Stories about Western Europe from April, 2007
Election Ploy: Sarkozy Plans to Add Toussaint Louverture to the Pantheon
Alain Mabanckou reposts an article by Haitian radio station Kiskeya discussing French presidential candidate Nicolas Sarkozy's promise to add the names of Toussaint Louverture and Léopold Sédar Senghor to the Pantheon (Fr) in Paris, resting place of French luminaries like Volatire, Marie Curie and Napoleon, if elected. The addition of...
France: A War of Memory
French Congolese poet Alain Mabanckou posts some reflections by Abdourahman Waberi (Fr), a French Djiboutian writer, on the upcoming French presidential elections. Waberi had thought France had “finally woken up” to the concerns of its non-white citizens, but that from the banlieues to the overseas departments rage and resentment remain...
Russia: No Bikes Allowed
Copydude reports that it's not allowed to cross the Russian border on a bicycle.
Bahrain: Iran Winning Propoganda War
Iran is now winning the war against the propaganda machines of the US and Britain writes Bahraini blogger emoodz. He compares the treatment met to the captured British soldiers with those held at Guantanamo Bay.
Brazilians Wrap-up and Rap Upon 10 Years of Blogging
The word is out on the web: blogs are celebrating their 10th anniversary. And although blogging about blogging is something bloggers do all the time, the remembrance offers the opportunity for new raps around the beloved theme. The thread started from an April 1st Dave Winer's post where he praises...
Israel: Erasing the Holocaust?
Life of Rubin classifies the news as “terrifying” when learning that some UK schools are refusing to teach about the Holocaust in order not to offend Muslims.
Iran: The Fine Tailor of a Suit
Bazar Dispatch talks about the textile industry of Iran in response to comments on the well-tailored suits given to the 15 British sailors released from Iran.
Iran: Report Card on Releasing Hostages
S'can-Iranic gives out a report card to the players in the recent release of 15 British sailors captured by Iran: “I think the overall handling of the issue by the British government gets a C+. They could have approached the whole issue as they did during the past few days,...
DRC: March in Manchester Against Kabila
Le Rénouveau Congolais posts [Fr] pictures of a diaspora march that took place in Manchester, U.K. March 28 against recently elected DRC president Joseph Kabila.
DRC: Recent Attacks on Bemba
Le Blog du Congolais posts an article by Freddy Lokolongo stating [Fr]: “The events of Bas-Congo and more recently attacks on the homes of ex-Vice President Bemba … with the complicity of [United Nations Mission to the Congo] MONUC, do not even begin to display the extent of the plot...
Egypt: Venetian Ties with the Middle East
The Arabist explains the ties between Venice and the Middle East: “Did you know the first Koran was printed in Venice in 1537? Or that Venetians learned the art of glass-blowing from the Arab world, Syria in particular?”
Congo-Brazzaville: Florence Arthaud, Tourism and Corruption
Vous Reprendrez Bien Un Peu d'Humanisme is upset [Fr] that veteran sailor Florence Arthaud has accepted the Sassou-Nguesso government's offer to participate in a sailing event there in less than 2 weeks for an event that is designed to boost local tourism. Says the blogger: “Are French sailors naive? Does...
Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea: Tell-all Biography of Slain Activist Félix Moumié's Widow
Says Le Pangolin [Fr]: “Marthe Moumié is the widow of Cameroonian nationalist Félix Moumié, assassinated in Geneva by the French Secret Service in 1960. Marthe writes a book prefaced by [Algerian President] Ahmed Ben Bella… In the book, Victime du Colonialisme Français [ i.e “Victim of French Colonialism”], Marthe explains...
Iraq: Thoughts on Captured British Sailors
Iraqi blogger Omar links to his own article in which he discusses his thoughts on the captured British sailors. “Understanding the motives and goals of Iranian government is useful in predicting the way the crisis will end,” he notes.
Saudi Arabia: Maritime Crisis and Apologies
Saudi blogger Yazeez finds the mounting crisis on the British sailors captured by Iran as “ridiculous.” “Iran wants an apology, which is very justifiable considering the fact that what the sailors did was technically an ‘invasion’,” he writes.
Africa, France: Suing African Leaders for Embezzlement
Demain le Congo Brazzaville posts [Fr] a complaint lodged in the French accusing of embezzlement African leaders such as Omar Bongo of Gabon, Denis Sassoun Nguesso of Congo-Brazzaville and Blaise Compaoré of Burkina Faso. The complaint acknowledges that a French judge cannot adjudicate on salaries of African dictators but emphasizes...
Bolivia: “Tears and Fraud as the Door to Spain Closes”
Estimates are that as many as 200,000 Bolivians have migrated to Spain in the last three years … The lines at the passport office here in Cochabamba have been so long for so long that people sleep by the door just for the chance to get a ticket securing a...
