text:
Iran:Iran launches 24-hour Press TV channel   · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Parastoo says[Fa] that today Iran launched 24-hour Press TV channel in English.The blogger adds this channel belongs to Iranian government.


text:
Jamaica: Empowerment Through Robotics  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Eon links to a You Tube video from Marvin Hall, a Jamaican who is teaching his young countrymen robotics in an effort to empower their lives through technology.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Japan: “Beware of foreigners” · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Debito blogs a leaflet distributed in Osaka that warns citizens to beware of foreigners.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Japan: Otaku protest for liberation of Akihabara · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

James from Japan Probe puts together video and pictures of a street protest for liberating Akihabara. Around 400 otaku has participated in the protest.


text:
Japan: Peanuts as business cards · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Edo from Pink Tentacle introduced a new business cards design.


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Kazakhstan: Saving the Saiga · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

News from the Caravan has an in-depth post about the Saiga Steppe antelopes and what needs to be done to save the endangered species from extinction.

author: Ben Paarmann


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Korea: Internet and Anonymity · Global Voices
Hyejin Kim

Internet portal sites in Korea will use the real-name comment system (daet-geul sil-myeong-je) from this month. Two major portal sites, Daum and Naver, already started from the 27th of June, and 35 other major portal sites will implement the system this month.
In Korean portal sites, internet news or blog news have ‘comments or responses section’ under the posts and they are called daet-geul (they usually have short contents and netizens write their opinions casually). Because it is possible to write it anonymously, some contents are not appropriate, or posted not in earnest, or represent personal attacks. What to do about this situation has been a topic of debate.
Several days have passed. Bloggers share their opinions of this new system.
Some bloggers, like minicactus, have worried about side-effects.
분명 댓글 실명제를 시행한 다음에 악성 댓글의 수위가 낮아지긴 했지만, 그 수에서는 예전과 별로 다르지 않아 보인다.결국 악성 댓글이 사라지는 데는 오랜 시간이 걸릴 것이고, 현재까지는 댓글 실명제가 별로 효과가 없어보인다.더 걱정되는 문제는 네이버와 다음에서 악성 댓글을 달던 사람들이 시간이 지나면서 점차 작은 커뮤니티 사이트로 분산되어 인터넷 전체의 분위기가 흐려지는 것이 아닐까 하는 염려다.
Whether this system would control the freedom of expression is the major concern of some bloggers, like hansfamily.
…이 제도 시행에 상당부분 반대를 하는 기류가 많은 것 같다.반대하는 주요 이유로 첫째, 인터넷 정신과 자율성에 훼손을 입힌다는 것, 둘째, 자유로운 언로의 통로가 막힐 것이라는 것, 그리고 기본적으로 권력에 의한 통제가 가능해질 것이라는 것 등이 주로 언급되고 있다.
물론 상당부분 일리있는 주장이며 기본적인 원칙에 대해서는 나도 부정할 생각은 없다.그러나 익명성 뒤에 숨어 남을 비방하고 욕을 하며 옳지않은 방향의 소문과 있지도 않은 사실의 유포가 확대되는 이 독버섯같은 사회현상을 어떻게 극복할 수 있을까? 그건 이런 법과 같은 강제성이 아닌 사용자(네티즌) 스스로의 자율 정화에 의해 극복되어야 한다고들 이야기 한다. 너무나 이상적인 희망사항 아닌가?
진짜 아무생각없는 댓글과 비방글로 인해 자살과 자괴감에 빠져 인생을 마감하는 경우를 우리는 종종 보아왔으며 그때마다 사회적 분위기로 각성을 촉구하곤 했다. 그러나 어떤가? 바뀌어가고 있는가? 오히려 더 심각해지고 있지는 않은가?
몇년 전부터 지속적으로 인터넷 실명제에 대하여 토론을 벌이며 찬반에 대해 논의해 왔다. 당시에는 사회적 여론 대부분이 실명제에 대해 강력 반대 입장이었다. 그런데 요즘 들어 보니 그 사회적 여론도 일부 바뀌어가고 있다. 절대적인 반대 보다는 부분적 도입을 통해 익명성에 의한 악영향을 막아보자는 방향으로 말이다.
한 가지 궁금한 것은 주민등록번호를 확인한다고 하는데, 외국인이나 주민번호가 없는 해외 동포의 경우에는 아예 언로가 막혀버리는 것인지…
A blogger brought up issues of a much bigger scope: bad comments and our education.
악플이 넷상의 주요 이슈를 넘어 사회문제가 된 지도 참 오래다. 나 역시 언젠가 부터 뉴스 댓글에 달리는 악플을 보지 않는다.지독한 악취가 나는 쓰레기 장 주변에 얼씬 거리지 않는 건 누구나 다 마찬가지가 아니겠는가? 인터넷 초기 댓글은 참 신선하고 재밌는 기능이었다.게시글에 대해 내 의견을 표현하고 싶을 때 따로 창을 열어 작성하고 봐야하는 답글에 비해 원문을 보면서 바로 아래 즉각적으로 달린 댓글은 참 편리했다. 굳이 긴 글을 달지 않아도 되기 때문에, 별 고민 없이 쉽게 달 수도 있고 , 종종 짧은 댓글 속에서 센스있는 표현들이 오고가면서 댓글 문화라는 것도 웹을 이야기 할 때 빼 놓을 수 없는 요소가 되었다. 비약일지도 모르겠지만,서비스 사용자와 사용자 간, 때로는 서비스 공급자와 사용자간에 활발하고 즉각적인 커뮤니케이션이 살아나면서 우리나라 인터넷 문화도 더욱 발전했고, 그에 따라 사용자들의 욕구와 니즈가 반영된 서비스들이 이만큼 발전해 올 수 있지 않았을까 싶다..
뭐든 지나치면 꼭 부작용이 나타나는 건가..이제 댓글은 예전의 댓글이 아니다.
악플러의 비율이 전체 이용자의 극히 일부인 0.06% 라고는 하지만, 소수의 악플러에 의한 문제들이 사회현상으로 발현되고 있다면, 분명 해결해야 한다. 그렇다면, 실명제가 정답일까.. 실명제의 실시로 인해 제한받게 되고, 억압받을 우려가 있는 개인의 표현의 자유는 어떤식으로 보상받고 최소화 할 수 있을까..
악플은 온라인의 문제지만, 오프라인에서 그 원인을 찾는게 맞다고 생각한다.
실제 오프라인에서 사람들과 이야기 해보고 토론을 해보면…
자기 주장과 조금만 달라도 쉽게 화를 내고 흥분하는 사람들이 있다.
하나의 현상과 사실로 전체를 판단해 버리는 사람들이 있다.
주장을 펼칠 때, 논리보다는 감정과 선입견을 주요 근거로 말하는 사람들이 있다.
또, 어떤 사람들은 진지한 주제 자체에 거부감을 갖고 조롱하고 비꼬는 것이 재밌고
멋있는 것인양 행동하는 사람들이 있다.정작 면전에 대고는 아무말도 못하지만, 뒤에서는 온갖 욕설과 불만을 털어내는 사람들이 있다.
As a matter of fact, if you sometimes try to have conversations and discussions with others in the off-line world, there are people who are easily angry at others who have different opinions. There are people who judge everything with one symptom or fact. There are people who talk based on emotion and prejudice rather than logical reasons. Or, there are people who refuse to talk about serious topics, who tend to mock those kinds of people (who are serious), and regard their own behavior as cool. There are also people who talk behind the backs of others and complain behind even though they cannot say anything in front of other people’s faces.
결국, 이런 사람들이 인터넷에서 악플을 양산하는 게 아닐까..정상적인 커뮤니케이션에 취약한 이들을 양산한 건 또 무엇일까..
중고교 시절부터 확실히 우리는 토론과 의견을 말하는 것에 익숙치 않은 환경에서 자라왔다. 수업시간에 선생님이 질문이라도 할라치면, 다들 눈을 맞추지 않으려고 애썼고, 선생님의 수업내용에 대해 자발적으로 질문을 하는 경우는 한 학기에 한 두 번도 보기 힘들었다.
어쩌다 질문이라도 한 아이는 친구들 때론, 선생님에게 무안을 당하기 일쑤였고,혹여 수업 시간 끝나갈 때 쯤 질문이라도 하려면 친구들의 눈총을 사야 했다.아이들이 뭘하건 아랑곳 않고, 수업시간 내내 자기 할말만 하다가 가는 선생도 부지기수 였다.
이런 교육 환경속에서 건강한 토론과 대화의 방법을 제대로 체득하지 못한 커뮤니케이션에 취약한 수많은 사람들이 양산되어 왔다고 생각한다.
악플 문제를 해결하기 위해선 교육이 바로서야 하고,교육을 통해 올바른 토론과 대화가 자연스럽고 자유스럽게 일어나는 사회가 되야 한다.
물론, 참 이상적인 얘기이긴 하다..현실적으로는 실명제 또는 제한적 실명제, 또는 그와 비슷한 제한적 장치가 더 효과가 있을 수도 있겠다..
하지만, 근본적으로는 교육이 바로서야 한다고 나는 믿는다..
Under this education circumstance, we raised numerous people who didn’t acquire healthy discussion and conversation methods. In order to solve this problem, education should be straight and, through the education, upright atmosphere for discussion and conversation should be take root in our society.
Of course, it seems to be ideal. In reality, applying the real-name system, limited real-name system, or other similar limited policy would be more effective.
However, I believe that education should change first.

author: Hyejin Kim


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Kuwait is like a Cinema  · Global Voices
Abdullatif AlOmar

Kuwaiti bloggers have more than meets the eyes. This week we hear from a Kuwaiti teacher, a film maker and  an artist. We also see how one blogger reacted when the electricity was cut at work and why a vital pedestrian crossing between two sections of a mall comes to a standstill at 11pm.
MacaholiQ8 explains why she is happy leaving her current school after she got transfered.
Last week school's over and I'm out of Jeleeb Sheyokh for good starting next semester (fingers crossed) so here's the ultimate “I HATE JELEEB SHEYOKH” post.
I will show you the trash yard (a.k.a. school) I've been working in for over 6 months. The school has been under construction for the whole time I've been there so that is the actual work environment.
EXzombie brings to our attention an event , the first Kuwaiti Amature short film festival, where he has a movie featured.
Kuwait Cinema Club and Kuwait National Cinema Company (Cinescape) are showing on Saturday June 30th and on Sunday July 1st at the Sha'ab cinema the First Kuwaiti Amateur Short Film Festival.
moodart shows his latest art which is linked with the current mood in Kuwait.
the talk of the hour now in Kuwait and also in the Middle East
I finished this work yesterday using cinema4d + maxwellrender
It is about a drought that hit the water tank and also the house roof and water pipes.
Marzouq  over at zdistrict  explains his experience at work when the power went out.
The building slowly got hotter and hotter, I was running between two buildings since the phones were out. We were making phone calls on our cell phones. Only those of us who had laptops could still do some work, and those who had desktops couldn’t really do anything.
Maze over at maze of thoughts talks about his latest Virgin Mega Store visit and how he feel it is reducing its size:
I passed by VIRGIN today morning to get some CDs and realized that the place is shrinking. The whole center of the store has been blocked by white walls. Dunno what's going on but there must be something fishy…or they have leased the place to a restaurant since VIRGIN has become these days a bazaar where all shops can sell their goods. I asked the cashier what's happening and as usual I got a confused answer.
Qaiss over at Io81 writes about a problem he faced at one of the local malls and how many others faces the same problem.
Who hasn’t been to Marine Mall? It’s a landmark in Kuwait which attracts many citizens and residents basically every single day of the week (It’s always packed no matter what day it is). The Marina Mall project as everyone is aware of, constitutes of two buildings connected by a pedestrian bridge. This bridge is there to cater for the mall’s clients/customers for ease of transportation between the main mall and the Marina Crescent, which defines the shops renting at the shopping mall and the attending customers.  And whenever the mall shuts at 11pm the bridge shuts as well!

author: Abdullatif AlOmar


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Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia: Views on Russia · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Transatlantic Politics reports on the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian foreign ministers’ views on Russia.

