Stories from 22 March 2006
DRC: Saving UDPS
UDPS Liege publishes a reader's plea (FR) that Etienne Tshisekedi-led opposition party UDPS learn the art of political negotiation and to make concessions rather than maintain a purist principled stance on key issues.
DRC: “I Have a Dream”
Blogger Tony Katombe of Le Blog du Congolais publishes (FR) an eloquent email received from a Belgian reader who thanks him for shedding light on Belgium's past and present entanglements with the DRC. Katombe then embarks on his version of “I Have a Dream” in which through his blog he...
Ethiopia's bloggers remember their poet laureate
Memories of one man dominated the Ethiopian blogosphere over the past few weeks – the father of Ethiopian theatre and Poet Laureate Tsegaye Gebre-Medhin. His death in late February went unnoticed by much of the international and African press outside Ethiopia. So it was largely down to the country's bloggers,...
Japan, China: Organ Market
OhmyNews! reports that a growing number of Japanese are seeking organ transplants in China, where lax regulations and a high number of executions make organs available for desperate buyers.
China: Shanghai marriage stats
Shanghaiist cites a recent report in Chinese which says that 90 couples get divorced in Shanghai every day. One-night stands are increasingly being blamed for this. Via Simon World.
Hong Kong: Glutter on Hao Wu
Glutter is in shock over the detention of Beijing or Bust blogger and documentary film-maker Hao Wu (Wu Hao in Chinese), with whom she took part in a BBC World Service panel discussion on censorship in China. She posts a transcript of the discussion.
China: Another Taishi village election
ESWN translates a Chinese-language news report from Boxun.com (ZH) about the result for the recent elections in Taishi village for a representative to the National People's Congress (NPC).
China: Traffic TV
Danwei reports on the next development in China's love affair with the internal combustion engine: Traffic TV. “The ad delivery machines that have appeared in around 10,000 taxis and buses throughout [Beijing] will now deliver up-to-the-minute reports of traffic jams and accidents so you'll know why your commute is taking...
China: Illogical, comrade
Bingfeng Teahouse is surprised at the profusion of beliefs and practices–including feng shui–found among the well-heeled professional folk of Shanghai, which do not fit in with a rationalist world view.
Belarus: Radio Liberty Reports Violence Against Protesters
LJ user l_u_f_t posts a Radio Liberty report (BEL) claiming that the police are beating up protesters who are going down into the subway to go home and then return to the square. There's a photo of one boy with an impressive scratch on his body. The boy, Mikhail Avdeev,...
Peru: Second Round Scenarios
Noting that nearly 50% of Peru's registered voters are under 35, Peru Election 2006 examines possible scenarios for a second round of voting. Un Lobo en Perú concentrates on the strategy of conservative presidential candidate, Lourdes Flores Nano as campaigning both winds down and heats up.
