Stories from 1 May 2009
Iran:Female bloggers and sad stories
Zahra, an Iranian blogger, writes that most people when read a sad story or post in her blog, thinking that she talks about a failed love story.
Trinidad & Tobago: Exclusive Summit
The Voice of the Taino People Online says that a delegation of indigenous leaders that attended the Fifth Summit of the Americas was disappointed at their reception: “While Trinidad’s Prime Minister Patrick Manning publicly declared his desire for the Summit to achieve prosperity for the peoples of the Americas with...
Cuba: May Day and Name Calling
Havana Times and Along the Malecon blog about different aspects of Cuba's May Day celebrations, while The Cuban Triangle notes that “the Obama Administration designated Cuba a ‘state sponsor of terrorism'…and Cuba responded by calling the United States an ‘international criminal.’ So we’re even.”
Caribbean: Swine Flu Speculations
Regional bloggers on the Swine Flu outbreak: Repeating Islands speculates about possible Caribbean cases of the disease, while Jamaica's Girl With a Purpose and T&T's This Beach Called Life put a humourous spin on the situation.
Trinidad & Tobago: Geographical Prejudice
“With increasing vigor, I continue to find content being blocked from entering Trinidad and Tobago and other countries”: KnowProSE.com suggests: “What it is, from the outside, is geographic profiling or geographic censorship. And that comes from a geographic prejudice.”
Jamaica: World Press Freedom Day
Jamaican litblogger Geoffrey Philp encourages us to support this year's World Press Freedom Day, coming up on May 3rd.
Japan: Fooling Gun Radio
A new internet radio is born: Fooling Gun Radio [ja]. A project started in mid-April by the Japanese grad students Foo-san and Gun-san, with the help of other two colleagues, Bluman and Hihhi, Fooling Gun Radio aims to present some everyday life topics under a new and fresh perspective. Twice...
Korea: Minerva and Release after 100-Days Detention
A blogger who is known by his pseudonym, Minerva, was released after 100 days detention. His 280 postings criticizing economic policies of the new Korean government and predicting economy downturn have become hugely popular due to the accurate diagnosis. He was arrested by the prosecution authority under the name of...
China: Blogging with Tibetans
A blogging adventure for the summer, David Gibson is finishing preparations to travel to southwestern China's Sichuan province, where he will spend the following months living among Tibetan communities there and learning the language.
Singapore: Swine flu as scare campaign
A Singapore blogger wonders if the swine flu threat is a scare campaign to make people take vaccines.
Singapore church supports same sex marriage
The Church of Our Saviour, a Singapore local church, issued a statement expressing support for same sex marriage
Singapore: Homeless people
The Online Citizen is worried that Singapore is “ill-equipped to cope with a possible increase in the number of homeless people.”
Cambodia: Hydro-electric dams along Mekong River
Studies warn that construction of several hydro-electric dams along Mekong River pose a serious danger for Cambodia.
Myanmar: “Worst violator of Internet freedom”
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, Myanmar is the worst place in the world to be a blogger.
Thailand: Circumventing censorship
FACT or the Freedom Against Censorship Thailand suggests tips to readers on how to circumvent censorship in Thailand
Fiji faces suspension from Pacific Islands Forum
Fiji passes a deadline set by the Pacific Islands Forum to schedule elections to be held this year or be kicked from the regional group. The group stated that if Fiji does not meed the deadline, the country would be suspended from all Forum events and cease receiving any new financial and technical assistance.
