· April, 2011

Stories about Weblog from April, 2011

India: Kerala’s Debate On Endosulfan

  30 April 2011

As the debate on the pesticide EndoSulfan is gaining momentum in the Stockholm Convention in Geneva; Kerala, the southern state of India is up in arms online and on the streets for pressurizing the Indian Government to favor the ban.

Serbia: Bloggers Discuss Plans to Erect Monument to Late Azeri President

  29 April 2011

One of Belgrade's nicest parks has recently got renovated - thanks, partially, to a donation of 2 million euros by the Azerbaijani government. The news that has been stirring controversy these past few weeks among Serbian bloggers is the condition for this gift: in return for the donation, a monument to Heydar Aliyev, the former president of Azerbaijan, will have to be erected in the park.

Syria: The Revolution Continues (Video)

It's the Friday of Rage in Syria, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets of different cities to call for the overthrow of the Al Assad regime, and show solidarity with Daraa, which is facing a ruthless crackdown for being the nucleus the Syrian protests.

Colombia on Red Alert After Heavy Rains

  29 April 2011

Colombia is on red alert due to heavy rains. Residents of 28 departments suffer extreme hardship: flooding, landslides and sudden increase in rivers and streams have left more than three million five hundred thousand victims.

Zambia: President's Son Threatens Journalist

  29 April 2011

A senior Zambia journalist recently received threats from the son of the Zambian president Rupiah Banda, James, following a story that appeared on the Zambian Watchdog, a leading investigative journalism website, alleging that James was a thief and was involved in major government deals and also State House officials are drunks and start drinking as early as 15.00 hours during working days.

Arab World: Royal Wedding Fever in the Air

The hype surrounding the royal wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton tomorrow (April 29) has reached the Middle East, where some tweeps took a break from covering the ongoing Arab revolutions to remark on the ceremony and reception, which will follow at Buckingham Palace.

Peru: Second Electoral Round Kicks Off

  28 April 2011

A few weeks before the second round of elections in Peru, the choice between candidates Ollanta Humala and Keiko Fujimori, the growing polarisation in Peruvian society, and ultimately from the electorate, is as notable in the press as it is on social networks.

Brazil: School Bullying and the Realengo Massacre

  28 April 2011

On 7 April 2011, twelve adolescents at the Tasso da Silveira City School in the west of Rio de Janeiro were shot dead. The culprit was ex-pupil, Wellington Menezes de Oliveira, 23, who then turned the gun on himself. The growing speculation about the killer’s profile, in both the blogosphere and traditional media, raised the issue of bullying in Brazilian society.

Iraq: Is Saddam Still Alive?

Saddam Hussein is making the rounds on social media, with a new recording claiming that the Iraqi dictator is alive and well and that his double Mikhail was the one executed on December 30, 2006. Many netizens are quick to describe the video as phoney and assure readers that Saddam is dead and gone. Had he been alive, the former Iraqi dictator would have turned 74 today.

Cuba: Bloggers Reflect on Reforms at Communist Party Congress

  28 April 2011

The sixth congress of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), which was recently held in Havana, may have marked a major turning point for the Cuban economic system, and for Cuban society at large. Bloggers in Cuba, and those who follow Cuba from other parts of the world, offered a diverse range of reactions.

Featured Author and Translator: Asteris Masouras

  28 April 2011

In this Global Voices contributor interview, author and translator Asteris Masouras talks about how he started writing for the site. Based in Thessaloniki, Greece, Asteris has been writing for Global Voices since 2008 about his country of Greece and other topics around the world. In addition, he has been one of the leading translators for the newly formed Global Voices in Greek