Stories from 26 December 2008
Serbia: Christmas in January
Belgraded explains the advantages of celebrating Christmas in January.
Russia: The New York Times’ LJ is One Year Old
The New York Times‘ Clifford J. Levy writes on The Lede about the first anniversary of the paper's interactive Russian-language LJ blog: “The results far exceeded my expectations. The blog has received more than 26,000 comments, and has become an important tool for the newspaper to better understand and explain...
Ethiopia: Most popular stories of 2008
EthioBlog at Nazret.com posted a list of the top 50 stories of 2008 in this popular Ethiopian news portal. At the top of the list there's a story about Forbes magazine listing Addis Ababa as the 6th world's dirtiest city.
Iran: Islamist bloggers support Gaza
Several Islamist bloggers have launched a campaign against the Gaza Strip blockade and to ask worldwide Muslims to help Palestinians. The bloggers have used different tools such as Google bombs and banners to spread the word.
Egyptian and Tunisian Bloggers against Censorship
In December 2006 frustrated Tunisian bloggers launched the "Action Blank Post" initiative in defense of freedom of speech. Supporting bloggers from all over the world posted a blank on their blogs on the 25th of December, and now bloggers have united again in this anti-censorship tradition, as Marwa Rakha shows.
Christmas in Sri Lanka
At Groundviews, Ruki shares the experience of being in a Christmas Mass in a Sri Lankan conflict zone.
Pakistan: Policies Regarding NWFP
Manzoor Ali Shah at Pak Tea House argues that the policies of Pakistan government regarding the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) need a paradigm shift.
Americas: A Look Back at 2008
In 2008, the Latin American team from Global Voices helped add context and helped highlight voices of bloggers that wrote about the numerous news stories that took place across the region. From the election of an ex-bishop in Paraguay to the march against the FARC in Colombia, bloggers provided their thoughts on natural disasters, protests, strikes, and important events across the Americas.
Morocco: A Moroccan Christmas
As Morocco is primarily a Muslim country, the majority of its residents do not celebrate Christmas. Still, bits and pieces of the holiday can be found, thanks to French influence and a good-sized expat community. This year, expat and Peace Corps bloggers share how they celebrated the holiday.
Morocco: Condolences to Guinea
Daily Maghreb reports that King Mohammed VI of Morocco sends his condolences to Guinea, a country which recently lost its leader, President Lansana Conté. Shortly following Conté's death, the country experienced a military coup d'etat.
DRC: Football match to raise money for war-ravaged Kivu
Tomorrow in Kinshasa, the Congolese national football and a team of Congolese footballers from abroad will play a match to raise money for victims of the violence in the east of the country, Cedric Kalonji [Fr] writes.
Bahrain: The bunny must go
Bahraini blogger Ammaro reports on the sudden interest of MPs in ridding Bahrain of anything with the Playboy rabbit on it: “The bunny logo has been spotted everywhere from supermarkets, to perfume and accessories shops, and it renders anyone staring at it for more than 2 seconds to be transformed...
Palestine: No Christmas in Gaza
In Gaza reports on the Christmas celebrations – or lack of them – of Gaza's Christians: “Father Manuel’s Christmas Eve service was lethargic. It was a desperate plea from a priest who has seen too many painful Christmases in Gaza and whose congregation has reached their breaking point.”
Martiniquan blogger remembers Eartha Kitt
le blog de [moi] notes cat woman Eartha Kitt's passing [Fr]. She died of colon cancer Thursday at the age of 81. “Talented and devilishly sexy, she saw it all.”
DRC: A “Gloomy” Christmas in Kinshasa
Cedric Kalonji writes about his "gloomy" Christmas in Kinshasa. With the economic crisis, it seemed like many kinois weren't up for celebrating.
Lebanon: Jews of Lebanon blog Transforms to website
“After nearly 3 years of work, The Jews of Lebanon Blog will close … I started this site possibly as a naive college student trying to relive the nostalgia of his parents’ memories in Lebanon but today it’s much more than that.” The blogger explains that the work will continue...
Lebanon: Abolishing the death penalty
Sursock posts about Lebanon's current plan to abolish the death penalty and a brief history of the activism that lead to this decision.
Brazil: Chico Mendes lives on, 20 years after his death
Bloggers remember and pay homage to Chico Mendes, the man whose actions highlighted the plight of the Amazon internationally, and who was murdered twenty years ago by those who were opposed to his activism.
Russia-Georgia: The value of Russian passports
Eternal Remont refers to an Al Jazeera news story on South Ossetia to argue that Russian citizens’ passports handed out to South Ossetians in practice are used rather as Russian domestic passports.
Ukraine: Political chaos and economic crisis
A Fistful of Euros analyses Ukraine's mounting political chaos and economic crisis.
Southeast Asia: Newsmakers of 2008
For Southeast Asia, 2008 was a year of terrible disasters, both natural and man-made. Rice consumption was reduced, milk products were contaminated with melamine, jobs were lost, bloggers were arrested, and homes were destroyed. But the situation is not hopeless.
