· July, 2008

Stories about Weblog from July, 2008

Arabeyes: Mourning Youssef Chahine

Tributes are pouring in from bloggers from around the Middle East and North Africa, mourning the death of renowned Egyptian film maker Youssef Chahine. Born in Alexandria in 1926, Chahine has left behind a legacy, and millions of fans and followers across the region.

Bangladesh: Tweeting and blogging an earthquake

  29 July 2008

A moderate earthquake jolted Dhaka city on the 27th of July approximately at 00:51 hours Bangladesh Time (+6 GMT). Russell John reports in his blog: I was lying on my bed talking to a friend on the phone, and I suddenly felt that the bed was shaking. Within 3 seconds,...

Costa Rica: Concerts, riots and concerns.

  29 July 2008

Journalist Cristian Cambronero from popular Costa Rican blog Fusil de Chispas posts a recount of Sunday's Concert where youth rioted and destroyed the campus of the Universidad Latina in the capital city of San José. It seems that when around 3000 of them were not allowed entrance to the free concert venue where already 5000 spectators were waiting for the concert some of the irate teens destroyed the university buildings, storefronts,dismantled cars, damaged the church in the vicinity, looted, threw chairs, rocks and bricks everywhere.

Cuba: July 26th

  28 July 2008

This past weekend, on July 26th, Cuba marked the 55th anniversary of the attack on the Moncada Barracks in Santiago that came to be recognised as the start of the Cuban Revolution. Bloggers react to President Raul Castro's much-anticipated speech at the event.

Bangladesh gets a ‘Blog-Ban’ scare

  28 July 2008

On 15th of July, Bangla bloggers were disconcerted to find that they could not access Sachalayatan , a popular Bangla blogging platform that focuses on literature and contemporary issues, from within Bangladesh. Those living outside Bangladesh, however, had no problems with accessing the site. In the beginning, people thought it...

Afghanistan: Seeking Justice

Despite its reputation for a very conservative brand of Islam, Afghanistan is deeply torn. Before the recent decades of war, the country was more known for its mystical Sufism that attracted crowds of hippies and tourists than anything else; the Soviet War helped entrench a more fundamentalist brand of Islam...

Afghanistan: Violence in the Hazarajat, Protests in Kabul

  28 July 2008

Afghanistan is one of those countries where minority issues drive nearly everything. They form the basis for why President Hamid Karzai is “the best game in town,” but also why he should resign. They form the fundamental structure of the national government, with ethnic set-asides (Kuchis get 10 seats in...

AIDS: XVII International Conference call for videos

  28 July 2008

The XVII International AIDS Conference will take place in Mexico City between August 3rd and the 8th, and Witness' THE HUB has a series of videos uploaded by community members and organizations reflecting diverse approaches to HIV-AIDS related issues. The innitiative is towards creating a repository of work, testimonies, video and photographs to be shared through their site before, during and after the conference.

Ecuador: New Constitution Ready For Vote in Referendum

  28 July 2008

A draft proposal for the new Constitution in Ecuador is ready for approval by a nationwide referendum to be held in September. However, reports of a Constituent Assembly under pressure, a change of assembly president, and questionable legal conditions placed on the text leave some unsure of their vote. In spite of this, local bloggers recommend that everyone read the entire 200-page text before making a decision and that it is important to be a part of the process.

Serbia: Demonstrators Attack Journalists in Belgrade

Starting with the night when Radovan Karadzic was arrested, nationalist group members and high-ranking officials of the Serbian Radical Party have been gathering in the streets of central Belgrade. Although there were police units nearby, on July 24 the protesters broke several store windows and brutally attacked journalists and cameramen of the "treacherous media." Below are some of the bloggers' responses and other public reactions, compiled and translated by Sinisa Boljanovic.

Brazil: Controversial nuclear project is given green light

  27 July 2008

Controversial Angra 3 reactor for Brazil's Nuclear Power Plant was given a pre-licence by the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA) last July 23, not before a series of 60 environmental terms were imposed by Environment Minister Carlos Minc.

Bahrain: Missing India

Many Bahrainis study at universities and colleges in India, and one of them is blogger MuJtAbA AlMoAmEn. He recently wrote about his feelings of missing Bahrain when in India - and his desire to go back to India after a long break in Bahrain.

Japan: Toyota's Just-In-Time System and the Akihabara Killings (Part 1)

  27 July 2008

When Tomohiro Kato killed 7 people and injured many more in Tokyo's Akihabara district last month, the details of his life became the talk of the Japanese blogging world. Among these conversations, the murders sparked a huge number of conversations on the country's temp worker industry, as Kato himself worked as a temp worker at a factory under Toyota. No single blog entry however attracted as much attention as did a post by blogger boiledema, published two days after the incident and bookmarked on Hatena by a staggering 1366 users. In this first part of a two-part series, we translate the first half of boiledema's original blog post.

Korea: To Me, a Blog is ___________

  27 July 2008

We all know about the ‘wave’ at sporting events. You stand up and down following strangers the behind or front, or left or right sides around you. Now the ‘blog wave’ is popular in Korea. A blogger or portal site suggests an idea and starts riding the ‘blog wave.’ This...

Latvia: European Court Goes Against Riga

Who has the right to pass judgment on what a man does in the service of his country during wartime and what should the legal grounds for such a verdict be? These are some of the key issues surrounding a legal process on WWII war crimes against a soviet veteran, Vasily Kononov, that has been dragged through the Latvian legal system since 1998. However, earlier this week, the European Court of Human Rights found that Latvia lacked legal grounds for prosecuting Kononov. Following the verdict, the Russian blogosphere has generally reacted with joy and relief, although there have also been some opposing voices.

Saudi Arabia: What is the point of MBC Persia?

MBC is a Saudi-run satellite television company, known across the Arab world for its entertainment channels as well as Al Arabiya news channel. It has just launched a new channel called MBC Persia, on which films are subtitled in Farsi. Saudi blogger Mohammed Abdullah Al Shahri wonders whether this initiative is really what is needed.

Bahrain: Omar Al Bashir and the Cross-Eyed Justice

Reacting to the news of the International Criminal Court's (ICC) arrest warrant against Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir, Bahraini blogger Hayat [Ar] describes the decision as ‘cross-eyed justice.' Will the ruling save Darfur and its people or is it another ploy to allow the United States direct control over the region and its rich resources?