Stories about East Asia from October, 2009
China: Bridging the gap? Interviewing bridge bloggers
The Chinese blogosphere, as we all know, is booming. As one of the largest on the planet, it is constantly evolving and simultaneously being set back by the all-too-famous governmental censorship. According to Li Datong, the country’s civil society is being reborn online through the intense cyber-dissent and the breaching...
South Korea: Foreign gangs
Robert Koehler from the Marmot's Hole picked up a news story about police's cracking down of foreign gangs and gave an introduction to the character of different foreign gangs.
China: The death of an overseas returnee
China Hush has a translation of a report from Southern Metropolis Daily on the suicide of Tu Xuxin, a civil engineering PhD who returned from the U.S.A to China to develop his career in a local university.
Japan: When Your Wife is Sick
When Japanese “corporate livestock” (社蓄 shachiku) culture and values on marriage collide – more than 300 people responded to this question on the mega forum Hatsugen Komachi: Should a husband take time off work when his wife is sick? Situation Rina has been married for 8 years and has a...
China: Painted plagiarism of a push-up photograph
Joel Martinsen from DANWEI highlighted a recent painted plagiarism scandal by an artist named Li Yueliang.
Japan: Animated stereoviews of old Japan
Pink Tentacle picked up enigmatic photographer T. Enami (1859-1929)'s photos of old Japan and represented the stereoviews through gif animation.
Egypt: Egyptian Male Blogger Orders Artificial Hymen
So much was said and written about the artificial virginity hymen kit - that Egyptian male blogger Mohamed Al Rahhal just had to buy one. Marwa Rakha brings us the story.
Vietnam: Twitter-like application
Introducing Mimo, a Vietnamese microblogging website whose platform is similar to Twitter.
China: Why Western Media Mistakes Matter
C. Custer from Chinageeks discussed the issue on why western media mistakes matter.
Thailand: New law on rallies
The Cabinet of Thailand is proposing a new bill that would govern the conduct of public assemblies and rallies in the country.
Thailand: Laid-off underwear workers create new clothing line
Presenting, ‘Try Arm’ underwear products designed and made by laid-off workers of Triumph Company in Thailand. The workers who are still on strike conceptualized “Try Arm” to sustain their campaign for reinstatement or fair compensation.
Indonesia: Youth Pledge Day 2009
Breaking Tweets gathers twitter posts on the commemoration of Indonesia's Youth Pledge Day. The historic day, October 28, 1928, is recognized as an important date for Indonesia's aspiration to become a free and independent republic.
South Korea: Jeju Olle routes
Jean Min from Ohmynews! told the story of the restoration of “Olle”, a walking path, in Jeju island.
Taiwan: Ethics of gift giving
Michella discusses the ethical issues for journalists offered gifts. She finds it difficult to understand some of the gift and money giving traditions in Taiwan.
China's Dark Satanic Mills
On Oct. 14th, Chinese photographer Lu Guang won this year's $30,000 W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography for his photos on China’s environment. The Fund’s website posts the following paragraph describing Lu Guang’s project: Lu Guang has been documenting the ecological disasters in China resulting from the rapid growth...
Disaster Management and the role of ICTs
In a first post of the series, we explore the role of ICTs in Disaster Management and the paradigm shift in Disaster Management strategies that came about post the aftermath of the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004.
Japan: News in Manga Format
The Kininaruu blog is enthusiastic about Manga no Shinbun (‘Manga Newspaper’), a new Japanese website that publishes news stories as manga illustrations. Boo-hee thinks it's a good medium in a world overflowing with information [ja]. Hiroshi Hara posted an image of a similar attempt in his high school years.
False report on Brunei
The Daily Brunei Resources spots a factual mistake in a news article which appeared in The Florida Times-Union. The article mentioned that Brunei participated in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and that it has a male-only policy.
Cambodia: A dangerous country for tourists?
Somongkol disagrees with the observation of a writer who describes Cambodia as one of the most dangerous tourist destinations in Asia.
Cambodia: Flooding woes
Sophonrith posts pictures of flooding scenes in Khan Russey Keo district, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Myanmar: PM Said Electoral Law Coming “Very Soon”
The Irrawaddy reported that Myanmar Prime Minister said that his government would soon announce an electoral law for 2010 Elections.
About our East Asia coverage
Oiwan Lam is the North East Asia editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.
Nevin Thompson is the Japan editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.
