text:
Landing at the Iraqi Blogodrome · Global Voices
Salam Adil

Phew, what a week in Iraq blogs. The assassination of Zarqawi caused a flood of blog posts and this on top of another flood of quality thoughts from the Iraqi bloggers. Here is the cream of the crop. And read on to find out why one blogger wants to send the Iraqi parliament on space tourism.
If you read only one post this week read this:
Salam Pax takes a tour around Baghdad making a video blog for Newsnight but is finding it very hard to get anyone to agree to be interviewed. “And I know why everybody is so reluctant to talk. Because we don’t know what is the next thing that will get us killed.” he says. Out of desperation he takes the advice of a friend and goes to the Baghdad district of Kadhimiya. Which is not without its risk because this is a strongly Shia area and Salam has a very Sunni sounding surname on his ID card. But fortunately he has an NUJ card that doesn't. An once inside he gets the surprise of his life:
I saw the future of Iraq, or at least Baghdad. Inside the barricade and past the checkpoint was a piece of the old Baghdad. Shops full of people, all relaxed and smiling. Everybody wants to talk and tell me how their lives are and I even got invited to have tea and accepted the invitation without thinking that this man saw my camera and he is just delaying me until the kidnappers arrive.
You know what was different? Kadhimiya is set up these days like a fortress. Entrances are tightly controlled, no unknown cars get in and they basically had their own secret police there…
So people I give you the future of Baghdad. Districts will become tightly controlled fortresses that are ethnically/religiously homogeneous. …
Having trouble getting into a Shia district doesn’t mean that I am OK in Sunni areas. Sunni areas are even tougher. To start with they have their own set of fashion rules. There is a whole What Not To Wear spin-off for the west of Baghdad and the prize isn’t just a special wardrobe but you get to stay alive.
Fisk gets Fisked
This must be a first. Imad Khadduri out-fisked Robert Fisk. At a lecture in Toronto, Robert Fisk gave Imad the impression that “Robert Fisk, armed with his extensive in-depth and in-touch experiences that expand over several decades, was the only ‘true’ journalist having the courage to expose the underbelly of the injustices incurred in the Middle East”. So afterwards Imad
“pointed out [to Fisk] the emergence of truly dedicated young Iraqi journalists, many of whom have been actively, courageously and consistently working with, for example, Islam Memo site …  Why would Fisk not give them due reference and respect for their stand, professionalism and dangerous journalistic mission?
Fisk lamely admitted their value and mentioned that he had the opportunity to train some of them himself during one of his visits to Baghdad. He also promised that he will mention them in his coming lectures and interviews…
He never did .”
Altered States
Maybe it is the heat or maybe it is something in the water, but silly season has started in some of the Iraqi blogs.
Konfused Kid has excused his recent absence because he died and went to heaven. His parting words were “Don't… forget… to….switch…. off… the… god… damn… mother… f**k… ing… fridge…. off…. when the local…. generator….. runs…”. But heaven is not as he expected:
The Angels … are dressed in white all right, and radiant as if they both swallowed Uranium by the handful, but there was something wicked, … considering that our vision of the afterlife is largely connected to the Prophet's 7th Century sayings, it was expected that one of the angels wouild be showing up wearing Na3aal abu-al-Esba3 [Jesus sandals], the other, however, was wearing Rebokee trainers.
Rebokee was munching something and kept to the back, Na3aal said : Sunni or Shiite?
Chikitita is succumbing to superstitions about her brother's release from prison:
I too sometimes believe in crazy stuff, when I’m not at my best spiritual mode. For instance, I sometimes keep humming with Fu’ad Salim’s song my brother likes so much, so I tell Mom, “I think [my brother] is soon to be released” …
“Yeah Right”, she would say, “and how did you know!”, she says questionably.
“Can’t you see, I’m singing Madhi Fi’lak”. I tell her in a matter-of-fact way.
“That’s so silly”, she mocks.
“Maybe, but I still think it’s a sign”, I tell her.
Morbid Smile has been watching too much TV:
I wish if Tru Calling was real and existed in Iraq; she would have saved the lives of thousands of people who die everyday. …
I wish if the invisibility cloak was real; I could have moved freely in places without the fear of car bombs and explosions. …
I wish if wishes would come true; the world would be a better place.
I wish if I know what the hell I'm talking about!!! …
It's obvious that I'm hallucinating here. It's either Summer started to show its effects on me, or it's really the end of the world!!
Even hardened political blogs take part in the season. Baghdad Connect reports that the Iraqi parliament has voted for themselves 6610 foreign guards.
“Bearing in mind the personal guard in today’s Iraq earns USD 600/day… we find out that the cost of those guards is USD 1,447,590,000.00 per year!
BC believes that if the security situation remains as such for the next 3 years then it would be enough for each of the 275 members of the parliament to enjoy the luxurious Space Tourism with the ex-soviet Russian Space Agency.”
The world in Politics
THis cannot be good news: hot on the heels of Michael Portillo calling the war a mistake. Iraqi LGBT is claiming that life in Iraq was better  under Saddam.
Hammorabi is blaming everybody for the troubles of Iraq. “The problem is so complex that no one may bear the whole responsibility for what is going on. Every one involved in the Iraqi affairs is responsible. On the top of this are the Iraqi government and parties and the multi-national forces. … The other party is the Arab terrorists supported from the Syrian regime and the wealthy Gulf men and companies as well as the Arab media starting from the barking dogs of Aljazeera and other Arab media.” And he ends with an ominous warning:
The thugs will soon kneel to the new superpower of the Gulf region and they will then regret what they have done in Iraq but it will be too late.
And in the background violence, brutality,  murder and abductions continues unabated.
Riverbend says it all: “Where does one go to avoid the death and destruction? Are the Americans happy with this progress? … Emily Dickinson wrote, “hope is a thing with feathers”. If what she wrote is true, then hope has flown far- very far- from Iraq…”
And finally
My honorary Iraqi for the week – and most Iraqis will probably be horrified by the suggestion – is The Baghdad Alcohol Sponge. A young Iraqi breaks all the rules to disturb TBAS from going to sleep to announce: “gesturing in the knife-across-the-throat method while repeating ‘Zarquai..fee-nish'd…Zarquai fee-nish'd’.”
TBAS was humbled:
It wasn't the fact that Zarquai was dead…it was that this kid had come by my trailer and beat on my door in what he knew was supposed to be ‘off-limits’—-so proud to deliver the news of Zarquai's death that he wanted to wake me up.
It renews my faith in them like I havent fealt in over a year. It's a humbling moment for me.
Iraq…you may have a prosperous future yet…and I owe an apology. Your youth have proven me wrong this morning. And thats a good thing.
I think I'll stay awake a little longer this morning.


text:
What Salvadoran bloggers are saying — about Tony Saca · Global Voices
Tim Muth

The president of El Salvador, Tony Saca, presented a report on the first two years of his administration to the Salvadoran National Assembly on June 1.  Jjmar at the Hunnapuh blog watched the proceedings and wrote with disappointment (es) about the conduct of the opposition FMLN legislators listening to Saca. Describing the atmosphere as more of a circus, than a solemn plenary session of the legislature, Jjmar told how ARENA deputies applauded at every pause in Saca's address and the FMLN deputies jeered and showed their disagreement.  This led Jjmar to plead:
In a solemn plenary session, Mr. and Ms. Deputy, one has to listen with attention and respect to the principal speaker.  It could be that you like or don't like what is being said, but the correct thing is to learn to listen.  It would appear that we Salvadorans only hear that which we like and accept it with enthusiasm, but we jeer at and do not listen to that which we do not like.
To learn to listen to others is vital for democracy.  Democracy does not signal that all think the same thing, to the contrary, democracy is learning to manage those differences.  But the first we thing we have to learn is to listen with attention and respect to opinions, whether different or the same as ours.
Guillermo Mejia, general editor of the independent web-zine Raices, had much the same reaction on his blog.  He expressed concern about the polarization of the political parties (es) shown in Saca's speech and its reception.
In a mature democracy, where the interests of the people are really represented in the work of the political class — something very distant from El Salvador — it would not cause a problem to have a such a composition [of competing political parties in the legislature], because the balance of power helps deepen democracy.
Mejia notes that the political polarization serves to paralyze the country as each side serves only its constituents and threatens something worse, a dictatorship of the party in power:
In this manner, the Salvadoran people are in the crossroads between forms of governing that in no way produce well-being, nor security, nor hope (even though the politicians tell us the opposite) and bring us to the brink, towards alternatives which are more difficult each time, such as searching for the path into the United States.
Jjmar found the actual details of Saca's address to the deputies to be long on positive sounding words, but short on specifics and concrete proposals. (es) The president spoke of families who were receiving $15 per month as part of his administration's new social programs and the creation of 30 new health clinics, but he did not explain the impact of these measures.  Saca indicated a desire to start a dialogue about an increase in the minimum wage, but left the promise hanging in the air.  The president indicated that the problem of unemployment would be tackled as domestic and foreign business investment increased.
On the subject of violence plaguing the country, Saca said almost nothing.  He used the catch-phrases of a publicity campaign about the plan for a “Country of Safety,” but Jjmar would have liked to have heard an evaluation of the current anti-crime programs “Super Firm Hand” and “Friendly Hand” and why they are not working.
In connection with the two year mark of Saca's presidency, national polls on his approval ratings were released, showing that Saca is still popular, but his approval rating has been slipping.  Javier Najarro writes on his blog about the news media spin on the poll numbers with one television station focusing only on the positive approval rating, but another station which emphasized that Saca's popularity was declining.
The blog of the US-El Salvador Sister Cities project commented on the poll results in the context of political advertising in El Salvador:
The downward trend is of definite significance, as it is set against the backdrop of ongoing political maneuvering and campaigning by President Saca, that resembles an all out brand loyalty marketing campaign much more than an executive office administration. Saca's media teams put out a new slogan each month, the President inaugurates bridges, pothole repairs, or other roadwork or infrastructure projects at a rate of nearly 2 per day, most recently having his picture taken triumphantly standing on a newly finished garbage dump. El Salvador has Tony Saca for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Tim Muth


