Stories from 6 November 2006
China: Can China's internet media compete globally?
Fons Tuinstra outlined the discussion on whether China's internet media can compete globally in China Herald.
China and Africa: Forum on China-Africa Co-operation (FOCAC)
Positive solution blogs about the local media report on China-Africa Co-operation (FOCAC): Its the mutually beneficial development, stupid!
Taiwan: corruption case
Sun bin studied President Chen Shui-Bien's self-defence of the corruption charge.
Taiwan: Former Justice Minister
The former Minister of Justice, Chen Ding-nan passed away in the midst of the President corruption scandal. Levitator has more background on the Chen.
China: real name registration
ESWN translated an article from Southern Weekend on the blogger real name registration system proposed by Ministry of Information Industry.
South Korea: who are US allies?
Robert Koehler comments on a commentary by Philadelphia Inquirer columnist which was viewed by Korean media a “naked expression of anti-Korean sentiment”. In the article, the columnist called Japan and Taiwan US’ real allies.
Puerto Rico: Mosquito experiments
“For things like this the colony has always been useful,” says (ES) Tinta Digital, discussing a series of experiments conducted on mosquitos in poor communities in Puerto Rico by the Centers for Disease Control.
Trinidad & Tobago: Cricket, breathalysers and crime
The Manicou offers his two cents on the West Indies cricket team's defeat in the ICC Champions Trophy, Trinidad and Tobago's proposed breathalyser law and observes that “murder in Trinidad has no modus operandi.” And crime comes a bit too close to home for Karen Walrond as well.
Brazil: Lula's Victory
The presidential election results in Brazil showed, despite dire opposition predictions that victory for Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva would produce an untenable political situation, that Lula indeed has the political capital needed to lead Brazil for the next 4 years. Speculations about a divided country and the possible governance...
Moldova: Borat in Moldova and Romania
Peter Myers of Adventures in Moldova writes about Borat: “ Borat's “Kazakh village” was in fact filmed in Romania, so it was fun to watch the first four minutes of the film on YouTube and know what all these villagers were saying to Borat. His “wife,” Oxana, didn't say what...
24-hour demonstration against Internet censorship
Our friends at Reporters without Borders (often called “RSF” – Reporters sans Frontières) are organizing an online demonstration against Internet censorship, beginning tomorrow at 11am (Paris time) and continuing until 11am on Wednesday, November 8th. The goal of the demonstration is to draw attention to online censorship in the thirteen...
Russia: National Unity Day
Sean's Russia Blog writes about “unity and disunity on National Unity Day” in Russia.
Tajikistan: The Election
neweurasia Tajikistan reports on voting for Tajikistan's president within the country and outside the country.
Serbia: “Countries Rush to Include Kosovo in Their Constitutions”
South East Europe Online posts a hilarious, Onion-style piece on Kosovo: “After Serbia included Kosovo in its constitution, other countries from the region have declared their intentions to do the same. They point out that they are doing this in line with their good neighborly relations policies. The governments of...
Kazakhstan: Free Haircuts
KZBlog reports on a bizarre scheme in Astana, Kazakhstan in which local officials have required hair salons to provide free services to pensioners and veterans of World War II.
Serbia: Albanian Evangelicals and Kosovo Independence
South East Europe Online reports on the reaction from the Kosovo Albanian evangelicals and American misisonaries working in Kosovo to the claims of Serbian Orthodox Church that some key U.S. evangelicals “are joining their lobby against Kosovo's independence.”
Kazakhstan: Borat Opens
Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat, the story/mockumentary telling a “Kazakh” journalist's quest across America to marry Pamela Anderson, opened over the weekend in North America much of Europe and neweurasia looks at different perspectives on how the movie affects Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan: Steinmeier
neweurasia reports on the visits of Germany's foreign minister to Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. Both trips were part of a region-wide tour that comes as Germany works on a comprehensive Central Asia policy to promote during its coming EU presidency.
Jamaica: Death by dancing & the murder of a heavyweight
Stunner weighs in on the death of a young Jamaican woman from engaging in movements associated with the “dutty wine” dance craze, and the murder of former heavyweight boxing champion Trevor Berbick in Portland.
Serbia: Attractions of Halovo
Trans Europa Express writes about the blacksmith and other attractions of “Halovo, Serbia: 538 meters above sea level, 500 meters away from the Bulgarian border. Number of houses: Depends on whom you talk to. Between 230 and 300.”
Russia: Deportation of Karachais
J. Otto Pohl writes about yet another tragic anniversary: the 1943 deportation of Karachais “from their ancestral homeland in the North Caucasus to desolate areas of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.”