Stories about Weblog from December, 2009
South Asia: Looking Back At 2009
The year 2009 is ending and its time to retrospect how the year has been for the South Asian region. In a two-part review we will look back at some of the major events which took place this year in the South Asian countries seen through the eyes of the citizen journalists.
Caribbean: 2009 Regional Roundup
As Global Voices celebrates its fifth anniversary, the occasion has given us all an opportunity to reflect on why we do what we do and how our work makes a...
Caucasus: 2009 Blog Review
If the Armenian and Georgian blogospheres attracted most interest during 2008 after one disputed presidential election in the former and an albeit short war with Russia in the latter, Azerbaijan was the undoubted focus in 2009. In particular, youth activists quickly embraced both new and social media to spread their message online.
China: Akmal's death sentence, a resolute No to memory of humiliation?
Akmal Shaikh, a British citizen convicted of smuggling heroine into China, was executed on Tuesday although his families along with the British government had pleaded for reprieve, claiming that he...
Global Voices needs your support
Dear Global Voices Reader, We'd like to ask you to support our work for 2010 with a financial contribution. If you've been following the activity on the Global Voices, Global...
Indonesia: Email mom ‘not guilty’ says the High Court
Prita Mulyasari, a housewife who was charged with defamation by a hospital for an email complaint against a bad health service, was found not guilty by the Indonesian High Court. Bloggers and twitterers are happy with the ruling.
Overcoming negative stereotypes in the South Caucasus
An online project using new and social media to overcome negative stereotypes in the South Caucasus entered a second stage last week when two blogging Azerbaijani journalism students and a Georgian blogger joined in the initiative.
Tunisia: The White Note Campaign Against Cyber Censorship
Tunisian bloggers organised a White Note Campaign to protest against online censorship on their blogs. One blogger decides to swim against the tide with a Black Note in protest.
The Year that Was in Madagascar: Part I
In part one of a three-part summary of the year in citizen media in Madagascar, Lova Rakotomalala recalls the turmoil that seized the country in the first four months of 2009.
China: Cui Weiping tweets elite views on Liu Xiaobo
Many Chinese public intellectuals take flack for keeping quiet on major social issues. Beijing Film Academy professor Cui Weiping has sought to change that by tweeting her peers' views on the recent sentencing of China's most prominent democrat.
Nicaragua: The Aftermath of the 1972 Earthquake
On December 23, 1972, a 6.2-scale earthquake struck Managua, Nicaragua killing 5,000 and leaving 250,000 homeless. Nicaraguan blogger Homero was a young child at the time, but he holds memories of the aftermath, which he describes in a recent post in his blog Ventana de Homero.
Malawi: Bloggers discuss 30 earthquakes in 3 weeks
In what some geologists have described as rare occurrences, Malawi's northern district of Karonga has in the past three weeks experienced a total of 30 earthquakes resulting in at least 5 deaths, over 200 people injured and over 3,000 made homeless. Bloggers have been quick to share their reactions.
Japan: Spread the message, translate it
A video interview [en] of Kyo Kageura, head of the project Minna no Honyaku (みんなの翻訳, Translation for all) [ja], a new translation platform that helps NGOs and NPOs to spread...
Palestine: Twitter accused of silencing Gaza tribute
Twitter has been accused of attempting to silence tributes to Gaza one-year after an Israeli onslaught devastated the Palestinian enclave. Pro-Palestinian and human rights activists used the influential Twitter to express support for the besieged territory. Tweets using the hashtag #Gaza flooded in on December 27th, peaking at number 3 on Twitter's top ten Trending Topics list.
Brazil: 100-year-old grandma realises parachute dream
It is never too late to achieve a dream, and a Brazilian granny has proved the cliché true. At the age of 100, she enjoys dancing, swimming, running, playing volleyball, basketball, football and now, parachute jumping.
Global Voices partners with Google on freedom of expression award
Nominations open today (December 29) for the Breaking Borders Award, a new prize created by Global Voices and Google to honor outstanding web projects initiated by individuals or groups that demonstrate courage, energy and resourcefulness in using the Internet to promote freedom of expression.
Five Years of Global Voices: Where they are now
Outreach Director David Sasaki remembers the December 2004 meeting that paved the way for the formation of Global Voices.
Kazakhstan: Journalist murdered, professional motives excluded
Sayat Shulembayev, 28, journalist of the news video-portal “Stan” was brutally murdered in Almaty. As “Stan” producer Michael Pak says, Sayat rented a room in the house near bus station....
Russia: Role of Stalin Debated on RuNet

Heated discussions on RuNet in the wake of the 130th anniversary of Joseph Stalin showed how divided people are regarding his role in Russian history.
Palestine: Gaza's Bloggers Remember The War
It is one year since Israel launched its attack on the Gaza Strip. In this post, Gaza's bloggers remember the war.
Iran: When Rage Overcomes Fear
Iranian protesters poured into Tehran and several major cities in defiance of the Iranian government on Sunday, as large crowds gathered for Ashura, a major religious observance.