Stories from June, 2007
China: New Governmental Organization
Lianyue criticized the local non-governmental organization in Xiamen for speaking against conscience and praising the PX project (a huge chemical factory campus) in an interview with foreign reporter (zh). He renamed the NGO into new governmental organization.
China: Western movies insulting Chinese?
Chong translated Lu qui lu wei's commentary on the censorship of Pirates of the Caribbean . The censorship department argued that Chow Yun Fat’s character (a Singaporean Pirate) in movies smears Chinese people’s image.
Japan should work with China to tackle photochemical smog problem
Some scientists have been arguing that air pollution in China is responsible for increased incidents of photochemical smog in Japan. Kaz points out Japan's responsibility as a nation which suffered its own pollution in the past and says that Japan should build a good working relation with China in order...
China: Luxurious Buildings and Shanxi Bricks
CCTV News investigation team asked the Tianya community to submit information concerning extravagant and luxurious building in China (zh). There were many submission. Cha Jing highlighted one of the comments: Without building all these, where to sell all those bricks (produced by slave labour) in Shanxi? (zh)
China: Victims of slave labour
Tan Weishan posted some photos of the victims of slave labour in Shanxi brick kiln, one of them lost his legs because of the supervisor abuse. He was dumped in the middle of the mountain in 2002. Eventhough he had won the court case and the brick kiln had to...
Japan: Distance between NHK and Government
The recent appointment of Komori Shigetaka, who is a close acquaintance of PM Abe Shinzo, as an NHK's management committee member has raised a controversy over the possibility of the government's intervention in public broadcast. Blogger Miepong draws on and analyzes discussions in the Japanese blogosphere as well as mainstream...
Japanese Enlist for Billy's Boot Camp
Billy's Boot Camp has hit Japan, and Japanese bloggers are talking all about the show's star, Billy Blanks. Athlete of the year in the USA Karete Hall of Fame and actor in a number of American action-adventure feature films, Blanks has now brought his show to Japan, where it is making the rounds of local TV stations, drawing reactions from bloggers.
Peru: New Video Website Portal
Juan Arellano is excited over a new website called Enlace Nacional [ES] that pulls together videos with a Peruvian focus.
Ecuador: Palms for Life Brings Computers to Elementary Schools
On its blog, the non-profit organization Palms for Life announces a partnership with Mercy Corps that will bring 200 computers to 37 elementary schools in Ecuador.
Ukraine: A Spanish Embassy Ordeal
In an ideal world, there'd be no need for travelers to waste their time and money obtaining visas: buying a plane ticket and booking a hotel room would suffice. Tanya Kremen, a Ukrainian journalist, studies Spanish but feels that a plane ticket to Latin America costs too much. So she decided to go to Spain. She had a valid visa - unlike the two of her friends who wanted to go along. What follows is the story of their frustrating visit to the Spanish Embassy in Kyiv, posted by Tanya on her blog at Korrespondent.net.
Lebanon: Syria's “in the eye of the storm”
A strange conversation took place last April between Syrian president Bashar El Assad and UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon, writes Sophia. The meeeting ends with Bashar El Assad telling Ban Ki Moon: “We are in the eye of the storm. You will need to stay in contact with us.”
Tanzanian bloggers virtual election, Taifa Stars African Cup of Nations victory and a backflip in the parliament
Tanzanian bloggers virtual election, VIP treatment in the House of Parliament for Tanzania's National Team, Taifa Stars, after African Cup of Nations victory, alleged Bank of Tanzania embezzlement and a backflip in the parliament by a vocal member of Parliament. These are some of the issues dominating Swahili blogosphere.
Philippines: Taking back the “Sexy Filipina” Search Keyword
Noemi is not happy with the internet search result for the word Filipina. The blogger is urging fellow bloggers from Philippines to collectively beat the porn and smut marketers by actively using the keyword on their blogs and linking them to non-porn sites
Arabeyes: The Moment of Truth for a Jordanian Father
Today's Arabeyes makes five stops - two in Kuwait and Saudi each and a last stop in Jordan, where a blogger and journalist is forced to face himself and take a stance on the Palestinian infighting between Fatah and Hamas.
East Timor: Growth Aspirations
Tumbleweed in Timor Lorosae feels “every country deserves the equal chance of making some developmental faux pas“
Brunei: Of Love and Trust
Old Man has some wise words for people who want to test the fidelity of their lovers. “Testing is bad. Because half of those tested would definitely fail. At the very least, it will bring doubt to the relationship. Doubt is not good to a relationship.”
Singapore: Singapore's Hit Band from the 1960s
The mod-ified music blog features audio clips of an interview with two of the members of a popular 1960s local band .
Martiniquian blogger on “Fleurs du Mal”
Le blog de [moi] celebrates the 150th anniversary of Fleurs du Mal (Fr) by posting “Le Vampire” and explaining her attraction to Baudelaire's poetry: “Baudelaire speaks of death and women like no other. I really understand his fascination with the two…I open [the book] rarely because it always brings out...
Bangladesh: Changing Lives
Voice of South on a woman's life turning around thanks to micro-credit and telecom.
India: Forces in Kashmir
Kashmir on the excesses of the Indian security forces in the state.
Egypt: Books, History and the Holocaust
The Big Pharaoh finds a interesting book at a street vendor in downtown Cairo. Click here to read more.
