Stories from 25 January 2009
Bolivia: Referendum Coverage on Twitter
As the polls close across Bolivia for the Constitutional Referendum vote, many of the country's users of Twitter have been hard at work sending messages about their experiences from their cities. In order to centralize the information, they are using the #referendum tag.
Azerbaijan: Language Lessons
Linda in Azerbaijan details the trials and tribulations of learning Azerbaijani. Despite the difficulties, the Peace Corps Volunteer says she is determined to learn the language at the highest level possible.
Brazil: A Glance at Campus Party Brazil in Pictures
Campus Party Brazil 2009 in São Paulo comes to a close this Sunday. Around 6,500 people have taken part in this second edition of what is arguably Latin America's largest technology and digital culture event. In this article, you will see some of the most interesting pictures of the seven day meeting.
Nepal: The plights of the Kamlaris
Untold Stories writes about the plights of the kamlaris, who are found in the rural villages of southwestern Nepal, and the efforts to rescue them. “Kamlaris are house slaves, as young as five, who toil away their childhoods cooking, cleaning and babysitting in the homes of higher caste families.”
Turkey: School Textbook Changes
Armenia: Higher Education & Sciences comments on changes to 8th grade school textbooks in Turkey which will deal with the massacre and deportation of much of the Armenian population in the Ottoman Empire in a more neutral way. The blog says that while the changes might seem negligible at first...
Taiwan: Books, Writers & Videos
China Times in Taiwan announces "Books of the Year" and makes short videos for awarded writers to share their writing experiences and perspectives. Hopefully their ideas will be portrayed through the power of images.
Azerbaijan: Martyr's Alley
Learning to Walk in Stilettos pays a visit to Martyr's Alley in Baku, a cemetery for those killed in the Soviet crackdown in the Azerbaijani capital on 19-20th January 1990. The blog details the walk to the eternal flame at the end of the alley and posts photographs.
Armenia-Turkey: Are We Hrant Dink?
Following the second anniversary of the murder of Hrant Dink in Istanbul, Unzipped comments on a recent piece by Glendal News Press’ Patrick Azadian on the ethnic Armenian journalist who stood for peace, democracy and human rights in Turkey. The blog despairs the fact that nationalists are attempting to hijack...
Iran: The news that we don't hear in Tehran
Freekyboard, an Iranian blogger, says [fa] “we are not going to hear the following news in Iran: The Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at US President George W Bush is seeking asylum in Switzerland and Saudi Arabia pays one billion dollar to help reconstruct the Gaza Strip.”
Japan: Looking back on 2008
The last year in Japan saw, among other things, an economic crisis, employment instability, and the beginnings of the collapse of journalism. While the year was already recapped here last month, we add to that recap the reflections of bloggers looking back over the year. Blogger Motohiko Tokuriki wrote about...
Iran: BBC launches new Persian TV channel
The launch of BBC Persian TV on January 14, attracted praise, enthusiasm, suspicion, and in one word: attention! Iranian bloggers are expressing their opinions on this new channel, and they are as diverse as ever.
Madagascar: Devastating tropical storm makes way for a political one
A few days after passing Madagascar, the official toll from the damages caused by Cyclone Fanele have finally come in. President Ravalomanana president flew to one of the affected areas to assess the extent of the devastation. Cyclone citizen media initiative While the BGNRC (department of risk and disaster management)...
Taiwan: Photos of industrial town
Daliao Township in Kaohsiung County has been the site of several poisonous gas leaks in the past two months. The EPA came under fire for its poor handling of the case and a protest by locals turned violent. Shan Ding Lu has a photo essay of the town showing the...
The EU: Srebrenica Commemoration
Cafe Turco writes about the EU's plans to commemorate the 1995 Srebrenica massacre this year.
Albania: New ID Cards
Albanian Blogger writes about the introduction of new IDs in Albania.
Albania: Superstitions
A Nevada Yankee in King Zog's Court writes about superstitions in Albania.