text:
World Cup: Iran and Mexico · Global Voices
David Sasaki

As the New York Times World Cup '06 weblog observes, most of the press coverage leading up to Sunday's Iran-Mexico match had little to do with football and much ado about … tense European-Iranian relations. First there were the German Green Party politicians demanding that Iran be banned from the tournament. Then German cartoonist Klaus Stuttmann received death threats for his cartoon depicting the Iranian soccer team with explosives strapped to their chest. And on game day, demonstrators marched in Nuremberg against what Gateway Pundit describes as “anti-Semitism and recent inflammatory remarks made by Irans's president.”
Most of the coverage on Mexico was more mild in comparison, focusing on the untimely death of goal keeper, Oswaldo Sanchez's father just days before the match. As Erwin Cifuentes of The Latin Americanist relates, “in a touching gesture, Iranian goalie Vahid Hasheminian presented Sanchez with a bouquet of flowers during the pre-game ceremonies.” However, some fans will remember an admittedly indirect relation between Mexico and the Middle East when Mexican fans booed the US national anthem and chanted “Osama! Osama!” during a 2005 match.
Sunday's game remained tied at 1-1 until the 76th minute when Omar Bravo scored his second goal followed by a Zinha header three minutes later. Here is what Mexican and Iranian bloggers had to say about the match:
From Mexico:
Defecito:
Después de un primer tiempo que inició con un gol de México pero que estuvo bastante mediocre, flojo e impreciso, la calidad de juego mexicano mejoró mucho durante el segundo tiempo. El marcador final 3:1 es merecido, ya que el juego de los mexicanos fue indudablemente mejor durante toda la segunda parte del encuentro. Un triunfo merecido ya que se jugó con ganas. Claro, para los siguientes encuentros habrá que mejorar el nivel para no caer en la mediocridad. Los jugadores tendrán que soltarse, jugar sin prejuicios y hacerlo por lo menos igual de bien que en la segunda parte de este encuentro.
Ciudad de México:
Desde hace tiempo no he podido dejar de pensar en el partido que México disputará ante Irán en Nuremberg el domingo 11 de junio. No dejo de imaginarme sentado frente al televisor a las 11 de la mañana del domingo rodeado de toda mi familia y amigos con los nervios de ver saltar a los verdes al campo. No puedo esperar ver a los más de 31 mil paisanos que fueron hasta Alemania entonar nuestro himno nacional. Y me muero por gritar el primero, el segundo, el tercero… los goles que sean necesarios para dejar a los iraníes en el campo …
Alisa:
The world cup tournament is on the t.v., and even patricio's friend and co-worker, marcos, is taking the day off to watch the beginnings of a full month of fútbol. a fellow expat, working as an engineer for a toluca-branch cement company, received a corporate announcement on thursday stating that “all employees were entitled to either A) have a TV installed at work with the games playing or B) stay home and watch the game…with their bosses’ approval.”
From Iran:
Alpar says we had a good start, but a tragic end. The blogger criticized Ali Dai whose presence was useless. He says we played a much better match than had been expected.
Noghte says played one half well and that it was a misunderstanding! After Mexico scored the second goal, he stopped watching the game and prefered to read the writings of dissident journalist, Akbar Ganji.
Blog News writes that when the Iranian team scored they lost all motivation and played a defensive game which caused them to lose.

author: David Sasaki


text:
Argentina: “Happy Birthday Buenos Aires!” · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Robert Wright wishes Buenos Aires, founded 426 years ago, a very happy birthday.


text:
Aruba: June 8 protest · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

ArubaGirl posts a report of sorts, in point form, on the June 8 anti-government protests in Aruba, with a link to photos of the event.

author: Georgia Popplewell


text:
Bahamas: Hurricane insurance · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

A hurricane insurance act is being drafted to help local farmers and fishermen recover from devastating storms, reports the Nassau Bahamas Vacation blog.


text:
Bahamas: The state of Eleuthera · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

A visit to the Bahamian island of Eleuthera inspires Lynn Sweeting to write a moving article lamenting the state of the community: “The land and the sea are as beautiful as ever, but there is no creation fire burning anywhere in the neighbourhoods. . . . “


text:
Barbados: A little bit of editing · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The Barbados Labour Party blog re-jigs a quote from Barbados Free Press to make it appear that the latter supports the BLP over the opposition. Barbados Free Press isn't having any of it.


text:
Belize: World Cup & customer service · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Watching the World Cup at a resort in Belize Andy Hunt (who is himself a resort owner) notes that “the Resort owners and staff are all disappearing during the day, to be found hiding in some local bar to watch the games. I'm sure the quality of service at the resorts is going to plummet over the next month.”


text:
Burkina Faso: Roundup · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Under the Acacias reports on what is happening in Burkina Faso  – famine, elections, health, economy, aid and gold.

author: Sokari Ekine


text:
China: Arms sales to Nepal · Global Voices
John Kennedy

“What would Mao Zedong have said about this?” China Confidential blogger Confidential Reporter asks of a recently-released Amnesty International report.
“The human rights group  says Chinese weapons sales to Nepal helped prolong and aggravate the conflict there,” the blogger writes, “where the country's despised absolute monarch was recently stripped of his powers after huge anti-government demonstrations by unarmed protesters and government officials have begun peace talks with the rebels.”

author: John Kennedy


text:
China: Miss media mogul · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Today on Danwei TV comes the second part of an interview with the returnee daughter of a Mao-era higher-up turned Capitalist media mogul, one of China's most successful, from Danwei‘s Anna Sophie Loewenberg, Jeremy Goldkorn and Fernando Fidanza


text:
China: Netgame proxy players · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Possibly the strongest unifying force for Chinese men under 30, fierce competition in internet-based roleplaying games has led to the development of an unusual new meta-occupation: proxy player.
Translates Virtual China‘s Lyn Jeffery: “As the article explains, proxy player shops “网游代练”公司 arose to serve those who love online games but don't have the skills or the time to develop a mature character. Instead, they simply buy what they need. The people who are hired to develop virtual assets in-game are called ‘online game proxy players.'”


text:
China: Oil, diplomatic relations · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Bingfeng Teahouse blogger is back with a post which takes a humorous look at China's approach to diplomatic relations, particularly those of which Chinese authorities take advantage.


text:
China: Terror alert issued · Global Voices
John Kennedy

The American consulate in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou issued a warning last year of potential terrorist attacks against its citizens there. As seen on Guangzhou-based Lonnie Hodge's blog OneManBandwith, another terror alert has been released:
“I think we are relatively safe,” the professor-blogger writes. “I am loathe to make fun, but, I am personally more concerned about riding in a Guangzhou cab, but it is something to consider.”


text:
China: Tiger Leaping Gorge · Global Voices
John Kennedy

One assumes that any scenic photos taken by Supernaut blogger Frances D'Ath are abound with serious epistemological and metatheoretical significance.
“This is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been,” D'Ath says of a recent trip through China's Tiger Leaping Gorge (虎跳峡), “and I've been drawn to Yulong Xueshan since I saw photos of it a few years ago. It is more awe-inspiring than any words I could write, the photographs are only poor scratches in dirt beside incomprehensible immenseness, and the desire to catch a farmer's ferry across the gorge and climb the endless peaks was almost irresistable.”


text:
Cuba: Super Doctors · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Medicina Cubana questions the figures (ES) being quoted by the Cuban ambassador to Bolivia regarding the number of patients seen by the team of 590 Cuban doctors who arrived in Cuba in February: “The figure is really surprising: 570,0000 patients attended to since the end of February. . . With these Cuban super-doctor there should be no illness left in the world. . . or perhaps it's a question of the difference between the actual facts and Castro-esque accounting. . . .”


text:
Czech Republic: Leos Janacek Archive · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Jesse of Bored in Brno visits a famous Czech composer's archive (Leos Janacek, “considered among the three most significant Czech composers in the history of this country's music”) and finds it a bit too researcher-unfriendly.

author: Veronica Khokhlova


text:
Egypt: Inverting the Egyptian Flag · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

The Egyptian bloggers are circulating inverted Egyptian flags on their websites and mailing lists. The initiative was launched, it seems, shortly before the May 25 pro-judges demo, but it’s picking up now. Several blogs have posted the picture, Hossam said.

author: Haitham Sabbah


text:
Ethiopia: Escaping abuse in Bahrain · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Nazret.com points to a report on an Ethiopian woman who jumped from a second floor flat in Bahrain in order to avoid continued physical abuse from her “employers”


text:
Ethiopia: Familes to sue government · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Meskel Square reports that families of those killed in last year's election violence in Ethiopia intend to sue the government for compensation.


text:
Guyana: Flooding in Lethem · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Guyana Resource Centre links to a Guyana Chronicle aerial photo of last week's flooding in Lethem, in Guyana's Rupununi savannah. The report called it “the heaviest flooding there since 1989″.


text:
Haiti: Filmmaker Sacha Parisot at Boston International  Film Festival · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Says (Fr)AlterPresse,  “After Skin Deep, a film for which he received numerous distinctions, Haitian-American filmmaker Sacha Parisot is back. But this time it is with the film La Rebelle which made the cut for the Boston International Film Festival (BIFF). Shot in Haiti, La Rebelle is the story of Carl Dubois, a father who worries about his daughter's future.”

author: Alice Backer


text:
Iran: Peaceful Protest · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

According to Persian Architect, this afternoon, there will be a peaceful  protest against anti-women's law in Tehran. The blogger gives a link to the declaration of women's rights activists concerning this protest. Several blogs and many personalities have already backed this peaceful demonstration.

author: Fred Petrossian


text:
Israel: IDF and Gaza Beach Massacre – ‘We Didn’t Do It…They Killed Themselves’ · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

The comedy of errors continues with the IDF positing various theories about how eight Palestinian beachgoers were blown to smithereens last Friday. At first, the Israeli press and military sources said the most likely explanation was an errant Israeli shell which hit the beach instead of its target 400 meters away. But almost immediately, the press reported that perhaps a Palestinian bombmaker had had a “work accident.” The following day the new theory was that an errant Qassam rocket had hit the beach, Richard Silverstein said. Read the rest of the theories he report.


