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Caribbean: Lightning Bolt Strikes Beijing  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

This post is going to be as long as Jamaican Usain Bolt‘s sprint to 100m-dash Olympic glory was short and ever-so sweet – because Caribbean bloggers still have not come down from the high that Bolt's amazing win has created.  9.69 was the magic number that brought the Jamaican sprinter the Olympic gold.  9.69 seconds.  And he did it, to quote The New York Times, “by a mile.”
As if Bolt's masterful domination of the “fastest men in the world” field weren't enough, Trinidadian Richard Thompson, who made an impressive showing earlier this year at the NCAA Championships, winning gold in both the 100m and 60m (indoor) events, pulled off an upset and came in second.
Twitter and Facebook were immediately abuzz, with bloggers calling it “the race of the Olympics” and admitting they were “much prouder than usual to be West Indian”.
The significance of the Caribbean finishing in first and second place in one of the most prestigious events of the Olympic games soon began to sink in.  This is the first time since the 1976 Games in Montreal (when Trinidadian Hasley Crawford took top honours) that a West Indian has brought home the gold in the 100m dash.  Just as significant an achievement was the fact that six out of the eight finalists were from regional territories.  In the words of Jamaican blogger Active Voice:
Right now it looks like the Caribbean has a monopoly on track and field!
…while West Indies Cricket Blog adds:
Wow! Just wow!
Jamaicans were understandably exuberant!  Blog To The World says:
It was pandemonium and wild celebrations as Jamaica’s Usain Bolt won the Olympic 100m sprint in a World record time of 9.69 seconds (breaking his own record of 9.72. What was so surprising about this performance is that he started celebrating with about 20 meters to go.
Before heading out the door to join “motorcade in progress in Falmouth”, he also notes that the victory was a special one for him, since he knows Bolt personally:
He is from Sherwood Content in my parish of Trelawny. When he was at high school (William Knibb Memorial High) almost every evening he used to hang out in my video store before going home so I have always watched his progress over the years.
Prior to the win, some bloggers were mischievously making fun of the fact that the “super-drug” behind the stellar performances from the Jamaicans was what West Indians refer to as “blue food” – hearty staples such as yams and other ground provisions.
Montego Bay Day By Day agreed that “yellow yam, dasheen & coco does the body good indeed”, but was less-than-impressed by the fact that NBC did not bring a live feed of the race:
If Tyson Gay had qualified would they have thought it worthy of carrying, even though Gay's butt would have been quite properly whooped by Usain Bolt? Sour grapes indeed…Pity Asafa Powell didn't get the bronze…but cho so it go sometimes. Go through West Indies!! We proud of unu!!
And sure enough, the proud posts kept on coming.  Jamaican Stunner asks:
How could I not join in the throng of proud bloggers in saluting such a remarkable, record breaking performance, finely executed by Usain Bolt?  The world breaking record was amazing but what was even more fascinating was the fact that Bolt slowed down and started to celebrate his victory from approximately the 80m mark! What the hell! can you imagine what the record would have been if he didn't ease up?
The rest of the region soon chimed in.  Barbadian diaspora blogger Jdid says:
How aptly named is this guy? Bolt wow! 9.69 and he was celebrating at the 80m mark. Congrats! Big up Jamaica!  Last night on CBC (Canada) they had this discussion about why Jamaica has produced such amazing sprinters over the years…
Moving back to Jamaica seems to have the answer:
If it's one thing that we Jamaicans can be counted on, it's to enjoy the fact that we have the world's greatest sprint factory.  What many don't know is that a major factor in our success is the intense rivalry that exists among our high schools, that starts at age 11 and continues for a lifetime.
Whatever the secret, there was no doubt as to Bolt's ability.  Living in Barbados referred to the World #1 as “a weapon of mass destruction”, while Cayman Islands blogger Mad Bull called him “greased lightning”, adding:
The only thing is, can you imagine what time he might have got if he ran his utmost best for the whole race?! Wow! He shut down and started celebrating the win from about the 75 metre mark! I am sorry he didn’t go pedal-to-da-metal all the way through, just so we could see what the man is actually capable of!
Trinidad and Tobago-based Media Watch called the race “Stunning! Fantastic! Electric!” before going on to critique the poor local MSM coverage of the event – perhaps he should have gone online, where Andre Bagoo was live-blogging the race.
Kudos kept pouring in – from Grenada, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago.
As news broke that Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding “has promised a massive welcome home celebration for Jamaica's first gold medalist in the Beijing Olympics, Usain Bolt, and the rest of the Olympic Team“, Living Guyana suggested a few ways in which proper homage could be paid to the outstanding Olympian:
If…Bruce Golding…has any sense he would declare Monday a national holiday in Jamaica, he would rename Knutsford Boulevard, Usain Bolt Speedway and he would declare August 16th Usain Bolt Day.  He should be rewarded with land, 9.69 square miles of it in Jamaica. And a house as well.
But not everyone was awe-struck by “The Lightning Bolt”.  While Living Guyana answered BBC Sport‘s Matt Slater's “Did I just watch a man run sideways through the line, slapping his chest, and still travel 100m in 9.69 seconds?” Twitter question with a matter-of-fact “Ah, yes Matt, you did. Your eyes weren't fooling you”, Jamaican Long Bench thought the theatrics were a bit too much:
I hope someone reminds him that he is still a human being.  Obnoxious men are are tolerated for only so long, even if they are Jamaican, and no matter how fast they can run.
Amidst his joy for his Caribbean compatriots, Living Guyana felt a twinge of disappointment for the Guyanese Olympic contingent:
The two Caribbean countries which have invested heavily in athletics are seeing the results and enjoying the limelight on the world stage. These two countries have proper, world class athletics stadia, excellent athletics programmes, fantastic coaches…and in other news Guyanese athletes continue to bomb out of the Olympics without any notice whatsoever.
Still, nothing could stem the overwhelming tide of happiness that washed over the West Indies when two islands at opposite ends of the archipelago brought home the gold and the silver in one of the most high-profile events of the 2008 Olympic Games.  The good news spread from China to the Caribbean, from island shores to diaspora scattered far and wide.  A Mi Ver, who lives in Florida, captured the region's sense of pride and accomplishment as she recounts a conversation with her father, who called from Trinidad to bring her up to speed:
“I decided to break the rules today 'cause we celebratin’,” says the old man, “and call you while I'm drivin’ on the highway.  Usain Bolt from Jamaica jus’ won gold in the men 100 meters, Richard Thompson from Trinidad took silver and the U.S. came third.”
He sounds so jolly when he rings off.
*Five minutes later*
“Aye,” he says. “Did I tell you that two men from the Caribbean are the fastest men in the world?”
“Yeah, I think yuh did.”
“Well ah gone.”
“OK. Bye, Dad. Love you. Drive safe.”
“Love you too. babes. We win, eh!”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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China: Tracking Olympics stats by wiki · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Twitter user @davesgonechina points us to the Olympics 2008 Dashboard over at wiki site Zoho, and of the stats there notes: “Zoho medal count wiki shows China leading in golds because of womens events.”

source: news-globalvoices

license: Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

author: John Kennedy


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Czech Republic: History Happens on 8 · Global Voices
Elia Varela Serra

The Journeys of Captain Oddsocks recounts important events of Czech history that happened in years ending in 8, such as the birth of Czechoslovakia in 1918 or the Warsaw Pact invasion of 1968, and wonders if something important is going to happen before the end of this year.

author: Elia Varela Serra


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Egypt: A Letter to Obama · Global Voices
Eman AbdElRahman

Egyptian blogger Zeinobia, writes about the letter jailed Egyptian politician Ayman Nour wrote from his prison to US presidential hopeful Barack Obama.

author: Eman AbdElRahman


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Egypt: Alone in New York?  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Egyptian blogger Eman is leaving to New York, where she will pursue her higher studies. “Right now I’m in the middle of a whirl of emotions, however that is not something I’m bothered with… What bothers me is people’s reaction to the fact that I am traveling on my own,” she notes.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Egypt: Farewell Twitter SMS · Global Voices
Eman AbdElRahman

A few days ago, Egypt woke up to the sad news that Twitter is no longer delivering outbound SMS to few countries, including Egypt.
According to the Twitter Blog:
“Let's start with the bad news. Beginning today, Twitter is no longer delivering outbound SMS over our UK number. If you have been receiving SMS updates from Twitter via +44 762 480 1423, you'll notice that they've stopped and you may want to explore some of the alternatives we're suggesting.”
At first it was thought it's due to political reasons, as Twitter has played a very important role in enabling Egyptian activists spread information about their struggles , like during the last 6th of April Strike.
Writing in his blog Arabist, blogger and activist Hossam El-hamalawy says:
This is very bad news…
By deactivating SMSs in Egypt, Twitter just did the Egyptian government a huge favor the latter could not have dreamed of. The company has just deprived the activist blogosphere of one of its main tools for organizing and swift dissemination of information..
Soon enough, Egyptian bloggers started searching for alternatives.
Egyptian blogger Zeinobia guides readers on how to still “Tweet through the Mobile“:
Most of my Egyptian bloggers friends were so sad and shocked because of the news and they to move to the next best available in live and Mobile blogging , Google’s Jaiku , I like Jaiku and I am a member there , I like it because I can send it SMS as I want but the problem it is not as popular as Twitter.
Still there can be hope , I have found that Service “Tweet SMS” , it has not started yet but according to what they are saying users outside the U.S and Canada can use it as a bridge to SMS Twitter , so if you do not to move Jaiku, you can use it instead. Give it a try you will not lose but I must say that it can cost more than Twitter.
Another blogger, Jean-Pierre discusses other alternatives to Twitter in “Dumping Twitter? So is it Jaiku or Identi.ca?“:
So which one will it be? Will Twitterers Stick with Twitter, or jump onboard the Jaiku Wagon? Or are we going for open source solutions like idetni.ca? Personally, I prefer Jaiku on all three, but the simplicity of identi.ca is pulling my leg. I will however continue microblogging with twitter until I make my final decision, specially that I never used an SMS to tweet.


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Egypt: Protesting European Embassies · Global Voices
Eman AbdElRahman

Egyptian blogger Sand Monkey, comments on the Egyptian Foreign Ministry's last protest to European embassies in Cairo, where Egyptians applying for entry visas are not treated with dignity and respect.


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Egypt: Shut Up and Rule  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“I really wish that Ahmed Nazif ,our smart prime minister to shut his mouth and do his job as he should without attacking the people and provoke them with useless statements,” writes Egyptian blogger Zeinobia.


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Egypt’s first Septuplets · Global Voices
Eman AbdElRahman

Egyptian Blogger Zeinobia, writes about an Egyptian woman, from Alexandria, who gave birth to seven babies – even though she claims she did not take any medicine.


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Haiti, Cuba: Tropical Storm Fay  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Haitian blog Pwoje Eswpa says that Tropical Storm Fay is beyond the island, but “we are drenched and the winds are still pretty strong”, while Cuban diaspora blogger Babalu is concerned about the approaching storm.


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Iran: Baha’i minority · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

MideastYouth.com's Censeo Productions and BahaiRights.org announce the release of their new video defending the rights of the Baha'i minority in Iran.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Jamaica: One Gold; Two Silvers · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Abeng News Magazine is thrilled to report that “Jamaican women sprinters set a new record placing one, two, two in the 100 meters at the Olympics in Beijing, on the birthday of the island's first national hero, Marcus Garvey.”


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Jordan: No Free SMS Tweets for Arabia  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“[M]ost of the world including the Arab world won’t get Free SMS updates from their Twitter friends,” reports Arab Crunch, a technology blog from Jordan.


