Stories about East Asia from August, 2011
China: Photography project on “Family Possessions”
Fauna from China Smack highlights a photography project on family possessions. The series of photos reflect the livelihood of ordinary Chinese families.
China: Law professor claims all Chinese girls studying in France are debauched
A law professor Zhang Haixia in Ministry of Justice claimed that “All the mainland girls who study in France come back as losers and become like “Super Pan Jinlian”. Pan Jinlian is a famous literary figure in Shi Nai’an’s Water Margins, representing lusty woman in daily usage. Olivia from China...
China: Don’t rush to celebrate the post-Gaddafi era
Samuel Wade from China Digital Times has written a roundup post about different reactions in China, from official China Daily to bloggers and netizen, to the end of Gaddafi era in Liyba.
Japan: Trends in the blogging service landscape
Netaful shares observations [ja] from a recent comScore report [ja/pdf] that in terms of visitor count, livedoor blogs have surpassed Ameba Blogs. The report concludes that even with the spread of SNS, “Japan remains one of the world's leading blog markets“.
South Korea: Pop Music Censorship Meets with Strong Opposition
More than 2,600 South Korean pop songs have been censored in the past two years for their "hazardous" lyrics. One entertainment agency, however, filed a lawsuit against the government that deemed its singer’s album as ‘inappropriate for youths’ and won the case. The decision was widely welcomed by Korean public.
Singapore Elects New President
Dr Tony Tan was elected Singapore's seventh president on August 27 with a winning margin of only 7,269 votes. This was enough to beat the three other candidates in Singapore’s first presidential election in 18 years.
China and Britain: how do they compare?
A British who has settled in China recounts his observations about the differences between the daily life in China and Britain, and how Britain has changed since he last visited there a year ago: “Great Britain is my home, and I love it, but it does feel like many of...
China: Independent Candidate Disqualified from Preliminary Round
Sophie from China Digital Times reports on how independent candidate from Lijiang Neighborhood in Panyu District of Guangzhou, Liang Shuxin, had been disqualified by the Neighborhood Committee under the pretext of an affirmative quota that restricts the candidates to non-Chinese Communist Party members and female.
Myanmar: Aung San Suu Kyi Trip in Bago
Htootayzar posts pictures and videos of the trip made by Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi in Bago, north of the country. It was the first time the she travelled outside the capital Rangoon.
Cambodia: Prey Sar Prison Blog
Titled “life in 1 square meter”, the blog is allegedly created by a prisoner inside Cambodia's Prey Sar prison. It's no longer online but it has been widely discussed by mainstream media and in online forums.
Cambodia: Map of Prison Overcrowding
Licadho creates a map to highlight the overcrowding in Cambodia's prisons. According to the group, Cambodia's prisons are filled to roughly 180 percent of their capacity.
Cambodia: Traffic jam in Phnom Penh
Vutha Tim writes about the worsening traffic jams in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The writer cites the rising population in the capital and the proposed solutions to address the problem.
China: Three Public Expenditures and State Secrets
In China, the term, "three public expenditures" or san gong jingfei, refers to government expenses for overseas trips, food and entertainment and public vehicles. The three expenditures have been considered by the general public as one of the main sources of corruption of government officials.
Russia: Kim Jong Il's Visit
Suzanne Merkelson writes on FP's Passport blog about North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's visit to Russia.
North Korea Got Talent? Video of North Korean Singing Contest on Chinese Site
A short, edited video of the North Korean singing contest was posted on Youku, a video hosting service based in China.
China: Chinese porn culture
James Griffiths from DAWEI looks into the history of Chinese porn and interviews Katrien Jacobs, a professor in the Chinese University of Hong Kong, whose new book People’s Pornography: Sex and Surveillance on the Chinese Internet will be published in October 2011.
China: Closing down of migrant schools in Beijing
China Media Project translated a Beijing public intellectual, Yu Jianrong's online chat commenting on the closing down of 30 migrant schools in Beijing.
China: Chinese Lawyer Reveals Details of 108-Day Detention
Siweiluozi translated Chinese lawyer Liu Shihui's account of his 108-day detention since the crack down on political dissidents in February 2011.
Singapore’s Curry Solidarity
Netizens reacted strongly to the news that an Indian family in Singapore has agreed not to cook curry after their newly arrived neighbors from China complained to authorities about the smell. To show solidarity to all Singaporeans who love curry, a “Cook A Pot of Curry Day” event was organized last Sunday
Vietnam: “Police are investigating”
Saigonist observes that many English-written news reports in Vietnam often end up with this conclusion: “Police are investigating”. A Tumblr page was created to gather these stories.
Singapore: Rising number of families seeking financial help
Leong Sze Hian of The Online Citizen writes about the rising number of Singapore families seeking financial help from the government.
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.
