Stories from 15 April 2010
Haiti: Goal of NGOs
The Haitian Blogger agrees that the goals of non-governmental organisations in Haiti should be “to put themselves out of business.”
Barbados: Black, from an Island
Barbados’ Gallimaufry and Repeating Islands refer to a piece by Maxine Williams, which deals with the “black island identity”.
Japan: New Hires Seen Around Town
New hires that started their jobs on April 1st “reminds me of baby penguins standing around waiting for their masters to bring them scraps of food…”, says The Adventures of a Foreign Salaryman in Tokyo.
India: First Bengali Cinema Available At iTunes
Muhammad at Cadet College Blog is excited to report that Suman Ghosh's Dwando (2009) created history by being the first Bengali Cinema available for rent at iTunes.
Pakistan: A Mysterious Plane in Karachi
Teeth Maestro questions “what’s a Meridian Jet doing in Karachi?” Similar planes have been used in ‘rendition’ program “in which the CIA uses private aircraft to ferry prisoners to various countries.”
Bangladesh: Images Of Pahela Boishakh
Ershad Ahmed at Dhaka Photo blog shares some colorful pictures of Pahela Boishakh – Bengali new year (1417) festivities. Expat blogger Paagli Didi, the Fulbright Scholar has more pictures.
Sudan Elections 2010: The good, the bad and the ugly
On April 11, 2010 citizens in Sudan went to the polls for the first time in 24 years. A whole generation that was born, raised, educated and graduated under one totalitarian government rule has been able to cast their vote. Please join Mahdi, our new Sudanese author, in finding out what is happening in the country from bloggers in Sudan and the Diaspora.
Japan: The enigma of Japanese intellectuals
Ken Mogi shares his thoughts on “The enigma of Japanese intellectuals“: “Although it is sometimes a dirty word, I consider myself as “a kind of” intellectual. “
China: Propaganda order Google calendar
Chinese journalists have over the past two years become more open about discussing news blackout orders received from propaganda departments. Those on Twitter have recently begun posting the contents of these orders to a shared Google calendar which can be found here.
Azerbaijan: Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli update
Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines says that the local media in Azerbaijan reports that imprisoned video blogging youth activists Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli have been moved to separate prisons for reasons unknown.
Japan: Toilet terror
Pink tectacle has a collection of pictures on legendary ghost Hanako-san, a spooky young girl that haunts school restrooms across Japan.
Slogans do no honor to China’s miners
Qian Gang from China Media Project comments on the propaganda campaign regarding the rescue of 153 Miners in Shanxi.
Pakistan: Abbotabad Riots
Kalsoom at CHUP! – Changing Up Pakistan writes about the recent riots in Pakistan which claimed at least seven lives: “mobs in Haripur, Mansehra, and Abbottabad (in Hazara) blocked roads, chanted slogans, and burned tires — all in the name of a name”.
Sri Lanka: A Predictable Election
On 8th of April Sri Lankan voters went to vote to elect 225 representatives in the parliament to form a new government. The election saw a low turnout and was marred with violence. Sri Lankan bloggers analyzes the result and question the election process.
