16 February 2009

Stories from 16 February 2009

Thailand: Scholar charged with Lese Majeste

Accused of violating Thailand's lese-majeste law, Bangkok-based professor Giles Ji Ungpakorn fled to the United Kingdom to avoid prosecution. FACT writes that “Thailand seems intent on sending its best and...

16 February 2009

Iran: Bloggers Remember 30th Anniversary of the Revolution

Thousands of Iranians celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution on February 10, by rallying in Tehran and other major cities in Iran. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, delivered a speech. Several Iranian bloggers, both citizens and politicians, blogged on this topic.

16 February 2009

Arab World: Gasping for Air!

A massive dust storm engulfed the entire Arabian peninsula, leaving the people of Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates, gasping for air. Here are some videos, photographs and blog entries on the crazy weather, which was unusual for this time of the year.

16 February 2009

Ukraine: The Plight of Irina Gavrisheva

Jeff Mowatt draws attention to the plight of wheelchair-bound Irina Gavrisheva, who “writes and publishes website appeals and articles about helping sick children of Zaporozhye, on behalf of the Happy...

16 February 2009

Jamaica: Explicit music banned

The long-standing controversy over the appropriateness of certain music for public airplay has once again reared its head in Jamaica. Bloggers make their voices heard.

16 February 2009

Global: Appointment of Saudi Arabia's First Female Deputy Minister Makes Waves

As millions of women the world over marked Valentine’s Day with gifts from their loved ones, one woman - in a country that has banned the holiday and labels it a ‘sin’ - has good reason to never forget February 14, 2009. Meet Noura Al Fayez, teacher extraordinaire, a product of the US education system, who last Saturday became the first ever woman deputy minister in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Eunice del Rosario round up local and international reactions to the appointment.

16 February 2009

Egypt: Kareem writes from prison

Free Kareem, a blog set up to rally support for jailed Egyptian blogger Kareem Nabil Sulieman, posts excerpts from Kareem's latest letter from prison, sent to Egyptian blogger Wa7da Masrya.

16 February 2009

Zimbabwe: Why Arrest Roy Bennett?

“Why arrest Roy Bennett?,” reads the headline at My Heart's in Accra about the MDC Treasurer General and Deputy Minister of Agriculture designate, Roy Bennett, who was arrested Friday in Harare. He was charged with treason before these charges were dropped and replaced with attempt to commit terrorism, banditry and sabotage. Zimbabwean bloggers and others have not been silent about his arrest. Many bloggers consider the charges against Bennett to be false. One bloggers links his arrest to Mugabe's hatred for white farmers.

16 February 2009

Syria: Wikipedia in Arabic Unblocked

@nas from Syria reports that Wikipedia in Arabic was recently unblocked and wishes the this step expands to include other sites such as Amazon, Youtube, and Facebook.

16 February 2009

Cuba: Interview with Blogger Reinaldo Escobar

Cuban blogger Reinaldo Escobar is one of the few bloggers that has worked professionally as a journalist with official Cuban media. Now he is an independent journalist and runs the portal Desde Cuba, which is also where his blog Desde Aquí is hosted. He is also very active in the Cuban blogosphere and is part of the team that will launch the project Cuban Voices. In this interview, Claudia Cadelo asks about his start with blogging and his thoughts on a blogosphere that is often polarized.

16 February 2009

Mexico: Breaking the Kissing Record

Nearly 40,000 Mexicans broke the Guinness World Record for the most people kissing at the same time writes Jessica Uribe of Vivir México [es]. They assembled in Mexico City's zocalo...

16 February 2009