Stories from 26 September 2011
Bolivia: Mobilization in Support of Indigenous Marchers
In the past month, indigenous highway protest marchers in Bolivia have received widespread support from residents of cities on their route donating food and supplies, as well as from many Twitter users using the hashtag #TIPNIS.
Bangladesh: Does Anyone Care About The Urban Poor?
Unheard Voice breaks a news that authorities had started evicting the new settlements including the Jaago Foundation school for the underprivileged along the Gulshan lake in Dhaka city. When challenged they could not show any prior notice or proper authorization. The blogger questions: “does anyone really care about the urban...
India: To Be Poor In India
Project Why exposes that there is a serious flaw in determining who is poor in India and who will get social welfare benefit from the government. The blogger asks: “what are we trying to do: show the world that we are not poor?”
Bolivia: Police Repression of Indigenous Marchers in Yucumo
The Bolivian indigenous march against a planned highway reached a standstill with the blockade of pro-government groups in the town of Yucumo. On September 25, uniformed police officers launched tear gas at men, women and children, causing diverse nationwide reactions.
Brazil: The Real Value of Half Price Tickets
Even though there is a federal law in Brazil for half price tickets to cultural shows - as the greatest portion of the public can only afford half of the total value - the events charge even higher amounts. Fernando Sapelli explains why.
North Korea: Kim Jong-Il's Surprise Appearance On the Simpsons
Martyn Williams from the North Korea Tech blog wrote a short post on Kim Jong-il's appearance on “The Simpsons”. One character from the episode says that he was forced to write a musical about Kim in a North Korean prison and introduces a song addressing the regime's ban on internet.
North Korea: Kim Jong-il Plans to Solve Famine by Breeding Giant Rabbits
Zimbabwe Metro site posted a list of eccentric acts and plans carried out by North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-il. It includes Kim's plan to solve famine by breeding giant rabbits and revelations that Kim being one of the world’s largest buyer of Hennessy, German cars and Uzbekistani caviar.
Book Review: ‘Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives In North Korea’
Change in Longitude blog posted a thorough review of the book ‘Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives In North Korea’ by Barbara Demick. The book’s title comes from a song that North Korean school children recite, “We have nothing to envy in the world” in spite of chronic malnutrition and famine...
Ethical Issues in Doing Business in North Korea
Uhro van der Pluijm from Omkar Gopalakrishnan's Posterous blog wrote about ethical issues in doing business in North Korea.
Chile: Twitter Trending Topics and #yomarchoel22
Students marched in favor of education reform on Thursday, September 22, but surprisingly, the hashtag netizens used on Twitter –#yomarchoel22– did not become a local Trending Topic. Enzo Abbagliati in his blog Cadaunadas [es] reminds his readers that Trending Topics are a legitimate but limited representation of reality.
Ecuador: Digital Illiteracy Rate in Loja
Voces Lojanas [es] shares important data about Loja from the VII Population Census and the VI Housing Census. The census reveals that in Loja digital illiteracy is at 29%, but cell phone use is at 73%.
El Salvador: Digital Newspaper Publishes Wikileaks Cables
“Almost 100 US State Department cables from the US Embassy in San Salvador have now been published on the website of El Faro. The collection of cables from WikiLeaks offers a behind-the-scenes look at US diplomacy and assessment of its tiny ally in Central America. Most of the cables come...
Puerto Rico: Dealing with the Murder Rate
Dondequiera says of the country's rising murder rate: “Greed and apathy are Puerto Rico's sins, and the only way out of this nightmare is through our unity as humans.”
Cuba: “Damas” Targeted Again
The Ladies in White were once more targeted this weekend for their “planned march to a church to honor Our Lady of Charity on her feast day” – bloggers have a lot to say here, here, here, here and here.
Bahamas: Crime Fighting Issues
Bloggers discuss the challenges of crime fighting in the Bahamas.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: More Violence Against Women
The escalating violence against women in St. Vincent now has Abeni “officially scared.”
Kenya: Kenya Hosts Sixth Internet Governance Forum
Gamelmag blogs about the sixth Internet Governance Forum, which will take place in Nairobi, Kenya from 27th September to 1st October: “If you want to take part in the IGF but you can't make it to Nairobi, don't worry. You can make your voice heard by participating remotely. You can...
Jamaica: Gratitude to Garvey
In his ongoing effort to petition President Obama to exonerate Marcus Garvey, Geoffrey Philp says: “Marcus Garvey's cause was justice, plain and simple. And it is ironic that unjust methods were used to malign his good name and to bring about his eventual imprisonment on fraudulent charges.”
Georgia: Virtual Facebook Parliamentary Speaker Election Game
Ahead of next year's parliamentary election in Georgia, the ruling party continues in its attempt to harness the power of social media to attract interest in the electoral process from social media users. Mirian Jugheli reports.
Japan: Tracking a telecom giant's quest for carrying the iPhone
Since news broke that Japan's 2nd largest carrier KDDI has struck a deal with Apple to sell the iPhone5, tech savvy netizens are keeping a close watch on the company's actions. The company has not made an official statement at this point.
Zambia: We Need to Watch Zambia
Ethan explains why the world need to watch Zambia: “There’s a danger that we miss a major story here: democracy is taking root in Africa and spreading rapidly. Nations like Zambia, which survived autocratic rule and then dominance by one party are now seeing democratic change.”
