Stories from 12 May 2009
Cental & Eastern Europe: Crime Fiction
Jost A Mon posts a “roundup of translated crime fiction consumed in April” – which includes a few books by writers from the CEE region.
Russia: Translation of Baymurat Story
Jost A Mon translates Roman Gruzov's Bolshoi Gorod text (RUS) about Baymurat, “an unlikely star” of the Russian internet, mentioned on GV back in April – here: “… a poorly dressed Tajik gastarbeiter who brilliantly performed the song ‘Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy Aaja’ from the Hindi film ‘Disco Dancer’ with such...
Serbia: Skull Tower
Gray Falcon writes: “If there was just one thing I could show someone seeking to understand the Serbs, I would take them to a hill northeast of Niš (Ниш), and show them the Skull Tower.”
Latvia: “Personalities” in Riga Election
All About Latvia writes about the people who are “driving the vote” in Riga's local election next month: “The June 6 contest is about personalities more than about party platforms or programs.”
Russia: Visa Application Process
White Sun of the Desert writes about the Russian visa application process: “Then at the beginning of this year they decided that all applications had to come with a notarised translation of every page of your passport, including all visas and stamps therein. I have a 48-page passport with stamps...
Bangladesh: NSU Students Protest Against Tution Fee Hike
Hussain M. Elius writes in details about the unjustified tution fee hike of one of the leading private universities in Dhaka, Bangladesh and the protest of the students.
Maldives: Parliamentary Elections
The first multiparty legislative elections of Maldives have ended and “the party of the Maldives’ dissident-turned-president has likely won the most seats in the country's first multiparty legislative elections, but not enough for an outright majority,” reports Maldives Live.
Help Global Voices Advocacy win $3000 by writing one post
Help Global Voices Advocacy win $1200! The prize money would help us continue to raise awareness of attacks on online freedom of speech, and share tools and tactics with activists and bloggers facing censorship on different parts of the globe. All you have to do is write a post in your own blog, including the following text…
Paraguay: Mala Visión in Guaraní Mythology
Mala Visión is a nocturnal spirit that lives in the forest and is part of the Guaraní mythology in Paraguay. Al Paraguay [es] tells about the beliefs held by his wife's family and her uncle's experience with the spirit.
Dominican Republic: Number of Twitter Users in the Country
There are more than 1,000 Dominicans currently using Twitter and it is growing in popularity according to Joan Guerrero of Duarte 101 [es].
Colombia: Day of the Internet Activities in Bogotá
Carolina Botero writes about some of the Day of the Internet activities in Bogotá [es], Colombia.
Guatemala: Tenor Mario Chang to Star in European Opera
The Guatemalan tenor Mario Chang recently won a contest in Italy and will star in the opera “Love Elixir” writes Guate 360 [es].
Egypt: Obama to Address Muslim World from Egypt
The date is all set. US President Barack Hussain Obama will deliver his much anticipated speech on relations with the Muslim world in Egypt on June 4 and the Egyptian blogosphere is as divided as ever, with some questioning whether Obama will turn a blind eye to the country's human rights record. And although the speech and its content and impact on relations with the region are taking a backseat for the moment, the pressing question on many bloggers' minds is: "Why Egypt?"
Cuba: First Case of Swine Flu
Both Havana Times and Repeating Islands report that Cuba has identified its first case of the Swine Flu.
Haiti: Lamothe, Classical Composer
AfriClassical profiles Ludovic Lamothe, one of Haiti's most renowned classical composers.
Cuba: Blogging from Prison
Uncommon Sense reveals that “Cuban independent journalist Pablo Pacheco Ávila…has started a blog”, while Octavo Cerco fills in the details on how he's managing to get his voice heard from behind prison walls.
Cuba, Jamaica: Examining the Revolution
“What has the Cuban Revolution achieved for the people of the country, the Caribbean and the wider world after 50 years in power?” Jamaican diaspora blogger Mark Lee, writing at Abeng News Magazine, attempts to find out.
Jamaica: Dealing with Crime?
Jamaica Salt is not convinced by the National Security Minister's approach to solving crime.
Guyana: There Goes the Community
“As we, as a nation, strive to put food on tables and to build, renovate or spruce up our homes we have developed a culture of neglecting our wider environment and particularly places of recreation”: Guyanese blogger Imran Khan calls the neglect “a sad and sorry state of affairs.”
Japan: What a marker can do
Minimal, beautiful drawings of women by Yutaka Onozawa at his blog 11 nines.
Japan: Opposition leader's resignation
At his blog, essayist Takeyo Shimura (志村建世) discusses [ja] about the resignation of Japan's opposition leader Ichirō Ozawa (小沢一郎).
