Stories from 13 June 2007
Russia: Landslide in the Valley of Geysers
A detailed report, in Russian AND in English, with photos, on the June 3 landslide that damaged much of Kamchatka's Valley of Geysers – by LJ user spanishflyer (Andrei Leonov).
Albania: Bush's Watch
The Voice of Europe links to an extremely popular YouTube video that shows “the crowd of cheering Albanians in the village of Fushe Kruja” stripping George W. Bush of his watch. The video has been viewed 1,020,279 times already.
Serbia: Kosovo Independence
TOL's Steady State discusses different aspects of the Kosovo independence situation.
Former Soviet Union: Victims of Communism Memorial
As the Victims of Communism Memorial opens Washington, D.C., J. Otto Pohl lists “the nationalities deported in their virtual entirety by the Soviet government from their homelands to distant areas of the USSR”: “In total they numbered nearly 2,000,000 people. Over 500,000 of them or more than one in four...
Moldova: Chisinau
Music and Life – Everywhere! writes about Moldova's capital Chisinau.
Ukraine: Victor Yushchenko Interview
Mark MacKinnon posts the full transcript of his recent interview with Ukrainian president Victor Yushchenko.
Russia: Peter Tatchell Interview
The Gist‘s Michelangelo Signorile posts a link to his interview with British activist Peter Tatchell, who “was severely beaten at an attempted Moscow Gay Pride event on Sunday, May 27.”
Iran:Jailed Students Under Pressure
According to[Fa] TjDaily,eight AmirKabir University students who are in prison are under pressure to confess what the authorities would like to hear.These student activists are accused of publishing anti governmental articles.These students deny this accusation.
Iran:Diggeh.com
Diggeh is a user-contributed bookmarking site like digg.com and del.icio.us, but for IRANIAN/PERSIAN oriented content.All are in English.
Iran:A Logo to Remind Samarra's Golden Mosque
Muslim Bloggers Association has created a logo[Fa] to remind Samarra's Golden Mosque that was damaged after an explosion today in Iraq.
China: “Won't Sell Even If It Kills Me”
China has gone crazy for diverse portfolio capitalism—literally, in the case of one investor who couldn't get online to check his stocks when values dipped last week. Count on netizens, however, to find the humor in it all.
Singapore: YouTube and Beyond
The Habitatnews blog announces a talk titled “Youtube and beyond: What you want to know but never knew who to ask” to be held at a public library in Singapore. “Youtubers, Videobloggers, Video podcasters, or anyone who wants to get started with sharing videos online, this is perfect for you!”
India: Mumbai and Monsoon
Even as the government doesn't do much about its promises to make Mumbai more monsoon-safe, To Each Its Own recalls the floods in the city in 2005 and wonders if the city is going to be in trouble once again.
Singapore: Singaporeans First
Bart JP at Perpectives Unlimited argues why he is skeptical about the “Put Singaporeans First” talk. Singapore is home a large number of foreigners who live, work and study in the city state.
India: The Shah Bano legacy
The Social Blog reviews the legacy of an act, which ironically does the opposite of what it is called. “The Rajiv Gandhi-led Government in power, passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, to appease the outraged sentiments. The Act, quite ironically, curtailed the rights of Muslim women...
Nepal: Durbar Square in motion
An American blogger in Nepal working to promote and protect Dalit rights, has a photograph that captures the energy of a street when a banda (strike) is not in place.
Pakistan: India and the IT-BPO Sector
The Pakistani Spectator has a conversation with a friend about India's IT-BPO sector, and points to India's secular years and investment in education as the factors that helped the success.
Nepal: Women and the State
Kathmandu Speaks asks why women commit suicide in Nepal, and points to the perceived lack of support for women.
Lebanon: Blogger's Close Encounter with Explosion
Blogger Charles Malik was only 50 meters away from the explosion that targeted a Lebanese MP killing and injuring more than 20 civilians today. He recounts his experience: “We were in a cafe next to Luna Park enjoying the late afternoon next to the sea after an intense day. Children...
“Beat the Censors!”, a gift of freedom for Thai Internet users
To date, Thailand’s ICT Minister, Dr Sitthichai Pookaiyaudom, has not kept his promise to unblock the popular video-sharing site, YouTube, which was blocked by the Thai government in April 2007 following the appearance on the site of material critical of the country's king. Sami Ben Gharbia explores Thailand's worsening censorship climate, and interviews one of the activists behind FACT, an organisation that is refusing to take the government's threats lying down.
D.R. of Congo: Rhumba stars of today and yesterday
As Francois recently observed in Du Cabiau à Kinshasa [Fr], “Music and dance probably share the podium with Jesus among the top reasons for living for a majority of the Congolese people.” For a hint of the obsessive enthusiasm with which Congolese music fans trade gossip about the star musicians and debate their merits, you only have to visit forums such as AfroMix, AfricaAmbience and CongoPage [Fr]. However, despite the massive popularity of Congolese music all over Africa, the blogosphere remains relatively quiet on the subject.
