Stories from Quick Reads from August, 2014
Defending Human Rights in Jamaica
When JFJ [Jamaicans For Justice] began, extra-judicial killings by police were commonplace. Yet, not a single police officer had ever – not in the entire history of Jamaica – been ever held accountable for one of these murders. It was a matter that desperately needed addressing. The death of Mario Deane...
Video: Listen to Nairobi Coffee Shop Entrepreneur
Meet Peter Owiti, coffee shop entrepreneur in Nairobi, Kenya: The story of Peter Owiti, the brains behind Pete’s Coffee shop, speaks volumes of the great deal of effort that is spent when setting up a successful business. In the brief video below, Pete, who is a father of three, talks...
Zambia's Cabinet Should Probe President's Health
In view of widespread rumors regarding the health of Zambia's president, Michael Sata, Gershom Ndhlovu argues that the constitution mandates the cabinet to probe his health: The last time Zambia’s President Michael Sata was seen publicly was on or around June 20 when he hosted a Chinese government delegation led...
Investors Should Explore Nigeria Despite Negative Reports
Chris Akor's investors’ guide to Nigeria intends to demonstrate how the negatives reports about Nigeria have no basis in reality and that investors who have ignored the reports have been making huge returns on their investments: Undue clatter has trailed the release of Nigeria’s rebased GDP figures – a purely...
How Kenyans Can Lead a Double Life in the US
Danstan Obara shows how Kenyans can lead a double life in the US: The American double life starts by making sure that your social security card does not have the stamp that says “Valid for work only with INS authorization”. The things that people do to get rid of this...
Have you Ever Shared a Football Match with Cows? Some Peruvian Fans Did
The Peru Tournament is a promotional football event where several teams from all around the country take part, aiming pass to first and second divisions. The champion earns a place in first division and the runner-up moves forward to second. On a match played on August 10 during 2014 tournament...
Human Kidney Trafficking in China
A recent court case in Jianxi province revealed the insider story of human kidney trafficking business in China. Charles Liu from theNanfang.com curated the local investigative report on the operation of the underground business. … a 21 year-old man looking to prove to his family that he was financially independent....
Iranian Police Interrogator Gets 3 Years Jail Time for Killing a Blogger
Cyber police interrogator Akbar Taghizadeh has been sentenced to three years in prison, two years in exile, and 74 lashes for the murder of dissident blogger Sattar Beheshti, who died under torture while in police detention in November 2012. “On Wednesday afternoon, August 6, news of the sentence was delivered to...
Improving Internet Access in Cambodia
Danièle Adler, a consultant in communications strategy, gives an overview of the significant improvement of the IT sector in Cambodia: Six years ago, fewer than 10,000 Cambodians had a web connection, and it was extremely slow. Today 2.5 million people have Internet access at home, and an additional two million...
PHOTO: Five Jewish Graves in WWI Gaza Cemetery
Foreign Policy magazine Middle East editor David Kenner visiting the British WW1 cemetery in Gaza and shares this photograph on Twitter. Visited the British WWI cemetery in Gaza today. Thousands of graves – including five Jews. Love this inscription. pic.twitter.com/cuWUchbitP — DavidKenner (@DavidKenner) August 10, 2014 The inscription reads: “In...
Indigenous Libraries As Social Venues
“One thing is that books satisfy users’ curiosity, and a very different one that is that it might represent the identity of the community them belong to”. Argentinian librarian Daniel Canosa questions the role and function of local libraries. On Infotecarios network he writes: Las bibliotecas indígenas, [deberían] generar conocimiento...
Investment Deal with China Leaves Jamaicans With More Questions Than Answers
I AM SO FLABBERGASTED: WHO gives a FOREIGN government the RIGHT to CHOOSE WHICH LAND IT WANTS? As part of an investment exchange, the Jamaican government has agreed to give 1,200 acres of land to the Chinese government – wherever it wants. Cucumber Juice has critical questions that she feels...
How Much Infuence do Travel Blogs Have?
GV contributor Laura Schneider posts on her blog a survey by travel bloggers to know how much influence do travel blogs have when traveling. You can participte and send your own survey until September 1. The results will be published on the network website.. This post was part of the...
Caribbean Court of Justice Mired in Controversy
Barbados Free Press says that few people realise “that the vaunted Caribbean Court of Justice carries no actual power or authority”, partly because compliance with the court's decisions is apparently voluntary. Comparing the institution to a toothless bulldog, the post went on to provide links to reports on several incidents...
A Terrifying Experience at A Mumbai Train Station
Blogger Antarik Anwesan recalls an alarming experience at Goregaon train Station in Mumbai, India. A local train started from the platform without notice and the crowd hurried to get on board. As the train gathered speed quickly, some people fell from the door and two persons were miraculously saved from...
Video Contest: Inspiring Stories of Protected Areas
The International Unión for Nature Conservation (IUCN, for its name in Spanish) on its official page on Facebook, makes a call for communites and populations that live in protected areas in South America to submit their videos to take part in the contest “Inspiring stories of protected areas”, aiming to...
Accessibility and Lack of Appreciation for Young HIV Carriers Fighting AIDS
Under the premise that AIDS is the second cause of teenager deaths in the world and the nvisibility for vulnerables populatons in this field, Puerto Rican journalist Natalia A. Bonilla Berríos writes about the participation of L’Orangelis Thomas Negrón, HIV carrier from birth, on the XX 2014 AIDS International Conference...
5 Things One Blogger Thinks You Should Know About People of African Descent in Trinidad & Tobago
We have evidence in our culture, historical facts, which show how the African experience in the Caribbean has helped define our landscape and spirit. In honour of emancipation, Amilcar Sanatan shares five things about Afro-Trinbagonians you never knew: they are not a monolith, they don't all vote along ethnic lines,...
Emancipation Day Sees New Triumph as Haitian-Born Dominican is Declared a National
Emancipation Day, the anniversary of which is marked in several Caribbean territories on August 1, inspired two Jamaican bloggers to consider the occasion more closely. Nadine Tomlinson quoted Marcus Garvey on the importance of emancipating the mind, while her compatriot, Jean Lowrie-Chin, thought it significant that August 1 also marked...
VIDEO: Development Master Plan for Brunei's Capital
This video shows the master plan to develop Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei's capital city, into a “livable, uniquely Bruneian, riverfront city.”
