Stories from 14 June 2007
Nicaragua: Back to Plaza de la Revolución, Again.
During recent changes in power, the ruling party often sought to cover or erase signs of the previous regimes. This included the removal of murals or renaming of famous plazas. In this case, the current Sandanista government continues the trend by renaming the main plaza back to Revolution Plaza, which is what it was called during the FSLN's first administration.
Iran: Ortega in Tehran and Temporary Marriage Promoted
A few days ago, Daniel Ortega, the President of Nicaragua, went on a two day trip to Tehran to meet with Iranian leaders. According to media reports, Ortega said his country and Iran had agreed to “support each other to help Nicaragua” end its poverty. Several Iranian bloggers discussed this...
Japan: Death of a Pop Star
Blogger shisaku has a great post about the death of Sakai Izumi, singer and songwriter for the group ZARD and “the Voice of the Lost Decade” in Japan.
Serbia: “The Hidden Fascism”
Inspired by the legacy of an African-American activist Audrey Lorde, a Serbian blogger condemns her compatriots' tendency to keep silent about crimes taking place in their own backyard. Sinisa Boljanovic translates an excerpt from this passionate post.
Israel: Celebrating Father's Day
“Thousands of American families will celebrate Father's Day this Sunday without Father. He is either in Iraq risking his life for Chevron or is in his grave in a military cemetery,” writes Desert Peace from Israel.
Israel: Quality Time
David Bogner from Israel writes about quality time he spent with his son one morning.
Israel: Who Next?
“(N)ow that they’ve finished slaughtering their Fatah foes, who do you think they will turn them on next?” writes Yael from Israel.
Jordan: Palestinian Conflict Update
“The coming news from Gaza is disturbing to say the least. Gaza is almost and for the first time under complete control of Hamas forces,” writes Shifaa from Jordan.
Egypt: Save Iraqi Mosques
“I don't know what kind of a terrorist group is that that claims to be a defender of Islam and the savior of the Sunni in Iraq and at the same it destroys mosques and shrines !!” exclaims Egyptian blogger Zeinobia.
Bahrain: US Human Trafficking Blacklist
Silly Bahraini Girl links to a news article which puts Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar on the US human trafficking blacklist for failing to halt what it called the scourge of “modern-day slavery.”
Bahrain: Education Reforms
Bahraini blogger Mahmood Al Yousif attended the official launch of the “Implementation of the national Education Reform Initiatives” and gives us his take on it here.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: “A Girl Who Could Not Speak Properly”
Bosnia Blog posts a sketch of a Sarajevo family that survived the war.
The Balkans: Bush's Watch and Stereotypes
Belgrade 2.0 looks at the generalizations and stereotypes revealed by the George W. Bush's stolen watch episode: “…the biggest reason for everyone to be happy – is that this confirms one big stereotype: Albanians are all thieves, and furthermore, everyone in the Balkans is just waiting for the opportunity to...
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Sevdah Now and Then
Mirza Basic of London Sevdah Blog writes about Amira Medunjanin's recent concert – and about his mother performing all those years ago: “Bosnia's historical records have been largely destroyed during the war and outfit which my mum is wearing in this picture has been largely forgotten about, or people deem...
Serbia: Asne Seierstad's Book
Bosnia Blog and Bosnia Vault review Asne Seierstad's book about Serbia.
Bahrain: Lebanese Appeal
An appeal has gone out for Bahrainis to dig deep in their pockets to help Palestinian refugees caught up in the crossfire in Lebanon, reports Haitham Sabbah, who is based in Bahrain.
Former Yugoslavia: Auschwitz Pavilion
East Ethnia visits the Yugoslavia pavilion at Auschwitz and writes: “Since the country that designed the exhibit no longer exists, and since the museum site does not have extra barracks for the countries that have come about in the meantime, the Yugoslav pavilion will probably remain a fascinating relic of...
The Balkans: One Man's War Stories
Balkanizer runs the first installment of a story of one man's war experiences: “I was nine years old when Germany invaded Yugoslavia. I was 60 years when war came again to my village in Bosnia.”
Egypt: Elections Rigging Videos, US Aid Cuts and A New Blog by Talented Movie Director
In this week’s round up from Egypt, bloggers write about domestic issues as well as Egypt-US relations and I am also introducing new interesting blogs about movies, photography and liberal youth, writes Freedom for Egyptians.
Lebanon: Living Through Terror
This was yet another violent week here in Lebanon. In addition to the military action, taking place in the North between the Lebanese Army and the militants, and the almost regular explosions taking place around the country, this week was marred by another assassination, writes Moussa Bashir, who brings us the latest conversations from the Lebanese blogosphere.
Central African Republic: MSF volunteer shot dead by rebels
The United Nations has suspended aid [Fr] to northwestern Cameroon Central African Republic following the shooting death [Fr] of a 27 year-old Doctors Without Borders volunteer, Alliance Pour La Democratie et Le Progres reports.
