· January, 2011

Stories about South Asia from January, 2011

Pakistan: Blackwater Again?

  31 January 2011

Adil Najam writes about the very strange case of Raymond Davis, a said staff member of the US Consulate in Lahore, who shot two Pakistani men dead in a crowded part of Lahore.

Bangladesh: Politics And Dr. Yunus

  31 January 2011

An Ordinary Citizen wonders whether there are any political reasons behind the indictments against Bangladeshi Nobel laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus and asks: “does Dr. Yunus represent the 3rd force in Bangladesh?”

Maldives: In Solidarity with Egypt

  30 January 2011

The ongoing protests in Egypt have ‘electrified’ netziens in the Maldives. These uprisings have a special significance to the Maldivians as it brings back flashbacks of pro-democracy protests held only a few years ago to bring democracy to the Indian Ocean island nation.

Maldives to Egypt: Can a Revolution be Censored?

  30 January 2011

When the Egyptian government decided to go for a total Internet shutdown of the country to curb the growing anti-government protests, people in the Maldives were reminded of 13 August, 2004, when the government of Maldives blocked Internet in the country following a massive pro-democracy demonstration.

Bangladesh: How Much For The Desk Clerk?

  29 January 2011

Commenting on the corruption in Bangladesh Kazi Rubaiat Imam at The Lunatic Is On The Grass proposes to develop a website where everyone can “see and update the rates of bribes for getting things done at the government offices”.

India: Environment, Common Sense & Social Media

  29 January 2011

Munna on the Run hopes that social media conversations will work as a gentle persuading force against the profit-at-any-cost market forces and re-ignite a common sense approach to development.

India: Kashmir – Beyond the Troubled State

  28 January 2011

Maldivian blogger Hassan Ziyau recently visited Srinagar, the capital of Indian controlled Kashmir and blogged about the other side of Kashmir which often fails to capture the limelight.

Pakistan: Slogans Of Revolution

  28 January 2011

iFaqeer opines that the most exhilarating part of a street movement is often the slogans being chanted. This Pakistani blogger urges to the protesters in Egypt, Yemen and Tunisia: “I would like to request, beg, supplicate those on the ground, and watching from afar and who speak Arabic to please...

India: The Great TriValley University Scam

  28 January 2011

Runa at Uber Desi writes in details about the scam of Tri Valley University in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, which has now been shut down. Hundreds of Indian students, mostly from Andhra Pradesh, were enrolled in this University and they now face the threat of...

Nepal: Panel Discussion On Case Discrimination

  25 January 2011

Bhumika Ghimire moderated a panel discussion on case discrimination and Nepali women where Dr. Drona Rasali and Ms. Sushma Barakoti, two influential members of Nepali diaspora, were present. You can listen to the discussion in her blog Bhumika's American Adventure.

India: Government Official Burnt Alive by Miscreants

  25 January 2011

In a gruesome incident, an additional district collector was burnt alive today - allegedly by petrol and diesel mafia while investigating fuel related irregularities. As the news broke, netizens reacted with shock and outrage.

Nepal: A Traveler's Critique

  25 January 2011

Andrew Hyde, an American traveler blogs about a different kind of Nepal, far from the notion of Shangri-La most people fantasize about. He describes the country's grinding poverty, alarmingly high pollution in the capital Kathmandu and the sad reality of child labor. Certainly not something the Government included in its official promotions for...

Pakistan: Wake Up Before Its Too Late

  24 January 2011

“Pakistan’s quasi-democracy might be the nation’s last chance, before a tide of part real, and part manufactured extremism engulfs the country,” opines Raza Rumi.

Pakistan: The Veenagate Controversy

  24 January 2011

Veena Malik, an aspiring Pakistani celebrity, was accused by religious hardliners of immoral behavior as she took part in the Indian reality show Big Boss. Reactions on this controversy show that Pakistan now stands divided amongst its conservative and liberal forces.

About our South Asia coverage

Rezwan
Rezwan is the South Asia editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.