Stories about East Asia from May, 2011
China: Rejected Self Defense Plea A Green Light For Deadly Demolitions
Villager Tong Yihong says a demolition crew drove a bulldozer onto his property, and he acted in self defense. Police say the bricks Tong threw down from his roof left one man with a serious head injury. Tong, now sentenced to four years in prison, still has public opinion on his side.
Korea: Is North Korea Behind Every Unsolved Cyber Attack?
A slew of fearsome reports on the North Korea's cyber attack capability recently came out in South Korea, and even on Fox News this week. The South Korean government concluded North Korea was behind the latest attack. But South Korean Tweeters have made sarcastic jokes about the government's poor analysis and its knee-jerk reaction of blaming North Korea for every unsolved case.
China: Writing Imaginary Book Reviews
In 2010, a collection of reviews for non-existent books, written by Chinese author Bimuyu, was published. This month Bimuyu shared with readers his thinking behind these reviews.
Malaysia: Tweets on the Orphanage Landslide
While the world was busy discussing the ‘end of the world,’ Malaysians mourned the death of innocent children who were buried in a landslide in an orphanage motivational camp near Kuala Lumpur
Translating a Vietnamese song to English
Charvey notes the difficulty in translating songs from Vietnamese to English. He translated the lyrics of a song from the Vietnam War era.
Vietnam: Increasing number of high-rise buildings
Luan Nguyen writes about the urban impact of the boom in the construction of very tall buildings in Vietnam.
Vietnamese phonetic alphabet
¡¡¡Việt Nam ơi!!! blogs about the Vietnamese phonetic alphabet system used to spell out words on the radio or telephone.
Myanmar: Ban on use of CDs, USB sticks, floppy drives
Myanmar has issued a new regulation banning the use of CDs, USB sticks, and floppy drives in public internet cafe shops.
Thailand: Social media, elections, and politics
Jon Russell writes how politicians in Thailand are using the social media in preparation for the coming elections.
North Korea: Has Idolization of Kim Jong-Un Failed?
Whilst North Korean regime tries hard to apotheosize Kim Jong-un, report came out today claiming that most ordinary North Korean has no interest to the heir. The Free Radio for North Korea which founded and runs by defectors revealed [ko] that most low-level soldiers are unaware of the new dictator,...
North Korea: News Resources
Adam Cathcart from Sinologistical Violoncellist has complied a list of North Korean news items on China, cultural diplomacy, US/Japan, Middle East, Environment, and etc. It helps to understand North Korea's understanding of its relation with the rest of the world.
Hong Kong and China: Immigrant discontent
Lucia Lou from China Hush translates a local news story about Hong Kong society's reactions towards the influx of mainland Chinese new immigrants to the city.
Why China’s left is up in arms?
David Bandurski from China Media Project explains why there is a resurgence of China’s hardline Maoist left.
Social media usage in Cambodia
Journalism students from Phnom Penh upload a video which discuss social media usage in Cambodia, including the threat to block websites which are critical to the government.
Malaysia: Tweets on the Acid Splasher
More than 20 cases of acid attacks have been reported already in Malaysia since March. Many residents are scared to walk in the streets. Netizens were quick to spread information about the 'acid splashing' cases but some reports turned out to be false.
World: FIFA Election – House of Knaves or Knights?
Football fans have been treated to some really interesting times in the last few months. The latest is the FIFA election, which comes at a time when one of the most powerful non-governmental bodies in the world has suddenly has started looking vulnerable.
South Korea: Cartoons Commemorating the Gwangju Massacre on May 18
May 18 is the day a mass democratization movement took place in Gwangju city, South Korea. The military regime ruthlessly clamped down the movement and over a hundred innocent civilians were killed. The nation's famous cartoonist, Kang Pull drew cartoons commemorating this tragic history in order to enlighten youth with...
China: Chinese Gays Profess Their Love On Stage At Beijing Concert
Fauna from ChinaSMACK translates the reactions of Chinese netizens towards the coming out of a gay couple n stage in front of a noisy crowd at the Beijing Chuan Zi Concert.
Cambodia: Blog to promote LGBT welfare
Cambodia LGBT Pride! is a blog established by volunteers who “work together with NGOs and local businesses to reduce discrimination based on sexuality and co-ordinate events to help nurture and strengthen the LGBT community in Cambodia.”
Why East Timor should join ASEAN?
José Ramos-Horta, the President of Timor-Leste, lists the country's accomplishments to convince ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) leaders to include Timor Leste as one of its members
China: Another Failed Grassroots Election
A retired worker from Jiangxi province, China, Liu Ping, had decided to run an economic justice campaign in the grassroots level election for her local seat in China's People's Congress. In the process, she and her supporters have been harassed by local police and on May 13, 2011, she was forcibly detained.
About our East Asia coverage
