13 April 2007

Stories from 13 April 2007

Ukraine: Radiation

  13 April 2007

MoldovAnn tries to buy a dosimeter in Kyiv: “No wonder the general population long ago stopped actively worrying about radiation in their food – whether it’s there or not, you basically have no way of finding out.”

Ukraine: Corruption

  13 April 2007

MoldovAnn writes about corruption in Ukraine: “I’ve witnessed a few corrupt transactions in my day, both in Ukraine and in Moldova. Mostly, I’ve seen incidences with the local police.”

Cuba: Asking the Question

  13 April 2007

In the context of a recent blog post about “a young Cuban rapper who criticizes injustice in Cuba while wearing a che t-shirt”, Babalu Blog asks a question that he thinks is “an excellent example of something not much talked about, but that is very important to the future of...

Venezuela: Latin America in Deferment

  13 April 2007

“In Latin America, revolutions are also a non-traditional product for export. It is a matter of a charm that is as typical of us as pretentiousness or corn, mariachis or chocolate. We also have sentimental caudillos, necessary rebels, a class of heroes that can no longer be found anywhere else...

Iran: Jailed Teachers, Nuclear Ceremony and UK sailors

Iranians celebrated the New Year last month with reflections looking back at the progress, or lack thereof, made by their government over the previous twelve months. A month later, those same challenges still persist, among them: the nuclear crisis, economic problems and human rights issues. Officials celebrated a nuclear ceremony last week while more teachers were arrested. The Iranian blogosphere is dealing with all of these issues without forgeting the outcome of the UK sailors' crisis.

Uganda: Protest turns into manhunt for Indians, three people killed

  13 April 2007

Last week, Joshua Goldstein wrote about Ugandan bloggers’ reaction to Ugandan government's decision to give away 7,100 hectares of Mabira Forest to private investor for sugarcane plantation. The decision has been criticized by the Ugandan civil society, whose resistance to the allocation included the use of SMS. Yesterday, Ugandan bloggers...

Trinidad & Tobago, U.S.A.: R.I.P. Kurt Vonnegut

  13 April 2007

Both Caribbean Free Radio: “Like many of my ilk (US-educated Trinidadians of a certain age?), I had my Vonnegut phase” and The Latin Americanist: “One of his best science fiction novels was 1963’s Cat’s Cradle which was set in the fictional Caribbean island of San Lorenzo and whose ruling dictator...

Dominica: New Book about the Caribs

  13 April 2007

The CAC Review is happy about the publication of a new book about the indigenous Kalinagos (or Caribs) of Dominica, which “tells the story of a remarkable people”.

Nigeria: Nigeria Elections 2007

  13 April 2007

The World According to Adaure on Nigeria Elections 2007: “Part one of the much awaited election in Nigeria is finaly here. The Feds on Wednesday declared Thursday and Friday a public holiday, literarily at the very last minute. Many people including myself were rather ticked by this because we didn't...

Ukraine: No Political Passion

  13 April 2007

MoldovAnn observes “a lack of passion” among the pro-Yanukovych protesters gathered in Kyiv: “They just don’t look engaged – they are sitting around eating, drinking, drinking, drinking, talking, drinking. I don’t hear them talking about politics at all.”

Senegal: hip hop meets politics

  13 April 2007

Tune Your World posts a documentary, African Underground: Democracy in Dakar, which shows the role of hip hop in Senegalese politics, “Our friends at Nomadic Wax are in Senegal this month producing a unique documentary film, called ‘African Underground: Democracy in Dakar’, showing how local hip-hop is shaping the current...

Africa: Afrigator goes mobile

  13 April 2007

The new blog aggregator from Africa, Afrigator, has gone mobile: “hit the waters and so much has happened it’s scaring the living crap out of me. The latest addition to the Gator family is Afrigator Mobile and you can check it out on your mobile at http://afrigator.mobi.”

Trinidad & Tobago: Moko Jumbie Movie

  13 April 2007

Stefan Falke's Eye takes note of German filmmaker Harald Rumpf's documentary about the Moko Jumbies (stilt walkers) of the Dragon Kilimanjaro School of Arts & Culture in Trinidad and Tobago.

Kuwait: April 16 Date for Iran War

Kuwaiti blogger UzF reports that members of the Kuwaiti military reserve will not be available to play a video game online starting April 16 because they will be on emergency duty/detention for an unknown time. “I wonder.. is that about Iran? that's what we were afraid the case was..” he...

Barbados: Poor Attendance for First Super 8 at Kensington

  13 April 2007

Barbados Free Press laments that despite the “carefully crafted photographs” that “give the impression of a stadium packed with excited cricket fans enjoying the best cricket in the world”, attendance at the Super 8 match at Barbados’ Kensington Oval was “only 37% of capacity”.

Iraq: Costly Terror

The terror campaign being waged in Iraq comes with a hefty price tag, writes Iraqi blogger Ala. “Mr. Mohammed Al-Askari, the consultant for the Iraqi Ministry of Defense stated that according to estimates in the ministry the average car bomb costs about US $100,000 . So if you estimate the...

Iraq: Why Iraqis Hate Al Jazeera

Iraq Pundit wonders why Iraqis hate Al Jazeera here. “Why do I keep watching Al Jazeera? I think of it as a form of mortification. Some people whip themselves with chains; others wear hair shirts; I watch Al Jazeera,” he explains.