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Nepal: Youth and Politics · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Kathmandu Speaks covers a Nepali Congress-wing National Students Union (NSU) mass meeting and feels the Nepali youth has come of age.

author: Neha Viswanathan


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Newsmakers: Bangla blog world engages in celeb talk · Global Voices
Aparna Ray

A few weeks back, the celebrity heiress Paris Hilton went in and out of jail and the media lapped up her every move. We learnt about her diet, beauty regimen, ‘mysterious’ illness and even her remorse. Paris herself made the best of this opportunity and promised to pen a jail diary, to be sold to the highest bidder. Bangla blogger Konfusius followed the entire  event with keen interest and wondered why Bangladeshi celebrity politicians fail to inspire such media frenzy, even as many of them head for incarceration. Does the Bangladeshi media then lack a sense of humor? He asks.
While Paris was busy penning her diaries, two famous literary personalities were creating a buzz in the Bangla blogosphere, creating a debate around the right of freedom of expression.
Novelist Salman Rushdie was honored with a knighthood, sparking protests in parts of the Muslim world. The sparks touched the Bangla world as well. Blogger Apbak found these protests by religious fanatics shameful. He felt that by undertaking such protests and launching fatwas at the slightest pretext, the Muslim community was getting more and more alienated and the inherent goodness of Islam was being forced to take a backseat.
Bangladeshi Author in exile, the fiery Taslima Nasrin's article “Tumi bhalo theko priyo desh” (Keep well, my dear country) started a conversation among bloggers, debating whether or not the ban on her should be lifted. Tariq, for one, felt that she should be allowed to return to Bangladesh, her homeland.
And talking of freedom of expression, it seems that the Bangla blogosphere needs more space to express itself. Breaking away from Somewherein, a group of Bangladeshi bloggers have launched a new blogging platform Sachalayatan .  According to  Arup,  the space would be more like an online magazine, with contributors being given their own blog spaces.  Currently however,  the platform does not allow comments by all readers and is being strictly moderated. Will wait and watch to see how conversations develop in this newly created space.

author: Aparna Ray


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Oman is Not for Sale · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Sleepless in Muscat, from Oman, decries the sale of images of the Gonu disaster saying that Oman is not for sale.

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Palestine: Online Dating  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Palestinian Zinjabeelah  discusses online dating here.


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Slovakia: “The Great Server Heist” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Last week, Slovak police seized web servers of an IT company that hosts websites of 3,500 clients – “or almost three percent of the Slovak internet” – leaving clients without internet connection and causing the country's bloggers to protest the police actions. Deleted by Tomorrow reports on “the first great Slovak blogosphere venturing into the real world“: “As one netizen commenter observed, it very well might have been in accordance with the law, but is the law in accordance with 21st century?”


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Sri Lanka: Media and Ethics · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

groundviews on media – “While attention is concentrated on the growing challenges to free media – and rightly so given the growing repression and censorship – less attention is paid to the unprofessional conduct of media that in their careless abandon of the rights of readers and contributors exacerbates significant problems facing the development of professional media in Sri Lanka.”


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St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Carnival Spirit  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Abeni is hoping to get into the spirit of “Vincy Mas” – the island's annual Carnival celebrations.


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Tajikistan: Misguided perceptions · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

The wisdom of certain Western observers is being questioned in Tajikistan: Both a cartoonist and a journalist seem to have problems understanding the place properly, write Vadim and his readers on neweurasia.


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Turkey: Cultural Crossroads · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

Vilhelm Konnander takes his readers on a tour to the Turkish city of Kars, a place of kaleidoscopic history and rich Turkish, Armenian, Russian and Kurdish heritage.


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Venezuela: Journalist Day · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

On the occasion of Journalist Day, Luis Carlos Diaz of Periodismo de Paz [ES] reflects on the state of journalism in Venezuela.

author: Eduardo Avila


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Abkhazia: Tensions continue · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

The breakaway province of Abkhazia has reasons to be concerned about Georgia's muscle-flexing alongside its border, says Steady State.


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Africa: Africa without border? · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

RegionsWatch looks at attempts to eliminate borders in Africa: “Even when there appears to be grandiloquent discussions on the creation of an African Union government by 2025, the West African regional grouping of Ecowas is talking about a borderless West Africa by 2020.
Once again, this raises the question of why so far a date?”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Africa: community sites by Africans for Africans · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

White African lists community sites created by Africans for Africans: “It’s good to see individuals trying new things for specific niches, and even though some are built using prepackaged solutions. As John from Bwanji mentioned in a comment recently, using prepackaged solutions is the easiest way to get something out the door in a cheap and timely manner. However, it does constrain the product’s roadmap over time.”


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Africa: wiring Africa with mobile phones · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Ethan Zuckerman looks at mobile phone infrastructure and development in Africa: “Almost every discussion of business opportunity in Africa focused on the amazing growth of the mobile phone industry. That growth has been astounding, but it’s hard to know whether that growth will be replicable in other sectors. There’s a couple of circumstances that I think are critical to understand in the rise of mobile networks on the continent….”


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Americas: Blog Directories · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

eCuaderno [ES] publishes a resource of “10 Steps into the Spanish Speaking Blogosphere” including a listing of blog directories from 17 Latin American blogospheres.


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Bahai Site Set Up  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

A new site aimed at fighting for Bahai faith rights has been set up by Muslim activists, writes Esraa from Bahrain.


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Bahrain: 30th Bloggers Meet  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Bahrain is holding its 30th bloggers meeting this Thursday, according to Mahmood Al Yousif.


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Bangladesh: Victims of Chittagong Landslide · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Inspirations and Creative Thoughts on raising funds for the victims of the Chittagong landslide.


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Barbados: Glaring Absence from CARICOM Summit  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Once a year, that slapped-together dysfunctional family known as ‘The CARICOMs’ puts on a show of pretended unity and love by holding a family fish fry and beach picnic.”  Barbados Free Press thinks that the absence of four CARICOM leaders at the opening of the 28th Summit of the Caribbean Community is a signal that all is not well in the regional family.


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Bermuda: Schools Performance  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Politics.bm thinks that something doesn't add up when it comes to the performance of public schools in Bermuda.


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Bolivia: Gas Shortage in Bolivia · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Del Quintacho su Rincón [ES], a blog from La Paz, is angered by the shortage of gas for cooking and heating.  Meanwhile the government looks for new contracts for export, he wonders who worries about the Bolivians without this resource.


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Bosnia & Herzegovina: Book of the Dead · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Bosnia Vault writes about “Bosnia’s Book of the Dead” project: according to the recently released findings, over 97,000 Bosnians died as a direct result of the 1991-95 war.


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Bosnia & Herzegovina: Urban Sevdah · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

London Sevdah writes about the Urban Sevdah band and links to the YouTube videos of their performances.


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Bosnia & Herzegovina: Mosques; Princip and History · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Bosnia Blog links to photos of Bosnian mosques and to “an interesting analysis of what would have and have not happened if Gavrilo Princip had not pulled the trigger on that fateful day in Sarajevo.”


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Brazil: Doors Closed on the Prestes Maia · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Tatiana Cardeal snapped a symbolic final picture of a bird flying away from the closed doors of the Prestes Maia, which was a 22-story abandoned building in Sao Paulo that housed nearly 500 families, who have now all been removed.


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Central Asia: Ask the expert · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

James of neweurasia asks regional expert Dr. Johannes Linn about economic development, regional geopolitics, human rights, and development prospects for Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.


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China: 3D animated traditional Chinese Painting · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Jason puts up a 3D animated traditional Chinese Painting at virtual China: The video was produced by the Shenzhen branch of the Institute of Digital Media Technology (IDMT), which is associated with the Global Digital Creations (GDC). The GDC/IDMT group is located in Shenezhen, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore.


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China and Hong Kong: What is freedom? · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Cha ching came to Hong Kong to report on the 10th anniversary of reunification, her first question to address is what is freedom? dancing and horse racing as usual? citizen participation? government watch? debate? changing the bureaucratic attitude? playing majong? (zh)


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China: Desertification · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Jiao told the story of her home province in Gansu which would be buried soon by yellow sand because of intensified desertification (zh).


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China: Pity the Child Pickpockets · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Michael from the opposite end of China blogs about the modern version of Oliver Twist in China: Uyghur children were enslaved to do pickpocket.


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China: Return to avoid GFW · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

1510.com has been blocked by GFW for a month. After changing its domain to .cn, it has been restored as local domain can apply for a “review” to lift the GFW (zh).


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China: Slave and The Principle of Blood Payment · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Joel Martinsen from DANWEI has translated an interview (in Southern Metropolis Weekly) with Wu Si, the writer of a popular social history book The Principle of Blood Payment, commenting on the recent slave labour issue in Shanxi: I wasn't surprised. These things aren't unique to Shanxi. Other provinces may have them as well, and history shows that this sort of thing was prevalent throughout China. In addition, the solutions of the past were basically the same as those today – they rely on supervision of the subordinates by their superiors. If China did not have this sort of thing, then I'd find it strange. Because the core power structure has not changed: it is still an upwardly-responsible pyramid. The exposure of this incident just further corroborates my argument.


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Ecuador: Students Living Away from Home · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Estudiantes Fuera Del Ecuador [ES] is a new blog written primarily by Ximena Cabezas that examines issues and addresses questions facing students living away from their home country.


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Egypt: French Scholar Dies · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“The French scholar Alain Roussillon, an expert on Egypt and the director of the CEDEJ in Cairo, passed away yesterday from a after suffering from a brain hemorrhage. He will be buried in Egypt, where his mother came from,” writes Issandr El Amrani, from Cairo.


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Estonia: International Relations · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

“But why waste so much energy on that relationship with diminishing returns?” writes Itching for Eestimaa about Estonia's relations with Russia, and continues with an overview of Estonia's relations with other countries.


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Germany: Stasi Smell Museum · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Boing Boing writes about the Stasi Smell Museum: “The Stasi — East German secret police — kept an enormous museum of ‘smell samples’ of German citizens, kept in case they ever needed to give hunting dogs the scent of a fugitive criminal.”


