Stories from 20 July 2008
China: Bloggers take stand against web activist's arrest
"We would hate to see this case become yet another dismal human rights record raising international attention in the midst of this Olympic year. We regret to suspect, however, that the Chengdu police are at present committed to doing as much."
Palestine: No to History, Politics and Religion Questions
“Stop asking me about religion, politics and history!” pleads Rebellious Arab Girl, in this post in which she sheds her personal thoughts on the above mentioned topics.
Saudi Arabia: What's Your Mother's Name?
“What's your mother's name?” Thamer Al Marzooqi [Ar], from Saudi Arabia, challenges his readers – in a culture where women's names are considered to remain in the private domain.
Jordan: Six People Killed in Shooting
“The shooting in Amman where six people were injured in a musical was a crime of despair. The shooter was an 18-year old, resident of Al Baq'a refugee camp,” writes Jordanian blogger Hareega, about the latest shoot out in Jordan.
Mali: Balafon museum for Sikasso
Sociolingo's Africa reports on a new museum to be created in Sikasso, Mali. It will be the first museum designed to preserve the heritage of the balafon, an African xylophene played in Mali, Burkina Faso, Cote-d’Ivoire, Togo, Benin and Ghana. The post includes a video of two balafon musicians.
Blogger of the week: Elena Ignatova
Today's Blogger of the Week series is taking us to Macedonia, a small country in Europe that some people might not even have heard of but that has a thriving blogosphere. We talked to Elena Ignatova, editor of both Global Voices in Macedonian and in Albanian, about her involvement with Global Voices, the Macedonian blogosphere and her work as an internet activist, among other things.
Brazil: On authoriterrorism and online surveillance
Over 60 bloggers attended the blog carnival against censorship [pt] this Saturday, most of them posting especially about the new cyber crimes proposal for Brazil. The bill has now proceeded to the House of Representatives, where a request for it to be handled urgently was put forward last week, leaving bloggers on red alert. Over 70,000 signed an online petition against it.
Egypt: Wikimania Report
FTMBlog [Ar] from Egypt reports live from Wikimania, held in Alexandria, Egypt, this year.
Preah Vihear dispute and nationalism
Harry McKinnon blames the “irrational nationalism” of Thai citizens for the rising tension in Preah Vihear temple. Bangkok Pundit believes the upcoming Cambodian election is motivating the opposition to “stoke nationalist sentiment.” Both Thailand and Cambodia are claiming the historic site.
Malaysia: Fear of possible anarchy
I am a Malaysian comments on the growing political tension in Malaysia after opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was charged with sodomy: “At this point of our history, and, with the imminent global financial, economic, subsistence and geo-political turmoil waiting to explode, we do not need to commit suicide by allowing...
Singapore: Legalizing organ trade
The issue of organ trade is being discussed intently in Singapore. miyagi.sg thinks that implementing an organ trade legal framework can benefit organ donors and recipients alike.
Child-rearing in Singapore
Wind in my head criticizes the kind of child-rearing in Singapore
East Timor in SEA games logo
Asia's Perfect 10 raised a valid issue. The Southeast Asian (SEA) games logo has 10 rings representing the countries of the region. Another ring should be added to include Timor Leste.
Laos: Luang Prabang
Eye in the sky visited the ancient royal city of Luang Prabang, and exclaims: “It's like riding into a dream!” Luang Prabang is Laos’ foremost tourist destination.
Impact of blogging in Vietnam
Saigonnezumi links to an article which tackles the impact of blogging in Vietnam
Cambodian and Thai Bloggers on Disputed Preah Vihear Temple
Rising serious tension between Cambodia and Thailand started when UNESCO, on July 7, 2008, declared temple of Preah Vihear as a World Heritage site. The 11th century temple has long been a subject to dispute between the two nations; in 1962, Hague-based International Court of Justice ruled that the ancient Hindu temple belonged to Cambodia.
Fijian Conference in Adelaide
Wendy of Babasiga is attending Fijian Conference in Adelaide, Australia and blogs about the experiences there. “The conference discussions and sessions were in various styles – academic, story telling, humorous or serious, and passionate preaching.”
Myanmar: Teen Problems in London
London based Burmese bloggers show concern over the increase in teenage crimes. Steve E. questions “Why is the incidence of knife crime growing up rapidly these days?” and wonders a way to reduce such crimes while CMS witnesses yet another teenage gang fight.
Myanmar: Naming System
“I realized that the Burmese custom of naming is fairly unique. It symbolizes the combination of the particular virtue for a person and astrological calculation of the day of the week that the person was born based on Burmese lunar calendar year.”, Bakaung blogs and explains more in detail.
Japan: The Linguistics of Nico Nico Douga
Metagold is a research blog based out of a project at Goldsmiths College, University of London, focused exclusively on the video sharing web service Nico Nico Douga. In a July 15th post, Metagold takes up the story of a linguist at Kyoto University, Kanamaru-san (id:kana0355 [ja]), who “asks how the...
Japan: Is it all over for Mainichi?
Nobuo Ikeda writes in English and in Japanese about the latest step in the drawn-out WaiWai controversy: after a string of earlier statements, Mainichi has issued a 3-page-long official apology, in which it pledges “to rehabilitate [Mainichi Daily News] into a site that can dispatch information to the world that...
