Stories from 7 August 2011
Serbia, Kosovo, Russia: A Letter to Putin
Eric Gordy re-launches his East Ethnia blog, taking a close look, in one of the first posts, at the letter to the Russian PM Vladimir Putin, written by 21 Serbian “intellectuals”, who are asking “Russia to propose a resolution in the Security Council on the condition of Serbs of Kosovo.”
Thailand: University Student Detained for Lese Majeste
A university student in Thailand was detained after being charged of violating the country's Lese Majeste law. The student allegedly posted a comment on the internet which was deemed ‘insulting’ to the monarchy.
Bhutan: Corruption And The Big Fishes
Kezang Dawa at Kuzu Bhutan Weblog comments that while tackling corruption, “the law should catch the bigger ‘fishes’ rather than innocent simple people”.
Maldives: Quality Schools
Quality Schools is a blog of the Educational Supervision and Quality Improvement Division (ESQID) of the Ministry of Education in Maldives which disseminates suggestions and best practices for Maldivian schools to improve their quality of education.
Thailand: Reviving the Democrat Party
Suthichai Yoon analyzes the defeat of the Democrat Party in the recent elections in Thailand. He said an overhaul is needed to improve the image of Thailand's oldest political party.
Sri Lanka: Comparing Intelligence
“Are Indians Smarter Than Sri Lankans?” Sbarrkum tries to answer this question.
Thailand: Inside a Thai Court
Richard Barrow describes the scenes and procedures inside a Thai trial court.
India: A Virtual Meeting Place For Farmers And Consumers
Arpita Sharma at Youth Ki Awaaz features the E-Choupal, “a virtual market place where farmers can do the transaction, facilitated by an internet linked computer, directly with a purchaser”, which helps the farmers realize better price for their produce.
Ukraine: Time for a Change?
Vasyl of uaMuzik argues that it is time for new and independent politicians to enter the Ukrainian political scene, so that the country will be able to leave the conflicts and controveries of current politicians behind.
Ukraine: Courtroom Mudslinging
LEvko of Foreign Notes discusses how Ukrainian Prime Minister, Mykola Azarov, appeared as an unexpected witness in the trial against his predecessor, Yulia Tymoshenko, which resulted in loads of political mudslinging.
Russia: New Legislation Against Online Extremism
Russian government submitted a new anti-extremism legislation for approval to the Russian Parliament. News agency ITAR-TASS reports that according to the news legislation, distribution of extremist content online can be punished with 5 years in jail. Vzglyad website explains the legislation treates the publication of content in blogs as public...
Russia: Bloggers Initiated Day of Garbage Cleaning
Thousands of people participated in the event “Bloggers against garbage” that happened in dozens of Russian cities. A special community was created in Livejournal that includes many reports about the event. People used Twitter, Facebook, Vkontakte and other online platforms to coordinate the blog-based subbotnik [ENG]. The event was an...
Syria: Death Toll Mounts as Ramadan Massacre Continues
Protests calling for President Bashar Al Assad “to leave” continue in Syria this Ramadan. As the death toll mounts, reactions continue to pour in from across the Arab world.
Zambia: Complaining And Complimenting Electronically
Dear Zambia is a website whose content is generated by Zambian netizens who have got beef with anything going wrong in the country - or indeed, those who have anything good to say about something which is unfortunately rare. Gershom Ndhlovu explores this popular public forum.
Senegal: 5-Year Ban For Football Star El Hadj Diouf
Bilal comments upon [fr] an article published on Mercatix.net, tackling the 5-year ban from international football slapped by the Senegalese Football Federation on one of the best players in the country, El Hadj Diouf, after he declared that “the whole system of African football is corrupt”: “I never thought” writes...
Japan: Foraging for food in Tokyo
Jess Mantell blogs about “free food everywhere, in Tokyo” at her blog, Edoble. Her latest discovery is perilla growing in the pavement.
Venezuela: A funny tribute song for Google +
Infelix and team of creative friends got together to record the musical video “I'm leaving for Google+” which explains why people are turning away from social network facebook to the newest network from Google. Based on Spanish group Mecano‘s song “No party in NY”, it switches up the lyrics and...
Russia: Photos From the Tyva (Tuva) Republic
Oleg Klimov's photos [ru] from the Tyva (Tuva) Republic – here, here, here, and here.
Russia: “Stolen Dreams”
Oleg Klimov posts a series of photos [ru] of people sleeping on a Moscow-Novosibirsk train.
Ukraine: Yulia Tymoshenko's Trial and the Legacy of “Gassy Shenanigans”
In the first post on the newly-launched Bordering on Lunacy blog, Euan MacDonald writes about the trial of Ukraine's ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko – “who is guilty, apparently, of the heinous crime of being in government when Viktor Yanukovych wasn't president of Ukraine.”
Ukraine: Donetsk Investigative Journalist's Apartment Set on Fire
OpenDemocracy.net reports on today's attempt to burn down the apartment of a Donetsk-based investigative journalist Aleksey Matsuka: “It is widely assumed that the attack was ordered by elements working within the local political and business elite, who have served as the focus for much of Aleksey's investigative work.”