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Guatemala: Call Center to Provide 1,400 Jobs · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Blog de mi Guatemala [ES] writes about the news that General Electric will open up a call center in Guatemala that will provide up to 1,400 new jobs.


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Guyana: Technology Trap  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Guyana Providence Stadium is all for keeping up with the latest technology – but wonders whether Guyana has more pressing concerns.


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Hong Kong and China: Moving to Hong Kong · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Positive Solution is moving from Beijing to Hong Kong. He has been critical of the news room operation in China Daily, such as the recent questioning of why no mention of the democracy march?


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India: Rock and Counterculture · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Mixed Bag explores the notion of music in counterculture, looking specifically at rock music in India.


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IRAN:A woman activist sentenced to prison and lashes · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

According to[Fa] Maydaan, Delaram Ali,a young activist for equal rights was sentenced to about 3 years prison and ten lashes. She had just participated in a peaceful demonstartion against gender discrimination.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Iran:Mortar attack in Tehran · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Kamangir says,according to Iranian media,”a gas station in Tehran,was attacked almost at midnight with a mortar.The explosive device reportedly did not explode and was defused by the Police. This is only a week after the gas-rationing was carried out in Iran, resulting in unrest in Tehran and other cities.”


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Israel: Don’t Blog Bad Things · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Never blog anything bad about anyone at a conference, warns Allisonks from Israel.


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Jamaica: The Reggae Compassionate Act  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Jamaican Veiw reports that while some high-profile dancehall artistes “have signed the Reggae Compassionate Act, which renounces homophobia and violence against lesbians and gays”, others are refusing to support the initiative.


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Jordan: What Happens Abroad? · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Jordanian Firas explains what happens to some Arabs when they travel abroad and interact with student activists.


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Kazakhstan: Fun food · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

KZBlog finds some funky food in Kazakhstan's supermarkets, including USSR icecream and horsemeat-flavoured chips/crisps.


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Kazakhstan: Music · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

Music in Kazakhstan finds that Kazakh rap doesn't get the attention it deserves while an entire new magazine is devoted to the dombyra – a classical string instrument.


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Kuwait: Flowers are a Burden  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Giving plants as gifts is a burden on the recipient, explains 1001 Kuwaiti Nights from Kuwait.


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Kyrgyzstan: Polygamy · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

Asel discusses whether polygamy is an Islamic tradition or due to socio-economic pressures in post-independence Kyrgyzstan.


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Liberia: this is swamp fishing · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

You might not know what swamp fishing is. Look at beautiful photos of swamp fishing in Liberia posted by Liberian Ledger.


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Mali: Timbuktu – one of the new seven wonders of the world? · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Timbuktu might become one of the new seven wonders of the world: “Reasons given for the need to create new Seven Wonders was that, the current ones are all gone with the exception of the pyramids of Giza. Thus, only few people could remember them.
Interestingly, Timbuktu in Mali is the only site in Africa that made it to the final 21. What can I say? I can only entreat you to vote for Timbuktu because I am an African in Africa. I have some symbiosis with Timbuktu, than any other site listed on their website,” writes Oluniyi David Ajao.


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Morocco: The week in photos · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

With the heat of summer finally setting in, the Anglophone Moroccan bloggers are traveling in full force, judging by the number of photos posted this week.  Therefore, this week we'll take a stroll through Morocco in pictures.
An interesting new phenomenon, which Braveheart-does-the-Maghreb reports on, is the introduction of the sport of curling to Morocco (but only at Rabat's enormous Mega Mall):
On this subject, the blogger says, “I still can’t quite get over this.”
Moroccan Maryam of My Marrakesh shares photos of a special little hotel whose style she endearingly refers to as haute hodgepodge:
We move from the delights of Morocco's capital, Rabat, to somewhere in the Moroccan countryside, where Peace Corps Volunteer and blogger Samuel Gunter of Life Called shares photos of a local well:
Blogger Four Continents shares photos of a sojourn to Marrakesh, one of Morocco's most famous cities – made so particularly by Djemaa al Fna, where this photo was taken:
The blogger says:
Having adopted Fes as my home base, I expected to dismiss touristy Marrakech as a Disney-fied sellout, check it off my “been there, done that” list and return to my (obviously superior) town. Thankfully, the reality was more fun than that – Marrakech has made its concessions to the visitors but it's still very Moroccan also, and I enjoyed spending two days lost in its medina – and could have stayed longer.
Our last stop on the tour is the Cascades d'Ouzoud, not too far from Marrakesh, brought to us by Rachel of Musings from Morocco, who also wrote the poem accompanying the photos.
On my way from here to there…
I stopped for a bit of fresh mountain air
Walked to a precipice and away fell the earth …
And water rushed too and with it my breath
For until your feet are standing on edge
No one can fathom what awaits you ahead
Irrigation trench streams turn into falls
Clamorous, glamorous, uproarious and tall
And the mouth of the world opens wide
Before your toes into a great paradise
And your eyes follow waterfall fall fall
As it rushes from pool to spill into pool
Little bridges and people, like an imaginary
Place stretch across rivulets and up scary
Hills where stairs meander through olive tree
Boughs covering hillside and oft a snatch of path appears
Amidst all the ruckus of splashing and tumbling
My mind drew away to a quiet still rumbling
I devoured my book and scribbled all day
Thoughts pouring through me on pages to stay
Little blue and green rafts cobbled
Together with rusted barrel and rotten
Wood, offering tours to glide through
The pools to a waterfall's frothy spew
And then I was sitting, having some lunch
When who do you think I found all hunched
And clambering up the mud walls … but barbary apes
My bread, their little paws snatched and made great escape

author: Jillian C. York


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Nepal: Kachahari Theatre · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

At Nepal Monitor, Nepal's theatre guru, explains the practice of “Kachahari” theatre, and discusses the role of performing artists in social and political transformation.


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Nigeria: Nollywood: making honey from a hard stone · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Pamela's World discusses the Nigerian film industry, Nollywood: “Nollywood is currently one of the largest multi billion film producing industries in the world after Hollywood and Bollywood. Nigerians have again proven that the ability to bring honey from a hard stone WITHOUT external support is something within the survivalist Nigerian spirit.”


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Pakistan: Lal Masjid · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Behind the Chairman's Door on a shootout between the students of Lal Masjid and the government, with links to other opinions.


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Pakistan: More on Lal Masjid · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

All Things Pakistan links to various media reports on the shootout at Lal Masjid. There is an interesting discussion on in the comments space.


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RFE/RL in Armenia: Media bills not passed · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

The Armenian Observer reports that media legislation intended to curb the broadcasts of Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty has not been ratified by parliament.


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Romania: “Communist-Era Motoring Icons” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Romerican again writes about “the mystique and allure of communist-era motoring icons.”


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Russia: 27 Ways to Tell You Live in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Tim Newman of White Sun of the Desert and BearBait list 27 ways “to tell you live in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.” Here's one: “You think nothing of paying USD3000 for an apartment refurbished with leopard skin touches, a dodgy boiler, pneumatic door bolts and an alcoholic living in the stairwell.”


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Russia: Getting Used to Moscow, Russian Food, etc. · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Darkness at Noon writes about his “newfound acceptance of Russia.”


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Russia: Illarionov’s Translation · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

La Russophobe posts a translation of Andrei Illarionov's piece in Yezhednevnyi Zhurnal.


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Russia: Irkutsk Photos · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Photographer Oleg Klimov images of Irkutsk – here (RUS) and here.


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Russia: St. Basil’s Cathedral · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Instead of a post on the battle of Kosovo, De Rebus Antiquis Et Novis writes about St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow – and posts a photo of a graffiti in Samara, which says in Serbian: “Serbs and Russians are brothers forever. Greece, Serbia, Russia.”


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Serbia, Montenegro: “Bringing the Soviets to Heel” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Anegdote tells an old story about a Communist Party council in a remote Montenegrin village.


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Serbia: Red Hot Chili Peppers in Indjija · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Belgrade 2.0 writes about the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ concert in the town of Indjija – and posts pictures, and reviews the bloggers’ responses.


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Sierra Leone: Don’t play with hungry man’s rice during election season · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Read all about Gaddafi's visit to Sierra Leone and the truth about the rice that may have cost the Sierra Leone government the electoral campaign: “The past week in Sierra Leone has been incredibly interesting and somewhat chaotic. As you probably now know, Libya’s Gaddafi rode into town via Conakry in a fleet of SUVs and hundred people plus entourage. Banners and signs were hung all over Freetown welcoming Gaddafi to Sierra Leone. I must confess that I did not realize the depth of our relationship with Gaddafi and by “our” I mean president Kabbah.”


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Swaziland: Swazi HIV Awareness Poster Series · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Read the latest Swazi HIV Awareness Poster Series from Pediatrician in Swaziland: “The Church can make a difference in the fight against HIV and Aids: Accept and support HIV people in the church.”


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Taiwan: keep rowing–i-panga na 1001 · Global Voices
I-fan Lin

海浪不斷翻開我的記憶，當我失去海洋給我的回憶時，就是我逐漸結束生命的日子。──夏曼‧藍波安《海浪的記憶》
(photo courtesy of casyc23.  The red and black circle at the head of the boat is ‘mata-no-tarara’ (eye) and sun.  It can expel evil spirits and evoke good fortunes.)
In Tao's language, ‘Tao’ means ‘human.’  Although Lanyu (orchid island, where the Tao people live) belongs to Taiwan now, considering language and culture, the Tao people are closer to Ivatan people in Batanes islands in Philippine than other peoples in Taiwan.
As a branch of Austronesian people, the Tao people are good at building boat, and they use boats for fishing.  Their wooden boat is not canoe.  They combine different kinds of wood to build small wooden boat (tatara) for one or two people and large wooden boat (chinurikuran) for around ten people.
Keep rowing:
蘭嶼的大船文化，幾乎是整個達悟民族從生理生計到心理信仰與宇宙觀的集合體。
在現代經濟方式的衝擊，氏族漁團的青壯勞動力被台灣的資本市場吸納，老一輩長者無能為力負荷大船建造的一切所需， 只能看這舊船腐朽裂解，在每年呼喊飛魚的招魚儀典時，感嘆空盪的港灣而無大船的身影。
2001年時，我們與村裡的族人，帶著從島上森林伐取的樹材，一起到台中的自然科學博物館，建造了一艘脫離傳統氏族漁團組織的十人大船。
當年我們詢問父親：”可以到台灣造大船嗎？makanyou（禁忌）怎麼辦？”父親也細詢了為何要去台灣造大船的用意……？”給台灣的人看，也讓他們了解，大船不只是美麗而已，而是還有我們的智慧與能力！”我們回答。沈思後的父親給了我們一個說法：”台灣又沒有我們的鬼（anito），你 們想那麼多做什麼？”之後，那一年我們順利的完成了一艘向台灣展示的文化大船……。就在完工的當時，緊接而來的是：「做好了船，怎麼不划呢？」於是，五年 後的今天，我們想與台灣的朋友分享一件事：船，不只是被展示的，更是可以航行的，我們將拜訪台灣……。
Keep rowing:
船長1016 c m ，寬170 c m，高270 cm
我們的大船取名為： Ipanga na，1001跨越號。 （ipanga na是Tao語裡的名詞，有跨越、航行之意。）
ingana na表示移動，我們要到許多的地方去；而「1001」，只是因為我們的大船超過了10公尺長。
Keep rowing:
由紀錄片工作者林建享與蘭嶼達悟族友人夏曼‧夫阿原召集一半蘭嶼族人、一半台灣人共同建造、歷時四個月的蘭嶼達悟族的「 1001跨越號」，是近百年來蘭嶼達悟族所打造尺寸最大的拼板舟。
They plan to row from Lanyu to Taitung, then to Taipei, and finally return to Taitung.  The total length of the voyage is about 1438.6 km.  They plan to finish it in 35 days.  In average, they need to row 50-60 km per day.  There are 12 people rowing at one time, and there are two teams of people for rotation.
Originally they planned to start on 6/12, but the plan was delayed because of the weather:
老人說，「六月蘭嶼的天氣啊，變幻莫測，好像很難捉摸；為什麼不選七月出發呢？七月的天氣，海面上像是倒了沙拉油那樣，選在那樣的日子裡出發不是比較安心嗎？」伴航船的船長周一宗帶著海圖和氣象圖來了。19日以前，天氣都不穩定。
They started off this June 20th, and now they arrived Taitung safely.  Although they practiced several times before the voyage, it's still hard because they need to struggle with the Kuroshio current.
Keep rowing:
中間的時候，「真的很想拖呢（叫機動船幫忙拖行）」，不是因為洋流太強，是因為太陽太熱。 所有的人都沒有放棄。
Their next project, after the funds are raised, will be rowing to Batan islands to meet the Ivatan people.

