Stories from 22 September 2009
Africa: Will technophobia crash the ICT party?
With the growing influence of ICT for development, can fear of technology and misunderstanding of its uses disproportionally affect the developing world? Here are a few examples of initiatives to combat technophobia in Africa.
Mobile-empowered to serve you better
The mobile phone has grown to be a tool that enables, farmers, small traders and service providers to take information-based decisions, thereby leading to their economic empowerment
Bhutan: Tax On Cars
The Bhutanese government is thinking about increasing the taxes and other fees levied on vehicles to control the increasing number of cars. Tshering Tobgay opines that the import quota system for the bureaucrats should be abolished to control traffic congestion. Bhutanese Blogger at Whatever Matters comments that the government should...
Pakistan: Vanishing Parks
Faisal at Deadpan Thoughts writes about the encroaching religious institutions and the vanishing parks of Karachi.
India: A Minister And A Twitter Message
Indian Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor was caught up in a controversy for replying a twitter message. Über Desi has details.
Oman: Eid on Twitter
(Photo credits: alucard187) Oman celebrated the first day of Eid al Fitr yesterday, a day after most of its neighboring Gulf states. The celebration, which culminates the end of Ramadan – the month of fasting, is determined after the sighting of the new moon, and not all countries, or sects...
Guatemala: The Activism of Massacre Survivor Jesús Tecú
Jesús Tecú survived the Río Negro Massacre in Guatemala. Since then, he has worked as an advocate for the Achí Maya indigenous community. However, Tecú still is under threat, as he received a call from an extortionist.
Ecuador: Protests Against Sports Federation in Azuay
Dario Orellana came across some signs of protest at the Sports Federation of the Ecuadorian province of Azuay. Many of these signs say that coaches have been working for three months without contracts [es] and other accusations of corruption.
Bolivia: Using the XO and Classmates with Community WiFi
The project WiFi El Alto has been experimenting with using the OLPC XO and Classmate laptops with the community wifi signal [es] in the Rio Seco neighborhood in El Alto, Bolivia.
Gabon: Opposition Continues to Fight Election Result
Gabon's political opposition present a united front against the August election results, which handed the son of former dictator Omar Bongo the presidency. Politicians and citizens alike speak out against France's meddling in the country's politics.
Tourism and HIV Infection in Thailand
A report titled “Why Japanese and Western people are infected with HIV in Thailand” by Doctor Kyo Taniguchi from NPO Gina covers statistics about sex workers and “Love, Marriage, and Hopeless love”.
Barbados: Bolt vs. Gay
Doan Mind Me shares his conflicted thoughts on the news that US sprinter Tyson Gay has equalled Jamaican Usain Bolt's 100-metre Olympic record. “Is it that when I see a Jamaican/Caribbean man running them times then I believe that he's clean cause I more easily empathize with him than with...
Trinidad and Tobago: tranquil temple
Now Is Wow Too posts a tranquil, meditative video filmed near the famous Temple in the Sea in central Trinidad. “In the background, water laps, a bird sings in the tree and a woman sings in the Temple.”
Haiti, USA: MacArthur award for Danticat
Repeating Islands reports that Haitian-American writer Edwidge Danticat has won a prestigious “genius award” from the MacArthur Foundation.
Japan: Lecture on Manga, Anime and Otaku
Jean Snow points us to Patrick Macias's lecture at California State University, made available as a podcast episode: ‘Theoretical Perspectives on Manga, Anime and Otaku‘.
Bhutan: Climate Change And Religion
“For Bhutanese, there is an even stronger reason to believe in climate change. Our own religion, Buddhism prophecies climate change,” comments YesheyP at Kuzu Bhutan Weblog.
South Asia: Celebrating Eid-Ul-Fitr
Yesterday Muslims in many South Asian countries celebrated Eid-ul-Fitr marking the end of Ramadan, the holy month of fasting. Many bloggers exchanged greetings and shared their rituals and traditions.
Iran: History, nature and culture in photos
Throughout Iran presents itself as a gallery intended to show views of other side of Iran, different with what you may have seen in the media. Watch the photos here and here.
Iran: Blog Service Providers in Trouble
Several Iranian sites and blogs such as Parlemannews report [fa] that two important blog service providers in country are in trouble. Persian Blog is filtered and BlogFa has a lot of ‘technical’ problems in last week.
ILO Mission to the Philippines
A blog was set-up to highlight and report the activities and findings of the International Labor Organization High-Level Mission to the Philippines. The ILO mission aims to investigate the alleged human rights violations experienced by Filipino workers under the incumbent government.
MENA: Thanks “Khawater” from Japan
Television viewers across the Arab world were in for a treat this Ramadan, with the airing of a special programme on Japan. In its fifth season, Khawater (Thoughts) visited Japan, where a young Saudi preacher Ahmed Al Shugairy explained the Japanese success story to Arab and Muslim viewers. Here are some blogger reactions to the one month show.