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Korea: Georgia Crisis · Global Voices
Hyejin Kim

See Global Voices special coverage page on the South Ossetia crisis.
While Koreans enthusiastically follow the Beijing Olympics, they are also busy studying what’s going on between Russia and Georgia and what the attack means to world politics. It has been one of the main topics among bloggers.
A few netizens focus on the pro-American tendency of Georgia. On the other hand, some netizens go back to history.
그루지아를 친미라는 이유로 욕하지 마세요.
전쟁 이유는 남오세티아에서 러시아의 후원을 받은 오세티아인들이 그루지야인들을 인종청소하면서 시작된 것이며 남오세티아 자체도 그루지야인의 의지와 무관하게 레닌과 스탈린이 맘대로 자치구역을 설정한데서 비롯되었습니다. 19세기 비록 페르시아의 제후국이였지만 독자세력이었던 그루지야를 러시아군이 협박해서 보호령으로 만들었고 이후에는 그루지야 주둔 러시아 제정군이 그루지아 국왕의 왕위를 빼았아서 그루지아 주둔군 사령관에게 이양하고 이후에 정식으로 러시아 제국에 편입된 것입니다. 오세티아가 문제가 아니라 그 지역 상당수가 그루지야 땅인데 그루지야는 오히려 독립 이후에도 영토가 많이 줄어들었습니다.[…]또한 남오세티아 대중전선이 북오세티아와 영토통일하겠다고 커밍아웃하기 전까지만해도 러시아 통합이전부터 그루지아와 오세티아는 아무 충돌없이 오랜기간 지내온 사람들인데 오세티아인들이 왜 몇십년간 잘살던 친구를 배신하겠습니까? 현제 남오세티아의 인구중 90%가 러시아인 입니다. […] 역사를 안다면 그루지야를 욕할 이유는 없다고 봅니다.[…]누가 제국주의를 옹호하는 것입니까?
The battle had started from the ethnic cleaning of the Ossetians in South Ossetia who received support from Russia against Georgians, but South Ossetia was also designated as an autonomous region by Lenin and Stalin without any notice to Georgians. Georgia, which was an independent authority regardless of the feudal kingdom of Persia in the 19th century, became a protectorate of the Russian Army and later it was included in Russia. It’s not just the problem of Ossetia. Georgia also lost some land after independence. […] Before South Ossetia tried to unify with North Ossetia and was unified with Russia, Georgia and Ossetia have stayed together without any conflict. But why did the Ossetians suddenly betray friends of several decades? 90 percent of the population of South Ossetia is Russian. […] If you know history, you can’t just blame Georgia.[…] Who is supporting imperialism?
As a common theory, many netizens think the reason for the battle to be a power struggle over the oil pipeline.
이번 그루지아-러시아와의 전쟁(국지전)을 보며, 마음 한참 졸였더랬다..아.. BTC송유관이 어디로 흘러가는지 미처 판단을 하지 못하는 우를 범했더랬다. 오판이였다는 것은 부시의 한국 방문 이전 방문한 국가가 터키였다는 것이었다.(2008. 8) 그 동안 터키를 이란/이라크 압박용 카드로만 파악했다는 것이 중요한 오판이유라고 해야되나? 이라크/이란/아프가니스탄 등의 미국이 노리고 있는 (이미 두군데는 쳐들어간) 국가만 눈에 보였던 것이 이번 사태에 대한 나의 심각한 오판의 원인이였던 것이었다.
그러나 미국의 경제문제로 인한 달러화의 가치가 주루룩 떨어지고 있는 이 시점에, 달러화 가치를 회복할 수있는 몇개의 카드가 있었는데, 그 첫번째는 중국, 두 번째는 유럽이다. 중국이야 위안화 절상을 해주면 해결될 일이나, 오히려 반대로 행동하고 있고, 올림픽을 개최하고 있는 이 와중에 어찌 팰려도 팰 방법이 적당치 않다. (어떤 카드를 찾으려고 하겠지만.. 그리 녹녹치는 않다. 카드가 없는건 아니지만 말이다.) 그러나 유럽은 그 공격지점이 여러군데 있었고, 때리기 어려운 것은 유럽도 마찬가지지만 미국은 예상외의 지점(나의 예상밖이였다..)에서 헛점을 발견 했다. 바로 BTC 송유관이었다.
BTC 송유관은 무엇인가?
지도를 보시면 아시겠지만, 이 파이프 라인의 흐름은 상당히 정치적인 영향이 존재한다.이란을 관통하거나, 아르메니아를 관통하면 될 것을.. 왜 우회했는지? 터키로 안가고 흑해로 바로 빠지면 유럽으로 더 가기 쉽지는 않은지 고려해볼 일이다.
이 파이프 라인의 대다수 지분은 유럽이며 그 다음이 아제르바이잔, 미국, 터키, 일본 순이다.
이 파이프라인을 통해 공급되는 원유의 최종목적지는 어디인가? 바로 유럽이다. 왜 유럽의 지분이 50%에 육박하겠는가? 여기에 그루지아를 전쟁상태로 몰아 넣음? 가장 충격받는 동네는?? 음모론은 정확한 팩트가 없는 이상 경계해야 할 것임에는 틀림이 없으나, 정황적 증거를 볼 때 음모론은 상당한 가능성이 있음을 부인하기 어렵다. 게다가 BTC송유관은 미국도 관련있고 그루지아가 친 서방정책을 취한는 나라라는 것을 고려할 때 상당히 쓰기 어려운 카드 중 하나임에도 불구하고 그루지아를 꺼내들 수 밖에 없는 이유는 그 만큼 미국의 경제적 어려움이 크다는 반증이 될 수도 있을터..암튼 중국대신 유럽에게 한 방먹였으니.. 유로화가지고 계신분들은 환장할 일이다. 그래도 유럽은 상대적으로 안정적이라는건 부인 못한다. […]
While economic problems of America are getting worse and the value of the American dollar is going worse, they have several cards left. The first is China and the second is Europe. They might try to revaluate the currency of China, but China will not follow it. In addition, the Olympics is going on and, therefore, what they can do now is limited. However, Europe is also a hard place to attack. But America found a target that I didn’t expect at all. It was the BTC pipeline.
Then what is the BTC pipeline?
As you can see through the map, the pipeline contains political influence. Why doesn’t it go through Iran and Armenia? Why did it make a detour?
It looks much easier if it went through the Black Sea in order to go through Europe, not through Turkey.
The stake of the pipeline is mostly handled by Europe. The next is Azerbaijan, America, Turkey, and Japan.
BP (United Kingdom): 30.1%
State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) (Azerbaijan): 25.00%
Chevron (USA): 8.90%
StatoilHydro (Norway): 8.71%
Türkiye Petrolleri Anonim Ortaklığı (TPAO) (Turkey): 6.53%
Eni/Agip (Italy): 5.00%
Total (France): 5.0%
Itochu (Japan): 3.4%
Inpex (Japan): 2.50%
ConocoPhillips (USA): 2.50%
Hess Corporation (USA) 2.36%[13]
Where is the final destination of the crude oil through the pipe line? It is Europe. Why does Europe have more than 50 percent of the stake? Then why is the attack to Georgia involved with this? Who will be influenced by this attack? I know if there is no exact evidence, we should be careful of mentioning the conspiracy theory. But based of comprehensive situations, it is hard to deny there are some behind-the-scenes stories. The BTC pipeline involves America and Georgia is friendly to America, and therefore it must be a difficult card that America considered. On the other hand, it shows how difficult the American economy is now. Anyway, instead of China, they chose Europe… People with Euros should be concerned. You can’t say compared to any other countries Europe is always stable. […]
Photo of Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline.
Here are more opinions after his argument of the conspiracy theory below.
카스피해 유전을 두고 러시아와 미국이 벌이는 에너지 헤게모니싸움 인듯 싶습니다.BTC송유관은 카스피해 유전에서 러시아를 통해서만 가던 석유를 미국이 우호적인 그루지아를 통해서 서방으로 안전하게 공급하기 위해 만든 송유관입니다.이로인해 영향력이 줄어들것을 우려한 푸틴은 본보기로 CIS내의 친미 그루지아를 열심히 괴롭히는 중이고요. 앞으로도 유라시아에서 미국과 러시아간 보이지 않는 자원전쟁은 계속되겠죠. 글잘읽었습니다.^^
음모이론1: 미국이 그루지아를 꼬드겨서 전쟁을 벌인다. 올림픽 개막과 동시에 하면 러시아도 적극적으로 나서지는 못하겠지? 근데 러시아 대대적으로 아예 끝장을 보자는 식으로 내려온다. –;; 어? 이게 아닌데…근데 미국이 전면에 나서면 꼴이 흉하다. 그래서 부시가, 너네 내려오지마,하니, 대답이, 너넨 쿠웨이트때 마음대로 했잖아?…부시, 어라? 이게 아닌데… 여기서 프랑스의 대담한 태클, 러시아랑 그루지아를 왔다갔다 하며, ‘지금 올림픽도 있고 길어지면 미국도 정말 들어올 수도 있고, 그리고 그래봐야 그루지아 사람들만 다치고, 러시아 봤지? 걔네들 무식하거든..막 죽여’ 결국 미국이 기획하고, 러시아 주연, 이득은 프랑스
러시아의 석유패권때문이죠.. 석유 송유관을 장악하면… 유럽은 러시아가.. 손에 쥠..~~..이미.. 그러한 이유때문에.. 유럽최고의 산업국인 독일은… 미국이 싫어 하는 이란도 지지함. 천연까스때문에… 국제사회에서 영원한 우방이 어디 있고. 영원한 안정상태가 어디 있남.[…]
What is the status of Georgia in international society? It is the main question of the netizens.
세계적으로 석유 자원이 고갈되고, 그 고갈될 것이라는 명제로 현재까지 석유류에 대한 투기세력들 때문에 국제유가가 150불 까지 간 적이 있었습니다. 어찌 되었건 앞으로 국제 유가는 아무리 낮아져도 70불 정도 이상은 될 것이라고 예측을 하고 있습니다. 그렇다면 세계에서 가장 주목받고 있는 새로운 유전 지대가 카스피해입니다. 이전에는 카스피해의 석유 생산 단가가 높아 매장량이 있음에도 경제성을 이유로 개발 하지 않고 있다가, 국제유가가 오름에 따라 경제성이 생긴 것이지요. 그러나 카스피해는 단 하나 문제점이 있습니다. 그것은 내해 인 나머지, 배를 통한 수출이 안된다는것. 그래서 등장한 것이 송유관입니다.
BTC라인과 SPC라인이 중요한 것은 카스피해의 석유가 러시아의 간섭을 받지 않고, 유럽으로 갈 수 있는 통로이기 때문입니다. 그래서 미국은 국제 유가 안정을 위해 이 송유관을 중요하게 생각하는 것입니다. 왜냐하면 BTC 라인이 생기기 전에 카스피해의 석유는 모두 러시아를 거쳐 유럽으로 수출 되었는데, 이제 CIS 국가들이 러시아의 간섭없이도 석유를 수출 할 수 있게 된 것이지요. 그럼 곁 가지로 이란과 아프카니스탄이 요즘 자주 등장하는데, 이 역시 카스피해의 석유와 매우 깊은 관련이 있습니다. 지도에서 보면 알겠지만, 아프카니스탄과 이란 역시 지역사정이 안정되면 카스피해에서 생긴 석유를 수출할 수 있도록 송유관을 놓을 수 있는 국가 후보이기 때문입니다. 이쯤 되면 왜 미국이 아프칸을 침공 했는지 이해가 가시리라 생각됩니다.
그럼 그루지야가 나토에 가입하고 싶어도 못하는 이유는 러시아가 반대하기 때문입니다. 러시아의 가즈포름 같은 회사가 유럽의 천연가스 등 목줄을 쥐고 있기 때문에 나토에 가입시켜 주지도, 못하기 때문이지요. 미국이 아무리 원해도 말입니다.
러시아는 남 오세티아 거주 러시아인들에게 반강제적으로 여권을 나누어 줬다고 합니다. 그리고 그를 빌미로 자국민 보호를 핑계로 그루지야의 영토를 침공해서 시범 케이스를 보여 준 것 같습니다. 다른 CIS 국가도 역시 미국쪽에 붙다가는 불같은 맛을 보게 될 것이다… 라고.
러시아는 CIS 지역에서의 영향력이 없어지는 것을 매우 염려하고 있습니다. 제 생각에는 이것이 남 오세티아를 침략하게 된 원인이지요. 올림픽 이전부터 남오세티아의 독립 세력들과 그루지야 군과 전투를 벌였었는데, 올림픽을 러시아가 이용한 것이라고 봅니다. 2000명의 사상자도 역시 러시아 측의 과장이라고 할 수 있습니다.참고로, BTC라인은 터키에서 이미 송유관이 보수중이라 현재 가동중이 아니라고 합니다. 그리고 러시아의 공격에도 불구하고 국제유가가 그렇게 오르지 않은 이유는 송유관이 1미터 이하 깊이에 매설되어 있어 비교적 공격에도 안전하다고 하기 때문이라는군요.
The reason why the BTC and SPC lines are important is that they are the only passages through which the oil can be delivered to Europe without any interference from Russia. Therefore, America regards it important for the stability of the international oil price. Before the establishment of the BTC line, the oil from the Caspian oil was exported to Europe through Russia, but CIS countries can export oil without any interference with Russia. In addition, Iran and Afghanistan have emerged in news a lot because they are related to the oil in the Caspian Sea. As you can see through the map, Afghanistan and Iran can be candidates for the pipeline that can export oil. Then it would be easy for you to understand why America attacked Afghan.
The reason why Georgia can’t join NATO is because Russia is against it. Russian companies like Gazprom have so much power in Europe and therefore it will not happen even though America wants. I heard that the Russian government forcefully gave passports to Russians who lived in South Ossetia. Under the pretext of protecting their own nationalities, they attacked Georgia. If other CIS countries behave like that, it would be the same scenario. Russia is really concerned that they will lose the power in the CIS region. In my opinion, it is why South Ossetia was attacked. Before the Olympics, there was a battle between the independent group of South Ossetia and the Georgian Army, and Russia used the Olympics. The number of deaths, 2,000, might not be that much. For reference, the BTC line is under the construction of the oil pipeline in Turkey and therefore it is not in operation at the present. Regardless of Russia’s attack, the reason why the international oil price doesn’t go up is because the oil pipeline is located deeper than one meter and comparatively safe.
Will it influence the oil price? It seems a major point of interest.
그루지야전쟁은… 국제유가에 “전혀” 영향을 주지 못하고 있습니다. 어떤 블로거님과 몇몇 기사에서 우려했던 바와는 전혀 달리… 국제 유가는 그루지야전쟁을 별로 신경쓰지 않고 있습니다. 더군다나 불과 이틀만에 급속도로 마무리(?) 되어 가고 있는 전황을 볼때…미국이나 유럽의 실질적인 개입과 같은 특단의 변화가 있지 않는한… 국제유가에 있어 그루지야의 전쟁 상황은 별의미가 없을 것입니다. (미국등이 실제로 행동, 예컨대 군사행동같은… 실질적 개입을 한다면… 국제유가 뿐만 아니라, 여러가지 면에서 아마도 엄청난 폭발성을 가질겁니다. 하지만, 개인적으로는 그런 정도까지 일이 확대되리라 보지 않습니다. 아마, 적당한 선에서 타협점을 찾으려 하겠지요. 물론, 그 타협점에 있어 사태의 주모자로 낙인찍혀 버린 그루지야의 입장은 별로 고려의 대상이 안될겁니다. 러시아의 세력확대에 대한 서방측의 양보 범위가 어디까지이냐의 여부로 판결나겠죠.그 결과가 어찌됐건… 그루지야의 입지는 전보다 현저하게 줄어들 것이고, 러시아는 상당한 정도의 이득을 취할 것입니다. 한마리로 그루지야만 더 불쌍하게 된 것이지요.)
Not a few netizens interpret it as the beginning of another Cold War.
이번 러시아와 그루지아의 남오세티아를 사이에둔 전쟁은  많이 참고있던 러시아의 콧털을 그루지아 정부가 남오세티아를 공격하면서 뽑아버린 격입니다. 더욱 안좋은 이유는 화난 러시아에 대해 보호막이가 되어줄 NATO와 미국은, 아니 일단 미국은 군사력을 동원할 명분이 없기 때문에 그루지아는 사실상 그리 승산있지 않은 도박에 뛰어들은 것입니다. 그동안 미국은 이라크, 아프가니스탄, 이란에 미군을 보내 전쟁을 벌였기 때문에 그리고 코소보의 독립을 지지했기 때문에 심각한 아이러니에 빠지게 됩니다.
1. 다른나라의 영토주권을 침범하였기 때문에(이유가 어찌되었든간에)  러시아가 그루지아에 쳐들어가 영토주권을 침범하는 것을 비난하고 대응할 명분이 없어진 것입니다.
2. 그리고 코소보의 독립을 지지했기 때문에 남오세티아의 독립을 지지하지 않을 수 없게되었습니다.
러시아에게 국제적으로 크게 압박을 가할만큼의 명분이 미국에겐 없어졌습니다. 푸틴 혹은 러시아 공무원(직위를 잊어먹어 공무원이라 하겠습니다..) 또한 미국에게 이 논리로 반박 하고 전쟁을 계속했던 것이구요. 그리고 친미,친서방국가 성향의 그루지야를 도와서 남오세티아의 독립을 저지하는 것 또한
미국이 코소보의 독립을 지지했었기 때문에 사실상 할 수 없는 일이 되었습니다. 만약 독립을
저지시키려 목소리를 낸다면 국제사회에서의 비난은 피할 수 없게되겠죠. 이것은 미국이 힘을 쓰지 못하는 이유이였고 이제는 러시아가 힘을 쓰는 이유에 대해서 말해보겠습니다.
아시다시피 러시아는 Cold War 즉 냉전을 미국과 함께 주도한 나라입니다. 간단히 말하면 미국과 러시아는 라이벌이였습니다. 오늘날에도 미국은 러시아를 매우 견제하고 있습니다. 군사적 견제가 그것 중 한가지인데요. 일단 MD와 NATO 회원국의 숫자를 늘리면서 러시아를 몰아 넣고 있죠.
1. MD는 미사일 디펜스로 사실상 러시아에게 선제공격도 가능한 프로젝트입니다. 한국에게 MD에 참여하라고 미국이 많이 설득했었죠 안했지만. 하여튼, MD 프로젝트로 인해 러시아와 중국을 향해 발사될 수 있는 미사일들이 점점 지구 곳곳에 배치되고 있습니다. 러시아는 당연히 반대하구있구요.
2. NATO는 그 결성 이유도 소련(붕괴전)군과 대등하게 힘을 유지하기위해서 인데 결론은 러시아와는 군사적으론 적(enemy)인 나라들입니다. 그리고 그루지야는 이 NATO에 가입하기 위해 안간힘을 써왔습니다. 이뒤에 내용은 제 주관적이기도하고 그렇게 알려진 의견입니다만 그루지야가 NATO회원국이 될 경우에는 일단 남오세티아는 독립을하기가 매우 힘들어 집니다. NATO회원국들은 서로서로 도와서 안전을 꾀하는 목적도 있기 때문이죠.
3. 2번에 이어서 NATO는 러시아의 군사적 적(enemy)이기 때문에 러시아는 절대로 NATO회원국이 러시아 옆에 생기는것을 원치 않습니다. 즉, 이번 전쟁을 통해서 러시아 주위에 NATO에 가입하려는 의지가 있는 나라들에게 무력시위로 그 의지를 꺽는 것과 동시에 그루지야의 NATO가입 야망을 꺽어버리는 것이죠. 만약 그루지야가 NATO회원국이라면 러시아는 그루지야와 전쟁을 일으키는데 엄청난 부담이 됩니다. NATO회원국들은 러시아가NATO회원국을 침공했기 때문에 그것을 방어한다는 구실로 러시아와 전쟁을 할수 있기 때문이고 그 회원국들은 미국,영국,프랑스 등 군사력이 만만치않기 때문이기도 합니다.
어떤 정책을 피고 어떤 외교가 벌어지든간에 전쟁은 더 이상 없고 오로지 평화만 있기를 빕니다 !
Now I will talk about why Russia can show the power.
As you know, Russia is the country that led the Cold War with America. Simply speaking, Russia and America were rivals. Today, America still holds Russia in check. Military check is one of them. America increases the number of MD and NATO members and pushes Russia away.
1. MD is missile defense and the project to attack Russia in advance. America persuaded Korea to participate in MD before. Due to the MD project, more places arrange missiles toward Russia and China.
2. The reason why NATO started was in order to keep the power equally with the Soviet Union. The conclusion is those are enemies with Russia in the military way. Georgia tried to join NATO. It might be just my own opinion. If Georgia will be a member of NATO, South Ossetia will have hard time to be independent.
3. NATO is the military enemy of Russia and therefore Russia doesn’t want the neighbor to be the member of NATO. Through the battle, Russia intends to show the power to the countries that try to join NATO. If Georgia becomes a member of NATO, having the war with Georgia will give the big burden to Russia. NATO members can attack Russia under the pretext of Russia’s attack to NATO and its members, America, England, and France, have strong military power.
I hope that there are no more wars and there is only peace!

