Stories from 3 September 2007
Iran:National Unity and Insults
Mohammad Ali Abtahi,reformist politician and blogger,says the Leader of Islamic Republic of Iran [Ali Khamenei] called this year, in domestic domain, as the year of “National Unity” but those who...
Iran:FaceBook Banned
Committee to Protect Bloggers informs us that FaceBook is banned in Iran. A Tehran based blogger confirmed this news to Global Voices.
Free Speech Roundup: Tunisia, Egypt, China, Thailand
France-based video sharing site Dailymotion has been blocked, again, in Tunisia. Egyptian blogger Abdel Monem Mahmoud, who has been released in June 2007 is facing detention threats. In China people who are using China Telecom are unable to access FeedBurner feeds. And Thailand lifted its ban on YouTube but Veoh and MetaCafe still blocked.
Russia: More on Ethnicity and Religion
Window on Eurasia writes on ethnic relations in Moscow and the Russian media's coverage of ethnicity and religion.
Russia: Ethinic Map of St. Pete
Window on Euarasia writes on the production of a secret “ethnic” map of St. Petersburg.
Russia: Orthodox View on Intermarriages
Window on Eurasia writes that one Russian Orthodox cleric believes that intermarriages are “a form of genocide of the Russian people.”
Russia: Ramzan Kadyrov's Use of Islam
Window on Eurasia writes about Ramzan Kadyrov's “pretensions to serve as a spokesman and defender for Chechens and Muslims throughout the Russian Federation.”
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Sarajevo Photos
Novala, Europa posts photos from Sarajevo – here, here, and here.
Belarus: Public Indifference to EU's Demands
According to TOL's Belarus, most Belarusians don't care whether their country fulfills the 12 demands of the EU or not. Some of these demands include freeing all political prisoners and...
Romania: Rompetrol Takeover
Transatlantic Politics posts an interview on “the recent takeover of the Romanian oil company Rompetrol by the Kazakh state company KazMunayGaz.”
Russia: RBN's Cybercrime
The Economist's Edward Lucas writes about RBN (Russian Business Network), a St. Petersburg-based internet company that “hosts cybercriminals, ranging from spammers to phishers, bot-herders and all manner of other fraudsters...
Czech Rebublic: Multi-Culturalism
“Rare to find voices in the Czech media and blogosphere explicitly defending multi-culturalism and advocating (more) open migration policies, but today I found two in one day,” writes Dr. Sean's...
Egypt: More on Rumours About Mubarak
Abu Aardvark, aka Marc Lynch, discusses how the media dealt with rumours surrounding the death of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in this post.
Iraq: The Heartbreak Continues
Iraqi blogger Sunshine continues to blog about heartbreak, shootings, car bombings, kidnappings and people being killed around her, in an Iraq torn by war.
Lebanon: Army Ends “Fateh el Islam”
The siege of Nahr el Bared refugee camp is finally over. The Lebanese Army ended the warfare with the so called “Fateh el Islam” militants after 105 days by killing and capturing its remaining members. It is reported that among the dead is their leader Shaker el Absi. Thousands of Lebanese took to the streets, around the country and especially in the North, to celebrate the army’s victory. Moussa Bashir brings us the latest discussions from the Lebanese blogosphere about this development.
India: Rape and Consensual Sex
Law and Other Things discusses if consensual sex based on false promise amounts to rape.
Bangladesh: Khaleda Zia
Mash traces political developments in Bangladesh as the former PM is arrested on corruption charges.
India: Meter Down with a cab driver
Meter Down has a fascinating series of podcasts – interviews with cab drivers in Mumbai.
India: Hyderabad and bomb blasts
iFaqeer is deeply moved by one person's reaction to the bomb blasts in Hyderabad.
Maldives: Inhumane Treatment of Migrant Workers
The Maldivian government was able to prevent Bangladeshi migrant workers’ community in the capital Malé from holding a demonstration on Friday, by using the threat of deportation. The Bangladeshi community,...
Kuwait: The Blogging Monster
Are bloggers swimming against the tide? Are officials losing sleep over what is appearing online everyday? Should blogging be controlled? Or is controlling what appears on blogs another form of repression and another way of brushing corruption under the carpet? Kuwaiti blogger AseeL, from bara7atmbarak (Mubarak's Square), introduces us to the blogging monster in this post (Ar), which discusses some of the questions raised above.