author: I-fan Lin


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Togo: Government funding for political parties · Global Voices
Jennifer Brea

Togo-iTunes posts an article about a new law for financing political parties (Fr).  Any of Togo's nearly 80 political parties that have received at least five percent of the vote in legislative elections, five seats in the National Assembly, or 10% in local elections will be eligible for government funding.

author: Jennifer Brea


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Tonga: News Site Closing · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Samiuela LV Taufa is lamenting over the government decision of closing down the Tonganow news site in Tonga. “I wonder who had the bright idea of closing these guys down for not being politically correct ?”

author: Preetam Rai


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Touring Libyan Blogs: French Rock in Tripoli and US Embassy Affairs in a Coffee Shop · Global Voices
Fozia Mohamed

Libyan-French relations, especially in culture and education, have never been totally cut even during the ‘hard’ years of the sanctions. The French Cultural Institute though very discreet in downtown Tripoli has been carrying on from its base, providing language courses and library services for as long as I can remember.
Flying Birds author A. Adam  has recently attended  a music festival sponsored by the ICF and hosted at the beautiful School of Islamic Craft.
“They bring a Rock group this year BIKINI MACHINE (ELECTRO ROCK / France) this band proved that in French Rock still exist and their music inspired by the soul music in the 60's and by the English pop in the 90's but before all , they didn't forget to bring Libyan bands to play Arabic music,”
This just proves that there are more things to bring people together than pull them apart. Wonder who will we groove to next time ?
Khadijateri brought up the subject that the US Embassy  in Tripoli is using the coffee shop in the hotel where it is situated to hold interviews for Libyan citizens who are born in the US and who are applying for their US passport.
“They are not allowed into the embassy's offices upstairs, their business is discussed in full earshot of whoever else happens to be in the Corinthia's coffee shop. These Libyan/Americans are usually young guys who are too embarrassed to make an issue out of being met in the coffee shop because they think if they question it their chances of getting the passport (they are rightfully entitled to) might be influenced negatively.”
This has brought to the surface the painful question of visa applications which are still done in Tunis.
As per the website ” On May 31, 2006 the United States of America and the Libyan Arab Jamahiriyah exchanged diplomatic notes confirming the upgrade of the U.S. Liaison Office in Tripoli to a U.S. Embassy.”  This means that it is now a fully functioning Embassy. I'm thinking that talking to the potential US citizens in the coffee shop is probably a better idea than in the offices because  that is where probably they would NOT have any privacy.
There are two issues here the applicants do not dare to ask for more privacy and they think they are not allowed in the premises. While I personally have not visited the place yet I don't think any bad intentions were meant. It is refreshing to see young Libyans taking the initiative and get their documents sorted out and even seek Khadijateri and ask her advice about how to communicate with Embassy staff.

author: Fozia Mohamed


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Trinidad & Tobago: A Nation’s Wealth?   · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Corn-curls are important to any nation aspiring to become developed. You can tell by the speed and urgency with which the corn-curls delivery trucks pelt down the highway at six in the morning.” This Beach Called Life lists some of the indicators of a wealthy nation.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Tunisia: Blogger meetup · Global Voices
Jennifer Brea

Tunisien Doctor writes about a recent meetup of fifteen bloggers that went down in Tunis this weekend.  A map was drawn.  There were games involved (Fr).


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Turkey, Russia: Kars · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Vilhelm Konnander writes about the Turkish city of Kars and “its multi-faceted historical heritage.”


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Ukraine: Kyiv Attractions · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Olechko writes about Tavriyski Igry music festival, the Pyrogiv open-air folk museum, and the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.


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Voices from Ghana: It’s Not All About the Energy Crisis; Stanbic Takes Over Ghana’s ADB?; New Currency Arrives · Global Voices
Emmanuel.K. Bensah

Ghana might be going through an energy crisis, but, somehow, that has not deterred both expatriate and Ghanaian bloggers from making surprisingly positive comments about the country in which they live in.
We open this week’s reviews with two of such entries. The first is by a Ghanaian blogger Got Lights? who writes:
You gotta love Ghana. And after 3 weeks out of town in Liberia and Sierra Leone, you gotta love it more. In both these countries there are power outages so it's just like home. But here in Gh [Ghana] there is some semblance of scheduling even though residents in East Legon will beg to differ.
She maintains that “Ghana is changing so fast, it’s hard to keep up”, and cites this example:
I got to Shell to buy petrol after 3 weeks and the attendant asks : Super or V-Power? What is V-Power? I politely ask him: What is the difference? and he says : 1000 cedis. Well that surely tells me a lot. That V-Power fuel is within my price reach! As to what it does for my car, now that is another issue. Unleaded fuel vrs leaded fuel
The fast pace that she sees is attributed to the following:
dual carriage roads, streetlights, swept roads, collected trash and no groups of youth and men hanging around on the streets
Challenges and serious developmental problems notwithstanding, she admonishes the reader to remember that whenever Ghanaians feel like complaining:
let's keep in mind that although we are ages behind the developed world, we are also eons ahead our compatriots in the developing world
Emily, writing in her blog the Ghana Journal, writes a post that chronicles, albeit briefly, her 22-hourr stay in Togo’s capital city, Lome:
I've managed to avoid the trip, three hours away, to Lome, Togo, just across the border. Finally this week, I popped over there for an assignment, spending less than a day in a city that's a bit too much like Accra, but somehow a more run-down version
Her journey proved to be more epiphanous than expected, with the biggest being the power outages, which plagues Ghana, but in Togo, apparently, is a bit more haphazard and, well, unplanned:
Here's another thing: as much as we b*tch about the regular power outages here in Ghana, at least we know, for the most part, when they are coming. I checked into my hotel around 4 p.m. and flopped on my bed under the ceiling fan. Not five minutes later, the power cut out. It came back on around 9 p.m., just long enough for me to fall asleep under the fan, before cutting out again sometime later. It still wasn't back on by the time I checked out at 7:30 a.m.
She concedes, though, that one thing Lome has over Accra is:
a nice assortment of streetside restaurants with local food and beer, plastic tables and big fans to blow the sweat off ya.
Meanwhile, back in Accra, the fast-pace continues, what with the impending re-denomination of the Ghanaian cedi, which American blogger, Leanne in Ghana, writes about in her post, entitled “The End of the ‘Cedi Shuffle”:
We're gettin’ new money! It was actually announced at the first of the year, but with the changeover happening at the end of next month, things are starting to pop! In addition to what's pictured above, there will also be one and five cedi notes. The currency is being ‘redenominated’ on July 1 because, as I've mentioned before, you have to cart around buttloads of currency to pay for even small purchases.
It currently takes an excess of 9000 cedis to equal a dollar. If dinner for two costs the equivalent of 50 bucks, you have to have almost a half million cedis to pay it. If you are lucky enough to have scored ¢20,000 notes on your last trip to the bank, you still have a pile of bills too thick to put in your wallet if you expect to then fold said wallet in half.
Whilst this may no longer be any news to Ghanaians – both within and outside the country – what is interesting to note is the new website that the Bank of Ghana has set up which Leanne refers to:
You can read a lot about it (if you care) at this website, which also contains links to the audio stuff…(click on the Media and Press at the top for commercials and jingles).http://www.ghanacedi.gov.gh/
Still in Ghana, it was going to be difficult, given its proximity, for Ghanaians not to comment about the Nigeria elections. Obed Sarpong, blogging in his blog Sarpong Obed—Ready to Chew juxtaposes the French elections that saw the winning of Sarkozy as the new President to that of Nigeria, writing:
I don't know what is wrong with African leaders. I am a Ghanaian: as far as i know, we have a very good relationship with the Nigerian government. At our independence golden jubilee celebrations, president Obasanjo was the guest of honour and president Kufuor made a statement like there is a new wave of African leaders… It's a shame prez Obasanjo has betrayed that speech. He couldn't conduct a credible election. The opposition and local and foreign observers have called for a re-run of the elections. Granting an interview to the bbc which was aired yesterday, prez Obasanjo said the elections was flawed, but not so imperfect that it has to be re-run. Did you hear him.
Beyond the berating of Nigeria, he sums up:
With population of about 130 million people, only 6o million thereabout registered and about 26 million voted. Quite a scare. When the irregularities were reported and compared to that of France, most people in and out of Nigeria who in ideology sided with the government said Nigeria is far bigger than France. What a disgrace! What about nations like China and India. And if Nigeria is so big and large, how come the results were declared so soon in about 48 hours? The elections were clearly rigged! No doubt about it. What happened in Nigeria shows how outgoing African leaders elect their successors.
Meanwhile, Martin Egblewogbe of Ewomi, is more concerned about the security—or lack thereof—that was shown in April, when some students, protesting about the residential policy of university students shit-bombed the university halls of residence in Legon. Ewomi writes:
First, a few words about the s- bomb. We have to be thankful that it was not a fire bomb or some other unpleasant device. But wtf, that's no way to fight your cause. The students will lose whatever support they had from various sources if they resort to such abominations. The very thought of young Ghanaian students spending hours in planning, financing and executing such a shitty affair makes one wonder. The stuff, I presume, was carried in buckets. Enough of the stuff to knock out three large examination centres. Imagine the folks sneaking around in the dead of night with such terrible cargo.
He wonders:
So where the hell was the University Security Apparatus? Christ, one shudders to think what a really evil minded bunch could achieve.
Meanwhile the RegionsWatch Blog provides a perspective on the on-going changes in the Ghanaian banking industry, which has seen the take-over of the country’s only Agricultural Development Bank by South Africa’s Standard Bank, which operates as Stanbic in Ghana.
In RegionsWatch’s view, it is more a case of a battle between two regional blocs of SADC and ECOWAS, whereby the independent regional banking group of ECOBANK is going head-to-head with that of Standard Bank for the tag of “Pan-African Bank”. More perniciously, RegionsWatch believes it is a case of the ever-looming South African threat that is expressing itself in Ghana:
In my view, I see an interesting trend here–one of Stanbic, like South African big capital, choosing to lord it over Africa, and feeling, why not, West Africa's a good place. Once we get Ghana, we've got a springboard for the rest of West Africa. Not so fast, Stanbic! The South Africans appear not to understand not just West Africa, but its market. One thing that goes to compound this perception is an article in Friday's edition of the private Ghanaian paper The Observer, with the headline: Stanbic Offers $80m for ADB
The sub-heading speaks volumes: Workers Charge and Say “Kai!” ADB's Western Union
Inflows for 2006 Alone Was $400m
This, in fact, was reduced from $120m.The cheek of Stanbic! To think it could buy Ghana's only agricultural development bank for $80m, when Western Union's for ADB alone was clocking a good five times aaht amount speaks more about the South African chutzpah, or hubris, of feeling it can lord it over West Africa in general, and Ghana in particular.
Back to the news report from Metro news, I noticed that the following night, the station reported that the government insists it had not sold its shares in ADB, and was actually looking at an unsolicited proposal from Stanbic made last year.
It was confirmed in the state-owned Daily Graphic on Thursday, as the picture above illustrates.
I certainly hope that Bank of Ghana, and Ghanaians open their eyes to the looming threat of big capital–be it outside Africa, or on the continent itself, represented by a wolf in sheep's clothing–South Africa, always ready to please the West and its elite, yet less amenable to the interests of Black Africa.
Finally, Emmanuel, of Trials and Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen provides an exclusive interview of morning show host Bernard Avle, who was back from Nairobi after receiving an award for his show, the CITI Breakfast Show, and for the private radio station, CITI FM itself. The station won the first-ever BBC Radio Awards’ “Best Interactive Talkshow of the Year”:
He cuts a contemplative and tall figure. Be-spectacled with some degree of seriousness etched on his face, you could be forgiven for thinking that the dynamic Bernard Avle, host of the CITI Breakfast Show is only recently a busy man. But he's not. He's been busy ever since he became the host of the young and private Accra-based radio station in late 2004.Recently from Nairobi, Kenya, where he accompanied the station's managing-director Samuel Attah-Mensah to receive an award for the “Best Interactive TalkShow of the Year”, I took the opportunity to ask him over to my workplace, whilst he was in the East Legon neighborhood for another interactive Friday show.
Emmanuel: In the West, citizen journalism and blogging is big vis-à-vis the media, with many debates raging on the threat– or lack thereof-of how Media is changing the face of journalism. Last August, the BBC reported that 61% of Nigerians had accessed the BBC website via their mobile phones ( **). Where do you see Ghanaian journalists going with New Media?
Avle: Its obviously a big opportunity which I do not think Ghanaian electronic media owners have fully opened up to. It has more to do with where media owners want to invest in. Having said that, the Ghanaian journalist has a big opportunity to take advantage of these technologies to learn from across the globe.

