· May, 2008

Stories about Youth from May, 2008

Burkina Faso: Level four culture shock

  31 May 2008

In The United Kingdom a bit more than a week ago, the Office of National Statistics reported that in the past ten years, nearly two million Britons have moved abroad, making up the second largest emigration in the country’s history. Presently, that means that 5.5 million Britons live in foreign countries. So, what does this have to do with Burkina Faso? It proves a point, a fundamental truth really, about foreigners: They eventually go home. Or at least most of them do. It just happens that in Burkina Faso, a number of foreign bloggers are getting ready to pack up their things and head elsewhere.

Armenia: Last Bell

Kyle's Journey in Armenia, a Peace Corps Blog, reports on the end of the school year in Armenia. The Last Bell is quite an occasion for graduates of 11th form students and the blog posts photographs and an account from the north-east of the country.

Bahamas: Education Consequences

  30 May 2008

Christopher Lowe at WeblogBahamas.com blogs about the consequences of an ineffective education system, saying: “We are reaping that which we have sown.”

Puerto Rico, U.S.A.: Imagine That Conversation

  30 May 2008

Puerto Rican blogger Liza asks: “Can you imagine having to talk to your kids about the potential assassination of their father?”, adding: “What people don't get is how deep the wounds of political and social violence run in this country. To have people like Hillary Clinton dismiss political assassination as...

Haiti: In memory of a murdered teenager

  30 May 2008

La Dous Ki Vyen Pwezi posts in memory of Kareem Gaspard [Fr], a 16 year-old boy who was murdered in Port-au-Prince last Friday. “I've spoken to, smiled at, or shook the hand of so many people who have disappeared this way. Killed. Like dogs.”

China: After the quake, hoping for aid

  30 May 2008

From inside and outside China, concerned citizens are helping, and putting their hands out to help the victims of the devastating 7.9 in the Richter scale earthquake that leveled out industrial cities, transforming them into refugee camps where people are living under plastic bags, trying to find out their relatives and remake their lives. Four different videos bring us perspectives on how people are dealing with their losses all around the world, and how reaching out to help others could help help ease the pain.

Hong Kong: School Girl Punished for Mean Earthquake Comment

  29 May 2008

A school girl wrote down her lack of feelings on the Sichuan earthquake in her blog. Netizens found out her identity and she was force to make public apology. Her school also decided give her a demerit. The incident is recorded at evchk [zh]. Yeung Sir (a teacher) wrote at...

Bahamas: Social Breakdown?

  29 May 2008

Larry Smith at Bahama Pundit believes that the country's escalating violence, especially among youth, “is not crime. It is impending social breakdown.”

Trinidad and Tobago: Shame

  29 May 2008

As an eight-year-old girl is found dead in a canefield in Trinidad, Coffeewallah says: “They're killing the children…casually, as though they are no more than sand through our fingers”, while Now is Wow Too quotes the anonymous subject of one of her photographs: “We have failed our children. What's going...

Armenia: Youth Activist Beaten

The Armenian Observer reports that a pro-opposition youth activist was yesterday beaten in Yerevan, the Armenian capital. Arsen Kharatyan was called for an interview, but when he arrived at the location for the meeting he was instead attacked from behind. Unzipped comments on speculationthat the beating was probably connected to...

China: Children Protection

  28 May 2008

Wang Xiaofeng criticized mainstream media practice in interviewing the children earthquake victims as such interviews may have negative impacts on children's psychology [zh].

China: No Corruption in Building Schools

  28 May 2008

The education ministry has denied corruption in the construction of school buildings in the Sichuan earthquake zone. The comments in Zhaomu's blog showed that no one believed in the official statement [zh].

Africa: Learning by Ear

  27 May 2008

A new multimedia distance learning programme for Africa in English, Kiswahili, French, Hausa, Portuguese and Amharic: ‘The Learning by Ear program examines the challenges that young Africans face and engages listeners in an informative and entertaining way. The programming is a lively mix of in-depth reports, radio dramas and feature...

Lebanon: Clashes and Babies

Diana, who lives in Dubai and is expecting a baby in two months, is glad to have returned to Lebanon. She explains: “I cried my eyes out when I saw the fierce clashes in Lebanon and thought that I will never manage to come back and that I will be...