Stories from 12 March 2009
Russia: “Diary of an Uzbek Gastarbeiter”
At Sean's Russia Blog, a discussion of “Diary of an Uzbek Gastarbeiter” – “a harrowing story of an Uzbek migrant named Shukhrat Berdyev, 48, experience as a migrant laborer in Russia over a ten year period,” posted on Opendemocracy.net.
Russia: Bloggers and Dissidents
Window on Eurasia writes: “Russian bloggers, many Moscow commentators have suggested, are today’s version of the dissidents of Brezhnev’s time. But on the occasion of Internet Free Speech Day, one Moscow analyst is arguing that blogs already play a larger role than the dissidents ever did and that they could...
Russia: Prosecution's Bias in Politkovskaya Murder Trial
Window on Eurasia writes about a blog item (RUS) on the Politkovskaya murder trial posted by journalist Vadim Rechkalov (LJ user voinodel) on his blog at Moskovsky Komsomolets, a Russian daily: “Vadim Rechkalov says that a close examination of the record, including a slide show the government offered suggests that...
Estonia: Mart Laar's Plan
AnTyx writes about Mart Laar's “ten-point plan to fix the economy and, in particular, the unemployment situation in Estonia.”
Croatia: LGBT
Croatian Crescent writes about LGBT rights in Croatia.
Pakistan: What Is The Long March?
Action for a Progressive Pakistan shares some background of the ongoing ‘Long March’ of the lawyers movement in Pakistan.
Arab World: Culture, Culture Everywhere
Across the Gulf various cultural festivals and literary events have been taking place in recent weeks, and in this post we hear from some of the region's bloggers who have attended them. However culture is not a politics-free zone; even a book fair or a cultural festival can be a source of tension...
Pakistan: Long March and Uncertainty
Adil Najam at All Things Pakistan comments on the current political crisis in Pakistan: “It seems that nothing much ever changes in Pakistan politics. Except, maybe, to get progressively worse.”
India: The Third Front
A number of political parties in India have announced a third front to offer an alternative to the ruling Congress party and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Modern Indian Politics opines: “The idea of a Non-Congress and Non-BJP government seems less than absurd now; many view it as plausible...
Bangladesh: YouTube Ban and Freedom Of Speech
After the recent unbanning of YouTube and other file sharing sites in Bangladesh Conversations With An Optimist comments that: “I hope this incident shouldn’t become just a flash in the pan. Hope fully we will press for answers. We need it to become a catalyst to enshrine our rights pertaining...
Qatar: The Job Interview
Qatari blogger Aisha describes her experience at a job interview – where she was offered the job, turned it down, then changed her mind.
Medical checklist reduces surgical deaths
Le Pangolin [Fr] writes about a surgery checklist piloted in hospitals in 8 countries, including the United States and Tanzania. Studies show the checklist, designed by American doctor Atul Gawande, reduces mortality related to surgicial complications by a third.
Cote d'Ivoire: Celebrated Filmmaker Dies
Pauline writes about the death of the Ivorian filmmaker, Desiré Ecaré.
Brazil: On the Vatican's condemnation of raped-child's abortion
A 9-year-old girl several times raped and made pregnant by her stepfather was guaranteed the right to have an abortion legally in Brazil. After the operation, the Roman Catholic Church excommunicated the mother, the doctor and the whole medical team responsible for the operation. This has sparkled a great debate in Brazil: What is the Church's role in society?
Angola: Where is clean water?
Nina, blogging from Luanda, discusses the problem of access to clean water in Angola.
Ecuador: Quality Control of the Media
Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa has had a rough relationship with the media and journalists in that country. A local newspaper claimed that the government was preparing a new law that would give the government more control over public and private media outlets. Even though the government denied this claim, Ecuadorian bloggers participated in an online discussion about the role of the media and the quality of their journalism.
Uganda: Lack of electricity leads to more babies!
Does lack of electricity lead to more sex, which leads to more babies? This is what the Uganda Planning Minister seems to suggest.
Kenya: The Big Language Dilemma For Kenyan Poet Bloggers
Kenyan poets, unlike artists, find it easier to write and perform in English as opposed to any other language. This would be closely attributed to what language enables them express themselves better, and most definitely their command of that language. After a few interactions with a cross section of poets and by visiting their blogs, I realized that virtually none write in their mother tongue as much and very few have written in Kiswahili or Sheng.
Puerto Rico: Limited Thinking
Is Puerto Rico poor? Gil the Jenius has his say.
Haiti: Responding with Love
“Who is to blame? To me that is an irrelevant question. The question should be, how can I respond with love?”: The Livesay [Haiti] Weblog is shocked by “how ignorant many people in the developed world still are about AIDS.”
Barbados: Music Man
“It saddens me that such a gifted man is nothing more than a footnote in the history of music in Barbados”: Cheese-on-bread! marks the 39th anniversary of the death of Dalton Sinclair ‘Jackie Opel’ Bishop.
