Stories about Central Asia & Caucasus from January, 2012
Azerbaijan: #LightYourFire Eurovision Meme
Ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Baku in May, a new Internet Meme has appeared on Twitter. With Azerbaijan known as the Land of Fire, the hashtag for the international singing contest is the same as this year's official motto, #LightYourFire.
Azerbaijan: Eurovision as an Opportunity for Change in the Caucasus
Commonspace comments on news that Armenia will participate in this year's Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Baku, Azerbaijan. Despite a still unresolved conflict between the two countries, the site says Azerbaijan should welcome Armenians at the international music competition and Armenians should respond in the same manner.
Afghanistan: Coverage in US papers falls in 2011
Nick Fielding writes that coverage of Afghanistan in American newspapers fell in 2011 compared to the previous year, although overall coverage of international issues jumped by more than a third.
Afghanistan: Sahar Gul’s story as an illustration of women’s rights
basir ahang writes about 15 year old girl, who had been forced into marriage and later was imprisoned, tortured and violently beaten by the husband and his family because she refused to work and earn money as a prostitute.
Kyrgyzstan: MPs Told to Ride the Bus
A suggestion that Kyrgyz MPs should give up their state-funded cars and take a minibus to work has moved netizens towards a reappraisal of what their elected representatives should and shouldn't be entitled to.
France, Turkey: Retaliations Expected for Controversial Law on Armenian Genocide
The Huffington post, in the launch issue of its Francophone version, publishes a column [fr] listing “Five retaliations Turkey could take on France” as the French Senate is preparing to vote the final draft of this controversial “memory” law this monday, January 23, 2011. This bill will enforce a fine or even...
Turkey: Post-Murder Trial, Thousands Remember Hrant Dink
Thousands have marched in Turkey to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist and Agos newspaper editor Hrant Dink.
Turkey: Hrant Dink Murder Trial Closes
Five years and 25 hearings later, the trial to convict those responsible for the murder of Hrant Dink, a Turkish-Armenian journalist, has come to a close.
Global: Pictures Not for Free
Edmond Terakopian, one of the UK's leading press photographers, comments on the tendency for some publications to expect photojournalists to supply images for free or for a token payment. The ethnic-Armenian World Press Photo Award winner is also using a Twitter hashtag, #picturesnotfree.
Global Voices Most Read Posts in 2011
Global Voices is no longer as lonely a media voice when it comes to reporting tweets and blog posts. Still, where mainstream media interest wanes, we're the ones who continue documenting local citizen media. Discover our top 20 list of most read posts for 2011.
Georgia: Return of the Meskhetian Turks
Over 100,000 Muslims were deported from the Meskheti region of Georgia by Joseph Stalin in 1944. Now, more than 60 years later, some are slowly starting to return as part of the country's obligations to the Council of Europe.
Afghanistan:The number 39 is associated with prostitution
A Facebook campaign has been launched to fight against wrong mentality about number 39 in Afghanistan. This number is associated to prostitution. Read more here.
Turkey: Remembering the Turkish Schindlers
Writing on the Huffington Post, Ziya Meral explains why honoring those Turks that saved Armenians during the collapse of the Ottoman Empire is important. Meral argues that recognizing these ‘Turkish Schindlers’ would go some way in defusing tensions between Armenia and Turkey, making the events of 1915 a shared tragedy....
Caucasus: The Year in Review
As popular uprisings spread through the Middle East and North Africa in 2011, opposition forces tried to replicate the Arab Spring in the South Caucasus. However, they failed.
About our Central Asia & Caucasus coverage
