Stories about Western Europe from May, 2006
Estonia: Nordic Battle Group
Giustino of Itching for Eestimaa writes about the history of military action of Sweden, Norway, Estonia and Finland, and reports on a Nordic Battle Group's workshop that took place Tuesday.
Estonia: “The Hole” Review
David McDuff of A Step At A Time reviews The Hole, a study on the sinking of Estonia, “a giant passenger and car ferry in the Baltic Sea in September 1994 which involved the deaths of nearly 1,000 people in the space of 35 minutes.”
Africa: Fortress Europe
Nigeria, Whats New comments on the price of a passage to fortress Europe…US $900 to get into fortress Europe in a tiny boat via Fuerteventura in Spain
East Timor reported by the Lusophone Blogosphere
Seven years after the end of Indonesian rule -- becoming the newest world nation in May 2002 -- and having gone through what was viewed as a successful nation building and independence process led by the UN, East Timor is once again facing deep unrest. The last weeks since the reported clashes of April 28th have shown escalating violence and by now the Lusophone blogosphere is starting to speculate about the real forces behind the recent events.
Global Food Blog Report
#1: Viaggi & Sapori, an Italian living in Sweden, goes home in Venice for the weekend. She was invited to a wedding of a friend: Matrimonio al profumo di muggheto. You Will LOVE every photo and description of the menu, everything looks and sounds incredibly delicious! #2: Peru Food reviews...
DRC: Coup Attempts and More Questions on the Upcoming Elections
Free and Fair Elections? Joseph Kabila, the founder of the PPRD (the People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy), has overseen an interim administration established by the 2002 peace agreement. The Democratic Republic of the Congo's first post-conflict presidential elections are set to be held on July 30th after months of...
Martinique: French Black Presidential Candidate Stephane Pocrain
Le Blog de [Moi] on Stephane Pocrain's candidacy for the 2007 French Presidential Election (Fr): “Yet another candidacy from the left. Ex- Green Party spokesperson and founding member of the Representative Council of Black Associations of France (CRAN), Stephane Pocrain enters the dance. His program? First and foremost, equality and...
Senegal: Immigration as colonization
“No Sarkozy! Immigration does not come from a vacuum,” says (Fr) Semett in a post on French interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy's immigration policies. “With centuries of merciless exploitation of subsaharan countries and a continuous transfer of their riches to the North, it is logical that the disinherited masses from Africa...
Russia: Relations with Sweden
Vilhelm Konnander writes about a diplomatic dispute between Russia and Sweden, and the past and the future of the relationship between the two countries.
China: Relations with Germans
A lengthy and thorough post from China Matters‘ China Hand looks at cooling Sino-German relations and the global role the two countries now play, set against German Chancellor Angela Merkel's recent visit to China: “So China—the world's most populous and vibrant economic power, which hasn't engaged in military aggression since...
Edible Blog Report
#1: A food blogger's reunion in Pistoia, Italy: Kishko and Lucullian Delights tell the story in their blogs. The photos are stunning. It makes me want to go there! Then we bought some chocolate and loitered around, looking at the main sights but as I am a lousy guide and...
Haitian Diaspora: Franco-Haitian Solidarity Meeting
CollectifHaitideProvence announces (Fr) they received an invitation by Collectif Haitien de France [Haitian Collective of France] to participate in a series of meetings taking place June 3 and 4. The main themes of the meetings will be humanitarian solidarity and education, development, the problems of Haitian migrants in France, and...
Haiti: New Blog CollectifHaitideProvence
CollectifHaitideProvence [Haitian Collective of Provence, France] is the name of a new French and Creole language blog launched by a Haitian organization of the same name made up of nine organizations that seem to be based in either France, Haiti or both. Their first entry posted yesterday explains (Fr &...
Camoes Literature Prize goes to Angolan writer Luandino Vieira
Luandino Vieira, from Angola, has been chosen for the 2006 Edition of Camões Prize
France: Disposable immigrants
Sotho comments on immigration chaos in the US and reports that France faces similar chaos with the enacting of a new law “Use them, abuse them, but at election time tell ‘em to go back “home” since they are occupying jobs that real nationals could be holding.”
Francophone Africa: Bloggers On Colonialism's Enduring Influence
In recent weeks, several Francophone African bloggers have grappled with their countries’ colonial legacies and the power history has to shape the present and the future. For them, independence is an illusion and in ways both psychological and material, Africa remains a colony of the old empires. All stress the...
China: To hell with the Vatican
Simon at Simon World looks at the Chinese government's decision this week to spurn the Vatican and appoint their own Bishops: “Naturally, this debate boils right down to control over Chinese civil society, and whether the Chinese government will tolerate any form of civil pluralism or alternate authority hierarchies in...
Trinidad and Tobago: Blue devils in Dortmund
Stacy-Marie Ishmael of the Trinidad and Tobago World Cup Team Blog posts two photos of the winged rhino sculpture, decorated by Trinidadian artist Che Lovelace, that represents T&T in Dortmund, Germany, one of the host cities for the FIFA World Cup next month. The StudioFilmClub blog points out that the...
DRC: Demonstration for Congolese in Belgium
Renouveau Congolais announces (Fr) that Debout Pour Le Congo [Stand Up for Congo] is organizing a demonstration today in Liege, Belgium against the “regular explusion [of Congolese] in collaboration with the Congolese government, author of many crimes and ongoing violations of human rights.” The demonstration will also demand that Belgium...
Venezuela, UK: Chavez's Visit to London Causes Stir
Hugo Chávez's meeting with London's mayor, Ken Livingstone is commanding a lot of attention. It's even turned one blogger into a temporary celebrity.
