30 August 2012

Stories from 30 August 2012

Combatting Cocaine Production in Bolivia, Colombia and Peru

Drug production and trafficking is a major issue in Latin America that governments are constantly trying to deal with. However, as the continent leaders gathered last April in Colombia for the Summit of the Americas fully agreed, the so far US-led war on drugs has failed in the Region. Peru, Colombia and Bolivia are the three largest illegal cocaine producing countries in the world. What are these Andean Countries doing to combat illegal drugs?

30 August 2012

Kyrgyzstan: Facebook Post Spurs Row with Belarus

A photo uploaded on Facebook suggests that Janysh Bakiyev, the brother of the former Kyrgyzstani president ousted by 2010 protests, lives in Minsk. This has sparked an extradition request, the withdrawal of an ambassador and the storming of an embassy.

30 August 2012

Controversial Tibet Theme Park Project Launched

Tibetan dissidents have described the USD 4.7 billion Chinese project as the “Disneyfication of Tibet.“ The park will first be used to shoot 'Princess Wencheng', a film about the niece of a Tang-dynasty emperor who married a Tibetan king.

30 August 2012

Zambian National Football Team Coach Granted Permanent Residence

Zambia has had many expatriate national football team coaches, but Frenchman Herve Renard, who led the team in scooping the Africa Cup of Nations in 2012, enjoys special affection. In recognition of his success, the government has accorded him permanent residence but the decision has assumed political overtones.

30 August 2012

Russia: “The Sissy Conspiracy”

RuNet Echo

On his Tumblr blog, Michael Idov, editor-in-chief of GQ Russia, writes that “pop conspirology, a favorite Russian pastime, is a projection of discomfort with slackened gender roles.” He explains: “It’s...

30 August 2012

Egypt: Are Tomatoes Christian?

Are tomatoes Christian? Check out Angie Nassar's blog post on Now Lebanon Blog, where she comments on news that a Salafist group in Egypt has posted reservations on tomatoes on...

30 August 2012

Tracking Counterfeit Medicines in the Developing World

Some 700,000 people die annually from fake malaria and tuberculosis drugs alone. The WHO reports that the annual earnings from substandard or counterfeit drugs stand at about USD 200 billion. More important than its economic impact, counterfeit medicines pose a significant global public health problem.

30 August 2012

Chinese Weapons Flooding Africa

Deborah Brautigam from China in Africa provided more background information about the importation of Chinese Weapons in African countries and explained the incentive of arms sale is from private sector:...

30 August 2012