overseas media about the June 4 (Tiananmen Square) Massacre of 1989 and the life of political prisoners in China. His death has provoked suspicions of foul play.

7 June 2012