Stories about History from April, 2010
China: Remember Hu Yaobang
C Custer from ChinaGeek translates a People Daily editorial written by China’s Premier, Wen Jiabao on the then-General Secretary of the CCP Hu Yaobang. Hu's death in 1989 is directly related to the 1989 democracy movement in Beijing.
Barbados: Black, from an Island
Barbados’ Gallimaufry and Repeating Islands refer to a piece by Maxine Williams, which deals with the “black island identity”.
Cuba: Groundbreaker
For Havana Times, Yusimi Rodriguez interviews “the first black model in Cuba.”
Cambodia: Khmer New Year 2010
It’s Happy Khmer New Year in Cambodia, celebrating the year of the tiger.
Uruguay: New Holiday Commemorates Charrúa Massacre
For the first time on April 11, 2010, Uruguayans commemorated a day remembering the 1831 massacre against the Charrúa indigenous people. Supporters of the Charrúa and the law allowing this holiday see this as a small but significant step toward embracing the indigenous heritage of the country.
Poland: Controversy Over Polish President's Burial Location
Today's announcement that the Polish presidential couple, killed in the tragic aircraft accident over Smolensk last Saturday, would be buried in Krakow's Wawel Castle has raised a lot of controversy. Sylwia Presley translates the views of some Polish Facebook members.
India: Longing For The History Of The Indian Emigrants
Lekhni at The Imagined Universe writes about Amitav Ghosh's novel ‘Sea of Poppies’ and reminds that “the book shows how little we know about emigrant Indians”.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: La Soufriere
“As a teenager I saw the awesome power of volcanoes when the Montserrat Soufriere Hills rumbled to life…since then I have looked at our dozing mountain with more than a little fear and respect”: From St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Abeni marks thirty one years “since Vincentians awoke to the...
Palestine: Ideas for Catchy Titles
Palestinian blogger Laila El-Haddad sends out a tweet saying: “Officially started writing new book; in need of catchy titles; suggestions?”
Tunisia: Bourguiba 10th Death Anniversary Remembered
Tunisians remembered the 10th anniversary of the death of their country's first president - Habib Bourguiba, who walked their country through independence. Bloggers agree that he may have committed some mistakes, but applaud the changes he has institutionalised in the Tunisian society.
Ecuador: Dispelling Misconceptions About the Saraguro Indigenous Community
The Saraguro indigenous community in Ecuador is facing challenges - young people lose many typical customs, as well as the ability to speak Kichwa. However, one blogger Angel Gualán is helping to preserve some of these traditions, as well as dispel some of the many misconceptions that some have of the Saraguro.
Kyrgyzstan: A Photo Report From Bishkek
Photos and commentary (RUS) on the recent unrest, looting and poverty in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan – by LJ user zyalt (Ilya Varlamov).
Russia: Reactions to the Polish Tragedy
April 10, 2010, the day that should have started a new era in the Russian-Polish relations, brought tragic news instead. Airplane with the highest Polish establishment on board crashed in the Smolensk forest. The reaction of the Russian blogosphere was divided as usual when it comes to the Russian-Polish relations.
Colombia: 62 Years After the Bogotazo
Patricia Quintero Barrera of the blog Etnicografíca [es] writes about the 62nd anniversary of the “Bogotazo,” which is a period in Colombian history where there were “protests, disorder, and repression” in the capital Bogotá, following the assassination of Presidential candidate Jorge Eliécer Gaitán in 1948.
Poland: President Kaczyński is Killed in Plane Crash in Russia – Initial Reactions
Sylwia Presley reports on the initial reactions of the Polish social media users to the shocking news of the plane crash, which killed the Polish president and many other top officials in Western Russia this morning.
Ukraine: Court Ruling on Stepan Bandera's Hero of Ukraine Status
Steve Bandera of Kyiv Scoop addresses the Ukrainian president once again, writing about the Donetsk Administrative Court's decision that Stepan Bandera “cannot be a ‘Hero of Ukraine’ because he was never its citizen”: “Following the logic of the Donetsk court ruling, you will have to ‘de-heroize’ at least 15 Heroes...
Philippines: Holy Week rituals
Journalist Gel Santos Relos writes about the Holy Week rituals practiced in the Philippines
Understanding an Indonesian address
Spektrum Pemikiranku blogs about how to read an Indonesian address.
Haiti: “The Quake”
The Haitian Blogger calls PBS’ recent documentary on the Haitian earthquake “distorted”, saying: “It would have been great if the writers and producers of ‘The Quake’ had offered a documentary that was not only representative of the immediate aftermath of the devastating earthquake, but was also an accurate historical, political,...
Philippines: A Holy Week Visit to Old Manila
An excursion through the old downtown area of Manila City during the Holy Week underscores the need for a sense of history and culture in the face of the lack of initiatives to preserve colonial-era buildings, set up museums, and retain old street names.
Russia: War Reporter Blogs on Trauma and Politics of the Subway Attacks
Olga Allenova is a special correspondent for the Kommersant daily, author of Chechnya is Close: War Through the Eyes of a Woman, a collection of the 1999-2007 war reportage from the North Caucasus. In the post below, she writes about the March 29 subway bombings, the subsequent pain and trauma, and the resulting political and media responses.