text:
Japan: The shape of state buildings · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Kotaji blogger kotajihwa blogs on some interesting sights found using Google Earth to look down on Japanese and South Korean government buildings in ‘Archigraphy.’ via Kerim and Pinyin News.


text:
Jordan: Jordanians Protest Against Zarqawi Supporters · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

2,000 Jordanians protested in front of the parliament today, denouncing terrorism and mainly the act of those four IAF (Islamic Action Front) MPs who went to Zarqawi’s funeral to offer their condolences and praise him as a “martyr”, Naseem said.


text:
Kenya: A Day in Parliament · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

New Kenyan blog Mzalendo which monitors the Kenyan parliament has a report by Bankekele “A Day in Parliament”


text:
Kenya: Armenian mercenaries · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Yebo Gogo reports on a story of Armenian mercenaries in Kenya who were deported last week. There have been various reports in Kenyan newspapers including one where the brothers were supposedly in Kenya to “transform a section of Kenya’s security forces into a crack commando unit”


text:
Kenya: Madaraka Day Parade · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Thinkers Room comments on the Madaraka day celebrations in Nairobi, in particular he is highly critical of the “parade”


text:
La Reunion: 150th Anniversary of Agriculture Chamber · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Jean-Paul of Dijoux.re posts pictures of the 150th anniversary of La Reunion's Agriculture Chamber and explains (Fr): “During the 3 days employees of this institution and its President Guy Derand welcome you to the Esplanade of Trinity with a mini-farm, some exhibits and produce tastings. Sunday [June 11] a produce market [takes] place.”


text:
Latest in French-Speaking Blogs of the Caribbean and Oceania · Global Voices
Alice Backer

NEW CALEDONIA
Annoella near Gadji, New Caledonia. By Sebastien Merion.
A few months ago, we learned that Sebastien and Annoella of 5 minutes en Nouvelle Caledonie  got married in Mauritius. Now watch a video of the newlyweds hiking up a hill overlooking the lovely beaches of Gadji. The post provides a multimedia experience  including this clickable photomap of the hiking area. Sebastien recommends “flying over” New Caledonia via Google Earth and posts the shots to entice you. The blogger is also looking forward to an upcoming local film festival taking place in the village of Foa in which local fimmakers will have an opportunity to showcase their talents. A graphic designer, the blogger made this lovely wallpaper of a Mauritian fish.
Notre Vie a Noumea posts two slideshows of trips to Caledonian beaches.
Katuali complains about the loud nocturnal  music played by workers of [local union] UTSKE during a sit-in accompanying their current strike.
MARTINIQUE
Celebrating Trinidad's Soca Warriors
Voicing a familiar balancing act for Martiniquans and other DOM-TOMers, InternetRapide.com writes:
Nous sommes de tout coeur derrière l'équipe de France pour la Coupe du monde de Football qui se déroule en ce moment en Allemagne. D'autant plus qu'elle s'appuie sur de nombreux antillais, tels l'abymien Pascal CHIMBONBA,le pointois Lilian THURAM, le guyanais Florent MALOUDA et bien d'autres champions originaires des antilles, tel Thierry HENRY…
Mais comment ne pas être également parmi les plus fervents supporters de l'équipe des SOCA WARRIORS, l'équipe nationale de Trinidad & Tobago !
Non pas parce qu’ s'agit de l'équipe du plus petit pays à avoir jamais participé à une Coupe du Monde de la FIFA (…) Mais parce que ces joueurs ont été élevés sous le même soleil que le nôtre, se sont baignés dans les mêmes eaux, partagent des pans entiers d'une même culture caribéenne, notamment la musique…
Rising Tennis and Music stars
InternetRapide.com surveyed the Martiniquan and Guadeloupean talents who received acclaim in French American Idol-like show “La Nouvelle Star”: Sophie the Guadeloupean, Dominique the Martiniquan, and his favorite Jean-Philippe Fanfant who, says the blogger, “comes from a reknown Guadeloupean musical family.” Le Blog de [Moi] suspected racism had something to do with the  14 pages of comments that French viewers of the show posted on a web-based message board under the subject “Dominique is arrogant, attacks the public and does not take criticism well.”
InternetRapide.com raved about half-Martiniquan, half-Guadeloupean rising star and  number one French tennis player Gael Monfils for his performance at the French Open.
Women
In her usual provocative style, Le Blog de [Moi] wondered why even though statistics show that 82% of women masturbate, so few talk or blog about it. Bien Vu deplores an employer's  lawsuit against his female workers who recently struck against his women's clothing store Minimum Maximod despite an agreement in which he promised not to sue.
GUADELOUPE
Habitation Murat, Guadeloupe. Built circa 1807. By Alex Faundez.
Remembering Battles against France in 1802
Convention pour une Guadeloupe Nouvelle remembers 1802 Guadeloupean slave and freedmen rebellions that paralelled those that led to Haiti's independence in 1804 and is campaigning for a mausoleum to be built in honor of the Guadeloupean heros who fought the French. Unlike Haiti's rebellion, the Guadeloupean one was sucessfully quelled by the French but the blog ekes out a nation-building myth from that bit of  history:
Méditons pour clore cette période glorieuse de notre pays  ces mots de DELGRES :   ” ET NOUS LEGUERONS NOS EXEMPLES A SUIVRE A CEUX QUI VIENDRONT APRES NOUS . ET QUI PLUS HEUREUX ,  CONQUERRONS CETTE LIBERTE QUE NOUS N'AVONS FAIT QU ‘ENTREVOIR  “.
Il faut rapprocher cette déclaration de celle de TOUSSAINT LOUVERTURE  déporté en France en avril 1802 peu de temps avant l'invasion de la Guadeloupe par le corps expéditionnaire français  : ” EN ME RENVERSANT , ON A ABATTU LE TRONC DE LA LIBERTE DES NOIRS . IL  REPOUSSERA CAR SES RACINES SONT NOMBREUSES ET PROFONDES ” .
LA CONVENTION POUR UNE GUADELOUPE NOUVELLE milite pour la construction d'un Mausolée pour honorer ces vaillants ancêtres et tous les Guadeloupéeens qui après sont morts pour la Guadeloupe . En souvenir de ces héros , le drapeau de la Guadeloupe sera le DRAPEAU ROUGE  qui accompagna les combattants de la cause Guadeloupéenne  pendant le mois de mai 1802 .
We parallel this declaration to that of [Haitian Revolution Leader] Toussaint Louverture deported to France in April 1802 a little while before the invasion of Guadeloupe by the French expedition: “In deposing me, they have cut the tree of the Liberty of Blacks. The tree will grow back because its roots are numerous and deep.”
The Convention for a New Guadeloupe militates for the construction of a mausoleum in honor of these valliant ancestors and of all the Guadeloupeans who later died for Guadeloupe. In memory of those heroes, the flag of Guadeloupe will be the red flag  that accompanied the soldiers of the Guadeloupean cause during the month of May 1802.
Building a Party and Lack of Transparency
Political fomation Convention pour une Guadeloupe Nouvelle posts an excerpt of a recent TV appearance by their spokesperson Jean-Paul Eluther:
Notre formation a un an et demi d'existence . Elle se développe normalement . Nous contruisons un parti pour la Guadeloupe , une Guadeloupe nouvelle , solidaire , débarassée des inégalités sociales et de toutes les discriminations , fière de son histoire , ambitieuse et résolue à se battre partout pour l'homme . Nous rejettons les conservatismes de droite ou socialiste qui visent à intégrer notre pays dans un ensemble  Français qui refuse la différence et est champion de l'assimilation . Nous lancons un appel pour la construction d'un BLOC GUADELOUPEEN ET SOCIALISTE pour réaliser ces objectifs.
The blog also denounced the lack of transparency of Guadeloupe's Departmental Assembly.
La Bella Gwada
FredGwadaventure posts gorgeous shots of “la bella gwada.” (Gwada is the island's nickname.)
HAITI
World Cup Fever in Port-au-Prince; Wycleff Jean to Represent in Music
Alterpresse telegraphed the temperature of the capital in anticipation of the World Cup:
Partout dans la capitale haïtienne, chacun arbore son petit drapeau représentant l'une ou l'autre des 32 sélections participantes.  (…) Les compétitions sportives, particulièrement la Coupe du monde de football, donnent l'opportunité à des commercants, petits et grands, de dynamiser leurs affaires.Fanions, t-shirts, lacets de téléphones, bracelets et autres accessoires, symbolisant les équipes les mieux connues, sont exposées un peu partout dans la capitale haïtienne. Les maillots de certaines formations, considérées comme favorites, sont très demandés et les magasins très achalandés (…) Les recettes des marchands d'appareils électroniques (récepteurs de radio, téléviseurs) se sont accrues durant ces dernières semaines. (…) Malheureusement, Haïti n'a pas pu rééditer l'espoir de 1974 lorsqu'elle mena un but à zéro sur l'Italie de Dino Zoff. Cependant, tout n'est pas perdu pour cette République Caraïbe qui sera représentée en musique par Wyclef Jean. Cette star haïtienne, de renommée internationale, chantera en duo avec la Colombienne Shakirah, le 9 juillet, lors de la grande finale dudit championnat mondial.
Photo Album of Haitian Presidents
Collectif Haiti de Provence posts a slideshow of Haitian Presidents since 1804.
Franco-Haitian Solidarity
The blog also reported on recent franco-haitian solidarity meetings in which the collective participated:
FABULEUX, FANTASTIQUE, EXTRAORDINAIRE…EMOUVANT, TOUCHANT… Ce sont tant d’épithètes encore trop  faibles pour décrire en peu de mots cet évènement, le premier du genre, organisé pour évaluer, repenser et remodeler les facettes de la solidarité franco-haïtienne. (…) La détermination de ces bénévoles qui décrivent avec une aisance et une simplicité époustouflantes leurs périples,  péripéties et prouesses sur ces terrains difficiles et souvent oubliés par les gouvernements haïtiens, dans ces localités dont on a vaguement entendu parler pendant nos lointains cours de géographie…
The blog posts a slideshow of the franc0-Haitian solidarity events of June 3 and 4 that took place in Essone, France.
Telecom Wars Continued
Alterpresse reports today that a long-awaited interconnexion dealbetween Caribbean Telecom giant Digicel and local telecoms Haitel and Comcel is still on hold as local companies brace themselves for the new competitor.
Upcoming Jazz Tour, Renaudot Literary Prize and Haitian-American Jesus in Cannes
AlterPresse reported that an upcoming jazz tour  sponsored by the Mexican and French embassies in Haiti will visit three Haitian cities and feature Mexican jazz musician Alfonso Medina, Haitian drummer Joel Widmaer and French bass player Pascale Monier. The Haitian newsfeed announced also that Haitian writer Danny Laferriere is being considered for the prestigious Renaudot literary prize which was awarded Haitian Rene Depestre over 10 years ago.   AlterPresse added that a Haitian-American filmmaker Jean-Claude Lamarre presented his film Color of the Cross at the Cannes Film Festival on May 25 and 26. In  the film, Jesus is black.
Civil Society on Environment and Full Citizenship for Peasants
AlterPresse reported that on June 5, International Environment Day, “and prompted by ‘Mobilization of Haitian Peasants Against Poverty’, many dozens of youth marched in the streets of the capital to sensitize the public on the preservation of the environment.” The newsfeed added that “Many peasant organizations demand full citizenship for peasants who should no longer be pawns of traditional politicians who only pay attention to them during elections.”
GUYANE (a.k.a. FRENCH GUIANA)
An earthquake took place today, reports the Saint-Laurent de Maroni Portal, but made no casualties. In the comments section, many expressed surprise that an earthquake could take place in a region officially deemed non-seismic.


