16 March 2008

Stories from 16 March 2008

Japan: Obama gets support from Japanese city

Excitement is growing in a sleepy fishing town on the coast of the Japan Sea. The city of Obama, whose name means “little beach” in Japanese, is receiving unusual attention for its coincidental resemblance to the name of a certain US presidential candidate.

16 March 2008

Panama: PRD Elections

Luis Polo Roa of Tu Politica [es] writes about and analyzes the elections for the new leaders of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) in Panama.

16 March 2008

Macedonia: Name Change to Enter NATO, EU?

Ever since Macedonia became independent from Yugoslavia in 1991, its name has been the subject of a bitter dispute with its southern neighbor, Greece. Greece claims that the use of “Republic of Macedonia,” as Macedonia calls itself in its constitution, not only violates Greece's historic cultural claim to the name, but also implies a territorial claim to the northern Greek province of Macedonia. Elia Varela Serra reviews bloggers' responses to the issue.

16 March 2008

Guatemala: What the State is Like

“The State of Guatemala has become an uncontrolable force, associated with violence, with impuntiy, and with abuse,” writes Renata Avila at Nothing is Permanent [es] as an answer to the...

16 March 2008