Stories about France from September, 2012
New Caledonia: Political Tension Grows Over Rights to Nickel Mines
Claudine WERY writes [fr] that political tension grows between independentist and non-indenpendentist political parties in New Caledonia over the exploitation of Nickel mines. Non-independentists accuse the other party to strike deals with China and South Korea that they are not authorized to pursue. A referendum on gaining independence from France is scheduled...
Why Mali's Army is Hesitant about Foreign Intervention in the North
Tiékorobani goes to great length explaining why Captain Sanogo and the Malian Army are hesitant about foreign intervention [fr] in Northern Mali. He argues that Sanogo fears that he will lose control the global military operations and that in turn, his officers might rebel against him because of his loss of...
Global: The 2012 edition of ‘Wiki Loves Monuments’
Julien L. wrote the following on numerama.com: The Wiki Loves Monuments copyright-free landmarks photo contest is going particularly well. Nearly a week after its launch, more than 50 000 photographs have been sent in by contributors. And this is just the beginning, because there are still 22 days left to...
Spain: Catalans Continue to Push for Independence
Since last Tuesday saw the largest pro-Catalan independence rally in the region's history, pro-independence activists have continued to pressure politicians to match rhetoric with swift action. Read an overview of the week's action here.
Senegal: ‘Completely White’ Whitening Cream Stirs Outrage
Lightening the skin is a common practice in Africa where the sale of skin lightening products is legal in many countries. In Senegal, a product named 'Khess Petch' is creating controversy on the web, as its name means 'complete whitenesss'.
France: Study Shows GM Corn Fed Rats Display Higher Tumors Levels
Guillaume Malaurie reports that [fr] a team of French researchers led by Pr. Gilles-Eric Séralini found that laboratory rats fed with a steady diet of Monsanto genetically modified corn displayed higher levels of tumors and multiple organ damage than those of control rats. The researchers worked in quasi-clandestine conditions [fr] to prevent...
Maghreb, France: The Arc of Revolution is Long but It Bends towards Freedom
Had humanity obsessed itself with the potential pitfalls of every fight for emancipation and always analyze the events under the prism of one segment of society, we all will still be living under the old regime of monarchy. Faysal Riad argues that the revolution in France took almost a century [fr] to reach...
Kosovo: Prizren Comic Book & Cartoon Festival
Macedonian artist Vesna Nichevska-Saravinova blogged about her participation in the Prizren Comics Festival, organized by the Kosovo Comic Book Artist Association, Xhennet Comics [sq]. Four out of 15 featured artists at the festival were from Macedonia, Eddie Rebel reports [mk], alongside colleagues from Italy, Turkey, Cyprus, France, Kosovo, Bulgaria, and...
France, Yemen: Vanishing Women
Eloïse Lagrenée [fr] has posted on her Facebook page a picture by Yemeni photographer Bushra Almutawakel, illustrating how women could vanish into darkness and invisibility, step by step, under fundamentalist pressure and the full niqab. It has been shared over 1,500 times.
Mujeres Mundi, Interviews with Extraordinary Women
Peruvian blogger Xaviera Medina de Albrand is the brains and energy behind the blog Mujeres Mundi, a space where she publishes her interviews with women from around the world. Xaviera talks to us about her life and her blog in this first part of a two-part interview.
2012 Paralympics: A Successful Start, Remarkable Stories
Martine Wright, a survivor of the London bombings, Rim Ju Song, the first North Korean participant who, a few months ago, could not swim; and Hassiem Achmat, who survived a shark attack. Just some of the remarkable Paralympic athletes.
France: New Pro-Roma Employment Policy Strikes a Nerve
'The 4,395,000 French "job seekers" will be happy to learn that the Roma job problem has been solved!!! Their access to work will be "helped".'