Stories from 6 February 2007
Haiti: Political maturity
Alice Backer views Haitian — indeed, Caribbean — supporters’ throwing their support behind a single candidate in a New York City Council election as a sign that the community is approaching political maturity.
Argentina: Buenos Aires Blog Roundup
Among the many posts summarized in Alan Patrick's latest dispatch, we find Ken’s description of the dog walkers in Buenos Aires, yet another post about the prevalence of mullets in Buenos Aires, and Robert Wright's photographs of the capital's “Parisian-esque domes.”
Grenada: Prime Ministerial apology to China
Ryan Patrick at the West Indies Cricket Blog posts the audio of the public apology offered by the Prime Minister of Grenada for the erroneous playing of the Taiwanese national anthem in place of the Chinese national anthem at a ceremony in Grenada.
Jamaica: Happy birthday, Bob Marley
Geoffrey Philp marks Bob Marley's birthday by posting a poem written in tribute to the Jamaican reggae superstar.
Cuba: Two cookbooks
She'll get to Cuba eventually, but in the meantime, TriniFood of the Can Cook, Must Cook blog reviews two Cuban cookbooks.
Trinidad & Tobago: Panorama 2007
Caroline.neisha at the Caribbean Beat blog paints a picture in Trinidadian English of the semi-finals of the Panorama steel orchestra competition, which took place this past weekend under dramatically altered circumstances.
Caribbean, China, Taiwan: A joint policy
At the Caricom Blog, Sir Ronald Sanders makes the case for the Caribbean to pursue a “joint policy” towards China: “Belize, Haiti, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, and St Kitts/Nevis continue to recognise Taiwan while the rest of the Caricom countries have diplomatic relations with China. This division within Caricom...
Uganda: President under pressure
Lovely Amphibian explains why it is hard to be a president in Uganda, “Our president is on pressure as we speak. If he’s not, well, he should be. What with the many barbs coming from all directions!”
Mali: Malian cuisine
Sociolingo's Mali blog has a post about Malian cuisine: “The main foods eaten by a moderately well-off family living in Mali’s capital, Bamako, are rice, millet, sorghum, and beans, cooked as a sort of porridge, served with a meat or fish sauce. A common meal in southern Mali is called...
Ghana: delayed funerals
An American in Africa writes about the burial of a traditional chief, two years after he passed away: “Anyway, Ga Mantse died almost two years ago, but tribal chiefs are not buried until their succession is settled. This is a phenomenon we have encountered quite a few times since we...
Mexico: Ethanol Boom Inspires Protest and Hope
“For the Corn!” by Cadeva – A protester against rising corn prices in Mexico City's Chapultepec Park. As old as sin, I mean, alcohol Today's hemispheric rundown of all things Latin American is a collection of posts all wrapped in the common husk of corn. That's right, the elongated staple...
Russia: Khodorkovsky
As Mikhail Khodorkovsky is facing new charges, his lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, blogs about the situation. An anonymous guest-blogger, The Politechnologist, provides more analysis.
Russia: Khodorkovsky in Chita
Grigory Pasko follows Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev to Chita and the preliminary detention center they are kept at; he writes about it at Khodorkovsky's lawyer's blog: “As of December 2006, SIZO-1 of the city of Chita held around 2000 suspects, accuseds, and convicts, which is three times more than...
Russia: Novgorod Demographics
According to Copydude, Novgorod is a city where children's playgrounds look abandoned and prams are “an unusual sight.”
Russia: Conversation With Litvinenko's Widow, Part 13-15
David McDuff has completed his translation of Marina Litvinenko's interview – part 13, part 14 and part 15 are now posted at A Step At A Time.
Ukraine: Salo
Greetings from Kiev posts a rather immodest picture of a pig and writes about the Ukrainians’ favorite food, salo.
Iran:Christiane Amnapour,CNN star journalist,in Iran
Mazyar Nazemi has published several photos of Christiane Amanpour,top CNN journalist,in Tehran.According to the blogger Amanopur was in Iran to make a documentary about Iranian nuclear project.The blogger adds Amanpour did not answer Iranian journalists’ questions and said she is not a political journalist[Fa].
Ukraine: Grain Crisis
Victor Yanukovych's government can't control the situation with grain again, writes Foreign Notes: “Quotas were applied from 31 st December 2006 and this has led to the scandalous situation described in newpapers across the world. ‘Ukraine's grain dumped into sea as quotas strangle exports,’ from FT is typical.
Iran:Two Iranian bloggers received Human Rights Watch award
Human Rights Watch announced that Shahram Rafizadeh and Arash Sigarchi are two Iranian bloggers who received the prestigious Hellman/Hammett prize, an award that recognizes writers globally who have been victims of political persecution. There are 45 people,including seven Iranians, who received awards.
Ukraine: Yanukovych Popularity in Donbas
Foreign Notes reports that roughly half of Donbas population supports Victor Yanukovych, despite the region being traditionally seen as the PM's stronghold.
Ukraine: Klyuev on RFE/RL
One of the less “media-shy” members of Victor Yanukovych's team, vice prime minister Andriy Klyuev, gives an interview to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Brussels, Foreign Notes reports.