Stories from 21 June 2010
Russia: Flaws and Pitfalls of the Subsidized “Social” Internet Plan
Gregory Asmolov examines the potential of the Russian government's two new initiatives that aim at reducing the digital divide in the country.
East Timor: Expansion of the Energy Sector under Discussion
The past months have revealed serious tensions between Timorese leaders, Australia, and Woodside Petroleum, a multinational company hoping to profit from new petroleum resources in Timorese and Australian territory. At issue is where to pipe valuable Liquefied Natural Gas.
India, Bangladesh: The Other Side Of Rabindranath Tagore
Words From Solitude highlights the other side of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.
Colombia: Beauty Queen falls from Molested Mare
Diarionocturno brings us citizen video from a regional Colombian parade: Keeping calm was impossible for this beauty queen in Andalucia, Colombia as the mare she was riding during a festival turned out to be in heat and was courted by a stallion who tried to mount both beauty queen and...
India: The Battle Of The Have-nots
Nila-kantha-chandra at Cuckoo's Call comments on the Maoist insurgency in India: “it seems we are living under the shadow of looming violence. A civil war, where the have-nots finally turn against the haves”.
Sri Lanka: Why Do Online Brand Communities Fail?
Ami's space explains the reason why most online brand communities fail – because they don’t define success the right way.
World: Protecting Human Rights on Citizen Video
Making a video to protect human rights might backfire and end up threatening the rights of those who appear or participate in the video. WITNESS' The Hub shares with us how we can make a human rights video that gets the message across while minimizing the risk to those involved.
India: What Does It Mean To Be Indian?
What does it mean to be Indian? Priya Ramani is editor of Mint Lounge, the weekend magazine of business newspaper Mint, and an article she wrote recently about her feeling that she wasn't really Indian provoked heated debate online.
Costa Rica: Resident Physicians on Strike
Conejitos Suicidas [es] writes about a strike by resident physicians in Costa Rica who claim that Social Security “violates the rights of future specialists in various fields of medicine” [es]. The blogger asks the residents on strike to reconsider their attitude and the government and the citizenry to defend Social...
Bolivia: Aymara New Year
The blog Letras Alteñas [es] has posted two videos showing the celebration of the Aymara New Year in the city of Tiahuanacu.
Bahamas: At a Loss
Weblog Bahamas is concerned about the government's apparent inability to deal with the crime situation.
Ecuador: Bloggers Analyze Truth Comission Report
On May 2007, a Truth Commission (TC) was created by presidential decree; its purpose is to investigate and collect information on human rights violations attributed to the security forces in the last 25 years. This past May 7, after three years, the Truth Commission handed out its report to President Rafael Correa, which included 831 human rights violations affecting 456 victims between 1984 and 2008. Bloggers have analyzed the report from different points of view.
Africa: Digital Citizen Indaba 5.0
The theme for the fifth annual Digital Citizen’s Indaba (DCI) at Rhodes University in Grahamstown is “Africa’s Underdevelopment: Digital Citizens Talk Back.”
Eritrea: I dream therefore I am
CapitalEritrea writes about art competition in Eritrea titled, “I Dream Therefore I Am.”
Africa: The African Peering and Interconnection Forum 2010
The African Peering and Interconnection Forum 2010 will be held in Nairobi on the 11th and the 12th of August 2010. The landmark event has the theme of “Unlocking Africa’s Regional Interconnection”.
Eritrea: Eritrean journalists in diaspora
An analysis of experiences and activities on Eritrean journalists in the diaspora by Adal Voices Of Eritreans.
Kenya: First cyber games tournament
Kenyan gamers are organising their first tournament to be held at the iHub on the 26th of June 2010 and will run from 10am to 6pm.
Africa: Africans need CSR
Zulu Mathabo writes an article inspired by the poor performance of African soccer giants in the current FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010. He argues that The African natives need CSR (Consistency, Self-Discipline, Resolution).
Cameroon: On Cameroon's World Cup exit
The Indomitable Lions of Cameroon became the first team to be knocked-out of the World Cup after a 1-2 defeat to Denmark. Here is a tactical perspective from Cameroonian blogger George Fominyen.
Jamaica: Social Media Benefits
In light of the recent state of emergency in Jamaica, diaspora blogger Labrish calls social media “a strong wind at the back of citizen journalists and ultimately a benefit for the cause of democracy.”
Japan: Butoh Legend Kazuo Ohno Passes Away
Kazuo Ohno, legendary performer and one of the founding fathers of Butoh, passed away on June 1st at the age of 103. Butoh is an avant-garde dance form that originated in post WWII Japan, characterized by white body paint and conceptual, tortured movements.