author: Hyejin Kim


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Palestine: H Daboor at the Islamic University · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

Gazan blogger Nostalgia parodies the recent Egyptian comedy H Daboor in a critique of Islamist trends in Gaza today.

author: Ayesha Saldanha


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Palestine: Is literature in Gaza dead? · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

With the death of Mahmoud Darwish, the Arab world has mourned the loss of one of its greatest poets. However some Palestinians have been critical of Darwish. One Gazan blogger can't understand this, and he asks what has happened to literature and creativity in Gaza today.
In a post entitled ‘Is literature and poetry and art “haram” in Gaza?’, A Seagull from the Shore of Gaza says:
International literature and poetry belongs to all humanity, and is not the monopoly of a religion or political ideology or party. It should encapsulate the overall experience of the people or the emotional experience of an individual, expressing their inner feelings and emotions – of course using the appropriate linguistic and literary style, and reaching the hearts and minds of the audience.
As for the connection of Islam to Arabic poetry, we have the poet of the Prophet, Hassan bin Thabit. A great deal of Hassan’s poetry records events and situations and also the life of the Holy Prophet, as did the poetry of Ka'b bin Malik and Abdullah bin Rawahah and many others.
After examining a little of the history and background of Arabic literature, and the way literature can help people deal with and even transform their lives, Seagull turns to the situation in Gaza today:


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Peru: One Year After the Pisco Earthquake · Global Voices
Juan Arellano