text:
Latin America: Spanish Wikipedia Reaches 125,000 Entries · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Menéame announces with much fanfare (ES) that the Spanish Wikipedia reached 125,000 entries on Friday. Eduardo Arcos documents it's exponential growth in 2006 (ES).


text:
Macedonia: A Trip to Skopje · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

annabengan of annasblog posts photos from her visit to Skopje, the capital of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and writes about a “bizarre” hotel they stayed in while there.


text:
Malaysia: Family Pride · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Meifon talks about the importance of eating together with family and is proud of her parents who encourage her to be independent.

author: Preetam Rai


text:
Malaysia: Strange Encounters · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Wendy thinks she has the ability to communicate with spirits. “The first time when I was 7. I used to cry and complained that I did not want to go to school. Reason? I used to sit in this dark bicycle shed before school starts. There was always this old man who wears a white turban and white long sleeved shirt and sarong, carrying a walking stick who sits next to me every day and starts talking to me. The eerie thing is that no one has ever seen this man and no one ever sees him sitting next to me.”


text:
Martinique: Taxi Antics · Global Voices
Alice Backer

According to Bien Vu(Fr), individual Martiniquan taxi drivers  have a mind and a pricing all their own: “Sometimes, says the blogger,  they do not turn on the meter during the ride and the price of the trip depends on their moods, their preference or quite simply your relationship to them. That provokes, from time to time, legitimate anger from certain clients who object.”


text:
Mexico, Brazil: Marketers Score Goal · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Arturo de Albornoz wonders if Coca-Cola didn't go too far when they turned several bus stops into (ES) goal post facades (with photos). A few days later, de Albornoz finds out that the Pepsi-owned brand “Gauraná Antarctica” one-upped Coca-Cola by engulfing entire bus stops with life sized goal posts (ES).


text:
Mexico: Xocalatl · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Santiago relates the interesting etymology of everyone's favorite aphrodisiac, chocolate.


text:
Myanmar: Lost Planet · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Myanmar blogger at Man Actually takes shares  pictures of some attractions and ethnic groups in Myanmar. He says “We can't beat Bangkok for party lovers but we can offer alternative dance parties like in the photos. I am sure they will like the drum beats with our unique rice & fruit based wines. I am sure they will dance their hair down with traditional Kachin Khaung Yay and BBQ feast that they will love to come more.Hey come on. Here we are talking about countless ethnic groups, Shan, Kachin, Kayin , Mon, Rakhine and so on..” .


text:
Namibia: National Parks · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Idland posts a piece on Namibia “In Pursuit of the Beautiful”  in which he visits and describes the country's landscape and national parks.


text:
Nigeria: Unemployment scam · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Nigerian blog, Exodus comments on an employment/unemployment scam “about a man ripping off people under the guise of helping them secure employment with the Immigration Service. “


text:
Palestine: Arab Desperate Housewives · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Qwaider wonders: “I'm sure many of you are well aware of the show “Desperate housewives” aired just about everywhere these days. But has any one notices the mushrooming numbers of real desperate Arab housewives out there. Sure it's not as blatant and forward as it is in the west, nevertheless it's growing and at an alarming rate, who do you blame?“


text:
Peru: New Opposition · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Journal Peru tries to make sense of the not-so-clear, new opposition of Peru.


text:
Philippines: Classroom Shortage · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

President Arroyo in Philippines suggested doubling the number of students in a class to solve the problem of classroom shortage. Rolly does not agree “Excuse me but is the President that naive? Is this a simple mathematical problem? Why do I sense a famous “eat-cake-because-there=is-no-bread” stance made by a beheaded French queen? No, it may not be as callous but it is just as absurd. Has the President forgotten that when it comes to education, quality is important? For quality to be had, there should be a lesser student to teacher ratio so that the teacher can attend to more students that he/she possibly can.”


text:
Poland: Council of Europe’s Report Inconclusive · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The beatroot writes that the conclusions of the Council of Europe's investigation on whether the CIA had its secret prisons in Poland are not based on strong evidence.


text:
Romania: Car Accident Injustice · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Andy H of Csikszereda Musings writes about a car accident in rural Romania – and how he was blamed for it unjustly: only because he is a foreigner, he thinks.


text:
Rwanda: Mother and Child · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Guillaume, an NGO worker in Rwanda, posts (Fr) pictures of Grace, a Rwandan co-worker and newborn Lancelot so that his father who is studying in Belgium can follow his evolution.


text:
Senegal: Baaba Maal For the Fans · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Seckasysteme is in a mood for Baaba Maal's music on a sunny day and he shares (Fr)  some with you.


text:
Serbia: Government Paper Headlines · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Dictionary of the Serbian Mess posts select headlines from back issues of Sluzbeni, “a 62-year-old official gazette of the Yugoslavian (now Serbian) government.” Here's one: “Year 1991, Act 682: Regulation of Yugoslavian standards of ceramic tiles. Somehow somebody somewhere decided it was really important to standardise ceramic tiles in 1991.”


text:
Serbia: Musings on Independence · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Cvijus011 of Belgrade Blog shares his feelings on the life in Serbia after Montenegro gained its independence: “My personal opinion is that we shouldn't be desparate because others don't want to share the same state with us, but we should now work even harder towards prosperity and show to the others and the world that we are not that bad after all. […] My personal opinion is that, ok the recent past isn't something that we should be proud of, but the newly independence gives us a historical chance to restart and develop Serbia on our own.”


text:
Serbia: Song Praises Srebrenica Massacre · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Srebrenica Genocide Blog reports on a new Serbian song praising the killing of 8,106 Bosniak males that occurred in Srebrenica in July 1995.


text:
Serbia: Wedding, Part 1 · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Meaghan of American for Hire gets invited to the wedding of her Serbian friend's friend and reports on the first part of it, which began at the groom's house and included a pair of accordions and a handgun in the groom's bag.


text:
South Africa: Zuma most account for comments · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Politics ZA reports that ANC  Chairman and Minister of Defence, Mosiuoa Lekota continues to call for Zuma to account for his various comments during the rape trial..


text:
Uganda: Sudan agrees to arrest Kony · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Uganda CAN reports that Sudan has agreed to collaborate with the International Criminal Court in the arrest  of LRA leader, Joseph Kony


text:
United Arab Emirates: Censorship, again! · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

UAE's ISP has blocked UAE community Blog. It's not clear yet what is the reason. A blogger who goes by the name war_in_iran said that: “They maybe the community was having a bad effect “culturally” on the the innocent youth of this great country.”


text:
Vietnam: Technology to Stay in Touch · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Antidote to Burnout reviews some of the internet and communication tools he is using to stay in touch with family, friends and business contacts.


text:
Voices from Zimbabwe and the Great Lakes · Global Voices
Zimpundit

Announcing AI's irrepressible.info and explaining why Zimbabwe badly needs the project, Accoustic Motorbike illustrates the impending fate Zimbabwe's bloggers face  owing to the  new Interception of Communications Bill;
So it all works something like this:
1) The army, police, or intelligence service decides that Jane Bloggs is a dubious character, and applies for a warrant to intercept her communications. These could include her text messages, cell phone and land line calls, emails to her known email address(es), communications sent electronically via her ISP, and post arriving at her house.
2) She is not told by any authority that an interception warrant has been issued in her name. The friendly technician at her ISP might want to give her a heads up that she is now being monitored, but given the threat of a three year prison term, is unlikely to do so. Similarly the ISP, phone company and postal workers also face a fine and/or three years jail time for not assisting the “MICC” – Monitoring and Interception of Communications Centre—with whatever information it requests.
3) Knowing the risk of her emails being watched, Jane might choose to use some kind of encryption device. But even if she did, she could at any time be instructed to hand over these passwords—or risk a fine and/or five years imprisonment.
4) With all of Jane’s text messages, emails, internet searches, etc, the state is sure to find something dubious with which they can charge her under any one of Zimbabwe’s other draconian laws—the Public Order and Security Act, the Miscellaneous Offences Act, the Foreign Exchange Controls Act, or the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, for starters. And, since it will have collected this evidence in a nicely “legal” manner, it will be able admissible in court, to strengthen whatever case the state might wish to make against her.
RW at Agathon Rwasa complains that Burundi's government is arresting journalists, while awarding killers.  The journalist, Aloys Kabura, was arrested after writing an expose on the government brutality towards fellow journalists.  Visit Agathon Rwasa for more.
Sahara Sarah discusses Katanga “à l’époque” or back in the day highlighting how Belgian copper miners and Mobuto Mobutu pitted Katangans against Kasaians in Katanga.
Adventures of a Retired Armchair Traveler points out a recent WHO report describing the need for 4 million doctors and nurses to ease medical staffing shortages around the world.
Louis at Telegraphe Congolais captures MSM's spiking interest in the DRC as the elections approach by highlighting Time magazine's rare coverage of the country.
Ingrid at Congo Watch posts an email response to the Time article.
Dennism, a Makerere University student blogger has a fascinating  piece on the “newspaper gazing” culture he alleges is rife not only at Makerere, but in downtown Kampala.
The habit is common in Kampala; keen citizens ring round vendors to rove at the big stories before moving on. The obsession is alarming at Makerere University where I set out to talk to one newspaper vendor about the obsession.
At Mad and Crazy Iwaya tells the moving story of Mary Kagaya, a student at Naalya SSS Bweyogerere Campus who was adopted by her peers in school after her family couldn't afford to send her to school.
Meanwhile Lovely Amphibian at See no Evil, Hear None, Just be a Dork chronicles a frightful journey in a “bodaboda” or commuter omnibus.

