Stories from Quick Reads from July, 2014
The Hypocrisy of Outrage Against LGBT Rights in Jamaica
An off-colour comment by a Jamaican sports commentator who “dampened the moment of post World Cup celebrations with his shouts of ‘Heil Hitler’ on national television” leads author and blogger Kei Miller to pen a letter to the editor illustrating why his countrymen are living a double standard – outraged...
Spanish Football Club Presents Peculiar T-Shirt
Spanish football club Cultural y Deportiva Leonesa, presented its new T-shirt on July 22, 2014, with a peculiar design that simulates a tuxedo, with shoulder braids, and even a bow tie just below the neck. Twitter users were quick to express their opinion, not always favorable: No sé cuál es peor: Las...
2 Journalists Arrested for Alleged Defamation of a Minister in Madagascar
Two journalists from the daily paper Madagascar Matin were placed under arrest at Antanimora's jail, in the capital city of Madagascar, Antananarivo. Earlier this morning (July 23), both of them were summoned to the Brigade of Fiadanana for a hearing. Solo Rajaonson, another local journalist, posted the following update in...
Sri Lanka Plans to Deport 1,500 Pakistani and Afghan Refugees
Facing persecution in Pakistan, many Ahmadiyya Muslims and Christians have taken refuge in Sri Lanka. These refugees are mostly held in Boossa and Mirihana detention centers and have to live on government-provided rations as they are not eligible for work. According to the media, the Sri Lankan government is preparing to...
Venezuela Clears the Tower of David, the “World's Tallest Slum,” of Squatters
The Venezuelan government has finished evacuating thousands of squatters from the Tower of David, which overlooks Caracas’ slums, and is the tallest and most distinct building in the capital city's skyline. The one-time office tower is a symbol of how prosperous Venezuela once was and its current dilapidated state reflects growing inflation and...
Tips for Sharing Tweets Automatically
Infoactivismo is a blog about digital tools exchange and how to make the most out of that data to create changes in society. On this post, they explain two ways of sharing tweets with one click. Al lanzar una campaña en medios digitales es de gran utilidad tener mensajes que...
How to Become a Good Father
Panamanian Joel Silva Díaz elaborates what many people wonder, especially men: how to be a good father. On his personal blog he describes his challenges with his own father and his goals as a father: …Recuerdo que veía como un juego el buscar un tema de conversación, debido a mi...
Simply, Thank You!
2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil is over and Argentina didn't win this time. A week after the final match, there are still lots of reflections and comments about the performance of the Argentinian national team. This time, we find a hearfelt comment by Manuel de León, where he expresses his...
Football Analysis of 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil
International football fan Alberto Palmás analyzes the best teams that took part on the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil. He remarks the general performance of the national teams, the best players and other topics. He starts with Germany: Ha ganado el Mundial. Es la mejor y ha sido la mejor...
Reflections After 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014
Mexican student Álvaro blogs about his sentiments and opinions about 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil. He reflects on the poor performance of Mexico and Brazil national teams, but highlights what he considers a strategy failure of Brazilian president Dilma Rouseff. Días antes del comienzo del mundial, Dilma se imaginaba este...
Bangladesh's Elite Paramiltary Unit Is Under Fire for Human Rights Violations. This Blogger Asks: What About Israel's IDF?
Brad Adams, the executive director of Human Rights Watch's Asia division, has recently written a letter to Bangladesh's prime minister suggesting that the Bangladesh government should disband the paramilitary Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). Quoting news sources, he accused the RAB of being responsible for more than 800 extrajudicial killings in...
Second Biggest Arts Festival in the World Taking Place in South Africa
Live reports from the National Arts Festival taking place in Grahamstown, South Africa: Every winter, for 11 days in early July, the sleepy South African college town of Grahamstown comes alive with art. Artists from all over the world swarm to the tiny town, and every nook and cranny is...
A Documentary That Allows Transgender People's Voices to Be Heard
Though gays and lesbians are gradually gaining more acceptance in Puerto Rico, the same cannot be said yet of transgender people. That is why a film like Mala Mala, a documentary in which trans people speak freely about their stories, is so important. The film, directed by Dan Sickles (@dan_sickles) and...
Colombia: “What Do You Love About Medellin Downtown?”
On his Facebook page, Colombian journalist Juan Mosquera reflects on the problems of downtown Medellin: #AmamosElCentro El centro de Medellín tiene problemas, cada día más palpables y agudos, que no sólo obedecen a la siniestra presencia de los intereses de la delincuencia. Lo lees, lo escuchas, lo ves, casi lo...
Four Kosovars Walk to Brussels for Visa-free Travel Privileges
On July 17, 2014, four men from Kosovo completed a 78-day walk from eastern Kosovo to Brussels, Belgium. The goal of their trek was to incite EU officials to grant Kosovo visa-free travel throughout the EU, a privilege that has been available to all other Western Balkan countries for some...
The Art Nouveau Windows to Belgrade's Soul
Aleksandar Lambros, a Serbian-born photographer currently living and working in Monaco, has been snapping photos of tell-tale details of Belgrade's architectural history and collecting them on his blog. While the city still retains snippets of Roman and Ottoman architecture, as parts of the city were under both Roman and Ottoman...
Artists Explore the ‘Melting Point’ of Art and Propaganda in Skopje
A not-for-profit, self-financed group of artists calling themselves Kooperacija (“Cooperation”, Macedonian slang for a general store in small villages) hosted an exhibition titled “Melting Point: Art as Anti-Hegemonic Propaganda” [en, mk, with photos] in Skopje recently. As reported [mk] by several news outlets that cover culture [mk], including Belgrade-based SEE...
Trinidad & Tobago: Does Living in the Digital Age Forfeit Your Right to Privacy?
ICT Pulse reviews a recently published report from the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the right to privacy in the digital age.
The Engineer, Documentary About the Man Unearthing the Dead in El Salvador's Gang Wars
The documentary “The engineer” tells the story of the man that unearths the dead in El Salvador's gang wars. Israel Ticas has been trained as a civil engineer, and as forensic criminologist, every day brings with it the promise of new bodies, victims of a remorseless Salvadoran gang culture, dumped...
Improper Land Allocation Harms Trinidad & Tobago's Public Interest
Property ownership is a critical ingredient of the society we are trying to build. No one can deny that. The wealthiest people and companies in this society have made a great part of their wealth through property dealings – buying, leasing, sub-dividing, selling, renovating and so on….property is critical to...
Lucky 13: Tips for Protecting your Data on Public Computers
If you are about to go on holiday and you are thinking of taking your computer and get connected to Wi-Fi or using computers that are available in hotels and other public places, you must read this post with 13 tips to protect data, as published by Andrea on her...