August 15th marked the one year anniversary of the earthquake that struck southern Peru, specifically the region of Ica, Pisco and surrounding areas.  It is a common opinion that the reconstruction has progressed very little.  Much of the mainstream press also shares the same opinion that the government responded quickly at the beginning, but many promises were made that resulted in false expectations. [es] As a result, protests could be seen in these communities [es] calling for an account of the nearly one billion soles (Peruvian currency) that were invested in these areas.  Bloggers also provide their thoughts on the reconstruction or lack of reconstruction.
For the blogger Peruanista [es] things are very clear, if the government of Alan García cannot solve this problem, then it must be changed.
El responsable directo del abandono de las víctimas del terremoto en Perú, es increíblemente, el propio gobierno peruano, el cual recibió fondos de donaciones de gobiernos de otros países, organizaciones no gubernamentales, grupos de rescate internacionales y , sobretodo de peruanos en el exterior, quienes donaron dinero y bienes a través de los consulados peruanos. Estamos hablando de cientos de millones de dólares.
No hay excusa para que un gobierno que se jacta de crear una economía en progreso, con las reservas internacionales más altas de la historia peruana, y que protege tanto a los inversionistas extranjeros y las corporaciones multinacionales, no invierta en la reconstrucción de las ciudades peruanas. Simplemente no hay excusa. El presidente Alan García, un verdadero delincuente, ha pedido a estos pobladores que “dejen de quejarse y que reconstruyan sus poblados ellos mismos sin esperar la ayuda del gobierno.” Les ha llamado malagradecidos.
The ones directly responsible for the abandonment of the victims of the Peruvian earthquake, is incredibly, the Peruvian government, who received the donations from other countries, non-governmental organizations, international rescue groups, and above all, Peruvians abroad who donated money through the Peruvian consulates. We are talking about hundreds of millions of dollars.
There is no excuse for a government that boasts about creating a progressive economy, with the highest levels of international reserves in Peruvian history, and that protects foreign investment and multinational corporations, which does not invest in the reconstruction of Peruvian cities.  Simply there is no excuse.  President Alan García is a true criminal and has asked for the residents to, “stop complaining and to reconstruct their communities themselves without waiting for the help of the government.”  He called them ungrateful.
Susana Villarán writes about the efforts of everyday Peruvians, but how it was offset by the failure of government officials [es]:
Pocas veces nuestro país pudo constatar qué rápida fue y cómo permanece aún la respuesta ciudadana a la tragedia. Son personas particulares que fueron hasta el lugar, organizaron colectas, apadrinaron comunidades, pueblos, escuelas; empresas, ONG, movimientos de voluntarios juveniles como “Un techo para mi país” o las psicólogas y psicólogos así como artistas que trabajan atendiendo el stress pos traumático de los niños y niñas en las escuelas. No olvidemos a las y los médicos cubanos como a los bomberos españoles y también la gran movilización de nuestros compatriotas en el exterior y de los originarios de las comunidades afectadas en Lima, desde sus clubes provinciales y cofradías.
Quienes fallaron y lo siguen haciendo son las autoridades del gobierno nacional, regional y de los gobiernos locales. El protagonismo y la incapacidad de concertar están en el problema de origen que condenaba al fracaso la respuesta estatal desde el primer momento. Salvando excepciones, la ineficacia e ineficiencia, la lentitud de la reconstrucción, la negligencia, la corrupción e indiferencia, el protagonismo político y la incapacidad de dialogar y concertar han sido causantes de la pérdida de tiempo, de recursos, de oportunidades, del profundo desorden que golpea más aún a quienes tanto han perdido. Ofrecieron mucho, entregaron muy poco.
Few times in our country can we state that the citizen's response to the tragedy was fast and continuous.  Individuals went to the location, organized collections, sponsored communities, towns, schools; businesses, NGOs, youth volunteer movements, such as “A Roof for My Country” or the psychologists and artists working to attend to the post-traumatic stress suffered by the schoolchildren.  Let's not forget the Cuban doctors, Spanish firemen, as well as the grand mobilization of our countrymen abroad and those migrants from the affected communities in the provincial clubs and fraternities, who now living in Lima.
Those who failed continue to be the national, regional and local governments.  Protaganism and the incapacity to come together was the problem from the start for the state response from the very first moment.  With some exceptions, the inefficiency and ineffectiveness, the slow pace of reconstruction, negligence, corruption, indifference, political protaganism, and the incapacity to dialogue and come together were the cause of a waste of time, resources, opportunities, and profound disorder that hurts those that have lost so much.  They offered a lot, and provide very little.
Menos Canas [es] writes that we must remember those Peruvians that continue to suffer the effects of the earthquake [es]:
Nuestros amigos del sur padecen la resaca de un desastre natural que podría ya haber empezado a quedar en el recuerdo si la lentitud de ciertos personajes no fuera tan vergonzosa. El Congreso de la República ha canalizado recursos para la construcción de viviendas, pero ¿ya se construyeron? No. Entre la burocracia y la ineficiencia de muchos funcionarios sigue corriendo un reloj que a cada minuto se hace más pesado y a la vez más grave respecto a lo distante que parece encontrarse nuestro propio país.
Our friends in the south who are suffering the after effects of a natural disaster could have started to forget if the slowness of certain people wasn't so embarrassing.  The national Congress had channelled resources for the construction of housing, but were they constructed?  No.  Between the bureaucracy and the inefficiency of many public officials, the clock continues to run and each minute that passes it becomes more difficult and more serious with respect to the distance that our own country finds itself.
However, Desde el Tercer Piso [es] is hopeful in the midst of the hardships and governmental problems:
Y al mismo tiempo, la valentía que tienen los ciudadanos de las zonas afectadas para salir adelante en medio de la adversidad y la solidaridad de las personas que acuden a seguir ayudando me da la esperanza que aun no todo se encuentra perdido. Que la voz de los peruanos se puede hacer sentir. Espero el próximo año no escribir algo como esto, en medio de la decepción que me produce ver a cientos de compatriotas sin un lugar digno donde vivir. Espero que el próximo año pueda felicitar a los gobiernos locales, regionales y nacional por la tarea emprendida. Que pueda sentir que el Perú avanza de verdad y que no menospreciamos a la gente que falleció ni a quienes sobrevivieron. Como decía Vallejo, hay hermanos mucho por hacer.
At the same time, the bravery of the citizens from the affected areas to move ahead in the midst of the adversity and the solidarity of those that have joined to continue to help, gives me hope that all is not lost.  May the voices of Peruvians be heard. I hope that I don't write the same thing next year, in the middle of deception when I see hundreds of countrymen and women without a dignified place to live.  I hope next year that I can congratulate local, regional, and national governments for their undertaken task.  May Peru feel like it is truly progressing and that we do not undervalue neither those that died, nor those that survived.  As (Peruvian writer Cesar) Vallejo said, there are brothers, much to be done.
Finally Pepitas [es] poss a series of photos that shows the controversial party organized by the Government Palace [es]  practically on the anniversary of the Pisco earthquake. The newspaper La República also presents a special edition about in its Sunday supplement [es].

author: Juan Arellano


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Reasons for the Latvian-Georgian Friendship · Global Voices
Elia Varela Serra

Pēteris Cedriņš of Marginalia writes about the sympathy of the Baltic states in general and of Latvia in particular towards Georgia.


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Remembering a Childhood in Serbia · Global Voices
Elia Varela Serra

Daniel Durini, a Mexican-Serbian blogger, recalls his childhood (second part here) in Belgrade during the late 1970's and the 1980's in his blog Eslavos del Sur [Spanish]


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Serbia: Milorad Čavić’s Silver Medal · Global Voices
Elia Varela Serra

Swimmer Milorad Čavić celebrated in his blog the silver medal in 100 metres butterfly that he won on the 14th, coming in second to Michael Phelps by 1/100 of a second in the final which prompted a request for review by the Serbian Swimming Federation.


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Sri Lanka: A Georgia case?  · Global Voices
Rezwan

Lanka Page opines that the recent incident in Georgia can be a lesson for Sri Lanka: “like in 1987, there is every likelihood that India will intervene if we too try a “Georgia.”

author: Rezwan


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Angola: Endangered species caught and sold · Global Voices
Paula Góes

MESUMAJIKUKA [pt] publishes a picture of someone caught red handed by the camera with a  young sea turtle, caught on the coast Angola, in a car which was seen at Deolinda Rodrigues Road last August 14, 2008. According to the post, the Angolan guy also said that this was the second animal he caught at the request of some Chinese people with vehicle number plate GNR-B039, LD 50-88-AL and based in Viana.

author: Paula Góes


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Arabeyes: Third World War in the Making? · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

See Global Voices special coverage page on the South Ossetia crisis.
Bloggers in the Middle East are closely following the developments in Georgia, with some saying it could usher in World War Three. Here's a quick review of what bloggers in Yemen and Jordan are writing.
From Yemen, Omar Barsawad says a Third World War is probable – almost a century after the first. He explains:
Will NATO push on with its expansion? That would be reckless and extremely dangerous. As in both the first and second World Wars, accidentally – ‘one thing leads to another’ until it becomes too late to stop events. The First World War happened, accidentally, mainly because one part of Europe wanted to be the dominant power there; the Second One, planned, was for the same reasons, but Hitler too – wanted to settle old scores and expand. And both World Wars, in one way or the other – were about power and dominating resources; mainly oil.
“Hasn't Europe learnt enough from their history of the last Century?” asks Barsawad. His other questions are:
Hasn't enough suffering, destruction and horrors happened there for them to learn to live with and accommodate each other, rather than one part wanting to expand and dominate? NATO continuously preaches that every country should respect each others borders, and yet it is aggressively expanding; what kind of message does that send? If Russia or China act in the same way – extending and spreading their arms and missiles, would NATO quietly and passively accept that?
Barsawad concludes:
Rubbing Russia's nose more and more and pushing it further and further could accidentally lead to the unimaginable: the Third World War. Any body ready for that? Nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction which both sides posses have so far been deterrents, but for how long?
Meanwhile, “Where's Georgia?” asks Jordanian blogger Naseem Tarawnah after discovering that is has been wiped off the map – Google Map, that is.
When you’re my age and you read about wars and conflict in history books, everything always seems so formulaic and perhaps even a bit ancient. So I was surprised to see today, something that speaks a little more to my generation. Apparently, the Russian-invaded country Georgia that has been making headlines this month, has been wiped off the map of the world. Google maps that is.
Tarawnah then explains the reason why Georgia doesn't appear on the map:
With infrastructure being the first target of most conflicts, the search engine giant, Google, doesn’t want to be seen as helping either side with its mapping technology. The company has since removed all the details normally seen on Google maps of a country, that include roads, towns and cities in Georgia, as well as from the maps of neighboring countries Azerbaijan and Armenia
Fellow blogger Hareega, also from Jordan, uses the crisis as an opportunity to poke fun of US President George Bush, calling his geographical knowledge into question:
The war between Russia and Georgia has got ugly. When President Bush heard about Georgia being under heavy fire, he asked the citizens of Atlanta to hold on and keep hosting the Olympics the best they could.


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Bangladesh: Political slaves  · Global Voices
Rezwan

ABM Ashrafuzzaman writes in Ashraf's column that Bangladeshi political leaders need supporters or followers, but not slaves. ”These slaves blindly support their respective leaders, even if such leaders are grossly wrong, corrupt and unpatriotic. These slaves are mostly created by sycophants, and dalals (paid agents) employed by a leader in exchange of undue favor,” he explains.


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Bermuda: Peace Rally  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

FreshieBlog thinks that Bermuda's upcoming peace rally “will be a positive event”, but warns “that peace rallies won't be sufficient too stop the violence. Criminals need to know that they will be caught and prosecuted, and that requires police & prosecutors.”


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Brazil: The bronze is ours · Global Voices
Paula Góes

Making fun of the Brazilian athletes’ accomplishment in the Beijing Olympic Games, a new blog was created: Bronze Brasil 2008. “With the achievement of our fifth bronze medal, our dream of beating the Olympic record seems to be drawing close. There are only 5 medals. There are 6 days of games. The dream is possible. The bronze is ours.”


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China: Audience · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

A BBS thread at ifeng has a debate on the Chinese audiences’ performance, some criticized that Chinese audiences shouldn't have booed the Japanese team during the volleyball match. Some defended that cheering and booing in ball game match is normal.

author: Oiwan Lam


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China: Bird’s Nest’s Naming · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Imagethief doubts if China government is willing to give Bird's Nest's naming right to multinational corporate, such as coca cola.


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China: Chinese Students on Olympics · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Jin Hye-ji from Ohmynews interviewed several Chinese students from different communities on sensitive issues concerning Olympics, the opinions are very diverse.


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China: Don’t be Afraid of the 50 Cents · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Yan Yunfei recently faced a lot of internet bullying in his blog when he commented on Olympics. He wasn't sure whether the comments came from the 50 cents gang and urged other bloggers not to be afraid of the government leaded Internet opinion mob, as he believed in the power opinion market.


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China: Great pity for Liu’s Achilles tendon · Global Voices
Bob Chen

The national hero, world champion of the 110-metre hurdles in Athens Olympics, Liu Xiang, quitted the game dramatically this morning due to his inflamed tendon.
BEIJING (AP) — Defending Olympic champion Liu Xiang of China pulled out of the 110-meter hurdles Monday, walking away from the blocks after coming up lame during a false start.
Before the game was going to start, in blows of exclamations, Liu attempted to adjust himself by running over past 2 hurdles. But soon he stopped, bending his brows painfully. After another racer’s fall start and as the game’s going to start again, Liu quitted. The stadium burst into a sea of shock, regret and sorrow, then into silence.
Actually, the ominous sign has been spotted yesterday. Sun Haiping, Liuxiang’s coach, revealed that Liu’s heel was aching during the training on 16th. However, though Liu’s injury was confirmed, most Chinese tried to believe it’s simply a smoke bomb.
In Fanfou.com, the Chinese twitter, sea of comments emerged soon after Liu left his lane with a painful expression.
1-lin   11:56
这次奥运会没有什么比刘翔更让我心痛
Nothing in the 2008 Games could sting me more seriously than the pulling-out of Liu Xiang
阡陌   11:58
亿万人的心，被刘翔的退赛掏空了，没有刘翔的奥运会遗憾吗？没有刘翔的鸟巢会寂寞吗？
The hearts of millions of people were emptied by Liu Xiang’s withdrawal. Will the Olympics be a pity without Liu Xiang? Will the “bird nest” without Liu Xiang be lonely?
And now people found all the athletes appeared in Adidas’ lately advertisement were met with unexpected adversities and bad luck.
Mololo 12:19
阿迪达斯那奥运广告真是个无敌诅咒。
The Adidas Olympics commercial is really a super curse.
China’s women volleyball team, football player Zhengzhi, and now Liu Xiang, seemed to be all its victims.
Some blamed Liu Xiang like this:
海蓝 12:21
刘翔,你没倒在赛道上.却倒在了奥运精神下.
Liu Xiang, you didn’t fall on the race track, but failed under the Olympics spirit.
But 微笑綻放 rebutted as many agreed to:                     12:20
体育竞技本来就是这样，你ＴＭ一群什么都不懂的就只会怪别人，有本事你们上我看看。人家好你们就夸，人家伤了尽力了退出了，你们看金牌梦无望了就骂。你们干脆把奥运会改命叫抢金牌大赛好了。
That’s how the sport race is like! You these guys without a bit of knowledge know only how to blame others! You exclaimed when he excelled, but blamed when you see the dream of gold medal is lost. What about renaming the Olympics as a gold-medal-rob game?
But a netizen referred the withdrawal as a scheme
这一招实在是高
这几天我一直在想罗伯斯实力如何强劲,已经超过了刘翔,刘翔如何应对,如果输了(很大可能),商业价值必定大打折扣,人气肯定一落千丈,如果我是刘翔,该当如何?
谁知出现这种结果,这是刘翔所能做出并得到最大利益的结果,赢得了大家的同情,并保住了自己的人气,最重要的是,商业价值.
让人不能不佩服他身后的团队,实在是佩服(真心话,毕竟是同行)!
What a wonder plot it is!
I have been considering how strong Robles is in these days, much stronger than Liuxiang. And how should Liu deal with this? If he lost the game, very probably, then his commercial value would of course slump, as would his popularity. What should I do if I were him?
And the result today is what Liu can do to reach his max profit. He retained people’s compassion and his popularity, and the most important, commercial value.
I have to admire the team behind him.
And the hottest tickets of hurdle final were now on sale on the internet.
Whatever the voices are, there are always people standing firmly behind Liu.
小凤儿 said on Fanfou:
我们都应该有颗宽容的心，刘翔虽然退出北京奥运会，但他依然是我们心目中的冠军。
We should all have a lenient heart. Though he quits the Beijing Olympics, he’s still the champion in out hearts.