author: Zimpundit


text:
Yugoslavia: Historical Building · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Cvijus011 of Belgrade Blog writes about a Belgrade building in which, on December 1, 1918, “the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was proclaimed that later became Yugoslavia.”


text:
Africa: Increase in Internet access · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Blogswana reports that African internet penetration has reached 5% up from 2.6% in 2005.


text:
Armenia: Cafe Season · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Onnik Krikorian shines light on the dark side of Yerevan's cafes.

author: Nathan Hamm


text:
Armenia: Habitat for Humanity · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Onnik Krikorian reports on Habitat for Humanity's work in Armenia.


text:
Armenia: Last Bell · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Myrthe of Life As I See It writes about last bell–the last day of school–in Armenia.


text:
Bahrain: No more an Island! · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Bahrain used to be a collection of islands, each surrounded – obviously – by water. That virtually stopped when the King Fahad Causeway opened, and now it is further strengthened by the signing of the agreements to construct another causeway, this time between Bahrain and Qatar, Mahmood said.


text:
Bangladesh: Jesus and the unauthorized version · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Sadiq does a review on a book about Jesus. “Couple of days back i went to visit the British Museum at London. While coming out i went to its bookshop where i came across a book very unexpectedly that validates a lot of the events in the holy life of Jesus Christ, which i was posting for last few weeks. And the validation comes from Secret Gospels and from the own speech of Jesus Christ. The name of this wonderful book is, “Jesus: The Unauthorised version” .”

author: Neha Viswanathan


text:
Bangladesh: Marrying someone back home · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Marrying someone in the diaspora? Mezba reflecting on what his uncle tells him about girls in Canada and Bangladesh. “Apparently, if I marry some girl who has been brought up in Canada or is living somewhere in the West, she would a) not cook for me b) not respect me at all as all girls living here are beyaadober haadi (‘bone’ of rudeness) c) will have had previous relationships and d) will never care for my parents.”


text:
Barbados: Revitalise the Landship · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Barbados Free Press is all for the revitalisation of the Landship, Barbados's “navy that never goes to sea.”


text:
Belarus: Iranian Car Production Deal · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

TOL's Belarus Blog reports on a “political deal between Belarus and no less controversial Iran”: a Belarusian car factory that used to assemble Fords will now make Samand, a brand of “Iran Khodro” company.


text:
Belarus: Market Traders Disagree on Political Involvement · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Tobias Ljungvall reports on a conflict between members of Perspektiva, an organization uniting Belarusian market traders: “This organisation was created on a wave of successfully organised strikes among market traders, in which tens of thousands or perhaps even more than a hundred thousand of them had temporarily closed down their businesses in protest against the regime's policies. The market traders, engaging in small-scale imports from neighbouring countries and not-so-neighbouring countries (as Turkey for instance) and selling their goods at wide outdoor areas packed with their stands, had arose as the only politically active group in Belarusian society.”


text:
Belarus: Neglected Hunger Strike · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Andrei Khrapavitski writes about young Belarusian opposition activists on a hunger strike that has gone practically unnoticed inside the country.


text:
Belarus: NGO Leaders on Trial · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

TOL's Belarus Blog reports on the case of four young NGO leaders who are facing from six months to three years in prison for running an unregistered organization.


text:
Bolivia: The Constituent Assembly and the World Cup · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Jim Shultz tries to explain the waning interest in Bolivia's soon-to-be-formed Constituent Assembly. In a comment, Miguel Centallas responds “Why is the campaign lackluster? Um, you do realize the World Cup is going on, right? That's pretty much trumping all other considerations in much of the world right now. It's just lucky the vote comes on a day w/o tournament matches.”


text:
China: Activist news roundup · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Arms trading, Tibet, environmental concerns, Chinese president Hu Jintao's recent meeting with American counterpart Bush and Google executive Sergey Brin admitting to censoring search results in China all in Celia's weekly roundup at China Activist Weekly.


text:
China: News anchors replaced · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Outside In blogger and old China hand Jo turned on the nightly communist news early last week and was surprised to see two new faces reading the news: “I thought maybe a wrinkle had occurred in the universe. In the universe of the party propaganda machinery, I guess it had. They were smiling. They were perky. They actually looked at the camera. Unfortunately, the content was the same old same old.”


text:
China: University entrance exams · Global Voices
John Kennedy

A seldom-heard stance on China's tough university entrance exams (Gao Kao) from Raymond Zhou at Not only movies just days after the testing period ended: “It may sound paradoxical, but I'm not for abolishing the gaokao system. For all its quirks and partiality, it is one of the few mechanisms of meritocracy that we have. And they are improving on it. For example, unconventional essays for the writing part of the language test no longer fall through cracks automatically. Some are even commended for originality. And now, even the topics are open-ended.”


text:
Colombia: Perception and Reality · Global Voices
David Sasaki

After visiting writer Gabriel García Márquez’ hometown of Aracataca, Sagroncito tries to separate perception and reality regarding Colombia.


text:
Ethiopia: Mulunesh Abebayehu released · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Ethiopian Life reports that local councillor, Mulunesh Abebayehu, who has been detained for 7 months has now been released by the Government following a two week hunger strike.


text:
Ethiopia: Obelisk forgotten · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Weichegud!ET Politics comments on the campaign to return Ethiopia’s looted obelisk .  She comments that nearly one year after its return the obelisk lies forgotten still packed in the three boxes it arrived in (the obelisk was split into three to make transportation from Italy easier).


text:
Hungary: Budapest Mayor Bans Subway Bakeries · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Paul of Further Ramblings of a N.Irish Magyar writes that the mayor of Budapest has decided “to force bakery operators out of the metro stations,” a rather irrational and potentially unpopular step ahead of the October municipal elections.


text:
India: Bonda in Orissa · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

foto morgana has a photo-essay on the Bonda people of Orissa in India.


text:
India: Culture of doing Business · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

In a series of posts on the culture of business in India, Dina sums up the attitude towards rules and regulations.


text:
India: Nagin Lake · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Akshay has photographs and a writeup on The Nagin Lake in Kashmir. “he Nagin lake is a peaceful cleaner smaller cousin of the Dall Lake in Srinagar is an unforgettable experience – is not only extremely relaxing but offers a close look at the almost amphibian life of the Hanjis, the boat people. The once floating gardens, approachable only by boat, are now rooted to one mace and only grow vegetables but still remain divided into islands by cries-crossing currents.”


text:
Iran: Arab Countries & Zarqawi · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Hojreh, blogger & cleric, says that Arab countries should clearly take position concerning Zarqawi. The blogger considers Zarqawi
main responsible of the death of hundreds of Shiites in Iraq including many Iranian pilgrims. Hojreh adds unfortunately no Arab country has condemned this criminal, Zarqawi (Persian).


text:
Iraq: Anti-Zarqawi · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

The anti-Zarqawi-lovers sentiment is getting stronger in the region, especially in Iraq and Jordan where Zarqawi and his gangs committed their worst crimes, Omar said.


text:
Jamaica, USA: Imagine Miami · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Florida-based Jamaican writer Geoffrey Philp discusses some of the ideas he plans to incorporate into his presentation for the “Imagine Miami” lecture series, which addresses issues of identity. Among the things he plans touch upon are “a reflection on Miami’s geographical location as a port/frontier city and as a Latin/Hispanic/Caribbean city in North America (Kingston 21, Havana North)” and questions of race and colour.


text:
Jamaica, USA: The US and the post-national writer · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

As he works on his second novel, Jamaican writer Marlon James ponders the obstacles the US publishing establishment puts in the way of writers like himself, but concludes that “I have to hold to the belief that book and reader have an almost cosmic destiny to meet. And when they do, no barrier whether it be language, race, culture or nationality will stand in the way.”


text:
Japan: Internet beauty queens · Global Voices
John Kennedy

An internet beauty queen has been chosen, writes Tokyo Times‘ Lee, from 5,500 entries: “[I]n a bid to make sure that the victor didn’t turn out to be a balding and bearded middle-aged man living with his parents and known online as Judith, the organizers asked the 20 best contestants—chosen by internet voting—to appear in person for the final judgment.”


text:
Japan: Simplified characters or traditional? · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Danny Bloom at Japundit hosts a quick but thorough discussion on the division over simplified Chinese characters (mainland China) and traditional characters (Hong Kong, Taiwan, Chinatowns worldwide): “What’s your take on all this? Will China's system take over, and if it does, will it have an impact on Japan's writing system?”


text:
Kazakhstan: Modern Art · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Leila writes about modern art in Kazakhstan and a UK television show featuring some of it.


text:
Kenya: Armenian saga · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Magaidi comments on the Armenian brothers saga which continues in Kenya.  He predicts a big hue and cry by the government, coverage by blogs but in the end “The government won’t do anything concrete (except for the ‘formation of a commision of inquiry and suspension of irrelevant people’) and we will forget about it and move on.”


text:
Kenya: Sexual assult in school  · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

