Stories from 24 February 2009
Mexico: War on Drugs Becoming Weirder
Mexico's war on drugs is getting “so surreal, absurd, and downright twisted” according to Daniel Hernandez of Intersections. He cites some recent incidents, including the claim that the drug cartels are organizing street protests against the Mexican military.
Peru: Seven Star Hotel in Cusco
Tourism in Cusco, Peru will get a luxurious boost with the building of a new 7-star hotel writes Israel Ruiz of Living in Peru.
Chile: Faces Along Commute Using Transantiago
Andrea Zamora narrates her daily commute to the Municipality of Peñalolén in Santiago, Chile [es] and some of the people she observes riding the Transantiago public transportation system.
Peru: Cholesterol Levels Rising for Lima Residents
Cholesterol levels for Lima residents are rising according to a report cited by Letra Suelta [es].
Chile: Parking Spaces for Disabled Drivers
Mario Carrasco Berrios describes some of his recent experiences in the city of Talca, Chile with the lack of parking spaces for disabled drivers [es], as well as the problem of drivers who are not disabled that take these reserved spaces.
Maldives: Mohamed Nasheed’s First 100 days
Blogger Mohamed Nasheed analyzes the performance of the first 100 days of his namesake Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed (Anni) in two parts (1, 2).
Bhutan: Happy Birthday Your Majesty
Bhutan, 2008 and beyond celebrates the King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk’s 29th birth anniversary by sharing a touching picture of His Majesty.
Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago: Missing Carnival
B.C.Pires is in “quiet Barbados” for Carnival and wonders if he can still manage to catch a flight to Trinidad: “There really is nothing like it; even in its modern, diluted, throwaway, made-in-China form…”
Trinidad & Tobago: Carnival Pics
From Trinidad and Tobago, de cooler : soca news and This Beach Called Life link to photo sets of this year's Carnival celebrations.
Pakistan: Media Responsible
Thinking Out of the Box blames irresponsible journalism by a section of Pakistani media for the current state of affairs in Pakistan.
Cuba: One Year Later
Blog for Cuba says that one year after Cuba signed the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Personal Rights, “human rights abuses continue to escalate.”
Bermuda, Cayman Islands: Freedom of Info
“While Bermuda continues to pay lip service to public access to information, the Cayman Islands forge ahead”: Vexed Bermoothes weighs in.
Iran: Students protesting against martyrs re-burial are jailed
Up to 70 students from the Amir Kabir University in Tehran were arrested today, Tuesday 24th of February, while protesting against the re-burial of five anonymous Iran-Iraq War martyrs in the grounds of the university. See videos of the protest and the first reactions on the blogosphere.
India: Court Ruling Against Bloggers
Kafila informs about a recent Supreme Court ruling in India which states that “a person who starts a blog/community page cannot claim that it was a community page and not meant for public consumption.” That means the owner will be liable for all the collaborative contents and comments in that...
India: Slumdog Millionaire Sweeps The Oscar Awards
Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire, a British social film based on a novel set out in India made a clean sweep at the The 81st Academy Awards Ceremony. Its British and Indian crews bagged 8 awards including the best picture award. It was truly India's day as ‘Smile Pinky‘, another short...
Nigeria: Naijoo: Nigeria's Own Video Sharing Site
Nigeria has its own video sharing site, writes Loy at Startups Nigeria, “If you watch videos from Yahoo! TV, you’re probably going to enjoy Naija’s own video sharing community called Naijoo.Tv, an online video sharing site that allows you to upload, view and share video clips. When I first heard...
Kenya: Police harassment of activists
Kenyan Pundit reacts to reports about police harassment of activists, “The report is disturbing to say the very least, not just because it shows you just how paranoid and oppressive this government is becoming, but also because it gives some insight into how the extra-judicial killings that have been in...
Mexico: Urban Artists in Monterrey Take to the Internet
In the streets of Monterrey, a city best known for being the industrial and technological mecca of Mexico, graffiti and other urban artists are utilizing user-friendly electronic media in order to showcase their painted works and murals on the internet, but also in some cases to take advantage of the anonymity needed when painting illegally on public spaces.
Hong Kong: Defending freedom of speech
On 22 Feb 09, more than a hundred Hong Kong people took on the street to voice out their concerns about the alarming shrinking of freedom of speech in Hong Kong. The protest was proposed by the Citizens’ Radio and supported by other democratic institutions including Save RTHK Campaign, Hong...
Sudan: Mourning a Great Novelist and Musings on the ICC
After a long absence, a number of fascinating Sudanese bloggers, return to the blogosphere to rant, share their thoughts on recent events and vent. They're included in this roundup along with the usual suspects. After a frustrated rant about Khartoum International Airport's unhygienic condition, Sudanese Optimist mourned the passing of the respected and well-known Sudanese novelist, Al-Tayeb Saleh.
Georgia: Punk Rock
Georgian Live Music says the country's second largest city of Kutaisi was synonymous with rock and punk bands in the 1990s. The blog posts information and photos of some of them.