author: Bob Chen


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China: Liu Xiang is out and we are sad · Global Voices
John Kennedy

On Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang‘s completely unexpected withdrawal from a competition today, rapid-response blogger He Caitou posted simply this comment from another post on Baidu:
前天晚上作了一个梦，梦见刘翔召开新闻发布会，宣布因为伤病不得已决定退出本届奥运会，并向所有关心支持自己的朋友道歉。
很奇怪的一个梦，然后第二天就看到刘翔脚伤的报道，不知道这会不会是真的。
请保留此帖，勿删，虽然我也是刘翔的粉丝，也希望他能参加并且成功卫冕。


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China: Manufacturer’s Apprehension · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Shen yin from the mindmeter posted an interview with a local manufacturer talking about the difficult market condition that Chinese manufacturers are facing [zh].


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China: Minority Terrorist · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Michael from Two opposite end of China puts together news concerning bombings in Xinjiang and the Chinese official attitude towards minority.


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Cuba: Domestic Tourism  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“In the absence of tourist offices where a Cuban citizen can arrange – in Cuban pesos – an excursion in his own country, private resourcefulness has addressed this ‘market niche'”: Yoani Sanchez visits Soroa “on a trip coordinated by one of these emerging ‘tour operators'”.


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Cuba, U.S.A.: Fay Warning  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Kerosene lamps? Check. Gallons of water? Check. Transistor radio? Batteries? Check. Candles? Check. I'm not gonna kid you, folks, it's still scary”: Cuban diaspora blogger Ninety miles away…in another country readies himself for the possible impact of Tropical Storm Fay.


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Fiji: Methodist Church forgives military regime · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Methodist Church leaders have forgiven the military rulers of Fiji, as reported by Raw Fiji News. The military is asked to initiate a process that will restore democratic elections in Fiji.

author: Mong Palatino


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Flooding in Phnom Penh · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Piseth complains about the flooding in Phnom Penh and the health risks it brings to the community.


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Grenada: Carnival is Over  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Blah Bloh Blog‘s wide range of photos and video offers a comprehensive overview of Grenada's recently-concluded Carnival celebrations.


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Guyana: Poems of a Fat Black Woman  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Signifyin’ Guyana posts excerpts from Guyanese poet Grace Nichols’ “sexy little collection”, which “tell of a fat black woman's trials and tribulations, as well as her moments of triumph in a foreign land.”


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India: Self-made Olympic pride · Global Voices
Rezwan

Amit Varma of Indian Uncut reveals that Indian Olympics gold medal winner Abhinav Bindra got more support from his industrialist father than the Government for the preparations. He argues that instead of the Chinese state sponsored and controlled sports model, India should “lift enough people to prosperity, and the sporting laurels will roll in”.


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Indonesia: Battle of Aru Sea · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Indonesian blogger Bleu reviews the history of the Battle of Aru Sea, which is a heroic and historic episode in Indonesia.


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Jamaica: Woman Power!   · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Jamaica has done it again!  If there was any doubt after Usain Bolt's 100m Gold Medal that this Caribbean nation is a powerhouse of Track and Field, the female Jamaican sprinters made sure to underscore the point by placing first (Shelly-Ann Fraser) second (Kerron Stewart) and…second (Sherone Simpson) in the final of the Women's 100m in Beijing.
The timing could not have been better.  Sure, the stunning display came on the heels of Usain Bolt's comfortable trot to glory, but it also coincided with the celebration of the birthday of the island's first national hero, Marcus Garvey.
In keeping with the celebratory spirit, Hello World posts photos from the island's Independence Parade, focusing on a float called The Olympic Dream:
It was probably the most appropriate float in the parade given Jamaica's performance in the 100m sprints thus far, 2 golds, 2 silvers and lots of records broken/created.  We have nothing on China or Phelps’ winnings but as a small nation we have done pretty well for our self.
Jamaican bloggers would not argue with that.  Can a Jamaican Take Cali? says:
That girl, that girl Shelly-Ann…I love the sheer joy that she showed after winning the 100m, I could not stop chuckling. I love the exuberance of our winners, now the haters are coming out of the woodwork saying they lack class because of the celebrations – STUFF IT! I remember Carl Lewis sticking his hand in the air every time he passed his competitors and thought he had the win!  Rahtid, I love the braces just gleaming in all the pictures and love how happy both Fraser and Bolt were in their interviews.
He also feels vindicated that Jamaica “is finally getting its props in sprinting. Is ages now we thought we had some of the best sprinters and yet mysteriously the big countries with the extra cash and resources were always pulling things out.”  Cali goes on to quote ESPN commentators “responding with outrage to an American commenter suggesting that for Jamaicans to now be winning they must be doping”:
The first clean Olympics since the Cold War and now JAMAICA has finally been given a chance to shine.
The blogger also makes a point of saying he is “damn tired of this move”:
When a Jamaican running for Canada, Britain or America wins they are listed as the American champ, if they pop positive for anything they suddenly become “JAMAICAN BORN sprinter”…if you own them as champs own them as cheats, because we certainly do not shy away from our people!
Then came the controversy, with the Americans filing a protest for a perceived false start.  The protest was later rejected; the official results stood.  But the bitter taste left in Jamaicans’ mouths did not end there, thanks to the “Russia is not Jamaica” comment by The New Yorker‘s Michael Specter in analyzing the Georgia/South Ossetia crisis. Abeng News Magazine has this to say:
Some friends and colleagues were insulted by the Jamaican reference in the bashing of Bush on his ineptitude in dealing with Russia's incursion into Georgia. It doesn't make sense to take these insults personally anymore because they're handed out across the board by the US and its journalists. It's just as – and possibly even more – insulting to the Russians to suggest that they can now be treated as bigger children than Jamaica.
Trinidadian blogger Caribbean Lionesse thinks the best thing to do is just forget the controversy and savour the moment:
Can we enjoy that it was a Caribbean 1-2 in the men's 100m and then the Jamaican ladies gave us the 1-2-3 in the women's event?  And that little Shelly-Ann Fraser, the Olympic champion is just as cute as a button? Her exuberant reaction was so adorable!  Me personally, I'm ecstatic. As a Caribbean woman I am so very thrilled at our ascendancy, at these little rocks just showing the world the kind of heart and determination and talent we have.
Other Caribbean bloggers seemed to agree with that sentiment, as congratulations poured in for Jamaica once again.  Barbadian Pull! Push! says:
Jamaicans all over the world must be going crazy this weekend and rightly so!
…while Grenada's Blah Bloh Blog regards the Jamaican win as a triumph for the Caribbean:
Our athletes doing us proud! Yes – they is ours. All ah we claiming all ah dem!
She also hopes that the rest of the region “will join Grenada in supporting Randy Lewis’s quest for gold in the triple jump. Lewis is the current World Champion and “they” say he is expected to give Grenada it’s first ever Olympic medal *prays* Come on Randy!”
Abeni from St. Vincent and the Grenadines was rendered “pretty much speechless after watching the Jamaican trio demolish the 100 metres final”:
Something tells me the awe inspiring moments are not yet over.
Caribbean Beat Blog adds:
For all the cliches about laid back, slow-moving West Indians, it's a Jamaican man and Jamaican woman who have managed to outrun the best and fastest in the world to claim the titles as the fastest man and woman alive.  Jamaican athletes have made history this weekend.
They certainly have.  Jamaica has caused unparalleled excitement in the Caribbean, inspiring Prime Ministerial speeches, processions and now, poetry:
We cannot forget Lightning striking for the first time. But wait. Wha’ me a see?
Jamaican girls run and win one, two, three.
We wanted to make history and that we did for true.
When you look at the results you see we get one, two, two!
We see a tie for second, so we get one gold and two silver.
First time this happen? Yes, man, first time ever.
We want the anthem played three times.
We want to bawl and shed tears.
When the Jamaican flag rises up.
We want to see it fly for years.


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Japan: Foreign Population · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Adam from Mutant frog blogs about the increase of foreign population on Japan society.


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Japan: To Japanese women, WaiWai was sexual harassment · Global Voices
Chris Salzberg