author: Emmanuel.K. Bensah


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Zambia: an endless pursuit to extract money from mining companies · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

New Zambia opposes the suggestion that environmental tax should be imposed on mining companies in Zambia: “It appears that there's an endless pursuit to extract revenue from the mining companies. The latest suggestion is that an environmental tax should be imposed.”


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Afghanistan: Radio Taliban back on air · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

Afghan Lord thinks that by launching a mobile FM radio station in the southern provinces of Afghanistan, the Taliban are proving how powerful they have again become.

author: Ben Paarmann


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Afghanistan: Walking around Herat · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

After exploring the streetlife of Herat, a city in Eastern Afghanistan, Tom T met with local students who are actively involved in civic projects and who will receive more training in Kyrgyzstan this summer.


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Albania: Real Estate · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Our Man in Tirana reports on investing in Albanian property.


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Arabeyes: The Release of Alan Johnston · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

The release of kidnapped British journalist Alan Johnston is making waves on blogs today. Here's a quick review of what is being said on blogs in the Middle East.
Qatar:
From Qatar, Abdurahman writes:
I was ecstatic this morning when I heard the news that Alan Johnston was finally released. For four long months, he was held by a group calling themselves “The Army of Islam”, actually a violent family called the Dogmush. During his ordeal he was once rumored to have been killed and later shown in video recording wearing an explosive belt.
When Hamas took control of Gaza they made it clear that the release of Alan Johnston is at the top of their agenda, and they've delivered.
Bahrain:
Bahraini blogger Mahmood Al Yousif dedicates a blooming water lily to the freed journalist here.
“This is the first ever water lily in my care. It has just opened this morning! I am really happy with it and love its colour.
I am so glad that Alan Johnston has been released in Gaza after 140 days in captivity.
This lily is dedicated to him and all journalists who put their life on the line to keep us informed,” writes Mahmood.
Egypt:
Ibn Al Dunya from Egypt is happy too and pays tribute to Johnston's professionalism here.
“I´m truly happy about Alan´s release, he´s one of the best reporters ever to have reported from the region, and he was the only western journalist to live there permanently at this point in time, to kidnap him was to rob the Gazans from getting the true story out on how bad the situation really is there in the most eloquent way possible. He´s reporting really has substantial impact.
More than 200 000 people have signed the petition to release him, and i thank everyone who has helped in whatever way during these almost four months. This is a big day for Alan, his family and the BBC,” notes Ibn Al Dunya.
Still in Egypt, Zeinobia writes:
I am so so happy that the reporter Alan Johnston is free at last , this is good cheerful news , I am so happy for him and for his family
Of course the man looks terrible , I mean it has been more than 100 day.
Bravo Hamas , Hamas again is trying to prove that it is not terrorist barbaric group as some want to make appear like , really it is enough to see the reception of Johnston with Ismail Hania or even to read how he was set free
Bravo to both Johnston and Hamas and Shame on this group that claims to be Islamic , this is not from the manners of Islam to kidnap a civilian unarmed man who came to our countries to cover the truth and terrify him like that
Israel:
Desert Peace gives us an update on Johnston's ordeal in this post.
Rabbi Yohanna, at Jewlicious, however, has a few questions to ask:
And what about Gilad Shalit who is being held by HAMAS in the Gaza strip? The duplicitous Haniyeh posing with the former captive just hours after his release is utterly atrocious. Placing on him a flag and kisses is disgusting. Does Hamas have no shame? Apparently not.
And what about Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev being held by Hezbollah and Iran in Lebanon?
And to paraphrase Dennis Leary, Where’s the BBC now? Where are all the rallies for those unjustly kidnapped? Where are the behind the scene negotiations for the Jews release? Where’s the BBC now? I’ll tell you where they are. They are covering Jihad in their own backyard.
Lebanon:
From Lebanon, Sophia  has a different take on the story.
“Alan Johnston, the BBC correspondant held by a radical Djihadist group, is freed today by the efforts of Hamas, two weeks only since Hamas took control of the Gaza strip.
Israeli collaborators from Fatah are bitter and angry. There may be some Logic beyond Politics, according to The Guardian account of Johnston's liberation. Israel and Fatah, encouraged by the international community, planted chaos and anarchy in Gaza in order to undermine the image of the Hamas government. But the anarchy went to such lenght that Hamas did not have a choice but to get rid of collaborationnist elements in the Gaza strip.
Now that they control Gaza, Hamas can prove what they are capable of. Johnston's liberation is a good sign,” explains Sophia.
Palestine:
Putting aside Palestinian politics, Amal  writes:
Alan Johnston is free. Hamas is taking credit for his release to show that they brought security and law and order to Gaza. More about this later. The important thing now is that he's safe and free.
Syria:
Mustafa Hamido from Syria writes:
I can say happily that I am very happy for the British journalist Allan Johnston who has been abducted in Gaza and spent more than 100 days in abduction. He is free now and appearing smiling after his release this morning. I am happy for him because he is a human being who has feelings. He has also a family which surely was worried about him and he has friend who were waiting his appearance to calm down their worries. He is not the last one who is going to be abducted by armed forces all over the world. He is innocent. I know that very well, however, a lot of other journalists who are abducted are, in fact, mixing between intelligence and journalism. It is right that the barriers between those two carriers are a little bit unclear; however, journalist must put himself under strict conditions to don't let himself to be an agent for this or that. Unfortunately, most of who are abducted are agents for an intelligent agencies and this exactly what push us to don't take care about their abduction.


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Argentina: Homer Simpson · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

eBlog [ES] writes that the Buenos Aires newspaper Clarin is looking for the “Argentine Homer Simpson” and invites readers to nominate someone they may know.


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Bahamas, Trinidad & Tobago: The Business of Culture  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Caribbean governments need to be thinking about what they must do to foster innovation and creative talent while developing enabling policies designed to keep our creative industries attuned to domestic and global realities.”  Bahamian Nicolette Bethel reprints an article by a Trinidadian media consultant to make the point that culture is an economically viable industry.


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Barbados: CARICOM Summit Update  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Barbados recently chose to import 100 construction workers from China rather than allowing trades to come from other CARICOM nations.”  Barbados Free Press, reporting on the CARICOM Summit, calls this decision “the elephant in the room”.


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Bolivia: Political Blog Aggregator · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Sebastian Molina of Plan B [ES] helped launch a new blog aggregator called Piensa Bolivia [ES] “Think Bolivia,” which focuses on entries about the political situation in the country.


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Bosnia & Herzegovina: Genocide Conference · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Srebrenica Genocide Blog reports that the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) will hold its 7th meeting in Sarajevo on July 9-13, 2007: “Our conference theme, Responding to Genocide Before It's Too Late: Genocide Studies and Prevention, is always appropriate, of course, but also has an immediate resonance as we convene in a site of one of the shameful genocides of the last century.”


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China: Beijing tap water drinkable? · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Joel Martinsen from DANWEI translated a local report about drinkable Beijing tap water. However he also pointed out: the fact that the city's tap water is drinkable doesn't mean it's drinkable from the city's taps.

author: Oiwan Lam


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Colombia: Blog Competition · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Medallo Bloguero [ES] writes about the national blog competition sponsored by the magazine Semana, in which the top three winners will form part of the magazine's bloggers.


