May, 2008

Stories from May, 2008

Plastic bag plan takes effect in China

  31 May 2008

Starting June 1, the Chinese government's country-wide plan to make shoppers pay small fees for plastic bags, and to forbid the production of ultra-thin bags will take effect. The move...

Brasil: Introducing the Bloguecast

  31 May 2008

Technology that brings people and generations together and censorship were among the themes of the first edition of Bloguecast, a podcast promoted by BlogueIsso [pt]. “The idea is to make...

Burkina Faso: Level four culture shock

  31 May 2008

In The United Kingdom a bit more than a week ago, the Office of National Statistics reported that in the past ten years, nearly two million Britons have moved abroad, making up the second largest emigration in the country’s history. Presently, that means that 5.5 million Britons live in foreign countries. So, what does this have to do with Burkina Faso? It proves a point, a fundamental truth really, about foreigners: They eventually go home. Or at least most of them do. It just happens that in Burkina Faso, a number of foreign bloggers are getting ready to pack up their things and head elsewhere.

Ukraine, Russia: Personae Non Gratae

On May 12, Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov was declared persona non grata in Ukraine, following his calls for Russia to take ownership of Sevastopol, a Ukrainian Black Sea naval port. On May 15, Russia denied entry to Vladyslav Kaskiv, one of the leaders of the 2004 protests in Kyiv and member of the Our Ukraine/People's Self-Defense faction in the Ukrainian parliament. LJ user varfolomeev66, a Russian journalist, compares the two cases.

China: Sharon Stone on Earthquake

  31 May 2008

Lam Kay pointed out that the mainstream media had mistranslated[zh] Sharon Stone's comment on Sichuan earthquake and caused a lot of misunderstandings in the Chinese world.

Cambodia: Freedom of Flying

  31 May 2008

Educated in France to be an engineer, Santel Phin spent two years in Paris, one of the most romantic cities in the world. In Cambodia, the 31 year-old Santel presently...

Colombia: FARC Leader “Sureshot” is Confirmed Dead

  30 May 2008

After countless false claims of the death of the FARC's top leader Manuel Marulanda Vélez aka "Sureshot," the Colombian government confirmed that he passed away in March of natural causes. Colombian bloggers were quick to react and provide their thoughts on what this means for the future of the guerrilla group, the future presidential elections, and Sureshot's legacy.