Since it exploded on the Japanese Internet less than two months ago, the scandal at Mainichi surrounding the newspaper's former weekly English-language column “WaiWai” has taken on epic proportions in the Japanese media industry. Published for many years on the English version of their website (Mainichi Daily News), WaiWai featured some of the most scandalous (and largely fabricated) articles from Japan's weekly tabloids, translated to English with added “embellishments” by Australian editor Ryann Connell. Over the years WaiWai built up a faithful following of readers from across the world, all the while apparently little known among ordinary Japanese, largely for the reason that WaiWai did not appear in the Japanese version of the newspaper.
This situation changed starting in April of this year, when WaiWai crossed the language barrier (apparently via a post by blogger mozu [ja]) and was picked up on 2ch [Japan's largest bulletin board], where it sparked a huge reaction, among other things inspiring the creation of two sites [ja] dedicated to documenting its track record. Although Mainichi issued an official apology on June 25th — responding to sentiment among many in Japan that WaiWai was degrading the country's image abroad — the company later announced that it would sue people on 2ch, adding fuel to the flames. More recently, it was discovered that the WaiWai history stretches back further than the 9 years claimed by Mainichi, adding further insult to injury among Mainichi's critics. Meanwhile, the range of targets has recently broadened with Japan Times now also under fire [ja] for its publication of “Tokyo Confidential“, a column in much the same vein as WaiWai.
While much has been written about the scandal of WaiWai and its deeper implications, the duration and intensity of attacks on one of Japan's largest national newspapers has surprised almost everybody. The third part (see also parts one [ja] and two [ja]) in a series of blog entries by ENOTECH consulting CEO and blogger Michi Kaifu (海部美知), posted at her blog Tech Mom from Silicon Valley on August 13th, provides a possible hint at what it is that is driving the longevity of the anti-WaiWai campaign.
In the post, titled “Acknowledgment that the problems at Mainichi are a problem of sexual harassment” [毎日新聞問題は「セクハラ問題」であるとの認識], she writes:
毎日新聞内で「これほど事件が長引くのは、陰で糸を引いている黒幕がいるからでは」との陰謀説がささやかれている、というネット記事もあるようだが、そう、いると私は思う。誰かというと、「主婦」である。
一連の変態記事にはいろいろあるが、一番代表的なものとしてよく挙げられるのが、「母親と息子」の話である。「おまえのかーちゃん、でべそ」という昭和古典の言いまわしがあるが、英語で「おまえのかーちゃん」をけなす言葉というのは、「でべそ」をはるかに上回るインパクトをもつ、最も下品で相手の怒りを誘うけんか用語である。「日本の母親というのは、すべからくこのようにアホで淫乱である」かのごとく、英語で書かれて世界に発信されては、けんかを売られたのと同じ。これが、個人のブログやアダルトサイトならまだ無視のしようがあるが、日本でかつては「三大紙」と言われた新聞。それも、これ一回ではない。他にも、いっぱいいっぱい、気持ちの悪い記事が並んでいる。おかあさんたちが、怒らないわけはない。
念のためここで情報を開示しておくと、私自身も、息子をもつ日本人の母親である。この問題に対して、怒っている男性は、おもに「（実際にはありもしない）日本の恥を英語で撒き散らした」ことがポイントだと思うが、女性の場合、これに「記事の中身そのもに対し、吐き気がするほどの生理的嫌悪感と、自分たちを直接侮辱されたような怒り」を覚えるという点が上乗せされるだろう。それは、私も同じである。
まとめサイトによると、事件の初期の頃、火種となった問題記事に対して、不快であるとして毎日に抗議のメールを送ったのは女性であった。女性にとってはきわめて不快な内容の記事なのだから、たとえ直接相手に触ったり脅したりしていなくても、職場に女性のヌードポスターを貼ったらセクハラ、というのと同じレベルのセクハラ行為なのだ。毎日はこれを無視したわけだが、それは女性から見れば「まー、いーじゃないの、○○チャン、こんなことぐらいで騒ぐと、お嫁にいけなくなるよー。わはは。」などとのたまう「セクハラに無頓着なオジサン」という構図に見える。
抗議行動が盛り上がったのは、２ちゃんねるの中でも「既婚女性板」*1というものらしい。また、今回、毎日の公表した自己調査の結果が間違っていた、という 11年前の新聞記事という物証を図書館のマイクロフィルムから探し出してきたのも、この板の住人だそうで、すなわち「主婦」だろう。*2 *3 毎日新聞に広告を掲載している、数多くの日用品・食品・自動車・保険・携帯電話・書籍・・・などなどの会社の大事なお客様であり、家庭の財布の紐をにぎっている「主婦」なのである。
毎日の「君臨派」の頭の中では、広告スポンサー企業に電凸している人々は、「ニートのキモヲタ男」のイメージじゃないかという気がするのだが、実はその実態は「奥様方」なんじゃないだろうか。少なくとも、相当の数の「女性」「お母さん」たちが本気で怒っていて、本当にダメージのある行動をしているのはこの方たちなんじゃないか、と私には思える。*4
そして、毎日新聞の「お詫び」文面を読む限り、「日本の恥を・・・」という点については一応言及して謝っているけれど、世のお母さんや女性たちに対し、「きわめて恥ずべきセクハラ行為を行った」という認識をもって、それを真摯に詫びているようには読めない。現在に至るまでの経緯を見ても、もっぱら「ネット上の『祭り』に対する対応」ばかりを気にして、そもそもの問題は「+自分の会社の男尊女卑的セクハラ意識・体制から発したものである+」というコトの本質を全く反省していないように見える。相変わらず、「英語で書いたのと、ちょっと下品だったのは悪かったけどねー。まー、ジョークだからさ、大目にみてや。わはは。」と言っているように聞こえる。だから、彼女たちの怒りは収まらない。
この件は「ネットと旧メディア」構図でもあると同時に、伝統的な「セクハラ問題」でもあると思う。一昨日書いたように、普通の企業では、自社で「セクハラ問題」が起きたら、どれほどメディアに叩かれるかを骨身にしみて知っている。その意味でも、伝統的な「メディア・リスク」問題でもある。確かに、ネットがなければここまで暴かれることはなかっただろうし、過去のメディア・リスクとは対応も違わなければならない。しかし普通の企業も、既存メディアだけでなく、「ねらー」による「祭り」のリスクとも日々戦っている。ソニーが「ヤラセブログ」でひどい目にあったのは記憶に新しい。置かれた環境は、毎日だけが特別ではない。繰り返すが、問題の根本は、「普通の企業としての常識」というところにある、と思うのだ。
この件で震え上がっている他の既存メディアの方々に、私から一つアドバイスできることがあるとしたら、「もっと女性を幹部に登用しなさい」、あるいは少なくとも「社内で女性の意見に耳を傾けなさい」ということだろう。（毎日の「君臨派」の皆様から見ると、ブロガーである私は「あの連中」の一人であり、かついまや敵となった主婦の一人でもあるから、聞いてもらえないだろうけれど。）他にもたくさんある教訓の一つ、として。
Notes:
*1：略称「鬼女」板。
*2：もちろん、匿名なので主婦を騙っているだけかもしれないが。
*3：別のソースでは「毒女」＝独身女性の板、との情報もあり。
*4：まとめWikiでは、電凸実行者の性別はわからないので、この点は私の推測である。
For those who can read Japanese and are looking for more background on the WaiWai affair, be sure to check out the two-part series of blog posts by former Mainichi journalist Toshinao Sasaki posted at CNET Japan: part 1 [ja] and part 2 [ja].
Update: There's an earlier blog entry on this topic at Fusou Note which I missed in writing this post, highly recommended.
Thanks to Taku Nakajima for the suggestion to translate this article.

author: Chris Salzberg


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Khmer Humer · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Words & Pictures uploads a Khmer Humer. In other countries, a Humer is a luxury car. In Cambodia it is used for ice delivery.


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Musharraf resigns · Global Voices
Rezwan

All Things Pakistan reports that Gen. Pervez Musharraf, the president of Pakistan has announced his resignation in a televised speech.  His nine year long rule ended facing an impeachment and an ultimatum of the politicians. The Blog also discusses what awaits Pakistan after his resignation.


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Pakistan: Safe exit for Musharraf?  · Global Voices
Rezwan

Chowrangi blog questions: “why Mr. Pervez Musharraf is being provided with the opportunity of safe exit?”
Following the resignation of Pakistan's president Gen. Pervez Musharraf The Teaath Mastro warns that “if its a safe exit for Musharraf today there will be a safe entry for another dictator tomorrow.”


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Philippines as a Federal State · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Iloilo City Boy dissects the proposal to amend the constitution which will make the Philippines a federal republic. Carlo Ople believes it is part of a ploy to extend the term of the incumbent president.


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Philippines: Rebels invade remote towns · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

A Filipino doctor-blogger reports that two municipalities in a southern Philippine province were invaded by rebels: “School has been torched, houses are burning. People there are racing to the coasts for protection. A steady stream of refugees is being observed from the checkpoint. This is war.”


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Poland: Weightlifter Makes Tibet Protest · Global Voices
Elia Varela Serra

Tybet Watch in Poland reports that Polish weightlifter Szymon Kołecki, who won a silver medal in yesterday's competition at the Beijing Olympics, shaved his head in a gesture of solidarity with the Tibetan monks.


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Russia: Dmitry Solovyov’s Case · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Oleg Kozlovsky writes about the case of Dmitry Soloviev, an opposition activist from Kemerovo region, “accused of ‘inciting hatred, hostility and degrading’ the police and FSB by posting several entries in his LiveJournal blog.”

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Russia, Georgia: Coverage of the Conflict · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Lyndon of Scraps of Moscow reviews coverage of the Russian-Georgian conflict and lists some online resources.


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Russia, Georgia: Gia Jandieri’s Notes at Andrei Illarionov’s Blog · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

LJ user aillarionov – Andrei Illarionov, former economic policy adviser to Vladimir Putin – has posted a detailed “Timeline of Events in the Russians Invasion & Occupation of Georgia” (Aug. 1 – 16, 2008), sent to him by Gia Jandieri, vice president of the New Economic School – Georgia. Illarionov writes in the intro note (RUS) to the English-language chronicle: “Gia Jandieri […] is a profound thinker and a very decent person. Since the war began, he's been taking notes on what's going on. He has sent some of them to me. The official Russian version is well-known. It's useful to learn a different point of view.”


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Silver medal for Malaysia’s badminton star · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Malaysian badminton player Lee Chong Wei wins the silver medal in the Beijing Olympics. Malaysian bloggers are proud of him.  This is Malaysia's first medal in 12 years.


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Singapore wins a silver medal · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The women's table tennis team of Singapore has clinched a silver medal in the Beijing Olympics. It is the nation’s first Olympic medal in 48 years. Wilfrid Wong is ecstatic.


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Slovakia: Measuring Olympic Medals · Global Voices
Elia Varela Serra

Margarete of The foreigner's guide to living in Slovakia calculates Slovakia's number of Olympic medals per capita that Slovakia, ranking 10th in a list headed by Slovenia.


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Thailand: Expats and Olympics · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The Lost Boy from Thailand poses a good question: “Who do expats cheer for in the Olympic games? Is it with their country of birth or their country of residence?”


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The Balkans: Judge Alphonse Orie · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

East Ethnia explains why, according to “several lawyers,” “ICTY judge Alphonse Orie should not preside over the trial of Radovan Karadžić.”


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Trinidad & Tobago: Dengue Meggie?  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Attillah Springer refers to a photo of the Minister of Health “looking for all intents and purposes like he’s giving the people of Trinidad and Tobago a great big meggie”, and wonders “if the meg means that he was only kicksing about there not being a dengue outbreak or that Trinbagonians deserve a big meggie for thinking they deserve a Minister of Health who actually has a clue.”  Note: Attillah explains what a “meggie” is here.


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Trinidad & Tobago: Regional Integration?  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Trinidad and Tobago would seek economic integration by 2011, and political integration by 2013, with any or all of the nine members of the Organisation of East Caribbean States”: Notes from Port of Spain is astounded by the news, saying: “Nobody even knew this was under discussion. It's exactly the sort of process which will ensure that the scheme doesn't work: policy announced from the top to a cynical population without even being properly thought out.”


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Turkey: Bloggers Banning Themselves? · Global Voices
Deborah Ann Dilley

If you are a long-time follower of the Turkish blogosphere you will have undoubtedly heard about the Turkish ban on WordPress….and the periodic bans on YouTube, and on the social-networking widget site Slide, oh..and now on Dailymotion as well.  I think that is all.. Isn't it? It is hard to keep track now-a-days and frustrating.  Turkish bloggers feel the same way too, and are protesting the constant banning of sites by voluntarily banning their own.
So how are Turkish bloggers protesting these periodic bans on the internet? By putting the following up on their website: Bu siteye erişim kendi kararıyla engellenmiştir which translates roughly into “This site is blocked by [the author's] own choice”.
This protest is to last until Wednesday August 20th.  And of course, this isn't an issue that many are writing about, just participating.  The anafikir blog [tr] has a separate page where you can find the code to convert your website to the “blocked” page and a running list of sites that are participating. Several Turkish media sites are covering the protests and providing links to forum groups and Facebook sites. Techcrunch gives a history of the block as they have observed it:
The problem has gotten so bad that Turkish blogs are now banning themselves in protest. The fake bans started with Firat Yildiz, who put this message up on his blog[…]Then another Turkish blogger, Selim Yoruk, created this page with a piece of code that lets any blogger easily add the same message to his homepage. Nearly 200 Turkish blogs have (temporarily) shut themselves down in this manner. The point is to show Turkish Web surfers what the Internet would look like if the censorship continues unabated.
Turkish blog Metroblogging:Istanbul is supporting the ban by advertising it and encouraging dialog:
After the ban of many a video streaming websites by the Turkish government, bloggers decided to take the matter into their own hands by protesting the Chinese style censorship going on. We were getting used to the void left by YouTube when suddenly, Dailymotion, another video streaming website got banned also. […] Show us your support by leaving a comment and having a whinge with us about the whole situation :)
It is too early to predict if the protest will have any effect, however, expat blogger located in Turkey, SortiPreneur had the following to say about the situation:
The sites being shut down is a problem, and I am glad there's a voice being raised in protest.  However, I think the Turkish internet community needs to address the issue with more mature moves in parallel.
The sites are shut down not as censorship, but as a result of court decisions.  This is not dissimilar to Napster being shut down in the U.S.  And, contrary to some of the commentary on blogs, not all bans have to do with insults to Ataturk (although a few of the bans are for those insults, due to the fact that it's illegal to insult Ataturk in Turkey) , but are a result of civil libel suits by private individuals.  In other words, the site bans are in accordance with the legal system here.  BTW, I am not saying I agree with any of the particular laws, but I don't categorically have a problem with a system where laws are being enforced.
The primary problem I see is the lack of understanding Turkish courts have about the internet, and especially about user-generated content.  It seems to be that there needs to be specialized courts designated as venues for online content related prosecution.
Having commented on the problem, let me point out the role (or lack thereof) of Turkish NGOs that have the responsibility to lobby on behalf of the internet industry.
Is this the way to concretely address censorship in Turkey? Or are there other possibilities as SortiPreneur suggests?  We invite you to weigh on this protest.

author: Deborah Ann Dilley


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Afghanistan: Political Opposition Rally in Badakshan · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Azar Balkhi reports on another rally of the emerging political opposition in Afghanistan that unites around Dr. Pedram, the leader of National Congress Party of Afghanistan.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Afghanistan: Remembering The Bravest American Woman · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Azar Balkhi publishes a remembrance post devoted to Nicole Dial, an American woman aid worker, one of three western females who were gunned down by the Talibans in Afganistan on August 13th.


