Stories about Politics from December, 2010
Cambodia: Review of 2010
Tharum Bun from Cambodia reviews the major news events in the year 2010.
Cuba: Change of vote on LGBT Rights
The LGBT activist and blogger Paquito commends [es] the Cuban government for changing its vote at the United Nations after having previously supported an amendment to remove the explicit reference to sexual orientation from the periodic resolution condemning extrajudicial, arbitrary or summary executions.
Dominican Republic: Demanding 4% of National Budget for Education
In the Dominican Republic there is a heated debate about the quality of education that focuses on the fact that the General Law of Education establishes that annual public funding on education must reach at least 4% of the GDP. Actually, only around 2% is destined to education. The Internet and social media networks have become important spaces for grassroots campaigns and communication.
Caribbean: Defining Moments of 2010
Many landmark events happened in the Caribbean this year, prompting reactions from the regional blogosphere. Here's a look back at some of the most important stories of 2010...
Peru: Book About Social Conflicts in Peru
Silvio Rendón from GranComboClub analyzed [es] the book “Between economic growth and social dissatisfaction. Social protests in contemporary Peru” [es] by Romeo Grompone and Martin Tanaka. Aside from reviewing the interesting material on the case studies presented, Silvio thinks the conclusions the book reaches try to distort the social conflicts...
Venezuela: Police Repression During Protest Over University Law
Miguel Octavio in The Devil's Excrement says that students faced severe police repression during a protest against a new law that gives the government more control over universities. Furthermore, in Venezuela News and Views Daniel Duquenal reports that an AFP journalist was hurt while taking pictures of the protest.
Trinidad & Tobago: A Vote vs. Human Rights
Trinidad and Tobago bloggers are upset about their country's abstention on a UN vote regarding an amendment to a resolution “condemning extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions” which “restores a reference to sexual orientation in the list of groups of people particularly targeted in extrajudicial killings.”
Cuba: A Cuban Christmas
Iván's File Cabinet says that “although the city does not have a Christmas atmosphere…in their way, Cubans celebrate Christmas.”
Brazil: Act in support of WikiLeaks
The video of a debate in support of WikiLeaks, with the participation of its Brazilian representative, Natália Viana, and many cyberactivists, is available at the blog Maria Frô [pt]. The event was promoted by Intervozes [pt] – an organization advocating for freedom of expression and the democratization of communication.
India: November 2010 Killings in Assam
Aruni Kashyap discusses about the recent killings by the Bodo militants in Assam.
Laos: New Prime Minister
After accepting the resignation of Bouasone Bouphavanh, the National Assembly of Laos unanimously voted Thongsing Thammavong as the country's new Prime Minister
Myanmar's person of the year
Kyaw Zwa Moe of The Irrawaddy names Snr-Gen Than Shwe as Myanmar's person of the year. Than Shwe is the junta leader of Myanmar.
Korea: Preferential Treatment to Kim Il-Sung Univ. Graduates
Giving preferential treatment to prestigious school graduates is South Korea's chronic disease. @Heoyeonism tweeted a North Korean defector's comment that North Korean defectors who went Kim Il-Sung University, one of the top universities in N.Korea is more likely to get a job in South than other defectors.
Iran: Subsidies Cutback Causes Drastic Rise in Prices
Severe cutbacks on subsidies that have kept prices on many goods artificially low are feared to cause problems for many middle class and poor citizens in Iran.
Caucasus: The Year in Review
With 2011 nearly upon us, the year in new and social media in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia during 2010 was surprisingly positive. So, what did the past year hold in store for the South Caucasus? Read on.
Kenya: Remember When Former Kenyan Minister Topped Twitter List?
Do you remember when former Kenyan Minister of Education topped Twitter list?: “William Ruto was among the top three trending list with the hash tag #Rutoplaylist. Ruto is receiving a lot of attention on the social site, he comes a close third after tweets about Lil Wayne’s release from prison...
Tunisia: Unemployed Man's Suicide Attempt Sparks Riots
An unemployed Tunisian set himself on fire in protest against his joblessness, sparking a wave of riots on the ground and solidarity and support on social networking platforms. While the fate of Mohamed Bouazizi, aged 26, from Sidi Bouzid, in southern Tunisia, remains unclear, Tunisian netizens ceased the incident to complain about the lack of jobs, corruption and deteriorating human rights conditions in their country.
Kenya: Of Drug Barons, Rogue Envoy and Poisoned ICC
Of Drug Barons, Rogue Envoy and Poisoned ICC in Kenya: “Only in Kenya do you find the title Honourable before the name of a drug baron. And the Kenyan voter love them while the Diaspora applaud the bling bling MPs as hard working. Woe unto you envious, lazy mortals for...
Cote d'Ivoire: Electoral Fiction
Koranteng writes about what he calls “electoral fiction”: I write this of course after watching events in Côte D'Ivoire over the past few weeks. The initial emotion was bemusement and indeed laughter – how can one not laugh at the spectacle of someone literally tearing up election results to prevent...
Zambia: 1964 Independence Agreement Threatens to Split Nation
Zambia has in recent weeks been faced with clamours of secession by one of its regions with which it merged at independence from Britain in October 1964 to form a unitary state. The region now known as Western Province (formerly Barotseland) was an autonomous region before independence headed by the Litunga, king of the Lozi people.
Russia: List of Regional Governors’ Online Tools
“Vedomosti” newspaper, published [RUS] a detailed list of online tools of Russian regional governors. The list includes links to personal websites, blogs, Twitter accounts, Facebook profiles, and even YouTube channels.