Stories from 25 May 2009
Pakistan: Healing The Wounds Of The Past
Action For A Progressive Pakistan apologizes to Bangladeshis for the atrocities committed by Pakistan army in 1971 and criticizes the Pakistan government: “We find it unconscionable that the Pakistani state has steadfastly refused to acknowledge these atrocities for the past 38 years, leave alone hold those responsible for them accountable...
Nepal: India's Role In Recent Changes In Politics
Neil’s Nepal posts an article by Bishnu Pathak, PhD which discusses the role of India in the recent political changes in Nepal.
India: Cyclone Aila Strikes
Scores of people were killed and many injured in India and Bangladesh as cyclone Aila made a downfall in the region earlier today. Sukanya at Notes from wherever I happen to be… writes from Kolkata: “trapped as we were at work…while Aila created havoc. [..] Uprooted posts, torn wires and...
India: Saving Lives With Paper
Anuradha Parekh at The Better India writes about the struggles of the poverty ridden Sahariya tribe in Madhya Pradesh, India. A local NGO called TARA (Technology and Action for Rural Advancement) came to their rescue by teaching them how to make handmade papers and that has changed the lives of...
Lebanon: Maxime Chaya Reaches the North Pole
The Lebanese adventurer, Maxime Chaya, whose exploits include climbing Mount Everest, reaching the South and North poles to plant the Lebanese flag, blogs about his quests and posts beautiful photos on his live blog The Three Poles.
Lebanon: Hummus Nation
Hummus Nation is a new Lebanese blog in Arabic that satirizes Lebanese politics, life and issues. “Hummus” is a popular dish in the Middle East.
Lebanon: Lebanese Elections 2009
Lebanese Elections 2009 is a blog by Deen Sharp, a freelance journalist based in Beirut, dedicated to covering the Lebanese general elections for parliament that will take place on June 7, 2009.
Lebanon: Porn-oriented Ads
Maya's Amalgam is a new blog by Maya Zankoul, a graphic designer, in which she uses drawings and cartoons to make witty comments about her daily observations and experiences in Lebanon, like this one about billboard ads which she calls “street porn”.
Trinidad & Tobago: Where's the Integrity?
Transparency and good governance have been popular topics in the Caribbean blogosphere of late. The latest debacle over integrity (or lack thereof?) comes from Trinidad and Tobago, where, in the last few weeks, a second attempt to establish an Integrity Commission has come to a crashing halt amidst revelations that the Chair of the Commission, a Catholic priest, had committed acts of plagiarism. To add even more fuel to the fire, the journalist who drew attention to the plagiarism in the first place, appears to have been fired. Bloggers speak out.
Jamaica: Calabash & Language
Annie Paul blogs about Jamaica's Calabash Literary Festival, at which some folks were offended by the colourful language in authors’ readings: “Does shielding young ears from words like pussy, bombaclaat, pumpum and other such words ensure a more sensitive, ethical adult? Especially when they can see for themselves the hypocritical,...
Haiti: Flooding Claims Lives
Repeating Islands reports that “at least 11 people died…in Haiti after torrential rains triggered floods throughout the nation.”
Cuba: “Cubans Can Connect”
“I’m coming to believe that the influence of the Internet on our reality is bigger than I thought”: When it comes to limitations imposed on Cubans having online access, Generation Y says: “We need to make the most of the situation, now they are saying ‘Cubans can connect’, and take...
Jamaica: And now for the Bad News
“Former PM Edward Seaga was never accused of being a ray of sunshine when he was an active politician”: Jamaica and the World reports that Seaga's analysis of the island's economic situation leaves the current administration with “no soft options. No easy answers. No exit.”
Guyana, Barbados: Illegal Immigration
When it comes to the issue of illegal immigrants in Barbados, Guyanese blogger Imran Khan says: “What is wong is wrong”, adding in another post: “I’m interested in learning what, specifically, President Bharrat Jagdeo is accusing the Barbadians of being ‘un-CARICOM-like’ about?”
Armenia: Nationalist Revisionism, Deception
Unzipped comments on the the appearance of election campaign posters for the Armenian Revolutionary Federation — Dashnaktsutyun (ARF-D) ahead of this weekend's municipal vote in Yerevan. The blog notes that the party appears to be pushing its position on relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey to voters and even uses photographs...
Sudan: Government requires journalists to be registered
The Sudanese government wants journalists to be registered; “The Sudanese government started a move last week to issue a law on journalist to require them to register themselves with the government media regulator so that the government would monitor them if they misuse there power as journalist.”
Malawi elections: Upending the pundits’ predictions
With the elections over and the incumbent president Bingu wa Mutharika sworn in for his second and last term, Malawian bloggers (Mabloga) are awed by two developments that went against the predictions of many, especially the punditry. First was the suggestion that the presidential contest would be very close. It...
Kenya: Notes from Mobile Banking Conference
White African blogs about the Fletcher Mobile Banking Conference he is attending in Nairobi, Kenya.
Malawi: Malawi Elections 2009 Photostream
Malawi Elections 2009 Flickr photostream from African Elections Project (Malawi).
Kenya: First Open-Source Awards
First Open-Source Awards in Kenya will take place this week in Nairobi: “The Linux Professional Association of Kenya and ICT Consumers Association of Kenya will be hosting Kenya’s first-ever open source awards at the end of this month.”
Azerbaijan: Pork in a Christian village
27 Months in Azerbaijan pays a visit to the Christian village of Nic in Azerbaijan to partake in eating the best pork available in the largely Moslem country. Meanwhile, Post-Soviet Euphoria or Sins against Democracy? notes that the prohibition on eating pork exists in both the Bible and the Koran.