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Congratulations, Rising Voices Grantees · Global Voices
David Sasaki

We are thrilled to announce the first five citizen media outreach projects to receive Rising Voices microgrants. They represent the foresight and ambition that were consistent in all of the applications we received.
In total we received 142 project proposals from over 40 different countries. The overwhelming response is a testament to the global enthusiasm for citizen media that stretches from Southern Chile to rural Nigeria, from a village in Mali without electricity to urban Mongolia; from an orphanage in Ethiopia to a center for disabled HIV/AIDS patients in Kenya. The list goes on and on, but what all of the project proposals have in common is a desire to enable their communities to tell their own stories, to write their own first draft of history, to document their traditions and culture before they are washed away by the tides of globalization.
Over the next month I'll be introducing each of the following projects in more detail. We'll also be announcing the Rising Voices website where you will be able to follow the developments of each project and each project participant. Without further ado, the first round grantees of Rising Voices:
Vickie is helping coordinate the Think Build Change Salone initiative which seeks to help rebuild post-civil war Sierra Leone by providing training and work experience to Sierra Leonean youth with paid internship positions at local non-profit organizations. This year's interns will be required to record their experiences using weblogs, audio, and video. By documenting their experiences at various non-profit organizations around Sierra Leone they will cover issues of health, environment, democracy, post conflict reconstruction, women’s issues, information technology, education, government accountability & transparency, and community development. Once the interns feel comfortable with the tools themselves, they will organize several workshops around the country teaching citizen media to other groups.
This project started out as two separate proposals. Juliana [ES] and Jorge [ES] had set out to do a number of new media training workshops in collaboration with an outreach initiative (.doc) of Medellín's public library system. Álvaro [ES] proposed to organize a video blogging workshop [ES] in the working class neighborhood of La Loma de San Javier. Fortunately, the two groups agreed to share their resources, tools, and time so that both projects can go forward.
Kazi Rafiq Islam and Kathy Ward are the Coordinator and Executive Director of the Nari Jibon Project in Dhaka, Bangladesh. As you can see from the website, the organization is already involved in outstanding work with young women in Dhaka. With the help of the Rising Voices microgrant, they will introduce Bangladeshi girls and women to blogging, photography and video-blogging by incorporating blogging assignments into existing English, computer, and Bangla classes. You can see some examples of what is to come at Bangladesh from our View.
Mario [ES], Eduardo [ES], and Hugo [ES] will organize a series of four bi-weekly sessions that will last three hours each. They will provide hands on training at a local internet cafe in El Alto, Bolivia and encourage participants to write about their lives, families, and community and communicate to the rest of Bolivia and the world that, for the most part, the daily life in the impoverished city of El Alto is just like daily life anywhere else.
Bishan and Sahar are the coordinators of Kalam: Margins Write, a creative writing program for marginalized youth in India. They've already done amazing work using print to encourage creativity and self-expression with poetry and creative writing. This Rising Voices microgrant will help establish a new project, “Neighborhood Diaries”, which will train underprivileged youth living in Kolkata's slums to be citizen journalists. As they wrote on their application, “Often urban slums in India are misrepresented and sensationalized.” By empowering young residents who live there to tell their own stories, they will gain power on how their community is portrayed. You can find out more about Kalam: Margins Write on their weblog.
You'll be hearing a lot more about these five exciting projects in the weeks and months to come. The next round of Rising Voices funding will take place in September. The application process will be made more public and more participatory so that Global Voices readers can offer their input on the proposals, make suggestions, and even offer help and resources.
If you are interested in providing funding to help support more of these inspiring projects, please write to outreach@globalvoicesonline.org.

author: David Sasaki


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Cuba: Areito · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Cuba Daily News explores Areito, the Cuban music of the aboriginal people.


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Cuba: Reflections on Freedom  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Americans do not deserve to be free because we are Americans, and Cubans do not deserve to be free because we are Cubans. All men and women deserve to be free because that is how we are born.”  July 4th gives Uncommon Sense a chance to reflect on freedom.


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Ecuador: Quito Photo Blog · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Quito Mas [ES] is a photo blog that collects interesting images from around Ecuador's capital city of Quito.


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Egypt: 12 Killed in Bus Accident  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Ibn Al Dunya, from Egypt, tells us about a horrific road accident in Sinai, in which 12 people were killed.


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Egypt: Islam Electronica Project  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Egyptian Ahmed Sherif tells us all about his new online project – the Islam Electronica Project.


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Guatemala: June 30th, A Day to Remember · Global Voices
Renata Avila

Photo taken by James Rodríguez and use by permission.
Every year on June 30, Guatemalans celebrate a festive day, when the Guatemalan Army goes on a parade in the city's center. This year was exceptional because bloggers were the real reporters of the event, and experienced something unusual that happened.
Why is there a celebration on June 30? in Guatemala Blog [ES] you can find the answer:
El presidente Julio César Méndez Montenegro, en el año de 1965, en conmemoración de la efemérides de Barrios, siendo su fundador, establece el 30 de junio como el Día del Ejército.
In 1965, President Julio Cesar Méndez Montenegro commemorated the achievements of former President Justo Rufino Barrios, who founded the Guatemalan Army, by establishing June 30 as Day of the Army.
Opinions are as diverse as bloggers. One day before the parade, blogger Prensa Negra Guatemala [ES] in an extensive critique of the armed forces on his post “En la víspera” delcared:
Yo no me quedare de brazos cruzados ire de parte del pueblo, con el pueblo y por el pueblo por medio de una marcha de protesta que habra ese dia a manifestar mi repudio a dicha institución
I will not stand with my arms crossed.  I will go the protest representing the people, with the people, and for the people to voice my dissent towards such an institution.
And next day, voilá, the Parade and the protest took place organized by H.I.J.O.S, an association of Sons and Daughters for Identity and Justice Against Silence, whose members are relatives of those who suffered the loss of a family member during the armed conflict in Guatemala. But many things happened at the parade and protest. Sometimes a picture says more than hundred words, as journalist and blogger James Rodriguez shows on his blog
His photo report´s title is “The March for Remembrance Halts Military Parade” There you can see the events unfolding step-by-step with some accompanying explanations. The picture on this post is part of it, and he kindly provided  authorization to use it.
However, in rural Coban, the festivities were quite different as you can see in the pictures by Blog Verapaces [ES].
Con un tradicional desfile y la participación de bandas colegiales y seguramente algunas actividades especiales, el Ejercito celebró su día en la ciudad de Cobán.
With a traditional parade and the participation of school music bands, and some special activities, the Army celebrated the day in the city of Coban.
Guatemala is a small country with huge contrasts, different views, but short coverage by the press. Things that really matter are now shown by bloggers, in an open way.

author: Renata Avila


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Honduras: The Intricacies of Using Cell Phones · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

La Gringa writes about how, when, and where cell phones are used in Honduras.


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Hong Kong: Self-Knowledge · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

ESWN translated an article by Chen Guanzhong about three types of mistakes in the self-knowledge of Hong Kong: misconception, false issues and lagging consciousness.


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Hong Kong: I.T. Sector on the March · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Videos and photos of the Information Technology sector on the July 1st demonstration in support of 2012 universal suffrage in Hong Kong.


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India: The Taj Mahal · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

With the race on for the world's new seven wonders, Twilight Fairy has a lovely photo post on the Taj Mahal.

author: Neha Viswanathan


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India: Trees and Courts · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Metroblogging Chennai on the courts coming to the rescue of trees that were to be cut down by the Chennai Corporation.


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Iran:Remember Jailed Students · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Khorshidkhanoum has published the photos of eight jailed student activists from Amir Kabir University.


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Iran:Selling gasoline in black market · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Pa Brehneh Bar Khat says[Fa] that in Bandar Abbas,a port city  on the southern coast of Iran,you can hardly find a taxi.The blogger adds after,last week,government rationed gasoline,taximen started to sell their own gasoline in black market instead of consuming it.


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Iraq: Iraqi Doctor Bomber · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Neurotic Iraqi Wife lashes out at the Iraqi doctor implicated in the UK bombings in this moving post.


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Jordan: Are Books Too Expensive? · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“You see a girl, wearing fashionable clothes, driving a brand new car, carrying the latest mobile phones, going out often, spending money here and there, yet when it comes to books, 8 JD's is too much!!” writes Ola Eliwat from Jordan.


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Jordan: The Transformers · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Naseem from Jordan reviews new blockbuster The Transformers here.


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Kazakhstan: Free lunch · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

Irene thinks (RUS) that the behaviour of certain government officials is not really promoting foreign direct investment in Kazakhstan. KZBlog provides the gist of the story in English: A German delegation was made to pay for their “friends'” lunch, although the friends hastily disappeared in government cars once they finished their meals.


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Kazakhstan: Statistics · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

LJ user megakhuimyak has a bunch of interesting statistics about Kazakhstan in 2007.


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Kenya: computer game maker in the news · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

A story about a Kenyan computer game maker, Wesley Kirinya: Since I had done a piece on a Wesley Kirinya, a Kenyan game maker, he had tracked me down. We talked about the future of game designers in Africa. His piece is now published, titled “A ‘Lonely’ Inventor Creates a Computer Game in Africa”


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Kuwait: Iranian ATM Machines · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Lebanese blogger Mark, who lives in Kuwait, posts a picture of an Iranian using an ATM machine in Iran here.


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Kyrgyzstan: From national surveys to a spy-lady in parliament · Global Voices
Asel

The Kyrgyzstani blogosphere has been actively discussing the results of a national survey conducted by the International Republican Institute (IRI) in May 2007, in which around 1500 Kyrgyz inhabitants aged 18 and above took part.
According to survey’s results, unemployment, economic development, corruption and political crises are believed to be the biggest problems Kyrgyzstan is currently facing. People of the country are mostly concerned about the threat of war, uprisings, and economic and political instability, as the survey shows.
Some rather pessimistic notes on the survey’s actually positive indicators about Kyrgyzstan’s situation were posted on forums.
For instance, IoLa thinks that there has been a substantial change for the worse, even though the survey indicates overall economic and social progress and development. Zoltan also disagrees with some of the survey’s outcomes (both links in Russian):
Интересно кто это написа что им лучше живется, наверное жогорку кенеш опрашивали!?!?!?
Another interesting survey was conducted by the Russian online newspaper “Novyi Region”. It aimed to identify the sexiest president of the former Soviet Union.
Among the 15 heads of state, Kyrgyzstan's president Kurmanbek Bakiyev turns out to be the fifth-sexiest president. An interesting group discussion of this topic is found at Svobodnoe Pokolenie (Free Generation) and the survey's preliminary results were posted by Mirsulzhan on neweurasia (both links in Russian).
Честно говоря, меня тревожит факт, что нашему Салиевичу кроме сексуальности нечем хвалиться. Обыдна. Если Салиевич сексуальный – то Бабанов кто?
The blogosphere’s discussion was not limited to survey results only; the Failed States Index published annually by the Fund for Peace and Foreign Policy magazine has also attracted bloggers’ attention. Asel on neweurasia and Shannon on nonpon published posts on the ranking results, according to which Kyrgyzstan drops thirteen spots to #41. Here's what Shannon says:
Kyrgyzstan, on the other hand, allegedly stepped the furthest from the abyss, dropping a full 13 spots to #41. Encouragingly, the drop was due to lower rankings nearly across the board, albeit extremely marginal. The ability of Kyrgyz to flee the country seems to be the main factor keeping it ranked above Turkmenistan.
The Kyrgyzstani blogosphere constantly elaborates on current political issues, and the last two weeks were not an exception. A heated debate about a detained spy lady, a worker of Kyrgyz Parliament’s press service, who was allegedly relaying secret information to China, can be seen on different blogs.
Baisalov argues that there is absolutely no state and military secret information in the parliament, while anonymous notes that possibly it was just a PR action of Sutalinov, head of the State Committee of National Security, who likes acting this way. Naryn Aiyp comments on Djekshenkulov’s (former Minister of Foreign Affairs) statement that it was not right to announce on spy’s criminal action right before the upcoming SCO summit in Bishkek this August (links in Russian).

author: Asel


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Latvia: Remembering Holocaust Victims on July 4 · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Marginalia reports that in Latvia, July 4 is “set aside for remembrance of the genocide against the Jews — ca. 70 000 Latvian Jews and 20 000 foreign Jews were murdered here during the Nazi phase of the occupation.”

