· November, 2008

Stories about East Asia from November, 2008

World AIDS Day: Blogging Positively

  30 November 2008

This year marks the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day, which takes place every year on December 1. Though the impact of HIV and AIDS is felt by millions of people globally every day, this particular day can help bring much-needed attention to the disease. The theme for this year's...

Thailand: Free Ride to PAD

  30 November 2008

Thailand Jumped the Shark wonders why “the foreign embassies and the international community have given the PAD a free ride, considering the PAD has broken multiple Thai and international terrorism laws and international travel treaties.” PAD, the opposition party leading the current protests in Bangkok has blockaded the main airports...

Japan: Mainichi's Wikipedia Slip-up

  30 November 2008

Ignoring the fact that Wikipedia timestamps are in GMT and not JST (Japan Standard Time), on the 18th of November the Japanese newspaper Mainichi Shimbun published an article entitled, “Attack on the former vice-Director's home: crime announced on the Internet six hours earlier… hinting at the crime?”, in which a Wikipedia contributor (”Popons”) was erroneously identified as involved in the attempted murder of Kenji Yoshihara, wife of former vice health minister Kenji Yoshihara. Bulletin board commenters quickly spotted the mistake, and bloggers responded with criticism, but the Wikipedia editor in question was apologetic about the ordeal.

Korea: The Birth of Internet Netizen Legend

  30 November 2008

A new Hong Gil Dong [EN] emerged on the Internet of Korea! A netizen who is just known as “Minerva” started writing his economic analysis in Agora—a Netizens’ panel— in a major portal site, Daum from 2007. He predicted the collapse of Leman Brothers, sudden jump in the foreign exchange...

China: Taxi Driver Strike, Union and Street Democracy

  30 November 2008

Taxi drivers from around the country have been in strike for a month. The first protest appeared in Chongqin in November 3, then it spread to Hainan, Gansu, Yunnan, Shandong, Qingdao, Jinan, Fujian, Shantou, Wubei, Shaanxi and etc. Tomorrow (1 of December), it is likely that Guangzhou will have another...

Sleepless and stranded in Thailand

  29 November 2008

There are more than a hundred thousand stranded passengers in Thailand and nearby countries after anti-government protesters forced the shutdown of Bangkok’s two major airports. What are the views of some of the stranded passengers, Bangkok residents and the now world infamous protesters?

Japan, S. Korea, China: the Second International Congress of Asian Hemp Industry

  29 November 2008

Blogger Takashi reports [jp] on the Second International Congress of Asian Hemp Industry (第2回アジア大麻産業国際会議) held in Donghae (Korea) at the Hangzhong University from the 20th to the 23rd of November, 7 years after the first congress took place. Participants from Japan, China and South Korea [jp] debated the hemp industry...

China: Chinese students inform on political science professor

  29 November 2008

David Bandurski from China media project quoted from South China Morning post on a news about two Chinese students reporting to the police on a professor at Shanghai’s East China University of Political Science and Law concerning his “anti-government” speech. The incident has been widely discussed in local forum, such...

Thailand: Airport takeover and Twitter

  28 November 2008

Twitter has become an interesting and good source of information about what is happening in Thailand. Twitter users in Bangkok have been exchanging travel tips, news updates, and opinions about the current situation.

Thailand: Protesters occupy airports

  28 November 2008

Thousands of anti-government protesters have occupied Bangkok’s two airports which paralyzed air travel in Thailand. The protesters want the elected government to be removed.

Japan: Cooperation with Thailand for the Prisoners Transfer Program.

  27 November 2008

At the Irregular Rythm Asylum blog, Shiga announces [ja] that she received a letter from Chinpô-san [珍宝さん], a Japanese who has been serving his term of life imprisonment at Bangwang Central Prison for over 10 years. Chinpô explained that starting this year, Japanese and Thai governments will cooperate in the...

China: Worry on the striking, 4-trillion stimulus plan

  27 November 2008

Global economy is stumbling, and neither can China stay out of the trouble. On 9, Nov, a striking stimulus plan, totally of 4 trillion yuan, was announced to public by the central government. Stock market was encouraged, so was the confidence of global market as it signals China’s pledge to...

China: Human rights in the spotlight

  27 November 2008

Taiwan bloggers shine a light on some important human rights issues in China. The Far-Eastern Sweet Potato looks at the case of Wo Weihan who has been sentenced to death. Michael Turton looks at Taiwanese connections to Chinese organ harvesting.

AIDS awareness through video

  27 November 2008

HIV/AIDS is a World-Wide pandemic which has been decimating the lives of men, women and children for more than 20 years. Today we bring you videos that discuss HIV/AIDS in its different aspects: how to live with it, protect yourself from it and how to raise awareness to the cause. From Cameroun, an award winning song about AIDS, from Argentina, a campaign that is not afraid to tell youth what a condom is and how to use it, and from Beijing, a video on discrimination, living with it AIDS and the strength to make the condition public.

Madagascar: Land deal with Daewoo finally rejected by authority

  26 November 2008

Mahefa Rakotomalala writes at L'express de Madagascar that the alleged land deal with South Korean company Daewoo has been officially rejected by the Malagasy government. The minister of land reform explained in a press release to local newspapers that anyone can request to lease an unlimited amount of land but...

Searching for blogs in Myanmar

  26 November 2008

There are several sites that provide a list of blogs in Myanmar. Myanmar Blog Directory contains an alphabetical listing of blogs. Sharbar offers a list of blogs according to category.

About our East Asia coverage

Oiwan Lam
Oiwan Lam is the North East Asia editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.

Mong Palatino
Mong Palatino is the South East Asia editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.