Latest posts by Luisetta Mudie from September, 2005
China: Unofficial news reporting
Xici Hutong posts unpublished field-notes from a Zhejiang-based Xinhua reporter regarding disciplinary action against a high-ranking Nanjing official, but the link leads now to an error message. However, ESWN has translated a portion of the report into English.
Hong Kong: Li Ao presser
ESWN translates part of the Hong Kong news conference given by Taiwan writer Li Ao, freshly arrived from his controversial speaking tour of the mainland, including the various ways in which the local press handled his stab at a common Cantonese expression…
China: U.S. citizens expelled
China Herald rounds up news coverage of the expulsion of Randy Guthrie and another U.S. citizen from China after both had served short jail terms for selling illegal DVDs.
China: Internet regs seen before
Running Dog comments on the latest set of Internet guidelines to come out of Beijing, saying that the new rules are a re-hash of the old, and that China's ability to filter and censor the Internet is already well known.
Singapore: Blogs worse than porn?
Huichieh Loy, at From a Singapore Angle takes issue with a recent commentary in the Straits Times newspaper saying blogs are worse than porn, and links to the storm of reaction this kicks up in the blogosphere.
Malaysia: ISA could lead to rights abuses
Human Rights Watch reports that Malaysia’s Internal Security Act (ISA), which gives the government unchecked powers to detain individuals for long periods without charge, is a recipe for abuse.
Thailand: Music from Chaozhou
Thai-Blogs has a photo essay on the folk art of Teochew (Chiuchow/Chaozhou) opera, and backs it up with a little of the history of the ethnic Chinese who share that birthplace.
Vietnam: The East is Punk
Coming across an array of punk-style badges in a Saigon market, NoodlePie wonders if the Vietnamese equivalent of Johnny Rotten will finally come and liberate his ears from indigenous pop music.
African Aid: An anti-utopian view
African Bullets and Honey posts a self-styled anti-Western aid screed, citing a recent article on utopianism in the Foreign Affairs journal, and sparking debate in the comments section.
D.R. Congo: What shall we do with the Lord's Resistance?
Congo Watch picks up a report saying that the Congolese army has vowed to disarm 400 Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) fighters who have crossed their border and were last seen subsisting in a national park. S/he also notes a recent post by Ngomrom mentioned on GV last week.
Kenya: Visit to the British High Commission
What an African Woman Thinks has a beautifully written account of a recent visit to the British High Commission in Nairobi, in quest of a visa. Via Kenyan Pundit, who thought so too.
Equatorial Guinea/Nigeria: Disappearances, torture
Amnesty International is concerned about allegations of torture and the unfair trial of about 70 people charged with offences related to an alleged coup attempt in Equatorial Guinea on 8 October 2004. The organization is also concerned that three of those convicted in absentia risk “disappearing” or being subjected to...
Somaliland: Suspects apprehended
Inside Somaliland picks up on a triumphant report from Awdal News, lauding the unrecognized country's police force for the prompt arrest of a group of suspected terrorists: “Somaliland has dissipated the misconception of being a no-man's land like its neighbor Somalia where international terrorists come and go at will,” the...
Sudan: Gallows humour
To an aid worker in Darfur whose boyfriend hasn't e-mailed her for a week: “It's not you, he's probably just been abducted by rebels.” This, reports Sleepless in Sudan, became a running joke among NGO workers for a while–until someone's boyfriend was abducted by rebels.
Sudan: Darfur problems worsen
The United Nations does little more than wring its hands as fighting intensifies in the troubled Sudanese region of Darfur; thousands more civilians flee their homes as U.N. officials admit they haven't addressed the problems there, reports Coalition for Darfur.
Zimbabwe: Senate elections
Zimpundit comments on the decision of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) to field candidates for forthcoming senate elections in Zimbabwe; gloomily he cites a proverb from his birthplace about “cows that defiantly rush to a river/watering hole with little regard for how many of their kin crocodiles have...
South Africa: News values questioned
The Fish Bowl notices starkly different treatment given in the South African media to murder stories, depending on whether the victim is black or white.
Sudan: Darfur update
Sleepless in Sudan fleshes out her report of a military build-up in the northern Darfur town of El Fasher with the latest official news dispatch from the United Nations.
Nigeria: Succession struggles
Chippla posts a long commentary wondering who will succeed Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, and notes the recent flight of current Vice-President Atiku Abubasar to a ruling PDP party stronghold to register as a member.
Zimbabwe: Government scandals
Zimpundit gives a long and detailed round-up of the latest news from Zimbabwe's scandal-hit ruling party.
Myanmar: Burma Underground
The Thailand-based Burma Underground blog has been set up to support civil organizations in Burma (Myanmar), especially ethnic minority groups.