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Lebanon: Muslim Women Activists are the Answer · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Lebanese blogger Sophia “wonders if women's activism within Islam couldn't be, after all, the right remedy to the economic, political and social pressures exerted on Muslims and Muslim societies by the West and by their own rulers and their extremists.”

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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Liberia: Charles Taylor in court · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Read the latest post from Charles Taylor's trial in the Hague: Taylor entered the courtroom in a dark blue suit with a bright yellow tie, nodded to the judges and sat, flanked by two uniformed guards.  After being informed that the delay was due to the fact that the route from Taylor’s detention facilities had to be adjusted for security reasons, Judge Sebutinde stated that “the reason is noted but it is not satisfactory.”  She therefore directed the Registry to communicate with security personnel to ”ensure that court time is not wasted because we are waiting for someone to transport Mr. Taylor to court.”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Oceania: Arc of Instability and the Africanization of the South Pacific · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Pacific Empire in a guest post at cominganarchy.com looks at the concepts of “arc of instability” and “Africanization of the South Pacific” that some academics and analysts use to describe the instability in the island nations of Pacific Ocean.


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Oman Community Blog Update · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“The Oman Community Blog has been unleashed to the public as a ‘beta’ stage. You now have the opportunity to see what the blog looks like and what it aims to be and make any possible suggestions as a reader or perhaps still have that last chance for yourself to sign up as a contributer,” writes Sleepless in Muscat.


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Pakistan: Lal Masjid and Opinions · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Metroblogging Islamabad attempts to collate opinions on the Lal Masjid shootout.


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Poland: News Roundup · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The beatroot returns with a news roundup: “The EU deal that wasn't; striking doctors and nurses; and the Father Henryk Jankowski – Mel Gibson connection: the usual weird and wonderful stories out of Poland didn’t stop just because I went on holiday.”


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Russia: Allofmp3.com Shut Down · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Siberian Light writes: “The Russian government has finally bitten the bullet, decided it wants to be in the World Trade Organisation more than it wants to be seen as a haven of music piracy, and closed Allofmp3.com.” Robert Amsterdam has more.


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Russia: Jokes · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Darkness at Noon links to a collection of Soviet jokes translated into English.


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Russia: “See You In Sochi” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Inside Krasnodar announces in the middle of the Russian night: “SOCHI WINS! Sochi has just been awarded the 2014 Winter Olympics!! Molodetz Sochi.”


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Russia: Sochi-2014? We’ll Know Today. · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Accidental Russophile and Sochi Travel Info await the announcement of the winner of the 2014 Winter Olympics bid in Guatemala today: one of the candidate cities is Sochi.


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Sri Lanka: Passport Office · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

cerno on going to the Sri Lanka Immigration Passport office. The bloggers calls it a drama in two acts!


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St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Performance Anxiety · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

After a performer uses obscenities on stage, Abeni is “wondering why an island with 19 homicides thus far in 2007 is getting bent out of shape because of an expletive or two.”


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Thailand: Falling Lizard · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Lost Boy explains why a falling lizard might bring good or bad luck for you depending on where its tail points to.


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Thailand: Thai Role Models · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Real Life Thailand lists five Thai politicians he considers as role models.


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Thailand: Visiting the Snake Farm · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Richard Barrow is giving suggestions on what places a tourist can visit along the Bangkok's subway. Richard highly recommends the Snake Farm.


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Ukraine: Yanukovych’s Crimea House · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Ukrainiana reposts pictures of Victor Yanukovych's Crimea residence and writes: “As “people all over Ukraine struggle to make both ends meet” — the truth championed in a recent Party of Regions ad — some people obviously defy the order of the day. Their luxury lifestyles know no end.”


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Vietnam: Sapa · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Teresa visits and blog about Sa Pa, the mountainous region in the North of Vietnam.


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A New Association for Helping Sexually Abused Children in Morocco · Global Voices
Jillian C. York

A Moro in America reports on a new association that will work with sexually abused children:
A small group of Moroccans online watched a youtube video about sex tourism in Morocco and how abused Moroccan children are not only the weakest link but also the biggest victims. Everyone upset and even enraged and decided not to sit idle and read about it in the news everyday. Deciding to move from a mentality of talk and whining into a culture of action and responsibility, they immediately started building a non-profit association to organize events, seminars, and lobby with the Moroccan movers and shakers for tougher laws on the aggressors and to break the tradition of shame and silence of the victims.


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Africa: United States of What? · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

No Longer At Ease weighs in on the idea of building a United States of Africa: “When I heard about the idea being discussed in the AU summit of creating a United States of Africa I thought it was just another laughable idea from Gaddafi. But then I found out that it was the only item on the agenda! Believe or not, African leaders will spend full three days debating it.”


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An Insider’s View of the Japanese Meat Industry · Global Voices
Chris Salzberg

Living in a country chronically lacking in food security, one that imports 60% of calories consumed within its borders and heavily subsidizes the domestically-produced remainder, it is nothing new for Japanese to be concerned about where their food is coming from. With 17% of their imported food coming from China, a country recently embroiled in a series of high-profile scandals involving exports tainted with various toxins, it is also not surprising that many Japanese tend to direct their fears at imports from their populous and rapidly-expanding East Asian neighbour [Ja].
The contrast between this anxiety about imported foods and the regard typically accorded to food produced in Hokkaido, Japan's resource-rich northernmost prefecture known for its assortment of culinary delights, could not be greater. There's a rumour that simply labeling a product with the word “Hokkaido” alone can double sales. Given this situation, the widespread shock expressed at the recent scandal over ground beef is understandable.
When it was revealed just about two weeks ago that the charmingly-named Meat Hope Company was selling pork disguised as beef, apparently because stocks of beef had run out, and was also suspected of disguising Brazilian chicken meat as domestic and shipping it for use in school lunch meals, public trust in their food was undermined again. In total, it was reported that, since last July, the company has sold 368 tons of falsely labeled meat products to 18 companies, with earlier cases dating as far back as 1983.
While there were various reactions to the news about Meat Hope [Ja] from bloggers in Japan, one stood out as particularly insightful. Blogger Here There and Everywhere, a worker at a meat processing plant in Japan, wrote last week about their first-hand experience in the industry:
私は食品会社に勤めているものです。連日のミートホープ社の偽装工作報道の件に関して私の会社での現実をお伝えしたく書き込みをさせて頂きます。連日の報道では「食の安全」と謳っていますが、食品会社の現状の体質からして真の「食の安全」は到底望めない事と感じております。恐らく会社サイドはこの騒動のほとぼりが冷めるのをただ待っているように思えてなりません。偽装は全国の食品会社では起こっている事だと思っております。決して全ての食品会社がそうとは限りませんが。
私の勤めている会社では主に精肉を取り扱っています。会社内の工場には金属探知機が置いてあるのですが、これは本来精肉の中に包丁の刃の金属の粉が混入しているか否かを感知する為に設置してありますが、通常は金属探知機は一切使用しません。使用する時といえば取引先や得意先等といった外部からの査察や工場見学の際に探知機を使用している事を建前上見せる時にしか使用していないのが現状です。もし人体に影響を及ぼすことになれば取り返しのつかないことになります。
通常、精肉はしんたま、肩ロース等といった牛の各部分の原体からスライスしたものを商品としているのですが、その原体はミートセンターから食品会社へ送られる際に個体識別番号や賞味期限等が記されたラベルが貼られているのですが、これは本来商品の安全の為、出荷の際に正しい個体識別番号や賞味期限を表示したラベルを食品会社で発行してから出荷するのですが、実際は異なる個体識別番号や賞味期限を改ざんして出荷しているのが場合があります。時には原体を保存している冷凍庫から賞味期限が1年以上前に切れているものを精肉にして出荷している事も過去にあります。あと商品そのものの改ざんやあと原産地域の改ざんもあります。
この事から私が思うには「知らぬは消費者ばかりなり」です。この事に関して私は社内ではまだ低い地位なので、意見を出せる身分ではありません。ですから私はこの事実を一人でも多くの方に知って貰い、消費者の皆様が安心して食品が食べられるような状況になればと思い、この投稿を決意いたしました。最後に個体識別番号検索のリンクを貼って締め括りたいと思います。
The post concludes with a link to a look-up function to track individual identification numbers [Ja].

author: Chris Salzberg


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Anguilla: Labour Protests  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

As imported labourers protest for the second time in a week, Corruption-free Anguilla dissects the situation and identifies three separate issues.


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Armenia: Constitution Day · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

On a rare occasion, the Armenian Observers chimes in with Armenia's government in hailing the country's constitution. He's hoping that it will be the foundation for democracy one day.


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Bahamas: Cultural Production  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Nicolette Bethel, guest authoring at Bahama Pundit, says that culture is the one area in which the Caribbean can compete on a global level: “We've become accustomed to thinking of culture as a series of events, rather like pearls, which are strung out along the calendar. We don't see it as a product that we can market and sell.  And we have no idea how wrong we are. One word: Reggae.”


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Bahamas: Hurricanes and Global Warming  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Larry Smith at Bahama Pundit refers to a book by science journalist Chris Mooney, which links hurricanes with the battle over global warming: “This has enormous implications – particularly for us in the Bahamas – because strong hurricanes cause dramatically more destruction than weak ones when they hit land.”


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Bahrain: Die Hard · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

From Bahrain, Bint Battuta confesses  her love for the Die Hard movie series.


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China: Female reporter fist fight · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

ESWN translated a blog post by a female reporter in a mainland local newspapers China Times, who got into a physical fight with a colleague during an editorial meeting. The reason had to do with plagiarism on a grand scale.


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China: robot fight robot · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Douban's blog aggregator uses a technology to fetch the blog posts even the host is blocked, and the popularity of the post is determined by the reviews and recommendations it receives. All done by a software “robot” against another robot: Great Fire Wall. — More from Bingfeng


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Cuba: Environmental Issues  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Both Babalu Blog and Child of the Revolution are unimpressed with the UN‘s take on Cuba's environmental issues.


