14 September 2012

Stories from 14 September 2012

The Netherlands: Balkan Snapshots Festival 2012

  14 September 2012

Balkan Buro, a Dutch non-profit “dedicated to providing a platform for artistic and cultural encounters between Western and Southeastern Europe,” announces the Balkan Snapshots Festival 2012, which will take place in Amsterdam on Sept. 21-23: “three nights of music, creativity, movies and inspiring debates!”

India: Husbands to Pay Wives for Doing Household Chores?

  14 September 2012

The Union Women and Child Development Ministry in India is considering a draft bill which, if passed by parliament, would make it legally compulsory for husbands to pay out a portion of their monthly income to their homemaker wives, for doing household chores.

Armenia: A New Transit Route?

  14 September 2012

The Armenian Observer reports that construction has started on upgrading Armenia's highways. Effectively connecting Iran with Georgia via Armenia more efficiently, the blog notes the Armenian government's hopes that the road will make the landlocked country an important transit route between Europe and Asia.

Armenia-Azerbaijan: International Day of Peace

  14 September 2012

Following an increase in tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, locked as they are in a bitter stalemate over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh, Mountains of Peace looks ahead to the International Day of Peace. […] enough is enough. It is time to make a stance, time to speak out,...

Japan: Kansai Queer Film Festival Kicks Off

  14 September 2012

Japan's 7th Kansai Queer Film Festival kicks off in Osaka this weekend September 15-17, and will be held in Kyoto on October 12-14. It celebrates and shows various films that focus on diverse gender and sexuality issues around the world.

Puerto Rico from Above

  14 September 2012

The Caribbean Society of Astronomy posted [es] some of the astonishing images that astronaut Joseph Acabá-of Puerto Rican descendance- shot of the island on September 1st, 2012, from the International Space Station (ISS), a habitable satellite that orbits the Earth at an altitude between 330 km (205 mi) and 410 km (255 mi).

Chile: Reforesting Patagonia through Social Media

  14 September 2012

Reforest Patagonia has managed to plant 100,000 native-species trees thanks to its creative social media donation campaign, ”Create Your Own Forest.” […] Reforest Patagonia’s main campaigning tool is its online platform, i.e. its virtual forest, which lets individuals and companies plant trees in Patagonia thanks to a small contribution. Anna Heim from The...

The LGBT Community in El Salvador

  14 September 2012

Danielle Mackey has written a three-part series on recent historical moments (from 2009 to the present) for the LGBT community in El Salvador. Read part I, part II, and part III in her blog Grit and Grace.

In Sea of Censorship, China Allows Anti-Japan War Vitriol

  14 September 2012

A fleet of six Chinese surveillance ships has been deployed in response to the Japanese government's move to purchase three disputed islets from their private Japanese owners. Some Chinese netizens have reacted to the news with anti-Japan warmongering on social media channels.

Hungary: Armenian Singer Condemns Diplomatic Failure

  14 September 2012

It seems that to some politicians money means more than the honour of their own country or their relations with other countries. This case could affect the stability of the whole region. Lángoló Gitárok, a Hungarian music blog, has published an interview [hu] with Gaya Arutyunyan, a Hungary-based singer of...

Bolivia: Miners’ Dispute Holds La Paz Under Siege

  14 September 2012

Hundreds of miners are continuing to block the main access roads to La Paz. The blockade was sparked by a dispute between private cooperative miners and unionised miners over which group should control the recently expropriated Colquiri mine.