4 September 2009

Stories from 4 September 2009

Bulgaria: Racism; Busmantsi Detention Center

  4 September 2009

Petya of How to Marry a Bulgarian writes about racism in Bulgaria and follows up with a post on the Busmantsi detention center for “illegal immigrants or people whose application for refugee status was rejected and are waiting to be deported” – described by some as “the Bulgarian Guantanamo.”

France: Secularity, Required for Democracy and Human Rights

  4 September 2009

The French concept of the secular seems so distinctive that even the English-language Wikipedia's entry on the issue uses the French term, laïcité, worded in French, to describe it. Suzanne Lehn explains the very different ways bloggers in the US and France view the separation of church and state.

Pakistan: Secret US Base In Gharo, Sindh

  4 September 2009

Pakistan Ka Khuda Hafiz informs quoting sources within the Pakistan Navy that: “certain high-ranking individuals within the Naval forces are involved in secret construction of operational facilities in Gharo, Sindh, which are intended to serve as a base for around 200 US marines.”

India: Give Your Life For A Leader

  4 September 2009

Amit Varma at India Uncut reacts to the news that 14 people died in different parts of Andhra Pradesh hearing about the death of Chief Minister of the state YSR Reddy. The blogger comments: “It’s quite possible that many of these deaths, if not all, randomly happened around that time,...

Bahamas, Turks & Caicos: Federation?

  4 September 2009

News breaks that the Bahamian Prime Minister may be considering forming a federation between the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos, prompting blogger Sidney Sweeting to comment: “Please note that our PM is responding to a suggestion made by the ex-Premier of Turks and Caicos who was forced to resign because...

Bahamas: Skewed Priorities

  4 September 2009

As Customs Officers threaten to demonstrate over attempts to deal with alleged corruption within their ranks, Rick Lowe at Weblog Bahamas says: “We have so far to go.”

Trinidad & Tobago: Get A Plan

  4 September 2009

Trin wonders whether an approach like Florida's 10-20-Life Program, which proposed the toughest gun-crime law in the U.S., could work as a viable part of Trinidad and Tobago's crime plan.

Cuba, U.S.A.: Obama's Order

  4 September 2009

Writing for Havana Times, Circles Robinson reports that U.S. President Obama has finally signed the order allowing Cuban-Americans to travel to Cuba and send money more easily to family members – but adds: “Nonetheless, the Obama administration maintains the nearly 50-year economic blockade on Cuba that has greatly hurt the...

Jamaica: Conformity?

  4 September 2009

“The Caribbean is, according to Rex Nettleford, the ideal model of what the world is trying to achieve through globalisation: different people and cultures and races melted into one big pot, sharing the same geographical space” – but to Jamaican blogger Ruthibelle, “it seems…that this quest for one region, for...

Palestine: A Call From The Prime Minister

  4 September 2009

Palestinian journalist Daoud Kuttab writes on his blog about receiving a phone call from Prime Minister Salam Fayyad: “In nearly 29 years of my journalist work and the thousands of articles I had written on behalf of Palestine and Palestinian issues, never had any senior Palestinian official ever called me...

Palestine: Encountering Fear

  4 September 2009

In the United States, Palestinian blogger Laila El Haddad recently spoke to a woman who seemed nervous of her: ‘”Where are you from?” I asked, detecting an East European accent. She hesitated a moment, and blurted out, “From Israel – PLEASE DON’T KILL ME.”‘

Palestine: Trying To Learn In Gaza

  4 September 2009

In Gaza, Eva Bartlett writes: “Palestinians have an exceedingly high drive to learn and attain higher education. Of course, here in a besieged Strip, with even school materials deemed non-vital by the Israeli overlords, education is a challenge.”

India: Its Raining Blogs

  4 September 2009

Jayakrishnan Unnithan notices the abundance of blogs in the blogosphere and comments: “keep blogging if it is good it will be read and you will be a blog star, else you go down the drainage.”

China: Rights or rumors?

  4 September 2009

Siweilouzi translated Beijing University professor's opinion piece: the Public's Right to Question Shouldn't Be Misconstrued as Spreading Rumors.