· June, 2007

Stories about Migration & Immigration from June, 2007

Bahrain: The Tale of a ‘Legal Slave’

No longer a tax haven, people in Bahrain are fuming at the introduction of a one per cent tax to benefit an Unemployment Fund. Bloggers caught on the bug and are ranting and fuming on their blogs in this report by Ayesha Saldanha. In other related matters, bloggers talk about a new law which bans workers from working between noon and 4pm in the summer heat, lavish weddings and the forgotten 'martyrs' of the civil unrest which rocked Bahrain in the 90s.

Iran:Persepolis pulled from Bangkok Film Festival

  29 June 2007

Cityboy informs us that the Bangkok International Film Festival dropped Marjan Satrapi's prize-winning animated movie,Persepolis.The blogger says Iranian embassy in Thailand announced that Festival managers responded positively to a request from the Iranian Embassy in Bangkok.The movie follows Satrapi's life through the 1979 Islamic revolution,war and mass executions.

Jamaica: Personal Space

  27 June 2007

“From the beginning of slavery, there has been a war fought over black bodies and black space and because we have been victims in the past, we have conceded our space and our right to that space and it has had a debilitating effect on our self-esteem.” Jamaican Geoffrey Phlip...

Hong Kong: 10 years

  27 June 2007

Lu Qui Lu-wei from 1510 wrote about her experience in Hong Kong for the past 10 years as a professional new immigrant from China (zh).

Hong Kong: Migrant workers support pier preservation

  26 June 2007

Hoidick from inmediahk.net reported on a survey on migrant workers’ opinion towards public space at Central, especially near the city hall and Queen's pier: Given that Queen’s Pier (and also City Hall and Star Ferry) is so important to the Filipino/as’ community as an irreplaceable ‘home away from home’, it...

If Bloggers attended the Conference on the Caribbean…

  25 June 2007

This past week (June 18-21) leaders of CARICOM met with President George W. Bush and other top U.S. government officials in Washington as part of the Conference on the Caribbean. Official word from the U.S. Press Secretary is that: “The Conference on the Caribbean continues an important dialogue between the...

India: A Tamil Film in Malaysia and a Riot

  25 June 2007

The Culture and Politics of Tamil Cinema on the near riot caused by the release of a film starring Rajnikanth. “Rioting probably has become yet another ritual for the subaltern film fans in diasporic contexts to give vent to their other anxieties.”

Arabeyes: How the Palestinians Defeated Themselves!

What is happening in Palestine? Why have the Palestinians turned against each other? What is fueling the conflict? Who is the victor and who is really being defeated? And what next? Palestinian blogger Haitham Sabbah sums up his feelings of disgust and attempts to answer these questions in the following...

Lebanon: Almost Non-Political Questions

What are we eating? Why are our banks flourishing? Who are those clearing cluster bombs? How will Brazil help in recycling Lebanese wastes? Where are some of the children who were caught in the crossfire? What about some music? These are some of the questions answered in this week’s selections from the Lebanese blogosphere.

Peru: Celebrating June 24 – San Juan and Inti Raymi

  24 June 2007

June 24 is a very special date in many parts of the world, because in addition to being the longest day of the year, it coincides with the summer solstice (which is why it is the longest day of the year). From the wikipedia entry on the solstice: A solstice...

Palestine: A Classic Case of Divide and Rule?

With so much happening on the ground, this week many of the blogs by Palestinians, and those focused on Palestinian issues, have kept their attention on the ongoing events in Gaza. Ayesha Saldanha reviews what Palestinian and other bloggers had to say about the civil war in Gaza, the World Refugee Day and conversations over picking thyme.