Stories from 16 July 2009
Azerbaijan: Baku's Boulevard
After a brief hiatus, Sheki, Azerbaijan is back and posts a brief history, accompanied by photographs, of Baku's 100-year old boulevard.
Costa Rica: Launch of Promises 2010 Site
Marcial Cambronero announces the launch of the Promesas 2010 (Promises 2010) site [es], which will help hold Costa Rican politicians accountable for their campaign promises.
Egyptian Women and a Fresh Outlook on Divorce
Divorce has always been a stigma in the Egyptian society. Today, the winds of change are blowing this away. In this post, Marwa Rakha follows conversations on Egyptian blogs which show what is being done to right a wrong situation.
Brazil: Plaintiffs try to silence one of the country's leading journalists
Lúcio Flávio Pinto, a prized independent Brazilian journalist has been ordered by a court to pay US$15,000 approximately in damages to a powerful regional media group in a civil libel suit: a real David and Goliath battle. The blogosphere campaigns to help Pinto cover the bill and to promote awareness of yet another case of harassment against independent journalists and bloggers.
Iran: Protests prompt emergence of underground Internet newspapers
The recent emergence of internet newspapers in Iran is evidence of the will of Iranian citizens and opposition forces to continue to communicate even as the Islamic Republic intensifies censorship,...
Iran: Armenian bloggers on plane crash
When a regular flight en route from Tehran to Yerevan crashed after takeoff yesterday, killing all 168 on board, many in Armenia and its Diaspora were distressed, and not least since there were 40 ethnic Armenians among the dead.
Iran: Online videos send messages to Joe Biden
About 100 Iranians, Americans and Iranian-Americans have posted short personal messages on YouTube to support the Iranian opposition movement that is calling the 12th of June presidential election a fraud. They...
Jamaica: Emmy Nomination
Jamaican litblogger Geoffrey Philp reports that “LIVEHOPELOVE.COM, a website about living with AIDS in Jamaica, has been nominated in the United States for a prestigious Emmy award.”
Puerto Rico: Playing the Princess?
“When things get tough, the Dream is what unites, what keeps an individual and a group moving forward”: Gil the Jenius is concerned that the Puerto Rican dream is to...
Dominica: Investing in Women
Dominica Weekly says that the island's “muted” celebration of World Population Day was an opportunity lost “to start to create meaningful change in the lives of our women”, but adds:...
India: How History helped shape ‘Indian English’
In this post, PNH at Desicritics reflects on the impact of Indian history and culture on the English language.
Bermuda: Thoughts on Capital Punishment
“Due to the recent (and not so recent) spate of violent deaths, there has been much talk about the lenience of our laws pertaining to murder and manslaughter”: Bermuda Jewel...
Jamaica: Returning Home
Francis Wade agrees that “the country you leave is not the country you return to”, advocating instead that returning Jamaicans come home “with a flexible, open mind that is willing...
India: Is divorce really the easy way out?
Aparna Singh at Ultra Violet shares her view that despite the rise in the number of divorce cases in India, a divorce is never the easy way out of a...
Iran: Opposition goes to Friday Prayers
Several Iranian bloggers invited people to go to Friday Prayers in Tehran as Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi will attend this week's Friday prayers led by influential cleric Akbar...
Egypt: Mounir Said Hanna found guilty of “Satire”
Egyptian Mounir Said Hanna Marzuq has been found guilty of "satire" after a colleague reported him and his poem to the authorities. He has been sentenced to three years and was fined L.E. 100,000 for insulting president Hosni Mubarak. Marwa Rakha sums up reactions from Egyptian bloggers here.
Japan: Unemployment in Japan by Region
Curzon from Mutantfrog posts a map that shows unemployment in Japan by region.
China: Fresh tensions in Xinjiang
James Leibold from the China Beats points out that both the Western and Chinese media have failed to explain the tensions happening in Xinjiang that lead to massive killing as...
Azerbaijan: Video Campaign to Release Detained Activists
The recent detention of two cyber-activists and youth leaders in Azerbaijan this past week has caused consternation among bloggers and activists inside and outside Azerbaijan, and now a video campaign has been set off to call the Azeri government into action to release both youth movement leaders: Adnan Hajizada and Emin Milli.
Taiwan: How Kaohsiung won the World Games
The World Games open in Kaohsiung today. Blogger Claudia Jean writes about how former Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh got the Games for Kaohsiung despite many obstacles.
