· April, 2007

Stories about Migration & Immigration from April, 2007

Arabeyes: On Selling a Palestinian Kidney and Changing the Israeli Flag

Do you want to know why a Palestinian wants to sell his kidney, or what had happened to the bicycle of a Lebanese blogger on September 10, 2001? What is more difficult: returning home after living abroad for five years or demanding that Israel changes its flag just as the Kurds want to change the Iraqi flag? And last but not least: why does Ala'a Abdulfattah - the Godfather of Egyptian bloggers - say he isn't and was never a blogger? To know more, read on.

Egypt: Sinai Bedouins Seek Refuge in Israel

Writing at Kabobfest, blogger Hanaan reports the plight of a Sinai bedouin, who is seeking entry into Israel. “You know police brutality has reached a new low in Egypt when hundreds of the country's poorest would rather seek refuge in Israel than face Mubarak's hired guns. The government should be...

Kurdistance: A Week Like Any Other

The news coming out of the Kurdish blogs this week is as varied as the landscape of Kurdistan itself. From predictions on Syrian Kurd alliances with Israel, to censorship in Turkey; from explorations of Northern Iraq, to essays on intolerance, the Kurdish bloggers cover it all. But for this week, I think we will begin with why, to Kurds, April is considered as the "Bride of the Year".

Arabeyes: Palestinian Jordanian Anyone?

Jordanian blogger Hareega is furious that people avoid discussing racism in his society. He is particularly angry about the discrimination Jordanians of Palestinian origin go through in a country he claims they have helped build and project to the level it is today. يبدو أن الناس بشكل عام تتفادى الخوض...

Tanzania: blog about Swahili film in the US

  25 April 2007

A blog about a Swahili film, Bongoland II: “This weekend we conducted screen tests for JUMA. The process went well and we were very impressed by the brave souls who dared to take on the challenge. We also want to thank those who made sacrifices to be at the event...

Ukraine: Yulia Tymoshenko's Article

  24 April 2007

Taras Kuzio discusses Yulia Tymoshenko's lengthy Foreign Affairs piece – and her allegedly good command of English: “In Tymoshenko’s case we can thank her growing knowledge of English on my home region of Yorkshire which produced her rock n’roll son-in-law.”

Nigeria: stop criticizing the government from the Diaspora

  24 April 2007

Pause to Ponder defends his opinion about the state of Nigerian democracy: “The above topic was inspired by my last post, which has earned me bashing from 2 fellow bloggers, I bet a lot more are still coming. Their vituperations are long awaited though, because of my own perspectives of...

Somalia: Somalis in the US pledge funds to oppose occupation

  22 April 2007

Banaadir blogs about Somalis in Minnesota pledging support and funds to liberate Somalia from foreign occupation: “Somali Minnesotans raised funds, signed petitions, sang patriotic songs, cried and felt for the rape victims, wounded, massacred, displaced, refugees, and the suffering masses in Mogadishu. They listened lectures from prominent speakers such Ex-Prime...

Africa: AfroSpear – a Think Tank for People of African Descent

  21 April 2007

A new blog on the block: Afrospear – A Think Tank for People of African Descent, “Welcome to AfroSpear! We are one galaxy in an interplanetary solar system of BLACKNESS…Blackness that is inclusive as well as incisive. We are united by our African-ness and our love for our people and...

How [NOT] To: Armenian Genocide Protest

  20 April 2007

Points about what is appropriate for an Armenian to do on the Armenian genocide remembrance day – April 24th, started earlier this week by the Armenia blog were picked up by the Ahousekeeper in his post: “Dress code? Yes, dress code!”, followed by a lively discussion: One day out of...

A Guadeloupean Family Heads Back to Africa

  19 April 2007

Regardailleurs writes about a Guadeloupean family that decided to abandon the privileges of French citizenship and “repatriate” to Benin (Fr), land of their ancestors, after centuries of exile.

Lusosphere Reports The First Round of East Timor's Elections

  18 April 2007

Timor-Leste is holding its first national election as an independent nation, and the vote counting now indicates the need for a second round to decide the next President. The voting occurred on April 9 and the counting process has generated some perplexing news, which should be expected in a country with no previous electoral experience. Less expected was the fact that the spokesman for the National Electoral Commission (CNE), Father Martinho Gusmão, delivered his press conferences in four languages one after the other -- Tetum, Portuguese, Indonesian and English. After raising serious concerns by personally expressing doubts about 'illogical' outcomes from the ballot processing, Father Gusmão was removed and explanations were presented by other officials. See what Portuguese sources are reporting...

Ukraine: Family History

  16 April 2007

Wu Wei resumes writing about her father's life: “No wonder his nationality was not so clear. And no wonder he could apparently speak Polish, Romanian, Hungarian and Ukrainian when he arrived in Brussels.”