Stories from Quick Reads from April, 2013
Introducing Contemporary Indonesian Art
Adrian Vickers introduces the latest issue of the online journal ‘Inside Indonesia’ which features articles about contemporary Indonesian art. While politics has dominated the foreground of Indonesian art, the country’s contemporary art world faces a struggle between art’s engagement with society and the forces of commercialisation.
Indonesia: Teaching Jakarta's Street Children
Sahabat Anak is a non-profit Indonesian NGO which helps Jakarta's street children by conducting tutorial programs and providing an activity center for street teens, kindergarten for street toddlers, and transit house for street kids.
Live Updates on Bangladesh Factory Tragedy
The death toll of the factory collapse in Savar, Bangladesh has risen to 290. Here is a live blog [bn] maintained by the Muktaangon blogging platform curating social media updates on the latest on the relief and rescue effort of the trapped workers inside the collapsed building.
Nobel Laureates: On with Ríos Montt Trial
“If this case does not move forward, survivors of Guatemala’s genocide are being victimized all over again,” says Nobel Peace laureate Jody Williams, co-founder of the Nobel Women’s Initiative. “They have taken a huge risk in testifying, and many have been harassed, intimidated and threatened. To annul the case would...
Saudi-American View on Boston Bombings
Nora Abdulkarim shares a Saudi-American perspective on the Boston Bombings. She explains: I won't try to simplify what is inherently complex. I will simply present and reflect, and nothing more. No fancy theorizing, no overarching message. This post is only meant to be a glimpse at personal identity – that...
Arabic Hashtag Trending Worldwide on Twitter
Kuwaiti Hamad Al Sabah tweets: @hmalsabah: Twitter is finally allowing Arabic hashtags to trend worldwide #كلام_مصري_مترجم pic.twitter.com/tb84Nkrk94 Netizens are using the hashtag, which translates to Egyptian Talk Translated, to translate Egyptian expressions and idioms.
‘Poor’ Coverage of Boston Marathon Bombing in Media
...[M]uch information has been misunderstood due to lack of knowledge about the Caucasus or Russia and a desire to present the suspects in a framework easily understandable to the American public.
‘Farmers Know Better’ in Turkmenistan
When will [the Turkmen leader] finally understand that the planned economy is not working? In order for the cotton sector to develop, cotton should be grown by private farms. Wouldn't farmers be able to decide better how much cotton they should sow? Does the [president] sitting on a golden toilet in [the Turkmen capital] Ashgabat really know better how much cotton can be grown in the country than a person working on a field?
‘Addictive’ Social Network is Back in Uzbekistan
After going offline for about a week, the top Russian-language social network service Odnoklassniki has become available again to tens of thousands of users in Uzbekistan. Blogger Doch’ Bukhari (Bukhara's Daughter) explains [ru] why Internet users in the Central Asian country choose this social network over other ones and why the network...
Iran: Facebook is ‘the most disgusting US spyware’
A high commander in Iran cyber police says Facebook is ‘the most disgusting spyware and the most dangerous warfare of the U.S.’ which is also ‘responsible for one third of divorces in Iran’. Facebook and other famous social networking websites are blocked by Iranian authorities. They blame this services as...
Hungarian Students Blog on Freedom of Information Requests
Hungarian grassroots student union Hallgatói Hálózat (Student Network) started a blog that curates freedom of information requests related to higher education. The blog, titled Transparent Education [hu], is using the Hungarian public freedom of information request service KiMitTud [hu] to track down the allegations of misuse of funds by university student governments. The blog's author...
Mapping Tool to Track Insecticide-Resistant Mosquitoes
Cameroonian blogger Edouard Tamba posted on twitter about the first online mapping tool to tool to track insecticide resistance in mosquitoes that cause malaria : IR Mapper.
Bill Gates’ Handshake Irks South Koreans
Microsoft founder Bill Gates has sparked controversy for his single-handed handshake when meeting with the South Korean president. Gates’ left hand was jammed into his pants pocket during the handshake, which is considered disrespectful in South Korea. An extensive photo compilation of Gates’ handshake [ko] was viewed more than 76,000 times in...
Social Media’s Role in the Sichuan Earthquake
ChinaFile and TeaLeafNation analyzed the important role social media has played in the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake that has killed 208 people. Social media's instant reactions to the quake has made a difference when compared to the coverage of the 2008 earthquake dominated by China's state media.
What Do Mozambique's Artists Need?
April 2013's “Open Terrace” will focus on Artists and ‘Houses of Culture’ [pt] from the Northern province of Cabo Delgado, Mozambique. The initiative takes place every month, bringing together people from diverse backgrounds to debate public issues. On December 2012, Global Voices reported on an Open Terrace dedicated to transparency...
Visiting World's ‘Most Dangerous Country’
Every day I wake up, shivering with fear, hoping I’ll make it to see the light of another day here in Honduras. I live behind doors enforced with triple bolt locks and I barely dare to go out on the street. […] If that’s what you want to hear, there...
Tokyo Joins NASA's App Challenge
Japan participated in NASA's International Space Apps Challenge 2013 with a hackathon in Tokyo on April 21 and 22, 2013. Eighteen project teams developed apps with the aim of improving life on Earth and in space, including an app to create dishes in a shape of celestial bodies [ja] such as...
India Suffers from Bad Governance
Big government leads to corruption. Corruption leads to bad governance. Bad governance gives rise to mass poverty. Atanu Dey argues that India is not doomed to be poor due to factors outside its control. It needs good governance.
Eric Schmidt and North Korea's Internet Dilemma
North Korea Tech blogs about Google Chairman Eric Schmidt's visit to North Korea and his views on the limitation and potential of internet technology in the North Korea.
Developing Latin America: A Summary
Desarrollando América Latina (Developing Latin America) has published a video summary of the regional hackathon DAL 2012, where 400 participants and 70 social experts developed 80 applications. Here [es] you can see Global Voices’ coverage of the event.
