21 April 2010

Stories from 21 April 2010

Russia, US: Artyom Savelyev's Case

  21 April 2010

Natalia Antonova writes about the case of a 7-year-old adopted Russian boy, who was sent back from the United States alone on a plane to Russia by his adoptive mother: “Hansen acted out her supposed desperation in a dehumanizing and humiliating fashion. This adopted child had hurt her, and so...

Bhutan: The Love For Titles And Designations

  21 April 2010

Dorji Wangchuk writes about the obsession of the Bhutanese people for titles and designations. “Whereas in the West people are known by their names, half of Bhutan knows the other half only by their titles,” the blogger opines.

Sri Lanka: The Idea Of Citizenship

  21 April 2010

Sanjana Hattotuwa comments on the idea of citizenship in Sri Lankan context: “Citizenship is (thus) anchored not to a secular, liberal ideal larger than the sum of its constituent peoples and communities, but to reductionist fault-lines and groupings, based on and fuelled by communal hagiography and the chauvinism of majoritarian...

Bhutan: Perils Of The Smoking Ban

  21 April 2010

Penstar writes about the perils of the recent ban on smoking in Bhutan as it has proliferated black markets, which led to cancellation of licenses of some shop owners. “I think the ban helps no one,” – says the blogger.

India: The IPL Cookie Is Crumbling

  21 April 2010

“The collapse of the Indian Premier League (IPL) pack of cards is identical to the unravelling of the Satyam fraud in 2009, from a media perspective. Namely, no media organisation—newspaper, magazine, TV station or internet website—saw it before it happened,” – opines Sans Serif.

Pakistan: Karachi Music Scene

  21 April 2010

“This is about a Karachi from a very different time. A Karachi that moved to a very different beat,” – comments Adil Najam at All Things Paksitan while discussing about the Karachi music scene from the 1960s into the 1970s.

Russia: Authorities Inspect Major Social Network

RuNet Echo  21 April 2010

Russia authorities started inspection of the country's major social network Vkontakte.ru, rbcdaily.ru reported. The authorities claim the social network became popular with neo-Nazi, xenophobic and extremist groups. But the inspection can also be an attempt to extract users’ private data.

Russia: Internet Development in Regions

RuNet Echo  21 April 2010

Yandex.ru published report [RUS, .pdf] on Internet development in Russian regions. Report concludes that the drastic increase in Internet penetration during 2009 was in Russian regions. The average speed of the Internet there is 1,100 kbs. The most active bloggers are in the Far East.

Azerbaijan: Nationalist propaganda

  21 April 2010

Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines recounts being verbally abused by a fellow countryman after co-presenting with Global Voices Online's Caucasus regional editor at a recent conference. The blogger notes that the reason for being cornered and harassed was her belief in tolerance and democracy in Azerbaijan as well as peace...

Malawi: Wedding of Year, Flag Changes and Media Suppression

  21 April 2010

In what some describe as the wedding of the year, Malawi’s President Dr Bingu wa Mutharika wed his former cabinet minister Callista Chapola Chimombo Saturday April 17, 2010. The officiation took place at Civo Stadium, an open place contrary to Roman Catholic procedure. Over 20 heads of states and governments were among the 4,500 delegates to the ceremony.

China: Shutting down of NGOCN's website

  21 April 2010

ngochina blogs about the shutting down of ngo.cn earlier in April. The website was established in 2005 and it offered capacity building training to NGOs, mainly those located in southwestern China (Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou).

Taiwan: Smart phone supplier's exploitative practice

  21 April 2010

Young Fast Optoelectronics (YFO), one of the biggest manufacturers of smart phone touch panel in the world, was recently accused by its trade union (YFOTU) of its exploitative working conditions and violation of labour law. According to the trade union blog, being a major supplier of the world's famous cell...

Japan: Blogosphere Reactions to the Nikkei Ban on Links

  21 April 2010

Growing up in a salaryman household in Japan, one assumes that in the future, one will start wearing a tie, drink coffee, and read the Nikkei. And that would mean that you're all grown up! Admittedly, this is a gross exaggeration but hopefully it conveys the tone of the Nikkei's...