Stories from 8 December 2010
Africa: Painting Cultural Portraits with Remixed Radio and Video
Radio Continental Drift has an interesting proposal: with audio from radio workshops and videos shot around several cities in Kenya and Uganda they've made a series of remixed videos meant to fuel conversations around activism, culture and arts in Africa.
Pakistan: No Protection Against Fatwa
A cleric in Peshawar has publicly offered a reward of Pakistani Rs500,000 to anyone who will kill Aasia Bibi, a Christian brick-kiln labourer,who was sentenced to death for blasphemy by a district court. Adil Najam is outraged by the inaction of the government.
Bhutan: Pay Hike For Government Employees
Tshering Tobgay informs that the Bhutanese National Assembly has endorsed the government’s proposal to increase the salaries of public servants.
India: No Muharram In Kashmir
Zafar Mehdi informs at Kafila that “The peaceful processions on 8 and 10 Muharram have been banned in Kashmir since the outbreak of insurgency in 1989.”
Burundi: One changed life
One changed life in Burundi: “Beginning with a loan of just $48, Adelaide Barutwanayo grew her clothing sales business in the markets of Gitega, Burundi, to a point where she could comfortably provide for her two children, ages 6 and 13.”
Africa: Living in compromise
Can you be an African woman, a feminist and an African feminist?: “I think many African women, like my mother and even myself have struggled, or are struggling with the notions of being an African woman, a feminist and an African Feminist. We struggle to translate an academic concept into...
Haiti: Election Run-Off
Haitian bloggers discuss news that “presidential elections will go to a second-round run-off between former First Lady Mirlande Manigat and government technocrat Jude Celestin, protegé of outgoing President Rene Preval.”
Africa: One brain drain phenomenon you haven't heard of
One brain drain phenomenon you haven’t heard of: “As it turns out, both in Kenya and Tanzania, flight controllers seem to be leaving the country for other regions and airlines. For various monetary reasons, the numbers of controllers have not been increased for quite a while.”
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Conflict of Interest
“So hot hot story is the issue with the PS of Agriculture and his company that sells goods to his own Ministry for exorbitant prices”: Discuss SVG says that rules governing transparency need to be put in place.
Trinidad & Tobago: FIFA Insult
B.C. Pires comments on the FIFA Vice-President's explanation as to why England did not win their World Cup bid: “It would have been nice if there was a journalist amongst the crowd of sycophants…who could have asked Jack if there was any insult at all involved in having lunch with...
Cuba: Marching for Human Rights
Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense reports that this Friday, on International Human Rights Day, “Dr. Darsi Ferrer…will again lead a peaceful march in Havana to demand respect for human rights on the island.”
Bermuda: The Black Male Perspective
Breezeblog directs “anyone concerned about where Bermuda is headed amidst the spiralling gang violence, social dysfunctionality and hypocrisy” to an article written “from the perspective of a young black man”.
Jamaica: Commission of Enquiry
Jamaica and the World comments on the Commission of Enquiry set up to investigate matters relating to Christopher “Dudus” Coke's extradition: “What is particularly amusing (or annoying)…is that we are not supposed to need it. The Prime Minister has assured us on several occasions that he has already made a...
Ghana: BarCamp Ghana 2010 at Ashesi University
BarCamp Ghana 2010, an ad-hoc gathering where attendees meet for discussions, demos and networking, will take place on December 18 2010 at the Ashesi University campus in Accra. The theme is “Create dreams, work smart and shape the future”.
Portugal: Blogs Fight on Politics launches Competition
Combate de Blogs [Blogs Fight, pt], a Portuguese weekly TV show, has launched a competition for blogs on national and international politics. Meet the nominees in the three categories: Blog of the Year, Blogger of the Year and Revelation Blog of the Year.
Africa: Struggling with being an African woman, a feminist and an African feminist
Struggling with the notions of being an African woman, a feminist and an African Feminist: “For many women in Africa, feminism is something that we practise outside our homes and our families. Our cultural understanding of womanhood is sometimes in direct conflict what we say in meetings about gender equity...
Chile: Twitter Users Weigh In on Prison Fire That Kills At Least 81 Inmates
Using the hashtag #carcelsanmiguel [es] (San Miguel Prison), Chilean Twitter users have been tweeting about a fire that killed at least 81 inmates in a prison in Santiago, Chile, as reported by The BBC.
Mexico, World: The Impact of COP16 for Those Not Attending
Richard Grabman from The Mex Files writes, “Forgotten in there is who is affected by climate change the most — It’s not as if an Amazonian fishermen can buy carbon credits […] He… as much as Korean farmers, French pensioners, gringo bloggers, you… need to eat and are going to...
Guatemala: The Burning of the Devil
From AntiguaDailyPhoto: “La quema del diablo (Burning of the Devil) used to be this tradition, little known out side of Guatemala. I say “used to be” since the Burning of the Devil is now all over the Internet.” Luis Figueroa [es] blogged about his experience “burning the devil” this year.
Uganda: Making sense of proposed media laws
Moses Sserwanga tries to make sense of proposed media laws in Uganda: “The government is proposing a new regime of laws in amendments to the existing media laws- that will add more restrictions to the already delicate media environment in Uganda.”
Rwanda: Sniffing glue to survive
Sniffing glue to survive in Kigali, Rwanda: “The glue that these street children sniff is mostly shoe repair glue, which is readily available, cheap, highly addictive, highly toxic, and extremely powerful because of the neurotoxin toluene.”
