Stories from 18 January 2008
Trinidad & Tobago: Crime & Punishment
“Why do we allow such unworthy men to play with our lives?” Ramblings and Reason blogs about what she calls “the latest political red herring” in Trinidad and Tobago.
Kenya: Displaced children
Kabissa blog on displaced children in Kenya: “The WIDES Development Group based in Nyakach constituency of Nyanza province and Kibera slums in Nairobi Kenya have reported that many of the orphan children being cared for are now scattered without food, clothing or shelter.”
Kenya: Kenya in Distress vouchers
Afromusing writes Kenya in Distress vouchers: “Mamamikes’ donation page is now live. When you click on the homepage, you now have an option to purchase vouchers for Kenyans in Distress.”
Ethiopia: Voice of America jammed!
Tedla Asfaw writes about the jamming of Voice of America in Ethiopia: VOA Amharic, Oromiffa and German Amharic have been jammed in Ethiopia and callers from Ethiopia are calling and tell their frustration and it seems now VOA is looking for possible solution.
South Africa: Women growing organic food
Nubian Cheetah posts a video of organic food growers in South Africa: “The women in the the Fezeka community in Gugulethu, South Africa are growing organic foods and selling them at market prices.”
Philippines: Traffic Comparision
Miscel compares traffic condition in Singapore to the one in Philippines.
Kenya: Boycotting businesses belong to President Kibaki
Kenya Imagine on the latest turn of events in Kenya: “ODM leader Raila Odinga has called on his supporters to stay home and boycott businesses belonging to President Kibaki's friends and supporters.”
Malawi dumps Taiwan for China, media under scrutiny
China's influence in Africa is on the rise. Malawian foreign affairs minister has announced that Malawi has switched its diplomatic relations from Taiwan to Mainland China. Malawian bloggers seem to welcome this move.
Peru: Wendy Sulca, Child Video Sensation
From Peru, 10 year old Wendy Sulca is quickly becoming an internet sensation. Her folkloric videos have viewers discussing children´s rights, what it means to be Peruvian and whether or not children should sing about certain topics.
Brazil: Gabeira as Mayor for Rio de Janeiro
Pedro Dória [pt] wants congressman Fernando Gabeira [pt] to be Rio de Janeiro's mayor and thinks that the blogosphere and netizens can join forces to convince him to put his name forward. “It is time to launch an online campaign. If a great enough number of people join it, we...
Brazil: A half Portuguese, half African Brazilian street party
La Pasionaria Selénia posts her very nice pictures of yesterday's Feast of Bonfim, one of the most important annual popular celebrations in Salvador. The veneration of Nosso Senhor do Bonfim (Our Lord of the Good End) is an old Portuguese tradition that was imported to Brazil during colonial times, but...
Turkmenistan: Conflict between Ashgabat and Tehran Runs Deep
Maciula analyzes the deepening conflict between Turkmenistan and Iran after two weeks have passed since the suspension of Turkmen gas supplies to Iran.
Kyrgyzstan: Human Rights Activist Arrested
Ayan Dane reports that Maxim Kuleshov, a human rights activist, organized a campaign in support for democracy in Kyrgyzstan, but it was immediately stopped as he was detained by police officers .
Rakhat Aliyev Sentenced
Zhanna Zhukova reports on the decision, announced yesterday by the court in Almaty, Kazakhstan, sentencing Rakhat Aliyev, former presidential son-in-law, to 20 years in jail for organizing of a mafia-type gang and abduction of two men thatare still missing. Aliyev himself is currently in Vienna, Austria.
Uzbekistan: Old New President Inaugurated
Libertad writes about the inauguration of a newly but in fact very “old” president of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov, noting that during the ceremony Karimov was reading the sacred oath without eye-glasses which he was used to wear.
Afghanistan: New U.N. Envoy Appointed
Afghanistan Watch reports that Paddy Ashdown, the former EU-UN High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, has accepted the post as the new UN envoy to Afghanistan.
Afghanistan: U.S. Official Irks Allies
Bipasha Ray says that Defense Secretary Robert Gates has irked NATO allies after telling the LA Times that European allies do not know how to fight insurgencies, often using inappropriate tactics and overly forceful airstrikes, which could be helping the Taliban’s cause.
Japan: voting rights to foreigners?
James from Japan Probe summarizes the debate on granting voting rights to foreigners in Japan.
Japan: Japanscapes
Edo collects a few high dynamic range (HDR) photography on Japan Landscapes.
China: Why Baidu?
Fons tries to explains why netizens prefer Baidu to Google search.
China: Shanghai Subway Video
mirenyige uploaded a short video in youtube showing a young couple's good-bye kiss in a shanghai subway station. From the angles of the video, netizens suspected (zh) that it was taken from the CCTV inside the station by subway staffs.