Stories from 29 August 2006
Russian-Language Blogs: Miscellanea (3)
Israeli blogger pilka writes (RUS) about a surreal experience of eating next to three clowns at a hospital in the wartime Haifa: […] I had breakfast with clowns today. I work at the children's department, okay? So strange, a clown on the right, a clown on the left, a vegetable...
Reunion: Tamul Celebrations
Reunion Passion posts pictures (Fr) of the Malbar firewalking celebration of the Tamul Indian community which constitutes 30% of Reunion's population. The celebrations usually take place in January.
Trinidad & Tobago: Santa Rosa Festival
Maximilian C. Forte offers a substanial analysis of the 220th anniversary celebrations of the Santa Rosa Carib community in Arima, Trinidad, complete with audio files from the live radio broadcast.
Cuba: Sex tourism
Luis M. Garcia reports briefly on the Cuban government's irate response to “a Spanish academic who says as many as 200,000 Spaniards travel to Cuba every year to engage in what he politely termed turismo sexual.“
Jamaica: Singles
Mikaila discusses the ins and outs of dating in Jamaica: “I have stories that could be episodes of Sex and the City. There are so many more women here than men. Dating anywhere is difficult. Last week I watched a special Dateline on AIDS in African American communities and was...
Jamaica: Intuitives
“The term “intuitives”, used to describe those artists without formal training and often inspired by religious movements like Rastafarianism or Revivalism, has decisively entered the art history lexicon of the Caribbean, even as some critics debate the political, historical, and even economic consequences of the label,” writes Nicholas Laughlin, linking...
Belize: Caye Caulker
Lee Vanderwalker posts some sepia-toned photos and a “technology timeline” of Caye Caulker, Belize.
Cuba, Bahamas, USA: Moral authority
Rick Lowe takes issue with the Cuban ambassador to the Bahamas's declaration that the US lacks the moral authority to criticise Cuba.
Bahamas: Not so far from the Middle East
Nicolette Bethel's analysis of an African-American commentator's views on white guilt and anti-Semitism prompts her to think about Israel's position in the Middle East: “We Bahamians should take heed. After all, there is not a huge difference between the plight of the Palestinian Arab or the young men who identify...
Barbados: Political dads
Barbados's opposition leader gets the chance to take a enviable swipe at the Prime Minister, who's apparently been cagey about the five year-old daughter he has with the woman he recently married. “Maybe it’s a low blow,” says Titlayo, “but you can’t say it isn’t a solid punch.”
Senegal: Commemorating the Senegalese Riflemen of WWII
While Senegal commemorated the Senegalese riflemen who assisted the French in WWII, Senegalese blogger Semett remembered (Fr) their forced labor, involuntary conscription and drew comparisons with the triangular slave trade. He seemed unconvinced with President Wade's sincerity in facing the realities of the riflemen but also that of the youth...
Africans in France: Riots’ First Anniversary
Senegalese blogger Semett worries that (Fr) not much has changed for communities of color in France since last year's summer riots: “Despite the temporary emotions, we don't get the impression that anything has changed since. Our brothers and sisters continue to live in unsanitary and dangerous conditions. Whether it is...
Senegal, France: Senegal Cheri
Seckasysteme posts (Fr) an audio excerpt of Baaba Maal's Senegal-Cheri.
International Blog Day is almost here!
Don't forget! The second annual international Blog Day is coming up this Thursday, August 31st. Please spread the blog love by participating. A very exciting thing is the vast array of languages in which people are blogging about Blog Day. It will be a day in which we celebrate our...
DRC: Election results fragmented
The Head Heeb analyses the partial results from the Democratic Republic of Congo's National Assembly election which took place alongside the better-publicised presidential poll. It's already clear that the incoming parliament will be highly fragmented,” he concludes.
Ethiopia: Floods and conflict take their toll
Tobian Thinktank asks why Ethiopia's army is bothering with its military manoeuvres in Somalia while foreign troops are having to come into Ethiopia to help flood victims. We've people and villages getting swept away, lives being taken and destroyed by the hundreds and what is the Ethiopian army doing?
South Africa: Computer gamers get to compete
“The Amateur Gamers Association of South Africa (AGASA) has created the first official online national gamers’ league,” reports Tectonic.
Sudan: Rape still a weapon
The Concoction reports that Darfur women are still being raped three months after a key peace deal in Sudan. “Fetching fire wood or water often ends up in the women being raped. Just imagine running to the grocery store to get a gallon of milk and there is a very...
Kenya: Corruption a way of life
“In Kenya corruption is such a way of life” writes Girl in the Meadow as she describes an encounter with a bribe-taking policeman.
Kenya: “I am African” Aids campaign criticised
Mshairi had a dig at a new HIV/Aids fundraising campaign that uses posters of celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow wearing face paint and beads next to the slogan “I am African”. “If she is African, I am Plutonian,” she commented.
Kenya: Praise piles up for Obama visit
Whispering Inn joined other Kenyan bloggers welcoming the visit of Barack Obama, the USA's only black senator, to the country. “[Obama has been] chewing out president Kibaki for State-sanctioned corruption, encouraging folks to fight AIDS by getting tested, advocating media freedom at the Standard Newspapers, touring Kibera, and giving a...
