Stories from 6 February 2009
What does Krill Fishing and Sandalwood Harvesting Have in Common?
At first glance, there is no way Krill and Sandalwood could have anything in common: one is a sea animal and the other is a land plant. If you examine the plight of both species of biodiversity, then there are some similarities. World renowned Kenyan conservationist, Dr Richard Leakey, who...
Global: On Erdogan's Walkout
Earlier this week, Global Voices Turkey author Deborah Ann Dilley detailed the events of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, during which Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan stormed off the stage following an argument with Israeli President Shimon Peres. Turkish bloggers weren't the only ones to react to the kerfuffle; A number of bloggers from around the world had something to say about the incident as well.
Jordan: Water, Honour Crimes, Jordan Web Award, and Corporate Social Responsibilty
In this week's round up of Jordanian blogs, bloggers are discussing water scarcity, honour crime, the Jordan web awards and corporate responsibility, reports Mohammad Azraq, from Amman.
Brunei: More rain, flashfloods and landslides
The recent downpour in Brunei caught many by surprise. It caused a power outage, flashfloods and landslides. Many of the rural areas have been cut off due to rising flood waters.
Egypt: Bloggers for Terrorism
Egyptian bloggers are posting their own photographs, posing with fake guns and pistols, on their blogs and Facebook groups as part of a new gimmick to draw attention to the plight of detained blogger Mohamed Adel. Find out more about Operation General Mait in this article by Lasto Adri.
DRC: Volcanic eruption may be imminent
Local radio are reporting that Nyamulagira volcano, near Goma, is showing intense activity, suggeting that an eruption may be imminent.
Pakistan: Kashmir Day
Faisal K. at Deadpan Thoughts writes on the Kashmir day: “it remains as much of a waste as does the movement.”
Nepal: The Brahmin hegemony
Divas at abc – voices sans borders criticizes the predominance of the Brahmin caste in all walks of Nepali lives and asserts that Nepal should replace its Brahmin leaders.
Sri Lanka: Economic Independence
Ajith P. Perera at Dare to be Different questions whether the economic independence of Sri Lanka is a distant dream.
Taiwan: First Twestival Announced
Following other “twestivals” or twitter festivals around the world, Taiwan's first twestival will be held on Feb 12 at Mayor Salon, Taipei. (zh), according to bnext.
UAE: From Vibrant to Honest
Inmotion, from Dubai, the UAE, shares with her readers the following: “Since this blog has started I've found that I've changed. I've gone from being vibrant and alive although confused and sad at times to flat-out honest and preferring my own company more than anyone else's.”
Morocco: Quran Controversy on the Way
Jillian warns us about a new controversy which could rock Morocco once the new issue of popular Moroccan weekly TelQuel hits the streets. The issue's cover story is entitled “Le Coran: Est-il vraiment applicable ‘en tout temps et en tout lieu?'” (or “The Qur'an: is it really applicable ‘at all...
Jordan: Credit card drama
From Jordan, Jad narrates an incident with a customer using an unsigned credit card at his store. Click on the link to see what happens.
Iraq after the elections
Writing at Arab-American blog KABOBfest, Kalash updates us on the situation in Iraq after the elections recently held there.
Jordan: Fight in Parliament
“Another big fight took place between several members of the Jordanian Parliament today. I'm willing to give a 100-JD donation to whoever is willing to supply everyone of them with guns for the next fight. Seriously, we need to cut the number of members from 120 to nothing,” writes Jordanian...
Iraq: Election Results
The early results for the January 2009 provincial elections in Iraq are in, and Musings On Iraq shares the results here.
Brazil: The (r)evolution of Lusophone music
LabCult provides a torrent link of a documentary about Luso-Afro-Brazilian music and sounds: “Lusophony – The (R)Evolution“. From hiphop to rock, visiting the Portuguese fado and Angolan and Caboverdian rhythms like the kuduro and the morna, the doc compiles Lusophone music from the colony days till today.
Africa: The Best African Poetry 2009
What shoud be the Best African Poetry 2009? You can submit five different poems that appeared in print between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2008. Black Looks has all the details.
Zimbabwe's Bloggers React As The Opposition Joins Hands With Mugabe
Zimbabwe's bloggers are reacting with hope, but also anger and dismay to Morgan Tsvangirai's decision to join Robert Mugabe in a coalition governmet. It is a wonderfully eclectic mix that reflects the sheer emotional exhaustion of the Zimbabwean people after a marathon seven-month political impasse, which was compounded by the world-record inflation levels.
Kyrgyzstan: The U.S. Air Base Shutdown
The president of Kyrgyzstan Kurmanbek Bakiev declared that American airbase will be called off Kyrgyzstan. Political intrigues around the airbase began when Bakiev became the president of Kyrgyzstan. The question about the base withdrawal was raised [en] before every trip of the Kyrgyz president to Moscow. However, this February trip...
Africa: On Being an AU Citizen
Emannuel discusses the general lack of interest and apathy in the exercise of creating the United States of Africa.