Stories from 30 October 2006
Jamaica: Mediocrity
“We are the people of the plateau—we work as much as is necessary to reach a flat, safe place,” says Jamaican novelist Marlon James of his compatriots. “Then we stay there for thirty years.“
Jamaica: Striking it rich
Francis Wade considers what could happen if Jamaica were suddenly to strike it rich.
Bermuda: Dr. Brown's opportunity
Valentine Michael Smith leaves aside satire for a moment and considers the opportunity that lies before Bermuda's newly elected Premier, Dr. Ewart Brown.
Belize: Dangriga Town
Nyasha Lang reports on a visit to Dangriga Town, Belize, where she visits a radio station run by a Garifuna perfomer and learns how easy it is to fall into the habit of wearing several hats.
Caribbean: Say no to monarchs and “faith schools”
Yesterday, he advocated that those Caribbean islands that haven't yet done so detach should themselves from the British monarchy. Today, Jeremy Taylor makes the case for the abolition of “faith schools”.
China: Ancient Chinese sex advice
Alan Baumler at China history group blog goes into the text of Sunu jing–The Classic of the White Girl, to discuss about Chinese thought.
Japan: confession service
Lee at Tokyo Times introduces a confession service in Japan. Most of the clients are men in 30s who want to express their love but are afraid of being rejected.
Hong Kong: where have all the trees gone?
Dave and Stefan notice that tress from Nathan road at Kowloon Peninsular have been disappearing gradually over the past decades. So where have all the trees gone?
Korea: North Korea spy case
Robert Koehler in Marmot's Hole blogs about the details of spy case against the general secretary of the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) and a former DLP central committee member.
Mexico: The last moments of Bradley Roland Will
Journalism seems like a precarious profession to practise in Mexico. It's ranked by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) as one of the most dangerous places to be a journalist. The latest tragic example of this came on Friday 27th October, in the southern state of Oaxaca, with the shooting...
Kazakhstan: Social Business Corporations
KZBlog reports on Kazakhstan's plan to found “social business corporations” in the country's regions to drive economic growth and meet social needs. Though the idea behind them is seemingly similar to “social entrepreneurship,” KZBlog notes that no one seems too interested in the social end of the things with the...
Kyrgyzstan: Corruption in Education
Tolkun Umaraliev reports on corruption in Kyrgyzstan's education system.
Uzbekistan: Cannot Be Saved
Shohruh says that China and Russia cannot save Islam Karimov, the president of Uzbekistan.
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan: A Big Week
Sean Roberts notes that next is a big week for three Central Asian countries. Three very different events will take place that show how different their politics have become since independence from the Soviet Union.
Tajikistan: Democratic Split
Alexander Sadikov reports on divisions within Tajikistan's Democratic party which he says have developed into a political stalemate.
Armenia: Parliamentary Election Monitor
Onnik Krikorian has posted his first Armenian parliamentary election monitor, a weekly roundup of news regarding the coming election.
Kazakhstan: Unfree Speech
At neweurasia, Leila translates a Russian language post on press freedom in Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan: Dariga
Dan O'Huiginn profiles Dariga Nazarbaeva, the politically powerful daughter of Kazakhstan’ president.
Kyrgyzstan: Lack of Competence
Mirsulzhan Namazaliev writes that both the government and the opposition in Kyrgyzstan are destabilizing the country by failing to engage in dialogue. He says that only well-known and respectable centrist politicians can fix this situation.
Brunei: New GDP Figure
The guest blogger at Brunei Resources explains why the new GDP figure for Brunei is both a good news as well as bad news.
Violence and Misinformation Abound in Oaxaca
The usually tranquil Southern Mexican tourist town of Oaxaca – with its large, shaded plaza and gallery-lined alleys – had transformed into a political pressure cooker over the past few months in what began as a seemingly routine teacher's strike in late May. The lid then blew straight off yesterday...
