Stories from 22 May 2006
Czech Republic: “The Great Czech MD Tussle”
Lemuel of Deleted by Tomorrow writes about and posts a video of an incident that took place during a Czech Dentist Association conference two weeks before the general election: Miroslav Macek, former minister from an opposition party (Civic Democratic), smacked David Rath, health minister from the governing party (Social Democratic),...
Belarus: On Trial for Text-Messaging
Iryna of TOL's Belarus Blog writes about an unprecedented (even for Belarus) trial: “We have become used to the fact that prominent academics and journalists are being sentenced to 15 days in prison for swearing or hooliganism, but last week a student was actually tried for sending a text message...
Belarus: Brief Blogosphere Update
TOL's Belarus Blog reports on the Belarusian blogosphere's lack of interest in such important issues as the EU's initiatives to freeze Aleksandr Lukashenko's assets and boycott an Interpol conference in Minsk. Polina Smolova's very poor performance at this year's Eurovision Song Contest is widely discussed in Belarusian LiveJournals, however.
Belarus: Off the MSM and Bloggers’ Radars
TOL's Belarus Blog cites Google Trends and Technorati to show that Belarus has virtually disappeared “from the radars of mainstream media” and bloggers.
Belarus: Soviet Pioneer Oranization's Anniversary
Ivan Lenin of Rush-Mush marks the 84th anniversary of Lenin All-Union Pioneer Organization by retelling one Belarusian bloggers’ story (in Russian) on how he got expelled from this Soviet youth organization “right before his 10th birthday.” TOL's Belarus Blog writes about the Belarusian blogosphere's reaction to the decision to withdraw...
Belarus: A Band to Help Chernobyl Children
TOL's Belarus Blog reports that a band called Thievery Corporation has released a new single on iTunes: the proceeds of the downloads of the song will go to the Chernobyl Children’s Project International.
Syrian Blogsphere in a Week
This week the Syrian blogsphere was mostly busy discussing the latest developments in Syria. Last week the Syrian security forces initiated the largest crackdown on opposition figures and dissidents since President Bashar al-Assad came to power in 2000. Ammar Abdulhamid of Amarji has an interesting analysis of this escalation from...
Caribbean: Hurricane outlook
Over at the West Indies Cricket blog, Ryan Naraine cites the NOAA’s 2006 Atlantic hurricane season outlook, which says there is “an 80% chance of an above-normal hurricane season, a 15% chance of a near-normal season, and only a 5% chance of a below-normal season.”
Armenia: Armavia Rumors
Oneworld Multimedia writes about rumors surrounding the Armavia plane crash near Sochi at the beginning of May.
Kyrgyzstan: Roads
Noting that blocking roads is becoming a common form of protest in Kyrgyzstan, The Golden Road to Samarqand writes about the country's road system.
Armenia: Bikers
Onnik Krikorian has more photos and posts on Armenian bikers, including an interview with the leader of a biker club, Norayr Martirosian.
Kazakhstan: Language Realities
Stavros writes about language realities in Kazakhstan, where both Russian and Kazakh are used.
Central Asia: Religion & Politics
neweurasia has a series of posts on religion's role in politics across Central Asia and in Azerbaijan.
Mongolia: Opposition Interview
Luke Distelhorst interviews the leader of the Resolute Reforms Civil Movement about mining and corruption in Mongolia.
Thailand: Trouble in the South
Andrew Biggs writes about a north Thai school teacher who became a victim of religious divide in the deep south of Thailand. Most of Thailand is Buddhist while the southern provinces close to Malaysia have sizeable Muslim population. Religion based violence has flared up often in these areas in recent...
Indonesia: President Lets Off Former Leader
Indi at indirani,net writes why he will not vote for Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono again. Many Indonesians are disappointed that the president dropped corruption charged against ailing former leader Suharto.
Caribbean: A West Indian anthem?
Kyk-Over-Al links to a column in Guyana's Stabroek News criticising the new West Indian anthem adopted recently by CARICOM (the Caribbean Community), and the Caribbean Beat blog asks its readers how Caribbean leaders should have gone about choosing an anthem. “Via a competition, soliciting entries from the region's best composers...
Indonesia: Bali Weddings
Many foreign couples go to Bali to get married attracted by the traditional Hindu wedding ceremony. Indcoup warns that such a marriage may not be legal in the west. “You may think you’ve been married, but if you’ve only done the religious part, and the extremely complex bureaucratic procedures –...
China: 2008 Olympics watch
Today begins, proclaims blogger Lyn Jeffrey, Virtual China‘s official coverage leading up to the 2008 Beijing summer olympics. “Yes, we're a bit late to the game,” says Jeffrey, “but our focus will, of course, be how 2008 plays out in virtual China, both in Chinese and in English. A few...
Cambodia: Phnom Penh
Stan at Khmer440 looks at the layout and architecture of Phnom Penh, the Cambodian capital city. “In addition to good design enhancing its livability, P P has other plusses in that regard. The first is that it’s a low-rise city. Far superior on the psyche; it is human scale. You...
Myanmar: Street Snacks and Latest Happenings
Moemoe links to the recent happenings in Myanmar along with a picture of snacks in a popular Yangoon market.