MentalAcrobatics comments on a story of violence in a Kenya school where a group of students had badly injured a fellow student in a “brutal sexual assult”.…..The teenage boy, a student at Upper Hill Secondary School, was admitted to Nairobi Women’s Hospital after he was brutally sodomised by five fellow students on a Saturday two weeks ago.


text:
Kyrgyzstan: Public Broadcasting · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Does public broadcasting have a place in Kyrgyzstan? neweurasia discusses.


text:
Kyrgyzstan: The Week in Kyrgyzstan · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Yulia of neweurasia rounds up the week in news in Kyrgyzstan.


text:
Mexico: International Blogger Day · Global Voices
David Sasaki

No one knows how to commemorate themselves quite like bloggers. Tomorrow, Eduardo Arcos notes, is the third annual International Blogger Day, which will be celebrated with a meetup in Mexico City (ES).


text:
Mexico: Metroblog and Metroguide · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Raúl Ramírez, noting the mushrooming of “metropolitan blogs” in Mexico City, announces the alliance (ES) between Chilanga Banda (ES) and Guía de la Ciudad de México (ES).


text:
Nepal: Smoke rings and the public place · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

As part of a larger policy towards advertising and health, Legal News from Nepal says that the Supreme Court is  “Ordering the government to create public awareness on the harmful effects of tobacco use, the SC also asked the government to formulate an appropriate law on smoking.”


text:
Nicaragua: New Aggregator of News · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Aventuras de un Webmaster points readers (ES) to Nicaragua y algo más (ES), an aggregator of news articles and blog posts about Nicaragua.


text:
Nigeria: Peoples Deceiving Party · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Just Thots of a Naijaman has a rant against President Obasanjo's party, the PDP which he describes as “People Deceiving Party”…….”The president and VP are abusing each other, Sen Ahmadu Ali is abusing the senators, honorables and representatives are abusing each other, the South-south leaders are abusing Gov. Kure, Gov Kure is abusing the South South and blaming it on being misquoted.”


text:
Nigeria: Supporting female entrepeneurs · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Grandiose Parlor reports on a project to support Nigerian women entrepeneurs – the Access Bank  of Nigeria together  with the World Bank –  International Finance Corporation (IFC)- will start extending lines of credit to this group of women.


text:
North Korea: Missile test coming · Global Voices
John Kennedy

“Congratulations, North Korea!” blogs Robert J. Koehler at The Marmot's Hole in response to news that North Korea will soon test-fire a missile capable of striking America. “Soon, you might have the capability to ensure the Americans turn South Korea into an island in the event of an emergency. And you still can't eat plutonium.”


text:
Oops! Mahathir’s done it again · Global Voices
ong hock chuan

Earlier this week former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad was again in the news when he said he was disappointed with his successor Abdullah Badawi, and that Badawi was not his first choice of succssor anyway. In his usual blunt style Mahathir also lambasted some Cabinet members, who had served under him and are now arrayed behind Badawi, for not accepting their responsibility in collective decision making.
His statement sparked a variety of views  and a free for all fistfight in the blogosphere. Many of the bloggers criticised Mahathir for being churlish but in a typically Malaysian twist to things other bloggers also took to task others. Patriot , for instance, took to task former Deputy Prime Minister Musa Hitam for praising Badawi's reticence in commenting on Mahathir's comments. And Freedom in Solidarity took to task the Ministers who served under Mahathir who agreed with his projects and now have blown like the wind and is now helping Badawi dismantle them -and also criticizing mahathir publicly for attacking their new boss.

author: ong hock chuan


text:
Pressuring change through blogging · Global Voices
Maurina H

Following the quote I took from Brunei Resources's blog;
"We (the government) require pressure from outside and this is where blog readers can come in to help spread the knowledge."
and my subsequent call for more Bruneian Bloggers to help aid progress in the country;
LSM churned out a post in OurLocalStyle that digged much deeper and said that the issue is not in number – it is in substance.
Brunei bloggers can pressure a change be it in the education system or in the larger setting of society. I don’t think the problem lies in getting people to blog or even to get them to leave comments. Rather, it’s in encouraging thought-provoking posts and discussions relevant to the Brunei paradigm.
This was then followed by a comment cum blogpost by One Way Down The Highway which highlights the possibilities that the lack of substance is connected to the nature of the Bruneian Education System which does not really encourage "thinking outside the box".
Your assertion “Brunei bloggers can pressure a change be it in the education system…” is a chicken and egg situation. Brunei’s education system does not sufficiently provide us with the necessary skills to articulate such tasks. And majority of the minority naturally endowed with such gifts run as fast as they can, anywhere, to get away from the system that once stifled, and still does, their ability to think and belief that they can change the nation for better.

author: Maurina H


text:
Russia: Independence Day Surveys · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

One day after Russia marked its Independence Day, LJ user larinax – Ksenia Larina, Radio Ekho Moskvy host – found herself mystified by the results of a survey conducted on one of the Ekho shows (RUS):
[…] To the question “Where would you like to live? – In the Soviet Union or in today's Russia?” 62 (!!!) percent of the audience responded – in the Soviet Union. I find it incredible. And no nostalgia, and no protest against Putin will ever make me choose this road to darkness. I wonder if the internet voting will be different. It's a different audience, after all. Though young people, too, shock me by their delusional notion of the USSR. And no documentaries, no feature movies will ever convince them of the opposite. […]
Here is the tiniest fraction of the responses that Larina's entry drew (139 so far):
daisy_gorgeous: I was both surprised and not by this percentage. But there used to be good things, too, Ksenia! I talked to a friend in the States the other day and he gave me a mathematical proof that, despite all the minuses of the structure of the USSR, despite the nonsense of [having to be like everyone else], etc., the idea made lots of sense. :) […]
larinax: You know, there used to be this cartoon – bum-looking, emaciated Marx and Lenin are begging for money in the street. Marx tells Lenin dreamily: “But still, the idea was indeed pretty good!..”
[…]
elesin: Strange the figure isn't 95 percent. People want to be 20-30 years old, not 40-50. Everyone was younger in the USSR.
LJ user drugoi cites another survey whose results are even more mystifying (RUS). The survey was conducted by the Yuri Levada Center; 1,600 Russians, aged 18 and older, were surveyed in 128 cities and towns, 46 regions):
Six percent of the Russians expect Russia to win the World Cup in Germany.
These are some pretty high numbers, considering that Russia is not playing in the World Cup at all this year.
Below are some responses:
mikheich: And we expect Kazakhstan to win!!!)))
drugoi: I'm for Norwegians.
yulchataj: Since you're at it – TURKEY – FOREVER!!!
[…]
In one Astana backyard, there's a terribly moving graffiti on the drain pipe, still there from the previous World Cup: “Kazakhstan – Brazil 8:0″
deodan: Imagine: what if Russia does win!:)
lenkins: It's already won :)
quappa: Russia won't lose in a single game – isn't that victory?
[…]
duke-igthorn: Ireland – go go!
stormoff: This means that 6 percent of the Russians have a good sense of humor.
[…]
d-falcon: Russia is represented by only one person at the World Cup: V. Ivanov, a referee, we all place our hopes on him :-)
[…]
pechenie: In a way, our team has as many chances as it did during the previous World Cups.
And, finally, this response, most likely, sends the readers back to the Russia vs. Soviet Union survey:
radiocat: Not much. It would've been logical if 40-60 percent were expecting this – I'm judging by some other surveys.


text:
Russia: The Mennonites · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

J. Otto Pohl writes about the Mennonites in the Russian Empire and the USSR: a neglected, little-known – and persecuted – minority.


text:
Sudan: Interview – Sheik Musa Hilal · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Sudan Watch points to a rare interview with “Sheik Musa Hilal, leader of Um Jalul tribe in his hometown of Mistariha, Darfur (Lydia Polgreen)”


text:
Taiwan: Ma’s assassination called for? · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Did a Taiwanese underground radio station just call for the assassination of the island's Kuomintang leader and possible future presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou? Blogging from EastSouthWestNorth‘s Roland Soong suggests this is unlikely [#036], but a post from The View from Taiwan‘s Michael Turton shows that thoughts of political assassinations are more common there than one would think.


text:
Tajikistan: Free Elections · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Since Tajikistan's presidential election probably will not be free, James of neweurasia has a rundown of each political party's platform and has a poll to vote for who readers think should win.


text:
This Week In Palestinian Blogs: Tragedy at The Beach · Global Voices
Naseem Tarawnah

Tragedy and shock has captured the minds and hearts of Palestinian bloggers this week. The Israeli shelling of Gaza which lead to the death of several civilians including women and children, has some calling it Bloody Friday.
As Palestinian families built sand castles on a Gaza beach an Israeli shell shattered their peaceful day. Blogger and human rights activist, Mona El-Farra best describes the scene with the story of a little girl who lost both her parents and three brothers and sisters.
Moi posts a video from a news report filmed after the attack and with absolute sadness says:
“I cannot get her voice out of my head. Her screams pierced through my body and soul as she began to fathom the fate of her father lying lifelessly in front of her. “Yaaaabaaaa” means “Daaaaddyyyy”. Her Daddy is no more. Her Mommy is no more. Her siblings are no more.”
The video has had it’s affect on other Palestinian bloggers such as Haitham Sabbah who says: “While watching all this and more on Palestine TV and Aljazeera, I, my wife and all my kids, all started crying.”
Khaled Nazzal cannot get over the feeling of uselessness, a sentiment that is shared by blogger Al-Falasteenyia and Gaza resident Laila El-Haddad who so far from home right now says: “We called my Aunt, who works with the al-Awda hospital in northern Gaza. She was hysterical, and this is a woman who seldom loses her grip.”
One thing is for sure: the week can change quickly in Palestine. Far from recent events Amal Amireh had some interesting thoughts on the Judeo-Arab music heritage earlier on in the week.
As the World Cup kicks off Moi writes of an interesting film entitled “World Cup Inshallah” that looks into the difficulties of formation and training of a Palestinian National team attempting to qualify for the World Cup. Meanwhile May at KabobFest blogs of joint Palestinian-Israeli outrage at World Cup subscription fees.
Ohoud is happy to hear that the city of Ramallah set a Guiness World record after a resteraunt produces the largest plate of Tabouleh.
Elsewhere, the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) is launching its annual Freedom Summer Campaign that runs through July and August, but sadly they’ve been faced with some recent slanderous confrontations that are trying to undermine their mission. Nevertheless, it appears to have only emboldened their mission for non-violent resistance.

