Stories from 5 March 2008
EU: Towards a European Global Online Freedom Act
The European Parliament has passed a proposal (571 in favor, 38 against) to treat Internet censorship by national governments as a trade barrier. The proposal was submitted by European Parliament member (MEP) Jules Maaten of the Dutch conservative VVD party. The proposal will now pass to the European Council. If adopted as a European Union (EU) law, the proposal could have an impact on future trade negotiations between the EU and governments engaged in Internet censorship.
Armenia: Reflections on Political Unrest
Blogian reflects on the recent political unrest in Armenia. The blog blames both the government and the opposition for clashes at the weekend which left at least eight people dead...
Georgia: Self-Ethnic Cleansing
Steady State expresses its opinion on an analysis of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict which says that nearly 300,000 Georgians fled their homes by their own accord. The blog takes issue with...
Turkey: Mock Armenian Hangings
Blogian posts some disturbing photographs of the celebration of the 90th Anniversary of the Turkish liberation of Erzurum. Claimed by both Armenians and Turks, the city featured re-enactments of the...
Brasil: The FARCs statement in face of the death of Raul Reyes
Professor Antônio echoes in his blog[PT] the statement allegedly made (in spanish) by FARC's High Command in face of what they call “the assassination of Raul Reyes”, one of the...
Nigeria: Fictitious names in voters’ register
Grandiose Parlor writes about rigging in gurbenatorial elections in Nigeria: “The Mimiko legal team revealed how the voters’ register was manipulated and filled with fictitious names and photos by the...
Armenia: Samizdat & the Internet
After a 20-day state of emergency was declared in Armenia when clashes between security services and the opposition broke out on the streets of the capital, access to the media has been severely restricted. According to presidential decree, local media outlets can now only publish official news and political propaganda is banned. However, the situation has created an unprecedented opportunity for bloggers to move in to fill the gap.
Kenya: Vote for ushahidi.com
Daudi asks his readers to vote for ushahidi.com: “I have lost count of the number of radio and print interviews that have come my way because of interest in the...
Kuwait: Retirement Plans
From Kuwait, Cat Eyez (Ar) writes about wanting to retire from work.
Nigeria: First online bookstore
Timbuktu Chronicles writes about the first online bookstore in Nigeria: “Emmanuel Magani and Debola Omololu are the founders of Debonair Publishing, an online bookstore ,a first for Nigeria.”…A fully integrated...
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Foreigners’ Registration
Pure Intent describes what it takes to get registered as a foreigner in Bosnia & Herzegovina.
Russia: Journalism and Politics in Chechnya
LJ user oleg_panfilov (of the Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations) reports (RUS) that Chechen president Ramzan Kadyrov has joined the Russian Union of Journalists. LJ user timur_aliev, on the...
India: How did Huckabee make it this far?
The Renegade of Junk – with characteristic sarcasm asks how Huckabee made it this far.
India, Pakistan: Kashmir Singh and 34 years
IndieQuill from India and All Things Pakistan on the return of Kashmir Singh, an Indian held in Pakistan for the last 34 years.
Nepal: Campaigns and Elections
United We Blog! on the election fever gripping Nepal as political parties start their Constituent Assembly Elections campaigns all over the country.
Nepal: Development and Politics
Nepal Monitor on donors to the country raising questions on political issues as they do affect development choices.
Japan: Justice served in contaminated blood scandal
Martin at Kurashi reports on news that the Japanese supreme court upheld a suspended prison sentence for a former health official, Akihito Matsumura, for having failed to prevent the use...
Korea: Religious Encounter on the Subway
Religious issues always generate a lot of opinions from Korean netizens. One person's experience on a subway with a Buddhist monk has gained a lot of attention in the last week on a popular Korean website.
South Africa: Another Manto Blunder…
The controversial South African Health Minister, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, who you might remember a couple of posts back as being under fire for her antics…is back in the spotlight, this time bloggers are venting anger at an address she gave to the presidential task team on traditional medicine.
Kenya: Google hosts Skunkworks meeting
Bankelele attended Skunkworks meeting hosted by Google in Nairobi: “Skunkworks (blog) meeting yesterday was hosted by (7 month old) Google Kenya, and it was attended by an interesting mix of...
Africa: Africa Reading Challenge
Tuko Pamoja comes up with “Africa Reading Challenge” idea: “In recent years I’ve become increasingly interested in reading books dealing with Africa, and so I present the Africa Reading Challenge....