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Egypt:Jailed Bogger Sends Letter, Another intimidated, Baha’is Continue Struggling and More  · Global Voices
Freedom For Egyptians

In this week's round-up from Egypt, jailed blogger Karim Amer sends a letter from prison, Wael Abbas gets intimidated by security forces over the phone, a new Baha'i rights website is launched, and a belly dancing festival concludes in Cairo and more.
Imprisoned Blogger Karim Amer Sends a Letter from Prison:
Karim Amer was sentenced to four years in prison for his writings on his blog. He is the first ever Egyptian blogger to be jailed. Wa7damasrya received a letter from Karim. He wrote from prison in a letter that he is worried that he could be a reason that bloggers won’t be as encouraged as before to blog. He says that he has a special position because he was writing with his real name and he did not blog anonymously which made it easy to condemn him.  He says that his only reason why he did not want to be anonymous is that people with backward and retro ideas are not shameful to hide them. They try in every means to impose their extremist ideas and sometimes through violence and terror. He says also that he would not have been in prison if he did not admit that he wrote what he wrote. He believes that the fact that he was a student from Al-Azhar (a religious Sunni institution) was the main reason for his imprisonment. Al-Azhar was the reason of accusing him of insulting Islam in which he is spending three years in prison and one year for defaming the President of Egypt, which are highly controversial issues. At the end he concludes by saying that he does not want other bloggers to be afraid or think that they could face his destiny. It is worthmentioning that Karim Amer has progressive ideas regarding women's rights.
Free Kareem is encouraging readers to send him letters in prison to let him interact with his supporters. Free Kareem has been adopting a worldwide campaign to free Kareem.
Phone Threats Against Bloggers Continue:
Arabawy reports a new intimidation to blogger Wael Abbass. He says that Abbass succeeded in recording the phone call that was meant to threaten him. Several bloggers have been following what happened to Wael. Ahmed Sherif is one of them and he provided an English transcription.
Wael Abbass is an activist blogger who does not spare an effort to expose irregularities. Among his famous campaigns are the anti-torture ones that bring to the surface how some police officers torture innocent helpless citizens.
New Site for Baha’i Rights:
Baha’i Faith in Egypt blog reports the creation of a new site called “The Muslim Network for Baha'i Rights. The authors of this site are “Muslim interfaith activists who are deeply concerned with the treatment of Baha’is within the Middle East.” Baha’is in Egypt are still struggling to issue official papers acknowledging their faith and identity. They face numerous problems related to the fact that their ID papers are incomplete or not issued.
Egyptian leading intellectual Taha Hussein curtailed from Education System:
Taha Hussein is the first visually impaired minister of education in Egypt. He is one of the leading intellectuals who brought an enlightenment era to Egypt through his books, his battles to give access to all Egyptian citizens to the education system at a time when some Egyptian where only privileged to complete their education for their social status. He believed in the empowerment of women. Blogger Ashraf Nasr in his recent blog post is exposing a “scandal”. He reports that some of those who are deciding on high schools curriculum are omitting some parts of Taha Hussein biography book, “The Days”. His biography is a masterpiece. Hussein was not only a a highly-educated intellectual but an amazing writer with an extraordinary life story. The blogger is so surprised that those officials are saying that Hussein’s book will spoil the manners of students. The blogger is thinking that dropping the book will be much better than deforming its rich text.
Belly Dancing Festival Concludes in Cairo:
7rnksh attended the annual Egyptian festival for belly dancing in Cairo. The blog reports that more than 1200 dancers come from all over the world.  The festival is accompanied by an exhibition for all sorts for dancing suits and accessories. The blog applauds the seriousness of all participant dancers when compared to current commercial singing in the Middle East. 7rnksh had the chance to talk to one of the visiting dancers. She happened to have a PhD degree in belly dancing and owns a dancing school in California. Something he thought is very impressive!
I will leave here with this entertainment news until I see you next week!

author: Freedom For Egyptians


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Iran:Helping Lebanon but not Iranian Flood Victims · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Balouch says[Fa] that according to Iranian media, government's help for many flood victims in Sarvan in Sistan and Balouchestan province has not been sufficient.The blogger reminds us that Iranian government paid 20 thousands dollars to (Shi'ite) people who lost their houses in Lebanon during last year war.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Iraqi Blogger Celebrates Canada Day · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Iraqi blogger Alaa celebrated Canada Day, in his new home, with a special message: “Thank You Canada.”


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Israel: Blogging Conference Links · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Israelity links to blogs which covered a blogging conference in Israel here.


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Israel: Religious Date · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Yael from Israel writes about her date with a religious man.


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Japan: Museums’ political leanings · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

James from Japan Probe blogs a chart for Japanese museums’ political leanings.


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Jordan: Doctor is Innocent · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Jordanian Hareega  jumps to the defense of a Jordanian doctor implicated in the UK bombings, saying he doesn't think it is possible.


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Jordan: Internet Study Controversy · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Zeid Nasser from Jordan says another study released on Internet users in Arab countries raises controversy.


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Jordan: Is London the New Kabul? · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

“Is London the new Kabul?” asks Jordanian blogger Khalaf, after a Jordanian doctor was implicated in the latest bombings in the UK.


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Kazakhstan: Bloggers discuss politics · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Not a week may pass in the Kazakhstani blogosphere without the president getting a mention. It’s quite natural, taking into account the power he enjoys – sarimov posts (RUS) a very indicative joke on this topic:
- Investments in fixed capital decreased by 0.6%!
– It’s again Nazarbayev behind this.
– Why?!
– If not he, then who? Me?
Mursya (RUS) is amazed how fast things can become when the matter is about the president’s will. Another city in Kazakhstan, Semipalatinsk, was renamed just two days following the president’s suggestion. The new name, Semei, means nothing both in Russian and in Kazakh, being rooted in slang.
The alleged reason for renaming is to cut away negative associations with the Semipalatinsk nuclear test ground, which had been heavily used in Soviet times. “It’s interesting, what would be the use of that for the towns’ inhabitants, who have problems with receiving their social benefits as victims of the test ground”, mursya says.
“The Aliev affair” (in which the President's former son-in-law is being held in Austria for charges brought against him in Kazakhstan) is still discussed by bloggers, even though the news from Vienna are very few. Tuganbaev, a Kazakh born and living in Moscow, believes that Nazarbayev had to sacrifice his son-in-law for the sake of gaining legitimacy (RUS).
Weathercock, a Kazakhstani living in Australia, says the Aliev story foreshadows inevitable future problems that will come up in the post-Nazarbayev epoch (RUS). Megakhuimyak, pondering over the ban on use of right-hand steering wheel cars, opines that information flows within the power structures are biased, and the president doesn’t receive objective data (RUS):
“The Security Council doesn't check or deliberately distorts information that it is discussing. The Presidential Administration also does not check the information that is being voiced by the president. The President's control over the force structures has weakened – in earlier times they would not have dared to misinform him”.
Meanwhile, members of the youth movement Nur Otar are posing like mock monarchists, and in continuing their public actions “in support of the president-for-life amendments” are wearing sheep’s masks. Ivanalmazoff posted a brief report on the movement’s last flash-mobs, featuring also a couple of videos (RUS).
Adam Kesher hosts a discussion on the low level of patriotism in Kazakhstan in his livejournal, where most of the Kazakh bloggers concluded that the main reason of that are lacunas in information policy, ideology and education, as well as in fragmentation of the society, and a lack of civicism (RUS).
Irene posts review of migration trends on cj.kz: “Although Kazakhstan is the 9th most attractive country for migrants in the world, most of the migrants work here illegally, have low salaries and bear high risks due to poor working conditions”.
These two weeks on neweurasia-Kazakhstan were most notable for Irene’s shocking story of how impudently the Kazakh officials sometimes behave – it’s about bandit-type not paying the bill in a restaurant (RUS):
We can speak a lot about democracy in Kazakhstan, the government can spend lots of taxpayers’ money for PR-campaigns and receptions for foreigners. But until we don't get rid of such cases of impudence, we will be perceived as a “third world” country, and the inflow of investments will be very low.
Georgex criticizes the poor implementation of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in Kazakhstan: two years of participation in the initiative, but so far no results (RUS):
It looks as though Kazakhstan's joining to EITI was a sort of PR-action, a government's concession to the West. Now EITI commitments in Kazakshtan are totally overlooked both by the authorities and the oil companies.
Elena keeps on updating about the situation around Mittal Steel Temirtau – workers reached out to the British trade unions telling them about their poor working conditions (RUS). Adam informs about a new Kazakh billionaire (as usual, it’s an “inner circle” man, this time the president’s confidant Bulat Utemuratov), problems with car parking in Almaty and the destiny of casinos in this city, which was declared as “the most Russian among non-Russian cities” by a BBC blog.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Kazakhstan: HIV scandal · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

On neweurasia, Arthur gives an update about a trial in southern Kazakhstan, where doctors, but no bosses, were jailed for negligence and corruption leading to the infection of more than 100 children with Aids.


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Mexico: Carlos Slim is Now the Richest Man in the World · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Blog.com.mx [ES] writes about Carlos Slim, owner of Telmex, has now overtaken Bill Gates as the richest man in the world.

author: Eduardo Avila


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Nepal: Intellect and Politics · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

United We Blog! has an interesting post in defense of the “non-intellectuals” in politics, and the attack by the self-professed intelligentsia on the basis of intellect.


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Nicaragua: Prohibiting Peace Corps Workers · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Erik Winkler is a Peace Corps volunteer in Nicaragua and posts an email from local Peace Corps officials prohibiting any volunteer from going near or participating in Sandanista celebrations.


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Pakistan: Lal Masjid and Truths · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Behind the Chairman's Door has a sharp response to those who state the Government in Pakistan shouldn't have dealt with the Lal Masjid issue the way it had.


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Qatar: Al Jazeera Correspondent Attacked by Tunisian Police · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Plain-clothes police beat Lotfi Hajji, the president of the Union of Tunisian Journalists and Al-Jazeera’s correspondent in Tunisia, and prevented him from attended a news conference organised by two opposition parties, writes Friend of Al Jazeera Karim.


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Qatar: Thieves! · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

What is it that makes people think that it's ok to take something that doesn't belong to them? asks Qatar Cat in this post.


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Russia: “Khodorkovsky’s Land” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

A few photos from Chita – “Khodorkovsky's Land” – by Oleg Klimov are here. The last one allegedly shows windows of the former billionaire's cell. (The text is in Russian.)


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Russia: Sochi Victory · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Siberian Light writes: “I suspect that the people of Sochi are especially pleased by their victory. As well as all the business possibilities opened up by their victory […].” Megan Case quotes a Russian friend: “If I wake up tomorrow and Sochi has been chosen I’m going to hate Putin even more. Russia is a huge country with one tiny piece of warm sea coast, where the whole country goes on holiday, and they’re going to take the last bits of untouched nature there and build elite […] cottages.”


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Russia: Tesak Arrested · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Leader of a neo-Nazi group (a college student as well as a blogger) is arrested in Moscow, and Sean's Russia Blog “for once [stands] with the Interior Ministry.”