Stories from 10 June 2011
Bangladesh: Visible Positive Energy
Dutch journalist and blogger Dheera Sujan recently visited Bangladesh and was surprised with the positive energy of the Bangladeshis. She comments: “I witnessed there was that hunger to improve, to learn, to better oneself that is simply not as palpable in this part of the world as it is in...
Kuwait: Shia Twitter User Arrested
Kuwaiti Nasser Abul, a young Shia man, has been arrested, allegedly for his posting on micro-blogging site Twitter. This is the first time a Twitter user is held for tweets in the country. The arrest has created a furour on Twitter, where many called for his release.
Nepal: Religious Intolerance?
Nepal Blogs refutes the negative news on religious freedom in Nepal and comments: “It is unfair, [..] to chastise an entire nation because of few intolerant idiots.”
Haiti: Reconstruction Issues
Haiti Grassroots Watch writes a series of posts about the country's reconstruction efforts, here and here.
Cuba: Finding Strength For Fariñas
“I have no desire to write. I scold myself. Since I learned that Coco Fariñas is on a hunger strike I have been floating above the city”: Octavo Cerco has been feeling like she's “floating in nothingness”.
Trinidad & Tobago: iPhone Coming
TECHTT confirms that “bmobile will be launching the iPhone 4 next week” and says that “one of the features that caught [his] attention was the retina display.”
Jamaica: Rain Review
“If this was the dress rehearsal for flooding, later-on in the year, when we are pelted with rain from storms and hurricanes, later in the hurricane season, then we've failed”: Girl With a Purpose blogs about the country's recent bout of bad weather.
Cuba: Tamayo's Arrival
Diaspora bloggers chronicle the arrival of Reina Luisa Tamayo (mother of the late Cuban dissident Orlando Zapata Tamayo) in the United States.
Bermuda: Anti-Corruption Laws
“The Bermuda Parliament looks busy. But truth is, in my opinion, it’s not very productive”: Vexed Bermoothes thinks one of its priorities should be passing anti-corruption legislation.
Bahamas: The Foreign Vote
BLOGWORLD responds to an article which suggests that there are plans afoot to allow foreigners the right to vote in Bahamian Parliamentary Elections: “It’s not that I’m against the ideas of non-citizens voting in elections. But in this country, where non-citizens have more rights and privileges than Bahamians in almost...
Venezuela: Debates on Laws and Identities
May, the month of "Afro-Venezuelan" culture, ended this year with a new law against racial discrimination and a proposal to create a ministry for African descent. The news shot up largely in the Venezuelan blogosphere, as some shared opinions regarding one of the most complex and confusing aspects of the country: identity.
Nicaragua: Citizens of Bluefields March for ‘Dignity and Hope’
Ronald Hill blogs [es] about a march for “dignity and hope” that took place on June 8 in Bluefields, Nicaragua. Protesters raised their voices against organized crime and drug trafficking, and demanded greater security.
Venezuela: How Much Do You Know About Caracas?
Mirelis Morales Tovar in Caracas Ciudad de la Furia [es] asks her readers 10 questions about Caracas to test how much they really know about the capital city of Venezuela.
Mexico: Tweeting to Save Lives
In Americas Quarterly, Arjan Shahani writes about the use of Twitter as a tool to inform “about risk zones and specific attacks in real time” through accounts like “@TrackMty, @SPSeguro and @MAGS_SP.” He explains how it works: “The person witnessing an attack tweets it to one of these accounts, which...
China: The Machinery of Stability Preservation
The Dui Hua Foundation's Human Rights Journal has translated a detailed report by the liberal Caijing magazine about the organizational structure behind China's efforts to maintain social stability as it exists at both central and local levels, and how the structure actually increases social tensions.
Iran: Ministry of Intelligence, Spy and Social networking
Iran's Ministry of Intelligence announced [fa] “a spy who wanted to organize a social networking to disturb Iran's Majlis (parliement) election was arrested”. Islamic Republic accused US government to spend several millons dollars to achieve this goal.
Sri Lanka: Protests In Katunayake Free Trade Zone
Earlier this month clashes at the Katunayake Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Sri Lanka between protesting workers and police claimed the life of an young worker and injured many workers and policemen. The following protests of citizens against the killing send a strong signal to the Sri Lankan government.
Macedonia: Shameless Refusal to Accept Responsibility
Andre Valé, a Portuguese living in Macedonia, wrote about the smoke-screen by responsible authorities, their media cronies, and the interior minister's “shameless” refusal to accept political responsibility for the killing of Martin Neshkovski at the celebration of the election victory by the ruling party, which leads the country down a...
North Korea Threatens to Disclose Recordings of Talks with South
In an apparent act of blackmail, North Korea threatened South Korea on Thursday that they would release secret audio recordings from Inter-Korean talks reportedly held on May 9, 2011. The secret meeting, initiated by the South, was meant to lead to an agreement on talks for how to move forward after two deadly attacks on South Korea in 2010.
Russia: Yuri Budanov Shot to Death in Moscow
On GlobalPost, Miriam Elder (@MiriamElder) reports on the killing of the former Russian colonel Yuri Budanov in Moscow today.
Peru: Aymara Indigenous People Announce Resumption of Protests in Puno
After a temporary truce to allow for presidential elections to take place in the Puno region, the Aymara Indians in said region have announced that they will resume their strike indefinitely, with which they demand the cancellation of all mining concessions in Puno.