author: Naseem Tarawnah


text:
Trinidad & Tobago: Please stand. . .  · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Echoing the request traditionally given before the national anthem is played, Elspeth Duncan gives the latest video entry on her blog the title “Please Stand. . . . for something”. The video compiles footage from “various protests taking place in Trinidad between late 2005 and early 2006. It represents the collective voice of the people at a time when the republic of Trinidad & Tobago is going through crisis and experiencing transformation on many levels.”


text:
United Arab Emirates: Photography in Dubai · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Photography in the UAE is always a problem; you have to be respectful to other people given the culture and privacy enjoyed by most people in the UAE. Anyone with enough ignorance can land themselves in trouble quite easily by not asking permission, but even when you HAVE the permission, you rarely HAVE the permission.


text:
Voices from Central Asia and the Caucasus · Global Voices
Ben Paarmann

The Pamirs in sight, Kyrgyzstan
Welcome to the latest roundup of the Central Asian and Caucasian blogosphere, brought to you bi-weekly by neweurasia. This edition reaches you from sunny Berlin, where the World Cup is in full swing (making this roundup inevitably brief).
Unfortunately, the Azeri blogosphere is still underrepresented – so if you’re a blogger writing on/from Azerbaijan, be sure to drop us a line with your link.
Armenia:
On his Oneworld blog, blogger Onnik Krikorian writes about Habitat for Humanity (HFH), an organisation that helps to improve the living conditions for those living in de-facto homelessness. The post features a lot of pictures made on a visit to one of the projects. Myrthe on Life as I see it reports about a school-leaving ceremony in the village of Darbnikthat. The end of a life's chapter is also the beginning of a new one – and important decisions about the future of the eleventh-graders are approaching. Ani, writing on neweurasia, visited celebrations for the World's No-Tobacco Day in Yerevan and has some facts about smoking in Armenia. On Blogrel, Harmick adds a chapter to a story that has repeatedly surfaced on Central Asian and Caucasian blogs over the past months: Another Armenian got killed in Moscow in a race-related hate crime.
Georgia:
Susan on her blog SueAndNotYou tells her readers how an early-summer insomnia made her leave Tbilisi for the cool mountain breeze of the hilltop town Sighnaghi. Finding a place to stay proved no problem for the laid-back author, and an evening entertainment was found quickly as well. A wedding party of an ethnic Kurdish Georgian who had just returned from fighting with coalition forces in Iraq is not the kind of thing you might expect to find in Georgia.
Kazakhstan:
Kazakh modern art can – at times – be shocking. A recent TV documentary introduced a British audience to the fact that Kazakhstan has a vibrant scene and an art-savvy population. Leila of neweurasia has the full story. On neweurasia's Russian Kazakhstan blog, two new contributors have started posting: Adam Kesher (who also blogs on Livejournal here) discusses telecommunications policies in Kazakhstan and Russia. Dmitry analyses new steps in the development of Kazakhstan's space industry (RUS).
Kyrgyzstan:
At his blog, Kyrgyz rights activist Edil Baisalov comments on the deposed president of Kyrgyzstan Askar Akaev's decision to appoint his former presidential adviser Akin Toktaliev as his lawyer. Baisalov argues that the decision serves to further confirm Akaev's irrelevance to Kyrgyz society (RUS).
Mongolia:
Mining issues in Mongolia continue to garner domestic and international attention with few developments on either side of the debate. However, the Minister of Industry and Trade recently stated that legally issued licenses could be revoked by local governments. Parliament, though, is currently facing much more than just mining legislation. With time running down, the anti-corruption draft law as well as new tax law revisions must be addressed before the end of the spring session. One of the few pieces of legislation that finally was passed by Parliament was the new State Budget. Lastly, Mongolian journalists still have to fight for their legal rights to access of information.
Tajikistan:
For free and fair Tajik presidential elections, make sure to visit neweurasia, where James has asked readers to participate in the region's first e-vote. Currently, the incumbent's party is in a neck-and-neck race against the the Democratic Party of Tajikistan. On the same blog's Russian version, Vadim reports that Tajik President Rakhmonov has promised all games of the World Cup can be watched on national TV (RUS).
Turkmenistan:
Turkmen blogger Karakum bemoans the recent loss of interest in blogging about Turkmenistan after the sensational arrest of former General Prosecutor. The post contains some links to the best Russian and English-language blog resources currently available (RUS). On The Registan, Nathan discusses whether or not Turkmen traditional music is loosing out to Hip-Hop.
Uzbekistan:
A new blog (in Uzbek) has been set up recently to discuss women's issues: Ayollar Bekati (“women's busstop”) has already addressed a variety of topics ranging from domestic violence (3 posts plus a few comments), the choice of upbringing for children (traditional Uzbek or Western style) to AIDS in Uzbekistan, genital mutiliation of girls in Africa and new improvements for pregnant women in Russia. The posts which got most hits and comments are the one about AIDS and the recent figure that half of those infected being women; the post entitled “I will not circumcise my son!” and the latest one about the grandparents’ role in the upbringing of kids. As mentioned in the latest roundup, an interesting discussion sparked off when Nathan of The Registan wrote about the attacks being launched on Johns Hopkins professor Frederick Starr. The latter has now reacted to the criticism, reports Nathan.

author: Ben Paarmann


text:
World Cup: Running with the Ronaldos in the blogosphere · Global Voices
Jose Murilo

for its debut in Germany, it's the buzz around the football personalities that fuels the overheated blogosphere. Brazilians love to talk, and now nothing is more important to talk about than the World Cup. While the ball hasn't yet rolled for the champions, the media are already caught by the fever, and a nation of would-be football coaches is meddling with news and analyses in ways that would fit better the gossip columns of the tabloids.
That's especially true for Ronaldo, the player who still gets most of the media attention. From foot blisters to his model girlfriend — to say nothing of the debate with President Lula about food and drink excesses — the forward is always on spot in the World Cup non- coverage of football. The blogosphere follows the pattern, and goes beyond.
“The TV coverage insists on showing Ronaldo's foot blisters, the fever, the images of the ‘The Phenomenal One’ playing the DJ in a night club on his day off, without mentioning the misunderstandings with President Lula”
Facts and gossips on the team – Visual and Verbal Politics
“Lula could have avoided mentioning Ronaldo's fatness in the video conference with the Brazilian team. Perhaps his intention was not clearly stated and emphatic when he said, ‘I've met Ronaldo personally and he is skinny, but everybody is saying he is fat….’ But it is important to mention the report of André Kfouri about the situation. According to the ESPN journalist present at the conference, Ronaldo was avoiding any hard rejoinder to Lula's remark in his interview. But, as the correspondents kept pressing him, he finally mentioned the President's known friendliness with alcohol. One more time, in the absence of something worth reporting, the press pushes for declarations and stories with zero information value.”
A great idiocy – Balipodo.com
“World Cup news flashes, mainly from the national team, torturing us with ‘important’ notes such as, ‘Ronaldo left the hotel to shit and walk. Look there! Now you are seeing an exclusive, he is shitting, shitting… wow! now he is gonna walk… he is walking! we will try an interview… later – in three minutes – an interview with THE PHENOMENAL ONE, telling us how he felt when shitting and walking in Germany.”
Am I, Cup? – Dull Life
“The press coverage has gone beyond the concept of ‘thorough’, becoming repetitive and counterproductive. The main principle seems to be the exhaustion of the national team in a meaningless never-ending exposition. Any idiocy becomes good enough for a news lead as the reporting staff stays glued to the Brazilian players and far from the event's important news. They debate before and after the trainings stating obvious opinions and as a result, the public watches something very close to a live transmission of grass growing.”
Unbalanced coverage – Gardenal.org
Ronaldo — ‘The Phenomenal One’ — was the promise in 1994, the victim in 1998, and the hero in 2002. He's been dealing with the media for enough time now, and it seems this relationship is an on-going conversation that works according to its own logic.
While the established media fights for the continuous attention of the public using well worn strategies, the Internet is spontaneously presenting new modes of coverage and the newer idols seem to fit better into these channels. That would be the case of Ronaldinho. The suffix -inho means ‘little one’ in Portuguese, but he is the great YouTube.com and google video champion.
“It's World Cup time! I've seen about 1000 video clips of Brazilian BAMF Ronaldinho this week. These two are particularly sweet (the second one was most likely made by the Germans).”
Ronaldinho – Behind the Music – Side A
Click here to check a Ronaldinho classic youtube
Interestingly, we should note that Ronaldinho has his own blog*, where he reports directly from Germany and his uncle manages the postings, one or more each day. There are also some special reports called, “The never seen Brazil” from YouTube.com. Check out this remarkable video, [youtube.com].
Brazil, the online team – La Biblia y el Calefon
(*) we could not confirm the authenticity of the blog
This is from the youtube collection “The Never Seen Brazil“
“Ronaldinho plays in a bunch of Google Videos — including commercials, (some fake).”
Ronaldinho on Google Video – Google Blogoscoped
When you thought we've had enough of the contest of the Ronaldos, a new sensation from Portugal comes on the scene – the young and attractive Cristiano Ronaldo. Unlike the two Brazilians, C. Ronaldo has already made his début in the World Cup as the Portuguese team played yesterday to a one to nothing victory over Angola. It's plain to see how the local blogosphere quickly responds as soon as the games begin. It is also interesting to notice the greatly increased participation of female bloggers in the football debates depending on the ‘cuteness’ of the players.
“anyway, i need to announce this! CRISTIANO RONALDO IS SUPER DUPER HOT!!! the dude down there! hahah!! he's uber love!”
Fifa Fever – Burn-Tralala
“I'm in full WORLD CUP MANIA!!!! Nothing gets me pumped up more then sexy men playing around with a small white and black ball.”
You can World my Cup – kokopuffs0616
“I was talking with Ivan the Goodies and June Hoo, good friends from college through MSN yesterday evening. I wonder why guys never liked Cristiano Ronaldo. I mean come on laa…give the guy a chance can or not? He's a great player what. Anyways, last night's match between Portugal and Angola, C.Ronaldo was seriously pissed because he tried to score about 3 times but his attempt failed. The last attempt before he was sent out by Luis Felipe the coach, was the time where he got really super pissed. He was stomping his feet so hard. Man, I totally feel you. Maybe if he was not sent out, he would've or might score another goal for Portugal.”
Pure Massacre – Life Less Ordinary
It's not clear if it's solely a ‘gender reaction’ but the male bloggers really do tend to be more critical about the ‘looks’ of his game.
“C. Ronaldo has showed one more time that he is not made for the national team. The ‘cute’ center with the left leg shows that he doesn't know how to respect the opponents. The yellow card presented by the referee shows his known dark side, indicating that he won't get rid of his bad fame”
Angola – Salting Poppies
“We saw a Cristiano Ronaldo that would look for the big plasma screens after each time he had the ball to check out how beautiful he was”
Football World Championship – City of Guimaraes
“Cristiano Ronaldo is unbelievable faggy with 3/4-length flared sleeves! Seriously…there is totally room in a World of Tolerance for gay-bashing the shit out of this fancy Dan! He also sulked and threw tantrums like a local business leader's daughter after being snubbed off…”
i drink GRITTY HACK sportsdrink – crude futures
There's going to be a LOT of talk about these Ronaldos during the World Cup, each one having his own set of fans and detractors. The beauty of the blogosphere is that it reveals the great diversity among the many audiences and surprises that few would have expected. Blog coverage is obviously both highly personal and worldly. Such is the nature of an interactively shared global experience.