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Afghanistan: Towards a Critical Situation · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Nasim Fekrat opines that ecurity situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated rapidly in the recent days after the Taliban insurgents’ rocket attack on Kabul airport.


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Bangladesh: Is SAARC a paper tiger?  · Global Voices
Rezwan

Ahmede Hussain of Black and Gray writes on the recently concluded South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) summit in Colombo and comments, “SAARC leadership must show brinkmanship to make the region an economic powerhouse.”


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Barbados: Environmental Management  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“We don’t have much to sell to the tourists on this island except our natural beauty, and lately that beauty is becoming difficult to see with walls of condos blocking the seaview and garbage piles taking care of the rest of the island”: Taking a cue from Brazil, Barbados Free Press wonders whether the island should ban the use of Tetra-Pak containers.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Bhutan: Reduced Maternity Leave? · Global Voices
Rezwan

Recently Bhutan government has proposed reduction of maternity leave from 3 months to 45 days only in a draft revision of the labor act. Tshokey in Kuzu Bhutan weblog builds a case against the reduction stating why the leave is important for the newborn and the mother and what the international norms are.


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Call for video journalists for You Tube Contest · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

You Tube's Citizen News channel has released a video promo for an upcoming citizen journalism contest. They will be receiving videos of less than 3 minutes in length, in English, of a video profile about someone in your community you believe should be known by the rest of the world. The prizes and other information will be released in September. Following, the video invitation to participate:
As a tip for citizen journalists in communities where English isn't the native language, using voice-overs or subtitling interviews in English (DotSub is a great service for subtitling) might be a way to make your content eligible for the contest. Let's wait and see until more information is released on conditions and instructions, although it has already been cleared up in the comments that all YouTube users older than 13 years of age can participate.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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China: India-US nuclear deal · Global Voices
John Kennedy

While anticipating a question regarding China in Katie Couric's upcoming interview of American presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and John McCain, Out Of The Way blogger Ellaconic has instead opted to look toward India and a less-observed issue, and presents a lot of background which led up to the recently-approved India-US nuclear partnership deal.

author: John Kennedy


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China: Liu Xiang is after all still a hero · Global Voices
John Kennedy

“There are heroes in this world, but there are no supermen.  And the hero is not necessarily the person who wins the gold medal.” My1510‘s Rose Luqiu looks at the psychology of Liu's withdrawal, both from the perspective of athlete and audience: Liu Xiang and the Media, translated by Roland Soong at EastSouthWestNorth.


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China: Photos of empty seats and Beijing streets · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Wandering Light photoblogger Kevin German is in Beijing attending the Olympics, looking closely at ticket scalpers and empty seats and writing very poignant posts about the city, but the photos he's been taking, wow!


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Costa Rica: Cancer Patient Update · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

The anonymous cancer patient from Costa Rica that has been documenting his illness at Diario de Un Enfermo de Cáncer [es] updates his readers after his recent surgery, which indicated that doctors found the cancer early enough to start preventative treatment, which was a relief to him and his family.

author: Eduardo Avila


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Dominica: Bring Down The River  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“It's the rivers that set Dominica apart”: Steve's Dominica explains.


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Dominican Republic: Overview of Twitter · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Claudia Chez of My 2 K Cents [es] provides an overview of the 231 Dominican users of Twitter.  Approximately 45% have their own blogs or other personal pages.


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Egypt: Death of Three Arab Cultural Icons · Global Voices
Eman AbdElRahman

The Arab world lost three of its cultural icons in the spam of a month. They are Egyptians philosopher Dr Abdel Wahab El Miseiri and film maker Youssef Chahine and Palestinian poet Mahmood Darwish. Egyptian Blogger, ElGharep, or The Stranger, reflects on the loss in this post [Ar].
He adds:

author: Eman AbdElRahman


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Georgia, Russia: Feeding Looters and Refugees · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

See Global Voices special coverage page on the South Ossetia crisis.
A number of Tbilisi residents gathered in front of the Russian embassy Saturday for a protest prank against looting. LJ user oleg-panfilov posted photos and wrote this (RUS) about the initiative:
[…] To the Russian embassy in Tbilisi they brought old refrigerators, toilets, rolls of toilet paper, irons, bottles of vodka, forks and spoons, clothes and other objects that [looters from the Russian army] took interest in during their visits to private houses of Georgians, state institutions, military bases and army barracks.
People are coming up to have a closer look, shake their heads, laugh. Cars that are passing by are honking…
[six photos]
Tbilisi-based LJ user tony-geo wrote critically (RUS) about the stunt:
“Let's Feed the Russian Army” Action
The action itself is, of course, a powerful PR weapon. But only as long as many Russians get to know about it. I suspect, however, that neither [Vremya news show on Channel 1], nor [Vesti news show on RTR] are going to cover this action.
Here's what I mean. A Russian woman, mother of a Georgian officer, horrified, says that her mother in [Kaliningrad] has no idea whatsoever of what's going on in Georgia and thinks that the Georgian army is still attacking Tskhinvali, which is being courageously defended by the Soviet army. Thank God, she hasn't put a curse on her grandson, who is killing Russian soldiers in that Tskhinvali.
I confirm this report. I talked to my sister in Russia yesterday. Formally, my sister is Georgian, but she was born and grew up in Russia, just like myself, and has only spent a total of a few weeks in Georgia in the 30 years of her life. But she kept her Georgian maiden name when she got married […]. Anyway, she's also clueless about what's going on. Most ordinary people do not use the internet and satellite TV to get reliable news – they are watching what the [Russian state-owned channels] are showing. So why should it be surprising that this majority firmly believes that the Russian troops have not stepped outside Tskhinvali […]?
But this isn't my point. In a kindergarten [in one of Tbilisi's neighborhoods], there are 110 refugee families with lots of children. Social aid hasn't made it there. They put them there and that's it, if there's time – we'll help you. At this kindergarten, unlike at the school in the same area, there are children's beds at least. Most people sleep on the floor. There are no blankets and mattresses. They eat what they can buy on the money they've got left. As you understand, they don't have much money left. Yesterday, food was delivered just once to this kindergarten. Stale bread. For 110 families – seven kilos of sugar.
Last night, I took a sack with children's clothes, which I had planned to take to the central donation point […], to this kindergarten. We (along with my neighbors) also took 20 kilos of sugar and one and a half kilo of butter there. Today I've brought them fruit, milk, [matsoni] and diapers.
Georgians, damn it, enough of the information war. Look out of the window, there are kindergartens and schools packed with refugees out there. First, take what you can to them, and then go to the Russian embassy. […]


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Guyana: Carifesta Hopes  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“As I make my way there very conscious of Guyana's problems, and still very irritated by the lack of information available about Carifesta goings-on, I nevertheless will take every opportunity offered to revel in the arts”: Signifyin’ Guyana thinks the regional festival means more than political grandstanding.


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Bahamas, Guyana: Regional Travel  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

After traveling for an astounding 14 hours to get to Guyana for the Carifesta celebrations, Bahamian blogger Nicolette Bethel says: “The biggest barrier to Caribbean integration is the difficulty of moving around in the region.”


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Haiti: Future of Film  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“It would be impossible to understand Haiti without knowing its music, art, and dance”: Haiti Innovation thinks that film-making should be no different and has high hopes for Haitian cinema.


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Hong Kong: City of Tomorrow · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Hong Kong magazine has a feature on various development projects in Hong Kong in the coming decade.


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Hong Kong: Fireman · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Recently two Fire fighters died in a fire accident, a fireman blogger pointed out that the fire teams have been suffering from inadequate facilities and staffs back up that puts their life at risk.


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India: Chengara land struggle  · Global Voices
Rezwan

Sudeep's Diary analyzes the ongoing struggle for land in Chengara, Pathnamtitta district, Kerala by landless Dalits and Adviasis (indigenous people) and informs that “women are being abducted and raped, and men kidnapped in an attempt to kill the struggle”.


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Japan: Bathhouse Culture · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Verena from Pingmag has written a feature about Japanese bathhouse culture.


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Japan: Intangible Cultural Heritage · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Ampontan blogs about the nomination of 14 cultural expressions by the Agency of Cultural Affair as Intangible Cultural Heritage. One of the items is chakkirako.


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Japan: Yasukuni Shrine on August 15th  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

James from Japan Probe has a sum-up on the demonstration at Yasukuni Shrine on August 15, the anniversary of Japan’s defeat in the Pacific War.


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Kazakhstan: British ex-premier’s son served Kazakh oilmen · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Zhanna Zhukova reviews allegations that Sir Mark Thatcher, son of the British ex-prime-minister Margaret Thatcher, was hired by a private Kazakh oil company to lobby for its interests and to enhance Kazakhstan’s image abroad.


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Kazakhstan: Olympic Blogwatch · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

The Beijing Olympics have moved political debates in the Kazakh blogosphere to the background.
Alim Atenbek is upset with the uniform of the Kazakhstani team [ru]:
Officials always want to make a buck on everything, and the Olympiad is not an exclusion. The government allocated 68 milion tenge for 226 kits – or 2,500 US dollars for each – but eventually the quality of fabric and tailoring was so bad that they had to remake it hastily. The tender for sale of tours to Beijing Olympics was very dubious too – a barely known tourist firm won it.
KZBlog also notes poor quality of the uniform, saying that
“the blazers have huge shoulder pads that make all the athletes look like little kids wearing Daddy’s business suits. And the orange skirts and little hats are way too bright on their own. The combination of white, bright blue and bright orange is a little hard to take!”
Mantrov-kz posts a list of money awards, announced by the government of Kazakhstan for the medalists (gold medal is worth 250,000 dollars), and marks out that the Azerbaijani president promised $720,000 for each medal won by his sportsmen: “Here we have already lost”, he notes [ru]. However, the overall performance of the Kazakh team is pretty good – as of now 8 medals is already in the Kazakhstan's “piggy bank”. This amount is the same to the result of Kazakhstan on the Athenes Olympics. Wondernews found out a curious thing [ru]:
If the CIS republics performed as a single “soviet” team, they would have won the first place by the amount of medals in Beijing!
Meanwhile, epolet, a prominent political blogger in Kazakhstan, could not resist the temptation to draw attention to the political component [ru]:
All presidents of the Central Asian countries (Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, Karimov of Uzbekistan, akiyev of Kyrgyzstan, Berdymukhamedov of Turkmenistan and Rakhmon of Tajikistan) have come to Beijing to watch the opening ceremony. Five countries were living without their presidents these days.
Cross-posted on neweurasia.


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Kyrgyzstan: Incident in the Prison · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Elena publishes official information about the incident in a prison where 2 prison officials were killed by convicts in Kyrgyzstan.


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Kyrgyzstan: Senators, Breakfast and Weapons · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Patrick Frost reviews the visit U.S. of Senate Majority leader Harry Reid and four other senators to Kyrgyzstan.


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Kyrgyzstan: Uzbek language TV channels are at a risk of closure in Kyrgyzstan · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Tolkun writes about the new language regulations for broadcast mass media in Kyrgyzstan and its possible effects on Uzbek language media of the country.


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Lebanon: The Beijing Olympics · Global Voices
Nash Suleiman

Lebanon presence in the Beijing Olympics might be in small numbers, but it is interesting to note that the Lebanese athletes were only absent once since 1948. Ajnabiya  gives us a refreshing overview on the Lebanon's participation in this year's event in her latest post.

author: Nash Suleiman


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Lebanon: Waste water treatment  · Global Voices
Nash Suleiman

While the political situation in Lebanon is undeniably taking over the media’s focus, blogger Rami at Land and People turns his attention to a critical and rarely addressed issue: Waste water treatment.


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Mongolia: For second time, oil prices rise for Mongolians · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

RML reports that, as in the rest of the world, the cost of petroleum products in Mongolia, which buys gasoline from from Russia, is rising steadily.


