Stories from 12 November 2010
Blog “Words of Resistance” Gives Voice to Teens from Small Town in Mexico
In the blog "Words of Resistance," Chantal Flores publishes the poems, letters and stories written by middle school students from Zapotitlán Palmas, a town in Oaxaca, Mexico with a population of 1184 and high rates of migration to the United States. In this interview with Global Voices, Chantal talks about her students and the blog that features their work.
Pakistan: Not My Destiny
Rickshaw Diaries writes about a new phenomenal blog called “Not My Naseeb” where the author shares excerpts from messages she receives on matrimonial sites.
Sri Lanka: Heavy Rain Caused Flood
Cerno informs that the recent heavy rains triggered floods in Colombo which reminded of the floods in the early 1990s.
Mexico: Data on Femicides, 2006-2008
Diego Valle-Jones provides data on femicides in Mexico from 2006 to 2008, pointing out that “As a consequence of the drug war Chihuahua has the highest levels of femicides.”
Venezuela: Expropriations ‘eating up’ Venezuela
Juan Cristobal from Caracas Chronicles criticizes recent expropriations by the Venezuelan government. He writes that, “Like a monster from a 1950s B-movie, Hugo Chávez has gobbled up major food distributors, a glass factory, milk distribution companies, newly-built shopping malls, and entire rows of apartment buildings.”
Bolivia: Site Shows Life of Bolivians Living in Spain
The online citizen newspaper Ahora Bolivia [es] introduces the site Bolivia Magazine TV [es]: “The life of Bolivians in Spain,” a project that “tries to strengthen the positive image of Bolivians, showing different cultural activities that take place in Spain.”
Colombia: Discrimination Against LGBT Community
Bitácora [es] shares a video report created by university students on the discrimination against the LGBT community in Colombia.
Nepal: Flaws In Human Development Report?
Blogdai claims that there are flaws in the recent Human Development Report published by the UN, which shows fake progress in Nepal.
Bangladesh: Fire Destroys Chakma King's Palace
Wasfia Nazreen at Unheard Voices reports that the Royal Palace of Chakma Circle Chief, Raja Devasish Roy, was burnt to the ground last Wednesday. The Chakmas are an indigenous community that inhabits the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh and the North-East region of India.
India: A Social Bussiness Plan Competition
Think Change India blog informs that Banaras Hindu University is launching a business plan competition to encourage young people to become social business entrepreneurs and contribute to the world. You can learn about it here.
Online Video Contest on Responsible Consumption has Winner
A Colombian short film was selected as the winner from 10 international finalists in the 4th International online short film contest for Responsible Consumption Culture. This contest, organized by ECODES and the General Direction of Consumption for the Government of Aragon called for entries in Spanish from short film producers from Spain and Latin America.
St. Lucia: Hurricane Relief Efforts
Sun, Rain, Or… provides updates on the good, the bad and the ugly of relief efforts post-Hurricane Tomas.
Haiti: Cholera Challenge
The Livesay Haiti Weblog is “praying for mercy and miracles” with the country's cholera epidemic.
Trinidad & Tobago: Marching for Children
gspottt reports that the Coalition Advocating for Inclusion of Sexual Orientation (CAISO) will be marching next week to “raise awareness of the prevalence of child abuse in T&T; lobby for justice in several unresolved cases; and advocate for a modern and effective child welfare system.”
Cuba: A Call to Keep Up the Pressure
Uncommon Sense re-posts “an extraordinary interview” with one of the Damas de Blanco, who “calls on the international community to pressure the Castro dictatorship to free her husband and 12 other prisoners who have refused forced exile as a condition of their release.”
St. Lucia, Antigua & Barbuda: A Different Literature
On the 8th anniversary of the passing of Tim Hector, whom Caribbean Book Blog describes as “one of the Caribbean’s undisputed intellectual giants”, the blog thinks it fitting to republish one of his articles, especially because “new literary developments in the region seem to be re-energising the Caribbean literary community.”
Taiwan: The Na'vi in “Avatar” Join the Fight against Petrochemical Plant
The native blue giants “Na'vi” who fought with colonization armies from the earth in the blockbuster movie “Avatar” has become the spiritual symbol of young environmentalists and students in Taiwan who stand against the Kuo-Kuang Petrochemical project in Changhua County. A march against Kuo-Kuang will take place on 11/13, and...
Djibouti: Djiboutilicious
Djiboutilicious is a Djibouti Cookbook celebrating culture and cooking in a country as hot as your oven.
Iran: Female political prisoners under pressure
Jahnezan (means woman's world) and several reformist sites reported [fa] that most of female political prisoners moved to a small cell where they have no contact with outside world. According to [fa] some reports 17 of them are moved to a 28 square meter cell.
Sudan: Referendum preparations in jeopardy
As Sudanese and international actors scramble to pull together preparations for a vote that could allow South Sudan to secede, a quiet chorus of U.N., U.S., and Sudanese voices has emerged in the last month to raise awareness over the lack of funds for the important exercise.
D. R. of Congo: Is there a future for young people?
Is there a future for young people in the Democratic Republic of Congo?: “Just under of half the population of Congo is under the age of 14, meaning that there are millions of youth growing up in the eastern region knowing only a life surrounded by violence. There are estimated...