Stories from 14 September 2012
The Netherlands: Balkan Snapshots Festival 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!”
Bangladesh: Mismanagement In The Banking Sector
An ordinary citizen reflects on the recent huge bank loan scam in Bangladesh and the blogger is worried about the mismanagement in the banking sector.
India: Husbands to Pay Wives for Doing Household Chores?
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: Chess Olympiad Triumph
The Armenian Observer posts photographs of celebrations following Armenia's victory in the 2012 Chess Olympiad held in Istanbul, Turkey.
Armenia: A New Transit Route?
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
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
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
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).
Burkina Faso, Niger: Cholera Kills 80 after Floods
Bark Biiga writes on Fasozine [fr] that following the floods that plagued Niger and Burkina Faso, 80 people have succumbed to Cholera in the Western Region of Niger. The disease also threatens to spread into neighboring Burkina Faso.
Argentina: Protesters Say “Enough” to Government's Policies
Responding to calls on social networks, on September 13 citizens attended mass demonstrations in different parts of the country to protest against the policies enacted by the current government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.
Maghreb, France: The Arc of Revolution is Long but It Bends towards Freedom
Had humanity obsessed itself with the potential pitfalls of every fight for emancipation and always analyze the events under the prism of one segment of society, we all will still be living under the old regime of monarchy. Faysal Riad argues that the revolution in France took almost a century [fr] to reach...
Chile: Reforesting Patagonia through Social Media
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...
China: Guangzhou Students Protest University Gender Quotas
Ewan Christie from Nanfang.com reports about university students’ protest against the university gender quotas. Female students have to obtain a much higher score than the male counter part in the public examination to enter the same university.
The LGBT Community in El Salvador
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
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.
Greece: Petition for Neo-Nazi ‘Golden Dawn’ Group Investigation
Twitter users are promoting an international petition to urge a full criminal investigation into the Golden Dawn party in Greece.
Hungary: Armenian Singer Condemns Diplomatic Failure
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...
Iran: “Civil Society” Charter for Iran
A group of Iranian intellectuals including Ramin Jahanbegloo wrote a new charter that aims to unite the Iranian people around a common human rights and civic agenda. Charter 91 has launched a Facebook page to promote its ideas.
India: Subscribe and Get a Harley-Davidson
It’s raining gifts in the Bengali newspaper wars. And gone is the age of fress flasks, timepieces and tee-shirts to woo subscribers. Sans Serif reports.
Iran: Quake Survivors Battle Cold
Several bloggers including Tohirow say [fa] that East Azarbaijan's earthquake survivors are now battling bitterly cold weather conditions.
Bolivia: Miners’ Dispute Holds La Paz Under Siege
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.