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Morocco: An American Experience · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

Hicham, who just returned from a teacher training in the United States, shares his experience living in America.

author: Jillian C. York


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Morocco: Bus Crash Kills 8, Injures 40 · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

The View From Fez shares the sad story of a recent bus crash in Morocco in which 8 passengers were killed, and forty more were injured.


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Nepal: A new Prime Minister  · Global Voices
Rezwan

Kathmundu Speaks on the new Nepali Prime Minister, the Maoist leader Prachanda (Pushpa Kamal Dahal): “I'd be really happy if he fulfills his promises. But there's much to be done besides politics.”


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North Africa: Bringing Home the Medals · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

In the run up to the 2008 Olympic Games, there was much speculation on how the Middle East and North Africa would fare.  Although Turkey is the only Middle Eastern country to medal thus far (in athletics, weightlifting, and Greco-Roman wrestling), North Africa is enjoying great success.  So far, Egypt's Hesham Mesbah and Algeria's Soraya Haddad and Amar Benikhlef have all medaled in Judo (bronze, bronze, and silver, respectively), Morocco's Hasna Benhassi took home a bronze in the women's 800m dash, and Tunisian swimmer Oussama Mellouli scored gold in the men's 1500m freestyle.
The official Tunisia.com blog congratulated Mellouli on taking home Tunisia's first gold medal in 40 years:
Congratulations to Oussama Mellouli who dug in when it counted to beat the legendary Grant Hackett over the 1500 meters swim in the games.
In what is a tough event Oussama beat the odds and delivered the first gold for over 40 years!
Algeria.com details Algeria's Olympic history, shares the stats so far, and gives a bit of encouragement:
It is hoped that between the track athletes and the boxers that Algeria will be able to add a few more medals to their collection, and walk away from another successful Olympic Games. Algeria has shown their ability to be worthy competitors and it seems that every year they are growing in strength and diversity.
Morocco's The View from Fez shared the exciting news of Hasna Benhassi's bronze medal, Morocco's first in Beijing, praising the runner for her success:
Benhassi was already among the greatest Moroccan women athletes in history even before her silver medal 800m performances in the Athens Olympics and the World Championships in Helsinki in 2005 and Osaka in 2007. She had won gold at 800m in the 2000 African Championships and at 1500m in the 2001 World Indoor Championships in Lisbon, becoming only the second female Moroccan athlete, after Nezha Bidouane, to win a World Championship title. But she has remained very much in the shadow of her brilliant compatriot, Hicham El Guerrouj.
Although Libya has not yet won a medal, its bloggers have been talking about the Olympics.  Anglo-Libyan blogged the opening ceremonies and discussed swimmer Asmahan (Mercedes) Farhat‘s first race:
Yesterday I watched the swimming heats on BBC but they never showed the  100-meter breaststroke that Asmahan Farhat took part in, the picture on the left is Asmahan getting ready for her swim, she did not do that well although she did manage to break her own record but she enjoyed taking part, you can read her blog entry, it was funny reading how she was dressed in an east Libyan costume by old ladies, to me this is the best and most beautiful Libyan costume.
Farhat, a Libyan-American competing for Libya, wrote a blog post for her local U.S. newspaper about participating in the Olympics, and said this about getting to warm up in the same lane as Michael Phelps:
During warm up I got to swim in his lane. That's right, right next to him and I will honestly say that nothing makes you swim faster than when Michael Phelps is swimming behind you and you don't want to get in his way!
When he swims past you, you can feel the power that he pushes the water with and how smooth he moves in the water. Most swimmers I've swam in a lane with you can feel them fighting the water and the waves are choppy, but when he swims next to you there are barely any forceful waves.
It is unbelievable, it's almost like the waters moving with him. It was the most memorable warm-up swim I've ever swam for sure!
Although bloggers are proud of what their countrymen have accomplished, one blogger feels that Arab countries could do more.  Musings of a Proud Arab posted on the eighth Olympic day, frustrated by the lack of Arab medalists.  The Jordanian blogger, who lives in the UAE, encourages Arab countries to unite for the gold:
We should not be there just to participate for our national flags to fly within the Olympic Village and in the Parade of Nations. This got me thinking and I want to share a solution with you; have ALL of the 22 Arab countries contribute half of their budgets to a collective consolidated budget that will be used as a Regional Trial to choose the BEST ARAB ATHLETES and train them to bring us gold.There are several reasons for this; 1) the Arab common person is united in their support of Arabs in the Olympics as it reflects on all of us (where we are really united), 2) it allows the countries to still have their symbolic participation in the Olympics (with half their budget), and 3) it will derive the athletes of the poor excuse that I did not perform because I did not have the support, especially financial from my National Olympic Committee.After all, the Arab countries combined have the same population of the United States. And we never hear complaints from them that on there are too many Californians with their Olympic athletes and not a single Alaskan!So, will this be an ideal or can the League of Arab States seriously work on achieving it from 2009? As a corporate person, I would place 12 gold medals as our target for 2012 London Olympics!


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Olympic Hijab Style · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

British blog Hijab Style shares photographs of Olympians who wear hijab, including Bahrain's Ruqaya al Ghasra and Yemen's Waseelah Fadhl Saad.


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Pakistan: Musharraf has Left the Building · Global Voices
Teeth Maestro

Eight years, three hundred and five days ago a peaceful coup masterminded by a Pakistani Army General overtook the reigns of power from the then ruling corrupt leader Nawaz Sharif. It was then the promise of a new tomorrow; it was then a  romantic walk towards the faint vision labeled as the ‘enlightened moderation’ and definitely a step towards the ridding society of a plague called corruption. Pakistanis celebrated then, but very soon people realized that this blessing had slowly grown into an unwanted plague and the stay had become an unwelcome dictatorship.  After many moons of tyranny, yesterday marked the end of a reign of power barely 60 days shy of nine years, Pakistan turns over a new leaf.
It seemed to be a normal day for Pakistan but it turned into a roller coaster of adrenaline pumping and rumor mongering session for its citizens as news started to flow. For the people it was one rumor after another flooding from TV newscasters to SMS's and even emails; it was as if the fate of Pakistan were to be decided by each other. Deadpan Thoughts quite easily summarizes the roller coaster of rumors in one sentence saying “The phone beeps – Mushy’s being impeached..go put on GEO [a TV channel]..NOW“.  Some had us believing that this outgoing chap would go down fighting while some on the other hand conspired for the restoration of judiciary as his last vengeance but in the end it fizzled out to be a valiant outgoing speech, throwing in the towel before his tearful adios which Siam's Blog shares ‘A grim-faced Musharraf backed by Pakistani flags and a portrait of the country's founder’ to say “I leave my future in the hands of people.”
Pervez Musharraf – Image credit: World Economic Forum Photostream in Flickr and used under a creative commons license
The tearful good bye on the 18th of August by Musharraf came barely four days after the celebrations of the 61st Independence Day. Pakistan gingerly marks the end of a long nine year dynasty. His concluding remarks were mostly a walk back into history as penned down by The Pakistani Spectator, which was just to highlight his services for the people and for the country.
Pakistani bloggers reacted with mixed feelings, on one hand some celebrated Musharraf by chiming in with the ‘For he is a Jolly Good Fellow’ tune, while some faithfuls were quick to lend him a standing ovation but most cautiously celebrated the end of a dictatorship. Sarcastically Yeah That too had a few words to share, Ammar wrote about how the new  ‘Cat Fight’ is now about to begin, Chowrangi talks about Pakistan's future after Musharraf, Psychotic Discourses sheds light on the new form of Demon-cracy, MB confuses us with the talk about circle of circuses.
The immediate question that remains lurking is whether Musharraf is allowed to seek asylum outside of Pakistan or will he be put to trial for the charges alleged against him. Its definitely a tough juncture for Pakistan with a lot at stake.
One does wonder what next, wherein lies a huge mixture of political wannabes eying for the top slot, though the onus of pulling the country out of the mess lies squarely on the shoulder of Asif Zardari and Nawaz Sharif, both unelected politicians entrusted with the faith of a nation to hopefully pull this country out of the mess it now finds itself in.

author: Teeth Maestro


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Pakistan: What next after Musharraf? · Global Voices
Rezwan

Kamla Bhatt posts a round-up of international media reactions on Pakistan President Musharraf's resignation.

author: Rezwan


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Paraguay: Following Lugo’s Inauguration on Flickr · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

A former Roman Catholic bishop, Fernando Lugo, was recently sworn in as the new president of Paraguay on August 15.  His ascent to power excited those Paraguayans at home, as well as those living abroad.  For those unable to be present in the capital city of Asunción to witness the festivities, photos can be found on his official Flickr account.
The effort of documenting Lugo's appearances and activities started during his campaign in January 2008.  Now, with nearly 2,500 photographs all under a Creative Commons license, the use of this citizen's media tool will be carried over during his new administration.
In the past few days, photographs of Lugo during his inauguration demonstrated the excitement of the historical event.
In addition, photographs with fellow South American heads of state can also be found.


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Peru: Children’s Play Inside a Moving Bus · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Perú Vas? presents Pequito and the Key of Seven Years, which is the first children's play that will take place inside a moving bus, writes Elizabeth Lino of Te Voy a Contar [es].


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Saudi Arabia: It’s all in the name · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

It is common practice for converts to Islam to adopt Muslim names. But is it necessary – and what kind of name is appropriate? One Saudi blogger ponders the question, while some others are thinking about the use of aliases in the blogosphere – and yet another encourages the government to ‘name names’.
Zuhair asks whether you need to change your name when you change religion, in a post entitled ‘What if my name were Peter?‘:
Ali Al Omary wonders whether using a pseudonym online is a good thing:
Meanwhile, the blogger Someone has decided that honesty is the best policy:
أولاً: تغيير اسمي المستعار “someone” الذي أكتب به التدوينات إلى اسمي الصريح : فهد الحازمي.
ثانياً: الإفصاح عن ما يمكن الإفصاح عنه في صفحة النبذة الذاتية، مثل النشأة والدراسة وغيرها من الأمور.
ثالثاً: إمكانية استيراد البعض من كتاباتي ومقالاتي المنشورة في مواقع مختلفة مثل الإسلام اليوم ومجلة العصر وفضاء الفضائيات وغيرها إلى المدونة مع إضافة تعقيبات وأفكار جديدة حولها.
رابعاً: يُبلغ أمرنا هذا إلى الجهات المختصة.
والله يستر وبس ، ويعيننا على تحمل التبعات.
First: I am changing my pseudonym from ‘someone’ and will write my blog under my real name: Fahad Al Hazmi.
Second: I am declaring what I can in my ‘about’ page, such as my upbringing, education, and other matters.
Third: I will try and retrieve what I can of my articles, which have been published on other sites, such as Islam Today, and update them with new ideas and add them to this blog.
Fourth: I would like the concerned authorities to know about those decisions.
And may Allah be able to protect me, and enable me to shoulder the consequences of all this.
And speaking of names, John Burgess, a former US foreign service officer who blogs about Saudi Arabia, comments on the importance of ‘naming and shaming’, in a post entitled ‘Time to Start Naming Names in Saudi Arabia‘:
There is a tendency in Saudi Arabia – as in most other Arab countries – to not air dirty laundry in public, even other people’s dirty laundry. Thus, we hear about crimes, but never about who committed them. … It was quite a shock, in fact, when the Saudi Ministry of Interior released names and photos of Al-Qaeda terrorists within the Kingdom in 2003, creating the first public ‘Most Wanted’ lists. If government acknowledges that crimes against the public have been committed, it does have a duty to inform the public that there are dangerous people about. It’s not enough to arrest them as the vagaries of the Saudi courts could very well mean that these people are out of jail and again committing crimes and the public has no warning whatsoever. Shame is a powerful tool in Arab culture. Governments and media should use it, when appropriate, to reach ends in the service of society.

author: Ayesha Saldanha


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Saudi Arabia: Review of Saudi blogs · Global Voices
Ayesha Saldanha

American Bedu, an American living in Saudi Arabia, reviews some Saudi blogs written in English in this post.


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Sri Lanka: Lunar Eclipse pictures · Global Voices
Rezwan

Shehal of kanabona.com witnessed the partial Lunar eclipse on August 17th in Sri Lanka and posts some beautiful photographs of the eclipse.


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Tajikistan: Charity in the name of Olympic champion · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Vadim reports that a Tajik businessman decided to establish a fund in the name of first Tajik Olympic medalist.


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Tajikistan: First Olympic Medal Ever · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Vadim reports that a Tajik judoka secured for Tajikistan its first Olympic medal.