Stories about War & Conflict from May, 2010
Caucasus: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia make Eurovision Top Ten
This year's Eurovision Song Contest drew to a close on a Saturday in a televised final which attracted around 125 million viewers worldwide. But while some media reported lagging interest in the 54-year-old competition and concerns about spiraling costs, countries such as Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia continue to take it very seriously indeed.
MENA: Rage after Israel Attacks Gaza-bound Flotilla
Emotions are running high across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), after Israel attacked a peaceful flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to besieged Gaza - and the Twittersphere is ablaze. Also, are tweets commenting on the situation being censored?
Jamaica: Mapping the state of emergency
Citiizen media initiative On The Ground News Reports creates a Google maps-based “situation map” to record incidents related to the state of emergency in Jamaica.
Pakistan: Culture Of Intolerance
Raza Rumee at Pak Tea House discusses about the recent attacks on Ahmadi community in Pakistan and what signs it gives.
Pakistan: Minorities At Peril
“The thirty years of state sponsored “true” Islam is showing its colors. In Pakistan all the minorities are constantly harassed and state’s protection has often proved completely ineffective when a serious attack occurs,” comments Raza Habib Raja at Pak Tea House while discussing the attacks on the religious sites of...
Pakistan: Attacks in Lahore at Ahmadi Mosques
Amardeep at Sepia Mutiny writes about the “terrible pair of attacks on Ahmadi mosques in Lahore, by gunman armed with grenades and automatic weapons”.
Caucasus: Social media, cleavage, and rare unity in Eurovision
Although last night's second semi-final for this year's Eurovision Song Contest has been and gone, Twitter was alive with commentary and updates throughout. The annual international competition, noted more for its kitsch entries than for its music, is viewed by well over 100 million people worldwide. Its presence online is nowhere near as large, but is increasingly becoming an important consideration.
Israel: The Freedom Flotilla – PR Stunt or Humanitarian Act?
Nine ships sailing from various destinations, including Ireland, Turkey and Greece, are headed towards the Gaza Strip, with the goal of breaking the Israeli maritime blockade. Gilad Lotan takes a closer look at reactions from the Hebrew blogosphere.
Ghana: Our first batch of refugees
Togo's Security Minister is quoted by the BBC saying that 3,500 refugees have crossed into Northern Togo from Ghana following ethnic conflict and land disputes. Ghanaian blogger and journalist Ato Dandzie discusses the issue in his post titled Our First Refugees.
Sri Lanka: Unique Perspectives On The End Of War
Sanjana Hattotuwa at ICT for Peacebuilding (ICT4Peace) informs that GroundViews, the Sri Lankan citizen media platform, has published a special edition on the end of the war against LTTE.
Jamaica: Latest Updates
Twitter has been buzzing with the latest developments regarding Jamaica's state of emergency. Things began to look "much better" late yesterday: wanted men were turning themselves in, one international mainstream television station was reportedly going to "apologise for [its] 'inaccurate report'" (although some tweeple were of the opinion that "an apology [was] not enough") and all seemed quiet in areas that had previously been fierce battlegrounds.
China and Hong Kong: Responses to Cheonan sinking incident
The release of the international investigation report on sinking of Cheonan in May 20, 2010, concluding that the South Korean warship had been bombed by a North Korean torpedo has alleviating the tension in Northeast Asia region. South Korea suspended all trade and investment with North Korea while Pyongyang denied...
Jamaica: Situation Improving?
Four days into the state of emergency imposed on the Jamaican capital, the situation is becoming clearer - not simply in terms of statistics - but in understanding the chain of events that led to the current impasse. There are also reports that life in the capital city may slowly be returning to normal.
Russia: “Circassian Nationalism and the Internet”
At OpenDemocracy.net, Zeynel Abidin Besleney writes about “the role played by the internet as a lifeline linking otherwise isolated activists and communities and reinforcing the Circassian nationalist cause.”
Russia: Explosion in Stavropol
Miriam Elder reports at GlobalPost on the explosion in Stavropol, which took place next to a centrally-located concert hall shortly before a Chechen folk dance troupe was to perform there. LJ user dimazelensky, whose office is inside the concert hall building, wrote (RUS) that the police had cordoned it off...
Russia-USA: Like father like son
Windows to Russia turns attention to the only American soldier in the second world war serving in both the US and Soviet armies, who allegedly was also the father of current US ambassador to Russia.
Sri Lanka: Vanni One Year After War
Ruki at Groundviews visited Vanni, the war torn city in the North of Sri Lanka, and analyzes the situation there after one year since the end of the war against LTTE.
Bloggers React to Gunfights and Change in Government in Madagascar
Gunfights in Antananarivo and yet another change in the government shook Madagascar the past week. Bloggers react:
Latvia: May 9 in Riga
Arnis Balcus posts photos from the May 9 celebrations in Riga and writes: “In Latvia 9 May is more than just a victory celebration, it is also an expression of collective identity for local Russians.”
Jamaica: State of Emergency
Things are starting to unravel in Jamaica, as the drug money link between dons and politicians, starts to get the media attention it deserves. The United States want Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke – the notorious don man of Tivoli Gardens, West Kingston for trafficking drugs and guns. But will the ruling...
Armenia-Azerbaijan: Conflict transformation
For the past two years Global Voices has covered the use of new and social media to overcome differences between Armenians and Azerbaijanis still locked in conflict over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh. Most recently, it presented on the use of new online tools in conflict resolution and transformation at conferences in Romania, Macedonia, Georgia and Chile.
