Stories about Weblog from April, 2009
Honduras: Does the Country Need a New Constitution?
Honduran President Manuel Zelaya recently announced that he will ask the people whether or not the country needs a new Constitution. He says yes, but will let the people decide. Some critics believe that Zelaya wants to scrap the current version in order to remain in power indefinitely.
Israel: Reflections on the Holocaust Memorial Day and Durban II
Yesterday was the national holocaust memorial day in Israel. Coincidentally, it was also the opening day of the highly contested UN Durban II conference on racism in Geneva. Gilad Lotan updates us with reactions from Israeli bloggers, who link both occasions.
Lebanon: From the Election Campaign Trail
Campaigning for the Lebanese parliamentary elections in June is in full swing, and the Lebanese blogosphere is not skipping a beat. As expected, the Lebanese blogosphere is keeping a close eye on election developments and offering plenty of insight, writes Antoun Issa.
Indian Elections 2009: Villains And Votes
If elections are to be described as a process to elect better leaders for the country, the ongoing elections in India are of a very different variety. A number of convicted felons, gang members with long criminal history and leaders accused of violent crime (murder, attempted murder, armed robbery) - villains in every sense are going to the people asking for their vote.
Lebanon: Activists Experiment with Social Media
The use of social media tools such as Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, and mobile technology has become increasingly popular in activism and advocacy work worldwide in recent years. In Lebanon, a group called Social Media Exchange teaches activists how to utilise social media to promote their work and reach a wider audience. Mohammmad Azraq digs into the Lebanese social networking and online scene to find out more.
Iran: Diplomats walk out at Ahmadinejad's speech
Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today made headlines once more, when he referred to Israel as a “racist state” during a address at United Nations conference on racism in Geneva, Switzerland. Delegates...
Americas: 5th Summit Reactions
The much-hyped Fifth Summit of the Americas is now over, culminating with the Hemispheric leaders' adoption of the Declaration of Commitment of Port of Spain - albeit with one signatory - the Prime Minister of host country Trinidad and Tobago, who purportedly signed on behalf of all participating leaders. This signaled to many a clear lack of unanimity on the final declaration, hardly surprising given the differing agendas of the 34 participating nations. Bloggers were quick to post their impressions of the three-day engagement.
Afghanistan: Political Machinations
While Afghanistan's so-called “rape law” has garnered a lot of Western press, there is a lot of domestic debate over it as well. The women's marches have been covered admirably...
Malawi Politicians Campaign in Cyberspace
The presidential and parliamentary race in Malawi is seeing innovative use of the Internet that Malawi's politics has never witnessed before. Parties and individual contestants have established themselves online through websites, Facebook and blogs to get voters' attention.
Jamaica: Hostages Released
Breaking news in Jamaica this morning is that a hostage situation has developed with the crew of a Canadian jet at Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay. Canadian mainstream media is since reporting that the situation was resolved without any loss of life when "an anti-terrorism unit of the Jamaican military stormed the plane and disarmed the gunman", but bloggers Caribbean-wide and throughout the diaspora are still in disbelief.
Global Health: Twitter Face-Off To Fight Malaria
This past week Twitter became the newest weapon in the fight against malaria when American actor Ashton Kutcher challenged news network CNN to a race to get a million Twitter followers. The winner of the competition vowed to donate mosquito bed nets in time for World Malaria Day on April 25.
Kazakhstan: Blackout in Almaty
Last Wednesday, April 15, due to damage of the high-voltage power line Toktogul-Frunze (the largest line in the Kyrgyz Republic), most enterprises and even strategic buildings in towns of the...
Jackie Chan: Chinese need control
“I'm mot sure if it's good to have freedom or not, I'm really confused now. If there is too much freedom, like the way Hong Kong is today, it is...
Latin America: Pride on Local Musicians in YouTube's Symphony Orchestra
Latin American bloggers have been writing about the YouTube Symphony Orchestra's debut at the Carnegie Hall, where the winners of a world-wide online contest where were flown into New York to participate in this collaborative orchestra. Following, some of the winners selected to play at Carnegie Hall, and how some of them weren't able to make their dream come true.
Moldova: “Making Sense of Recent Events”
Below is a follow-up to the three earlier GV posts on the blog coverage of the protests and rioting in Chisinau, Moldova, that followed the April 5 election.
China: Our right to be spared from fear
Blogger Lan Xiaohuan （兰小欢）, in his post ‘Bitter Smile’, reflects on how a nation permeated with fear has muzzled people's voice. Lamenting that the cost to claim the rights of...
Kuwait: Election rhetoric, arrests and the whole shebang
Greetings fellow global bloggers and readers! My name is Amer Al-Hilal and I am the new 'Global Voices' co-author covering Kuwait; a vibrant, highly passionate and astute blogging community, one that has throughout the years encompassed all sorts of interests and events, from consumer-oriented services and products to politically charged calls for protecting freedom of speech, culminating with and leading the 'Orange' 5 for Kuwait movement, which has led to the government redistricting five political constituencies instead of 25.
Bolivia: Piecing Together the Life of an Accused Terrorist
Bolivian police killed three foreign nationals in a Santa Cruz hotel. What is not entirely clear is the connection between the men, who national authorities say were a part of a terrorist cell that had been planning to assassinate President Evo Morales, as well as others from the opposition. One man has emerged as the ringleader of the group, Eduardo Rózsa-Flores, a Bolivian-Hungarian citizen with a long history. The media, as well as bloggers, have been trying to piece together his background to draw conclusions.
Morocco: On “Jewish Morocco”
Morocco has a long relationship with Judaism; during the spread of the Roman empire, a number of Jews settled in what is modern-day Morocco. Over time, relations between Morocco's majority Muslim population and its small Jewish population have ranged from very good to heavily strained. Following the creation of the state of Israel, the vast majority of Morocco's Jews emigrated (approximately 15% of Israeli Jews are in fact of Moroccan descent), however, approximately 7,000 Jews reside in Morocco today. Moroccans are often quick to point out that the king's top adviser, André Azoulay, is Jewish.
Israel: What Happens when IDF Soldiers Testimonials are Taken Out of Context
On March 19th, Israeli daily Ha'aretz published a report describing the alleged incidents in a closed-door meeting of Israeli soldiers at a military prep program, where they described multiple accounts of immoral orders and actions taken by the Israeli military during the recent Gaza operation ‘Cast Lead'. Their testimony runs counter to the IDF claim that Israeli troops observed a high level of moral behavior during the operation, but falls in line with stories coming from Palestinians, describing multiple Israeli war crimes in Gaza.
Egypt: Filmmaker's struggle finally pays off
Egyptian cinema-goers will finally be able to watch Ibrahim El Batout’s film Ein Shams [Ar] (Eye of the Sun) as an Egyptian movie at the end of this month - after a long drama with censorship. Nermeen Edrees brings us the story.
