Stories from 9 May 2006
Extensive Flooding in Suriname
HEAVY FLOODING has affected more than 157 villages in Suriname over the past 48 hours and 15,000 people have been displaced already. “Operation Falawatra” (Operation “Low Tide”), the government's aid operation currently being carried out by the national army and police, has been hampered because of continued torrential rainfall, and...
Uzbekistan: US Sanctions
Registan.net discusses possible US sanctions against Uzbekistan.
Caucasus: Democracy and the Future
Nessuna reports on a lecture on democracy and the future of the South Caucasus.
Armenia: Uborka
Zarchka writes about all the tasks involved with uborka, Armenian spring cleaning, and all the “oofs” that come with it.
Mongolia: Tuts
Luke Distelhorst writes about “tuts,” Mongolian kiosks, weighing their positives and negatives.
Afghanistan: Famous singer & street kids
According to Yadashthaye Adabi, Farhad Darya, a famous Afghan singer, performed among street kids to attract government's attention to children's misery in Afghanistan (Persian).
Moldova: Transnistria Nightmare
Ed of Balkan Baby is happy to be back in Moldova: he has escaped “the breakaway nightmare republic of Transdnistria.”
Belarus: The West's Awareness
Following Dick Cheney's recent speech in Vilnius, TOL's Belarus Blog writes that “the U.S. and Western Europe are becoming more and more aware of Belarusan situation.”
Russia: Ethnic Subbotnik
Amid ethnic and racial tensions, Moscow experiences something different for a change: a group of “Africans from over twenty countries (Congo and Ethiopia included), Iranians, and Iraqis [were] all raking leaves as part of a subbotnik organized by Opora, a Moscow NGO run by Ethiopian Dr. Gezahgn Wordofa. This was...
Russia: Siberian Adventure, Part 1
Jane Keeler of From Russia With Blog begins a series of posts about her trip to Siberia and back – Siberian Adventure Part 1: The Trans-Siberian Railroad.
Russia: Victory Day on RTR
Russia Blog posts Victory Day stills from one of Russia's state-controlled TV channels, RTR.
Peru: Garcia holds comfortable lead, Apoyo poll shows
Both Un Lobo en Peru and Jorge Bazo Escudero (ES) quote a new poll released today that shows Alan García with a comfortable lead over Ollanta Humala. Support for García is especially strong in Lima.
Mexico: Campaign Spots More Aggresive
Eduardo Arcos has posted two brief campaign spots, which he says show that presidential candidates Calderón and López Obrador (ES) are “two sides of the same coin.”
Panama: A Crush on a Belly Dancer
Writing from Panama, Leon Kadoch explains his crush on an Argentine belly dancer with humorous enthusiasm.
Guatemala: Profile of Mazatenango, Suchitepéquez
The Guatemalan Adoption Blog has an interesting profile of Mazatenango the capital of southwest Suchitepéquez state.
Costa Rica: A Personal Account of the President
Writing from San José, Costa Rica, Adam Isacson shares his first-hand account of the inauguration of his former boss, Oscar Arias and former co-worker-turned-vice-president, Kevin Casas. “(I admit I had trouble treating Kevin with the deference his new position requires. In retrospect, saying “hey man, you’re Costa Rica’s Dick Cheney...
Chile: Atina Blog Awards
Atina Chile has a heart-warming video, set of photos, and description (ES) of the awards ceremony of the Atina Blog Awards. For anyone who has been following Chile's blog community for some time, these are the faces and smiles behind the incredible words and energetic movement.
Mexico, Argentina: Encouraging Free Culture
The winners of the “Mexicommons Creativity Contest” have been announced (ES). You can download the winning songs, podcasts, photographs, and designs from the post. The site Bienes Comunes (Common Good) has a list of works (ES) from Argentina that will be included on a DVD to be presented at the...
Peru: Another Blogger Suicide
Following an unfortunately established precedent, “Leuzor” of BlogsPerú laments (ES) the suicide of Andres Kishimoto (ES), a blogger described by (ES) El Comercio as “a young 26-year-old psychologist and author of several books on existentialism.”
Nepal: The Counter Revolution
Nepali Netbook on the (Counter)Revolution – “It must be a testimony to our twisted times that, in a matter of a fortnight, Nepalis have graduated from discussing a nebulous “total democracy” to deliberating on the threat of a “counterrevolution.””
Nepal: On The Democracy Fast Track
As they try and undo the damage done by the Monarchy, Legal News From Nepal reports “months after the controversy and protests, the King in October last year, had promulgated an ordinance to amend some laws related to the media, imposing severe restrictions on the free press.”
