Stories about East Asia from April, 2011
Philippines: Mosquito Press
The Mosquito Press is an online publication that satirizes Filipino public figures, government offices, mainstream press, commercial products, and media practitioners, among many others. Some of its victims include the Philippine President, a major broadsheet and a TV company.
Malaysia: Ruling Coalition Tops Sarawak Elections
On Saturday 16 April, 2011, Malaysia’s ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition won the state election in Sarawak, winning 55 of the 71 seats contested to retain its control and two-thirds majority over the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) opposition alliance. Bloggers discuss the outcome.
North Korea: Starving People Welcome Big Forest Fires
A recent NASA satellite photo showed a number of forest fires in North Korea. Free North Korea Radio, an internet-based news media founded and runs by North Korean defectors, reported [ko] that starving North Koreans welcome the news since the fire will clear land for farming. (Read translation here)
North Korea: Biggest Magic Show Ever
North Korea staged its biggest magic show ever on April 18. It is believed to be a highlight in a week of festivities surrounding Kim Il Sung’s April 15 birthday, Robert Koehler commented about it in the Marmot’s Hole blog. The country's lavish spending on the show, rather than on...
How China reports the Arab world
David Bandurski from China Media Project has translated al-Jazeera‘s chief correspondent, Ezzat Shahrour's excellent blog post raising questions on Chinese media's reports on the Arab world.
China: Clearing Urban Centers of ‘Unwanted’ People
From early 2011, major cities in China have started cleaning up "dangerous" and "low-end" elements of their populations. The proposal on "population control" was firstly introduced in the People's Congress held in Beijing in January 2011. It suggested that in the coming five years, the Chinese capital has to repress population growth; it has been estimated that more than 700,000 people living in the old city will be relocated to the city outskirts.
China: Dumping Meat
Ministry of Tofu posts a series of photos showing how Shuanghui Group, China’s largest meat processor, dumped tons of meat products, including ham sausages, into a huge pit it excavated and fills it with chemicals to destroy them after the food security scandal.
China: The Real Threat
C Custer from China Geeks points out that the real tension in China is between the privileged and the non-privileged classes.
Brunei: Twestival Unites Local Netizens
Brunei's first Twestival event gathered the country's leading bloggers and other netizens in support of the Child Development Centre, a group that provides assistance to children with special needs.
China: Sunday Night Political Chat
Chinese academic and Internet celebrity Yu Jianrong found time during a recent visit to the United States to talk about China's current political climate amid the long string of recent arrests, and the country's future direction, bringing the discussion onto his microblog account late Sunday night.
Taiwan: Experience of foreign graduate students
Fili writes about his experience studying in a Ph.D. program in Taiwan. While Range also writes about his experience as a graduate student in Taiwan.
Philippines: Solar lighting project
Isang Litrong Liwanag (A Liter of Light), is a “sustainable lighting project in the Philippines which aims to bring the eco-friendly Solar Bottle Bulb to underprivileged communities nationwide”
Laos: Controversial Xayaburi Dam
Amraapali writes about the planned Xayaburi Dam along the Lower Mekong in Laos. The controversial dam project is opposed by some groups which warned of “reduced fisheries, inundation of riverbank gardens, and loss of nutrients for floodplain agriculture” if the dam becomes operational.
Vietnam's native fruits
Mach-Speed Whippets samples some of Vietnam's native and popular fruits.
Vietnam: Facebook partners with local telecom giant
James Bao cites a report from PC World Vietnam about the partnership of Facebook and FPT, a telecom giant in Vietnam. Facebook is regularly blocked in Vietnam and FPT is often blamed for making the popular social network site inaccessible in the country.
Popularizing Vietnamese films
Jennie Le, writing for Vietnam Talking Points, explains why Vietnamese films are not getting much attention in the Western world.
China: Recent Scandals Show Ongoing Battle for Food Safety
A slew of food scandals have occurred in China in recent weeks, highlighting the country's ongoing challenge with maintaining levels of food safety.
Japan: “Nuclear Power Mafia”
An anoymous user published on Nichannel (2ch) some pages from the manga titled Hakuryu Legend – Nuclear Power Mafia [ja] (by Tennoji Dai and Watanabe Michio), whose publication was suspended [en] after the earthquake. The story is about a journalist who conducts an investigation on a power company called Toto...
France, Japan: Debating President Sarkozy's Visit to Japan
When French President Nicolas Sarkozy visited Japan on March 31, 2011, less than three weeks after the earthquake and tsunami that caused a nuclear emergency, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan is reported to have said: "When it rains, a friend who comes is a true friend". Bloggers ask if Nicolas Sarkozy really came to visit out of friendship alone.
Japan: Living near a nuclear reactor
Photographer and blogger Buddhika Weerasinghe published some pictures of people who live in proximity of a nuclear power plant in Fukui prefecture.
Is Empowering Women Key to Eradicating Global Hunger?
As global food prices continue to remain high, with potential increases on the horizon because of soaring oil prices and supply concerns, experts says that there is one often-overlooked solution for fighting hunger: women.