Stories from 29 May 2009
Pakistan: Bloggers On Swat Relief Drive
The Observers features Pakistani blogger Teeth Maestro's humanitarian relief efforts for the IDPs in Swat region.
Pakistan: Bomb Blasts In Peshawar
Chowrangi reports that four bombing incidents “hit Peshawar and rocked Pakistan on Thursday killing thirteen people and injuring more than 120 people”. Pak Tea House says that the fight against terror will only be won if Baitullah (Mullah) Mehsud, the Pakistani Taliban chief is brought to justice.
UAE and Saudi Arabia: “It's Gonna Be a Scorcher!”
The Hollywood film Ishtar, about lounge singers in Morocco who get caught up in an international plot between the CIA and the "Emir of Ishtar" is memorable but for one line: "It's gonna be a scorcher!" This past week, Gulf residents have found themselves saying just that, as temperatures in the region rose well into the 40s (Celsius). The Saudi and UAE Twitterspheres have their say.
Bangladesh: Extra Judicial Killing
Asif at Unheard Voice blog has some questions regarding the latest case of extra judicial killing in Bangladesh.
Iran:Bomb explosion killed 20 people
A bomb explosion killed 20 people in a Shi'ite mosqe in the Iranian south eastern city, Zahedan. Nimroz, a Zahedan based blogger, says [fa] after explosion some Sunni stores and a Sunni mosque were attacked by Basij forces.
Bahrain: Swine Flu Arrives
Earlier this week the first case of the new H1N1 flu, or swine flu, was confirmed in Bahrain, arriving with a Bahraini student who had been in New York. Bahrain's bloggers react in this post.
Haiti, U.S.A.: Remembering Fr. Jean-Juste
Blogger tributes are pouring in for the late Fr. Gérard Jean-Juste, a Haitian Roman Catholic priest who was known by his admirers as a champion of the poor and an ardent supporter of the Fanmi Lavalas political party, headed by ousted President Jean Bertrand Aristide.
Egypt: Anti-Male Circumcision Campaign
In 2008 Egypt passed a law that banned female circumcision (FGM). Today a group of bloggers started a campaign against male circumcision. Marwa Rakha picks up the story in this post.
Africa: Remembering Dr. Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem
Africa has lost one of its greatest sons, Dr. Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem. He died on the eve of Africa Day in a car accident in Nairobi on his way to launch a maternal health campaign in Kigali, Rwanda. Tajudeen was the Director of Justice Africa, General Secretary of the Pan-African Movement, Chairperson for the Pan African Development Education and Advocacy Programme (PADEAP), Chair of the International Governing Council of the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) and Outreach Coordinator on the Millennium Development Goals in Africa.
Honduras: Strong Earthquake Shakes Country
Honduras awoke early in the morning of May 28 when an earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale shook the country. Five deaths were confirmed, more injured, and slowly there is the discovery of damages to the country's infrastructure like buildings, bridges, and highways. Microblogging platforms like Blipea and Twitter were the first to report the earthquake from users in San Pedro Sula, Tegucigalpa and La Ceiba. However, some bloggers were unable to update their sites due to electrical and internet outages all across the country.
Trinidad & Tobago: Police Presence
From Trinidad and Tobago, Mauvais Langue cannot believe that “in the year 2009 they [the police] still saying they have no vehicles”, while B.C. Pires takes great pride in the way his friend, through a letter to the Editor, comes “around the wicket, to send one right up into the...
Jamaica, U.S. Virgin Islands: Cruise Control
The popularity of cruises to Caribbean destinations gets Jamaican diaspora blogger Labrish thinking about “the overwhelm of the environment, marine and land, that these mega-cities-on-the-sea bring with them.”
Cuba: Sex Change Operations
Repeating Islands notes “that Cuba is reinstating sex-change operations that had previously been banned on the island.”
Belize: Earthquake
Belize-based blogger As The Coconuts Drop recounts his experience of yesterday's strong earthquake.
Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago: Schengen Waived
As Bajan Dream Diary reports that “Barbadians travelling to the European Union will no longer need to obtain the Schengen visa”, Trinidad and Tobago's fake Prime Minister asks: “Since when do Trinis visit Europe anyway?”
Jamaica, Cuba: Amnesty International Report
Iriegal and Jamaica Salt comment on Amnesty International’s criticism of the Jamaican police force, while Havana Times notes that the organization”recognized…that the US blockade on Cuba has a negative effect on the general population.”
Zimbabwe: Is Movement for Democratic Change backing down?
Is the Movement for Democractic Change in Zimbabwe backing down?, “In a shocking about face, the MDC told the media yesterday that they could live with Gideon Gono because they can “manage and control him” through a revision of the Reserve Bank Act.”
Japan: Open access online journal Journal@rchive
Librarian Charles Ellwood Jones writes about academic journals focusing on antiquity at open access online journal Journal@rchive, an archive site of J-STAGE operated by the Japan Science and Technology Agency. The site offers high resolution scans and OCR texts on a wide range of journals.
China: Police harassment
Joel Martinsen from DANWEI translated Ai Weiwei's blog posts on how he was harassed by security “rice streamers” (meaning stupid polices) and lawyer blogger Liu Xiaoyuan's article explaining Ai's rights. Ai Weiwei's blogs hosted on Sina and Sohu have been suspended.
China: Deng Yujiao Case Reporters Assaulted
ESWN translated local forum news reporting on the assault of Southern People Weekly magazine reporter Wei Yi when he tried to interview the maternal grandmother of Deng Yujiao – the nail beautician who stabbed to dead a local government official in defense of sexual assault.