author: Jose Murilo


text:
Africa: China’s arms trade · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

African Blogs on China's arms trade with Africa ….”Instead, as China has possibly discovered, it pays a dime and some more to secretly trade the AK-47, the real Weapon of Mass Destruction, to a host of trigger-happy, impoverished African nations sucked up in conflicts and power-games designed to keep some corrupt-ridden regimes in power for life.”


text:
Algeria: Americo-Zionist Syndrome · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Nouri Lumendifi have come to the conclusion that individuals such as Mr. Ahmadinejad suffer from a mental disorder. A lot of Middle Easterners have what I call Type I Americo-Zionist Syndrome (or AZS), which results in random, and practically uncontrolable outbursts of “Zionists did it!” or “America's fault!”, even when the fault for whatever calamity lays squarely at the feet of Muslim Middle Easterners. Find out more about type I and II.


text:
Argentina: But Love, It’s the World Cup · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Javier is a 32-year-old living in Entre Ríos, Argentina. He studied journalism and social communication, but currently works in sales at a multinational company. According to his profile, he loves music, photography, communication, and being online. His weblog, Blogosphere usually has the most affable of tones, however, with the arrival of the world cup, we witness a profound transformation akin to a mother bird protecting her nest.
On Friday afternoon, just before the first game of this year's tournament, he wrote a post titled “The World Cup is Coming: An Open Letter to my Wife,” which I have translated here. I do feel compelled to warn readers, however, that what follows is written in jest.
We are just a few hours from the commencement of the World Cup, for which reason: IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO CLEARLY LAY OUT THE RULES BEFOREHAND …
My love:
1.) From the 9th of June to the 9th of July, read the sports section of the paper in order to have topics of conversation. If not, don't be surprised that I don't give you the time of day.
2.) During the Tournament, the TV is mine, at all hours, without exception. The remote … don't even look at it, much less think about touching it.
3.) If you have to pass in front of the television during a game, it doesn't bother me, so long as you do it crawling and without distracting me.
4.) During the games I am deaf and blind. Don't expect that I will hear you, open the door, answer the phone, or get up for the baby that fell from the second floor. Nothing.
5.) It would be good to always have beers in the refrigerator, snacks in abundance, and that you smile for my friends who come over to watch football. In gratefulness, I will let you watch TV from 6 to 6:30 in the morning (when there is never, not on one of the 83 channels, replays of a game.)
6.) Please, if I look annoyed because Argentina is losing, don't tell me “it's not that bad” or “in the next match surely we'll win”: you will only make me more annoyed.
7.) You can sit and watch a game with me and you can talk to me at the halftime, but only during commercials. Though don't abuse the offer, I said A game.
8.) The replays of the goals are very important. It doesn't matter if I already saw them or not: I want to see them again, many times.
9.) Let's hope that it doesn't occur to any of your friends to baptize their child, have a birthday, do first communion, or die during the World Cup … because:
a.) I won't go.
b.) I won't go.
c.) I won't go.
d.) I won't go.
10.) If a friend invites us some Sunday to watch football (what a grand invitation!), we will go without a doubt.
11.) The nightly tournament reviews are as important as the games themselves: don't even think about saying “but you already watched this, why don't you change the channel?”
12.) It's possible that during the time that the Cup goes on I don't bathe or shave and consequently everything around me smells like a bear's cage. Remember that you sometimes smell like fish and I don't say anything.
13.) Ivory Coast, Trinidad and Tobago, and Serbia and Montenegro aren't clothing stores like Gath & Chavez or El Corte Inglés. They are countries whose teams play in the Cup and whose games interest me even though it's the first time you hear me speak of them.
14.) Let me preempt that: “Drogba” is not the name of a new stimulant [droga means drug in Spanish]; “Tierry Henrry” is not a perfume; “Wyne Roony” is not the owner of Rintintin, nor is “Heinze” a brand of ketchup. When you hear some name or word that you don't know, I won't have any problem explaining its meaning to you so long as you have jotted it down in your recipe book and you consult me 60 days after the tournament has ended.
15.) Finally, save yourself expressions such as “It's good that the World Cup is every 4 years!” because I am now immune to foolish talk. Because, furthermore, next will come the Champions, the Americas Cup, El Apertura, El Clausura, the Spanish league, El Catenaccio, the English league, la Libertadores, the under-20's, the South America Cup, the under-17's, etc, etc, etc …
16.) If Argentina turns out to win the World Cup: I will disappear for two days, sufficient time to get wasted with my friends and celebrate. Returning to the house, I reserve the right to have the TV at my disposal for 30 days to relive every second of the tremendous achievement. If Argentina ends up eliminated: you will have the remote and TV at your disposal for some 60 days. Enough time for mourning. (Obviously, this is after the end of the tournament; once eliminated I will stand strong until the end rooting for the weakest team left.)
OK? Understood? Cappicci? Comprende? Isquiri voche Naniastka?
I love you,
Your husband
For the sake of Javier's wife and for the sake of spouses of football freaks around the world, we hope that your nation's team does not win and that sanity is soon restored.

author: David Sasaki


text:
Argentina: Playing Football and Politics · Global Voices
David Sasaki

While nealry every Argentine (ES) blog is consumed by the World Cup, Robert Wright follows the game of national politics.


text:
Armenia, Georgia: Tourism Promotion · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Onnik Krikorian discusses Georgian and Armenian plans to promote tourism to their countries to Western audiences.


text:
Armenia: Stale Bread Strategy · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Irina Petrosian writes about the use of the “strategy of stale bread” in Armenia that shopkeepers use to create loyal customers.


text:
Azerbaijan: Freedom House Rating · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Denise of neweurasia notes that Azerbaijan's Freedom House ranking has again gone down, but she takes issue with their ranking of the state of civil society in the country.


text:
Bahamas, El Salvador: Lessons from El Salvador · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

On the occasion of a visit to the Bahamas by Francisco Flores, former president of El Salvador, Larry Smith offers an overview of the country's recent political history and recently achieved economic success, calling it “a message that many Bahamian leaders are seeking to come to grips with as we speak. . .  .  it emphasizes the futility of trying to apply traditional left and right labels in today's complex and rapidly changing world.”

author: Georgia Popplewell


text:
Baltic States: Deportations Anniversary · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

J. Otto Pohl writes about a sad anniversary of the deportations of “over 17,500 Lithuanians, 17,000 Latvians and 6,000 Estonians” by the NKVD in 1941.


text:
Barbados: Muslims offer to bury bodies · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Barbados Free Press links to a news story which states that Muslims in Barbados have offered to bury the bodies of the eleven as yet unidentified men which were found on a vessel drifting off the coast of Barbados, though not asking the question: “Suppose some of the bodies are Christian and they were buried in a Muslim ceremony – then what?” Noting that Senegal is 94% Muslim, BFP also took solace in the words of a wise relative, who said: “I think Jesus will probably never no mind.”


text:
Barbados: New anthropological study · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Titlayo gives a new anthropological study of rural Barbados two thumbs up, remarking that “what I liked the most about the book is that it portrayed a Barbados I could recognise as the island I live on, not a Barbados as perceived by a couple of foreigners from a university in the States. It doesn't portray Barbados, or Barbadians, as exotic or backward or foreign.”


text:
Bermuda: The wrong way to strike · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The Limey calls the decision of teachers at a Bermuda primary school to stage a sick-out “wrong, unnecessary, self-indulgent and foolish.”


text:
Botswana: HIV campaign · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

The Nata Village Blog posts various pieces on the village activities from fund raising to a new publicity billboard campaign urging people to test for HIV

author: Sokari Ekine


text:
Cambodia: Cambodia in World Cup · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Lux at Cambodia Blog talks about Cambodian football “I am not sure whether I live long enough to see Cambodia go to World Cup because of the management and problem in Cambodia Olympic Committee that oversees Cambodian Football Association. Recent news report about corruption and controversies are killing my dream.”


text:
Cambodia: World Cup Woes · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Vutha in Cambodia discusses the seedier side effect of World Cup – gambling. “Bet on footbal was a driven force to make my youngest brother to drop out school and sold his motocycle for betting football match. Before this problem happened I always told him to stop betting football. One day, he did not stay at home for a few days. I tried to look for him but when he came back without his motocycle. And then I asked him where your motocycle was. He responded to me that he lost football match.”