Stories about East Asia from December, 2010
Malaysia: Non-nuclear energy options
A blogger suggests that before going nuclear, Malaysia should first explore whether it can better manage its varied energy resources more efficiently and effectively.
Singapore: Blueprint for ageing population
Noting that Singapore is one of the fastest ageing nations in the world, blogger guanyinmiao proposes the drafting of a blueprint for Singapore’s ageing population
Singapore: Weaknesses of the media
Caroline Ng proposes the liberalization of the media landscape in Singapore to foster democracy and free access to information.
Malaysia, Singapore: Open letter to Lee Kuan Yew
Malaysian blogger Art Harun writes an open letter to Singapore leader Lee Kuan Yew in response to the Wikileaks expose about the unflattering remarks made by Singapore's senior diplomats against Malaysia.
Singapore: Sleeping room of maids
Observing that housing flats are getting smaller in Singapore, Blinkymummy is curious to know the sleeping room of house maids/helpers.
Indonesia: Football and nationalism
Multibrand blogs about the role of football in reviving nationalism in Indonesia.
China: Rich state, poor people
Andy Yee translates and analyzes Mo Zhixu's article on the political system that results in “rich state and poor people in ChinaGeeks.
Taiwan: Cycling used to construct culture
Taiwan in Cycles looks at an article from CommonWealth magazine and discusses how cycling and leisure activities are used to construct culture and promote an ideology of Chinese nationalism in Taiwan.
Cyber Scout: Thailand’s internet police?
The government of Thailand is recruiting young people to join the ‘cyber scout’ program which is tasked to defend the royal institution in the internet. Is it an initiative to bridge the digital divide as the government claims or is it a censorship tool?
Philippines: ‘Unliking’ the Facebook page of the President
The Four-eyed Journal from the Philippines explains why he ‘unliked’ the Facebook page of President Noynoy Aquino.
Laos: New banknotes
Lao has introduced a new 100,000-kip (US$12.45) banknote and several coins to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the capital, Vientiane. Oliver Tappe, writing for New Mandala, analyzes the design of the banknote.
Laos: Center of tiger trading
Lao Bumpkin writes about a village he visited in Laos which he described as the “center of the international trade in tigers, leopards and other endangered species.”
Laos: New Prime Minister
After accepting the resignation of Bouasone Bouphavanh, the National Assembly of Laos unanimously voted Thongsing Thammavong as the country's new Prime Minister
Myanmar's person of the year
Kyaw Zwa Moe of The Irrawaddy names Snr-Gen Than Shwe as Myanmar's person of the year. Than Shwe is the junta leader of Myanmar.
Korea: Preferential Treatment to Kim Il-Sung Univ. Graduates
Giving preferential treatment to prestigious school graduates is South Korea's chronic disease. @Heoyeonism tweeted a North Korean defector's comment that North Korean defectors who went Kim Il-Sung University, one of the top universities in N.Korea is more likely to get a job in South than other defectors.
South Korea:Cows Culled As Mouth and Foot Disease Spread
As the mouth and foot disease spread around South Korea, the government ordered farms to slaughter their cattle, including yet healthy cows and pigs to slowdown the wide spread the disease. @Biguse tweeed a photo of healty cows having their last supper just before being culled.
Christmas Recipes in Global Food Blogs
Christmas means ‘coming home’ to many people - but if this isn’t possible, preparing a magic meal can be a consolation. Bloggers of many continents have shared their favorite holiday recipes. With these you can dream yourself back home or even visit a place, you’ve never been to before. Where are you celebrating Christmas this year and what are you serving?
Japan: Celebrating the Emperor's Birthday
Today is a national holiday to celebrate Emperor Akihito's birthday. Bruce Meyer-Kenny at Demotix posted some images from the celebration at the Imperial Palace. The Emperor is now 77 years old.
Michael Anti: Blogging the gap between China and Japan
GV Japan interviews Chinese journalist and activist Michael Anti.
Hong Kong: Class relations and the democracy movement
Hu Sunzi from China Study Group introduces and comments on sociologist HF Hung's recent writing on the class relation and democracy movement in Hong Kong. The article contextualizes the political movement in the colonial history.
China: Legal action threatened over #netfreedom violation
Sina blogger Wu Fei has written a letter to Tencent CEO Ma Huateng threatening legal action over the company's specific practice of filtering from QQ one term protected by the constitution and used across the Chinese Internet, government websites included: “freedom of speech”.
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