Stories about South Asia from May, 2009
India: Saving Lives With Paper
Anuradha Parekh at The Better India writes about the struggles of the poverty ridden Sahariya tribe in Madhya Pradesh, India. A local NGO called TARA (Technology and Action for Rural Advancement) came to their rescue by teaching them how to make handmade papers and that has changed the lives of...
Sri Lanka: LTTE Confirms Prabhakaran's Death
Vijay Sappani at Desicritics posts a press release of LTTE, which admits that the LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran is dead.
Pakistan: Don't Wear Western Clothes In Peshawar!
Chowrangi informs that “the men of Peshawar have been told to stop wearing the shirt and trousers and wear the shalwar kurta (Pakistan national dress) instead. This is to prevent any crazy Taliban type from attacking those who wear Western clothes (this has happened a few times in the past).”
Nepal Has A New Prime Minister
United We Blog! for a Democratic Nepal reports that Madhav Nepal, a moderate Communist Leader is the new Prime Minister of Nepal.
Bangladesh: Tipaimukh Dam Threatens Lives
Despite protests from within India and Bangladesh, India is going ahead with the construction of the massive Tipaimukh barrage on the Barack river near the border, which will reduce the water flow in Surma and Kushiara rivers in Bangladesh. Onnesha.tk brings up this concern that by depriving Bangladesh of life-giving...
Bahrain: Our Need For Indians Is Like Our Need For Air
Earlier this month, Bahrain announced that it would be ending the system of sponsorship of foreign labour. While the move is intended to stop the exploitation of workers, especially from the Indian subcontinent, for some Bahrainis the idea of it becoming easier for foreigners to work in the country is worrying. In this post a blogger talks about the Indian presence in Bahrain.
Pakistan: Local Resistance Against The Taliban
CHUP! – Changing Up Pakistan informs that the local tribesmen near Swat Valley are forming militias (lashkars) to prevent the Taliban influence in the region. Earlier the Talibans executed many tribal leaders to weaken the domestic resistance against them.
Sri Lanka: On The End Of The Conflict
London Lanka and Drums highlights some Sri Lankan blogs and blog posts that have written about the end of the civil war and comments: “Whatever our views, whatever our race and for differing reasons most of us would agree that this is one of the biggest single events in our...
Bangladesh: Indian Elections 2009 In Bangladesh Perspective
Ambassador Serajul Islam's Political Blog posts an analysis of the Indian parliamentary elections 2009 in Bangladesh perspective.
Sri Lanka: Abuse, Disbelief And Bitterness Persist
The Sri Lankan government's civil war for over 25 years against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) ended a few days ago when the LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was killed. The question remains that "has the dream of many Tamils of having a separate state free from discrimination died with him?". The polarized Sri Lankan Blogosphere is buzzing with a lot of analysis and counter analysis on the stories of celebrating the end of war, human rights abuse, distrust and communal hatred.
India: Aid Collection For Sri Lankan IDPs
Madhat at Blogbharati informs about an effort by some Indians to collect aid from various Indian cities to help the IDPs (internally displaced people) in Sri Lanka.
India: Communication Via Word Of Mouth
A Year In India realizes that word of mouth is a strong mean of communication in India because: “this may have to do with illiteracy, a lack of technology and infrastructure, and a large percentage of the population living in isolated, rural settings.”
Sri Lanka: What Are We Celebrating?
Chatu at Groundviews asks some questions: “what are we celebrating? Defeating an entity we forced into existence? Are the reasons that forced a young Prabhakaran to assassinate the Mayor of Jaffna resolved? Is Sri Lanka truly united towards peace and coexistence?”
Pakistan: Relief Effort For IDPs In Karachi
Deadpan Thoughts writes about the relief efforts for Swat IDPs being carried out in Karachi. Pictures of relief collection are also posted in that article.
India: Bowing Down Before Your Wife
Sumanth at Desicritics reports of a verdict of the Indian Supreme Court on a divorce case, which asked the plaintiff to “bow down before his wife's ‘diktat'”. The post containing Sumanth's reaction to the verdict sparks a heated debate in the comments section.
Pakistan: A Humanitarian Crisis
Pakistan has been hit by a severe humanitarian crisis as a result of the military onslaught against the Taliban insurgency in the Swat Valley. Over one million people have fled their homes from various areas in the Malakand division and FATA including Buner, Dir and Swat. A massive relief effort has been launched by many organizations and individuals and the Pakistani Blogosphere is also taking a leading role to seek help for the IDPs.
India: Election Analysis
Law and Other Things posts some contrasting interpretation of the results of the recently concluded parliamentary elections in India.
Bangladesh: WiMax And Internet Service
ME, Myself, and My Country discusses about the latest developments in the WiMax and Internet services in Bangladesh.
Sri Lanka: Concern For The IDPs
Musings from Toronto comments: “Whether the pro-LTTE diaspora's fear of the Sri Lankan Government is ludicrous or otherwise; their concern for the displaced civilians is certainly one I support.”
Maldives: The First Free Parliamentary Election
The Maldives has witnessed significant political changes in the last five years: introduction of political parties in 2005; ratification of an amended constitution in August 2008; and the first multi-party election held in October 2008 which brought a democratic government. Hence, the parliamentary election held on May 9 was crucial as the new parliament will be entrusted with the task of passing key laws that will be a milestone in the country’s transition to democracy.
Bhutan: The Net Generation
Dorji Wangchuk was surprised to see TV and internet savvy Bhutanese kids doing well in international knowledge in a quiz competition but lacking knowledge of their country's culture and history.
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