Stories about Humanitarian Response from January, 2011
Taiwan: Animal protection “cockroaches” on Facebook
Boogier warns facebook users to think twice before clicking “like” or “share” button on those pitiful stories and photos of stray dogs and poor dog carers. He criticizes this kind of tactics used to allure people by fake animal protectors-who he'd rather call “cockroaches”, and argues that more dogs are mistreated because of...
North Koreans Reportedly Consume the Foot-and-Mouth Disease Infected Cattle.
Reports have come out from NGO groups that North Korea, as well as South Korea, may hit hard by the foot-and-mouth disease. A more gruesome report[ko] came out from Open Radio for North Korea, a radio station founded and runs by North Korean defectors, that starving North Koreans are eating the infected cattle.
Mexico: Indigenous Rights Advocate, Bishop Samuel Ruiz, Dies
On January 24th, Bishop Samuel Ruiz Garcia passed away at the age of 86. He was known for his work as an advocate of the rights of the indigenous Mayan people in the state of Chiapas.
Mexico: The Passing of Indigenous Rights Supporter Bishop Samuel Ruiz
Bishop Samuel Ruiz passed away this morning. Tim Johnson explains: “Ruiz […] started the Fray Bartolome de las Casas Human Rights Center out of his diocese, and played an instrumental role in keeping the Zapatista uprising that erupted in 1994 from flaring into broader violence. Ruiz’s work on behalf of...
Morocco: Social Protests Continue
Moroccan blog Alwandida (Ar) zooms in on ‘social’ protests in Morocco. Here, he posts a video showing a woman speaking out against housing problems.
Haiti: Aid From Slovakia Blocked by Customs for Ten Months
A container with the second shipment of humanitarian aid from Slovakia has been blocked by the customs in Haiti for nearly ten months. Tibor Blazko translates some of the Slovak netizens' views on the problem.
Tunisia: Serbian Tourists Refuse to Return Home
Eleven Serbian tourists spending their holidays in Tunisian resort towns of Sousse and Hammamet have categorically refused to leave this North African country before the end of their tour arrangement. Sasa Milosevic reviews some of the online reactions of these Serbian tourists' compatriots.
Panama: Fire in Youth Prison Sparks Controversy
A fire in a correctional facility for juvenile offenders has generated all types of reactions on Twitter and Panamanian blogs. The police officers involved are trying to defend themselves and explain what happened, and on the other side the Panamanian people are divided between those that want heads to roll among the prison guards and those that justify the police actions.
St. Lucia: Getting Over Tomas
“It will be a long road”: Sun, Rain, Or… says that St. Lucia is still struggling to get back to normal after last year's Hurricane Tomas.
North Korea: Drugs Rampant, Even Among Teens
North Korean insiders and defectors have testified that drugs are widespread in North Korea. Most recent reports told that drugs are popular gifts among teens and even ordinary middle-class citizens are frequently abusing them.
Venezuela: Rain Victims Protest Refuge Conditions
Juan Cristobal in Caracas Chronicles reports that, “This morning, dozens of families who lost their homes last December took to the streets to protest. According to press reports, the group was complaining they have been living in a flooded, rat-infested basement for weeks.”
El Salvador: A Decade Since the January 13 Earthquake
Hunnapuh [es] asks if El Salvador has learned “the lesson” 10 years after the January 13 earthquake. Blogger “Jjmar” answers the question reporting that construction companies still build homes in vulnerable places, and that people still purchase and live in these high-risk homes.
Guyana, St. Lucia, Haiti: Where Did The Money Go?
Regional bloggers are reblogging posts that ask where all the Haiti relief money went, given that the country appears to be not much better off a year after the earthquake.
Lebanon: Let's Protest
After -what she considered- so many useless and power-oriented protests, Lebanese blogger Liliane suggested a list of things that she believes are really worth demonstrating for and protesting against. Check her list and her readers suggestions as well in this post.
Haiti: One Year Ago…We Remember
Today marks one year since the devastating earthquake struck Haiti. Haitian bloggers are remembering and paying tribute to the survivors of the disaster, while acknowledging that there is still a lot of work to be done.
El Salvador: Top Stories of 2010
Tim's El Salvador Blog shares a roundup of what Tim considers the top stories of 2010 from El Salvador.
Poland: Microblog Reactions to the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity
More than 800 concerts, 1,300 artists performing for free today, 120,000 volunteers, an endless amount of charity activities across the whole of Poland and so far almost $12.3 million: these are the results of the grand finale of the 19th Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity. As we slowly approach the end of the day, we are also looking at online reactions to the event.
China: Village Woman Crushed Trying To Stop Construction
Fauna from ChinaSMACK translates netizens’ comments on a news story on the death of a village woman who was crushed by a construction vehicle when trying to stop a construction project in Henan.
Mexico: Red Cross Unable to Treat All Victims of Shootings in Ciudad Juárez
The Red Cross in Ciudad Juárez has asked that victims of shootings be taken to hospitals and not to their facilities because they do not have the capacity to treat so many victims of organized crime, as Pepe Flores reports for Vivir México.
Japan: Yearning for death
Daniele at The East Asia Gazette analyzed the “state of suicides in Japan” [en]. The post reads like a short essay on the sociological and cultural causes of suicide in one of the country with the highest suicide rates in the world. The blogger also reflected on the alarming statistics...
Colombia: Twitterathon to Help Those Affected by the Winter
During the heavy rainy season in Colombia, an initiative to have a "twitterathon" emerged through ideas published by Colombian Twitter users in order to collect donations for flood victims. Author Catalina Restrepo gives us the details.
