Stories from 14 March 2011
Angola: Music with identity
Mário Rui Silva takes us through the musical life of Angolan legend Carlos Lermartina: In 2005 came his fourth record “Frutas do Chão são Coisas Nossas” (Fruit from the ground belongs to us) a “tribute to the life style of the Angolan people and a special focus on the country’s...
Botswana: Maun International Poetry Festival 2011
Maun International Poetry Festival 2011 in Botswana is just around the corner: “Performance poetry is taking Botswana by storm and if you are a fan like I am then on the 26th of March all your roads will lead you to Maun for the inaugural Maun International Poetry Festival 2011.”
Argentina: The Buenos Aires Flea Market (Photos)
Allie Lazar in Qué Sé Yo, Argentina? (What do I know, Argentina?), shares photos of a Buenos Aires flea market (“Mercado de las Pulgas” in Spanish).
Côte d’Ivoire: The making of a new language
Dr. Peter Vakunta speaks to Mema Bamba about the making of a new Ivorian language, Nouchi: “Nouchi is a vernacular language, nonstandard French of sorts, spoken predominantly by the urban youth in Côte d’Ivoire.”
Mexico: Impact of Documentary ‘Presumed Guilty’
Gancho reports that PAN, a major political party in Mexico, “has proposed that all bids for public contracts be videotaped, as a check against corruption.” He ties this proposal to the documentary ‘Presumed Guilty‘: “This may just be posturing, and the impulse behind it may be temporary, but this is...
El Salvador: A Visit to the Art Museum
Linda writes about her recent visit to the “Museo del Arte” (Art Museum) of El Salvador. She shares photos of what she saw, with information and her thoughts on the artwork.
Russia: Will Prosecutor's Office Use Crowdsourced Data To Fight Illegal Gambling?
While discussing the issue of illegal gambling with the Prosecutor General, President Medvedev has stated that the Prosecutor's office can use crowdsourced data of gdecasino.ru, a mapping portal offering users the ability to map illegal gambling sites, interfax.ru reported [RUS]. Right after the news broke, the site went down, though....
Traditional Clothing from Lusophone Countries
ePORTUGUESe blog illustrates and writes about the traditional clothing from Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau, to Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe and East Timor [pt].
Hong Kong: Panic Over Milk Powder Shortage
Hong Kong has been hit by a shortage in infant milk powder due to mainland Chinese customers buying large amounts of the territory's baby milk formula. Local Hong Kong parents have called for intervention policies from the government, such as a milk powder departure tax to stop smugglers from reselling for profit.
Japan: On Catastrophes and Miracles, a Personal Account
Blogger Chikirin shares her personal story of how she experienced the Japanese earthquake on March 13, 2011, with the post “On Catastrophes and Miracles”. She was on a business trip to Ibaraki Prefecture, northeast of Tokyo, when the quake hit some 250 kilometers away.
Lebanon: Women's Anger At New Tourism Campaign
The Lebanese online community has responded angrily to a new campaign by the country's Ministry of Tourism, which aims to attract potential tourists from around the world with thoughts of Lebanese women. A letter of protest from a group of female netizens is demanding the advert's recall - and an apology.
Japan: “Not That Sound Again”
The sound of Japan's Earthquake Early Warning system is stuck in people's heads, as aftershocks continue in the days following the major earthquake on March 11, 2011. The alert is starting to wear on citizens, and comments from microblogging site Twitter show the fear and uncertainty that is inherent with the familiar tone.
Afghanistan: Civilian deaths rise, most attributed to Taliban
Civilian deaths in Afghanistan rose by 15 per cent in 2010 to 2,777 killed, of which 2,080 (75 per cent) were attributed to insurgents, reports Nick Fielding.
Afghanistan: Stinging critique of development aid
Nick Fielding reviews a former World Bank and French development agency director's stinging critique of international donors’ mistakes in Afghanistan between 2002 and 2010, emphasizing the lack of a coherent strategy and clear goals.
Brazil: Reactions to Egyptian and Middle Eastern Crises
From January 25, 2011, the world followed the course of the Egyptian revolutionary conflict, awaiting the fall of Hosni Mubarak, which finally arrived on 11 February after weeks of protest. In the wake of Egypt's crisis, the Brazilian blogosphere was filled with analysis, celebrations and prognoses for the future.
Ghana: Free download of Anajo Black’s Human Like You
MyWeku shares a link to a free music download of Anajo Black’s Human Like You: “Anajo Black is a 21 year old Ghanaian musician who says his music is influenced by Asa, Sade and Dolly Parton amongst others. His album MOMMA was released in October 2010.”
China: Vice principle of university kills 2 and wounds 3 in fatal car accident
China Hush translates a forum post from MOP on a recent car accident in Jiangxi University, in which the vice-principal of the University killed 2 and wounded 3 people. Despite the victims’ family claim that the driver was under the influence of alcohol in the tests after the accident, local...
China: Learning from Japan
Ministry of Tofu blogs about Chinese netizens’ reflection upon their own anti-quake measures after seeing how Japanese government and society handled the deadly magnitude 9.0 earthquake.
China: Microblogs Can’t Give Us Justice
China Media Project‘s fellow, Zhang Ming argues that microblog cannot give people justice, on the other hand, it may reinforce the myth of benevolent official come to deliver justice upon people's request.
Azerbaijan: Great People's Day a pointless adventure?
In a critical post Analoqu olmayan bloq :) [AZ] comments on the 11 March pro-democracy protests staged by youth in Baku, capital of of Azerbaijan. The blog says that the event failed to achieve its goals and might actually have pushed the government to tighten its grip even more. It concludes that...
Cape Verde: Country's Development in a Year of Elections
Cape Verdeans headed to the polls to vote for members of Parliament on February 6. Global Voices recaps on how bloggers perceived the event, considering social issues to face, and how citizens envision their country's development.
