Stories from 4 October 2010
Japan: Economic crisis and demography
What if Japan's economic crisis could be explained with a change in the demography of the country? Paul Krygman at Truthout argues [en] that the crisis might be “not so scary after all” and related to the aging of Japan's workforce.
Nigeria: Government was warned of bomb blasts in Abuja
Nigerian Curiosity gives her take on Friday's bomb blasts in Abuja: “Nigeria's security forces were warned of an impending attack at least five days before October 1st… Given such information, it is unacceptable that the government did not do more to anticipate and prepare for the attack.”
Exiled Tibetans Protesting Seizing of Ballot Boxes In Nepal
Angry Tibetans around the world are condemning Nepal’s actions in confiscating their ballot boxes by protesting in front of the Nepalese consulates. In New York, despite the rain, they carried banners and shouted, “China respect Democracy in Nepal,” and “Nepal, Give Back Our Ballot Boxes Now.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Media Inaccuracies
KnowTnT.com‘s Edmund Gall explains why he has “a growing distrust of the media's reporting of financial matters, a distrust that's not helped by their rampant typographical errors and failure to report accurately on information technology matters…”
Video: French Burqa Ban Protest in Minishorts and Niqab
Tea and Politics wonders about the definition of full veil, as two French Muslim girls walk around in niqab (face veils) and minishorts to protest the “Burqa Ban” in France.
Bermuda: On the Deficit
“Quite a few people have been saying that Bermuda’s deficit spending is justified to boost the economy”: New Onion‘s response? “In a word: No.”
Jamaica: Parboosingh, the Pioneer
National Gallery of Jamaica Blog features the work of another of the country's late art pioneers, Karl Parboosingh.
Morocco: Popular Blog Turns 5
Bill Day of the a la menthe wishes popular English-language blog The View from Fez a happy fifth birthday.
Morocco: What do Moroccan and Djiboutian Education Have in Common?
Moroccan blogger Jamal Elabiad asks what education in Morocco and in Djibouti have in common.
Nepal's Leadership Vacuum: No End in Sight
Last Friday (October 1, 2010) the ninth bid in Nepal's parliament to elect a Prime Minister failed. This prolongs the country's political crisis which began with the resignation of Prime Minster Madhav Kumar Nepal on the 30th of June.
Peru: Mayoral Elections as Seen by Bloggers
On Sunday October 3rd, Peruvian citizens participated in three simultaneous electoral processes for mayoral, district and regional authorities. Additionally, they also voted on a referendum to decide about contributions paid to the Housing National Fund (Fonavi, according to its Spanish name). Bloggers reported on their experiences at the polls and shared their opinions about the elections.
Azerbaijan: Violations reported as parliamentary elections approach
As parliamentary elections approach in Azerbaijan, candidates go through the final registration process. However, the process has not been without allegations of violations and the frustration not only of candidates, but also of observers and local activists. Bloggers and activists comment.
Trinidad & Tobgo: More on CLICO
“Amidst the raging debate on the rights of the disappointed depositors versus those of the anxious taxpayer”, Afra Raymond continues “to examine some more of the fundamental issues” regarding the CLICO bailout, while KnowTnT.com says: “What is interesting is that…those who gambled their savings away in pursuit of unrealistic returns...
Mexico Commemorates World Animal Day
Perla Cristal Gomez writes [es] about the celebration of World Animal Day in Mexico and shares a video of a peaceful protest in Guadalajara.
Ecuador: The Indelible Images of September 30
In Diario de una post feminista [es] (Journal of a post-Feminist) user PrincesaQuil from Guayaquil writes about the police strike on September 30 and says, “…we cannot erase the images that we all saw of police with covered faces intimidating the population, armed and pointing their guns at civilians, riding...
Guatemala: Dia del niño, Children's Day, in Antigua
Antigua Daily Photo shares images and an account of the celebrations of “el día del niño” (children's day) in Antigua, Guatemala.
Jamaica: Social Not-working?
Grasshopper Eyes The Potomac is “not inclined to believe that social networking sites like Facebook are behind things that are not working in society. It may make them more visible or magnify them, but the root is somewhere else.”
Egypt: Kareem Amer's Sentence Ends on November 5
November 5 marks the end of Egyptian blogger Kareem Amer's or Kareem Nabil Sulaiman four year prison term. “We have reasons to believe that Kareem may not be released on this date. We also fear that he might be tortured nearing the date of his release,” says the Free Kareem...
Bahrain: Free Blogger Ali Abdulemam
Bahraini blogger Ali Abdulemam was arrested almost a month ago. He has been held in solitary detention since then. His legal status remains unclear as no lawyer has seen him, and the authorities do not provide any details on the exact charges that him, according to the Free Blogger Ali...
Morocco: Farewell Nichane
Moroccan darija magazine Nichane is closing because of a sustained advertising boycott, reports Issandr El Amrani in The Arabist.
Kenya: How do Kenyan voters feel about their MPs?
Latest Mzalendo (An Eye On Kenyan Parliament) initiative: “Mzalendo in partnership with the Kuweni Serious team will be traveling around various constituencies to get a sense of how Kenyan voters feel about their MP, about issues facing their constituency, and about solutions they would like to see in place. We...
